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Diamond Nebula: A Novel
A recondite exercise in deconstructing the future."" - The New York Times Book Review. ""Ardent admirers of Bowie, Warhol, and Ballard ...may find much to ponder in Reed's wild reverie on the mutation and reconstitution of their heroes."" - Publishers Weekly.
200 pages, Hardcover
First published February 1, 1995
29 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
February 16, 2018
February 13, 2018 – page 19
9.5% "Finished the first chapter. Beginning to doubt whether there is a story here. Seems to be a minimally connected series of scenes and sensory impressions so far. Listening to Bowie's Low at the same time. Mood music?"
February 14, 2018 – page 31
15.5% "Still no real story by the end of chapter two, just some guy's impressions of obsessions. Whether that guy is the author or a character is open to debate. Please, God, don't involve me in the discussion."
February 14, 2018 – page 44
22.0% "At the end of chapter three and I'm starting to wonder if the author has a different perspective on reality to me. Some alteration in his brain chemistry perhaps? Makes me wonder whether certain obsessions and habits are advisable when one is so."
February 14, 2018 – page 55
27.5% "End of Ch4. The 'story' so far: something has killed (vaporised) all of the people in a seaside town apart from 5 characters (maybe 6) all of whom seemed to be obsessed by pop culture. They move around like they are either mad or on drugs. Not sure what it real and what is imagined. Just wish something would happen to move the story on."
February 14, 2018 – page 72
36.0% "Yeah, chapter five seems to be the author showing off how much he thinks he knows about David Bowie. Still the story stalls."
February 15, 2018 – page 92
46.0% "I didn't feel like reading Ch6 and when I'd done, my opinion hadn't changed. Another trip through sixtiesseventieseighties pop culture, but only for the fanatical. I remember all these things but I wasn't obsessed so this rehash was all a bit meh to me. Well written though. Grammatically & syntactically good."
February 15, 2018 – page 103
51.5% "Ch7 is pure mental masturbation - obsession taken to extremes. All of these characters need to get out more. Maybe the author should get out more too, but who am I to say? Still no story, just endless (well, another 100 or so pages of) description of the inside of an obsessed mind (albeit posing as characters in a novel). My biggest beef is that I was expecting a science fiction novel ffs!"
February 15, 2018 – page 124
62.0% "Ch8 was actually quite interesting. Not sure how historically accurate it is but it seems to catalogue David Bowie's obsession with aliens, to the extent that he believed himself to be one. Plus (bonus) the story seems to be moving forward a little. But oh so slowly!"
February 15, 2018 – page 140
70.0% "Ch9 - a portrayal of what happened mixed with speculation on why it happened and then extrapolated into what might happen with respect to altered consciousness and alien communication.
And then the aliens arrived (author hopes his paraphernalia will be useful to them). At last - something resembling a story."
February 16, 2018 – page 155
77.5% "Ch10 - more pretentious twaddle about aliens, death, obsession and Bowie. Two chapters to go but I predict that nothing of note is going to happen. Shame because the author actually has an interesting and fluid way of writing."
February 16, 2018 – page 177
88.5% "Ch11 - a masterpiece of empty words, aside from this:
"He kept on thinking about transitional states, and how people spent their lives fearing death not realizing that the change-over had probably occurred unconsciously, years ago, so that they had already died but forgotten it in a black-out, dream, a momentary shift of consciousness.""
February 16, 2018 – page 200
100.0% "Ch12. Bonkers. Such a waste of a greatly talented writer."
9.5% "Finished the first chapter. Beginning to doubt whether there is a story here. Seems to be a minimally connected series of scenes and sensory impressions so far. Listening to Bowie's Low at the same time. Mood music?"
February 14, 2018 – page 31
15.5% "Still no real story by the end of chapter two, just some guy's impressions of obsessions. Whether that guy is the author or a character is open to debate. Please, God, don't involve me in the discussion."
February 14, 2018 – page 44
22.0% "At the end of chapter three and I'm starting to wonder if the author has a different perspective on reality to me. Some alteration in his brain chemistry perhaps? Makes me wonder whether certain obsessions and habits are advisable when one is so."
