Armor
I was, for some strange reason, reading the introduction to the revised version of Ender's Game this morning... within it was a letter from a helicopter pilot waiting for the 'go' order to roll the Iraqui army out of Kuwait. The letter itself was clear and well written but it contained a reference to another book: Armor by John Steakly.
I had read this book one time, something like 20 years ago, and had largely forgotten about it. I think now as a sort of self-defense tactic. Just being reminded of it after all this time had a visceral effect one me, that feeling of horror as a shiver passed through me, the sense of fear and dread that made me go "Aaaah! Eeeek!" and have to push the book away for a second to let it pass.
Now, the problem with Armor is not that it is bad, or wrong, or anything like that. It is brilliant, compelling, challenging. It slams into you like a barrel of bricks and at the end you are just numb. It's only years later, after your mind has incorporated and processed it that you have enough emotional distance to be able to understand the full horror of it all. I'm still dealing with the flash of adrenaline just the dim memory brought on as I write this.
If you are a SF fan and have not read this book, remedy that. Seriously.
I had read this book one time, something like 20 years ago, and had largely forgotten about it. I think now as a sort of self-defense tactic. Just being reminded of it after all this time had a visceral effect one me, that feeling of horror as a shiver passed through me, the sense of fear and dread that made me go "Aaaah! Eeeek!" and have to push the book away for a second to let it pass.
Now, the problem with Armor is not that it is bad, or wrong, or anything like that. It is brilliant, compelling, challenging. It slams into you like a barrel of bricks and at the end you are just numb. It's only years later, after your mind has incorporated and processed it that you have enough emotional distance to be able to understand the full horror of it all. I'm still dealing with the flash of adrenaline just the dim memory brought on as I write this.
If you are a SF fan and have not read this book, remedy that. Seriously.