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3.51 AVERAGE
3.51 AVERAGE
emotional
inspiring
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
3.4/5
Multă lume face paralele între romanul ăsta și (superiorul) „Greybeard” al lui Brian Aldiss, din cauza subiectului pe care-l împart: un viitor apropiat în care omenirea își trăiește într-o liniște neplăcută ultimele zile, la decenii distanță de ultima naștere.
Eu aleg să văd „The Children of Men” ca pe un început, iar „Greybeard” ca pe sfârșitul poveștii. Punctele comune sunt foarte multe, inclusiv locațiile și tipologiile personajelor, iar ambele se sfârșesc cu un mic zvâcnet de speranță.
Scriitura romanului mi-a plăcut, are în ea poezia aceea specifică autorilor englezi, și chiar dacă am prevăzut câteva dintre punctele-cheie ale poveștii, am rămas impresionat de abilitatea autoarei de a aproxima și surprinde sentimentul acela de neputință care se naște în sufletul oamenilor care știu că după ce ei vor dispărea nimeni nu le mai lua locul.
Cască romanul ăsta un vid în sufletul tău și te face să te cutremuri și să îți dea seama exact cât de importanți sunt copiii, cât de importantă e succesiunea generațională, cât de esențială e pentru suflet cunoașterea faptului că, deși ducem vieți scurte și nesemnificative, e posibil ca nimic să nu fie în van, atâta timp cât oamenii înaintează prin secole.
Problema cea mai mare pe care o am, totuși, cu romanul este că are muuuuuult prea multe pagini pentru ce își propune să facă. Literalmente nimic nu se întâmplă în primele 200 de pagini. Jumătate din carte putea fi rașchetată și nu cred că am fi simțit diferență prea mare. Multe scene lente, în care ochiul naratorului se apleacă asupra multor obiecte și detalii de care puteam fi lejer scutiți. Nu e vorba că ar fi neplăcute, dar le-am considerat relativ inutile. Pe ultima sută de pagini cartea devine mai alertă, mizele încep să crească și finalul e unul puternic.
But still... „Greybeard” mi-a plăcut mai mult.
Multă lume face paralele între romanul ăsta și (superiorul) „Greybeard” al lui Brian Aldiss, din cauza subiectului pe care-l împart: un viitor apropiat în care omenirea își trăiește într-o liniște neplăcută ultimele zile, la decenii distanță de ultima naștere.
Eu aleg să văd „The Children of Men” ca pe un început, iar „Greybeard” ca pe sfârșitul poveștii. Punctele comune sunt foarte multe, inclusiv locațiile și tipologiile personajelor, iar ambele se sfârșesc cu un mic zvâcnet de speranță.
Scriitura romanului mi-a plăcut, are în ea poezia aceea specifică autorilor englezi, și chiar dacă am prevăzut câteva dintre punctele-cheie ale poveștii, am rămas impresionat de abilitatea autoarei de a aproxima și surprinde sentimentul acela de neputință care se naște în sufletul oamenilor care știu că după ce ei vor dispărea nimeni nu le mai lua locul.
Cască romanul ăsta un vid în sufletul tău și te face să te cutremuri și să îți dea seama exact cât de importanți sunt copiii, cât de importantă e succesiunea generațională, cât de esențială e pentru suflet cunoașterea faptului că, deși ducem vieți scurte și nesemnificative, e posibil ca nimic să nu fie în van, atâta timp cât oamenii înaintează prin secole.
Problema cea mai mare pe care o am, totuși, cu romanul este că are muuuuuult prea multe pagini pentru ce își propune să facă. Literalmente nimic nu se întâmplă în primele 200 de pagini. Jumătate din carte putea fi rașchetată și nu cred că am fi simțit diferență prea mare. Multe scene lente, în care ochiul naratorului se apleacă asupra multor obiecte și detalii de care puteam fi lejer scutiți. Nu e vorba că ar fi neplăcute, dar le-am considerat relativ inutile. Pe ultima sută de pagini cartea devine mai alertă, mizele încep să crească și finalul e unul puternic.