February 14, 2018 – page 55
27.5% "End of Ch4. The 'story' so far: something has killed (vaporised) all of the people in a seaside town apart from 5 characters (maybe 6) all of whom seemed to be obsessed by pop culture. They move around like they are either mad or on drugs. Not sure what it real and what is imagined. Just wish something would happen to move the story on."
February 14, 2018 – page 72
36.0% "Yeah, chapter five seems to be the author showing off how much he thinks he knows about David Bowie. Still the story stalls."
February 15, 2018 – page 92
46.0% "I didn't feel like reading Ch6 and when I'd done, my opinion hadn't changed. Another trip through sixtiesseventieseighties pop culture, but only for the fanatical. I remember all these things but I wasn't obsessed so this rehash was all a bit meh to me. Well written though. Grammatically & syntactically good."
February 15, 2018 – page 103
51.5% "Ch7 is pure mental masturbation - obsession taken to extremes. All of these characters need to get out more. Maybe the author should get out more too, but who am I to say? Still no story, just endless (well, another 100 or so pages of) description of the inside of an obsessed mind (albeit posing as characters in a novel). My biggest beef is that I was expecting a science fiction novel ffs!"
February 15, 2018 – page 124
62.0% "Ch8 was actually quite interesting. Not sure how historically accurate it is but it seems to catalogue David Bowie's obsession with aliens, to the extent that he believed himself to be one. Plus (bonus) the story seems to be moving forward a little. But oh so slowly!"
February 15, 2018 – page 140
70.0% "Ch9 - a portrayal of what happened mixed with speculation on why it happened and then extrapolated into what might happen with respect to altered consciousness and alien communication.
And then the aliens arrived (author hopes his paraphernalia will be useful to them). At last - something resembling a story."
February 16, 2018 – page 155
77.5% "Ch10 - more pretentious twaddle about aliens, death, obsession and Bowie. Two chapters to go but I predict that nothing of note is going to happen. Shame because the author actually has an interesting and fluid way of writing."
February 16, 2018 – page 177
88.5% "Ch11 - a masterpiece of empty words, aside from this:
"He kept on thinking about transitional states, and how people spent their lives fearing death not realizing that the change-over had probably occurred unconsciously, years ago, so that they had already died but forgotten it in a black-out, dream, a momentary shift of consciousness.""
February 16, 2018 – page 200
100.0% "Ch12. Bonkers. Such a waste of a greatly talented writer."
Want to read
March 2, 2010David Bowie is travelling through the star system listening to a cassette of Low. As you do.
January 1, 2019
I liked the idea of reading this book more than actually reading this book. For years I took it on many vacations with me planning to start it but never starting it until 2017 after I'd finally read a J.G.Ballard book. So I liked the Ballard book. I
always found Warhol fascinating. I've been a fanatical Bowie fan since 1974. So reading Diamond Nebula a few pages at a time sometimes months apart made me question myself...Why am I not enjoying this more? Why am I confused? Am I not smart or artistic enough? Why don't I understand this word in this context? Some of the Bowie parts thrilled me. Some of the book invoked exciting surrealistic images. By the last 50 pages I was just angry and over it, particularly with the cramming in of Warholian passages after neglecting him most of the book. FYI, THIS IS NOT A NOVEL. I'm going to read it again as poetry, skipping the boring pseudoscience parts and skimming over the obnoxious characters, with a dictionary handy...maybe a chapter a month. It's a lot of work that Reed should have done for us in a slimmer volume.
always found Warhol fascinating. I've been a fanatical Bowie fan since 1974. So reading Diamond Nebula a few pages at a time sometimes months apart made me question myself...Why am I not enjoying this more? Why am I confused? Am I not smart or artistic enough? Why don't I understand this word in this context? Some of the Bowie parts thrilled me. Some of the book invoked exciting surrealistic images. By the last 50 pages I was just angry and over it, particularly with the cramming in of Warholian passages after neglecting him most of the book. FYI, THIS IS NOT A NOVEL. I'm going to read it again as poetry, skipping the boring pseudoscience parts and skimming over the obnoxious characters, with a dictionary handy...maybe a chapter a month. It's a lot of work that Reed should have done for us in a slimmer volume.
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews