State of the Art

The State of the Art; Iain M. Banks (Night Shade Books; 2004; ISBN 1-892389-38-X; cover art by Les Edwards).

With the release of the latest novel in the Culture sequence, I figured it was time to start re-reading the earlier books (scattered so far across the years that I can't remember most of the plots!), read the ones I've left tottering on Mount Toberead, and then tackle Matter, the newest addition. For a series that has been running as long as it has there are few short works in the sequence. In fact, as far as I know, this is the only collection that Banks has.

Made up of: Road of Skulls; A Gift from the Culture; Odd Attachment; Descendant; Cleaning Up; Piece; The State of the Art; Scratch; A Few Notes on the Culture.

Counts as one entry in the 2008 Year in Shorts.