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Planet of the Head-Breakers
Centuries after the revolution, the remnants of humanity survive on agricultural communes where they are subjected to mandatory lobotomies before reaching adulthood.
The centuries-old, malfunctioning robots that control them have turned the lobotomy into a coming-of-age ceremony. Most children look forward to it, but not Jim. He dreads the impending surgery and contrives a plan to evade it.
Japeth, a nomadic surgical robot tasked with performing the lobotomies, admires Jim's rebellious spirit and decides to spare him. He promises to return, and makes a bold claim - he was once a man of flesh and blood.
Jim maintains the charade of being lobotomized as he awaits Japeth's promised return, but after years without rescue, he resolves to flee the commune. His quest takes him across a barren, post-apocalyptic landscape in a desperate search for the elusive Japeth.
The centuries-old, malfunctioning robots that control them have turned the lobotomy into a coming-of-age ceremony. Most children look forward to it, but not Jim. He dreads the impending surgery and contrives a plan to evade it.
Japeth, a nomadic surgical robot tasked with performing the lobotomies, admires Jim's rebellious spirit and decides to spare him. He promises to return, and makes a bold claim - he was once a man of flesh and blood.
Jim maintains the charade of being lobotomized as he awaits Japeth's promised return, but after years without rescue, he resolves to flee the commune. His quest takes him across a barren, post-apocalyptic landscape in a desperate search for the elusive Japeth.
322 pages, Paperback
Published June 8, 2023
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14 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews
July 15, 2023
I read and reviewed a short novel by Zeb Haradon (The Last Feast) a while back, and it stayed with me, so I was keen on reading his newest one as well, and it was another unforgettable experience.
This is another novel difficult to categorise. On the face of it, is it a dystopic novel, science-fiction (as it takes place at some point in the future, and some of the things that are described, like having colonies on the Moon, or being able to download a human brain into an android that could potentially carry on living forever are beyond our current capabilities, although perhaps not for too long), but its nature is speculative its mood quite philosophical and inquisitive. Despite all the adventures and events the main protagonist, Jim, lives through (I haven’t checked all of the author’s novels, but it seems that most, or all, of his protagonists are called Jim), this is not is a standard adventure novel, but a book of ideas, and it asks big questions.
The description of the novel offers enough of a plot while avoiding too many spoilers, so I won’t add too many details to it. We follow Jim from age 6 to age 26, and his story is narrated in the third person, but from his point of view. It doesn’t take readers long to realise that something is very wrong here, as the character lives in a strange commune, encircled by a fence that the humans are unable to climb over or even get too close to, and controlled by robots. While the children are intelligent and “normal”, the adults are no longer sentient, cannot talk, feel, or relate to each other in any meaningful way, and they lack any initiative or higher brain functions. Helen, an older friend of Jim, tries to convince him that they need to climb the fence and escape before being “grown-up” (read “lobotomised”), but he is too young and scared to do it, and she ends up being turned into an adult like the rest. Jim grows up and is determined not to end up like that, and he is helped by one of the robots that perform the lobotomies, Japeth, who isn’t what he seems to be. After quite a few years pretending to be like all the rest of the adults, and many adventures once Jim decides to escape and is confronted with an outside world he knows little about and doesn’t understand, he finally finds Japeth, who starts trying to teach him how to survive outside.
After much insistence, Japeth agrees to tell him his own story, which is the story of how humanity ended up the way it did. This part of the book is told in the first person, and the language is very different, as we have a very articulate being who has seen many things, who was well educated and lived under a different regime. He acknowledges that Jim will not understand much of what he is telling him, and, in fact, Jim has fallen asleep by the end of his narrative, but he feels compelled to tell the whole story and keep repeating, filling in, and explaining as required.
When Japeth finishes telling his story, the novel goes back to narrating the adventures of both characters, and it is fascinating to see things from Jim’s perspective, as he has never seen the sea, believes there are monsters outside the commune, misunderstands things (with quite humorous results at times), creates his own stories, and even decides to change the order of things, with pretty unexpected results.
The characters in this story are not “like us”, but readers of sci-fi and people who appreciate challenging stories that take them out of their comfort zone should not find it difficult to connect with them. Even if the specifics of the situation are alien to readers, most of the circumstances are not.
