Hooray for Holipticon

by Carol Van Natta, Ann Harbour

Overview

A lighthearted adventure set in a future world not too different from our own. The paranoid Tax Authority, afraid of a wonderful new product developed by Holopticon (maker of holographic viewers), starts a bureaucratic war with the brave little company. With backup from the home office, three resourceful Holopticon employees beard the agency in its den. But despite exploding toilets, omnivorous ducks, bad computer poetry, and occasional appearances by a mythical ninja detective, most everyone manages to have a pretty good time. As Holopticon's (maddening) office computer might say it: "They bite bureaucracy on the nose / And come out smelling like a rose." Think Jane Austen meets Ocean's Eleven meets Office Space. PG-13, with a tight, satisfying plot and some very funny scenes.

Also contains a free preview of Overload Flux (A Central Galactic Concordance Novel) by Carol Van Natta.

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The Central Galactic Concordance series by Carol Van Natta:
• Overload Flux - novel, Book 1 (standalone)
• Minder Rising - novel, Book 2 (standalone)
• Zero Flux - novella, Book 2.5 (sequel to Overload Flux)

Product Details

BN ID:	2940150209602
Publisher:	Chavanch Press, LLC
Publication date:	05/19/2009
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	432
Sales rank:	720,416
File size:	520 KB

About the Author

Return with us now to those thrilling days of yesteryear...

We wrote this novel in 1990 and tried like crazy throughout 1991 and 1992 to get it published. There was no Internet publishing then, and none of the established publishers who handled full-length science fiction would touch it. It was too long for a humorous novel, they told us, and it didn't have any redeeming sex and violence. Sorry...

We're still proud of Hooray for Holopticon and think it deserves an audience, so we're offering it here.

It's not entirely free of sex and violence, and there are a few instances of rather naughty words. Let's say it's PG-13.

When you enter the Holopticon universe, you'll find the technology pretty familiar. But when the novel was written, lots of the day-to-day amenities we take for granted today didn't exist yet. No small portable phones, no office computer networks, no maintenance robots, no on-demand television, certainly no World Wide Web. It's interesting to see how much of the technology that's routine in our daily life now was science fiction less than twenty years ago.

But the technology is only set-dressing. The plot and characters are the star in this heroic tale in which a small company takes on an overweening Tax Authority. But despite exploding toilets, omnivorous ducks, bad computer poetry, and occasional appearances by a mythical ninja detective, most everyone manages to have a pretty good time. As their office computer might say it,

They bite bureaucracy on the nose,
And come out smelling like a rose.

-- Carol Van Natta and Ann Harbour

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Carol Van Natta is an independent science fiction author. Works include Overload Flux, Minder Rising, Zero Flux, and Hooray for Holopticon. She shares her Fort Collins, CO home with a sometime mad scientist and various cats. Visit her on the Web at author.carolvannatta.com, where you can sign up for her infrequent but newsworthy newsletter at

After years as a tech writer/editor, Ann Harbour morphed into an independent author, and website and graphic designer. Ann lives in Fort Collins, Colorado.

Editorial Reviews

"What a fun book! This novel is written in classic sci-fi style. The writing is reminiscent of early science fiction but the story certainly is not. ...The plot is solid, well thought out, and keeps you intimately involved with the characters. In the end, the little guy wins and sticks it to the tax man. What else could you ask for?"

Amazon - Midlife King

"If you're looking for a book with a moral, or a heavy-handed theme, then Hooray for Holopticon is not the book for you. But . . . if you just want a delightful read with an interesting plot and lots of fascinating characters, then grab a copy immediately! ...I always love a book that can make me laugh out loud and Holopticon did it multiple times. Do yourself a favor and pick up a copy and enjoy the journey."

Amazon - Ron Holleman