Science Fiction Annotation

 

Author: Martha Wells

Title: All Systems Red- The Murderbot Diaries

Genre: Science Fiction

Publication Date: 2017

Number of Pages: 152

Geographical Setting: Space

Time Period: The Future

Series: Murderbot Diaries

Plot Summary:

A New York Times and USA today best seller and the winner of multiple book awards, Murderbot explores a future world where planetary exploration is a reality and robots are a part of the everyday experience.

The self-named character of this story is called Murderbot. The story begins with Murderbot professing that “I could have become a mass murderer before I hacked my governor module, but I realized I could access the combined feed of entertainment channels carried on the company satellites.” This level of snark and self-reflection sets the tone for the rest of the story. Murderbot, aka a SecUnit, has been assigned to a team of planetary explorers by an organization referred to as the Company. Murderbot is there to ensure the teams safety and does so within the first few pages. As the story progresses it’s clear that this Murderbot is not like the other units that have come before it. This one has feelings and cares for things, albeit somewhat begrudgingly.  

The team that Murderbot is assigned to soon faces an unknown threat on the planet and comes to realize that there’s something different about their SecUnit. We learn that in this world it’s not uncommon for people to be augmented with machine parts, but there is a certain hierarchy within the system. As the team and Murderbot face this threat, together, we learn more about the team members and Murderbot. We see them all start to come together and build a certain level of trust. Throughout the story Murderbot is concerned that its carefully guarded secret will come to light. The story is fast paced and hurtles towards an end that begs for a sequel. 

Our textbook Wyatt and Saricks define the science fiction genre as one that “explorer worlds that could be, with a particular interest in futuristic science and technologies” (2019, p.93). This story of a self-aware, snarky robot fits the bill. 

Subject Headings:

• Interplanetary Voyages

• Robots

• Human Computer Interaction

Appeal:

Here are some words from one of our readings called “The Secret Language of Books, a Guide to Appeal” that I would use to describe the appeal of this book (Novelist, 2018).

• Suspenseful

• Engaging

• Action-packed 

3 terms that best describe this book:

Robots with Emotion

Space Colonization

Life on other Planets

3 Relevant Non-Fiction Works and Authors

Author: Ray Kurzweil

Book: The Singularity is Near: When Humans Transcend Biology

This book explorers the idea of a future where machines will become more intelligent than human beings. Fans of the Murderbot series would be intrigued by this idea. 

Author: James Barrat

Book: Our Final Invention: Artificial Intelligence and the End of the Human Era

This books profiles people from across the spectrum of AI and asks the question of “can we coexist with beings who’s intelligence dwarfs our own”? This idea of coexisting with robots would appeal to readers of Murderbot. 

Author: Martin Ford

Book: Rise of the Robots: Technology and the Threat of a Jobless Future

This book considers a future where Robots have replaced many, many kinds of jobs. The book Murderbot envisions a future where robots and humans work side by side. So, this book would appeal to Murderbot readers as it peers into the future of work. 

3 Relevant Fiction Works and Authors

Author: Martha Wells

Book: Artificial Condition

This is the second book in the Murderbot series and would appeal to people who enjoyed the first book. In this book we learn about the dark past of Murderbot and how it got its name. 

Author: Larry Niven

Book: The Goliath Stone

This book explores the idea of nanites being created as a miracle cure and then taking on a literal life of their own. Murderbot readers would find parallels between both stories. 

Author: Daniel H. Wilson

Book: Robopocalypse

This story is set in a world where robots are a part of everyday life and everything is fine, until it's not. Readers of Murderbot would find this story interesting and relatable with its themes of sentient robots. 

Week 7 Prompt: Author Mills aka James Patterson

While looking at the topics for this week's prompt, the one that stood out to me was author mills and James Patterson specifically. I can't remember coming across the phrase "author mill" before, but if there's anyone befitting of that sentiment it would be James Patterson. In my early days as a teen librarian who did collection development for the teen section, I can remember enjoying the first few series that James Patterson came out with. The Maximum Ride series was very popular with our teens at that time. Then Patterson begun co-authoring books and did this thing where he'd give credit to the co-author. But inevitably their names were much smaller and his was in a bigger font, splashed across the cover. This kept repeating itself every year and the Patterson shelf kept growing. Then he comes out with his own imprint and the books that are credited back to him keep growing. 

This article in the New Yorker states that Patterson gives detailed outlines of a story to his co-writers and then they have to flesh out the rest of the book. This sounds like the very definition of "author mill" to me. These co-authors do the majority of the work and Patterson gets most of the credit. Even though I find Patterson's whole setup a bit repugnant, people do enjoy the book he writes and publishes. So, I put aside my own misgivings about Patterson and order his books and add them to our library shelves. 

I have heard the argument made that Patterson is giving relatively unknown authors a chance to grow and build their own following. This idea ties in with the article we read this week "How the New Celebrity Book Clubs are Boosting Literary Sales." The article states that bookclubes like Reese Witherspoon's help boost authors book sales and help drive business to local bookstores. In the case of Witherspoon's bookclub, many of the books that are chosen for this book club get turned into movies by Witherspoon's production company. If you pair together a famous name and a relatively unknown name, you have a recipe for something that may end up benefiting both parties and readers alike. 

