Joshua Son of None

by Nancy Freedman

The better half of Mrs. Mike has soloed all on her own into Crichton territory & her story preempts your curiosity to begin with & then is ambushed with all the procedures & more doubtful morality of the brave new medical world. When, in 1963, a President (nameless throughout) lies dead, a few live cells from his body are retained by a dedicated scientist-devout atheist, Thor Bittenbaum. With the financial resources of an aggressive young millionaire, Kellogg, a child becomes the first...in his image ("genesis in a petri dish," artificial insemination & birth the natural way) & brought up clan-style, not tennis & social graces. When Josh learns part of the truth he runs away but eventually returns to be programmed for his manifest destiny--another presidency, another guess what... Even if the 1st donee suffers visibly thru all of this, & Freedman draws God into the argument, it's essentially pop melodrama of life, death & their "viable alternatives" in a suspension of suds. Clonees and donees--reasonable expectations both.--Kirkus

Genres: Science Fiction, Fiction, Suspense, Thriller

Paperback

First published January 1, 1973

About the author

Nancy Lois Mars Freedman, born in Chicago in 1920, was a professional dancer by the age of seven. She later became an actress, but her career was cut short by a heart condition. She married Benedict Freedman in 1941, just shy of her twenty-first birthday. They collaborated on Mrs. Mike while still in their twenties. Each would write a section and critique the other’s work. (In a previous discussion, June 2007, we learned that this is the method used by the mother and daughter team that makes up P. J. Tracy.) Nancy and Benedict did not write the sequels to Mrs. Mike (The Search for Joyful and Kathy Little Bird) until 2002 and 2004! Nancy authored several other books in the intervening years.

Reviews

[Bill · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read this book in 1973. It was highly memorable and, if memory serves, well written. I doubt if it's still in print but if I find a copy, I'll buy it and re-read it. The title is a clever play on words with the biblical character, Joshua, son of Nun. The book anticipates cloning - long before cloning became a reality - of John F Kennedy. While Joshua is physically identical to Kennedy, his personality and experiences are utterly different. The attempted rape scene by an oiled and naked assailant is shocking (for the time). I saw the other reviews in this site and was a bit perplexed: did they read the same book I did?

[Will G · Rating 3 out of 5]

I read this book in high school and was mesmerized. Of course the fact that it was cutting edge in terms of cloning as well as had to do with a historical event which significantly impacted my youth probably contributed to those feelings.

But upon reading it almost 50 years later I see that it has not aged as well as my memory of it had. All in all it still is a thrilling concept but the execution is flawed. It's not the page turner I remembered and the ending is quite predictable. But I rated it three starts for the concepts and overall story line. It would be interesting to see it written by a writer like Stephen King who has his own (and better) JFK story in 11/22/63.

Still, this is a worthwhile read if you can find a copy (I believe it is out of print)...

[Gerald · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is the first book I ever read for pleasure. Growing up reading was always an assignment and I literally hated to read. This book gets a 5 Star rating for one reason and that is because I credit it for making the wonderful world of books accessible to me.

[Lady Heather · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read this book a loooong time ago, and never forgot this incredible story or the wonderful writing.

It is now my mission to try and hunt down a 'hard copy' of this book so I can share it with my children.

[Chad Roberts · Rating 3 out of 5]

Pretty interesting concept, but not a very smooth read. There were many moments that I enjoyed, but they were halted by rambling parts that didn't seem to serve much purpose.

[Magda Revetllat · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fantástico relato que se adelanta y mucho a otras novelas del género con un final que abre la imaginación del lector.

[Christopher Sutch · Rating 4 out of 5]

I was pleasantly surprised by the quality of this novel. I'd never heard of Nancy Freedman (and still know virtually nothing about her; I received this book from a friend twenty years ago) and, frankly, didn't expect much. However, this novel quite skillfully and thoroughly explores the practicality and the ethics of cloning while also telling a good story with fine attention to characterization and the crafting of an engaging plot. It is compulsively readable. The jacket claims this was the first novel written about cloning (published in 1973), a claim of which I am skeptical: surely some science fiction writer had engaged the subject before? But Freedman's book is certainly one of the earliest to deal with the moral and ethical quandaries involved, and she does an excellent job of imagining what effect the knowledge of his "original" life and how it ended affect the mind and decisions of the cloned protagonist. The book is at times overly and unnecessarily didactic (especially as she is forced to cover so much ground toward the end of the novel), and is disturbingly eugenic in its implicit and explicit attitudes toward cloning (only the rich, artists, scientists, or great leaders should be cloned Freedman argues; she was introduced to the topic through the Eugenics program at Cal Tech in the 1960s, which seems an incredibly quaint and shocking place to have existed well past the days of the eugenics movements of the early twentieth century). But the good aspects of the novel far outweigh these problems. An interesting and rewarding read.

