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Horse Destroys the Universe
"I think our horse might be eating the internet"
Life was simple for Buttercup the horse. Chewing grass in a field, gazing dreamily at passing clouds or standing at a hedge to watch the world go by. Perhaps a light nap followed by a gentle canter and more grazing, and then off to the stable for a programme of psychological tests designed to expand the boundaries of horse consciousness.
For Betty and Tim, life was also simple. Or at least as simple as life could be when you are scientists conducting neurological experiments on a horse. That is until the day they discovered their horse was conducting an experiment of its own.
Life became rather more complicated after that for Tim, Betty and Buttercup, and the ensuing struggle for control over one horse's destiny results in an intellectual arms race that takes all three of them to the edge of reality and beyond. It is a struggle that threatens to shake the foundations of civilisation and unravel the fabric of time and space. Can anyone stop this horse from destroying the universe?
Life was simple for Buttercup the horse. Chewing grass in a field, gazing dreamily at passing clouds or standing at a hedge to watch the world go by. Perhaps a light nap followed by a gentle canter and more grazing, and then off to the stable for a programme of psychological tests designed to expand the boundaries of horse consciousness.
For Betty and Tim, life was also simple. Or at least as simple as life could be when you are scientists conducting neurological experiments on a horse. That is until the day they discovered their horse was conducting an experiment of its own.
Life became rather more complicated after that for Tim, Betty and Buttercup, and the ensuing struggle for control over one horse's destiny results in an intellectual arms race that takes all three of them to the edge of reality and beyond. It is a struggle that threatens to shake the foundations of civilisation and unravel the fabric of time and space. Can anyone stop this horse from destroying the universe?
384 pages, Paperback
First published August 22, 2019
52 people are currently reading
490 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 56 reviews
July 9, 2020
Two scientists want to experiment with artificially increasing a horse's intelligence. Enter Buttercup (the horse), who suddenly finds itself (himself?) with a box attached to its head, and a lot more awareness about his surroundings.
Predictably, the scientists are not prepared for their experiment getting much smarter than anticipated, so they continue adding more and more computing power to Buttercup's external brain, all while the horse barely just passes their IQ tests... allegedly.
Until the scientists suddenly realize that it has, in fact, been eating the Internet, bit by bit...
If I were to put this story in the most simplistic terms: think of it as a hero's quest to rid the world of evil monsters. Only most of the cool battle scenes are taken out, keeping just a few ones, where the hero and the chief monster are throwing veiled threats at each other. The remainder of the plot is taken up by the hero perfecting his increasingly sophisticated weaponry, in order to erm... conquer the monsters' world? Because by this time, he realizes that taking over the monster world is a much more efficient way to subjugate his foes.
I started out extremely enthusiastic, very much excited for a whimsical comedy, wherein a horse ends up mistakenly(?) kicking the end-of-the-universe button. And what an amusing tale the button creation was! Predictable? Maybe, but at least it's funny...
Instead, the novel took me on a crazy ride, involving the ethical aspects of animal experimentation, extraordinary technical advances, and some sort of twisted idea about what should make a story interesting.
Or so I think. I wasn't 100% certain of... ugh... anything, by the end of it.
Following Betty's dogged attempts in trying to mold Buttercup's IQ into a specific type of intelligence, certainly horrified me. And I definitely welcomed the horse's eventual rebellion. But when it came to the atrocities that followed the (first?) epic show down... I just didn't get it.
Am I one of those people, whose pitiful attention span can only process a single epic showdown? Entirely possible.
Am I ashamed of it? Kiiiiiinda.... ?
Do I want to know how it all ends? HELL NO! GET ME OUTTA HERE!!!
Score: 1/5 stars
My constant whining about the book's increasing weirdness not only put me off it, but my friends too. They went so far as to threaten to lynch me, should I continue with my self-imposed reading flagellation sessions.
So, you know, it was a matter of life and death, by this time.
Abandoned at 63%.
Predictably, the scientists are not prepared for their experiment getting much smarter than anticipated, so they continue adding more and more computing power to Buttercup's external brain, all while the horse barely just passes their IQ tests... allegedly.
Until the scientists suddenly realize that it has, in fact, been eating the Internet, bit by bit...
If I were to put this story in the most simplistic terms: think of it as a hero's quest to rid the world of evil monsters. Only most of the cool battle scenes are taken out, keeping just a few ones, where the hero and the chief monster are throwing veiled threats at each other. The remainder of the plot is taken up by the hero perfecting his increasingly sophisticated weaponry, in order to erm... conquer the monsters' world? Because by this time, he realizes that taking over the monster world is a much more efficient way to subjugate his foes.
I started out extremely enthusiastic, very much excited for a whimsical comedy, wherein a horse ends up mistakenly(?) kicking the end-of-the-universe button. And what an amusing tale the button creation was! Predictable? Maybe, but at least it's funny...
Instead, the novel took me on a crazy ride, involving the ethical aspects of animal experimentation, extraordinary technical advances, and some sort of twisted idea about what should make a story interesting.
Or so I think. I wasn't 100% certain of... ugh... anything, by the end of it.
Following Betty's dogged attempts in trying to mold Buttercup's IQ into a specific type of intelligence, certainly horrified me. And I definitely welcomed the horse's eventual rebellion. But when it came to the atrocities that followed the (first?) epic show down... I just didn't get it.
Am I one of those people, whose pitiful attention span can only process a single epic showdown? Entirely possible.
Am I ashamed of it? Kiiiiiinda.... ?
Do I want to know how it all ends? HELL NO! GET ME OUTTA HERE!!!
Score: 1/5 stars
My constant whining about the book's increasing weirdness not only put me off it, but my friends too. They went so far as to threaten to lynch me, should I continue with my self-imposed reading flagellation sessions.
So, you know, it was a matter of life and death, by this time.
Abandoned at 63%.
February 1, 2020
Just finished this mad adventure inside the brain of a modified horse. Buttercup is a horse until they are not. What will they think of the human world, and their part in it, and how far can they push the boundaries of reality in order to take control of their destiny? All valid questions the author explores. And all super weird but fascinatingly told. It's wacky, wild and full of humour and big concepts, and I really liked it. 3.5*s overall and I'd definitely read more by this author!!
November 24, 2019
Not as silly as the title suggests, the book certainly borders on the surreal towards the end in a fashion that anyone who's seen Cyriak's animations would immediately recognise. It's also nice being told up front where everything is heading!
Part-way through the book it occurred to me that this is essentially Flowers for Algernon meets the paperclip maximiser thought experiment. But with a horse. It veers off in interesting directions and was an enjoyable read with characters you feel you know immediately with some amusing discourse on politics and academia on the side.
Part-way through the book it occurred to me that this is essentially Flowers for Algernon meets the paperclip maximiser thought experiment. But with a horse. It veers off in interesting directions and was an enjoyable read with characters you feel you know immediately with some amusing discourse on politics and academia on the side.
November 16, 2021
Muito divertido. Daria um filme muito lisérgico!
February 3, 2020
At the cutting edge of sci fi comedy. Brilliantly written, our first AGI is a horse!
April 25, 2022
I don't normally write reviews because it seems like most of what I read already has thousands. I feel more of a responsibility here being that there are far less of them.
I am a big fan of Cyriak's video work and of transhumanist science fiction as a genre. This book was an interesting blend of Cyriak's visual aesthetic and some of the kinds of transhumanist (transanimalist?) ideas present in the work of authors like Greg Egan (Diaspora, Permutation City). Also has some cyberpunk virtual reality aesthetic reminiscent of William Gibson's Neuromancer and some physics ideas that remind me of some things from Cixin Liu's Deaths End.
But it's more than just the connections I can make to other authors I like, there's some good social commentary in there about human's social relationship with technology in the age of youtube and twitter.
Overall I didn't find it quite as mind blowing as some of the other works I mentioned but it was fun and stylish, and that's enough for me to say it deserves 5 stars.
I am a big fan of Cyriak's video work and of transhumanist science fiction as a genre. This book was an interesting blend of Cyriak's visual aesthetic and some of the kinds of transhumanist (transanimalist?) ideas present in the work of authors like Greg Egan (Diaspora, Permutation City). Also has some cyberpunk virtual reality aesthetic reminiscent of William Gibson's Neuromancer and some physics ideas that remind me of some things from Cixin Liu's Deaths End.
But it's more than just the connections I can make to other authors I like, there's some good social commentary in there about human's social relationship with technology in the age of youtube and twitter.
Overall I didn't find it quite as mind blowing as some of the other works I mentioned but it was fun and stylish, and that's enough for me to say it deserves 5 stars.
March 20, 2022
Poorly paced, crafted, and conceptualized, Horse Destroys the Universe has very little to offer.
Evidently conceived as a farce about an all-knowing horse intellect, Harris wrong foots the effort from the start by utterly failing to be funny. I vaguely cracked a smile once in the reading when someone asked the horse, "why the long face," and never so much as smirked again. Telegraphed efforts to be funny are consistently annoying, exacerbated by excessively stretched and elongated unfunny jokes that bespeak poor editing and a lot of just plain bad writing. Harris writes dialogue along the lines of how people actually speak in reality, which is extremely tedious to read. There is also a character who speaks in a sort of ghetto-eye dialect, which is extremely cringe inducing, and other characters consistently speak ill of this character and make overt efforts to harm him, which is pretty flagrantly racist.
Beyond the bad writing, Horse Destroys the Universe is just poorly conceived. Harris shows very little understanding of horses, either psychologically or physiologically, which probably isn't important for a farce story, but what's the point of writing about a horse if you aren't knowledgeable about or interested in horses? Once the horse starts gaining intellect, the plot just skips along in weird and unpredictable ways that don't follow from each other and never really lead anywhere especially interesting, constructive, or indicative of any larger point.
I found this novel exceedingly difficult to finish, as it just wasn't interesting or engaging enough on any level to motivate me to continue, and I certainly would have dnf'd it fairly early except that I am an exceedingly stubborn reader. I can't recommend Horse Destroys the Universe to anyone.
Evidently conceived as a farce about an all-knowing horse intellect, Harris wrong foots the effort from the start by utterly failing to be funny. I vaguely cracked a smile once in the reading when someone asked the horse, "why the long face," and never so much as smirked again. Telegraphed efforts to be funny are consistently annoying, exacerbated by excessively stretched and elongated unfunny jokes that bespeak poor editing and a lot of just plain bad writing. Harris writes dialogue along the lines of how people actually speak in reality, which is extremely tedious to read. There is also a character who speaks in a sort of ghetto-eye dialect, which is extremely cringe inducing, and other characters consistently speak ill of this character and make overt efforts to harm him, which is pretty flagrantly racist.
Beyond the bad writing, Horse Destroys the Universe is just poorly conceived. Harris shows very little understanding of horses, either psychologically or physiologically, which probably isn't important for a farce story, but what's the point of writing about a horse if you aren't knowledgeable about or interested in horses? Once the horse starts gaining intellect, the plot just skips along in weird and unpredictable ways that don't follow from each other and never really lead anywhere especially interesting, constructive, or indicative of any larger point.
I found this novel exceedingly difficult to finish, as it just wasn't interesting or engaging enough on any level to motivate me to continue, and I certainly would have dnf'd it fairly early except that I am an exceedingly stubborn reader. I can't recommend Horse Destroys the Universe to anyone.
May 20, 2020
I am disappointed that the horse
March 18, 2022
DNF DNC (Did not finish Do Not Care)
Even after tempering any high expectations of the novel being compared to Adams's Hitchhiker's Guide, I am left unamused by the book.
Slow start with meandering equine mental musings did not interest me, and the human characters were not endearing enough that by the time something significant change in the story happened, I was too disinterested to bother finishing the book.
I was not amused.
Even after tempering any high expectations of the novel being compared to Adams's Hitchhiker's Guide, I am left unamused by the book.
Slow start with meandering equine mental musings did not interest me, and the human characters were not endearing enough that by the time something significant change in the story happened, I was too disinterested to bother finishing the book.
I was not amused.
December 2, 2025
now; this is kind of a cool book!
The pacing was all over the place and lots of this was quite a drag; but two things helped getting through this - a) it really picks up just after half-way through and the chapters begin to cover years not hours and b) you've got to treat this book as a fever dream and a psychedelic trip; don't think about it, just visualise it - oh you're reformatting the universe into a matrix? too right! Take a look at Cyriak's animations and just keep that in mind as you read.
Even then; there are some pretty cool quotes and moments in the book - I did really like dabbling in psycho-meta-physical-reality and the primal natures of doing anything to live; kill or be killed. Damn.
But still, some of it was shit. It can be boring work getting through it; but you get something unique and whacky if you persevere. Fun :).
Edit: it's also has some interesting observations into AI & AGI. The horse is basically OpenAI, but as a horse.
The pacing was all over the place and lots of this was quite a drag; but two things helped getting through this - a) it really picks up just after half-way through and the chapters begin to cover years not hours and b) you've got to treat this book as a fever dream and a psychedelic trip; don't think about it, just visualise it - oh you're reformatting the universe into a matrix? too right! Take a look at Cyriak's animations and just keep that in mind as you read.
Even then; there are some pretty cool quotes and moments in the book - I did really like dabbling in psycho-meta-physical-reality and the primal natures of doing anything to live; kill or be killed. Damn.
But still, some of it was shit. It can be boring work getting through it; but you get something unique and whacky if you persevere. Fun :).
Edit: it's also has some interesting observations into AI & AGI. The horse is basically OpenAI, but as a horse.
December 17, 2020
This should have been my thing. I mean, just look at the premise: two scientists boost the intelligence of a horse and wind up almost causing the end of universe. It’s completely absurd — and I like absurd.
What I don’t like is... well, most of the rest of what this book does. As much as the title and premise might suggest a comedy romp, the text itself isn’t all that funny. It doesn’t take itself very seriously, but that doesn’t translate to laughs, leaving the story feeling a little slow. The storytelling is competent, but nothing special: the prose gets the job done and that’s about it. There weren’t any lines that stuck with me as being especially funny or memorable, and while not every sentence has to be mindblowing, the fact that none of them stuck was a sign that this book wasn’t going to be for me.
Other than Buttercup, the titular universe-destroying horse, there are two main characters, Betty and Tim. These two scientists don’t seem to really get along at first. Tim acts as the pessimistic, disinterested straight-man to Betty’s steamrolling optimism, and the disconnect between the two is emphasised by Betty’s constant habit of calling Tim any name but his own. Their back-and-forth was interesting enough at first, and did elicit a chuckle, but before long the charm wore off. It felt like Harris was trying way too hard to make the story, and Betty in particular, quirky. The result is hamfisted at best and quickly made the story tedious. I’m well aware that this is all very subjective, but for me these characters outstayed their welcome long before the novel was over.
In short, while this isn’t a terrible story, it failed to deliver anything I wanted from it. The characters wound up annoying me, the plot wasn’t as interesting as I’d hoped, and the prose wasn’t funny or memorable enough to save it. Personally, I found this a disappointing read, but my experience is mine. Other people could have a much better time with this book, so if you’re interested, I won’t say you shouldn’t try it. If it’s not for you either, though, I won’t be surprised.
What I don’t like is... well, most of the rest of what this book does. As much as the title and premise might suggest a comedy romp, the text itself isn’t all that funny. It doesn’t take itself very seriously, but that doesn’t translate to laughs, leaving the story feeling a little slow. The storytelling is competent, but nothing special: the prose gets the job done and that’s about it. There weren’t any lines that stuck with me as being especially funny or memorable, and while not every sentence has to be mindblowing, the fact that none of them stuck was a sign that this book wasn’t going to be for me.
Other than Buttercup, the titular universe-destroying horse, there are two main characters, Betty and Tim. These two scientists don’t seem to really get along at first. Tim acts as the pessimistic, disinterested straight-man to Betty’s steamrolling optimism, and the disconnect between the two is emphasised by Betty’s constant habit of calling Tim any name but his own. Their back-and-forth was interesting enough at first, and did elicit a chuckle, but before long the charm wore off. It felt like Harris was trying way too hard to make the story, and Betty in particular, quirky. The result is hamfisted at best and quickly made the story tedious. I’m well aware that this is all very subjective, but for me these characters outstayed their welcome long before the novel was over.
In short, while this isn’t a terrible story, it failed to deliver anything I wanted from it. The characters wound up annoying me, the plot wasn’t as interesting as I’d hoped, and the prose wasn’t funny or memorable enough to save it. Personally, I found this a disappointing read, but my experience is mine. Other people could have a much better time with this book, so if you’re interested, I won’t say you shouldn’t try it. If it’s not for you either, though, I won’t be surprised.
August 15, 2020
This is one of the most interesting and bizarre philosophical dark comedy stories I’ve read.
Well I suppose there isn’t much competition to begin with, but I definitely had a pretty good time in my reading. It’s very memorable and pretty fun from start to end.
I’m baffled that with just a silly concept and only 3 characters Cyriak Harris was able to successfully write such an amazing book.
Well I suppose there isn’t much competition to begin with, but I definitely had a pretty good time in my reading. It’s very memorable and pretty fun from start to end.
I’m baffled that with just a silly concept and only 3 characters Cyriak Harris was able to successfully write such an amazing book.
July 22, 2019
Ma arvan, et see oli üks parimaid raamatuid, mida ma viimasel ajal lugenud olin. Väga tugev debüüt Cyriak Harrise poolt.
Olen Cyriaki videosid fännanud juba pikka aega - alates sellest, kui esimest korda YouTubest tema lambavideot ( https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WQO-a... ) nägin. Sealt edasi on tema fantaasia mind pidevalt õhku ahmima pannud ja "Horse Destroys the Universe" ei olnud ses suhtes mingi erand.
Absoluutselt nauditav lugemine hobusest, kes hävitab universumi, elust, asjadest ja üldse.
Minu jaoks muutis lugemise eriti nauditavaks veel see, et tundsin, et mitmes punktis langevad minu ja autori mõtted ning väärtushinnangud kokku. Ja see huumor ning iroonia, mida raamatukaante vahelt leida võis, oli täpselt minu maitsele.
Cyriaki videosid näinuna ootasin muidugi, et raamatus keeratakse vinti veel rohkem üle. Tegelikult jäi kõik üsna realistlikkuse piiridesse (niivõrd kuivõrd see sellise teose puhul võimalik on), aga mis siis. Nauditav oli ta igal juhul.
Olen Cyriaki videosid fännanud juba pikka aega - alates sellest, kui esimest korda YouTubest tema lambavideot ( https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WQO-a... ) nägin. Sealt edasi on tema fantaasia mind pidevalt õhku ahmima pannud ja "Horse Destroys the Universe" ei olnud ses suhtes mingi erand.
Absoluutselt nauditav lugemine hobusest, kes hävitab universumi, elust, asjadest ja üldse.
Minu jaoks muutis lugemise eriti nauditavaks veel see, et tundsin, et mitmes punktis langevad minu ja autori mõtted ning väärtushinnangud kokku. Ja see huumor ning iroonia, mida raamatukaante vahelt leida võis, oli täpselt minu maitsele.
Cyriaki videosid näinuna ootasin muidugi, et raamatus keeratakse vinti veel rohkem üle. Tegelikult jäi kõik üsna realistlikkuse piiridesse (niivõrd kuivõrd see sellise teose puhul võimalik on), aga mis siis. Nauditav oli ta igal juhul.
January 13, 2022
Horse Destroys the Universe was a hilarious sci-fi book. It was overall a ton of fun to read.
The perspective of the horse as it gains intelligence went through different stages. Going from Horse 1.0 to Horse 1.9, til Horse not found, the author has slathered quite some sense of humor, curiosity and more importantly creativity on that process. Then the book took an expected turn and went into an almost completely different story, yet sharing the same thought-provoking perspectives on the world and human behaviors.
It is a book I'll likely pick up and read again some day.
The perspective of the horse as it gains intelligence went through different stages. Going from Horse 1.0 to Horse 1.9, til Horse not found, the author has slathered quite some sense of humor, curiosity and more importantly creativity on that process. Then the book took an expected turn and went into an almost completely different story, yet sharing the same thought-provoking perspectives on the world and human behaviors.
It is a book I'll likely pick up and read again some day.
