The Breeds of Man

by F.M. Busby

If science fiction themes can be distinguished as "science fiction as character" (Star Trek), "science fiction as background" (Star Wars), "science fiction as trigger" (ET), "science fiction as story"... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Mass Market Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0553270087
• ISBN13: 9780553270082
• Release Date: January 1988
• Publisher: Spectra Books
• Length: 289 Pages
• Weight: 1.00 lbs.

Customer Reviews

Excellent Classic Sci-fi Book

This is an excellent classic sci-fi book about a possible future involving a virus and a different kind of human being! You must read this book to truly appreciate the genre! Action and adventure!

The Breeds of Man is wonderful.

This is one of those books that I've read more than once. Thought provoking and thoughtful, "The Breeds of Man" raises questions about gender identity and what it means to be human. I highly recommend this book.

Very thought provoking

This book was painfully thought-provoking. The situation that is the basis of the entire structure of the story is potentially real ... and so is the typical scientific response. The results of this scientific response ... a "cure" for AIDS ... is where the story begins to take off. While based in the fictional world of a near future setting, the responses from the characters are very realistic and recognizable. Yet, this is not just a simple drama; good, solid sci-fi writing abounds. A good read, but not just for entertainment value. Some of the characters will really make you grind your teeth. The ending of the story is reasonable and realistic, fiting what we know about the characters as they progress through the story line.

Best of his work

Truly a wonderful story, with plenty to make the reader think. Busby has crafted a story based so closely on the real world, that all the events feel as though they could happen. He is a fabulous storyteller, and I highly recommend that anyone who likes his work read it.

An excellent read

This book has 2 basic themes--what could happen if scientists aren't careful in engineering cures for disease, and the reaction of average people to a next possible step in human evolution. The book starts out with a near-future society that is ravaged by AIDS, and scientists engineer a cure. Part of the cure, however, renders women sterile to a second pregnancy by a man of the same blood type as the first (eliminating the chances of another child with the same man). To find a cure for *this* problem, scientists create an altered human, the Mark II. Unknown to them until these new children reach puberty, the children are cyclical hermaphrodites, going from male to female and back again every other month. Society's response is typical and intolerant. I won't give away the ending, but it's a fast-paced, solid science fiction novel with a terrific message that isn't preachy!

Synopsis

The AIDS epidemic is spreading beyond control as scientists struggle to find a way to stop the epidemic which has claimed more than half the world. After years of research, a "cure" is developed and administered to all infected without any previous testing as to side-effects. The cure totally annhialates the AIDS virus and causes virtually no problems. But the children born to those cured from AIDS are different, they are the "Mark Twos." Following is the back cover text: "The Mark Twos were a breed apart, similar to other humans in every way but one: a survival adaptation different from any seen before. When it was discovered how remarkable that adaptation was, the implications were staggering... "Because in a world where fear and suspicion reigned, where disease limited population growth, and where survival of the human race depended on a cure for that disease, the Mark Twos were the answer: not a cure, but a new kind of humanity." This book is an excellent tale surging with emotion and confrontations. The writing style is pure poetry and flows from word to word. I could not put the book down yet often wanted to throw it across the room! Such response in the reader proves an author is worth a good look.