Review of Probability Moon
Oct
19
2008

Probability Moon
by Nancy Kress
320pp (Paperback)
My Rating: 7/10
Amazon Rating: 3.5/5
LibraryThing Rating: 3.22/5
Goodreads Rating: 3.38/5

Probability Moon by Nancy Kress is the first book in the “Probability” trilogy and is followed by Probability Sun and Probability Space. Kress is probably best known for her novella Beggars in Spain, which won both the Hugo and the Nebula awards in 1991, and evolved into an entire trilogy (review). The first two novels in this series, Beggars in Spain and Beggars and Choosers, were nominated for both Hugos and Nebulas for best novel but did not win either, although Kress has won 4 Nebula awards for her novellas and short stories.

Probability Moon takes place in the distant future. Humans have found a method of traveling throughout space, but during their explorations they discovered the Fallers, an alien race bent on their destruction. Soon there is war between the two races and humanity is facing extermination–until they find a new planet and realize one of its seven moons is not a moon at all. It is actually a manufactured object, perhaps a weapon to use against the Fallers. Scientists are sent on a secret mission to study it under the guise of observing the aliens living on the planet, who are unusual in that they “share reality” and experience physical pain if they do not all share the same beliefs. A team of anthropologists is sent to study the aliens, completely unaware of the real purpose of the mission and the fact that the rest of the ship’s crew will be examining the “moon.”

Enli, a young female, has been declared “unreal” by Reality and Atonement for the murder of her brother. Now she is an outcast since all the “real” people must ignore her while she works to earn back her right to be a part of reality and have a proper burial for her brother, whom she cared deeply for. When the humans come to her world, she is assigned to spy on them and gather information allowing the aliens to decide whether or not the humans are real or unreal. If the researchers are found to be different from the aliens, they will be killed, according to the traditional penalty for those who do not share reality.


The alien race in Probability Moon was very well done and I hope the next two books in the series contain more about them. Having a uniform belief system is an intriguing idea – it sounds horrible (and rather dull) in one sense; however, when the people all share the same worldview, it results in no disagreements and no war. Yet the pain is not the only method of controlling shared reality since the unreal or children who never grow up to exhibit signs of being real are executed, which is a rather harsh price for keeping a peaceful community.

There were several characters the story focused on, mainly the anthropologists studying the world, the military team on the ship studying the moon-artifact, and Enli. None of the humans were particularly well developed, although I did find David, the young and inexperienced man who became part of the expedition only through the influence of his father, rather interesting and the best developed of them. David believed the aliens and their shared reality was far superior to humanity and wanted to learn how to genetically modify humans to have shared reality, envisioning himself as a hero who would create peace on earth. The unreal alien was the most real and sympathetic character in the story with her sadness about her brother and wish to be accepted and redeclared a part of her people’s reality. I would like to know more about the details of what happened to Enli and her brother as well as more information on why she was declared unreal but not killed.

This book was a little slow to start with, other than the chapters about Enli which captured my attention from the beginning. I did find the parts that took place in space particularly hard to read early in the novel, but they became easier to read as the story progressed and this was the storyline that had fewer pages dedicated to it.

Probability Moon is a thoughtful novel about two very different races trying to learn about each other, as well as humanity’s quest for knowledge that could save them. Recommended to fans of first contact stories and those who enjoy imaginative science fiction.

7/10

Iain Banks Email Q&A: Part Three
Oct
19
2008

The newest Iain Banks Q&A is up (this is a few days late but I only just saw it a few minutes ago). In this one, he answers questions about killing off characters, his novel Walking on Glass, the existence of gods in the Culture, technological singularity, whether or not any of his books have been banned, and how disappointing it must be to live in Britain instead of the Culture.

In case anyone missed them, here are links to the first two Q&As:

Final Thoughts: Camp Concentration
Oct
18
2008

The first book blogger discussion week has come to an end. (For more information on the origins of this, you can read about it at OF Blog of the Fallen.) It was a great idea and I’m looking forward to the next one covering Schismatrix Plus by Bruce Sterling in December. Although I didn’t think it was a particularly enjoyable book, Camp Concentration was a great selection since it offered more to talk about than a lot of the more entertaining books that are out there.