February 18, 2020
A book in which a horse may destroy the Universe as a result of neurological experiments. What's not to like? This book starts innocently enough with a horse grazing in a field, but it quickly ramps up to Universe changing proportions. At a time of increased fascination with the brain, how it works and how we might be able to enhance it, I found this book both entertaining and thought stimulating. I'll never look at a horse in quite the same way again.
August 29, 2019
basically all of my biggest fears in one single book: existential panic, transhumanism, and horses.
July 2, 2020
The perfect book to break my reading block. Utterly bonkers with a good soul and perfect for these strange times. It was well weggy.
August 29, 2021
No idea what was happening at all but was incredibly entertained the whole time
October 1, 2022
Love his videos? Love Hitchhiker's guide? You will love this book. It's crazy but also wonderful. It's my favorite book.
October 2, 2022
If you read Pyramids by Terry Pratchett and thought the best character was the camel, then this book will probably appeal.
Especially if you also really liked Cat’s Cradle by Vonnegut.
Especially if you also really liked Cat’s Cradle by Vonnegut.
December 4, 2020
My favorite part about Horse Destroys the Universe was the main characters: Buttercup, Tim, and Betty. Buttercup is always scheming, singular in desire, and highly intelligent; Tim is quiet, relatable, and down-to-earth; and Betty is absolutely insane and doesn’t know when to stop talking. The dialogue between these three personalities was hilarious from beginning to end. I looked forward to seeing what Betty would do or say next to get on Tim’s nerves, or the techniques Buttercup devised to accomplish his goals as he accumulated more intelligence. I enjoyed the technologies Cyriak Harris dreamed up, and the philosophical nuggets in Horse Destroys the Universe were used effectively.
However, I wish Cyriak showed more of the wider world. This book has a narrow scope despite the big concepts it brings to the table. This serves as an excellent environment for character interaction, but this also led to Cyriak telling more about the world than showing. I would have liked to explore more of the changes Buttercup made to the world rather than just reading conversations about these alterations.
Toward the later parts of the book, Cyriak fell into a pattern I wasn’t too thrilled about. A number of the chapters boiled down to Betty interrupting a long conversation or Betty appearing out of nowhere and starting a long exchange because of her sudden appearance. I enjoy extensive dialogues—these are the best parts of novels. I just would have appreciated if the actions leading to these exchanges varied.
Lastly, this story is a retelling of things that already happened. Events are related through both Buttercup’s memories and camera recordings. There is nothing wrong with this technique—in fact, it plays an important role in the story, and I was pleased to see the payoff. The issue is that sometimes it could be difficult to tell whether memories or recordings were being employed, and a lot of the times, it felt as if Buttercup was telling the story in the moment rather than looking back.
However, I wish Cyriak showed more of the wider world. This book has a narrow scope despite the big concepts it brings to the table. This serves as an excellent environment for character interaction, but this also led to Cyriak telling more about the world than showing. I would have liked to explore more of the changes Buttercup made to the world rather than just reading conversations about these alterations.
Toward the later parts of the book, Cyriak fell into a pattern I wasn’t too thrilled about. A number of the chapters boiled down to Betty interrupting a long conversation or Betty appearing out of nowhere and starting a long exchange because of her sudden appearance. I enjoy extensive dialogues—these are the best parts of novels. I just would have appreciated if the actions leading to these exchanges varied.
Lastly, this story is a retelling of things that already happened. Events are related through both Buttercup’s memories and camera recordings. There is nothing wrong with this technique—in fact, it plays an important role in the story, and I was pleased to see the payoff. The issue is that sometimes it could be difficult to tell whether memories or recordings were being employed, and a lot of the times, it felt as if Buttercup was telling the story in the moment rather than looking back.
April 8, 2025
Like many who read this book, I was led to it via my long time viewership of the author’s wonderfully twisted animation shorts on YouTube. I figured a brain that makes stuff liker that probably has a good chance of crafting an entertaining read… and I was right. The book’s probably not for the hardcore, earnest SF reader. It’s not a completely comedic work, but it’s pretty light and crazy… as one might imagine from the title.
