Don't Ask

Donald E. Westlake - Don't Ask

(This is a repost from Livejournal)

This time it is Tiny Bulcher who contacts Dortmunder and the others because of his newly-found distant cousin from a newly founded pseudo-slavic country asking for a not-so-new relic.
( Dortmunder dealing with pseudo-Baltic problems )

The Man of Gold

M. A. R. Barker - The Man of Gold

(This is a repost from Livejournal)

Tekumel is an planet in dimensional pocket in far future where most of the ancient knowledge has been lost (and one scene seems to hint why this kind of thing happens). But the various species - the humans included - have recovered and created very complex societies - with all the foibles of civilization…
( First novel of the Empire of the Petal Throne )

Zorro

Isabel Allende - Zorro

(This is a repost from Livejournal)

Zorro AKA Diego de la Vega originated as an American pulp hero, the precursor of superheroes. In this tale Isabel Allende tries to give him a past, figure out what make him what he was. This is a tale of Zorro's childhood, how he came to know Bernardo, his later servant, and learn the various skills, including fencing.
( Zorro prequel Allende style )

The Logic of Failure

Dietrich Dörner - The Logic of Failure

(This is a repost from Livejournal)

Dietrich Dörner is a German cognitive researcher. In this book he tries to find out why things go wrong - and what people do afterwards. Among other things, he describes results of various simulations where the test subjects were to try to administer couple of communities run as computer simulations, including two hypothetical African tribes and a small town with a watch factory. Many of them did not do very well. The reactions to their failure were the usual;
( Not My Fault Ad Nauseum )

Take your shirt off and cry

Nancy Balbirer – Take your shirt off and cry

( Not everybody who goes to Hollywood ends up being a star )

The Gun Seller

Hugh Laurie – The Gun Seller

( No House for warmongering )

Vurt

Jeff Noon – Vurt

( Trainspotting for cyberpunk )