Review: The B-Team

The B-Team by John Scalzi
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

7 February 2013

Takes place in the Old Man's War universe shortly after events in prior novels, but with a new cast of characters, many diplomats, with a few members of the CDF for derring-do.

All the things I like about Scalzi are here: clever plotting, a diverse cast that feels natural, snappy dialogue, interesting tech puzzles. Richly enjoyable, but it never feels condescending or empty. This is going to be good.

I bought a copy.

****

1 February 2025

There's a lot to be said for experimentation. Rereading this, I am reminded of the novelty of receiving a chunk of a book each week. The expectation, and also the bonding among the fans. Because Scalzi includes Mary Robinette Kowal, Scott Westerfeld, and Justine Larbalestier in his acknowledgements for Zoë's Tale, they come immediately to mind as other writers who also set challenges for themselves, which in turn means something new and interesting in every book they publish. Every fan will rate their preferences for the experiments differently, sure, but I love that there are writers who keep trying new things. Maybe it's odd me bringing up the concept of novelty in the fifth major work set in the same universe, but these novels and shorter works are never just more of the same. AndN.K. Jemisin and Courtney Milan, too. No doubt more will come to mind as soon as I hit post.

So there, that's today's entry in my gratitude journal: I appreciate writers who consciously experiment: it expands their skill set and takes readers into new genres and styles.

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