This is a novel that asks many questions, and the answers it offers are not always reassuring: What makes us human? Could humanity regress rather than evolve? What is real freedom? What price are we prepared to pay for peace of mind, order, security, and life as usual? Could our future end up looking like the situation described here? It doesn’t bear thinking about, but as one reads it, it is impossible not to wonder how things could end up if some of the ideas or doctrines we keep hearing about were taken to the extreme. It is a tale of warning, a fable populated by characters that seem very far from us, but are all too recognisable.
I kept thinking about Pinocchio, (here we have a grasshopper rather than a cricket, Jiminy in the Disney version, and Japeth sounds a bit like Geppetto) and, perhaps in some way, this is the story of a marionette (only obeying orders and with no consciousness or independent ideas of his own) who becomes a human being, a coming-of-age story, perhaps even a story of new beginnings. There are some horrible and horrific moments, some terrifying ones, some sad, some funny, some magical, and an ending that is bitter-sweet, but apt, and open to interpretation (and hope?).
There are many other links or similarities people might find, and I think readers who enjoyed A Brave New World, George Orwell’s writing (Animal Farm, 1984...), and are not afraid to look into a dark mirror and a dystopic crystal ball, should try this novel. It won’t leave anyone indifferent, I am sure. And I am also sure we’ll keep hearing from this author in the future.
This is another novel difficult to categorise. On the face of it, is it a dystopic novel, science-fiction (as it takes place at some point in the future, and some of the things that are described, like having colonies on the Moon, or being able to download a human brain into an android that could potentially carry on living forever are beyond our current capabilities, although perhaps not for too long), but its nature is speculative its mood quite philosophical and inquisitive. Despite all the adventures and events the main protagonist, Jim, lives through (I haven’t checked all of the author’s novels, but it seems that most, or all, of his protagonists are called Jim), this is not is a standard adventure novel, but a book of ideas, and it asks big questions.
The description of the novel offers enough of a plot while avoiding too many spoilers, so I won’t add too many details to it. We follow Jim from age 6 to age 26, and his story is narrated in the third person, but from his point of view. It doesn’t take readers long to realise that something is very wrong here, as the character lives in a strange commune, encircled by a fence that the humans are unable to climb over or even get too close to, and controlled by robots. While the children are intelligent and “normal”, the adults are no longer sentient, cannot talk, feel, or relate to each other in any meaningful way, and they lack any initiative or higher brain functions. Helen, an older friend of Jim, tries to convince him that they need to climb the fence and escape before being “grown-up” (read “lobotomised”), but he is too young and scared to do it, and she ends up being turned into an adult like the rest. Jim grows up and is determined not to end up like that, and he is helped by one of the robots that perform the lobotomies, Japeth, who isn’t what he seems to be. After quite a few years pretending to be like all the rest of the adults, and many adventures once Jim decides to escape and is confronted with an outside world he knows little about and doesn’t understand, he finally finds Japeth, who starts trying to teach him how to survive outside.
After much insistence, Japeth agrees to tell him his own story, which is the story of how humanity ended up the way it did. This part of the book is told in the first person, and the language is very different, as we have a very articulate being who has seen many things, who was well educated and lived under a different regime. He acknowledges that Jim will not understand much of what he is telling him, and, in fact, Jim has fallen asleep by the end of his narrative, but he feels compelled to tell the whole story and keep repeating, filling in, and explaining as required.
When Japeth finishes telling his story, the novel goes back to narrating the adventures of both characters, and it is fascinating to see things from Jim’s perspective, as he has never seen the sea, believes there are monsters outside the commune, misunderstands things (with quite humorous results at times), creates his own stories, and even decides to change the order of things, with pretty unexpected results.
The characters in this story are not “like us”, but readers of sci-fi and people who appreciate challenging stories that take them out of their comfort zone should not find it difficult to connect with them. Even if the specifics of the situation are alien to readers, most of the circumstances are not.