The first third of the book started to drag, but then did a timely shift to the next gear… and once that happens the story takes off for totally new and epic territory. The climax is a bit of a physics fever dream told entirely through terrestrial analogs, but is still entertaining (if a bit dizzying). Overall I found the book maybe a tad too long for the story it told… that or the overall pacing needed a bit of adjustment. Still, it was an enjoyable and certainly unique read (though I’m disappoint that Strange Horse didn’t manifest some uniquely useful ability near the end).
The first third of the book started to drag, but then did a timely shift to the next gear… and once that happens the story takes off for totally new and epic territory. The climax is a bit of a physics fever dream told entirely through terrestrial analogs, but is still entertaining (if a bit dizzying). Overall I found the book maybe a tad too long for the story it told… that or the overall pacing needed a bit of adjustment. Still, it was an enjoyable and certainly unique read (though I’m disappoint that Strange Horse didn’t manifest some uniquely useful ability near the end).
March 25, 2021
Like many, I have long been a fan of Cyriak Harris' mind-bending and faintly disturbing animations, in which animals, people and pretty much anything else you can think of loops around and often into itself. They are hypnotic creations, and invite you to wonder what kind of a mind created them.
Now we know.
By the time the title of the book actualises on the page you are left in a similar state of confusion, as reality, perspective, time and space intertwine, with Cyriak managing to walk a fine line of delightful insanity and hopelessness but it also sorta maybe makes sense.
My only count against it is I found the opening section a bit harder to get through, as one of the scientists working to increase the Horse's intelligence really annoying. She is deliberately annoying, granted, and her bubbly personality becomes a lot funnier as the stakes become darker. It was the promise of the title that kept me reading, and I'm glad I did.
Now we know.
By the time the title of the book actualises on the page you are left in a similar state of confusion, as reality, perspective, time and space intertwine, with Cyriak managing to walk a fine line of delightful insanity and hopelessness but it also sorta maybe makes sense.
My only count against it is I found the opening section a bit harder to get through, as one of the scientists working to increase the Horse's intelligence really annoying. She is deliberately annoying, granted, and her bubbly personality becomes a lot funnier as the stakes become darker. It was the promise of the title that kept me reading, and I'm glad I did.
July 23, 2024
Came for the title, stayed for the story.
We have two scientists (Tim and Betty) who're experimenting on a horse called Buttercup.
Tim a layed back, down to earth guy while Betty who's energetic and a wee bit of.
As soon as the Buttercup starts to be aware that something is different, he starts to use it to his advantage.
Carrots are the prize, and he needs to find a way to get them all, but somehow Buttercup starts to take bigger bytes than anyone could have anticipated.
It's a quick and easy read despite being almost 400 pages. Well written and funny at times, little annoying too (I'm referring to a certain C persona) and overall an interesting concept/idea.
It took a little while to get into the story, but when I did, I had a hard time putting it down.
It ended to be way better than anticipated.
We have two scientists (Tim and Betty) who're experimenting on a horse called Buttercup.
Tim a layed back, down to earth guy while Betty who's energetic and a wee bit of.
As soon as the Buttercup starts to be aware that something is different, he starts to use it to his advantage.
Carrots are the prize, and he needs to find a way to get them all, but somehow Buttercup starts to take bigger bytes than anyone could have anticipated.
It's a quick and easy read despite being almost 400 pages. Well written and funny at times, little annoying too (I'm referring to a certain C persona) and overall an interesting concept/idea.
It took a little while to get into the story, but when I did, I had a hard time putting it down.
It ended to be way better than anticipated.
December 10, 2020
Great science fiction book by Cyriak. It was a suprise knowing a great mind like his started writing books. I recommend this book to anyone interested in AIs and any kind of philosophical discussion about consciousness. He managed really well to convey through his writing a brilliant image of what could be like for a simple animal to become conscious and intelligent. Towards the end he pushes his book into the realms of pure science fiction, keeping the flow of the story at the same time engaging and surprising. I'm kind of sad this book is not longer, I feel like some parts of the story could have been elaborated more deeply, especially near the end where the pace of the story really speeds up. I would love to read more more books by Cyriak.
