[gleek]

Originally Posted by Nebogipfel

My favorite aspect of Card is that he never lets the science get in the way of the story and the characters. He makes no attempt to "immerse" the reader but lets them see natural progression of technology through his characters.

i completely agree with this statement and i just want to point out to lacedaemonian that not all scifi literature is inherently based in science. there are times when i wish we could re-name the genre entirely! for example, look at star trek (star trek: the next generation comes quick to mind). here we have a universe that so depends on the science that brings humanity across the galaxy but the majority of the plotlines for ST centered around characters and interaction between humans/aliens. there were always some episodes where all the science gobble-de-gook got in the way, yes, but they were few and far between.like ST, OSC uses science as a vehicle to propel his characters into the plot. he does not depend on it to explain his story.

this is one reason why i put OSC above frank herbert in my line of favorite scifi authors. i always feel that i'm going to get a good read with OSC: character interaction, philosophy, history... he includes all of these. frank herbert, god bless him, went overboard with science and technicalities on way too many books (i.e. the pandora series.. very technical although still a FANTASTIC read).

i know that this thread is very old but i think that lacedaemonian should try the rama series by arthur c. clarke and if you like dune but couldn't get into the minutiae of all the sequels, try the prequels written by his son, brian herbert. they're more character driven than dune (and some hate them because of it) but i thought that they were a fun read and definitely touched heavily on the human condition.