In his classic “Johnny Mnemonic”, Gibson extrapolates energy crises, urban decay, corporate wars, radical body alteration, Asian economic domination, punk rock, and the dark, gleaming possibilities of worlds behind the glow of computer screens towards a half-sinister neon-lit horizon. If science fiction is a reflection of the time in which it was written, William Gibson’s short fiction captures the zeitgeist of the late 70s and early 80s, when the likely future was looking less and less like the clean utopia of Star Trek, and more like something else entirely. Hypnotic dreams of a gleaming, gritty future So even though l did not like this, Kudo's to Gibson for having the vision to go a different direction then the norm. Some of what you read today, you would not be reading if Gibson had never been published. In the middle 80's he was the hottest author in the field and was the leader in a new wave of Sci-Fi literature. You can not claim to be an expert in Sci-Fi fiction, if you have never read any William Gibson.

I did not like this book, Spook Country, Count Zero or Neuromancer. Virtual Light is my favorite Gibson book and I liked Al Tomorrow's Parties. If you are in the same camp as me, but want to try Gibson, I would suggest you start with Virtual Light. I am more of a Heinlein, Asimov person and prefer my art to be realistic, so I was not happy with these stories.

These statements should tell you how you will feel about these stories. Another reviewer stated these stories were like abstract art. He was influenced by Bester, Swanwick, and Sheckley. YOUR THE REASON OUR KIDS ARE UGLY Gibson starts out with an intro, in which he states that Asimov and Heinlein never did anything for him.

Burning chrome by william gibson