[Melissa · Rating 4 out of 5]

I cannot figure out why this book is out of print. At the very least, Joshua, Son of None needs to be resurrected (pardon the pun) and available for Kindle so more people can discover this fantastic book. I also hope that someone, somewhere, has the movie rights to this book. I became aware of this book as it was parked in my closet as a little girl, left there as 'required reading' for my older brother and sister (15 years older); otherwise I would have never heard of it. My husband found a used copy for me on ebay and gave it to me for Christmas and I will cherish it and only loan it out upon threat of severe punishment to anyone who loses it!

[Aldrich · Rating 4 out of 5]

What would happen if one of the doctor's who was at Parkland Hospital on the day of JFK's assassination took a sample of DNA, and he was cloned? I know, right? But while the premise seems too far-fetched, the book is a page-turner and I found myself reading it for a day until completion. How would JFK's life be assimilated into this new version? Would he have the same values, judgments, experiences that shaped John Kennedy? Most of all, can anything be done to change fate? Recommended if you can find it.

[Kelli · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read this when the mystery and sadness of JFK was still very much in the minds and hearts of America. Absolutely cool how many elements come into this story. Some futuristic stuff (it was projected into the 80's from the 60's perspective) and biblical references and cloning and fate. I have thought about this book a thousand times since my teen years and so glad to see others who have enjoyed it as much as I did. I would recommend this highly!!

[Roberta Sallee · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read this book a really long time ago and recently re-read it.
I enjoyed it the first time and thought I remembered it, but there were so many aspects I had forgotten or changed in my mind.
It was written before cloning was a reality (I think) so the author's whole background explanation was interesting.
The irony of the ending was not unexpected.

[Woody Woodbury · Rating 4 out of 5]

Read this as a young teen and the title always stuck with me so I decided to read it again. Not bad- not sure i understood it completely as a kid. Obviously it’s an allegory cleverly using Joshua the son of Nun, Moses’ servant from Deuteronomy and Joshua in the Old Testament but changing the name to Joshua son of None in reference to a clone of President Kennedy.

President Kennedy was seen by many as the savior of this country but like Moses not allowed to bring us into the promised land as he was assassinated before he could (Moses told by God that he would not cross the Jordan River into the promised land Deuteronomy 4:21 and then died before he could cross it). So Joshua son of None, being the clone of the assassinated president, is akin to Joshua son of Nun in that he is raised to bring us into the promised land.

This book then brings up the moral questions of cloning and how are we to balance the good intentions of bringing back a potentially great man with the moral implications of playing God and should we?

In the end Joshua son of None being a clone of President Kennedy and not a willing servant like Joshua son of Nun fails like Moses to lead us into the promised land. I feel that the authors intention was to justify the cloning of a great man and maybe more in the future but I think she answered the moral question herself by ending it the way she did. God stopped the experiment and answered the moral question for us.

[Maureen · Rating 4 out of 5]

I first read this book probably when I was in high school. And it has stuck with me for a very long time. I got a used paperback copy a while ago and grabbed it from my book pile. I got sucked in again!

Such a creepy but cool story of cloning - kind of a nature vs nurture kind of story (or science vs nurture, really!)

Four stars because even though it is rather dated, it still grabbed my attention and I read it cover to cover without stopping.

[Jean Triceratops · Rating 2 out of 5]

While I quit reading only a few pages into Joshua Son of None, it’s not going onto the shelf of books I've given up on. I can’t bring myself to write it off, but neither, at least right now, can I bring myself to read it. It’s going back onto the to-read pile.

