This novel is either part of John Varley's Eight Worlds stories or the second book of another wonderful trilogy. Varley is always unclear as to whether his novels fit into similar or slightly different universes. He continues to come up with characters that are familiar to movie goers. This time he submits a supposedly invisible character named Elwood P. Dowd, which happens to be the name of the delusional character that James Stewart portrays in the 1950 movie Harvey.
This novel tells the story of Sparky (Kenneth) Valentine, who is on the lam from the authorities in Luna for the murder of his father. He is also pursued by Isambard Comfort, a member of the mafia on Pluto's moon, Charon. This tale takes 70 years before it culminates in a trial on Luna by the recently mentally challenged Central Computer. Remember what happened to this computer at the end of Steel Beach? Also do you remember Hildy Johnson? Well, she's Back!
Since Sparky and his father are Shakespeare actors, the novel has the flavor of Dan Simmons's novels Ilium and Olympos, which relied heavily on Shakespeare's and Homer's works. I think this kind of writing is very difficult to research and to intertwine into a novel. Well done, John Varley. This novel is different in that there isn't a female narrator or heroine. Instead we have a male narrator, although I wouldn't consider him a hero. In the early parts of the book, Sparky is supplementing his acting monies by running "cons". This gets him into trouble with the Charonese mafia, and a chase ensues from Pluto to the Moon, while Sparky seeks the lead role of King Lear in a play by a old friend Polly. They starred together when Sparky had a children's hit T.V. show called "Sparky and His Gang".
The characters in this book are delightful and refreshing, including Sparky's ultra smart dog Toby. I love the way Varley brings back old characters in his books. This is easy since medical accomplishments have cured all physical problems except heavy brain damage. It's not uncommon to live 200-300 years in the Eight Worlds books. Since I'm a fan of Varley books, I give this book my highest recommendation.
RATING: 4 out of 5 stars
Comment: John Varley's next novel comes out in October 2012. The title will be either Slow Apocalypse or One Minute To Midnight. It's a story about a invented bacterium used to turn crude oil spills into a gooey mess. The problem is that it gets loose and destroys the World's oil supply! Sounds exciting; I can't wait.
No comments:
Post a Comment