Review 89: Oathbringer

Oathbringer by Brandon Sanderson
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Reading a book in Sanderson's Stormlight Archive is no small undertaking. Clocking in at a hefty 1100-something page, this is no short-flight or one-weekend kind of book. The quality of such a novel lies in the fact that, depending on your day-to-day situation, will require many days and weeks to complete. The character development and becoming attached to them are definitely helped by this, as you are experiencing the adventure with them. Though Sanderson always feels a bit formulaic and his style might not appeal to all, I find this a solid read and a great entry into an already fantastic series.

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Review 88: Tuned Out

Tuned Out by Keith A. Pearson
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

What is with me and time-travel love stories? It's such a niche genre, and I've only managed to read two books in it. The first one was Stephen King's 11.22.63, a book ostensibly about preventing JFK's assassination. The theme that really grabbed me by the throat though, was the love story. For some reason, the idea of lovers separated by the streams of time seems so immensely unfair that I cannot help but shed a tear. This book was no different. The twist at the end grabs you and quite frankly, if you do not cry, I would argue you might be a little dead inside. Aside from the love story that was phenomenally well done, everything else just clicked as well. The characters were engaging, and the setting was utterly mundane, yet fantastically laid out. It was not a perfect novel, but a very solid four out of five stars. 

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Novel 5: Another, followed by another (from ''The European Dream'')

‘‘So this is it,’’ he said as the representative of a cleverly, but not too cleverly, named temporary housing agent gestured broadly at what would be my 32 square meter kingdom. A bed filled the corner. Its mattress visibly sagged in the middle and I could already imagine a bad night in another bed that wasn’t mine. Other than that, the room contained two tables, two chairs, a large couch, a dresser, and a place to hang some clothes, without any hangers. The kitchen was better off and featured four stoves and an oven without any oven plates. A cheap flat-screen TV occupied the top of the dresser. ‘‘All the essentials’’, I thought to myself ruefully.

‘‘Rent is 1390 euros and due before the end of each month. If you miss a payment, we’ll have to add 25 euro for every day that you’re late.’’

‘‘We’ll have to. Naturally, you don’t have a choice. The Gods of Rent themselves come down from heaven, or up from hell rather when a tenant misses a rent payment.’’

Review 87: River of the Gods: Genius, Courage and Betrayal in the Search for the Source of the Nile

River of the Gods: Genius, Courage and Betrayal in the Search for the Source of the Nile by Candice Millard
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

This book is why you would, or perhaps should, need to read historical non-fiction. It is an absolutely amazing portrayal of a rivalry between two men, vying to be the first to ''discover'' the source of the Nile. Discover in brackets, as N'yanza, or Lake Victoria as we would come to know it in the Western world had of course been known to the local population since time immemorial, obviously under many different names, none which had anything to do with English queens. Millard manages to thread this line very well, balancing admiration for the near-superhuman efforts of the explorers and their crew with a clear understanding of the implications of European exploration for the local population. 

It is these insights into local culture, politics and languages that adds so much quality to this book. The description of the encounters of both Burton and Speke (the two main rivalling characters) with the the local population, how each viewed and treated them are gems of knowledge that were often completely new to me. Burton one the one hand had a clear interest, dressing up like a local without mocking them, learning their languages (over 20 in his lifetime) and employing locals to work with him in achieving his goals. Though he had numerous less noteworthy traits, he comes off better than his adversary Speke. He, on the other hand, had no interest in languages or culture, but more so in fame, hunting and not getting his ego bruised (and failing at that). 

The interplay of these two aspects paints a marvelous picture of a time when the world truly was still large and many parts of it unknown. A time when the world became more interconnected, and countries, places and people were pulled, often forced, into the global web European trade and conquest was creating. This book shows just one small chapter of this massive global change and it is one most worthwhile to read.

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Review 86: Foundation

Foundation by Isaac Asimov
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

To me, science fiction has always been about big ideas. Ideas, concepts, so large, that you are not always to wrap your head around them. Science fiction should not just be transmuting any story that can take place any other time or location, but truly offer something other genres can't, or at least would struggle to do. Scope, complexity and mind-expanding ideas are at the core of this. What this means in practice is that science fiction offers us a way of looking at ourselves as humans through an otherwise non-existent lens. It allows to ask the question ''What if....?'' and then go off in a million different directions. 

Foundation takes all of those aspects. Scope, because it deals with a near-infinite galaxy-spanning empire. Complexity, because it manages to deftly combine the intricacies of religion, science, politics and our own human history into a single story. Mind-expanding ideas and asking that one question; ''What if... a galactic empire were to fall apart, but we would know it beforehand and we have a way of cushioning our fall (in relative terms), before a second empire arises? The number of interesting questions that pop up are near endless. 

- Would the current leadership accept this ''prophecy''?

- If they did not, how would they respond? As humans always have when confronted with change?

- If they did, then how would they act? How would you act if you'd know your end was in sight and inevitable?  Fight against the dying of the light? Or step into the darkness, willingly?

- How would this impact the millions, billions (trillions?) living across the empire?

Asimov handles all these questions and more. And that, is the big draw of this book (and I assume its sequels). It is a humongous prospect, yet he manages to deal with it in an acceptable number of pages. The writing is quick, the pacing equally so. It features a large cast of characters over the span of hundreds of years, some more interesting than others.

Though the plot differs in quality, depending on the chapters, and the idea of nuclear technology being the core to an advanced society feels a bit antiquated, this is science fiction as it was meant to be. Dealing with big questions and forcing ourselves to look at our own history.

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