The Stars My Destination

Rating:
Summary: My favorite novel.
Review: I've read hundreds of science fiction novels and almost as many non-science-fiction novels, and this book is my favorite. It's not just the "pyrotechnic" action sequences or the interesting sociological observations and plot gimmicks, great though they are. What really impresses me is how well Bester communicates the theme of man struggling to make the next leap in his evolution through an act of pure will. The ending in particular will leave you breathless. Bester's other work is almost all worth reading, especially his other great SF novel "The Demolished Man", which won the very first Hugo award for best SF novel. Why TSMD didn't win the Hugo as well is a mystery to me.

Rating:
Summary: The best SF novel ever written?
Review: Most science fiction novels are content to work on one idea , time travel -or whatever , Besters' work explores scores of original ideas , they explode off the page in a riot of imagination . Published as 'TIGER TIGER' in the UK (a much better title incidently)this book has pace , plot , character , and huge vitality .

Rating:
Summary: Profound Influence Value
Review: Like the Beats, James Joyce, Aldus Huxley, Lou Reed, Herman Melville, and J. D. Salinger, here is a great wordsmith. Like Will Eisner's "the Spirit" and Jack Kirby's creations, here is the real Art of America. Here is Nabocov, Pynchon, Barry Goldwater, and Noam Chomsky. William Blake is Alive and Well.

Rating:
Summary: Probably the best SF book ever written!
Review: What can I say about this book? I first picked it up in the early '70s and since then I've read it six or seven times. It may seem a bit dated by todays standards but the quality of writing holds through. The late Alfred Bester was the kind of genius that only comes along once every generation and his style of writing has been copied by many modern authors, some good and some.... well you know all about the hacks out there. Too many book reviews compare Phillip K. Dick's work with Bester's but PKD would be the first to admit that even he was influenced by Bester's "cyber punk" before the term was even invented! "Stars" still stands (IMHO) as the best science fiction/adventure book ever written! LONG LIVE GULLY FOYLE!!!

Rating:
Summary: Do Not Miss!
Review: The Stars My Destination is like setting off an armload of fireworks in a broom closet - ideas come flashing at your head almost faster than you can duck! I don't think there has ever been another book quite like this, in *any* genre.

Rating:
Summary: Classic Science Fiction for those bored of the current pulp
Review: Bester is like Clapton with a guitar. He keeps you involved, and writes like he is attacking you with a jackhammer. This book is for those like me that are sick of romantic novels pretending to be fantasy and science fiction. This is a great, exciting and classic read. If you are a true fan, you will love it. Reminds me of the feeling I had when reading Stanley Weinbaum's work.If you don't know who he is, try ordering "A Martian Odyssey."

Rating:
Summary: What a disappointment!!!!!
Review: When I read all the rave reviews on this book, I eagerly ordered it anticipating reading a great book. Instead, it was a huge disappointment. Many of the older Science Fiction books I have read repeatedly across the decades; like anything by Lloyd Biggle, Jr. (especially "Silence is Deadly") or Jack Vance, have captured my attention and fueled my imagination each and every time. But Bester's book was not interesting to me in any way. The entire tone of the book was so impersonal on every level that I didn't care about the trials and tribulations, successes, or desires of any character at any time. Bester's literary style was just so much page after page of viewing from the outside various uninvolving plot developments. In the latter, I am probably biased since strong sociopolitical overtones have never interested me and any book, especially Science Fiction. Even the unique concept of 'Jaunting' was ruined for me by the sketchy character development and emphasis on political chicanery. The last time I was so disenchanted with a book was when I read "Red Mars".

Rating:
Summary: Alfred Bester's Intense Classic Stands the Test of Time
Review: Although Bester's story is dated with references to the atomic age it still captures the reader's imagination with incredible images and scenes, not to mention a story that moves forward so quickly that you can't put it down. I was mesmerized by the intense and hardcore situations that encountered Gully Foyle throughout the story: trapped in a coffin like room in the vacuum of space for months, imprisoned in a jail engulfed in complete darkness, traveling through time with your flesh on fire and crossing the vast distances of the universe to witness planets and stars that no one has ever seen. A guaranteed good read!

Rating:
Summary: One of the best Sf-books ever written !
Review: I just wanna say that every reader should read this book.A poem to the future of mankind.A really hard critic of today ! Like Sturgeon said before "If you want to know the future read history, if you want to know today read Sf" (not word to word like this but the same meaning !)

Rating:
Summary: An Incredible Novel
Review: I loved this book. It has one of those plots that just keeps you riveted for the entire novel, with realistic, involved characters which give the novel depth. It has been compared to the Count of Monte Cristo, but I do not really see the connections. I've read the Count of Monte Cristo and I loved it, but just because a book has action and revenge does not mean it is a modern version of a classic. Notice that I did not use the word rip-off there. Most people who consider this to be a new Count of Monte Cristo agree that it is an original work and also a classic. Regardless, see what you think, if there's any book I recommend, it is this one. Please, do yourself a favor, read this book.