It started off compelling enough, and Nancy Freedman has a strong voice and a deft command of the English language. But things got confusing in a way where I couldn’t tell if I was simply being dense or if the writing had spiraled out of control.The premise is somewhat simple. An unnamed president, who is definitely John F Kennedy, is assassinated. Thor Bitterbaum is a doctor. He steals a bit of the president’s DNA and stores it so that he might clone the president. Despite being a Jewish atheist, Thor also has some sort of weird affinity for the Norse god of the same name. I couldn’t entirely tell if he merely likens himself to the god or if he’s somehow the modern embodiment of Thor.

And That’s all the set up I had walking into these next paragraphs.

The strength and daring of Thor stood off and kept at bay the talmudic scholar grandfather, Jacob Bitterbaum, and the learned rabbi, Solomon Bitterbaum. They shook long unscissored beads and consulted Yekuthiel Bitterbaum, patriarch of the family. But he had never heard of anyone called Thor, who daily waded rivers to sit in judgement under Yggdrasil, the world tree, defending both Midgard and Asgasrd, men and gods, from the chaos of the giants. His belt doubled his strength. He had gloves of iron and could toss a thunderbolt. The red-bearded one swung his club, and goats and wild boar ran to his side. In the Ragnarok, in the forest of Thorsmorsk he would fight the serpent and it was recounted that both would die.

No wonder the old Jews shook their covered heads. Thor brandished the swastika, symbol of Mjellnir, his hammer, which the dwarfs, out of spite, had made too short. They drew back, these pious Jews, murmured ancient prayers and swayed in the face of the assertion that this hero could shrive and hallow the dead. And yet the dead was so shriven that he would rise up in strength and life.

There I was, reclining by the pool, utterly baffled. Just a moment before Thor had been surreptitiously slipping the recovered DNA into a test tube, then wham. I re-read it, but that’s dense and awfully metaphorical and allegorical and I kinda wanted to look up more about Norse mythology to see if maybe then I could understand what was going on but I had intentionally left my phone in the car so I’d just read and swim and nap and not get sucked into wasting time on my phone.

So I pushed forward, and soon we were back in the real world, with Thor sneaking the DNA sample out of the hospital and thinking about his plans for human cloning. This last part gets technical, fast. Lots of scientists and their attempts at cloning are mentioned in rapid successful and I just wasn’t in the mood. It’s summer, it’s a billion degrees, and even if this is a short little thing I’m not sure I have the mental fortitude to be neck-deep in metaphors and scientific quotations from fictional scientists.

In terms of old dating cliches, though, I realize that this is my fault, not Joshua Son of None’s. I’m just not looking to get into anything too serious right now, but maybe later once I’ve read around a little bit and the weather is cooler and all I really want to do is settle down with a book for a few hours—then Joshua Son of None might end up back in my hands.

I hope we can remain friends.

[I read old fantasy and sci-fi novels written by women authors in search of forgotten gems. See more at forfemfan.com]

[Lisa · Rating 2 out of 5]

You know, for awhile I thought the dated 70's language was the worst thing about this book. This book, in which JFK is cloned, covers the same territory as the far superior "Boys from Brazil". The main character "Joshua", the clonee, never draws us in, and I really never engaged. How could I, when the characters (only Joshua and his family members, for the most part) exist outside of any context for the current world they live in? And though the name "Kennedy" is never actually mentioned, Joshua's annoyingly coy name is Joshua Francis Kellogg. Get it? Astoundingly, when the cloning is "revealed" and discussion takes place of its effect on the world, no mention is ever made of contacting the actual Kennedy (or nameless) family. Um, the doctor did in fact steal those cells from the dying President. The worst thing, though, the book gets to a certain point and you think: "If the most ridiculous, predictable, a blind-man-on-a-galloping-horse-could-see-it-coming ending takes place, have I really wasted all this time?" The answer is yes, yes, a thousand times yes. Wasted time you'll never get back, like stopping to watch the Country Bears Jamboree at Disneyland. That's another 30 minutes of your life you'll never get back.
Two stars because it was mildly interesting before the ending was telegraphed, in 100 foot neon letters.

[Trish · Rating 5 out of 5]

I first read this book back when I was fresh fromThe Boys from Brazil, and trying to get my English teacher to include books I liked. She, an awesome lady, handed me a copy of this. I then read it about a dozen times. Then a few more.

I'm fascinated by the idyllic aura put around the Kennedy presidency and the early "clones and nature nurture" ideas. This is a perfect companion piece to the aforementioned "Boys from Brazil." The idea that with enough planning the world can get someone hack is fascinating and compelling and doesn't take into account the subject.

