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Galactic Comedy #1
Paradise
Peponi, a distant world rich in wildlife and populated by a people without a high degree of technology, is "discovered" by mankind. Men arrive on the planet, then reap its riches. After years of subjugation, the natives finally begin to push for independence. While armed rebellion is put down, from its ashes a native leader, Bukon Pepon, is able to forge the various tribes together and gain independence from the Human government. Upon independence, most Men leave the planet for distant shores and dream their dreams of the paradise that Peponi once was. Other Men stay to create a new dream. But both Men and Pepons watch their economy and resources dwindle away as overpopulation, hunting, tribal factionalism, and the introduction of non-native species take their toll.
323 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1989
3 people are currently reading
257 people want to read
About the author
Mike Resnick
813 books550 followersMichael "Mike" Diamond Resnick, better known by his published name Mike Resnick, was a popular and prolific American science fiction author. He is, according to Locus, the all-time leading award winner, living or dead, for short science fiction. He was the winner of five Hugos, a Nebula, and other major awards in the United States, France, Spain, Japan, Croatia and Poland. and has been short-listed for major awards in England, Italy and Australia. He was the author of 68 novels, over 250 stories, and 2 screenplays, and was the editor of 41 anthologies. His work has been translated into 25 languages. He was the Guest of Honor at the 2012 Worldcon and can be found online as @ResnickMike on Twitter or at www.mikeresnick.com.
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Displaying 1 - 27 of 27 reviews
August 7, 2011
**A compelling retelling, SF "distant world" style, of the modern history of the Republic of Kenya.**
I LIKE MIKE...Resnick. His level of story-telling awesome is prodigious and he's never left me with the "DAMN THAT SUCKED" feeling after reading one of his stories. He's consistent and I can always count on him to entertain and sometimes, like here, to wow and inspire. If you've had the pleasure of Mike's work or are familiar with his writing then you've probably synced to the fact that he has a deep fascination and admiration ("Uh, Paging Dr. Obession") for the continent of Africa, in general, and the country of Kenya, in particular. This I GAGA FOR KENYA heart-on flows strongly through many of his novels, including Kirinyaga: A Fable of Utopia, Ivory: A Legend of Past and Future, Seven Views of Olduvai Gorge and this book.
Paradise is the most obvious "hey, look at me" example of Africa's influence on Resnick. In it, he faithfully and impressively retells the history of Kenya, substituting a distant, alien planet for the African country and tribal aliens for KENyans and BARBIEyans. Peponi (which means Paradise in Kenyan), is a green, lush world rich in natural resorces and native wildlife (many of which bear a striking resemblance to elephants and lions... but with nifty, cool alien add-ons since this if SF). Peponi is also home to a sentient, humanoid species living a pastoral existence with almost no technology....You don't need to be Nostradamus to see what's coming!!
Once "discovered" by mankind, the planet's riches are heavily exploited and the indigenous population (who come to be known as Pepons) are subjugated...you know, for their own good. Years later, the Pepons, having learned the ways of the exploiters fight for and are eventually granted independence. However, as with real life Kenya that this story parallels, that is far from the end of conflict and simply leads to a whole new series of problems.
I won't go any further to avoid giving away spoilers even though knowing the outcome of the book had very little to do with my level of enjoyment. I do want to comment on what I found to be EXTRAORDINARY about Resnick's novel. The novel is told through the viewpoint of a journalist turned author named Matthew Breen, who writes a series of books chronicling the history of Peponi beginning with the initial colonization, through the subjugation and foreign exploitation of the planet and finally through several successive Pepon "home rule" government administrations. As with the real life story of Africa, the times and people written about are beautiful, adventure-filled and exciting on one hand and violent, arbitrary and cruel on the other. There are people that do some truly vile things for what they believe to be the right reasons and we get to hear about all of it.
What I found so brilliant and well done was that Resnick tells the stories of these people (colonists, ex-patriots, governors, natives) in their own words and NEVER, NEVER passes judgment. He makes himself invisible to the story and allows the reader to make up his or her own mind regarding how they feel about what happens, which a very rare thing nowadays. With as much brutality and devastation taking place within the pages of the novel, this is an amazing achievement as the actions of the characters can not help but elicit an emotional response.
I was really left moved by this story and Resnick's passion for his subject matter is evident throughout. A truly unique and compelling read and one I HIGHLY RECOMMEND!!!
4.0 to 4.5 stars.
I LIKE MIKE...Resnick. His level of story-telling awesome is prodigious and he's never left me with the "DAMN THAT SUCKED" feeling after reading one of his stories. He's consistent and I can always count on him to entertain and sometimes, like here, to wow and inspire. If you've had the pleasure of Mike's work or are familiar with his writing then you've probably synced to the fact that he has a deep fascination and admiration ("Uh, Paging Dr. Obession") for the continent of Africa, in general, and the country of Kenya, in particular. This I GAGA FOR KENYA heart-on flows strongly through many of his novels, including Kirinyaga: A Fable of Utopia, Ivory: A Legend of Past and Future, Seven Views of Olduvai Gorge and this book.
Paradise is the most obvious "hey, look at me" example of Africa's influence on Resnick. In it, he faithfully and impressively retells the history of Kenya, substituting a distant, alien planet for the African country and tribal aliens for KENyans and BARBIEyans. Peponi (which means Paradise in Kenyan), is a green, lush world rich in natural resorces and native wildlife (many of which bear a striking resemblance to elephants and lions... but with nifty, cool alien add-ons since this if SF). Peponi is also home to a sentient, humanoid species living a pastoral existence with almost no technology....You don't need to be Nostradamus to see what's coming!!
Once "discovered" by mankind, the planet's riches are heavily exploited and the indigenous population (who come to be known as Pepons) are subjugated...you know, for their own good. Years later, the Pepons, having learned the ways of the exploiters fight for and are eventually granted independence. However, as with real life Kenya that this story parallels, that is far from the end of conflict and simply leads to a whole new series of problems.
I won't go any further to avoid giving away spoilers even though knowing the outcome of the book had very little to do with my level of enjoyment. I do want to comment on what I found to be EXTRAORDINARY about Resnick's novel. The novel is told through the viewpoint of a journalist turned author named Matthew Breen, who writes a series of books chronicling the history of Peponi beginning with the initial colonization, through the subjugation and foreign exploitation of the planet and finally through several successive Pepon "home rule" government administrations. As with the real life story of Africa, the times and people written about are beautiful, adventure-filled and exciting on one hand and violent, arbitrary and cruel on the other. There are people that do some truly vile things for what they believe to be the right reasons and we get to hear about all of it.