It was fun to read everybody’s reviews and I think getting a few different perspectives on the novel was helpful in appreciating it more. I found it helpful to actually spend the week reading different reviews and comments instead of writing my review and then just moving on to the next book. Reading the reviews and comments and writing my own comments also made me think of a few things I wish I had further clarified in my review so I’m going to write about them now.

My main issue with Camp Concentration was that I didn’t feel like I knew enough about the characters to really care about what happened to them or be sad about some pretty harsh circumstances. However, this novel was still fairly character-driven, especially taking into consideration the fact that this was not common for science fiction novels written around the same time. It was told entirely through the eyes of one character and detailed his life at Camp Archimedes and his transformation throughout the story. It still did not entirely work for me (although his characterization was certainly better than some of the older science fiction authors such as Asimov), but I think it is important to remember that it is a fairly old book as far as science fiction is concerned. This is why I’d be interested in finding out more about how Disch’s work was influential and which authors would claim him as an inspiration.

I also stated in my review that I did not feel the book was particularly original or challenging, and I think this could have used some further clarification. It did not seem particularly original to me because there have been plenty of books about corrupt governments treating their citizen’s lives as a means to an end, enhancing intelligence in some way, experimenting on humans, life as a prisoner, etc. Also, the exploration of the relationships between intelligence and knowledge and intelligence and madness were nothing new to me, either. Upon further reflection, combining these elements with literary references and the way it was put together was probably more original than I gave it credit for being. The pieces were somewhat standard but the whole was not unoriginal.

By saying the book was not “challenging” I did not mean it was not profound or thoughtful. It did contain much to think about – it’s just that the parts that stood out to me were ideas that I’d already read about before. Therefore, it did not challenge my worldview – I never stopped and thought about how I’d never thought about something that way before or changed the way I viewed an idea. For instance, I already thought that IQ tests are not a great measure of intelligence and that genius is often a matter of luck before reading about it in this novel. There was never one of those “Aha” moments for me – which doesn’t mean someone else will not have one when reading it (or that I might not have some were I to reread it).

I rambled a bit more than I meant to… I do think it was one of those books that was far more fun to discuss than it was to actually read, so it is a great book for reading groups.

December Blogger Book Club
Oct
17
2008

Post-Weird Thoughts has an announcement about the next Blogger Book Club Discussion. The next book will be Schismatrix Plus by Bruce Sterling. I have yet to read a book by Sterling and have been curious about his work so it will be a good opportunity to give it a try. The next discussion will take place from December 8 – 12. The announcement has more details on the selected book, and if you would like to participate, leave a comment at Post-Weird Thoughts.

Update
Oct
17
2008

I was hoping to get up at least one review this week but it turned out to be a busier week than normal and I didn’t have much spare time in the evenings. This weekend I plan to get up a review on Probability Moon by Nancy Kress and perhaps a “post-discussion” post on Camp Concentration. If I can just get that one review done, I will be most of the way caught up since I just have the one on Elizabeth Bear’s “The Stratford Man” duology left other than that. I’m reading two long books right now to give myself some time to get caught up – The Court of the Air by Stephen Hunt and The Way of Shadows by Brent Weeks. Since I’ve barely had any time to read this week, that’s working out well as far as not reading more than writing goes.

Clarkesworld Books is temporarily open again for those of you who are addicted like I am. I’m still trying to figure out just what to order and have been working on narrowing down my list of potential buys. If anyone has any feedback on why I should or should not get the following books let me know:

Foreigner by C.J. Cherryh
The Onion Girl by Charles de Lint
A Sundial in a Grave by Mary Gentle
Nekropolis by Maureen McHugh
Sunshine by Robin McKinley
A Princess of Roumania by Paul Park (they have signed copies of this one)
Chasm City by Alastair Reynolds (I’ll probably wait on this one since I apparently need to be on vacation to read his books and I’m sure I won’t be having one of those for a while)
Sister Light, Sister Dark by Jane Yolen
The Shadow of the Wind by Carlos Ruiz Zafon (think this is a must buy from what I’ve heard)

They’re all fairly cheap (about $8 for most of the trade paperbacks and $3-$4 for mass market) and I’m not sure what to get. Other than Yolen, McKinley and Reynolds, I haven’t read anything by the authors in the above list (yet).