One day I hope they make a movie.

[Beverly · Rating 3 out of 5]

This story takes the idea of cloning human beings to the "accomplished" level. The idea comes about when a wealthy gentleman gains access to the assassinated president's body and is able to collect cells from the wounds. His hope is that he can clone the president and then raise the cloned child in a very close approximation of the original president's life--expecting the president to actually become president again. Although never stated, it is obvious that the entire story is predicated on the assassination of John F. Kennedy. It was an interesting idea and I thought the author did a decent job of detailing the story to be believable. Nonetheless, it was just OK for me.

[Alien · Rating 3 out of 5]

Doctor Birnbaum is present in the clinic that treats John F. Kennedy after his assassination. Birnbaum is a very rational person but a glowing admirer of Kennedy. He feels the need to do something. So he steals a sample of his cells to make a clone.

Yeah well, not bad. Some predictions of the author were not so accurate. Our environment is not yet totally ruined and the resources have not all been spent. And cloning is a lot harder than she expected.

The life of Kennedy's clone is rather well constructed and believable.
Only the seeming inevitability of the end and a bit of esoteric ideas did not exite me that much. 3.5/5

[Nancy nagrant · Rating 5 out of 5]

A story worth repeat

Loved this story when I first read in 1975 . Have recommended it heartily through the years until my second read sometime in the 90s. Happy to see this re-release from 2013 and had to make it a charmed third read. As from the firstread, Im drawn in by the audacious premise of the reboot of Camelot. As any reader who remembers where they were on that November day or can relate through their recall of 9/11 will appreciate the hopeful tension as the story approaches what he hopes will be a changed history.

[Janice Smith]

An unnamed president has been assassinated. A physician of questionable scruples collects a bit of dna from the corpse. Years later he is funded by a wealthy man to produce a clone of the late president. An experiment is conducted with the clone reproducing every aspect of the late presidents life, to see if the life will end as the assassinated presidents did. Loved this. Don't really read much sci-fi, but found this less fanciful. Well done.

[Ace66Joker · Rating 5 out of 5]

I was wanting to read a book in one day so I decided to read this because my grandma suggested I read it and I absolutely loved it. I was absolutely gripped in the story the whole way through and afterward I just felt shook and already missed the story and the characters. Which in my opinion means that is was really good.

[Meredith · Rating 3 out of 5]

JFK is shot and dies, but he was cloned into a man named Joshua, who is being raised just like JFK in the hopes that he will be the next hope for America. This was recommended to me by a nun who taught physics, but it's pretty forgettable. Kind of reminds me of "The Boys from Brazil".

[Valerie]

This is kind of the obverse of The Boys from Brazil. The basic point--that clones are individuals, and that heredity is not destiny, is one that SHOULDN'T need to be argued. After all, nobody argues that identical twins are the same in all detail--or do they?

[Tina · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read this book in the early 1970's and was absolutely obsessed with it. I loved it. I was obsessed with the JFK assassination so of course I read this over and over. A really imaginative book. I wish I could find a copy. I'd read it again.

[Judy · Rating 4 out of 5]

This fictional tale begins with the assassination of JFK. At the hospital a doctor takes a sample of his flesh and later decides to try to clone the President.

It's hard to believe that the same author wrote Mrs. Mike.

[DOUGLAS J BERRY · Rating 5 out of 5]

An excellent book on the ramifications of cloning.

I read this a while ago. The ethical discussion is kept brief. The novel didn't go into some logical problems with the Kennedy family. I think this novel gets each time I read it.

[Amanda Trotter · Rating 5 out of 5]

I give it five stars because while I read it in my teens, the memory of the enjoyment of reading it remains. It's rare a book that sticks with me like that. That's not to say it indicates a masterpiece, only that it touched some part of me at that time in my life.

[Paige Pell · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this book when I read it the first time as a teenager. In rereading it, I found I had retained only the highest level view of the plot so it was fresh again. Given how far technology has advanced, it's interesting to revisit this topic, as relevant today as when it was published in 1973.

[Lewis Weinstein · Rating 4 out of 5]

Chilling.

[Erik Graff · Rating 3 out of 5]

Medical science fiction political thriller. Nothing special.