XPost: alt.usage.english, rec.arts.books, rec.arts.sf.written   
   From: wthyde1953@gmail.com   
      
   Cryptoengineer wrote:   
   > On 2/2/2026 11:04 AM, John Ames wrote:   
   >> On Sat, 31 Jan 2026 05:32:45 +0200   
   >> Steve Hayes  wrote:   
   >>   
   >>> Lewis, C.S. 1960. That hideous strength.   
   >>> Lewis, C.S. 1952. Out of the silent planet.   
   >>> Lewis, C.S. 1953. Voyage to Venus Perelandra.   
   >>   
   >> "That Hideous Strength" is kind of a mess, but an audacious one. His   
   >> other two "Space Trilogy" books are fine indeed, and all three had a   
   >> major influence on me as a writer. A fascinating blend of old-school   
   >> "planetary romance," theology/mysticism, and social commentary.   
   >>   
   >>> Miller, Walter M. 1993 [1959] A canticle for Leibowitz.   
   >>   
   >> And *speaking* of audacious sci-fi with a shot of theology/mysticism!   
   >> Magnificent work, should be required reading.   
   >>   
   >   
   > Perelandra is a very strange book.   
   >   
   > The whole Space Trilogy is deeply imbued with Lewis's religous   
   > outlook.   
      
   I found the first two books to be of mild interest.  From the Mars book   
   I can only recall the speculations as to Martian grammar, which tells   
   you how little the rest of the book interested me.   
      
   "That Hideous Strength", on the other hand, I found far more   
   interesting. Flawed or not it felt like more of a novel with actual   
   people in it.   
      
   Thumb firmly on the plot scales, and not subtly, but that is to be expected.   
      
   William Hyde   
      
   --- SoupGate-Win32 v1.05   
    * Origin: you cannot sedate... all the things you hate (1:229/2)