Samuel R. Delany, Babel17/Empire Star

Babel 17,....I still don't know what the 17 stands for, maybe some code or something. This sounded like an interesting read, but in the end it didn't really ienchant me enough. I read through it and found the only thing enjoyable about the book for me was the characters and the culture. Rydra Wong was a great character. She was some what out of place for me though. She was empathetic and caring. She was between two wars and didn't really side with anyone. Lets not forget also that shes a hot asian chick.

One thing I thought was clever was how Delany explained what was going on through a characetr. In fact, I think theres a pretty strong argument that Rydras sidekick, knows nothing, army buddy turned lover was made a character for that soul perpouse. To learn and help us learn as well, more about the culture (which I loved) and about the other characters, whom Rydra knows pretty well already.

The concept behind the plot was very interesting. I never thought about the thought process of someone who speaks a forign language as being vastly differnt, or the concept that they may think things I would never grasp and vs. versa. The notion of language is also a huge part of the book. In the end some of the theames felt a little, under-explained, or left to our own thought. WHich, isnt such a bad thing, but lets face it, I lik being told all the answers, I dont want to have to think one up...

I don't really like Sci-Fi. But if you do, you'll most likely enjoy this book more then I did. I didn't really hate it, but I found it relly confusing and annoying to read. Why didn't I just stop and read something else you ask? Well, I was too far into it to stop, so I kept going. But so much of it was left in the dark for me, I need explainations to let me know where everyone is in the story and what is going on, but any explanations from Delany in this book are as rare as a hot girl at a Sci-Fi convention. Yes, there are hot girls at Sci-Fi conventions, but I'm talking about the ones who weren't hired to be there.
In the end Id say this book is worth reading for the sheer fact that its old school and its a the birthplace for some more modern day sci-fi. It stays on plot and reads quickly. The characters are liakable, some of the book is lengthy and hard to understand were they are at times, but otherwise, give it a read.