I just finished reading "Look to Windward" by Iain M. Banks (the picture will take you to its amazon.co.uk page). I enjoyed it a lot and will write a little more in the extended comment. Warning: spoilers, of one form or another, will almost certainly follow.Banks' universe is fascinating. He posits a civilisation which is called the Culture, appearing to have grown, at least in part, from humanity. The Culture is simply one of a number of civilisations which have reached roughly the same level of cultural achievement, which level seems to be the zenith. The next step is called Sublimation, where pretty much the entire civilisation leaves the physical universe for a higher plane of existence. So, this zenith, then. Economic scarcity is a thing of the past, as highly-advanced artificial intelligences (called Minds) direct all economic activity with the utmost efficiency, pilot spaceships and generally keep everything ticking over. While a good many people still live on planets, yet more live on structures called Orbitals, which are directed by one of these Minds; each Orbital holds as many as 50 billion people. Everyone is free to pursue their own interests wherever those may take them. Of course, other races-cum-civilisations in the galaxy have chosen to order their society differently, and these interactions seem to be the bread and butter of Banks' books (based on a full reading of this and browsing the reviews of others). Thus, Look to Windward sees the Chelgrians, a race with a strongly predatorial, martial background and somewhat lower overall technological development than the Culture. One of the Culture's attempts to bring about an improvement in Chelgrian society went horribly awry and now, the Chelgrians want revenge. The book has an interesting contrast between two characters who were both involved in war -- one, a Mind, the other, a Chelgrian military officer. The Chelgrian is in a race to destroy the Mind and thus the Orbital it directs. How will each react to their war experience -- where will it drive them? The other observation I would make is that Banks' Culture seems, in some sense, to bear a resemblance to the modern-day United States (particularly when Banks' own political leaning are factored in). The most advanced and most wealthy nation on Earth, frequently having to interact with other nations. Those interactions can be unwelcome and appear, to those on the receiving end, as unhelpful interference, generating resentment and anger. Does Look to Windward's publication in August 2000 make it eerily prophetic, was Banks simply extrapolating based on what had undoubtedly already happened, or am I reading too much into this? In many ways, Banks' universe is so fascinating because it's one that I would never have thought of. I'll enjoy reading more about it.
