Storyline: 2/5 
 Characters: 3/5 
 Writing Style: 2/5 
 World: 3/5 
 --Below information added approximately one year after original reading-- 
 I have a problem with black comedies (anything by Wes Anderson), satires (i.e. the Charlie's Angels 2000 remake), and really bad science fiction (case-in-point: Verhoeven's 1997 Starship Troopers) movies. Apparently, there comes a point when something is so awful that it becomes apparent (or assumed) that the egregiousness is deliberate and therefore funny. I have suspicion that at times we laugh at something that is bad, giving credit for intention, when it really was a flop (i.e. Starship Troopers). Science fiction from the pulp fiction and Golden ages present me with similar problems. At times, the writing is so haphazard, the scenes so disconnected, and the ongoings so obscure that we credit the writer with being "mysterious," "enigmatic," or, better yet, "ingeniously incoherent." Vogt comes to mind as perhaps the most obvious candidate deserving this description. Bester's The Stars My Destination, too, bears similar qualities. 
 The development, character behavior, and sequences are often so random and bewildering that you have to choose whether the author is genius or inept. I'm still not sure. I suppose that if you really just want to have a good time, you assume brilliance and intent, and enjoy the story regardless of any sort of objective merit. In this case, I couldn't help but think about the Count of Monte Cristo (which, I think, the reader is supposed to do). The Stars My Destination and Gulliver Foyle suffer for the comparison though. The tale reads more like it was aimed for the adolescent and to be best appreciated by the juvenile. Still, I can't shake the feeling that Bester really was on to something and that he really was ingeniously incoherent. The ideas are fabulous - among the best science fiction ideas of that era. The main character is among the most memorable in science fiction. The world is truly dazzling. In the end though, I'm simply uncomfortable with it. In part, I was wowed and entertained, yet I was also disgruntled and frustrated. I think this one works best if you can lighten up, refuse to take it seriously, and fully embrace that suspicion of disbelief. I have difficulty with each of those steps.