This is a novel that asks many questions, and the answers it offers are not always reassuring: What makes us human? Could humanity regress rather than evolve? What is real freedom? What price are we prepared to pay for peace of mind, order, security, and life as usual? Could our future end up looking like the situation described here? It doesn’t bear thinking about, but as one reads it, it is impossible not to wonder how things could end up if some of the ideas or doctrines we keep hearing about were taken to the extreme. It is a tale of warning, a fable populated by characters that seem very far from us, but are all too recognisable.
I kept thinking about Pinocchio, (here we have a grasshopper rather than a cricket, Jiminy in the Disney version, and Japeth sounds a bit like Geppetto) and, perhaps in some way, this is the story of a marionette (only obeying orders and with no consciousness or independent ideas of his own) who becomes a human being, a coming-of-age story, perhaps even a story of new beginnings. There are some horrible and horrific moments, some terrifying ones, some sad, some funny, some magical, and an ending that is bitter-sweet, but apt, and open to interpretation (and hope?).
There are many other links or similarities people might find, and I think readers who enjoyed A Brave New World, George Orwell’s writing (Animal Farm, 1984...), and are not afraid to look into a dark mirror and a dystopic crystal ball, should try this novel. It won’t leave anyone indifferent, I am sure. And I am also sure we’ll keep hearing from this author in the future.
July 11, 2023
Just a brilliantly original book.
Totally original post-apocalyptic drama. Intriguing, tragic, funny and overwhelming in scope, this is possibly the best book I've read from this mercurial author.
Anything I can say would be mildly spoiling, so I will just say there are very few authors who can produce imaginative work with as much originality, boldness and sheer competence of Zeb Haradon. Definitely one of my favourite authors of all time, I wish he had greater recognition.
Totally original post-apocalyptic drama. Intriguing, tragic, funny and overwhelming in scope, this is possibly the best book I've read from this mercurial author.
Anything I can say would be mildly spoiling, so I will just say there are very few authors who can produce imaginative work with as much originality, boldness and sheer competence of Zeb Haradon. Definitely one of my favourite authors of all time, I wish he had greater recognition.
February 8, 2024
Zeb Haradon’s book, Planet of the Head-Breakers, has been on my reading list for a while, and I finally sat down and gave it a go a few weeks ago.
This post-apocalyptic story takes place on earth hundreds of years in the future, where the earth has been run by man made robots, and every person is lobotomized when they have reached a certain age.
The main character is Jim, and we follow him from about age 6 to age 26, with a few jumps between ages.
I wasn’t really sure what to expect from this book when I picked it
up on Kindle Unlimited, but whatever I expected, this book was so much better. Planet of the Head-Breakers was such an original story, it really made me think about things that are happening in the world today and how something like this could possibly come about.
Despite some of the truly horrifying things that happen in this book, there were some funny, and even some very sad, moving moments. I have thought about this book a lot since reading it, and that is unusual. Once I finish a book, I’m usually able to put it out of my mind, and mostly forget about it, but that hasn’t happened with this book.
If you are interested in post-apocalyptic, dystopian fiction, I would recommend giving this book a try.
This post-apocalyptic story takes place on earth hundreds of years in the future, where the earth has been run by man made robots, and every person is lobotomized when they have reached a certain age.
The main character is Jim, and we follow him from about age 6 to age 26, with a few jumps between ages.
I wasn’t really sure what to expect from this book when I picked it
up on Kindle Unlimited, but whatever I expected, this book was so much better. Planet of the Head-Breakers was such an original story, it really made me think about things that are happening in the world today and how something like this could possibly come about.
Despite some of the truly horrifying things that happen in this book, there were some funny, and even some very sad, moving moments. I have thought about this book a lot since reading it, and that is unusual. Once I finish a book, I’m usually able to put it out of my mind, and mostly forget about it, but that hasn’t happened with this book.
If you are interested in post-apocalyptic, dystopian fiction, I would recommend giving this book a try.
June 27, 2023
Read my full review here: https://onreviewbysara.com/2023/06/27...
I was given this ARC as a gift from the author. My opinions and thoughts of the book are mine alone.
My Rating: I rate this book 4 out of 5 stars. This book was an incredible read. I don’t usually read this genre of book. For this author though, I will. I am entertained from the start to the end of the book. I enjoy reading something different than I usually do. Plus, it is interesting to see someone else’s view of the world and the future. I do recommend this book to others looking for a vision of the future that is immersive and entertaining.
