I don’t recall when I read my first science fiction story by
Robert Silverberg, but it was more than forty years ago, that’s for sure. And
I’ve read and enjoyed plenty of them since then. So it’s no surprise that I
enjoyed this book-length series of interviews with Silverberg conducted by
Alvaro Zinos-Amaro. It’s a wide-ranging conversation, focusing as much on
Silverberg’s views about art, music, travel, and philosophy as it does about his writing
career and science fiction in general. Now, me personally, I would have been
fine with a little more “And then I wrote” material, but that’s just me. All in
all, this is a thoroughly entertaining volume, and if you’re a science fiction
fan at all, I give it a high recommendation. I seem to recall a few years ago
that some young SF writer asked dismissively why anybody should read Robert
Silverberg. Well, here’s the answer, right here in this book.
2 comments:
I've noticed a lot of young SF writers have "why should I read" [insert famous, influential author here] syndrome. Which I think goes a long way to explaining the state of the field today. And why, as someone who lived and breathed SF growing up, I read so little of it now, especially the more recent works. I've heard the question asked about Asimov, Heinlein, Lovecraft, Howard, and Vance in recent years. Me, those are among the writers I want to reread.
Sounds like a book I need to buy!
It's common for brash young authors to dismiss their elders/betters. I thankfully skipped that stage because I didn't get into writing until my 30s, after I left my immature 20s behind.
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