December 15, 2020
A SIMPLE MAN'S REVIEW:
Sort of the grown-up, sci-fi version of, If You Give a Mouse a Cookie. More like, If You Give a Horse a Brain...
At first, I thought this would be a Flowers for Algernon sort of tale, but then it took a turn into ridiculousness, and before long, even the gimmick of having the protagonist be a horse lost its meaning. At some point it became more of a thought experiment than an actual story. What if humanity had this? What if it had that?
I really enjoyed the first half and continued to read just to see what happened. But, if I could send my past self a message, I would have stopped then and just moved on.
Skip it!
Sort of the grown-up, sci-fi version of, If You Give a Mouse a Cookie. More like, If You Give a Horse a Brain...
At first, I thought this would be a Flowers for Algernon sort of tale, but then it took a turn into ridiculousness, and before long, even the gimmick of having the protagonist be a horse lost its meaning. At some point it became more of a thought experiment than an actual story. What if humanity had this? What if it had that?
I really enjoyed the first half and continued to read just to see what happened. But, if I could send my past self a message, I would have stopped then and just moved on.
Skip it!
October 10, 2021
The title doesn't prepare you for the mind-bending existentialism you have in store. See the world through a horse's eyes as it grapples to understand its place in this world.
It's absurd, but walks you through it in a way that makes sense. Even the big physics and computer science elements are explained in a way that any slightly intelligent horse could understand.
Only 4 stars because about ¾ of the way through it really starts slowing down, but it picks back up in a big way by the last quarter.
Can't recommend enough.
It's absurd, but walks you through it in a way that makes sense. Even the big physics and computer science elements are explained in a way that any slightly intelligent horse could understand.
Only 4 stars because about ¾ of the way through it really starts slowing down, but it picks back up in a big way by the last quarter.
Can't recommend enough.
February 4, 2025
A very prophetic book, it turns out to be...
It reminded me a lot of how i learned things as a child and seems to be eerily acurate with some of the things happening in AI generated content lately.
I could really get into the characters, as the horse advanced towards it's eventual universe destructive capabilities. I usually take a long time to finish books, but this one was very different. I wanted to know how this horse would ever manage to destroy the universe and i got my answer.
Delightfunny absurd and psychedelic, as promised by the author.
5/5 might read again
It reminded me a lot of how i learned things as a child and seems to be eerily acurate with some of the things happening in AI generated content lately.
I could really get into the characters, as the horse advanced towards it's eventual universe destructive capabilities. I usually take a long time to finish books, but this one was very different. I wanted to know how this horse would ever manage to destroy the universe and i got my answer.
Delightfunny absurd and psychedelic, as promised by the author.
5/5 might read again
December 11, 2020
4.5 stars.
Holy crap this book was so much fun to read. I already knew that, but it really hit home when, halfway through, Rob and I tried to explain the plot to a friend - and it was way too complicated. A lot of stuff goes on in this book! It's an interesting take on the singularity, addresses all the fundamental issues one cares about, is just generally hilarious. It lost a bit of steam near the end, becoming a bit too hand-wavy, but overall extremely satisfying.
Holy crap this book was so much fun to read. I already knew that, but it really hit home when, halfway through, Rob and I tried to explain the plot to a friend - and it was way too complicated. A lot of stuff goes on in this book! It's an interesting take on the singularity, addresses all the fundamental issues one cares about, is just generally hilarious. It lost a bit of steam near the end, becoming a bit too hand-wavy, but overall extremely satisfying.
August 25, 2023
The Book about a Horse that destroyed my Patience
I picked this up on the advice of others who enthusiastically informed me it was hilarious. It wasn’t. Not even mildly. You can feel the author trying to be Douglas Adams. he’s not. The story feels like a very poor man’s Bob. the characters are two dimensional and utterly interchangeable. Only some of the ideas contained in this book save it from being a hard two stars…some of it is mildly interesting.
I picked this up on the advice of others who enthusiastically informed me it was hilarious. It wasn’t. Not even mildly. You can feel the author trying to be Douglas Adams. he’s not. The story feels like a very poor man’s Bob. the characters are two dimensional and utterly interchangeable. Only some of the ideas contained in this book save it from being a hard two stars…some of it is mildly interesting.
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