Wednesday, December 16, 2009

Steampunk

I am reading Boneshaker which says on the front that it is Steampunk, a genre I hadn't heard of before. I had to look it up and this is what Wikipedia says:

Steampunk is a sub-genre of fantasy and speculative fiction that came into prominence in the 1980s and early 1990s. The term denotes works set in an era or world where steam power is still widely used—usually the 19th century, and often Victorian era England—but with prominent elements of either science fiction or fantasy, such as fictional technological inventions like those found in the works of H. G. Wells and Jules Verne, or real technological developments .... Other examples of steampunk contain alternate history-style presentations of "the path not taken" of such technology as dirigibles, analog computers, or digital mechanical computers (such as Charles Babbage's Analytical engine); these frequently are presented in an idealized light, or with a presumption of functionality.

I found this interesting and will keep my eyes peeled for other odd genre or sub genre names. I'd like to hear if you have any in mind.

1 comment:

vvb32 reads said...

recently started getting into steampunk readings as well. this one is on my tbr pile and i've heard it referred to as zombiepunk - one to watch out for.