Preview of Psion Summary:

Communication is a major theme in Vinge's work. Most often her protagonist is cut off from society and must manage to communicate or face extinction. Most of her protagonists also learn that communication does not invariably make them happy. Cat is no exception. At the start of the novel, Cat is a teen-age junkie well on his way to an early death. Even in Oldcity, a haven for outcasts, Cat is shunned. Because his Hydran eyes proclaim him a telepath, people fear Cat. No one wants to have his mind spied upon. Ironically, Cat has instinctively blocked off his telepathic powers as the source of all his problems. Furthermore, Cat has retreated into a drug-hazed world to ease his rejection. Cat is saved from certain death by an organization devoted to research in psionics. He is forcibly "volunteered" for an experiment in telepathy, empathy, and telekinesis. He also...