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Gaudeamus
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Plot Summary of Gaudeamus
"

Tor, Nov 2004, 24.95, 320 pp.
ISBN: 0765303299

Private detective Travis Bismark visits his college friend, science fiction writer Professor John Barnes in Gunnison, Colorado after the writer spent time on the Internet with a cartoon, Gaudeamus. Travis spins some wild tale about “goddies” pills that enhance sex and telepathy and also describes a baffling technology called Gaudeamus that people are killing one another to gain control.

Not long afterward, Travis vanishes while a cyber elk attacks John. Travis keeps appearing and disappearing over the next few months, but at each visit he provides a weirder tale starring exploitive alien businessmen and grunge musical clowns traveling in flying saucers that make even Mr. Barnes' novels seem mundane. Soon John realizes that the clock is ticking and that the earth has less than seven years to learn how to fully use Gaudeamus technology to convert energy from one form to another without space or time restraints.

Harriet Klausner
"

Harriet Klausner, Resident Scholar

Review Analysis of Gaudeamus
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Ratings are on a 1-10 scale (Low to High)
Plot

Composition of Book
Descript. of chases or violence - 10%
planning/preparing, gather info, debate puzzles/motives - 40%
Feelings, relationships, character bio/development - 40%
Descript. of society, phenomena (tech), places - 10%




Tone of book - suspenseful (sophisticated fear)
FANTASY or SCIENCE FICTION? - science fiction story
Tech./$$$/Info hunt Yes
Stealing/recovering/destroying - power source
Robots, Computers, VR Yes
Robot, PC, VR Plotlets: - virtual reality
Parody Yes
Is this an adult or child's book? - Adult or Young Adult Book

Main Character
Identity: - Male
Profession/status: - writer
Age: - 20's-30's
How sensitive is this character? - sensitive to others' feelings
Sense of humor - Mostly serious with occasional humor
Intelligence - Very much smarter than other characters
Physique - very athletic

Main Adversary
Identity: - Male
Age: - 40's-50's
Profession/status: - mastermind
How much of work is main antagonist actually present in: - a moderate amount
How sensitive is this character? - hard edged
Sense of humor - Mostly serious with occasional humor
Intelligence - Smarter than most other characters
Physique - very athletic

Setting
Earth setting: - current (early 21st century)
Takes place on Earth? Yes

Style
Person? - mostly 3rd
Accounts of torture and death? - no torture/death
scientific jargon? (SF only) - some scientific explanation
How much dialogue? - significantly more dialog than descript
Most similar books to Gaudeamus
Red Dwarf: Infinity Welcomes Careful Drivers by Grant Naylor
Mostly Harmless by Douglas Adams
The Getaway Special by Jerry Oltion
Frek and the Elixir by Rudy Rucker
No Phule Like an Old Phule by Robert Asprin


Click here for more information about this book


John Barnes Resident Scholar Profiles

TOP SCHOLAR:
  
PJ  

SCHOLARS:
Eric Terrell  Lowell Berman  


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