Singularity Sky
On a primitive planet resembling the worst of Eastern Europe in the Soviet era, a rain of telephones falls from the sky. They're the first gift of the festival, a star-traveling race of information omnivores. Many gifts follow, the economy is shattered, and the long-awaited revolution arrives. Things are terrific for the workers, and less terrific back at the capitol.
High adventure and top-drawer science fiction: the perfect companion for a long airplane trip.