The Infinitive of Go

I finally found myself reading a book I purchased on a whim at McKay's used books in Chattanooga some time ago. I had never heard of John Brunner, let alone the book itself, but the unusual cover art and the somewhat intriguing title -- not to mention the seventy-five cent price -- caught my attention. It is the tale of a somewhat unsuspecting inventor, living in the height of Cold War paranoia who develops a unique mode of transportation called a "Poster." This device allows nearly instantaneous movement of matter between two paired units. Everything seems to be going well until the first human currier to be "posted" to a foreign embassy kills himself immediately after transfer. This sets in motion a chain of events leading to an ending with more than a few similarities to "The Lady, or the Tiger?" by Frank R. Stockton. Once the first chapter or so is out of the way, it becomes a compelling and involving narrative with a few more profound philosophical consequences than were to be found in most short fiction of today -- especially interesting is its rather frank treatment of homosexuality in one of the characters. One thing to note though would be a quick read of some sort of explanation of transfinite numbers -- importantly Aleph-null, Aleph-one, etc.