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      State of the Art

      by Iain M. Banks
      Published
      Dec 1989
      Main Genre
      Space Opera Space Opera
      Rating
      Pages
      188
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      Series
      The Culture Book 4

      About This Book

      From New York Times bestselling and modern master of science fiction, Iain M. Banks, The State of the Art is the acclaimed collection of Banks's short fiction. 

      "Banks is a phenomenon...writing pure science fiction of a peculiarly gnarly energy and elegance." –William Gibson

      This is a striking addition to the body of Culture lore, and adds definition and scale to the previous works by using the Earth of 1977 as contrast. The stories in the collection range from science fiction to horror, dark-coated fantasy to morality tale. All bear the indefinable stamp of Iain Banks's staggering talent.

      "Few of us have been exposed to a talent so manifest and of such extraordinary breadth." –New York Review of Science Fiction
       
      "[Banks] can summon up sense-of-wonder Big Concepts you've never seen before and display them with narration as deft as a conjuror's fingers." –scifi.com

      The Culture series:
      Consider Phlebas
      The Player of Games
      Use of Weapons
      The State of the Art
      Excession
      Inversions
      Look to Windward
      Matter
      Surface Detail
      The Hydrogen Sonata

      Series Placement

      Book 4
      🔄 Best Read in Order
      View full series order

      Genres & Themes

      Genres

      Speculative Fiction

      Subgenres

      Science Fiction Space Opera

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      Formats & Editions

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      Paperback

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      Paperback
      Jun 1993 Little, Brown (UK) ISBN13 9781857230307 ISBN10 1857230302
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      Trade Paperback
      Apr 2007 Night Shade ISBN13 9781597800747 ISBN10 1597800740
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      Apr 2024 Orbit ISBN13 9780316565646 ISBN10 0316565644
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      Hardcover

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      May 1989 Ziesing, Mark V. ISBN13 9780929480077 ISBN10 0929480074
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      Dec 1989 Mark V. Ziesing ISBN13 9780929480060 ISBN10 0929480066
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      Aug 2005 Night Shade ISBN13 9781892389381 ISBN10 189238938X
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      eBook

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      Oct 2015 ISBN10 B01758FVYY
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      Apr 2024 Orbit ISBN13 9780316565660 ISBN10 0316565660
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      Audio

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      Jan 2014 Hachette Audio UK ISBN10 B01CWUGQ6C
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      Jan 2014 Hachette Audio UK ISBN10 B00HS4FXN0
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      Jan 2024 -- Not Selected ISBN10 B0BWH5BMQK
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