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A review by jamespatrickjoyce
Hull Zero Three by Greg Bear
4.0
Wow. One of those "out there" type of stories. A blank-slate character in a confused, crazy, deadly world.
So, the protagonist awakes from what appears to be a cryo-sleep chamber. Apparently a crew member of an expedition sent from Earth, to allow humanity to reach the stars. Maybe. But his memory is choppy, uncertain... confused. He's saved by a little girl, who isn't forthcoming with any further details. He's on a spaceship, but not where he "should" be; not with whom he should be.
Nothing is as it should be. Something is wrong. People are dying or dead. Monsters roam the halls of the spaceship. Impossible monsters. And the first task is to run. Run from the monsters, run from the cold as the ship freezes, run for the heat that always seems to be moving away, farther along the ship.
All he knows, all he's told, is that he is "Teacher". A teacher who knows nothing. Or, at least, who only learns to doubt what he does know. And to fear everything.
A meditation on the existential crisis? Who are we? Who am I? What is my purpose? Where are we? Why this, that, and everything else?
I quite enjoyed this. The puzzle, the answers, the answers that only lead to deeper questions... and a final resolution that is satisfying and right.
This is science fiction, set in the future, but as relevant and meaningful as a contemporary war story. Bravo, Mr. Bear!
So, the protagonist awakes from what appears to be a cryo-sleep chamber. Apparently a crew member of an expedition sent from Earth, to allow humanity to reach the stars. Maybe. But his memory is choppy, uncertain... confused. He's saved by a little girl, who isn't forthcoming with any further details. He's on a spaceship, but not where he "should" be; not with whom he should be.
Nothing is as it should be. Something is wrong. People are dying or dead. Monsters roam the halls of the spaceship. Impossible monsters. And the first task is to run. Run from the monsters, run from the cold as the ship freezes, run for the heat that always seems to be moving away, farther along the ship.
All he knows, all he's told, is that he is "Teacher". A teacher who knows nothing. Or, at least, who only learns to doubt what he does know. And to fear everything.
A meditation on the existential crisis? Who are we? Who am I? What is my purpose? Where are we? Why this, that, and everything else?
I quite enjoyed this. The puzzle, the answers, the answers that only lead to deeper questions... and a final resolution that is satisfying and right.
This is science fiction, set in the future, but as relevant and meaningful as a contemporary war story. Bravo, Mr. Bear!