Relay-Version: version B 2.10 5/3/83; site utzoo.UUCP Posting-Version: version B 2.10.2 9/18/84; site topaz.ARPA Path: utzoo!watmath!clyde!burl!ulysses!mhuxr!mhuxn!ihnp4!houxm!mtuxo!mtunh!mtung!mtunf!ariel!vax135!timeinc!phri!pesnta!amd!amdcad!decwrl!decvax!mcnc!philabs!cmcl2!seismo!columbia!topaz!Postmaster@bbn-vax From: Postmaster@bbn-vax Newsgroups: net.sf-lovers Subject: Alice through the eye of a needle,'' Gilbert Adair Message-ID: <2447@topaz.ARPA> Date: Sat, 6-Jul-85 00:14:51 EDT Article-I.D.: topaz.2447 Posted: Sat Jul 6 00:14:51 1985 Date-Received: Wed, 3-Jul-85 08:16:29 EDT Sender: daemon@topaz.ARPA Organization: Rutgers Univ., New Brunswick, N.J. Lines: 27 From: dm@bbn-vax.arpa After seeing the positive review of this book in sf-lovers, I rushed right out to buy it. Nano-review: read Miss Manners, instead. Micro-review: wait 'til it comes out in paperback, and get it to read to your four-year-old kid. Review: a pale imitation of Lewis Carroll. Too many authorial intrusions in the manner of: ``I sure hope YOU understand what I mean, dear Reader, I certainly don't!'' Not enough puns. There's some good level confusion stuff (particularly the Emu's typographical poem), but overall I found the whole thing somewhat tiresome. I think Douglas Hofstadter should take up writing ``Alice'' books. Or maybe Rudy Rucker. Or maybe they should collaborate (Rucker could restrain Hofstadter's cute-glands and Hofstadter could restrain Rucker's glands (although a soft-core Alice might be kind of interesting... Wasn't there a hard-core Alice done once?). Maybe Martin Gardner should drop by occasionally while they're at it. Or Dan Dennett. I remember a long time ago the ``Chicago Seed'' (probably the most beautiful of the underground papers) ran a parody of Alice in Wonderland where a good deal of the wonder was chemically stimulated.