 

Author: Josh Malerman

Title: Bird Box

Genre: Horror

Publication Date: 2014

Number of Pages: 272

Geographical Setting: suburb of Detroit Michigan

Time Period: sometime in present day

Plot Summary:

Malorie is in her middle to late twenties and is the sole caregiver for two small children, both aged 4. Malorie has the same concerns that every mother has, is she a being a good mother, do her children have enough to eat, are they growing up too fast. Unlike mothers that have come before her, Malorie is raising her children in a world where an unknown danger lurks outside. Unlike other children, her children have never seen the outside world. Her children must learn to hear better than they see in order to survive. The world they live in is one where people wear blindfolds or risk seeing something that drives them to do harm to themselves and others.

The story flashes back to the time this unknown threat began and follows Malorie before she knew she was pregnant. We see Malorie’s life unfold as the world around her falls apart. The story also flashes back to when she leaves her house and finds other survivors. We know from the current timeline that Malorie is alone with the children and the survivors she found are no longer with her. You’re left wondering what happened to these people, knowing it can’t be anything good. The flashbacks and the present all collide, and the story builds to an ending that makes you wish the novel was longer.

Wyatt and Saricks define the horror genre as something that “plays and speaks to our worst fears” (2019, p. 237). This story plays on our fears of being hunted by something we can’t see and our fear of having to go through the world where seeing something can mean death.

Subject Headings:

• Horror fiction
• Apocalyptic literature
• Parent and child fiction

Appeal:

Here are some words from one of our readings called “The Secret Language of Books, a Guide to Appeal” that I would use to describe the appeal of this book (Novelist, 2018).

• Suspenseful
• Compelling
• Disturbing
• Descriptive

 3 terms that best describe this book:

• Sense of doom
• Slow burn
• Strong female characters

 

3 Relevant Non-Fiction Works and Authors

Author: Richard Preston

Book: The Hot Zone

This is a story about the deadliest outbreak of the Ebola virus and the efforts made to contain it. This would appeal to Bird Box readers as it taps into a deep fear of something unknown and seemingly out of our control.

 

Author: Jon Krakauer

Book: Into Thin Air

This is a story about a disastrous expedition up Mount Everest. This book would appeal to Bird Box readers as it taps into the physical and mental challenges of survival.

 

Author: Cheryl Strayed

Book: Wild From Lost to Found on the Pacific Coast Trail

This is a story about the authors 1100-mile solo trek along the Pacific Coast Trail. This book would appeal to Bird Box readers as it features a strong, independent woman, with nothing to lose, who learns what she’s capable of.

 

3 Relevant Fiction Works and Authors

Author: Josh Malerman

Book: Malorie

This is the sequel to Birdbox and is set twelve years after the first book takes place. This book would appeal to anyone who enjoyed the first book.

 

Author: David Moody

Book: Autumn

Both of these books are about a band of people who survive in a world where everything has changed. In the case of this book a world where a deadly disease turns people into unthinkable monsters.

 

Author: Kassandra Montag

Book: After the Flood

Both of these books are about strong women who fight for their survival and the survival of their children in an apocalyptic world. In the case of this book a world where Americas coastal cities and the heartland are wiped out due to rising water.

Horror Book Promotion Proposal

To promote books in the library collection that are in the horror genre I would recommend that the library create an eye-catching display. October would be an ideal month for such a display. On Pinterest I found a few fun display options. The first display uses a skeleton as a prop and has the slogan of "Dying for a good book?" It also has some horror themed props of tomb stones. The library could make use of any Halloween decorations it has to give the display even more pizzaz. Also, on Pinterest I came across the idea of putting skeleton hands in books. This would be a fun addition to the display. We could put skeleton hands in the books and have a short, catchy reason as to why a patron should check out the book. We could add slogans like:

• Heads will Role 
• Be Afraid, Be Very Afraid
• No one Can Hear you Scream
• They're Coming to Get You

Kirkus Style Review

 

Book Lovers by Emily Henry

A hard-working literary agent meets her match in the form of a not so charming editor.

The story follows Nora Stephens, a literary agent who has spent her life putting other people first. Years before our story begins, Nora is put in the role of being the sole provider for her much younger sister, Libby, after their mom passes on. Life forces Nora to take up the mantle of responsible older sister, to make hard decisions and ensure the happiness of her sister.  Nora has never been the heroine in her own story. If life were like a hallmark movie, she’s the self-professed uptight, manicured city girl who gets dumped when her boyfriend meets his match in some picturesque small town. When her now married with children, 5 months pregnant, younger sister, Libby, unexpectedly invites Nora to join her on a sister’s trip, Nora suspects that something in her sister’s life is going awry. The sisters spend a month in cottage in a small town called Sunshine, South Carolina. Libby creates a check list of challenges for Nora and encourages her to step outside her comfort zone. While in this small town, Nora keeps running into Charlie Lastra, a rival editor, who has proven to be brusque and brooding in their previous work interactions. Nora and Charlie begin to discover that perhaps their first impressions of one another were just that, first impressions. The book banter between Nora and Charlie is witty and poignant and builds a foundation for a greater understanding between the two. This sister’s trip changes everyone’s lives in unexpected ways.

