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Light of Other Days, The
by Arthur C Clarke and Stephen Baxter
Fascinating exploration of the ability to witness history first-hand.
What would life be like if we had the ability to watch anyone or anything
at any time in history? What would you choose to watch? The life of Christ?
The first staging of Hamlet? Your parents in the act of conceiving you?
What implications would such a technological development have for society
and the people in it? These are the main issues investigated in this
fascinating and engrossing novel, by two of the real heavyweights of science
fiction, Arthur C. Clarke and Stephen Baxter.
Seen through the eyes of the sons of Rupert Murdochesque Hiram
Patterson, a South Indian refugee from Idi Amin's Uganda, the action
follows the development of the technology, at first slowly, but subsequently
at a much more rapid pace. Societal change intensifies too. Various
historical conundrums are resolved and a number of religious myths
debunked. As the authors see it, society grows up a little bit. At the end
of the book, society has grown up a very long way indeed.
As usual, in the fiction of both these authors, the ideas are much more
interesting than the characters. However, the authors seem to feel (or have
been informed somehow) that much more character development is necessary.
This is a little unfortunate as, frankly, the family shenanigans of the
main characters are not terribly interesting – and do not even seem to hold
the interest of the authors, given the perfunctory way in which they are
discarded when no longer required.
Indeed, there is something of a failure of nerve when certain important
historical issues are being considered. The death of Christ is fudged – the
birth of Islam is not even considered. Yet, it is inconceivable that these
issues would not receive intensive attention, from people with a variety of
agendas to explore. The latter is perhaps an example of monoculturalist
assumptions, alien to most of Baxter's work. In a globalised world,
multiple perspectives within modern states must be assumed – instead, we
are given the vision of a single Americanized society in which all people
are moving in the same direction. This is a surprisingly inadequate
authorial approach from someone with the stature of Baxter – although it
seems like a piece with the vision of Clarke.
In all, this is still an inspiring and stimulating read that will be enjoyed
by science fiction fans. The flaws in the book are
overwhelmed by the breadth and depth of the ideas – which is, as good SF
should be.
Title: Light of Other Days, The
Author: Arthur C Clarke and Stephen Baxter
Publisher: Voyager Books
ISBN: 0812576403
Review written by: John Walsh
Reviewer's Rating:8.5
Reader's Rating: 10.00
Reader's Votes: 3
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