A collection of speculative first-person monologues narrated largely by the cosmic being Qfwfq, ranging from the Moon's origin and the first birds to cellular mitosis and reproduction, and culminating in a story where the narrator becomes a character trapped in the Chateau d'If alongside Abbe Faria, watching Alexandre Dumas assemble the branching draft possibilities of the novel The Count of Monte Cristo.
Books mentioned in t zero (3)
The Count of Monte Cristo by Alexandre Dumas: “Let us call Alexandre Dumas the writer who must deliver to his publisher as soon as possible a novel in twelve volumes entitled The Count of Monte Cristo.”
Theory of Automata by John von Neumann: “John von Neumann, Theory of Automata (in Collected Works, Vol. 5)”
The Double Helix by James D. Watson: “James D. Watson, The Double Helix: A Personal Account of the Discovery of the Structure of DNA, Chap. 26”