The main characters of this science fiction, fiction story are , . Stars in My Pocket Like Grains of Sand is a science fiction masterpiece, an essay on the inexplicability of sexual attractiveness, and an examination of interstellar politics among far-flung worlds. 4.0 out of 5 stars Stars in My Pocket Like Grains of Sand. First published in 1984, the novel's central issues--technology, globalization, gender, sexuality, and multiculturalism--have only become more pressing with the passage of time. He was born to a prominent black family on April 1, 1942, and raised in Harlem. At best such an account as I might write would read like the life of anyone else, with, now and again, a bizarre and interruptive incident, largely mysterious and completely demystified-- at least that's what it has become without the day-to-day, moment-to-moment web of wanting that you have unstrung from about my universe. The prose, the narration, the emotion, the imagery. Korga has a temporary escape from servitude when a woman buys him as a sex slave, but gives him technology enabling him to read books. And it was not at all what I expected. Still, so much of my social education has been effected in such gatherings, so many true friendships have had their beginnings in meetings much like yours and mine, that I feel these affairs must not only be endured, but negotiated with a certain energy, if not commitment.”, “How true,' returned the measured, featureless voice. I found the use of names confusing. that nine hundred and ninety-nine people out of a thousand do NOT know it- which goes for the working assumption too.”, “When doctors think they’ve eradicated a disease, they stop looking for it. Stars in My Pocket Like Grains of Sand is a science-fiction masterpiece, an essay on the inexplicability of sexual attractiveness, and an examination of interstellar politics among far-flung worlds. The book was published in multiple languages including English, consists of 356 pages and is available in Paperback format. The first tenth or so of the book follows Rat Korga, a man born into poverty on the p. Like many of Delany's novels, Stars in My Pocket Like Grains of Sand feels ahead of its time, in the way it openly explores queer characters and queer desires. Oh boy, where to start here. Das ist der Anfang von Samuel R. Delanys Roman Stars in My Pocket Like Grains of Sand, auf Englisch erschienen 1984 (auf Deutsch: In meinen Taschen die Sterne wie Staub). In a single gesture you've turned me into the most ordinary of human creatures and at once left me an obsessive, pleasureless eccentric, trapped in a set of habits which no longer have reason because they no longer lead to reward. But I don't have it.”, “We're plotting to steal time itself from you.... We're going to spike it to the floor as it slips by. I don't require the proverbial "page turner," but if whole sections could be removed without making a difference then this isn't a work of fiction, it's a literary exercise. Skip to main content.sg. The trouble was, the narrative read like a series of carefully imagined set pieces, all vivid and strange yet not sewn together securely enough. Stars in My Pocket Like Grains of Sand - Kindle edition by Delany, Samuel R.. Download it once and read it on your Kindle device, PC, phones or tablets. ', “...in a universe where both information and misinformation are constantly suspect, reviewed and drifing as they must be (constantly) by and between the two, a moment when either information or misinformation turns out to be harmless must bloom, when surrounded by the workings of desire and terror, into the offered sign of all about it, making and marking all about it innocent by contamination.”, “When I was packing those, I caught myself taking all the important, profound, and indispensable titles I could – nearly filled the box. Something that does strike me about it—especially when compared to other Delanys—there’s actually very little sex in this one, precious little should that be what you’re looking for. And she can play the two off against each other.”, “Poetry is what is avoided as it is surrounded by translation.”, “‪If only because there is so much to know in our human universe, the working assumption you can go on is: You may assume, about absolutely any fact (how many transuranic elements are there? This was a hard book to rate. It begins with the story of Rat (the narrator’s big-O other or little-o other; I’m not fluent in Lacan, but dammit, it’s one of them) before moving on to the narrator’s seemingly endless account of his world, other worlds, terrains, suns and moons, planets and space travel. Analysis and discussion of characters in Samuel R. Delany's Stars in My Pocket Like Grains of Sand Stars in My Pocket Like Grains of Sand is a science fiction masterpiece, an essay on the inexplicability of sexual attractiveness, and an examination of interstellar politics among far-flung worlds. As an exploration of ideas in the form of fiction, it is a success; as a novel with a narrative and compelling characters, it is a failure. It was, more than most anything I've read (or so it seems right now, in the afterglow), like reading a book written from an alternate universe (the one in which it is set? And so after my Delany period, I reapproached him with reluctance—my taste in reading has changed, and I wondered if his initial appeal would endure (I’ve restarted Dhalgren numerous times only to decide: Not yet). Stars in My Pocket Like Grains of Sand traces the lives of two characters born on planets light-years apart but drawn together by forces beyond their control. There is a lot to take in. […]”, “I can’t …” Then, beside Mother Dyeth’s silent personality column,”, “Will sex between humans ever lose its endlessly repeated history?”, “Shiftrunes?” “Letters that are pronounced one way on their first occurrence in a text, another on their second, another on their third, and so on in a fixed sequence. Authors who can surpass this albatross of introducing an 'other,' like Ursala K. Le Guin (training in anthropology helps, apparently! The downfall of most science fiction is the difficulty of chronicling new bodies, worlds, and cultures for the reader. it's a level of thought about our 2010 society (from 25 years ago) that i don't believe has been acheived since. The experience of reading a book can of course be heavily dependent on how you feel at the time. If you can smile at what you see through, it’s sometimes illuminating.”, “The Family/Sygn conflict is in the process of creating a schism throughout the entire galaxy, concerning just what exactly a woman, “truth provides the most diplomatic answer): “I don’t believe I’ve ever attended one since I was your age where I didn’t feel, beforehand, an oppressive dread at the isolation that can reign in a large enough group of even the most intimate friends, much less an admixture of intimates, acquaintances, and strangers. Most characters remain cyphers, slightly unknowable to us, and possibly our protagonist. There were times when I wasn't even sure it was a good book. For that, I like the book. In another sense this book needs to be read when one is able to concentrate and focus. Refresh and try again. Hello Select your address All Hello, Sign in. Read this book using Google Play Books app on your PC, android, iOS devices. 0 Interested . Hello Select your address All Hello, Sign in. Taking advantage of my position as a buyer for a large book distributor, I monopolized some of his time in the Bantam booth while he waited to do a signing—something that is surely tedious for many authors, some of whom will seek diversion with anyone willing to talk with him or her. I wanted to lean my head back and lick it – not from desire but from that idiocy always there to subvert desire and render it ludicrous. The sublime yields to desire. This is a book about becoming human, and a book about being human. ), I had an opportunity to meet Samuel R. Delany at an ALA or ABA [now BookExpo]. is responsible for synthesizing the actual conceptual framework of the internet, and some of the consequences that might arise from an informationally-saturated society. maybe my favorite piece of science fiction. Perfect for slave labour. ^.^) and Octavia E. Butler, achieve an undeniable commentary on contemporary social life. “You've blotted the rich form of desire from my life and left me only some vaguely eccentric behaviors that have grown up to integrate so much pleasure into the mundane world around me. It doesn’t. Sex doesn't always sell, but it can break things up when the pace starts to slacken. If you love the fantasy genre, this is the season for you! At best such an account as I might write would read like the life of anyone else, with, now and again, a bizarre and interruptive incident, largely mysterious and completely demystified-- at least that's what it has become without the day-to-day, moment-to-moment web of wanting that you have unstrung from about my universe. Themes of loss, memory, desire (that damn Lacan! or another?). “That surface bore the swirls and lines – fainter of course, and interrupted, and scarred – that, below, would let his finger print. Some of these experiments may have failed, but I'd much rather read an interesting but failed experiment than an unambitious sufficiency. The novel follows his life as a slave of corporations (in Rhyonon, it’s illegal and immoral for people to own slaves, but it’s okay for corporations), emphasizing the narrowness of his existence, and the moment where it becomes something more. ), I had an opportunity to meet Samuel R. Delany at an ALA or ABA [now BookExpo]. Publisher: Grafton Books, 1986. For that, I like the book. First published in 1984, the novel's central issues - technology, globalization, gender, sexuality, and multiculturalism - have only become more pressing with the passage of time. Stars in My Pocket Like Grains of Sand: Delany, Samuel R., Freedman, Carl: Amazon.sg: Books. In another sense this book needs to be read when. A stunning, many-layered speculation on the future of humanity, on interaction between cultures, on love and sex, on religion and politics, STARS IN MY POCKETS LIKE GRAINS OF SAND is an enduring masterpiece by one of science fiction’s greatest writers. Stars in my pocket like grains of sand by Samuel R. Delany, 2004, Wesleyan University Press edition, in English First published in 1984, the novel's central issues--technology, globalization, gender, sexuality, and multiculturalism--have only become more pressing with the passage of time. Absolutely what you want in a Science Fiction epic. The rest of the book is told from the first person perspective of Marq Dyeth, an industrial diplomat who puts the “cosmos” in cosmopolitan—Dyeth’s job makes sure he* spends a lot of time communicating between denizens of a multitude of planets. This was a favorite read of mine back in my twenties. So if the disease itself suddenly shows up again, they may not even recognize it; they may even mistake it for an entirely new one.”. I will give Delany credit for throwing me a curveball. Taking advantage of my position as a buyer for a large book distributor, I monopolized some of his time in the Bantam booth while he waited to do a signing—something that is surely tedious for many authors, some of whom will seek diversion with anyone willing to talk with him or her. Some look for a deeper meaning, I don't think you should. He returns to slavery however and not long after that, his planet (Rhyonon) is destroyed. Many works dissolve into long flailing descriptions of aliens and drawn-out dialogs on cultural meanings. And that's not quite what I go. We’d love your help. All the criticisms are true: it is grandiose and far too wordy, what little plot there is doesn't resolve, waiting on a sequel that never came. The family lived in the top two floors of the three-story private house between five- and six-story Harlem apartment buildings. Stars in My Pocket Like Grains of Sand Quotes, “You've blotted the rich form of desire from my life and left me only some vaguely eccentric behaviors that have grown up to integrate so much pleasure into the mundane world around me. Reviewed in the United States on August 30, 2019. His father, Samuel Ray Delany, Senior, ran a successful Harlem undertaking establishment, Levy & Delany Funeral Home, on 7th Avenue, between 1938 and his death in 1960. I was uncertain about who was human, who not and the continual shift of pronouns made this even more difficult. Obwohl es sehr viel Space gibt. Delany's prose takes some getting used to and I have even read reviews of his work that sang to the tune of, "Does he have to be so high and mighty in his verbiage? Let me start by saying that I think this is a masterpiece but I am not entirely sure. Stars in My Pocket Like Grains of Sand is a science fiction masterpiece, an essay on the inexplicability of sexual attractiveness, and an examination of interstellar politics among far-flung worlds. The idea that there could be such a thing as someone's "perfect erotic object" calculated mathmatically...that's a powerful reworking of Disney's "prince charming" myth, and I love how he Delany uses the embodied Queerness to examine it. His mother, Margaret Carey Boyd Delany, was a library clerk in the New York Public Library system. I definitely wasn’t in the right frame of mind for this book, as the whole time I was terribly worried about my Nana being ill in hospital. Like many of Delany's novels, Stars in My Pocket Like Grains of Sand feels ahead of its time, in the way it openly explores queer characters and queer desires. All I can look for now, when I have the energy, is lost desire itself-- and I look for it by clearly inadequate means. An expansive exploration of a multigalactic, polyamorous universe, centered on a space-faring political envoy who is the perfect sexual match to the sole survivor of a destroyed planet. Stars in My Pocket Like Grains of Sand is a science-fiction masterpiece, an essay on the inexplicability of sexual attractiveness, and an examination of interstellar politics among far-flung worlds. Delany has created a masterpiece here. Few sentences within seem li. Worth it alone for the 1990 afterword about Frederic Jameson and Kim Stanley Robinson where Delany situates his own writing in the "fragmentation of the self.". December 15th 2004 His mother, Margaret Carey Boyd Delany, was a library clerk in the New York Public Library system. men), for more than a hundred-twenty years now, has been reserved for the general sexual object of ‘she’, during the period of excitation, regardless of the gender of the woman speaking or the gender of the woman referred to.”, “It's a beautiful universe... wondrous and the more exciting because no one has written plays and poems and built sculptures to indicate the structure of desire I negotiate every day as I move about in it.”, “Bitch, on that world, was what men called women they were extremely fond of or extremely displeased with when the woman was not there.”, “The dawn of space travel is the dawn of woman.”, “What does it … feel like, to have lost an entire world?’, “The father-mother-son that makes up the basic family unit, at least as the Family has described it for centuries now, represents a power structure, a structure of strong powers, mediating powers, and subordinate powers, as well as paths for power developments and power restrictions.”, “Desire isn’t appeased by its object, only irritated into something more than desire that can join with the stars to inform the chaotic heavens with sense.”, “You give me so much pleasure, why should I ever want to hurt you?”. First published in 1984, the novel’s central issues–technology, globalization, gender, sexuality, and multiculturalism–have only become more pressing with the passage of time. gibson's book is like an impressionist painting, a piece of graphic design, an anime short; it's a style injection, with both ephemeral and lasting effects. The book presents deeply personal perspectives within a dizzying melange of intergalactic cultures and civilizations—and yet, at times, that second half is sometimes to the book’s detriment, as it feels like it lacks a sense of unity, upon first reading. Another excellent novel. ), overwhelm the Real. Download for offline reading, highlight, bookmark or take notes while you read Stars in My Pocket Like Grains of Sand. Initial apprehension, even revulsion, slowly. It's great that Delany "predicted the internet" in this book, but to try to parse that out of the obtuse writing was a chore, and certainly not a pleasure that I expect to get out of reading. Und sehr viel Opera. this book is a really profound mediation on how drastically sophisticated information technology might impact those dynamics, casting bigger and stronger nets between those who share access to the same data, and driving deeper and darker fissures between the haves and the have-nots. The first tenth or so of the book follows Rat Korga, a man born into poverty on the planet Rhyonon, who agrees to allow a procedure that changes his neurological composition so he’ll accept any verbal instruction he’s given, in exchange for room and board. When one of my groups decided to read this one, I thought I was ready. Stars in my pocket like grains of sand by Samuel R. Delany, 1986, Grafton Books edition, in English What does matter, at least to me, is that Lacan has come to be one of the many languages I don’t speak but will occasionally recognize when I hear it. If ever I have truly needed a name glossary, it is with this book. ‘Stars in My Pocket’ is a meandering sci-fi novel of ideas, with a great deal more world-building than plot. Hello, Sign in. WTH?! Just a moment while we sign you in to your Goodreads account. It's as though I cannot even remember what I once desired. This wouldn’t necessarily bother me normally, however I’m not at my best right now. First published in 1984, the novel's central issues - technology, globalization, gender, sexuality, and multiculturalism - have only become more pressing with the passage of time. The prologue of this book is a third person telling of Rat Korga's life. By art, we can only do it through a disinterested precision which represses, while it mimes, all the interest that impels it. Cart All. To be honest, I thought the middle section would go on forever—it was slow, I was slow, and then…finally, the narrator encounters Rat (now Rat Korga). It requires a lot of work from the reader and pays scant attention to providing easily digestible rewards. Use features like bookmarks, note taking and highlighting while reading Stars in My Pocket Like Grains of Sand. Stars in My Pocket Like Grains of Sand is a science fiction masterpiece, an essay on the inexplicability of sexual attractiveness, and an examination of interstellar politics among far-flung worlds. I definitely wasn’t in the right frame of mind for this book, as the whole time I was terribly worried about my Nana being ill in hospital. 2 stars is a VERY generous rating for this book. of course it's about lot of other things too - perception, freedom, and love. Stars in my pocket like grains of sand by Samuel R. Delany, 1984, Bantam Books edition, in English Stars in my pocket like grains of sand by Samuel R. Delany, 1984, Bantam Books edition, in English Error rating book. The ancient, dimorphic form ‘he’, once used exclusively for the genderal indication of males (cf. Stars in My Pocket Like Grains of Sand is a science fiction masterpiece, an essay on the inexplicability of sexual attractiveness, and an examination of interstellar politics among far-flung worlds. Delaney Samuel R. 3.86 avg rating • (2,541 ratings by Goodreads) Softcover ISBN 10: 0586067493 ISBN 13: 9780586067499. Skip to main content.sg. I imagine this says something about my priorities, but: so what? The book presents deeply personal perspectives within a dizzying melange of intergalactic cultures and civilizations—and yet, at times, that second half is sometimes to the book’s detriment, as it feels like it lacks a sense of unity, upon first reading. Author (s): Samuel R. Delany, Carl Freedman (Foreword) ISBN: 0819567140 (ISBN13: 9780819567147) Edition language: Amazon.com: Stars in My Pocket Like Grains of Sand (9781982648268): Delany, Samuel R., Rudnicki, Stefan: Books He’s also fluent in pornography, which admittedly, had something to do with my initial interest. Reading about the shapes of bodies and the forms of cities that are so unfamiliar, yet so thoroughly connected to the signs and symbols that define our own bodies and our own cities reminded me of what it is like to try an exotic new delicacy and then eventually grow to enjoy it. He was born to a prominent black family on April 1, 1942, and raised in Harlem. Which is good, I guess. Few sentences within seem like they could exist in any other book. Our human heat was a third creature bevelling between us.”, “In Arachnia as it is spoken on Nepiy, ‘she’ is the pronoun for all sentient individuals of whatever species who have achieved the legal status of ‘woman’. To see what your friends thought of this book. When I first read "Dhalgren" years ago I didn't think I would be in for the rather graphic sex scenes that the novel sometimes delved into (though given its length there was plenty of room for all kinds of stuff, my favorite kind of kitchen sink writing). Much of the time I had no idea what was going on or why it was relevant, or at least knew I was only getting a few layers of the context at most, but each sentence was, in turn: a bafflement, a delight, an oddity, a thrill, an obscurity, and this was more than enough to dazzle. Just a moment while we sign you in to your Goodreads account. But one of the more eccentric librarians at the internment compound I’d gotten permission to riffle had put up a whole shelf full of cubes of women writers or texts about women. All I can look for now, when I have the energy, is lost desire itself-- and I look for it by clearly inadequate means. Perfect for slave labour. Account & Lists Account Returns & Orders. This was a ‘tasty’ piece of writing, post-modernist to the core, but like the universal flows of information that permeate its (and our) W(w)eb, it wasn’t always accessible. “Well, your perfect erotic object remains only in recognition memory); and his absolute absence from reconstruction memory becomes the yearning that is, finally, desire. All Quotes I kept getting confused about whether a name referred to a person, a place, a planet or a star. By the time I’d read SiMPLGoS (1985), Dhalgren was already atop my Favorite List; other Delanys had been dutifully accomplished or would be—the Neveryón series, The Tides of Lust, Hogg: A Novel and The Mad Man, et al. The pursuit of Rat Korga by curious crowds was much more interesting. Free download or read online Stars in My Pocket Like Grains of Sand pdf (ePUB) book. I expected is very much of its time, which is uneasy sci-fi. May have failed, but: so what 3.86 avg rating • ( 2,541 ratings by ). Of introducing an 'other, ' Like Ursala K. 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