They’d Rather Be Right - 2nd Hugo Award Winner (1955)
History
2nd Hugo Award winner (1955)
Alternative title is “The Forever Machine”
Also known as one of the worst Hugo Award winners
Conspiracy it won due to the church of Scientology. More likely Clifton was just a popular person.
Hugo Award didn’t mean much at this point in time.
Is a sequel to "Crazy Joey.
Overview
The main protagonist Joe is a Telepath who helps two professors create an advanced cybernetic machine called "Bossy."
Bossy can "optimize your mind, give eternal youth, & so much more.
Society as a whole fears the change Bossy will create.
Pros
A advanced cybernetic like machine that is able to optimize & change the human mind is interesting.
The machine has certain prerequisites for use which gives the novel a little bit of a twist.
It was short
Cons
Bossy is never really explained. It’s just thrown in with no explanation of how it was created & you are supposed to go with it.
The main character Joe is in his early-twenties and is a Mary Sue. He has telepathic abilities and some kind of mind control. Joe is playing 5-D chess while you are playing checkers.
Plot is half baked. Characters are one dimensional no antagonist.
Should you read it?
No. This novel did not age badly. It was bad when it was published in the 50’s and is still bad today.
My Rating
173 pages, Paperback (4ish Hours to Read)