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A review by miguel
Endurance by Daniel Huddleston, Yoshiki Tanaka
5.0
"They extol the virtues of democracy with their mouths, while in reality they ignore laws and regulations, turning them into hollow shells."
This book, by happenstance, took me a year to complete. It certainly was not for lack of quality of page-turning readability. Endurance begins to hint at the sea change that is coming for the status quo of these characters, Yang and even Reinhard, who we have grown to love. This text is about growth and change. It begins with the benevolent Julian finally engaging in armed conflict.
These novels have a tremendous strength in Tanaka's aphorisms that are peppered throughout the text. They are thought-provoking and often provide insight into Tanaka's richly developed characters. Tanaka, by way of Yang, makes precise commentary on the nature of war and politics.
I often wonder what it would be like to encounter these texts in their original context of the 1980s. But Tanaka's genius is just how prescient these stories are. To call them "timeless," while perhaps true, is to do an injustice to how precisely they speak to our present moment. In Dawn, Tanaka anticipates Kaepernick with Yang's refusal to stand during the national anthem. In Endurance, the incompetence and corruption of the Trump administration are plainly evident in the rising Trunicht faction.
I have a hard time articulating the pleasant feelings these novels give me. There is something so brilliant and engaging about Tanaka's writing. And yet, he makes high art out of a textual practice that is undeniably genre fiction. This is the sci-fi franchise we deserve.
This book, by happenstance, took me a year to complete. It certainly was not for lack of quality of page-turning readability. Endurance begins to hint at the sea change that is coming for the status quo of these characters, Yang and even Reinhard, who we have grown to love. This text is about growth and change. It begins with the benevolent Julian finally engaging in armed conflict.
These novels have a tremendous strength in Tanaka's aphorisms that are peppered throughout the text. They are thought-provoking and often provide insight into Tanaka's richly developed characters. Tanaka, by way of Yang, makes precise commentary on the nature of war and politics.
I often wonder what it would be like to encounter these texts in their original context of the 1980s. But Tanaka's genius is just how prescient these stories are. To call them "timeless," while perhaps true, is to do an injustice to how precisely they speak to our present moment. In Dawn, Tanaka anticipates Kaepernick with Yang's refusal to stand during the national anthem. In Endurance, the incompetence and corruption of the Trump administration are plainly evident in the rising Trunicht faction.
I have a hard time articulating the pleasant feelings these novels give me. There is something so brilliant and engaging about Tanaka's writing. And yet, he makes high art out of a textual practice that is undeniably genre fiction. This is the sci-fi franchise we deserve.