I was given this ARC as a gift from the author. My opinions and thoughts of the book are mine alone.
My Rating: I rate this book 4 out of 5 stars. This book was an incredible read. I don’t usually read this genre of book. For this author though, I will. I am entertained from the start to the end of the book. I enjoy reading something different than I usually do. Plus, it is interesting to see someone else’s view of the world and the future. I do recommend this book to others looking for a vision of the future that is immersive and entertaining.
February 5, 2024
Centuries after the revolution, the head-breakers rose to rule the remnants of humanity. They subject the survivors to a forced lobotomy. Children don’t get the chance to escape from such a surgery because they are confined in a robot-controlled commune. Except for Jim.
This dystopian novel follows the life journey of a young boy who lives in a commune. Jim grows up in a controlled environment. He does not know anything about a realm on the other side of the fence he is in. Although he has a vague idea that something exists outside the commune based on his conversations with Helen, his best friend.
Jim witnesses older children who become living dead after they are lobotomized. He and Helen decided that they didn’t want to undergo the surgery. And so, they plan to escape before their time comes. However, fear overwhelms Jim. Thus, the escape does not materialize before the next lobotomy time arrives. The dreadful moment eventually comes for Helen, who is older than Jim. Before Helen undergoes the mandatory surgery, the two children agree on something. The agreement, however, fails because Helen becomes unresponsive. Since then, Jim has had to fend for himself, finding ways to escape and avoid being lobotomized. As Jim grows older, he experiences several twists and turns in his life.
The Book and the Author
Planet of the Head-Breakers is a dystopian novel with some science, mechanical, and electronic applications. The book has an amazing plot. Only a brilliant mind, like Zeb Haradon, can create a world that many have not considered. Plant of the Head-Breakers is such a bold, captivating, and original work. It is intriguing, full of drama, and tragic. But, it also highlights friendship.
The book leaves the reader wondering - even questioning - the feasibility of the events that the author features. However, at the rate technology and science are advancing, I guess it’s not too far off for people to consider living on other planets in the future. Also, the lobotomy that Jim dreads can be likened to the Artificial Intelligence that the present generation is introduced to. It is also true that in world politics, a handful of wealthy and influential individuals are trying to control the rest of humanity. Nevertheless, just as Jim is hopeful of reaching the Moon, I believe that in the end, humanity will overcome the challenges of life. Good always prevails over evil.
Meanwhile, I commend the author for having built Jim’s character well. He is consistent from beginning to end. The part that I like the most about his character is the way he handles and adapts to the outside world. His reaction to the surroundings and the creatures he encounters for the first time is so natural. He is eager to absorb everything, and he learns fast.
Overall, I give Planet of the Head-Breakers a rating of 5 out of 5 stars, and I recommend it to readers 13 years old and above.
NOTE: The above review is also found in Books for All Seasons.
This dystopian novel follows the life journey of a young boy who lives in a commune. Jim grows up in a controlled environment. He does not know anything about a realm on the other side of the fence he is in. Although he has a vague idea that something exists outside the commune based on his conversations with Helen, his best friend.
Jim witnesses older children who become living dead after they are lobotomized. He and Helen decided that they didn’t want to undergo the surgery. And so, they plan to escape before their time comes. However, fear overwhelms Jim. Thus, the escape does not materialize before the next lobotomy time arrives. The dreadful moment eventually comes for Helen, who is older than Jim. Before Helen undergoes the mandatory surgery, the two children agree on something. The agreement, however, fails because Helen becomes unresponsive. Since then, Jim has had to fend for himself, finding ways to escape and avoid being lobotomized. As Jim grows older, he experiences several twists and turns in his life.
The Book and the Author
Planet of the Head-Breakers is a dystopian novel with some science, mechanical, and electronic applications. The book has an amazing plot. Only a brilliant mind, like Zeb Haradon, can create a world that many have not considered. Plant of the Head-Breakers is such a bold, captivating, and original work. It is intriguing, full of drama, and tragic. But, it also highlights friendship.
