Today
one of my colleagues at work told me that Iain Banks has terminal cancer and
only has a matter of months to live. I was incredulous and deeply saddened by
the news. A writer of rare ability, Banks has had two careers side by side. As
Iain M. Banks he has been one of the greatest science fiction writers of the
last twenty-five years or so. His Culture novels revealed Banks to be one of
the most imaginative and playful writers in the genre.
As
Iain Banks he has published literature, with a string of quality releases
beginning with the left of centre classic The Wasp Factory in 1984. This was my
first introduction to the brilliance of his writing and I still talk to people
about that book today. However I’m more familiar with the Iain M Banks side of
the story, with Use of Weapons (1990), Against a Dark Background (1993) and Look to
Windward
(2000) standing out as favorites.
Banks
will be greatly missed, but he’s leaving behind an impressive body of work and
for that he should feel satisfied. Thanks Iain, I’ve loved your books and I
wish you a good end to this part of your story.
You
can read Iain’s post about his illness and leave a message if you wish on his
website here.
It seems many people have been devastated by this news: sad to think of all the books he might yet have written.
ReplyDeleteExactly! He is only 59, or around that age. Still his contribution to literature is significant.
DeleteI started to imagine his ideas would keep coming forever. Great post J.
ReplyDeleteYeah - Banks seemed unstoppable. Just started to read Matter, which has been sitting around my house for ages. I'm going to miss him.
ReplyDelete