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Title: The Years of Rice and Salt by Kim Stanley Robinson ISBN: 0-553-58007-8 Publisher: Bantam Pub. Date: 03 June, 2003 Format: Mass Market Paperback Volumes: 1 List Price(USD): $7.99 |
Average Customer Rating: 3.33 (109 reviews)
Rating: 4
Summary: Enjoyable to a Point
Comment: It was with some trepidation that I picked up a copy of this lengthy tome and took it home. As with any book of this size, I knew I was committing myself to a significant investment of time. But in this case, I also knew that I was taking a risk because I had once tried to read Robinson's first Mars novel, and was unable to complete the task. So, it was with a certain amount of surprise that I found myself quickly devouring the first half of The Years of Rice and Salt.
The author approaches his idea of a world history without Europe from a unique angle, not just writing the story of a an Earth dominated by Chinese and Muslims, but crafting a history that is written entirely through the philosophical and cultural eyes of these people. He succeeds in illustrating that without the people of Europe, not only would events have unfolded very differently, but the way history itself would be viewed by later generations would be drastically altered.
What I enjoyed most in this novel were the characters and the stories of their repeated interactions over the span of history. Robinson does a good job of making these people believable and interesting, and the tales he tells find them in a myriad of roles, places and situations. And because he weaves reincarnation throughout this novel, Robinson was able to surprise me with the outcomes of some of his tales, not being restricted to keeping his major characters "alive".
Where this book falls down is when Robinson allows himself to wander away from his tales and into philosiphizing and ruminating over the nature of history. As the book progresses, this becomes ever more frequent, and in the latter third of the book, I found the going pretty slow. I understand that he was trying to do more than tell the story of this alternate Earth - he wanted to make some insightful points about the nature of history itself and the role we each play in it. Be that as it may, I think that The Years of Rice and Salt would be a shorter, and more importantly better, novel if it contained fewer of these thought-provoking and sleep-inducing passages.
All in all, I enjoyed this book a great deal, and would recommend it to someone with the right temperment. If you enjoy fast-paced action, give it a pass. If you want interesting characters and stories and can take a healthy dose of rumination on the nature of history, perhaps you'll like it.
Rating: 5
Summary: A Staggering, Thought Provoking Work
Comment: Until this book, I'd never really delved into the alternate history genre, but a review on Salon.Com was enough to get me intrigued, and once the paperback became available I knew immediately that I'd want to read it.
I was not disappointed. But I recognize that this is not a book for everyone. The storytelling is not exactly linear, as characters are followed from one reincarnation to another, but the cyclical mode of storytelling here is in keeping with Buddhism as one of the major forces in the world-without-Europe that Robinson envisions. The only reason this might be seen as a flaw is because Robinson's novel is approached by readers who inevitably have a distinctly Western (linear) view of time and storytelling; the expect a beginning, a middle and an end, whereas Robinson offers a long walk through a never-ending story in which the names of the characters (at least) change from one part of the book to the next.
I was left not just wanting more, but wanting to visit the world Robinson created in his novel.
Rating: 2
Summary: Disappointing Novel
Comment: Although I really enjoy KSR's work, The Years of Rice and Salt just didn't do it for me. It is a brilliant idea, but the follow-through was poor at best. The world that Robinson creates ends up basically the same as our own world instead of the drastic alternate past/future novel he could have made, it's as though everything is inevitable and merely channeled through different inventors/rulers/politicos. I guess if that's the message of the novel then it's good, but I was hoping for something with more imagination.
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Title: Bones of the Earth by Michael Swanwick ISBN: 0380812894 Publisher: HarperTorch Pub. Date: 25 February, 2003 List Price(USD): $7.50 |
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Title: Kiln People by David Brin ISBN: 0765342618 Publisher: Tor Science Fiction Pub. Date: 07 January, 2003 List Price(USD): $7.99 |
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Title: Hominids by Robert J. Sawyer ISBN: 0765345005 Publisher: Tor Science Fiction Pub. Date: 17 February, 2003 List Price(USD): $7.99 |
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Title: Perdido Street Station by China Mieville ISBN: 0345459407 Publisher: Del Rey Pub. Date: 29 July, 2003 List Price(USD): $7.99 |
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Title: The Chronoliths by Robert Charles Wilson ISBN: 0812545249 Publisher: Tor Science Fiction Pub. Date: 17 June, 2002 List Price(USD): $6.99 |
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