In the backdrop of a small-town, sisters find their way back to each other and one sister may just find her own love story. Book Lovers is a celebration of sisters, romance and small towns.

Week 5 Prompt

 

Different publications review different types of books and they allow different types of conversations. For example, Booklist will not publish negative reviews, while, as you have all seen, Kirkus has no problems with it (check out this savage review - https://www.kirkusreviews.com/book-reviews/sebastia-alzamora/blood-crime/). Ebook only books, which are increasingly popular (especially in the romance genre) see little to no reviews in professional publications unless they have a big name author. How does this affect collection development?

It is unfortunate that some books will be reviewed in review journals, and some will not. There are so many books being published that it would be difficult, if not impossible, to sift through them all for a review. I’m sure there are plenty of worthy books that are overlooked in collection development because they are not reviewed in popular review sources. This means that library collections could be missing out on books that their community would enjoy. The beauty of having different review sources who review different materials means that a librarian will see a variety of materials and can assess what to add to a library’s collection. Each review source having different types of reviews they will publish, or not publish, also helps a librarian make more informed collection development choices. This can be especially true when the same item is reviewed in several different review sources.

I have posted two more documents in the week five files. One is two reviews of an ebook only romantic suspense novel, one from a blog and one from amazon. Look over the reviews - do you feel they are both reliable? How likely would you be to buy this book for your library?

The blog post review of this title is a more polished review and reminds me of reviews I come across in review journals. The Amazon review of this title isn’t as polished, but it does go over the main plot of the book. The reviews taken together paint a clearer picture of the books appeal. If I worked at a library where these types of books were popular, I might be inclined to purchase this book for the collection. This title has some hallmark vibes, which can be popular with some readers.

 

The other document contains some reviews of Angela's Ashes, by Frank McCourt, an incredibly popular memoir. These reviews are all from professional publications, feel free to find more on your own I just nabbed a few from the Book Review Digest database for you. How do these reviews make you feel about the possibility of adding Angela's Ashes to your collection?

All the reviews of this title paint it in a positive light and make it appear to be a book that would be worthy of adding to a library’s collection. The fact that three different review journals have positive reviews of the title would make this book stand above other titles that may not be receiving as positive of reviews. Here again, it would really depend on the library’s community and it’s readers as to whether this book was added to the collection. It would also depend on the library collection itself and if there was a need for books on this subject matter.

 

Do you think it's fair that one type of book is reviewed to death and other types of books get little to no coverage? How does this affect a library's collection?  And how do you feel about review sources that won't print negative content? Do you think that's appropriate? If you buy for your library, how often do you use reviews to make your decisions? If not, how do you feel about reviews for personal reading, and what are some of your favorite review sources?

I do think it’s unfortunate that some books will receive all the reviews and other will not. I’m sure there are books that a library and its readers are missing out on because the books have not been in the review journals a librarian reads. I think that review sources that won’t print negative content are doing librarians a disservice. There is no way for a librarian to read every book, so they must rely on review sources to make collection development decisions. If review sources are only printing positive things a librarian is missing out on crucial information. Each library and its readers are unique, and a librarian's goal is to curate a collection of books that readers want and need. I purchase books for the youth services department at my library and am a big proponent of review journals. They keep me informed of what’s being published and help me make decisions on what to add to our collection. To help combat some of the books that are missed in review journals I will look at Amazons best seller lists and their list of new books for various age categories. I also look at other lists of books that are curated on various websites like Bookriot. If I feel that a book review in a journal may be missing something I will go on Amazon and read a review from someone who hated the book. People that feel strongly about a book will often take the time to go into a lot of detail and this can help paint a clearer picture of the book.

Secret Shopper Summary

 I visited a local library that I haven’t been to in a few years, one night after work this week. The library has one service desk in their adult area. I approached the person working at the desk and said that I was looking for a good book and wondered if they had any recommendations. The person starts off by asking what I’d read recently that I enjoyed. I mentioned that I’d really been getting into thrillers and had read a book by Ruth Ware and the librarian said they had some suggestions. Then another librarian pops out from the back work area and says they also had some recommendations. The librarians ended up tag teaming the question. They walked with me to the stacks and asked questions like:

• What authors have you read that you really liked?

• What about thrillers did I enjoy, the mystery part, the pacing, detailed plots etc…

• Did I like books set in small towns or other locations?

I walked away with three books that I ended up checking out.  Plus, a nice list of future book ideas and authors, as well as an invite to a bookclub one of the librarians hosts each month. 

The librarians did not use any special tools to suggest books. Both librarians were readers of the thriller genre, so that definitely helped. It did make me wonder if it had been a different genre if it would have been as successful. But overall, it was a great experience, and I would go back for more recommendations.