But still... „Greybeard” mi-a plăcut mai mult.
This was really disappointing. The premise of the book is fantastic, the beginning was fantastic, the horrified reactions to humankind's infertility were spot on--denial then eventually ennui, and some espionage even (would have loved for a spy's perspective in the novel instead). I even liked Theo's gruffness and how unlikeable he is (and how he is never impressed. NEVER). BUT with the introduction of Julian and the band of five fishes (lol completely random name), the story spiraled into the realm of "why is everyone so effing stupid", honestly, why would the Five Fishes blow up ramps and draw attention to themselves when they've got a pregnant woman in their midst... Wouldn't it make more sense to lay low especially since Julian wants to give birth without Xan breathing down her neck? Also she's stupid, and always weirdly calm, and 3 out of the 3 men in the fellowship are in love with her... *mutters* Mary Sue. Xan was my favorite character because he actually called things as they were. The decisions the group of 5 made were frankly really ridiculous considering their situation (wanting to bury someone when their enemies are so near lolol, and I don't agree with not wanting to enlist Xan's help for a childbirth). Also I get that a child is VERY important but I can't believe no one cared about the father and his fertile sperm, especially Julian who knows who it is. So many plot holes. The Man Penal Colony also made sense when explained by the Council, and basically my problem with this book is that the 'villains' are smarter and make more sensible decisions than the 'heroes' and I can't stand any of the heroes except Theo but he also lost me towards the end when he inexplicably falls in love with someone, it seems, just to have a character arc for him. And then he started saying 'darling' and that was so out of character. Also every sky is AZURE BLUE
The concept of this book is really fascinating, a world slowly puttering out due to the end of human fertility. The book takes place around 25 years after the last births stopped, and in certain ways something nearer to that date would be more interesting, covering the chaos and uncertainty of the world. By the point this book starts, things have settled down, at least in England, where people have acceded many of their freedoms in exchange for a certain stability and comfort. While this world is dystopian and the Warden (the head of the British Government) does not seem terrible pleasant, in many ways the world does not seem too horrible for the rank and file. However, the characters are generally of the sort of professional classes that are insulated a bit.
The issues of migrants (Sojourners) and penal colony residents hint at more sinister conditions hidden away from most citizens. In some ways, this dismal but perhaps not terrible setting is more disquieting, since it makes the general malaise and complacency of people seem rather understandable.
Theo is an interesting character, in that much of the story is how he undergoes a process of being reborn. He learns to care again, feel again, and actually connect with others. Julian's pregnancy and childbirth allow him a new life, where he takes risks and starts engaging with the world and people around him again, rather than merely reflecting on the history, places, and peoples long past as a historian is wont to do.
This book has a very religious or mythological feel to it as well, with pilgrimages and miracle births. While it is not all that close of a parallel, the traveling party in this book made me think of Christmas and the Holy Family's exile into Egypt.
I saw the film prior to reading the book, many years ago. Thankfully it has been many years, so while my vague remembrances seem to indicate rather significant differences between the two, both were enjoyable.
The issues of migrants (Sojourners) and penal colony residents hint at more sinister conditions hidden away from most citizens. In some ways, this dismal but perhaps not terrible setting is more disquieting, since it makes the general malaise and complacency of people seem rather understandable.
Theo is an interesting character, in that much of the story is how he undergoes a process of being reborn. He learns to care again, feel again, and actually connect with others. Julian's pregnancy and childbirth allow him a new life, where he takes risks and starts engaging with the world and people around him again, rather than merely reflecting on the history, places, and peoples long past as a historian is wont to do.
This book has a very religious or mythological feel to it as well, with pilgrimages and miracle births. While it is not all that close of a parallel, the traveling party in this book made me think of Christmas and the Holy Family's exile into Egypt.
I saw the film prior to reading the book, many years ago. Thankfully it has been many years, so while my vague remembrances seem to indicate rather significant differences between the two, both were enjoyable.
dark
reflective
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
Una idea bastante interesante desarrollada con la mayor sobriedad posible. Nada de distopías flashy, electrónicas, cyberpunk o explosivas. Sólo es responder a la pregunta ¿Qué pasaría si toda la población se quedara estéril de un día a otro?