The book leaves the reader wondering - even questioning - the feasibility of the events that the author features. However, at the rate technology and science are advancing, I guess it’s not too far off for people to consider living on other planets in the future. Also, the lobotomy that Jim dreads can be likened to the Artificial Intelligence that the present generation is introduced to. It is also true that in world politics, a handful of wealthy and influential individuals are trying to control the rest of humanity. Nevertheless, just as Jim is hopeful of reaching the Moon, I believe that in the end, humanity will overcome the challenges of life. Good always prevails over evil.
Meanwhile, I commend the author for having built Jim’s character well. He is consistent from beginning to end. The part that I like the most about his character is the way he handles and adapts to the outside world. His reaction to the surroundings and the creatures he encounters for the first time is so natural. He is eager to absorb everything, and he learns fast.
Overall, I give Planet of the Head-Breakers a rating of 5 out of 5 stars, and I recommend it to readers 13 years old and above.
NOTE: The above review is also found in Books for All Seasons.
September 28, 2024
Zeb Haradon's Planet of the Head-breakers is a book full of equal parts wonder and questions, as well as naivety and horror.
Mr. Haradon brings to life a civilization where the world governments have been over-run by anarchists, adults who have either been lobotomized or killed, and children who are raised in communes by robots, and are brainwashed to think that it is a privilege to receive a lobotomy by the age of age eleven, or twelve at the the oldest. To make it worse, the children are taught songs to sing to make the lobotomies more comforting, in case they get scared.
Planet of the Head-Breakers, while depressing in nature, is similar in some ways to Utopia in creating a perfect world, and Lord of the Flies, where the children (teens) run everything at the time of a Revolution during Japeth's, period as an andoid. Before he became a robot, he was a human who became an android. At a commune, he spared a boy from "growing-up" by having a lobotomy, and said he would come back for him, but that he needed to act "grown-up" in case anyone else was around him before he got back.
Unfortunately, it's five years before the boy gets another opportunity to run away from the commune, and when he does he finds Japeth without any legs, but that doesn't stop the human turned andoid/lobotobot from taking care of the young man and becoming a fatherlike influence on him. After a few more years, the boy leaves without a word, becoming a different type of lobotobot at two communes, thinking he is going to make everyone happy, but he realizes Japeth was correct and they aren't happy, but neither are they sad or angry. They're just there. A few people can utter two or three words, some can utter one word, and others can't speak at all. None, however, can feed themselves or themselves to the restroom.
By the time the young man comes to terms with the fact he can't save those that were lobotomized, or "growing-up" he goes back to Japeth only to be sent on the biggest mission of his life.
Mr. Haradon draws readers in, making them feel everything the characters feels, making them a part of a strange new world. If readers haven't read a book by Mr. Haradon yet, they need to read one.
Mr. Haradon brings to life a civilization where the world governments have been over-run by anarchists, adults who have either been lobotomized or killed, and children who are raised in communes by robots, and are brainwashed to think that it is a privilege to receive a lobotomy by the age of age eleven, or twelve at the the oldest. To make it worse, the children are taught songs to sing to make the lobotomies more comforting, in case they get scared.
Planet of the Head-Breakers, while depressing in nature, is similar in some ways to Utopia in creating a perfect world, and Lord of the Flies, where the children (teens) run everything at the time of a Revolution during Japeth's, period as an andoid. Before he became a robot, he was a human who became an android. At a commune, he spared a boy from "growing-up" by having a lobotomy, and said he would come back for him, but that he needed to act "grown-up" in case anyone else was around him before he got back.
Unfortunately, it's five years before the boy gets another opportunity to run away from the commune, and when he does he finds Japeth without any legs, but that doesn't stop the human turned andoid/lobotobot from taking care of the young man and becoming a fatherlike influence on him. After a few more years, the boy leaves without a word, becoming a different type of lobotobot at two communes, thinking he is going to make everyone happy, but he realizes Japeth was correct and they aren't happy, but neither are they sad or angry. They're just there. A few people can utter two or three words, some can utter one word, and others can't speak at all. None, however, can feed themselves or themselves to the restroom.
By the time the young man comes to terms with the fact he can't save those that were lobotomized, or "growing-up" he goes back to Japeth only to be sent on the biggest mission of his life.
