Books on immersive experiences
February 24, 2013 11:24 AM Subscribe
Erin Morgenstern's The Night Circus and Robin Sloan's Mr Penumbra's 24-Hour Bookstore describe immersive artistic experiences that echo Alternate Reality Games or events like the All Worlds Fair. What other books describe events and experiences like these?
I especially appreciated how The Night Circus talks about the creation and development of said Night Circus, not just that the circus exists and plot happens in it. Non-fiction would be awesome but fiction like my examples work too.
I especially appreciated how The Night Circus talks about the creation and development of said Night Circus, not just that the circus exists and plot happens in it. Non-fiction would be awesome but fiction like my examples work too.
Steven Millhauser's novel Martin Dressler and several of his short stories are about entrepeneurs who build small businesses into obsessive Disneyland-like experiences with electric lights and circuses and jungles in artificial caverns...
posted by moonmilk at 12:05 PM on February 24, 2013
posted by moonmilk at 12:05 PM on February 24, 2013
Oh, something I really liked about Mary Robinette Kowal's fantasy Regency romances, in which magic is real but only used as a decorative art, is that the plots often turn on problems with creating convincing immersive artworks. They're also just very light, readable books.
posted by Monsieur Caution at 12:55 PM on February 24, 2013 [1 favorite]
posted by Monsieur Caution at 12:55 PM on February 24, 2013 [1 favorite]
Ernest Cline's Ready Player One is about a sprawling game, and mostly takes place in virtual worlds.
posted by gnomeloaf at 2:01 PM on February 24, 2013 [2 favorites]
posted by gnomeloaf at 2:01 PM on February 24, 2013 [2 favorites]
You may enjoy Stardust, especially the parts about the Faerie Market.
posted by ChuraChura at 2:52 PM on February 24, 2013
posted by ChuraChura at 2:52 PM on February 24, 2013
Walter Jon Williams' "Dagmar Shaw" series takes part around Alternate Reality games, but it is very much a near-future sci-fi series, with aspects of "techno-triller". Another SF book with some of the same themes (but, in a way set much further into the future) is The Restoration Game by Ken Macleod.
posted by Baron Humbert von Gikkingen at 3:01 PM on February 24, 2013
posted by Baron Humbert von Gikkingen at 3:01 PM on February 24, 2013
Alif the Unseen reminded me of Mr Penumbra's 24-Hour Bookstore. Definitely immersive combination of programming and magic.
posted by carolr at 3:56 PM on February 24, 2013 [1 favorite]
posted by carolr at 3:56 PM on February 24, 2013 [1 favorite]
I loved both of these books enough to give them their own shelf on Goodreads and get recommendations for the shelf. Four of them are: The Rook, Tell the Wolves I'm Home, The Mysterious Howling and The Diviners. The Rook is the only one that is not listed as Young Adult
posted by soelo at 6:29 PM on February 24, 2013 [1 favorite]
posted by soelo at 6:29 PM on February 24, 2013 [1 favorite]
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posted by Monsieur Caution at 11:58 AM on February 24, 2013