Algis Budrys - Who? (1958) A Cold War take on the Man with the Iron Mask, this tells the story of an american scientist who is returned to the US from the USSR but who is a kind of cyborg made out of the scientist who was in a horrible accident. A kind of robocop character, so you have the idea. The question that arises is a question about the real identity of the man, is he really Lucas Martino, the scientist, or some kind of Soviet agent pretending to be Martino? Frankly the political machinations are the least interesting thing about the novel, the real point of interest is the exploration of Martino's identity and crisis in his new body, crisis for not being recognized by those he loves and a kind of self-hatred at his own transformation. There are truly heartbreaking scenes here, such as the one when he meets his former almost girlfriend... it's just sad. The book doesn't really keep you guessing that much, you're pretty sure from the beginning that this is really Martino, so it comes as a shock when something happens that raises doubts about his identity. In the end you do get answers and quite philosophical existential and satisfying ones. Pretty good classic sci-fi, nominated for the 1959 Hugo Award. (4/5) #algisbudrys #who #scifi #sciencefiction #book #books #bookish #bibliophile #bookgram #bookstagram #bookporn #bookworm #booklover #bookcover #hugoawards (at Lisbon, Portugal) https://www.instagram.com/p/B_Gi5_NlHur/?igshid=zfe9r5hxdq0y