What I found so brilliant and well done was that Resnick tells the stories of these people (colonists, ex-patriots, governors, natives) in their own words and NEVER, NEVER passes judgment. He makes himself invisible to the story and allows the reader to make up his or her own mind regarding how they feel about what happens, which a very rare thing nowadays. With as much brutality and devastation taking place within the pages of the novel, this is an amazing achievement as the actions of the characters can not help but elicit an emotional response.
I was really left moved by this story and Resnick's passion for his subject matter is evident throughout. A truly unique and compelling read and one I HIGHLY RECOMMEND!!!
4.0 to 4.5 stars.
May 25, 2015
Resnick's Galactic Comedy sequence is comprised of three novels: Paradise, Purgatory, and Inferno. On the surface they're chronicles of distant worlds, as the blurbs proclaim, but they're actually allegorical studies of post-colonial modern Africa; he examines all of the problems of the cultures, the economies, the tribal factions, the politics, and so on and on. Just when the reader thinks that things can't get any worse, it does, moving from Kenya in the first volume to Zimbabwe in the second and ending in Uganda. I learned a lot more from these books than I ever did in a sociology class. The stories don't have neat endings or solutions because they're so tightly tied to our real world, but they're among Resnick's very best work.
April 18, 2019
Another thought-provoking and enjoyable read from one of the best story tellers (in my humble opinion) to ever put down a word. In this relatively short novel, Resnick quite impressively retells the history of Kenya, but this time in a far future sci-fi setting, substituting the distant planet of Peponi for the African country and an interesting race of tribal humanoid aliens for Kenyans. It sits within Resnick's wonderful Birthright universe and therefore will most likely please any reader familiar with the setting and probably anyone else who enjoys a good yarn. It moves along a relaxed pace which allows you to take in every word and engage easily with the story. I found it a little amusing, given that this is sci-fi, that I had to remind myself a few times that it’s not an actual historical account. I can only conclude that it seems so real because it's written so well, and making the assumption that it's quite faithful to the factual history of Kenya.
Resnick has produced another top-notch and satisfying tale that kept me captivated for its entirety. Inspired by his travels in Africa and his love of the continent and its cultures, Resnick’s story telling is excellent which is typical for him. This is reinforces the fact that he is one of the most awarded science fiction authors of all time, mainly for short fiction but I've found his novels to be some of the best from the sci-fi genre that I can name. While I haven't enjoyed everything of Resnick's that I've read so far quite as much (I'm talking mainly about his more recent work here), he more often than not fails to disappoint me and this is exactly what he has achieved here. It’s a good, solid yarn with a sobering message at its core that will engage the thoughtful and inquiring reader.
Full review HERE.
Resnick has produced another top-notch and satisfying tale that kept me captivated for its entirety. Inspired by his travels in Africa and his love of the continent and its cultures, Resnick’s story telling is excellent which is typical for him. This is reinforces the fact that he is one of the most awarded science fiction authors of all time, mainly for short fiction but I've found his novels to be some of the best from the sci-fi genre that I can name. While I haven't enjoyed everything of Resnick's that I've read so far quite as much (I'm talking mainly about his more recent work here), he more often than not fails to disappoint me and this is exactly what he has achieved here. It’s a good, solid yarn with a sobering message at its core that will engage the thoughtful and inquiring reader.
Full review HERE.
March 22, 2013
Some books are just good reads. They are fun and entertaining, but without deep messages. Lawrence Watt-Evans writes these kind of books, and I thoroughly enjoy them. Other authors strive to reveal the meaning of the universe, with deep messages and philosophy, but they can't tell a good story. In trying to imitate James Joyce, they perhaps write a meaningful book, but one which is work rather than a pleasure to read.
Mike Resnick bridges the gap and is able to write an engrossing tale which is wrought with meaning. My first Resnick book was Ivory, and to this day, it has had a significant effect on my outlook on life. Santiago, the penultimate space western, is another of my favorites. But Resnick's truth is perhaps most evident in Paradise, A Chronicle of a Distant World.
Paradise is about Peponi, a distant world, rich in wildlife and populated by a people without a high degree of technology before it is "discovered" by mankind. Men arrive on the planet, then reap its riches. After years of subjugation, the natives finally begin to push for independence. While armed armed rebellion is put down, from its ashes a native leader, Bukon Pepon, is able to forge the various tribes together and gain independence from the Human government.
Upon independence, most men leave the planet for distant shores and dream their dreams of the paradise that Peponi once was. Other men stay to create a new dream. But both men and pepons (the natives) watch their economy and resources dwindle away as overpopulation, hunting, tribal factionalism, and the introduction of non-native species their toll.
Told through the eyes of Mathew Breen, a writer who has made a name for himself writing about the planet, we follow along Peponi's transformations. The book begins with an interview with August Hardwyke in his last years, one of the old-timers who remembers when Peponi when men first came, when he felt it truly was a paradise, wild and free. After his book about the early pioneers is successful, Breen interviews Peponi ex-patriots, men and women who lived through the native uprisings. To some of them, just prior to the fighting was when Peponi was a paradise. We follow Breen as he is invited to write the biography of President Bukon Pepon, and then when he returns yet 14 years later to see how far the planet has deteriorated.
Paradise is about Peponi, but it is also about Kenya. Some of the characters, places, and wildlife in the book have obvious analogs in human history. The pepon leader Buko Pepon is Jomo Kenyatta and his successor, Nathan Kibi Tonka is Daniel arap Moi. The Republic's ex-secretary Jonathan "Johnny" Ramsey is Theodore "Teddy" Roosevelt. The Kalakala uprising is the Mau Mau uprising, Landships are elephants and demoncats are lions. But other analogies are not as evident except to people who have studied modern Kenyan and African history.
Writing a novel with such strong analogies to history could easily result in a cumbersome, boring book. But Paradise is far from that. On the surface level, Paradise is a fun read. It is about hunting, war, vast lands, and people working together. I was taken back to reading as a kid about white hunters such as Osa and Martin Johnson and John A. Hunter. Resnick's style and storytelling ability put you in the bush, chasing a wounded thunderhead shot by a rich man's spoiled son. I was transported into the dense forests of Mt. Hardwycke trying to track down the Bogoda tribesmen carrying out the kalakala.
On the deeper level, I fought against the path Resnick was taking. I did not want the mistakes made by the European colonial powers and the native Africans to be repeated on Peponi. As a child, my family sponsored a family of refugees from Uganda, and I did not want to see the same kind of exodus in this book. I did not want to see natural resources plundered and the land destroyed. I did not want to see famine and death as we've seen in Biafra and Ethiopia nor the ethnic cleansing as in Uganda and Burundi. But the book plows on, true to life and history.
Paradise also works because Resnick resisted the opportunity to preach. Just as Breen is described as having been neutral in his retelling of the story or Peponi, so Resnick does not let his personal views on Kenya be known. Yes, he describes a spiraling downward trend in the quality of life of the people and the health of the planet, but he does not point fingers at any particular group. Are the colonial powers at fault for the decline of Peponi? Is it corrupt or inept native governments who are at fault? Is it some of both? Resnick presents a tale and then lets the reader come to his or her own viewpoint.
On the surface level, for those who read to escape and to relax, Paradise fits the bill. You don't have to know African history to enjoy it. For those who want something more out of a book, Paradise also fits the bill. It will probably spark an interest in modern African history, and it will certainly get the reader thinking.
There are two science fiction authors whose books I will buy and read just by seeing their name on the book cover. Mike Resnick is one of them (the other being David Brin). Paradise is a good example of I feel this way.
Mike Resnick bridges the gap and is able to write an engrossing tale which is wrought with meaning. My first Resnick book was Ivory, and to this day, it has had a significant effect on my outlook on life. Santiago, the penultimate space western, is another of my favorites. But Resnick's truth is perhaps most evident in Paradise, A Chronicle of a Distant World.
Paradise is about Peponi, a distant world, rich in wildlife and populated by a people without a high degree of technology before it is "discovered" by mankind. Men arrive on the planet, then reap its riches. After years of subjugation, the natives finally begin to push for independence. While armed armed rebellion is put down, from its ashes a native leader, Bukon Pepon, is able to forge the various tribes together and gain independence from the Human government.
Upon independence, most men leave the planet for distant shores and dream their dreams of the paradise that Peponi once was. Other men stay to create a new dream. But both men and pepons (the natives) watch their economy and resources dwindle away as overpopulation, hunting, tribal factionalism, and the introduction of non-native species their toll.
Told through the eyes of Mathew Breen, a writer who has made a name for himself writing about the planet, we follow along Peponi's transformations. The book begins with an interview with August Hardwyke in his last years, one of the old-timers who remembers when Peponi when men first came, when he felt it truly was a paradise, wild and free. After his book about the early pioneers is successful, Breen interviews Peponi ex-patriots, men and women who lived through the native uprisings. To some of them, just prior to the fighting was when Peponi was a paradise. We follow Breen as he is invited to write the biography of President Bukon Pepon, and then when he returns yet 14 years later to see how far the planet has deteriorated.
Paradise is about Peponi, but it is also about Kenya. Some of the characters, places, and wildlife in the book have obvious analogs in human history. The pepon leader Buko Pepon is Jomo Kenyatta and his successor, Nathan Kibi Tonka is Daniel arap Moi. The Republic's ex-secretary Jonathan "Johnny" Ramsey is Theodore "Teddy" Roosevelt. The Kalakala uprising is the Mau Mau uprising, Landships are elephants and demoncats are lions. But other analogies are not as evident except to people who have studied modern Kenyan and African history.
Writing a novel with such strong analogies to history could easily result in a cumbersome, boring book. But Paradise is far from that. On the surface level, Paradise is a fun read. It is about hunting, war, vast lands, and people working together. I was taken back to reading as a kid about white hunters such as Osa and Martin Johnson and John A. Hunter. Resnick's style and storytelling ability put you in the bush, chasing a wounded thunderhead shot by a rich man's spoiled son. I was transported into the dense forests of Mt. Hardwycke trying to track down the Bogoda tribesmen carrying out the kalakala.
On the deeper level, I fought against the path Resnick was taking. I did not want the mistakes made by the European colonial powers and the native Africans to be repeated on Peponi. As a child, my family sponsored a family of refugees from Uganda, and I did not want to see the same kind of exodus in this book. I did not want to see natural resources plundered and the land destroyed. I did not want to see famine and death as we've seen in Biafra and Ethiopia nor the ethnic cleansing as in Uganda and Burundi. But the book plows on, true to life and history.
Paradise also works because Resnick resisted the opportunity to preach. Just as Breen is described as having been neutral in his retelling of the story or Peponi, so Resnick does not let his personal views on Kenya be known. Yes, he describes a spiraling downward trend in the quality of life of the people and the health of the planet, but he does not point fingers at any particular group. Are the colonial powers at fault for the decline of Peponi? Is it corrupt or inept native governments who are at fault? Is it some of both? Resnick presents a tale and then lets the reader come to his or her own viewpoint.
On the surface level, for those who read to escape and to relax, Paradise fits the bill. You don't have to know African history to enjoy it. For those who want something more out of a book, Paradise also fits the bill. It will probably spark an interest in modern African history, and it will certainly get the reader thinking.
There are two science fiction authors whose books I will buy and read just by seeing their name on the book cover. Mike Resnick is one of them (the other being David Brin). Paradise is a good example of I feel this way.
October 25, 2020
'Paradis', French for 'paradise', is the first part in the L'Infernale Comédie trilogy (Galactic Comedy). All three books are said to be stand-alone, so you don't have to start with the first book in this trilogy, or as some call it: triptych. The other two books are 'Purgatory' and 'Inferno'. Their respective French titles are 'Purgatoire' and 'Enfer'. The triptych was originally published back in the 1980s.
Their first translation into French was published in 1995, via Denoël. The books were republished in 1998. In 2016, Éditions ActuSF picked up this triptych again and published it as an omnibus: see here. Two years ago (in 2018), a pocket version became available. Both hardcover and pocket versions are still available.
An omnibus (hardcover or pocket) of +/- 680 to +/- 750 pages can be a bit heavy to carry around - despite the convenience of having all books in one... book -, so ActuSF decided to republish the triptych's separate parts, starting with 'Paradis' (link). 2020 is also the year in which Mike Resnick left the world of mortals to go the other side. The republishing of this trilogy (books 2 and 3 will probably follow in 2021) is then also a way to commemorate the man.
----------
Mike Resnick had a high regard for Africa, or the African continent, as is shown in several of his works: the 'Galactic Comedy' trilogy, 'Ivory', 'Kirinyaga', and others. I have to admit, though, that until my meeting with him in 2016 at the French festival Les Imaginales (an excellent occasion to also purchase the omnibus of 'L'Infernale Comédie' and have it signed/dedicated), I had never heard of the man, who was a very prolific author and one of the important people behind WorldCon. I did have an interesting conversation with him, about WorldCon, SF, ... I still remember him saying, at Les Imaginales, something like this: "You can always re-use a short story (or have it republished), even if it doesn't get published at first. Keep on trying and one day, you will succeed." Ah, so that's why short-stories of certain French authors I keep track of, resurface in one or another anthology or publication. ;-)
----------
Anyway, anecdotes aside, let's focus on 'Paradis' (Paradise), my first proper encounter with Mike Resnick's writings (even if it's a translation). The story is divided into four parts:
Aube (Dawn), Midi (Noon), Après-midi (Afternoon), Crépuscule (Dusk). These are preceded by a little foreword, a sort of fable about a scorpion and a crocodile. The scorpion wants to cross the river, but needs the crocodile to transport him to the other side. The crocodile distrusts the scorpion, fears it will sting him. "Why would I do that? Then we'll both not make it.", says the scorpion. Afterwards, the crocodile does get stung. Because Africa. Mike Resnick wrote that this little fable has nothing to do with 'Paradise', a story about an imaginary planet (Peponi) and not about a real country (Kenya).
