Comments on: Why isn't Interstellar Pig a movie yet?

Why isn't Interstellar Pig a movie yet?

Iridic — Tue, 15 Aug 2006 10:56:50 -0800

Hopefully this will put an end to the interminable AskMe questions: Adam Cadre has written a complete retrospective and review of William Sleator's young adult science fiction.

By: bove

bove — Tue, 15 Aug 2006 11:22:14 -0800

Great post. It makes me want to go read some of his books.

By: cubby

cubby — Tue, 15 Aug 2006 11:22:17 -0800

fantastic! sleator is one of those writers that i tore through in my youth, reading everything i could find that he had written. i've since revisited a few of those books, and they don't seem quite as great now as they did then. still, like star wars IV, there's still a warm veil of nostalgia that makes them seem a lot better than they might actually be. one complaint -- garish cover art that merely illustrates the plot rather than evoking the mood of the book. other great YASF from my youth (with great cover art): Heinlein's "Space Cadet" and Bradbury's Martian Chronicles. Since I work with youth, I have tried to keep up with good contemporary YA writing. One good one: Feed, by MT Anderson

By: agregoli

agregoli — Tue, 15 Aug 2006 11:27:25 -0800

House of Stairs is one of the best YA books I've ever read. Ever. Completely creepy and a fantastic work of science fiction. Get it if you can, I think it's out of print - off to Amazon to check.

By: JeremyT

JeremyT — Tue, 15 Aug 2006 11:43:17 -0800

Excellent post. And I hope that if they do ever make an Interstellar Pig movie, it's better than Zarthura.

By: sklero

sklero — Tue, 15 Aug 2006 12:12:57 -0800

Oh yes, House of Stairs made a huge impression on me as a kid, and my aunt managed to get me an autographed copy of Green Futures of Tycho when Sleator came to speak at the school where she taught in the 80s. Amazing stuff.

By: kyleg

kyleg — Tue, 15 Aug 2006 12:33:32 -0800

Wow, I had no idea I'd read so many of his books when I was younger. (Four or five, though I really only remember Singularity.) Looks like I'll have to check out some of his newer stuff.

By: Kloryne

Kloryne — Tue, 15 Aug 2006 12:59:00 -0800

Oh boy -- I read this as "William Shatner's..." and I was shocked to read cubby's positive response. Whew. I'm OK now.

By: escabeche

escabeche — Tue, 15 Aug 2006 14:21:09 -0800

Coincidentally, I was in a children's bookstore a couple of days ago and thought I'd see what WS was up to -- bought a paperback of The Last Universe and read it straight through. Very affecting but I can't agree with Adam Cadre's claim it's his best -- too much exposition and only fitful displays of the great beating unpleasantness at the heart of House of Stairs and Tycho.

By: Sparx

Sparx — Tue, 15 Aug 2006 15:01:19 -0800

Adam Cadre is no slouch himself. He wrote Photopia, which rocked my socks. I read House of Stairs as a young'un and can still remember the ending (traffic lights, anyone?) which is about as effective as it gets.

By: ZippityBuddha

ZippityBuddha — Tue, 15 Aug 2006 15:07:07 -0800

Cube always reminded me of House of Stairs (or, more accurately, of that book I just can't quite remember that I read when I was at school)

By: adipocere

adipocere — Tue, 15 Aug 2006 16:46:42 -0800

The Green Futures of Tycho was my first Sleator book, then I came across House of Stairs in 7th grade. Sometimes the traffic light thing still gets me, too. Singularity and The Boy Who Reversed Himself were also good, but not as amazing as those two. I picked up The Boxes fairly recently. It sounds like I missed out on Interstellar Pig, though. Others See Us seems strangely appealing. I always liked young adult science fiction. Now if I can just track down a bunch of other items from my childhood. Aside from AskMeFi, are there other forums for ancient YASF?

By: Nasty Canasta

Nasty Canasta — Tue, 15 Aug 2006 18:47:42 -0800

Great post! I haven't come across William Sleator before. I'm the father of a 12yo who's just starting to get into this sort of reading. Definitely gonna keep a look out for House of Stairs and Insterstellar Pig. I really hate the phrase 'young adult fiction', its so damn clinical, but its certainly useful when you are looking for books suitable for the specific age-group. If you are looking for more recent authors, I highly recommend Scott Westerfield's books - Uglies, Pretties & Specials, set in a dystopian/utopian future where teenagers undergo a surgical coming-of-age process. And of course, there is always Phillip Pullman's His Dark Materials trilogy - my daughter has had those three books on high rotation ever since they came into the house.

By: smackfu

smackfu — Tue, 15 Aug 2006 20:02:39 -0800

I bought House of Stairs after one of those Ask questions, since I never happened upon it in my younger years. It's quite good.

By: palmcorder_yajna

palmcorder_yajna — Wed, 16 Aug 2006 10:39:59 -0800

If you can find a copy, check out Oddballs, which is a short book of authobiographical reminiscences about his family. It's blindingly funny.

By: Sparx

Sparx — Wed, 16 Aug 2006 15:43:55 -0800

There's actually a copy of oddballs on his brother's website. They all come across as entirely too clever by half, but with a genuine respect for one another.

By: sonofsamiam

sonofsamiam — Wed, 16 Aug 2006 15:57:35 -0800

I remember making a board game based on Insterstellar Pig as a kid.