Y la cereza en el pastel es la prosa de James ya que le da mayor seriedad a la novela, dándole una posición de elegancia dentro de la ficción especulativa.
Todos los protagonistas son consistentes con el papel que representan, cualquier peculariedad sirve para dar sentido a sus acciones y sus pensamientos van de acuerdo a la historia personal. Al principio odié al personaje principal, Theo, por estar pensando siempre de manera intelectualoide y sobreanalizando todo. Pero tiene sentido porque él es intelectual. Y así con los demás personajes.
Novela bastante disfrutabl y que sube la barra para la ciencia ficción dentro de la Literatura.
Y la cereza en el pastel es la prosa de James ya que le da mayor seriedad a la novela, dándole una posición de elegancia dentro de la ficción especulativa.
Todos los protagonistas son consistentes con el papel que representan, cualquier peculariedad sirve para dar sentido a sus acciones y sus pensamientos van de acuerdo a la historia personal. Al principio odié al personaje principal, Theo, por estar pensando siempre de manera intelectualoide y sobreanalizando todo. Pero tiene sentido porque él es intelectual. Y así con los demás personajes.
Novela bastante disfrutabl y que sube la barra para la ciencia ficción dentro de la Literatura.
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I'm torn with whether I should give this book 3 out of 5 or 4. I think I will settle with 3.5. Really the only reason it's not receiving full stars is I found the details of the Omega + the world's infertility a little dry and lacking at the beginning, and the masculine show-boating between Rolf and Theo was a little petty and lacking in depth. The book itself was beautifully written and I found myself, for the first time in over a year, faced with looking up a few older and less used words throughout the authors intriguing writing style. I'm not used to reading shorter novels and did feel like there could be more depth to the backstory, but the characters themselves, wrapped in mystery and pulled together by fate, were hard not to love and be intrigued by. Once the story picked up it was truly hard to put down. Thought provoking and eerie in it's implications of a not-so-distant future wrought by infertility and social collapse, this is an excellent dystopian novel from the 90s.
3.5 stars, rounded down.
It’s the same idea as “Greybeard”, right down to the baby. This one has better writing. It’s a good story, pretty well told, but with a predictable and rather unbelievable ending.
Some of the solutions implemented by the “Warden” of England just don’t make much sense. They seem to be plot devices the author creates to prove “government bad.” There’s also an entire bit about the Omegas which appears to be developed just to show how stupid things are. Another is the immediate move to “extrajudicial killings.” If you really have all the power, why would you default to extrajudicial killings? Just lock people up until you get them all and then figure out how to deal with them. Unless the sole point you’re trying to make is “bad governance is bad.”
I think that’s ultimately the weakness of post apocalyptic dystopian fiction: if the changes caused by 100% infertility aren’t significant, it’s not much of a story. But if you make too many changes that don’t seem authentic, you run the risk of nobody thinking the book is realistic.
Ultimately, the good writing doesn’t fix the weak world building.
It’s the same idea as “Greybeard”, right down to the baby. This one has better writing. It’s a good story, pretty well told, but with a predictable and rather unbelievable ending.
Some of the solutions implemented by the “Warden” of England just don’t make much sense. They seem to be plot devices the author creates to prove “government bad.” There’s also an entire bit about the Omegas which appears to be developed just to show how stupid things are. Another is the immediate move to “extrajudicial killings.” If you really have all the power, why would you default to extrajudicial killings? Just lock people up until you get them all and then figure out how to deal with them. Unless the sole point you’re trying to make is “bad governance is bad.”
I think that’s ultimately the weakness of post apocalyptic dystopian fiction: if the changes caused by 100% infertility aren’t significant, it’s not much of a story. But if you make too many changes that don’t seem authentic, you run the risk of nobody thinking the book is realistic.
Ultimately, the good writing doesn’t fix the weak world building.