Blogger Book Club Review of Camp Concentration
Oct
13
2008

Camp Concentration
by Thomas M. Disch
192pp (Trade Paperback)
My Rating: 6.5/10
Amazon Rating: 4/5
LibraryThing Rating: 3.81/5
Goodreads Rating: 3.81/5

Today marks the beginning of the first in what will hopefully be many Blogger Book Club Discussions. Larry from OF Blog of the Fallen came up with the idea of selecting an older book every month to discuss on various blogs. It’s a casual discussion with an entire week for posting reviews and no obligation to participate every month. The October discussion book is the dystopia Camp Concentration by Thomas M. Disch, which was originally published in 1968.

During the 1970s, America is at war. The poet Louis Sacchetti has been imprisoned for dodging the draft, finding five years in jail preferable to life as a soldier, possible death, and participating in a cause he believes to be morally wrong. The story begins when Louis has finally been allowed to have some paper and immediately begins writing a journal about his time as an inmate. Shortly after the writer has started his daily musings, there is a gap in time between entries and it is noted that the format has changed from handwriting to typing. Louis then tells of being snatched away from this prison to a new prison known as Camp Archimedes, which one of his captors promises will be a better place for him with movie nights, access to a library, coffee, and a weekly allowance of funds. In return, Louis must continue writing his journal and recounting his factual observations.

Soon Louis discovers the real purpose of Camp Archimedes – its residents are part of an experiment to test Pallidine, a new drug derived from syphilis spirochete intended to enhance intelligence. Those who have taken the medication are becoming smarter; however, any person who has taken it dies approximately nine months later. This leads the inmates to study alchemy and ways to create an elixir of youth so they do not meet this fate of an early death.


Camp Concentration has a very academic feel and was reminiscent of books I read in college because of the journal format, the references to literature such as Faust, and the discussion of concepts such as genius being inseparable from madness without the involvement of the factor of luck. It was a book that seemed to be more about ideas and making points through plot and character than one that was about plot and character featuring some contributing ideas. This book fell more into the category of interesting than enjoyable – while I’m glad I read it, it wouldn’t be my ideal choice for curling up on the couch with a cup of tea and a book on a lazy day.

The weakest aspect of the novel for me was that I didn’t form any emotional connection whatsoever to anyone in the book, including the narrator. My favorite books are those where the characters take on a life of their own and seem like real people. In spite of the fact that the entire book is written in first person perspective through journal entries, which would afford the most intimate look into a character’s mind, the personalities in the book always seemed very distanced to me, as a reader. Although we know about how Louis struggles with his religious faith as a Catholic, his strong views about the war, and his love of poetry, the book never delves into why the narrator has specific viewpoints, likes, dislikes, and beliefs. It is just expressed as a fact – which is fitting with the instructions Louis was given on writing in his journal and with the overall tone of the story. However, a story very tragic at heart – about people who are condemned to die by a corrupt society to gain knowledge for said society to use – failed to move me in any way since it never made me care about what happened to anyone in the book.

This is a book that would probably benefit from a reread since I’m sure pieces of it would come together better after knowing what was coming. On the first read through, I found myself feeling like it was not that original or challenging since it did not introduce me to concepts I had not encountered and thought about before (which may also have something to do with the fact that it was written before I was born – I would be interested in knowing how much influence it had on later works). This makes me think that I probably missed a lot since it is supposed to be a very thoughtful book – or perhaps my expectations based on what I’d heard about this book were just too high.

Camp Concentration is an engaging story containing a vast amalgam of ideas, and while I am glad I read it, it did not leave much of an impact on me.

6.5/10

Other Blogger Book Club reviews of Camp Concentration: