A Song Called Youth

On Facebook, author John Shirley announced that a collection of his Eclipse cyberpunk trilogy will be released in a one book omnibus entitled A Song Called Youth.

Available April 4th on Amazon, Shirley has called this edition, "Revised, updated, improved.  Still rockin'."  I must confess that I haven't read it but I mean to correct that oversight.  After all, this is the same writer who brought us the short story "Freezone," one of my first introductions to the subgenre of cyberpunk and profluent prose of John Shirley.  "The Sprawl" books of William Gibson followed soon thereafter thanks to Chris Helton.  I suppose the order of progression fits.  Gibson himself called John Shirley, "cyberpunk's patient zero" as you can probably see from the cover pic above.

The first book in the trilogy, Eclipse (and no, I don't mean that fooking Twilight book), is one that I currently have on my shelves but just haven't gotten to yet.  Seeing that this new omnibus is about to become available, I'll probably buy it and resell the Eclipse paperback so I can get the full effect of the trilogy.  I mean, who wouldn't enjoy a good romp through a dystopian future where the Soviet Union never fell and World War III is being fought to a stalemate?  Where our nation is held in check by hired-out mercenaries from a Blackwater-esque corporate security firm run by a televangelist? 

Wait, are we sure that this is fiction?  It sounds a bit too much like 2000-2008.  And I like the fact the resistance against this neo-fascist state is being led by a former college professor.  Speaks volumes, doesn't it?  One review I've read of A Song Called Youth said that, "if you want to see how to write cyberpunk, this is the series."  Guess that means me.  Finger pointed right at my sternum.

So I intend to read this trilogy and I'd advise any of the rest of you who are into "this kinda thing" to do the same.  You should also check out Shirley's novel, City Come A-Walkin' while you're at it.


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