From New York Times bestselling and modern master of science fiction, Iain M. Banks, The State of the Art is the acclaimed collection of Banks's short fiction.
“Banks is a phenomenon...writing pure science fiction of a peculiarly gnarly energy and elegance.” –William Gibson
This is a striking addition to the body of Culture lore, and adds definition and scale to the previous works by using the Earth of 1977 as contrast. The stories in the collection range from science fiction to horror, dark-coated fantasy to morality tale. All bear the indefinable stamp of Iain Banks's staggering talent.
“Few of us have been exposed to a talent so manifest and of such extraordinary breadth.” –New York Review of Science Fiction
“[Banks] can summon up sense-of-wonder Big Concepts you've never seen before and display them with narration as deft as a conjuror's fingers." –scifi.com
The Culture series:
Consider Phlebas
The Player of Games
Use of Weapons
The State of the Art
Excession
Inversions
Look to Windward
Matter
Surface Detail
The Hydrogen Sonata
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"[Banks] can summon up sense-of-wonder Big Concepts you've never seen before and display them with narration as deft as a conjuror's fingers."
— scifi.com
Banks is a phenomenon...writing pure science fiction of a peculiarly gnarly energy and elegance.
— William GibsonBanks writes with a sophistication that will surprise anyone unfamiliar with modern science fiction.
— The New York TimesBanks never lets up in a dizzying array of characters, mind-bending ideas, and dazzling action.
— BooklistFew of us have been exposed to a talent so manifest and of such extraordinary breadth.
— New York Review of Science FictionNobody does it better.
— Times (UK)Banks writes space opera on the grand scale: he measures time in eons, space in lightyears, tragedies in gigadeaths.
— TimeBe the first to write a review about this audiobook!
Iain Banks (1954–2013) was a Scottish author considered one of the most powerful, innovative, and exciting writers of his generation. He wrote mainstream fiction under the name Iain Banks and science fiction as Iain M. Banks. Following the publication and success of The Wasp Factory in 1984, he began to write full time. His first science fiction book, Consider Phlebas, was released in 1987, marking the start of the popular Culture series. His books have been adapted for theater, radio, and television. In honor of his science fiction work, an asteroid was named for him in 2013, and asteroid (5099) Iainbanks now resides in the main asteroid belt of the Sol system.
Peter Kenny, an AudioFile Earphones Award–winning narrator, is a talented and experienced actor, voice-over artist, singer, musician, and designer, with over twenty-five years of experience working in theater, film, television, and audio. He has achieved great critical acclaim for multicharacter recordings of audiobooks by authors such as Iain Banks, Christopher Priest, and Edmund St Aubyn.