2001

This is the true heady wine of science fiction crafted by the hand of a master.

I saw the movie years ago, when I was almost too young to understand it. As always, the book was much better.

I see no reason to reiterate the plot; everyone knows it by now I'm sure. I want to talk about the craft of the writing. The style. The way he writes with a minimalist hand, like Miyamoto Musashi, doing nothing which is of no use.

The first part of the book reads like a spy novel. The second part reads like a space suspense thriller, with the style of the writing being as stark as the setting. Which is why the lush, vividly detailed conclusion is like suddenly really seeing colour after ingesting hallucinogenics; in addition to being mind-blowing in its scope and concept.

The scene where Dave confronts HAL? It's even creepier in the book than the movie. I felt terrible for a malfunctioning, murderous computer. How do you even do that? That is just good writing.

So even if you haven't read it because it's a cultural icon and a classic, read it because it's just well written. And don't be discouraged by the title; it reads just as easily today as it did when it was written.