William Gibson

 Imaginary Interviewer: What's next on the list?

Me: A little book by William Gibson, name of 'Neuromancer'.

II: What should we know about it? 

Me: It was Gibson's first novel. It came out in 1984 and was something of a sensation. It won both the Hugo and the Nebula awards. It also won the Philip K Dick award. 'Neuromancer' put "cyberpunk" on the map in a big way. 

II: What is "cyberpunk"?

Me: I think there are lots of definitions but the tone of the genre is something like "low status people living in a high tech world". Think of the movie 'Bladerunner' and the aesthetic it presented. In fact, according to Wikipedia, after Gibson saw the movie, he panicked because he was afraid people would think he had ripped it off. 

II: And it popularized cyberpunk?

Me: Well, it broke out of the normal boundaries of science fiction and gained mainstream acclaim. 'Neuromancer' is regularly listed as one of the best / most important books of the 20th century. If a magazine, like 'Time', does a top 100 list, it will be on it.

II: Have you read it before?

Me: Yes, I read it back in the 80's but didn't remember it. Then I read it again maybe 15 years ago and again didn't remember much about it. 

II: That's not exactly high praise. 

Me: No, I guess it's not. I feel like 'Neuromancer' deserves a lot of praise for the path that it showed but others have done better with the territory since. 

II: Is it worth reading? 

Me: Oh, very much so! I don't want to sound like I'm down on the novel. It *is* well done. Do read this.