Jack Vance is both a master story teller and a master stylist. Hailed as the Shakespeare of science fiction, most of his books remain sadly out of print, such as this ‘dystopian’ masterpiece. Vance’s genius lies in creating sophisticated alien cultures, and clothing his stories in brilliant prose. His grasp of cultural nuances is without equal, and his characters emerge as if carved from alien rock.

Emphyrio remains a personal favorite. This novel captures Vance’s sense of culture and language admirably. In addition, few other books have treated the relationship between father and son with more poignancy than Emphyrio.

On the distant planet Halma a group of self-styled lords govern a welfare system, restricting trade and taxing both wealth and individuality. Ghyl Tarvak finds himself at odds with his society from childhood. When his artisan father is arrested for illegally duplicating pamphlets, and dies after being 're-educated,' Ghyl feels the wrongness of his society.

Young Ghyl becomes a rebel, and seeks to understand the truth behind the history of his planet, the Overlords, and the secret held by the strange homunculus-like beings of Halmas' moon. He journeys to old Earth, and returns with revelations that shatter the structure of his own world.

If you never have read Vance, I can't recommend strongly enough that you seek out this novel. Ghyl's story will draw you in with soft melancholy, and the tale that unfolds rivets the reader till the very end. Several of Vance's novels easily could stand among the best of the Hall of Fame winners, yet none match the power of Emphyrio.