Throughout the book, we'll follow Matthew Breen, first as a student, then as a journalist. In the first part, Aube (Dawn), Matthew Breen is still a student and wants to write a thesis about Peponi. To do so correctly or have a proper base to start from, he interviews August Hardwycke, one of the first colonists who managed to flee when the situation escalated and got out of hand. Mr Hardwycke would give account of how he arrived on the planet, how he found a job (as hunter and safari guide), and how life was there overall, especially from the point-of-view of the colonists. One aspect: language. Peponi, which in the local language means 'paradise' (hence the book's title), was blessed with beautiful and extraordinary fauna and flora. Forests, various animal species (one of which was hunted for its jewel-like eyes), ... and various tribes: Bogoda, Kia, Siboni, Sorotoba, ... The way of living there was also completely opposite to that of Earth, Deluros VIII, Spica VI, and other planets.
The local population, considered savages, aliens, by the colonisers, were called the "ouïes-bleues" or "régis", both insulting terms. As the were considered unintelligent, these locals were easy to enslave and had to call their owners "Boss". What did these local people look like? Not human, maybe human-apes, but even this comparison was far-fetched, according to Hardwycke. Hence the euphemistic terms.
In the second part, Midi (Noon), Matthew Breen has graduated, obtained his diploma and is now a journalist. He's set out to write the biography of August Hardwycke. But the man's account is only one element of the story. What kind of man was he? Is what he told about his experiences true or romanticised? To find out, Matthew Breen would interview Amanda Pickett, who wrote a book about Peponi, and other former colonists, who fled the world as the war for independence broke loose, after years of human domination. Especially the rally of the Kalakala would kickstart it all. Colonisers would be brutally murdered, their houses set on fire, anything to scare them away.
President Bukon Pepon, chosen after the war, wanted the local population to regain ownership of certain premises as much as possible (or rather, the state/government should reclaim what was originally theirs). As the various tribes were distrustful of each other, daily life wasn't ever safe. However, Buko Pepon was the first president who managed to bring these tribes together and install a sort of peace/truce. () Human colonists considered themselves saviours, who brought civilisation (and currency; credits in this case) to a people that had never before even seen a wheel, let alone know what money is. The various tribes lived from day to day, on what they could grow, what they found to eat and drink, which animals they could hunt. Culture-clash is then a serious understatement.
As mankind had also imported animals ("vacherins", I don't know which word Mike Resnick originally used) foreign to a planet like Peponi, this too had a devastating impact on the various grounds. Fertile soil was rare, which was one of the reasons why the tribes lived such a primitive life.
In part three (Après-midi / Afternoon), Matthew Breen was sent for by the president (Buko Pepon) to write his biography, because the man liked how Breen portrayed Hardwycke. Breen would have everything/everyone at his disposal to make his book a neutral, but successful product, especially as the main reason for his project was to attract extra-planetary investors. Peponi needs foreign (human) investment, as the planet and the population themselves have had to shift into sixth gear since colonisation. What was once untamed land was turning/turned rapidly into cultivated land, with unforeseen and dire consequences.
Breen would have his personal assistants: Ian Masterton, since many years responsible for the national security, and Nathan Kibi Tonka. The first, a human through and through, but loving his stay on Peponi; the latter, a local from a small tribe. He wears his tribal attire for reasons of equality: each wears his own tribe's attire, as humans wear their own kind of clothing.
Through his travels, Breen witnessed how life on Peponi was, how it had changed over the decades. Another colonist (Wesley), who occupied a chalet with a fantastic view, explained Breen his view on the changing world and how he too feared for what was to come.
In the last, final part (Crépuscule / Dusk), Breen travels one more time to Peponi, out of personal interest, and to write a follow-up to Pepon's biography: Peponi after Pepon. While his coming was not announced (he hadn't contacted the new president), his arrival did not occur unnoticed. () Times have not improved, on either domain: wildlife, economy, politics, ... There is a new president, someone familiar to Breen, but he too would have his hands full, trying to rule the planet and create viable living conditions, one way or another. He wouldn't last long, would have to flee into exile. Any successor would soon enough have to make way for another candidate (ad infinitum, tribe against tribe). Peponi was not ready (yet) to be like other, more developed planets.
Breen would find a second calling as a writer: write historical fiction about Peponi.
----------
While my first half-encounter with Mike Resnick's writing was not a succes ('Son dernier coup d'échecs', co-written with Jean-Claude Dunyach in the 2016 anthology Fées et Automates - Anthologie des Imaginales 2016; see my review here), I was really thrilled and moved by 'Paradis'. Mike Resnick approached Kenya's history with care and respect. As someone else wrote: You don't have to be in the know about Kenya('s history) - other readers have added factual events in their reviews, for those interested (here) -, for you can enjoy the story as it is. However, it does make one think about the state of the world and still untouched civilisations/tribes (like in Brazil).
----------
I was sent this book by Éditions ActuSF for review. Many thanks to them for the trust.
Their first translation into French was published in 1995, via Denoël. The books were republished in 1998. In 2016, Éditions ActuSF picked up this triptych again and published it as an omnibus: see here. Two years ago (in 2018), a pocket version became available. Both hardcover and pocket versions are still available.
An omnibus (hardcover or pocket) of +/- 680 to +/- 750 pages can be a bit heavy to carry around - despite the convenience of having all books in one... book -, so ActuSF decided to republish the triptych's separate parts, starting with 'Paradis' (link). 2020 is also the year in which Mike Resnick left the world of mortals to go the other side. The republishing of this trilogy (books 2 and 3 will probably follow in 2021) is then also a way to commemorate the man.
----------
Mike Resnick had a high regard for Africa, or the African continent, as is shown in several of his works: the 'Galactic Comedy' trilogy, 'Ivory', 'Kirinyaga', and others. I have to admit, though, that until my meeting with him in 2016 at the French festival Les Imaginales (an excellent occasion to also purchase the omnibus of 'L'Infernale Comédie' and have it signed/dedicated), I had never heard of the man, who was a very prolific author and one of the important people behind WorldCon. I did have an interesting conversation with him, about WorldCon, SF, ... I still remember him saying, at Les Imaginales, something like this: "You can always re-use a short story (or have it republished), even if it doesn't get published at first. Keep on trying and one day, you will succeed." Ah, so that's why short-stories of certain French authors I keep track of, resurface in one or another anthology or publication. ;-)
----------
Anyway, anecdotes aside, let's focus on 'Paradis' (Paradise), my first proper encounter with Mike Resnick's writings (even if it's a translation). The story is divided into four parts:
Aube (Dawn), Midi (Noon), Après-midi (Afternoon), Crépuscule (Dusk). These are preceded by a little foreword, a sort of fable about a scorpion and a crocodile. The scorpion wants to cross the river, but needs the crocodile to transport him to the other side. The crocodile distrusts the scorpion, fears it will sting him. "Why would I do that? Then we'll both not make it.", says the scorpion. Afterwards, the crocodile does get stung. Because Africa. Mike Resnick wrote that this little fable has nothing to do with 'Paradise', a story about an imaginary planet (Peponi) and not about a real country (Kenya).