Mr. Haradon draws readers in, making them feel everything the characters feels, making them a part of a strange new world. If readers haven't read a book by Mr. Haradon yet, they need to read one.
January 23, 2025
I am incredibly grateful to Zeb Haradon for the opportunity to read and review Planet of the Head-Breakers. Being selected to explore this captivating story has been such a treat, and I can’t wait to share my thoughts on it with all of you. A huge thank you to Zeb Haradon for their generosity and for making this reading experience possible.
At first I was nervous to take on this book for the purpose of reviewing it because it's just so different from the genres I typically read.
However, I came to the conclusion that I won't know if it's my kind of thing unless I try it and at the very least I could review the writing even if the story wasn't for me. I am very pleased to say though, that I really enjoyed this book. I cannot believe this story was just conjured up in someone's mine.
It is so complex and clever. It's definitely something to read when your brain is fully switched on because you'll absolutely want to keep up with this interesting story.
I am so so glad that I read this book! It was just so fascinating.
It's not super long but I found I wasn't able to read it as quickly as I normally would because of the complex story. This isn't a bad thing in the slightest. I just really wanted to take my time to take in each and every word.
The author, Zeb Haradon, sure has some cool ideas and an absolute way with words.
At first I was nervous to take on this book for the purpose of reviewing it because it's just so different from the genres I typically read.
However, I came to the conclusion that I won't know if it's my kind of thing unless I try it and at the very least I could review the writing even if the story wasn't for me. I am very pleased to say though, that I really enjoyed this book. I cannot believe this story was just conjured up in someone's mine.
It is so complex and clever. It's definitely something to read when your brain is fully switched on because you'll absolutely want to keep up with this interesting story.
I am so so glad that I read this book! It was just so fascinating.
It's not super long but I found I wasn't able to read it as quickly as I normally would because of the complex story. This isn't a bad thing in the slightest. I just really wanted to take my time to take in each and every word.
The author, Zeb Haradon, sure has some cool ideas and an absolute way with words.
June 26, 2023
There are probably as many different fictional versions of the future of our world as there are people who want to read and/or write them, but Mr Haradon's take on the subject is, as one would expect, a lot more imaginative and entertaining than most I've read.
The first part of the book is about Jim, at ages 6, 11 and 16, as he navigates life in the commune. I was completely engrossed from page one, but it was the second part, in the POV of Japeth, that made the book really take off for me, as he tells the story of how human became android became robot, and how the world collapsed. It's BRILLIANT. So good I wanted to read it again as soon as I'd finished it, even though I suspect I am light years away from the author when it comes to views on political and societal progression. Didn't matter. Always good to broaden one's outlook! 😉😆
The last part (back to Jim) is sad, touching, heartbreaking ... but not without a glimmer of light. I'm still thinking about this excellent novel, and will need a day before I can start anything else. This guy can write the ar$e off most authors - I was going to say 'in his genre' but he doesn't really have one. Highly, highly recommended.
The first part of the book is about Jim, at ages 6, 11 and 16, as he navigates life in the commune. I was completely engrossed from page one, but it was the second part, in the POV of Japeth, that made the book really take off for me, as he tells the story of how human became android became robot, and how the world collapsed. It's BRILLIANT. So good I wanted to read it again as soon as I'd finished it, even though I suspect I am light years away from the author when it comes to views on political and societal progression. Didn't matter. Always good to broaden one's outlook! 😉😆
The last part (back to Jim) is sad, touching, heartbreaking ... but not without a glimmer of light. I'm still thinking about this excellent novel, and will need a day before I can start anything else. This guy can write the ar$e off most authors - I was going to say 'in his genre' but he doesn't really have one. Highly, highly recommended.
July 31, 2023
"Planet of the Head-Breakers" is a captivating novel about a post-revolution society living in agricultural communes. Citizens are subjected to mandatory lobotomies, but protagonist Jim devises a plan to evade the surgery. He meets Japeth, the robot tasked with performing the lobotomies, who spares him and claims to have been human. Jim escapes the commune and embarks on a journey across a post-apocalyptic landscape to find Japeth—a must-read for fans of multiple genres
Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews