Spider Robinson has won every major award that the science fiction field has to offer with his Heinlein-influenced, solidly scientific, warmly human stories. "User Friendly" is a new solid chunk of Spider's universe that is inimitably reader friendly. Welcome to a world where your wife may be inhabited by alien symbiote; where the fabulously rich hire hit men to be their own assassins in a bizarre conspiracy; where a brave woman must change the course of Halley's Comet on its next return to save the life of her lover; and where you can't tell the real time travelers from the frauds without a program....
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"Robinson is the hottest writer to hit science fiction since Ellison...". -- Los Angeles Times
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
40 of 40 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Idea-Filled Stories About Delightful People,
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This review is from: User Friendly (Mass Market Paperback)
I've read nearly all of Spider Robinson's work, and it seems to have two constants: Fascinating ideas and characters who are both ferociously intelligent *and* genuinely nice. _User Friendly_ is no exception. Being singletons, these stories don't give the same emotional satisfaction as (say) another visit to Callahan's or Lady Sally's, but on their own terms they're both thought-provoking and full of undisguised affection for the human race and its various members.I invariably put down a Spider Robinson book with a wide grin, a racing mind, and a more optimistic outlook on life and its possibilities. If that ain't good value for your six bucks plus shipping, I don't know what is . . . Fair Warning: DO NOT read the back-cover blurb, in which an unspeakable copywriter at Baen Books gives away crucial parts of two stories and the entire point of a third.
17 of 17 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Reader Friendly,
By
This review is from: User Friendly (Mass Market Paperback)
User Friendly is a collection of short stories and essays by Spider Robinson. Though Robinson's best known short fiction is his Callahan's Crosstime Saloon series, I prefer the non-Callahan stuff myself, and that's what's we get in User Friendly.
In the title story, Robinson uses the device of an "invasion" by telepathically controlling aliens as a thinly veiled excuse to discuss Canadian/United States relations. If you thought Heinlein was preachy, he's got nothing on Robinson in this one. I tend to agree with Stephen King, "...serious ideas must always serve [the] story, not the other way around...if you want to preach, get a soapbox." My irritation is tempered by the fact I agree with everything Robinson, himself a Canadian, has his character Alice say on the subject of many Canadians' antipathy toward the good ol' US of A. "Copyright Violation" is quite possibly the funniest story I've every read. I was chortling, chuckling, and laughing out loud through most of it. If you have a shred of humor in your body, you NEED to read this. And yet it's also quite touching. For my money it's the best thing in the book - and that's saying something. "The Magnificent Conspiracy" tells the story of a Vietnam veteran's visit to a used car lot owned by a man with....unusual ideas on how to run his business - and how that's only part of his plan to change the world. In "My Mentors" Robinson gives credit to the three men who've shaped his life the most. If you're a science fiction fan, none of the three will be unknown to you. If you're familiar with Robinson's career, you could probably guess them. "Teddy the Fish" and "Admiral Bob" are homages to Theodore Sturgeon and Robert Anson Heinlein respectively, written in the rap of Lord Buckley. (If you don't know who Lord Buckley was, don't worry, Robinson is happy to tell you.) SR's love and respect for these two men shines through every word. "His Own Petard" and "Where No Man Pursueth" are spoofs. In the former Robinson skewers a prototypical SF critic; the latter is a Keith Laumer-esque adventure parody. Either this sort of thing does it for you or it doesn't. Frankly I think Robinson is at his worst when he becomes relentlessly clever and punny. Though I have to admit, naming the protagonist of "Where No Man Pursueth" Fleming Ayniss got a smile. In "Too Soon We Grow Old" a woman places herself into cryogenic sleep; it's mostly the story of what happens to her when she wakes. And I will say no more. It's wonderful. "Plus Ca Change" - another essay - is one of those tedious "the future will really suck because..." things some people find funny. In "The Gifts of the Magistrate" we meet Vonda McLisle, aka the Vandal, who stole Halley's Comet from the sky, and learn why she did it. Another fabulous story. "Distraction" is a lame joke with a lame punchline. "Orphan of Eden" sees a time traveller from the future journey to the 20th Century to address an important question on morality to that well-known historical figure, Spider Robinson. I haven't quite made up my mind about this one, whether I like it or not. In the essay "Pandora's Last Gift" Robinson looks at the state of the world from the Sixties to the late 20th Century, and concludes that hope for the future is not at all out of line. It's as thought provoking and uplifting a meditation as you'll ever read. "- And Subsequent Construction" is pretty darn good. Iris, retired relativist (a starship driver a la Norman Spinrad's Void Captains - minus the orgasms) is trying to invent a time machine, but is interrupted when she comes to work one day to find herself waiting for her. In "Not Fade Away", in the far future, the last warrior meets the last....well, that would be telling. Another winner. "Seduction of the Ignorant" is an essay (originally a speech) about illiteracy and how to fight it. (The title is an obvious play on Dr. Frederick Wertham's book, Seduction of the Innocent.) Not every story or essay in User Friendly is a home run. About half, in my subjective opinion, miss the mark. But "Copyright Violation", "My Mentors", "Teddy the Fish", "Admiral Bob", "Too Soon We Grow Old," "The Gifts of the Magistrate", "Pandora's Last Gift", "Not Fade Away" and "Seduction of the Ignorant" are all among the best short fiction and non-fiction you could ever be lucky enough to read. "- And Subsequent Construction" is not quite in their class, but still very well-done. These are short stories and essays by a master of both forms - and absolutely worth owning.
8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
A book no wanabee writer should be without,
By webman@netroute.net (Canada) - See all my reviews
This review is from: User Friendly (Mass Market Paperback)
Some really good short stories, solid writing. But what really caught my attention was the essays. They are informative and entertaining, I was pleasantly surprised to find them in the book. The author reveals much about his style and how it was developed. You are given an opportunity to learn why Spider writes the way he does. For the stories alone this book was worth the $8.00, the essays give it far more value. Keep 'em coming.
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