If you recently spoke of the Chinese writer liu cixin as one of the great current representatives of the gender of science fiction in its interplanetary version, of justice is also to quote John Scalzi, the American author who since his irruption back in 2006 has also lavished on a multitude of works around a humanity to the conquest of new worlds beyond our blue ball.
Among Scalzi's interplanetary approaches we always find that philosophical and sociological treatment of humanity and the advances that point to new conquests in many aspects, including the possible future colonization of new worlds.
Science fiction that opens up to astronomy as a field to be explored halfway between imagination and the suspicion that there must be something more out there, always transcends the contemplative about what we are and what we do in the middle of a dark cosmos where the Earth rocks at the whim of chance and the unknown causality of the universe.
And nothing better than meeting an author like Scalzi, capable of constructing stories of encounters between civilizations or of space odysseys in search of something and derived towards a serendipity such as the discovery of the navigator Columbus when the seas were as unknown as the dark oceans. more than bordering the milky way.
Top 3 Recommended Novels by John Scalzi
Humanity divided
The John Scalzi thing is interstellar science fiction, which after all is the fantasy that we all have since childhood. The same that in many cases leads us to read about everything that is loaded with a good dose of scientific assumption.
In the case of John, his series “The Old Guard”, to which this fifth installment belongs, he would surely be born in debt to that child who was and who observed the sky with the frustrating longing to reach some star.
In the case of this book Mankind Divided, the author returns to the dilemma of good and evil, mutated to his version of human colonists versus alien confederation.
Said like this, in its raw form, it may sound like an overly fanciful futuristic story, and in terms of setting it is. But (and here comes John Scalzi's big but), this writer is able to normalize everything to make us participate in a good story, an extremely entertaining plot that is not subject to the overwhelming setting.
In short, a science fiction narrative proposal that could well be read by a fan of the mystery or thriller genre. Only, counting on the extraordinary futuristic setting, we gain a scenic richness that also offers a multitude of possibilities.
Imagination, gentlemen, imagination. Our world is fine as a foundation for great readings, but why not transfer everything to a hypothetical future? Why not enjoy what could be? A true journey light years from our world without leaving the sofa or the rattling train seat. A thrilling adventure that takes us through a silent and dark cosmos from the single plane of each page.
Official synopsis: Lieutenant Harry Wilson has an impossible mission: help protect the union of human colonies in the face of a terrible revelation. Achieving the survival of the Colonial Union will require all the political cunning and subtlety that its diplomats can muster. In parallel, Harry and his boys will form a "B Team" in charge of facing the unexpected ...
redshirts
As a mid-military grade, Andrew Dahl sees his new assignment on the Intrepid ship as a consideration of performance under the military command of the Universal Union. It is the XNUMXth century and the search for new planets in which to carry out all kinds of prospecting continues to be a top priority.
The Intrepid easily reaches new planets where aliens are not always receptive to its arrival. With important doses of humor (a mixture that is certainly suggestive), and with the prospect that the ship is crossing the universe with a plan never revealed to Dahl himself, in charge of the ship's xenobiology section, the expedition's secret is opening new notions about the foundation of the mission.
The conflicts and deaths of some of the lower-ranking crew members leave Andrew uncertain, until he is able to connect the dots that will present the real end of the adventure.
The old guard
Perhaps the most recognized work of the author. Although for me below those indicated above. Being his second novel and the first of a series, it seemed to me that he suffered from a certain fledgling, and in some respects it seems a plagiarism of Troopers, of Robert A. Heinlein, the great master of the genre.
But, in any case, we must recognize the original rethinking. Because The Old Guard is literally a selection of ancient humans over 75 years of age who are preparing to compose the Defense Forces that will try to defend the interests of humanity in space, an idea that attracts thousands of elderly people willing to exhaust their days. in that ideal.
Considering that up there the elderly can behave like burly young people, everything changes perspective. With a point of sexual vindication for all ages, this novel with comic overtones at times, captivates and disconcerts at the same level, always within an astronomical setting in which Scalzi was always a master.
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