Alfred Bester was not a prolific novelist, publishing only five in a 30 year span, but what he did write is generally considered top shelf. He opened with two classics in the 1950s–The Stars My Destination and The Demolished Man–and then let nearly 20 years go by, spending much of his time writing television comedies, before bringing out 1973’s The Computer Connection.
In this medium future story Bester posits a group of immortals, made so by galvanic shock during near-death experiences, who generally befriend each other but do not operate en mass to, say, rule the world. Our protagonist Guig–short for Grand Guignol, as all the long lifers have adopted nicknames of famous mortals–is given to experiments aimed at purposely creating new immortals and after many attempts he seems to succeed. He hasn’t though, and instead a massively powerful computer has inserted itself between Dr. Sequoya Guuess and death, using intricate linkages between the neurons of Guess’s brain and one of the computer’s main components to create a vast network of formerly independent devices.
The story is wild and vivid yet clearly written at the end of the ’60s. Political, sociological and economic developments twist but depend on popular ideas of that time and most of which have become irrelevent or bypassed in the intervening time though Bester is such a good writer that Connection remains an interesting, exciting, enjoyable read. This edition, from iBooks, has a nice Forward by Bester’s friend Harlan Ellison.
recommended
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