Throughout the book, we'll follow Matthew Breen, first as a student, then as a journalist. In the first part, Aube (Dawn), Matthew Breen is still a student and wants to write a thesis about Peponi. To do so correctly or have a proper base to start from, he interviews August Hardwycke, one of the first colonists who managed to flee when the situation escalated and got out of hand. Mr Hardwycke would give account of how he arrived on the planet, how he found a job (as hunter and safari guide), and how life was there overall, especially from the point-of-view of the colonists. One aspect: language. Peponi, which in the local language means 'paradise' (hence the book's title), was blessed with beautiful and extraordinary fauna and flora. Forests, various animal species (one of which was hunted for its jewel-like eyes), ... and various tribes: Bogoda, Kia, Siboni, Sorotoba, ... The way of living there was also completely opposite to that of Earth, Deluros VIII, Spica VI, and other planets.
The local population, considered savages, aliens, by the colonisers, were called the "ouïes-bleues" or "régis", both insulting terms. As the were considered unintelligent, these locals were easy to enslave and had to call their owners "Boss". What did these local people look like? Not human, maybe human-apes, but even this comparison was far-fetched, according to Hardwycke. Hence the euphemistic terms.
In the second part, Midi (Noon), Matthew Breen has graduated, obtained his diploma and is now a journalist. He's set out to write the biography of August Hardwycke. But the man's account is only one element of the story. What kind of man was he? Is what he told about his experiences true or romanticised? To find out, Matthew Breen would interview Amanda Pickett, who wrote a book about Peponi, and other former colonists, who fled the world as the war for independence broke loose, after years of human domination. Especially the rally of the Kalakala would kickstart it all. Colonisers would be brutally murdered, their houses set on fire, anything to scare them away.
President Bukon Pepon, chosen after the war, wanted the local population to regain ownership of certain premises as much as possible (or rather, the state/government should reclaim what was originally theirs). As the various tribes were distrustful of each other, daily life wasn't ever safe. However, Buko Pepon was the first president who managed to bring these tribes together and install a sort of peace/truce. () Human colonists considered themselves saviours, who brought civilisation (and currency; credits in this case) to a people that had never before even seen a wheel, let alone know what money is. The various tribes lived from day to day, on what they could grow, what they found to eat and drink, which animals they could hunt. Culture-clash is then a serious understatement.
As mankind had also imported animals ("vacherins", I don't know which word Mike Resnick originally used) foreign to a planet like Peponi, this too had a devastating impact on the various grounds. Fertile soil was rare, which was one of the reasons why the tribes lived such a primitive life.
In part three (Après-midi / Afternoon), Matthew Breen was sent for by the president (Buko Pepon) to write his biography, because the man liked how Breen portrayed Hardwycke. Breen would have everything/everyone at his disposal to make his book a neutral, but successful product, especially as the main reason for his project was to attract extra-planetary investors. Peponi needs foreign (human) investment, as the planet and the population themselves have had to shift into sixth gear since colonisation. What was once untamed land was turning/turned rapidly into cultivated land, with unforeseen and dire consequences.
Breen would have his personal assistants: Ian Masterton, since many years responsible for the national security, and Nathan Kibi Tonka. The first, a human through and through, but loving his stay on Peponi; the latter, a local from a small tribe. He wears his tribal attire for reasons of equality: each wears his own tribe's attire, as humans wear their own kind of clothing.
Through his travels, Breen witnessed how life on Peponi was, how it had changed over the decades. Another colonist (Wesley), who occupied a chalet with a fantastic view, explained Breen his view on the changing world and how he too feared for what was to come.
In the last, final part (Crépuscule / Dusk), Breen travels one more time to Peponi, out of personal interest, and to write a follow-up to Pepon's biography: Peponi after Pepon. While his coming was not announced (he hadn't contacted the new president), his arrival did not occur unnoticed. () Times have not improved, on either domain: wildlife, economy, politics, ... There is a new president, someone familiar to Breen, but he too would have his hands full, trying to rule the planet and create viable living conditions, one way or another. He wouldn't last long, would have to flee into exile. Any successor would soon enough have to make way for another candidate (ad infinitum, tribe against tribe). Peponi was not ready (yet) to be like other, more developed planets.
Breen would find a second calling as a writer: write historical fiction about Peponi.
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While my first half-encounter with Mike Resnick's writing was not a succes ('Son dernier coup d'échecs', co-written with Jean-Claude Dunyach in the 2016 anthology Fées et Automates - Anthologie des Imaginales 2016; see my review here), I was really thrilled and moved by 'Paradis'. Mike Resnick approached Kenya's history with care and respect. As someone else wrote: You don't have to be in the know about Kenya('s history) - other readers have added factual events in their reviews, for those interested (here) -, for you can enjoy the story as it is. However, it does make one think about the state of the world and still untouched civilisations/tribes (like in Brazil).
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I was sent this book by Éditions ActuSF for review. Many thanks to them for the trust.
January 1, 2019
VOTO ALL'INTERO CICLO GALACTIC COMEDY:3,8
Di tutt'altro tenore rispetto al ciclo Starship dello stesso autore, la trilogia Galactic Comedy presenta come tema fondamentale, trattato secondo i canoni della space opera più classica, il colonialismo e lo sfruttamento delle risorse nonchè delle popolazioni locali, alludendo chiaramente al periodo colonialista del XIX a danno di molti paesi africani.
Si pone particolarmente l'accento,oltre che sulla natura stessa della politica colonialista e di cosa significhi per le popolazioni che la subiscono, anche sugli effetti disastrosi che questa comporta sull'organizzazione politica e sociale e sulle speranze di un futuro migliore delle stesse, una volta ottenuta l'indipendenza, situazione scaturita dalla "civilizzazione coatta" che i popoli sfruttati sono costretti a subire, andando a cambiare radicalmente la loro filosofia di vita e il loro modo di vivere, catapultandole in un sistema che non sono in grado di comprendere fino in fondo e che spesso e volentieri non riescono ad autosostenere.
