Like many dystopia novels, this book, too, contains the literary trope of the protagonist who believes he is serving the policy of the an apparently benevolent state only to find that it is actually a brutal and cruel regime. This novel is multilayered; once you believe that you have reached the truth, you discover a deeper, hidden reality.
Proctor Bennett is the citizen of a small archipelago nation known as Prospero that is isolated from any other land mass. Although I discerned that the land was on a future Earth, I did not know the status of any other country. The climate was hospitable with a moderate temperature and cooling ocean breezes and gentle rain showers. Prosperans begin life at sixteen, a product of the state. Your marital status, sexuality, and occupation is decided by the system.
Proctor is proud to be a ferryman, an occupation that prepares those with low life scores for a trip to the mysterious "nursery" located on another island. Each citizen has a biomedical monitor implanted which yields a numerical score indicating their overall wellbeing. When the score drops below a particular threshold, the citizen takes a ferry ride to the nursery where their mind will be wiped and a new different life given known as an iteration. Since there appears to no finite nunber of iterations that a person can have, immortality appears to be possible.
When Proctor receives word that his estranged father's score has reached the requisite number, Proctor is sent to ease his transition. Although the transporatation seems to be going smoothly, Proctor's father balks at the last moment resulting in a skirmish with a number of Watchmen, Prospero's police force. When Proctor rescues him prior to being placed on the ferry, his father tells him, "Wake up! The world is not the world."
As I stated at the beginning of this review, I found this novel a multifaceted novel. Once you believe you know what is going on, another "layer of the onion" is pulled back for a better understanding...or confusion. As much as the author will give you, the setting and the characters are well defined. If you are fans of novels such as Fahrenheit 451, Brave New World, or the Matrix trilogy, you might want to pick this one up. It won't be a classic like these, but it will be a head scratcher.
Proctor Bennett is the citizen of a small archipelago nation known as Prospero that is isolated from any other land mass. Although I discerned that the land was on a future Earth, I did not know the status of any other country. The climate was hospitable with a moderate temperature and cooling ocean breezes and gentle rain showers. Prosperans begin life at sixteen, a product of the state. Your marital status, sexuality, and occupation is decided by the system.
Proctor is proud to be a ferryman, an occupation that prepares those with low life scores for a trip to the mysterious "nursery" located on another island. Each citizen has a biomedical monitor implanted which yields a numerical score indicating their overall wellbeing. When the score drops below a particular threshold, the citizen takes a ferry ride to the nursery where their mind will be wiped and a new different life given known as an iteration. Since there appears to no finite nunber of iterations that a person can have, immortality appears to be possible.
When Proctor receives word that his estranged father's score has reached the requisite number, Proctor is sent to ease his transition. Although the transporatation seems to be going smoothly, Proctor's father balks at the last moment resulting in a skirmish with a number of Watchmen, Prospero's police force. When Proctor rescues him prior to being placed on the ferry, his father tells him, "Wake up! The world is not the world."
As I stated at the beginning of this review, I found this novel a multifaceted novel. Once you believe you know what is going on, another "layer of the onion" is pulled back for a better understanding...or confusion. As much as the author will give you, the setting and the characters are well defined. If you are fans of novels such as Fahrenheit 451, Brave New World, or the Matrix trilogy, you might want to pick this one up. It won't be a classic like these, but it will be a head scratcher.