Per quanto mi riguarda, il primo volume Paradise è quello più debole dal punto di vista narrativo.
Gli altri due volumi, sebbene abbiano una struttura più classica, sono senza dubbio più coinvolgenti ed emozionanti.
Di tutt'altro tenore rispetto al ciclo Starship dello stesso autore, la trilogia Galactic Comedy presenta come tema fondamentale, trattato secondo i canoni della space opera più classica, il colonialismo e lo sfruttamento delle risorse nonchè delle popolazioni locali, alludendo chiaramente al periodo colonialista del XIX a danno di molti paesi africani.
Si pone particolarmente l'accento,oltre che sulla natura stessa della politica colonialista e di cosa significhi per le popolazioni che la subiscono, anche sugli effetti disastrosi che questa comporta sull'organizzazione politica e sociale e sulle speranze di un futuro migliore delle stesse, una volta ottenuta l'indipendenza, situazione scaturita dalla "civilizzazione coatta" che i popoli sfruttati sono costretti a subire, andando a cambiare radicalmente la loro filosofia di vita e il loro modo di vivere, catapultandole in un sistema che non sono in grado di comprendere fino in fondo e che spesso e volentieri non riescono ad autosostenere.
Per quanto mi riguarda, il primo volume Paradise è quello più debole dal punto di vista narrativo.
Gli altri due volumi, sebbene abbiano una struttura più classica, sono senza dubbio più coinvolgenti ed emozionanti.
August 1, 2025
So it's obviously Africa, I mean, not even like, analogous to Africa, it just IS Africa with different words and the people have fur. There's essentially no science fiction or anything - sure, there are spaceships and space travel but there are no other advances in technology, unless you count holographs instead of photographs, the doors dilate instead of open, and some of the weapons or whatnot have futuristic sounding names. Just, no effort given whatsoever. So why is this even a "science fiction" book? Why not just write about Africa? To be able to manipulate details to make it in a cleaner story? It would almost be a mediocre but passable representation of colonialism except that in the book the Peroni are *actually aliens*, so you can say things like, "well, they're not human, so what works for humans doesn't work for them", (except that they basically ARE human, just not even a little bit alien, culturally and physiologically exactly the same, just, they have fur) to point out cultural differences and maybe different solutions to their problems - but when you map that back over onto it obviously just being Africa then it gets kinda creepy. Can you just say that Africans just are different so you can't expect the same things from them as from Westerners? It just completely mangles all respect for *cultural* differences by replacing it with supposedly actual ALIENNESS and I'm really not sure what the takeaway is there.
January 15, 2020
Well, that was spooky. I started reading this the other day, and that evening I learned that Mike had died.
I finished the book, of course.
In the first part of the book, Matthew Breen is a young student doing a paper on the "landships" of the planet Peponi - huge, vaguely elephant-like creatures whose eyes were prized as jewelry. I say "were" because, at the time this book starts, they have been hunted to extinction. In pursuit of his paper he performs several interviews with August Hardwyke, a former big game hunter on Peponi, now dying on one of the many planets of the Republic, who left when Buko Pepon became the first native President of an independent Peponi.
If you're sensing an allegory here, or at least a similitude, you're right: Peponi is an analogue of Kenya, Buko Pepon is an analogue of Jomo Kenyatta, etc.
In the second part of the book, Breen meets and befriends Amanda Pickett, an Isak Dinesen/Karen Blixen analogue. One of her guests tells Breen about how he lost an arm in the Kalakala (Mau Mau analogue) uprising.
By the third part, Breen has become a successful writer in his own right and travels to Peponi, where Buko Pepon asks Breen to write his official biography, unvarnished, in the hope of encouraging extraplanetary investment and tourism.
The problems of Peponi are both simple and complex. Basically, it's a tribal world where the various tribes don't trust each other and occasionally make war on each other; compounding this, a little over a hundred years ago the Pepon were hunting with spears and had never heard of a wheel - indeed, many of them _still_ hunt with spears for a living, a living rapidly becoming precarious as Peponi's ecology goes to Hell. This is only compounded by the introduction of (some) modern medicine, resulting in a population boom. Many people trying to live off the same land as a few is a recipe for disaster...
But (like the real Kenya) it's still a place of extraordinary beauty, with wildlife well worth travelling to see.
Resnick populates Peponi with fascinating humans and aliens, and with an ecology full of creatures that may be analogues of Kenyan animals, but are nonetheless fascinating acts of the imagination. (The landship is _so_ much more than an elephant-analogue...) The book goes down as smoothly as whiskey, and burns as much.
I finished the book, of course.
In the first part of the book, Matthew Breen is a young student doing a paper on the "landships" of the planet Peponi - huge, vaguely elephant-like creatures whose eyes were prized as jewelry. I say "were" because, at the time this book starts, they have been hunted to extinction. In pursuit of his paper he performs several interviews with August Hardwyke, a former big game hunter on Peponi, now dying on one of the many planets of the Republic, who left when Buko Pepon became the first native President of an independent Peponi.
If you're sensing an allegory here, or at least a similitude, you're right: Peponi is an analogue of Kenya, Buko Pepon is an analogue of Jomo Kenyatta, etc.
In the second part of the book, Breen meets and befriends Amanda Pickett, an Isak Dinesen/Karen Blixen analogue. One of her guests tells Breen about how he lost an arm in the Kalakala (Mau Mau analogue) uprising.
By the third part, Breen has become a successful writer in his own right and travels to Peponi, where Buko Pepon asks Breen to write his official biography, unvarnished, in the hope of encouraging extraplanetary investment and tourism.
The problems of Peponi are both simple and complex. Basically, it's a tribal world where the various tribes don't trust each other and occasionally make war on each other; compounding this, a little over a hundred years ago the Pepon were hunting with spears and had never heard of a wheel - indeed, many of them _still_ hunt with spears for a living, a living rapidly becoming precarious as Peponi's ecology goes to Hell. This is only compounded by the introduction of (some) modern medicine, resulting in a population boom. Many people trying to live off the same land as a few is a recipe for disaster...
But (like the real Kenya) it's still a place of extraordinary beauty, with wildlife well worth travelling to see.
Resnick populates Peponi with fascinating humans and aliens, and with an ecology full of creatures that may be analogues of Kenyan animals, but are nonetheless fascinating acts of the imagination. (The landship is _so_ much more than an elephant-analogue...) The book goes down as smoothly as whiskey, and burns as much.
April 12, 2015
We follow Matthew Breen who studies Peponi (a.k.a Pardise) through his interviews with August Hardwycke, a big game hunter and then safari guide. Then his interviews with Amanda Pickett, a farmer and famous writer, and other Peponi expatriates. Three years Buko Pepon commissions Matthew to write his biography. Fourteen years after that Matthew returns to Peponi to do research for a followup book.
The book is well written, even paced, the characters are likeable but it gets less and less upbeat. First the extinctions of the landships and saberhorns, then turning fertile land into desert, importing non-native species that aren't well suited to the land. The gift of medical knowledge leading to a population growth and further impinging on the wildlife habitats. Independence won, but at the cost of mass unemployment and other social hardships. The wags are trying to go from savages with no written history to galactic citizens in just a generation or two. They are trying to live like Men, but they aren't Men and it just isn't working for them.
This could be an excellent book for a literature class where the teacher could focus on the ecological destruction or on the social aspect. How the wags went from lesser beings to Independence, and once they gained their independence how their tribal loyalties kept them from making a global society.
It's light reading that could cause some heavy thinking.
The book is well written, even paced, the characters are likeable but it gets less and less upbeat. First the extinctions of the landships and saberhorns, then turning fertile land into desert, importing non-native species that aren't well suited to the land. The gift of medical knowledge leading to a population growth and further impinging on the wildlife habitats. Independence won, but at the cost of mass unemployment and other social hardships. The wags are trying to go from savages with no written history to galactic citizens in just a generation or two. They are trying to live like Men, but they aren't Men and it just isn't working for them.
This could be an excellent book for a literature class where the teacher could focus on the ecological destruction or on the social aspect. How the wags went from lesser beings to Independence, and once they gained their independence how their tribal loyalties kept them from making a global society.
It's light reading that could cause some heavy thinking.
June 16, 2021
Africa is alien. Native customs, ex. eat heart for courage. Animals go from widespread to extinct.
December 15, 2018
Ho finito il primo ciclo e quindi vorrei proporre la lettura di Resnick, Paradiso remoto, voto 9 ristampato a gennaio da Urania: commento in quarta di copertina totalmente fuorviante e copertina orribile. I gatti giganti non sono i protagonisti del libro
Questa mia proposta è un paghi 1 ma prendi 3, per due motivi:
1- primo volume di una trilogia, quindi se piace si possono leggere anche altri due libri;
2- dopo il libro di Resnick ho preso quello della Le Guin, Il Mondo della foresta (tema simile, ma esito differente) e poi leggerò Conrad , Cuore di tenebra (ambientato in Africa ai tempi della colonizzazione); trilogia per contenuti.
E’ uno strano libro di fantascienza; la narrazione è un po' lenta (a molti non piacerà per questo), ma penso che il ritmo lento aiuti ad entrare meglio nella vicenda.
Dalla prima pagina Resnick ci fa capire dove vuole andare a parare, la colonizzazione del pianeta Peponi, il paradiso del titolo, è la parafrasi della storia del Kenia, dalla colonizzazione dell’uomo bianco, la rivolta dei Mau Mau, alla decolonizzazione con i presidenti kenioti Keniatta e Moi.
Spesso la fantascienza si è messa dalla parte degli oppressi. In questo caso si narra della distruzione di un pianeta incontaminato abitato da popolazioni ancora primitive in seguito alla colonizzazione umana. I nativi considerati inferiori (forse Cameron si è ispirato a questo libro per Avatar), schiavizzati. All’indipendenza che non riesce a spezzare la distruzione dell’eco sistema del pianeta.
Tutta la storia è narrata in prima persona dal protagonista, uno scrittore che racconterà in più libri del pianeta e dei protgonisti della sua storia.
Unica pecca la mancanza di figure femminili indigene.
Questa mia proposta è un paghi 1 ma prendi 3, per due motivi:
1- primo volume di una trilogia, quindi se piace si possono leggere anche altri due libri;
2- dopo il libro di Resnick ho preso quello della Le Guin, Il Mondo della foresta (tema simile, ma esito differente) e poi leggerò Conrad , Cuore di tenebra (ambientato in Africa ai tempi della colonizzazione); trilogia per contenuti.
E’ uno strano libro di fantascienza; la narrazione è un po' lenta (a molti non piacerà per questo), ma penso che il ritmo lento aiuti ad entrare meglio nella vicenda.
Dalla prima pagina Resnick ci fa capire dove vuole andare a parare, la colonizzazione del pianeta Peponi, il paradiso del titolo, è la parafrasi della storia del Kenia, dalla colonizzazione dell’uomo bianco, la rivolta dei Mau Mau, alla decolonizzazione con i presidenti kenioti Keniatta e Moi.
Spesso la fantascienza si è messa dalla parte degli oppressi. In questo caso si narra della distruzione di un pianeta incontaminato abitato da popolazioni ancora primitive in seguito alla colonizzazione umana. I nativi considerati inferiori (forse Cameron si è ispirato a questo libro per Avatar), schiavizzati. All’indipendenza che non riesce a spezzare la distruzione dell’eco sistema del pianeta.
Tutta la storia è narrata in prima persona dal protagonista, uno scrittore che racconterà in più libri del pianeta e dei protgonisti della sua storia.
Unica pecca la mancanza di figure femminili indigene.
August 26, 2025
Paradiso remoto è un libro strano, il primo di una trilogia che rimette in scena la storia coloniale di tre paesi africani mascherata da fantascienza. Non ho ancora letto i successivi, ma questo primo è dannatamente affascinante: non è una storia romanzata, ma una specie di pseudo saggio scritto da un immaginario giornalista e scrittore che intervista personaggi importanti di Peponi (il pianeta che nel libro fa da allegoria al Kenya) e successivamente visita il pianeta in un paio di occasioni. Il rischio di una simile operazione è di ottenere un libro estremamente noioso o lento, ma la scrittura vivace di Resnick lo trasforma in un viaggio al limite del metafisico, tra realtà e finzione, passato e futuro, vicino e lontano, attento a non tradire facili moralismi o a scegliere acriticamente una parte.
Non saprei dire quanto questa particolare forma abbia davvero senso, letterariamente, moralmente o intellettualmente, eppure pagina dopo pagina mi sono lasciato avvincere sempre di più, consapevole di avere in qualche modo il piede in due staffe, e giunto all'ultima pagina non ho potuto fare a meno di versare qualche lacrimuccia.
Non saprei dire quanto questa particolare forma abbia davvero senso, letterariamente, moralmente o intellettualmente, eppure pagina dopo pagina mi sono lasciato avvincere sempre di più, consapevole di avere in qualche modo il piede in due staffe, e giunto all'ultima pagina non ho potuto fare a meno di versare qualche lacrimuccia.
June 23, 2024
There is a very specific satisfying feeling after reading a gem of a book like this one that only a couple hundred people or so have even heard of, but it wasn't good just because of it's appeal despite obscurity, it was good for any other old reason that makes a book great. Not only was it masterfully written in such a way that had me captivated when reading something as simple as a hunting safari, but it also taught me so much about the pros and cons of colonial control versus independence that it felt like taking a crash course on the birth of civilizations and colonial sociology all while reading about aliens and spaceships.
I wrestled between a four star and a five star rating once finished, but after thinking about it a bit, I realized, that even though this wasn't one of those books with a millenia-spanning plot and mind-bending concepts that I usually tend to enjoy, it's still a close to perfect book about a primitive humanoid species who are forced through their evolutionary path and find themselves in hell by Men who thought they could create paradise.
I wrestled between a four star and a five star rating once finished, but after thinking about it a bit, I realized, that even though this wasn't one of those books with a millenia-spanning plot and mind-bending concepts that I usually tend to enjoy, it's still a close to perfect book about a primitive humanoid species who are forced through their evolutionary path and find themselves in hell by Men who thought they could create paradise.
May 29, 2024
I had read this novel before, a long time back, but never added to GR. Fixed! A reread, a well-told and sad story, mirrored on the story of Kenya (I believe). A lush and captivating world is colonised by Man, and hunting and settlement ensue. Over time the animals are killed off, the natives become independent, and the world turns towards chaos. The story is told through the eyes of a journalist. Sad and poweful.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
May 25, 2022
Εμπνευσμένος προφανώς από τον Δάντη σε αυτή τη την τριλογία, τουλάχιστον ως προς την ονοματολογία των τόμων, μας δίνει 3 περιπτώσεις συμβίωσης του ανθρώπου με εξωγήινες φυλές. Και σε αντίθεση με τον Δάντη, η σειρά τελειωνει με την Κόλαση...
Παρά τα χρόνια πυο έχουν περάσει, θυμάμαι σχεδόν με νοσταλγία τα θηριώδη από πλευράς διαστάσεων ζώα που αποκαλούνται Landships και τα μάτια τους.
Παρά τα χρόνια πυο έχουν περάσει, θυμάμαι σχεδόν με νοσταλγία τα θηριώδη από πλευράς διαστάσεων ζώα που αποκαλούνται Landships και τα μάτια τους.
September 11, 2021
Trasposizione della travagliata storia del Kenya su un pianeta alieno fa riflettere sui danni atroci provocati dal colonialismo. Primo della trilogia Chronicles of Distant Worlds. Bellissimo ed interessante.
January 24, 2025
This either sidles up alongside problematic or else busts right through it.
Still some excellent sci-fi.
Still some excellent sci-fi.
December 3, 2015
Mike is one of the best SF writers out there currently writing. Above all, he is a gifted story-teller, a Homer of our times ( not Homer Simpson ). And he tells his stories with a fine sense of irony, and, importantly for me, his stories make a point about the human condition. But Mike is never ever preachy.
In this one, we go to the Planet Peponi. The Earthmen arrive and undertake the colonization and then settlement of the planet, exploiting the resources and utilizing the natives ( called "wags" ) for their labor.
The story is told through a series of stories as told to a writer, Matthew Breen. We hear the story of the big-game hunter Hardwyk who found Peponi to be a hunter's paradise. We hear the story of a woman who was a settler in the "Greenlands." And we hear the story of Buko Pepon, a native, who becomes the leader of the independence movement.
It's seems clear from the beginning that Peponi is an analogue for Africa, particularly Kenya. The natives are Black Africans, the Earthpeople are the British colonizers. The main woman character in the story is based on Karen Blixen, author of "Out of Africa" ( under the pen name of Isak Dinesen ) and Buko is based on Jomo Kenyatta, the first president of the Republic of Kenya.
As the story of Peponi/Kenya develops, we see the problems of this paradise worsening--the extinction of animal species, overpopulation, poverty, tribal conflict, and corruption. The outlook seems grim. Does Mike Resnick offer any hope for Peponi or the real Africa? I think throughout his story he presents us with some remarkable characters showing the human spirit at its best, a spirit which may be able to overcome seemingly hopeless odds in the end. the end.
In this one, we go to the Planet Peponi. The Earthmen arrive and undertake the colonization and then settlement of the planet, exploiting the resources and utilizing the natives ( called "wags" ) for their labor.
The story is told through a series of stories as told to a writer, Matthew Breen. We hear the story of the big-game hunter Hardwyk who found Peponi to be a hunter's paradise. We hear the story of a woman who was a settler in the "Greenlands." And we hear the story of Buko Pepon, a native, who becomes the leader of the independence movement.
It's seems clear from the beginning that Peponi is an analogue for Africa, particularly Kenya. The natives are Black Africans, the Earthpeople are the British colonizers. The main woman character in the story is based on Karen Blixen, author of "Out of Africa" ( under the pen name of Isak Dinesen ) and Buko is based on Jomo Kenyatta, the first president of the Republic of Kenya.
As the story of Peponi/Kenya develops, we see the problems of this paradise worsening--the extinction of animal species, overpopulation, poverty, tribal conflict, and corruption. The outlook seems grim. Does Mike Resnick offer any hope for Peponi or the real Africa? I think throughout his story he presents us with some remarkable characters showing the human spirit at its best, a spirit which may be able to overcome seemingly hopeless odds in the end. the end.
March 9, 2012
I have never picked up a Mike Resnick book that I didn’t like, and this one is (by far) the best one yet. By setting this parable of the colonization of Africa on another planet, the author was able to delve into socio-political waters that would otherwise have him pilloried – and he managed to do it without sounding preachy, a rare accomplishment.
Full of sweeping landscapes, action, raw emotions, moral dilemmas… . Highly recommend it.
Full of sweeping landscapes, action, raw emotions, moral dilemmas… . Highly recommend it.
April 29, 2016
This book is so elegantly constructed and richly and originally imagined (both structurally, and in terms of the universe, world and aliens Resnick created). I really enjoyed it and the originality of the aliens in the other Resnick book I read and will be buying more every time I see them. Also it starts with a very self conscious mirror to Heart of Darkness that could have been lame but ends up being something totally inventive.
December 13, 2009
I think James Cameron must have ripped this book off for "Avatar" because the theme is same - colonialism spread to the stars, and even the alien in the cover art looks like a native of Pandora... hmmm...
February 2, 2009
I really enjoyed this book. Some parts were too violent for me (I remember entirely skipping a paragraph), and it is heartbreaking to consider the parallels between Peponi and Africa.
March 22, 2024
One of the best novels of Mike’s Birthright universe.
January 6, 2010
This is my third Mike Resnick book - have really gotten hooked on him - an interesting retelling of what happened in Africa as colonies became independent and the Europeans left.
January 20, 2010
This book is pretty much what would happen after Avatar, only much more depressing. I found the narrative device really interesting.
January 27, 2015
This my first novel by Resnick; I read a short or two. There was a lot more here than I expected. Perhaps his formula runs dry after multiple books, but this one by itself works well.
February 11, 2016
OK, kinda slow....
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