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Lagrange #1
Lagrange Five
Rex Bader is a private investigator from earth who is called to Island Three at the LaGrange Point to solve the mystery of the missing professor and father of the entire LaGrange Point project. At the same time as the investigation, the cases of Wide Syndrome (a contagious kind of claustrophobia) are on the increase and there are talks of revolution. Who is behind all three scenarios and what can Rex do to save the day?
185 pages, Kindle Edition
First published January 1, 1979
2 people are currently reading
207 people want to read
About the author
Mack Reynolds
508 books42 followersDallas McCord "Mack" Reynolds was an American science fiction writer. His pen names included Clark Collins, Mark Mallory, Guy McCord, Dallas Ross and Maxine Reynolds. Many of his stories were published in "Galaxy Magazine" and "Worlds of If Magazine". He was quite popular in the 1960s, but most of his work subsequently went out of print.
He was an active supporter of the Socialist Labor Party; his father, Verne Reynolds, was twice the SLP's Presidential candidate, in 1928 and 1932. Many of MR's stories use SLP jargon such as 'Industrial Feudalism' and most deal with economic issues in some way
Many of Reynolds' stories took place in Utopian societies, and many of which fulfilled L. L. Zamenhof's dream of Esperanto used worldwide as a universal second language. His novels predicted much that has come to pass, including pocket computers and a world-wide computer network with information available at one's fingertips.
Many of his novels were written within the context of a highly mobile society in which few people maintained a fixed residence, leading to "mobile voting" laws which allowed someone living out of the equivalent of a motor home to vote when and where they chose.
He was an active supporter of the Socialist Labor Party; his father, Verne Reynolds, was twice the SLP's Presidential candidate, in 1928 and 1932. Many of MR's stories use SLP jargon such as 'Industrial Feudalism' and most deal with economic issues in some way
Many of Reynolds' stories took place in Utopian societies, and many of which fulfilled L. L. Zamenhof's dream of Esperanto used worldwide as a universal second language. His novels predicted much that has come to pass, including pocket computers and a world-wide computer network with information available at one's fingertips.
Many of his novels were written within the context of a highly mobile society in which few people maintained a fixed residence, leading to "mobile voting" laws which allowed someone living out of the equivalent of a motor home to vote when and where they chose.
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Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews
April 16, 2010
My first impression of Mack Reynolds, based on his Utopian Sci-Fi novel Lagrange Five, is that he is a man who cares deeply about equality -- economic equality, racial equality and gender equality. But knowing that doesn't make Lagrange Five any less difficult to read.
For all his love of equality, Reynold's story is packed full of uncomfortable language and conventional, '70s era gender and race roles (most of which, sadly, continue into our time). The trouble is that the excellent points Reynolds makes (and there are many) are forced to contend with material that contemporary audiences have been trained to disdain.
For instance, the main female character in Lagrange Five, Susie Hawkins, is really just a classic girl-Friday in a space noir that intentionally channels Dashiell Hammett and Raymond Chandler (which, paradoxically, is one of the most entertaining aspects of Lagrange Five -- the noirishness that is), while Whip Ford, the only significant, non-villainous character of colour, looks exactly like Harry Belafonte and becomes the Tubbs to the hero's Crockett.
It doesn't matter at all that Susie Hawkins is a Doctor. She's still the aide to the great man, Professor George R. Casey, whose disappearance kicks off the noirish mystery, and most of her time in the novel is spent as love interest for our hero -- Rex Bader. But things are much worse for Whip Ford. Not only does he spend most of the novel slagging off every "Whitey" he sees and being described as "the Black" (here's an example: "The Black's eyes were cold, cold now."), but he actually asks Bader to become "an honorary nigger" so that Bader can join the population of his new, segregated space island -- "The Promised Land."
Yep...Reynolds employs language and social roles that society has come to despise over the last thirty years, but he really is employing these things in a way that, at the time, was progressive. One imagines that his books would be very different today and would adhere to our standards and what we now consider forward thinking. And I think there is every possibility that Reynolds villains -- oil rich Arabs who are poisoning the Lagrange water supply -- would be someone else because beneath all the unintentional discomfort, Reynolds wants a world without prejudice or bigotry.
So he gives us a woman doctor in charge of her own sexuality; he gives us a righteously angry black man (and he's careful to let us know that his anger is righteous) who is working to overcome his own racism; he gives us powerful white men and not so powerful white men who are dedicated to equality and project color and gender blindness in all their dealings. Yet there is always that off-putting language to pull us away from the ideals Reynolds is trying to express.
I found Lagrange Five on China Miéville's list of Fifty Fantasy & Science Fiction Works That Socialists Should Read, and it's easy to see why Miéville tossed this on the list. Beyond Reynolds love of equality is a story of working neo-Syndicalism struggling to maintain its hold in the face of mankind's lust for power over mankind. And its gigantic space station society is really an orbital city that just has to be up Miéville's urban loving alley.
It's definitely worth a read, even if it isn't anywhere near the best book on Miéville's list. I kind of wish I'd been able to enjoy it more, actually, but my upbringing is too potent.
For all his love of equality, Reynold's story is packed full of uncomfortable language and conventional, '70s era gender and race roles (most of which, sadly, continue into our time). The trouble is that the excellent points Reynolds makes (and there are many) are forced to contend with material that contemporary audiences have been trained to disdain.
For instance, the main female character in Lagrange Five, Susie Hawkins, is really just a classic girl-Friday in a space noir that intentionally channels Dashiell Hammett and Raymond Chandler (which, paradoxically, is one of the most entertaining aspects of Lagrange Five -- the noirishness that is), while Whip Ford, the only significant, non-villainous character of colour, looks exactly like Harry Belafonte and becomes the Tubbs to the hero's Crockett.
It doesn't matter at all that Susie Hawkins is a Doctor. She's still the aide to the great man, Professor George R. Casey, whose disappearance kicks off the noirish mystery, and most of her time in the novel is spent as love interest for our hero -- Rex Bader. But things are much worse for Whip Ford. Not only does he spend most of the novel slagging off every "Whitey" he sees and being described as "the Black" (here's an example: "The Black's eyes were cold, cold now."), but he actually asks Bader to become "an honorary nigger" so that Bader can join the population of his new, segregated space island -- "The Promised Land."
Yep...Reynolds employs language and social roles that society has come to despise over the last thirty years, but he really is employing these things in a way that, at the time, was progressive. One imagines that his books would be very different today and would adhere to our standards and what we now consider forward thinking. And I think there is every possibility that Reynolds villains -- oil rich Arabs who are poisoning the Lagrange water supply -- would be someone else because beneath all the unintentional discomfort, Reynolds wants a world without prejudice or bigotry.
So he gives us a woman doctor in charge of her own sexuality; he gives us a righteously angry black man (and he's careful to let us know that his anger is righteous) who is working to overcome his own racism; he gives us powerful white men and not so powerful white men who are dedicated to equality and project color and gender blindness in all their dealings. Yet there is always that off-putting language to pull us away from the ideals Reynolds is trying to express.
I found Lagrange Five on China Miéville's list of Fifty Fantasy & Science Fiction Works That Socialists Should Read, and it's easy to see why Miéville tossed this on the list. Beyond Reynolds love of equality is a story of working neo-Syndicalism struggling to maintain its hold in the face of mankind's lust for power over mankind. And its gigantic space station society is really an orbital city that just has to be up Miéville's urban loving alley.
It's definitely worth a read, even if it isn't anywhere near the best book on Miéville's list. I kind of wish I'd been able to enjoy it more, actually, but my upbringing is too potent.
August 21, 2017
The concept is truly, honestly interesting, but the 1970s veil of racism and sexism was difficult to peek out from behind and see the vision of the book Reynolds was actually trying to write.
First of all the only female character, Susie Hawkins, is a doctor, but I'd forgotten that by the middle of the book because it's only mentioned maybe 2 times and also because she is a secretary. A damn secretary. I had to check to make sure this book wasn't written in the 1940s, which would have made more sense. There is also one black character in the story, Whip Ford, and you absolutely know he is black, because Reynolds spends the entire book referring to him as "the Black." Ford also hates white people and calls them all "whitey" because he resents the subjugation that his race suffered for centuries, but as both Reynolds and the main character point out, racism doesn't exist anymore and it's all in black people's heads.
I hereby nominate Mack Reynolds for the honor of the Nobel Peace Prize for tremendous service to his fellow man in completely ridding the world of racism.
Ford's solution to the inequality is to segregate the black race from the rest of the world, thereby creating their own space colony called the Promised Land Society. At the end of the book, this is supposed to be treated as a viable solution and a happy ending. See? Black people and white people don't hate each other- we can just never ever get along! The weirdest part was digesting the book's theme of the myth of racism, all while it wallows in Reynolds' obvious hate or at least distrust of "the Arabs." There are no good Middle Easterners in this book. They are the schemers, the crooked politicians, the users of crude violence. Both Reynolds and the main character refer to them frequently as oily, snake-like and beak-nosed. They are wily enough to conspire to overthrow a government, but they'll beg for mercy when they're thwarted because ultimately, they are cowards. Even if I attempted to take Reynolds' antiracism theme seriously, I can't. He destroys his own point more eloquently than I ever could.
Also the main story of the book involves the idea that modern technology and medicine allow everyone to thrive, not only the most physically and intellectually fit and that is...a bad thing? No more are the days when a kid with a peanut allergy wouldn't make it past toddlerhood. Those damn epipens are everywhere, spitting in the face of our holy and devout Charles Darwin! So the solution and ultimate moral of the book is to separate all of societies best specimens (IQ over 130, peak physical and mental condition,..) on a utopian space colony and leave all the rest with undesirable traits to rot on a decaying earth. Like I know this book was written almost 50 years ago but I feel like the message still shouldn't be...YAY EUGENICS! And the very last pages of the book are wasted building up that idea so...yay eugenics..? I guess? I don't know it's a weird book.
First of all the only female character, Susie Hawkins, is a doctor, but I'd forgotten that by the middle of the book because it's only mentioned maybe 2 times and also because she is a secretary. A damn secretary. I had to check to make sure this book wasn't written in the 1940s, which would have made more sense. There is also one black character in the story, Whip Ford, and you absolutely know he is black, because Reynolds spends the entire book referring to him as "the Black." Ford also hates white people and calls them all "whitey" because he resents the subjugation that his race suffered for centuries, but as both Reynolds and the main character point out, racism doesn't exist anymore and it's all in black people's heads.
I hereby nominate Mack Reynolds for the honor of the Nobel Peace Prize for tremendous service to his fellow man in completely ridding the world of racism.
Ford's solution to the inequality is to segregate the black race from the rest of the world, thereby creating their own space colony called the Promised Land Society. At the end of the book, this is supposed to be treated as a viable solution and a happy ending. See? Black people and white people don't hate each other- we can just never ever get along! The weirdest part was digesting the book's theme of the myth of racism, all while it wallows in Reynolds' obvious hate or at least distrust of "the Arabs." There are no good Middle Easterners in this book. They are the schemers, the crooked politicians, the users of crude violence. Both Reynolds and the main character refer to them frequently as oily, snake-like and beak-nosed. They are wily enough to conspire to overthrow a government, but they'll beg for mercy when they're thwarted because ultimately, they are cowards. Even if I attempted to take Reynolds' antiracism theme seriously, I can't. He destroys his own point more eloquently than I ever could.
Also the main story of the book involves the idea that modern technology and medicine allow everyone to thrive, not only the most physically and intellectually fit and that is...a bad thing? No more are the days when a kid with a peanut allergy wouldn't make it past toddlerhood. Those damn epipens are everywhere, spitting in the face of our holy and devout Charles Darwin! So the solution and ultimate moral of the book is to separate all of societies best specimens (IQ over 130, peak physical and mental condition,..) on a utopian space colony and leave all the rest with undesirable traits to rot on a decaying earth. Like I know this book was written almost 50 years ago but I feel like the message still shouldn't be...YAY EUGENICS! And the very last pages of the book are wasted building up that idea so...yay eugenics..? I guess? I don't know it's a weird book.
May 28, 2021
Rex Bader, private investigator, is hired by the committee running the Grissom space habitat in the L5 (Lagrange 5) point where gravity between the Earth and the Moon balances. He is hired to find the designer of the L5 habs, Professor Casey, who has apparently gone missing while en route between two space habs. It’s a locked room mystery that Rex can’t quite fathom. Turns out there are a lot of people keen for Casey not to be found and may even have arranged his demise. Complicating things is a sudden epidemic of madness caused by claustrophobia designated space cafard, which Rex eventually suspects is oddly specific just to Grissom. Rex must solve the mystery, save the professor, get the girl and secure the future of space habitats in a fairly minor novel of the sort that Mack Reynolds can type with one hand behind his back. Provides a diverting few hours, beating the syndicalist and guaranteed basic income drums, but a lot of it is pretty easy to figure out.
August 12, 2024
I think the concept of a space station where the big challenge is a psychological ailment afflicting the space dwellers is a cool one to explore. I don't think this book does a good job with that awesome concept.
December 9, 2021
review of
Mack Reynolds's Lagrange Five
by tENTATIVELY, a cONVENIENCE - December 7-8, 2021
For the full review go here: https://www.goodreads.com/story/show/...
It appears that I've read & reviewed at least 17 novels by Mack Reynolds so far. There're very few writers that I've read & reviewed so many bks by. It helps that they're easy reads, it also helps that I like them all very much. Lagrange Five was no exception, I loved it. I've read & reviewed 22 novels by Greg Bear. I like Reynolds even more than Bear so I have some catching up to do. I've read almost everything by Phil K. Dick but only reviewed 6 of them b/c I read them all so long ago. Ditto for J.G.Ballard, I've reviewed 21 of his but they're mostly or entirely cursory reviews. I've read & reviewed 42 Ron Goulart bks but those reviews are so cursory they almost don't count. & then there's 53 by John Brunner! Ok, I take it back: there're quite a few writers that I've read & reviewed a large quantity of work by - all SF writers. Whatever.
There's an "Introduction" that begins:
"The Lagrange Five Project is developing so rapidly that it is all but impossible to keep up. New possibilities manifest themselves monthly, or even more often. There are even three newslatters devoted to space colonization and exploration. So it is that the reader must understand that this story is based upon the information available in the winter of 1976-1977. The present writer realizes that some of his background material will be antiquated before Lagrange Five can be rushed into print." - p -ii
Given that this bk was copyrighted in 1979, it's not as if the author was wishful-thinking about a distant future that he was hoping wd come into existence; instead, it's more like he was imagining that such a thing cd've been possible in his own day & age.
"He could use the camping trip. He had the feeling that he was going stale, that the job was getting on the monotonous side and life in general too much in the way of routine." - p 1
I can relate.
"Back at his little camp, he located the camouflaged outlet and plugged in the stove. In short order the coffee was on hand and he sat on a comfortable boulder." - p 4
"It wasn't a real spring, of course, no matter how well executed by those who had landscaped this whole area. There were pipes below, bringing in the recycled and sterile water.
"He staggered to his feet and stumbled back toward his camp, a fear growing.
"He stared accusingly at his little electric stove, plugged into the outlet. Outlets were everywhere in this supposed wilderness. The pollution of fire and smoke were taboo, the burning of wood was taboo. So, even in camping, you utilized the everywhere available electricity. No wonder so available. It cost all but nothing, the solar power stations took care of that—and the sun was good for a few billion more years, at least." - pp 4-5
The character's camping trip goes awry when he develops severe claustrophobia.
"He clawed at his pocket for his transceiver, finally got it out, panting, his eyes closed tightly.
"He flicked the stud and screamed, "Emergency, emergency. Get a fix on me. I've got Island fever. I've got Wide Syndrome. I've got . . . space cafard . . ."
"They came zeroing in on him within minutes. But by the time they arrived he was mewling, crouched in a fetal position behind the boulder on which he had been seated les than a quarter of an hour before." - p 6
& to think that North American tourists complain when they get the shits from drinking the water in Mexico.
"["]Once, when we were first colonizing the initial Island Two, a transport carrying a hundred and fifty colonists developed a single case. The pilot hung on until the end and reported how it swept through the ship. They all went mad and killed each other, tore each other apart with their hands and teeth. The pilot went last."
[..]
""Yes," he said, as they headed for the door and their much needed drinks. "Even hearing a news broadcast of that instant mental epidemic might have brought on cafard symptoms in others."" - p 9
It's like being in the same rm w/ someone who's puking, it's hard to stop yrself from doing likewise. Now imagine the same logic applying to the way the mass media has so successfully induced COVID-fear.
"Lagrange Five, that equidistant point in space from Earth and Luna" - p 10
In case you were wondering.
Lagrange Five, like many of Reynolds's places, is an intentional community operating w/ exceptional intelligence, imagination, & skill. Also like many of Reynolds's places, it's potentially endangered by the machinations of less intelligent but more diabolical interests. Reynolds always has details evocative of socio-political experiments of interest to me.
"They had approached a sizeable bicycle rack and she pulled a woman's model and began to mount it.
""Take one," she said.
[..]
""They're public property and available to anyone whenever needed. There are racks all over town. You pick one, ride it as long as you wish and leave it at the nearest rack when you're through."" - p 17
Remember the white bicycles of the Dutch Provos?
"In the summer of 1965, Dutch designer and political activist Luud Schimmelpennink suggested a simple radical scheme that would eventually change the world. Schimmelpennink had an idea for creating a more sustainable environment by giving away free bicycles for communal use in Amsterdam’s city center. The suggestion was called the “White Bicycle Plan” and was part of a series of “White Plans” devised by the Dutch anarchist group Provo.
"Provo is a Dutch word for “young trouble-maker” and was considered an appropriate name for a group of young anarchists to carry out political “happenings” and stunts that were inspired as much by DADA as by Herbert Marcuse. Provo was formed by artist and anti-smoking campaigner Robert Jasper Grootveld, writer and anarchist Roel van Duijn and activist Rob Stolk in May 1965. Their motivation, they explained, was to fight back against capitalist society that was “poisoning itself with a morbid thirst for money,” where its citizens were “being brought up to worship Having and despise Being.”"
[..]
"However, as soon as these 50 white bicycles were made freely available they were impounded by the police on the grounds the bikes were not “lockable.” Apparently, all bikes in Amsterdam at that time had to be lockable. Undeterred by the police actions, Provo waited until the bikes were returned and they then fitted each bike with a simple combination lock with the number painted on the bike’s frame. Of course, some of the bikes were stolen, but the White Bicycle revolution had begun.
"Provo’s ideas may seem obvious to us today, but in the 1960s, they were considered radical, threatening and dangerous to society. This was the start of a bicycle revolution that has spread across many European countries today, with bikes being readily (and often freely) available for use. In 2010, Glasgow-based art collective NVA launched a new “White Bicycle Plan” donating 50 bikes for use across the city."
- https://dangerousminds.net/comments/t...
I take it for granted that Reynolds knew about this when he wrote this bk. These days, in Pittsburgh &, presumably, elsewhere, there's a more capitalist SPIN on such things.
"A fleet of little electric scooters has invaded the city this summer, and they’re impossible to miss. Bright orange and often left in the most inopportune of places, scooters from the Ford-owned company Spin have spurred a wave of debate from supporters and critics alike.
"On one hand, they’re an accessible and eco-friendly alternative to cars in a city where parking is often a chore. They also provide a viable alternative to a crowded bus or an expensive Uber for residents who don’t drive, or simply don’t own a car. Riders with lower incomes can even apply for discounted rental rates — Spin Scooters usually cost a starting fee of $1 plus an additional 39 cents per minute — through the Spin Access program. In areas of accessibility and transit efficiency, there’s no doubt that Spin is unparalleled."
- https://www.pittsburghmagazine.com/sp...
"there’s no doubt that Spin is unparalleled"? Well, let's say you want to go someplace 3 miles away. Let's say their maximum speed is 15mph. That means it might take 12 minutes to get there. That's $1 + 12 X 39¢ = $5.68, assuming that you experience maximum efficiency - I think we can take it for granted that that won't be the case. A white bicycle wd cost NOTHING to the user & wd take about the same amt of time. Walking wd take me about an hr. $5.68 wd be an extravagance for me - furthermore, it seems to me that they'd be the most fun to use for a casual exploration, maybe for an hr. That wd cost $24.40, definitely an extravagance. I've noticed that most of the Spin riders seem like younger college students w/ presumably disposable income. As usual, the capitalist 'alternative' really isn't that great. Still, I'm glad they're out there - if only as an addition to the variety of possibilities.
The central character is a detective brought from Earth to Lagrange Five, an idyllic small artificial planet, to search for a missing public figure.
"Rex turned abruptly to the chairman and snapped, "What did the police discover?"
""We have no police," Hans Ober said.
""Well, security, or whatever you call it."
"Ober shook his head. "We have no police of any kind connected with the Lagrange Five Project, nor any other kind of appurtenances of the State such as jails, or even courts in the ordinary sense of the word. We're civilized, Mr. Bader. Crime in the ordinary sense is unknoen in Lagrangia."" - p 28
When Reynolds writes about such a society, his deep knowledge of political philosophies & experiments serves him well for describing something plausible - at least plausible to a person such as myself, someone who's spent much of their life thinking about such possibilities. Many of his bks interweave a type of action that wd appeal to readers looking for not much else w/ socio-political imaginings that provide context but are also intended to be thought-provoking.
"Rex said, "That reminds me. How do I pay for something, such as renting a car? Can I get an advance on my salary?"
""You won't need it, she told him. "For all practical purposes, you, along with all Lagrangists, are on an unlimited expense account."
"He almost stopped the bike to stare at her. "Unlimited expense account!" he said. "You mean that I don't have to pay for anything?"
""That's right. Neither does any Lagrangist. Tourists and others, up from Earth-side, are another thing. But they can pay at the hotels for rooms and meals, or renting cars, or whatever, with their ordinary International Credit Cards. It's all kept track of in our account in Switzerland."" - p 38
Of course, in the novel, all of this is explained in much greater detail. I'm just giving a teaser here.
"It was only after he had climbed upon a stool and leaned on the bar that he realized that it wasn't truly wood but some sort of plastic done up in such wise as to resemble it remarkably. The Pub had ten tables and half-a-dozen booths along one wall. On the wall were faded posters going back to World War One days; scenes in London music halls, complete with dancing girls, war propaganda posters, including Huns cutting the hands off little children and nuns, that sort of thing." - p 52
Given that this pub on L5 is supposed to be an authentic reproduction of an actual British pub I assume that that last detail is something that Reynolds had either actually seen in such a place or knew to've been common enuf to be worth using as a detail. Still, it's strange isn't it? Who wd want to be getting drunk in a place w/ pictures of children & nuns getting their hands cut off? That wd definitely ruin the mood for me.
"It had been years since Rex Bader had been in a bar that boasted a live bartender. The class of drinkery he could afford was invariably automated. Swanker restaurants, he knew, often sported live waiters and bartenders but such were not for citizens on Negative Income Tax or Guaranteed Annual Stipend, GAS, as it was sometimes called." - p 53
It interests me that Reynolds isn't writing about a future time, in wch such things as automated bars & GAS might be expected as possibilities, but is, instead, writing about his own time as if it weren't what it was - w/o in any way justifying that in the plot w/ something like, say, a parallel universe element or some such.
Racial issues often play a big part in Reynolds's bks. In this one, a white woman engages in impromptu debate w/ a black man.
"Susie sighed and said, "The Causcasians, too, have made contributions to progress, Mr. Ford."
""Yes, from the military use of gunpowder to the atom bomb. Oh, I'll admit you've made developments in the sciences we originated, and you instituted the industrial revolution. But you never would have gotten underway if we hadn't given you such little items as the wheel. And now, as a result of your military prowess, we of Africa and Asia are second- or third-class citizens. That's why we want off the world."" - p 64
The government, such as it is, consists of a unpd council.
""Then, what do they get out of it?"
""The honor of serving. The honor and respect granted them by their fellow Lagrangists."
""To each according to his needs and from each according to his abilities, eh?"
""Why, I suppose so," Susie said, not recognizing the quotation.
""Syndicalism,"" - p 87
&, yes, there's a villain - someone who definitely wdn't be having such 'idealism'.
"Doctor Johannisberger need never fear unemployment. If all else failed, he could without difficulty have gotten a job portraying a German scientist on Tri-Di shows. He was a stereotype to end all stereotypes. He would have been particularly good as one of Adolf the Aryan's devoted experimenters on subjects pertaining to the final solution to the Jewish problem." - p 103
Reminds me of Klaus Schwab, Founder and Executive Chairman of the World Economic Forum, & architect of the "Great Reset".
""You know, I've been there. When I was a young fellow. But I finally came to this conclusion. It's the old Roman adage. Divide and Conquer. Pit whites against Blacks, youth against the older generations, nation against nation, religion against religion, one sex against the other. As long as they're so occupied, they don't see the sources of their real troubles. The last case is as good as any. As long as they were supposedly fighting each other, the two sexes didn't see who was really fucking them."
"Who is?" Whip said sourly, unaccepting.
""The socioeconomic system.["]" - pp 112-113
Yeppur.
& there's an ongoing mystery character. I had my educated guess as to who it was from more or less the get-go but there's no sense in giving that away here, eh?!
"When the two men had gone, Susie sank back into her chair and let air out of her lungs.
"Another entered the room from a different door. The newcomer said, "Well, things are coming to a head, aren't they?"
""It looks that way," Susie said, tiredness in her voice, "I think that Rex, in particular, is beginning to smell a rat."" - pp 124-125
Lagrange Five really is a paradise by my standards. Here's further 'proof':
"The lack of advertising signs came to him again. And, now that he thought about it, he realized that there had been no advertising whatsoever in New Frisco as well. Not even signs before restaurants or theatres. But it would seem that the Lagrangists took it to the extreme, made a real principle of it. No advertising period. He assumed that it applied to their Tri-D and radio programs as well. Come to think of it, there would be no need for advertising if you produced only the best quality of everything and everything amounted to being free." - p 138
We get a little back-story on Rex, the PI:
"["]When I was younger, I used to like to read stories about the old private eyes, Philip Marlowe, Sam Spade, even Mike Hammer, and it occured to me that here was a profession I might be able to get into. I studied up on everything that seemed to apply and, sure enough, got my private investigator's license.["]" - p 142
As an autodidact, I have an ongoing problem w/ the fraudelnce problems connected w/ PHDs. I like to say that I "Give it the old anti-college try". Reynolds, very much 'a man of the world', expresses similar thoughts thru his characters:
"Rex took a pull at his drink and said, "The fact that a man's got a phenomenal Ability Quotient, a doctor's degree or so, and a stupendous I.Q. doesn't mean that he has integrity. Some of them seem to think that their strength is the strength of ten because their hearts are pure. And why are their hearts pure? Because they've spent several thousand hours in classrooms, lecture halls, and laboratories. It doesn't prove out. Some of the most vicious people in history have had high I.Q.s and probably Ability Quotients had they been able to test them in those days. Look at Napoleon. Look at Hitler, Goering, Schacht, and Speer.["]" - p 153
Alas, Rex isn't really a very good detective. He has opportunities to learn more about what's going on & seems to miss his chances:
"As he turned, someone jostled him.
""Sorry," the other apologized and grabbed Rex to keep him from stumbling.
""That's all right," Rex said. "I wasn't looking very carefully, myself."" - p 176
& , then, here's a little tidbit of interest:
"["]You know, until Mao's communists took over, a sizeable percentage of China's land was devoted to graveyards, going back for centuries, even millennia. The communists plowed them under."" - p 207
If there were a revolution in the US maybe the golf courses wd go.
Gotta love the author's bio:
For the full review go here: https://www.goodreads.com/story/show/...
Mack Reynolds's Lagrange Five
by tENTATIVELY, a cONVENIENCE - December 7-8, 2021
For the full review go here: https://www.goodreads.com/story/show/...
It appears that I've read & reviewed at least 17 novels by Mack Reynolds so far. There're very few writers that I've read & reviewed so many bks by. It helps that they're easy reads, it also helps that I like them all very much. Lagrange Five was no exception, I loved it. I've read & reviewed 22 novels by Greg Bear. I like Reynolds even more than Bear so I have some catching up to do. I've read almost everything by Phil K. Dick but only reviewed 6 of them b/c I read them all so long ago. Ditto for J.G.Ballard, I've reviewed 21 of his but they're mostly or entirely cursory reviews. I've read & reviewed 42 Ron Goulart bks but those reviews are so cursory they almost don't count. & then there's 53 by John Brunner! Ok, I take it back: there're quite a few writers that I've read & reviewed a large quantity of work by - all SF writers. Whatever.
There's an "Introduction" that begins:
"The Lagrange Five Project is developing so rapidly that it is all but impossible to keep up. New possibilities manifest themselves monthly, or even more often. There are even three newslatters devoted to space colonization and exploration. So it is that the reader must understand that this story is based upon the information available in the winter of 1976-1977. The present writer realizes that some of his background material will be antiquated before Lagrange Five can be rushed into print." - p -ii
Given that this bk was copyrighted in 1979, it's not as if the author was wishful-thinking about a distant future that he was hoping wd come into existence; instead, it's more like he was imagining that such a thing cd've been possible in his own day & age.
"He could use the camping trip. He had the feeling that he was going stale, that the job was getting on the monotonous side and life in general too much in the way of routine." - p 1
I can relate.
"Back at his little camp, he located the camouflaged outlet and plugged in the stove. In short order the coffee was on hand and he sat on a comfortable boulder." - p 4
"It wasn't a real spring, of course, no matter how well executed by those who had landscaped this whole area. There were pipes below, bringing in the recycled and sterile water.
"He staggered to his feet and stumbled back toward his camp, a fear growing.
"He stared accusingly at his little electric stove, plugged into the outlet. Outlets were everywhere in this supposed wilderness. The pollution of fire and smoke were taboo, the burning of wood was taboo. So, even in camping, you utilized the everywhere available electricity. No wonder so available. It cost all but nothing, the solar power stations took care of that—and the sun was good for a few billion more years, at least." - pp 4-5
The character's camping trip goes awry when he develops severe claustrophobia.
"He clawed at his pocket for his transceiver, finally got it out, panting, his eyes closed tightly.
"He flicked the stud and screamed, "Emergency, emergency. Get a fix on me. I've got Island fever. I've got Wide Syndrome. I've got . . . space cafard . . ."
"They came zeroing in on him within minutes. But by the time they arrived he was mewling, crouched in a fetal position behind the boulder on which he had been seated les than a quarter of an hour before." - p 6
& to think that North American tourists complain when they get the shits from drinking the water in Mexico.
"["]Once, when we were first colonizing the initial Island Two, a transport carrying a hundred and fifty colonists developed a single case. The pilot hung on until the end and reported how it swept through the ship. They all went mad and killed each other, tore each other apart with their hands and teeth. The pilot went last."
[..]
""Yes," he said, as they headed for the door and their much needed drinks. "Even hearing a news broadcast of that instant mental epidemic might have brought on cafard symptoms in others."" - p 9
It's like being in the same rm w/ someone who's puking, it's hard to stop yrself from doing likewise. Now imagine the same logic applying to the way the mass media has so successfully induced COVID-fear.
"Lagrange Five, that equidistant point in space from Earth and Luna" - p 10
In case you were wondering.
Lagrange Five, like many of Reynolds's places, is an intentional community operating w/ exceptional intelligence, imagination, & skill. Also like many of Reynolds's places, it's potentially endangered by the machinations of less intelligent but more diabolical interests. Reynolds always has details evocative of socio-political experiments of interest to me.
"They had approached a sizeable bicycle rack and she pulled a woman's model and began to mount it.
""Take one," she said.
[..]
""They're public property and available to anyone whenever needed. There are racks all over town. You pick one, ride it as long as you wish and leave it at the nearest rack when you're through."" - p 17
Remember the white bicycles of the Dutch Provos?
"In the summer of 1965, Dutch designer and political activist Luud Schimmelpennink suggested a simple radical scheme that would eventually change the world. Schimmelpennink had an idea for creating a more sustainable environment by giving away free bicycles for communal use in Amsterdam’s city center. The suggestion was called the “White Bicycle Plan” and was part of a series of “White Plans” devised by the Dutch anarchist group Provo.
"Provo is a Dutch word for “young trouble-maker” and was considered an appropriate name for a group of young anarchists to carry out political “happenings” and stunts that were inspired as much by DADA as by Herbert Marcuse. Provo was formed by artist and anti-smoking campaigner Robert Jasper Grootveld, writer and anarchist Roel van Duijn and activist Rob Stolk in May 1965. Their motivation, they explained, was to fight back against capitalist society that was “poisoning itself with a morbid thirst for money,” where its citizens were “being brought up to worship Having and despise Being.”"
[..]
"However, as soon as these 50 white bicycles were made freely available they were impounded by the police on the grounds the bikes were not “lockable.” Apparently, all bikes in Amsterdam at that time had to be lockable. Undeterred by the police actions, Provo waited until the bikes were returned and they then fitted each bike with a simple combination lock with the number painted on the bike’s frame. Of course, some of the bikes were stolen, but the White Bicycle revolution had begun.
"Provo’s ideas may seem obvious to us today, but in the 1960s, they were considered radical, threatening and dangerous to society. This was the start of a bicycle revolution that has spread across many European countries today, with bikes being readily (and often freely) available for use. In 2010, Glasgow-based art collective NVA launched a new “White Bicycle Plan” donating 50 bikes for use across the city."
- https://dangerousminds.net/comments/t...
I take it for granted that Reynolds knew about this when he wrote this bk. These days, in Pittsburgh &, presumably, elsewhere, there's a more capitalist SPIN on such things.
"A fleet of little electric scooters has invaded the city this summer, and they’re impossible to miss. Bright orange and often left in the most inopportune of places, scooters from the Ford-owned company Spin have spurred a wave of debate from supporters and critics alike.
"On one hand, they’re an accessible and eco-friendly alternative to cars in a city where parking is often a chore. They also provide a viable alternative to a crowded bus or an expensive Uber for residents who don’t drive, or simply don’t own a car. Riders with lower incomes can even apply for discounted rental rates — Spin Scooters usually cost a starting fee of $1 plus an additional 39 cents per minute — through the Spin Access program. In areas of accessibility and transit efficiency, there’s no doubt that Spin is unparalleled."
- https://www.pittsburghmagazine.com/sp...
"there’s no doubt that Spin is unparalleled"? Well, let's say you want to go someplace 3 miles away. Let's say their maximum speed is 15mph. That means it might take 12 minutes to get there. That's $1 + 12 X 39¢ = $5.68, assuming that you experience maximum efficiency - I think we can take it for granted that that won't be the case. A white bicycle wd cost NOTHING to the user & wd take about the same amt of time. Walking wd take me about an hr. $5.68 wd be an extravagance for me - furthermore, it seems to me that they'd be the most fun to use for a casual exploration, maybe for an hr. That wd cost $24.40, definitely an extravagance. I've noticed that most of the Spin riders seem like younger college students w/ presumably disposable income. As usual, the capitalist 'alternative' really isn't that great. Still, I'm glad they're out there - if only as an addition to the variety of possibilities.
The central character is a detective brought from Earth to Lagrange Five, an idyllic small artificial planet, to search for a missing public figure.
"Rex turned abruptly to the chairman and snapped, "What did the police discover?"
""We have no police," Hans Ober said.
""Well, security, or whatever you call it."
"Ober shook his head. "We have no police of any kind connected with the Lagrange Five Project, nor any other kind of appurtenances of the State such as jails, or even courts in the ordinary sense of the word. We're civilized, Mr. Bader. Crime in the ordinary sense is unknoen in Lagrangia."" - p 28
When Reynolds writes about such a society, his deep knowledge of political philosophies & experiments serves him well for describing something plausible - at least plausible to a person such as myself, someone who's spent much of their life thinking about such possibilities. Many of his bks interweave a type of action that wd appeal to readers looking for not much else w/ socio-political imaginings that provide context but are also intended to be thought-provoking.
"Rex said, "That reminds me. How do I pay for something, such as renting a car? Can I get an advance on my salary?"
""You won't need it, she told him. "For all practical purposes, you, along with all Lagrangists, are on an unlimited expense account."
"He almost stopped the bike to stare at her. "Unlimited expense account!" he said. "You mean that I don't have to pay for anything?"
""That's right. Neither does any Lagrangist. Tourists and others, up from Earth-side, are another thing. But they can pay at the hotels for rooms and meals, or renting cars, or whatever, with their ordinary International Credit Cards. It's all kept track of in our account in Switzerland."" - p 38
Of course, in the novel, all of this is explained in much greater detail. I'm just giving a teaser here.
"It was only after he had climbed upon a stool and leaned on the bar that he realized that it wasn't truly wood but some sort of plastic done up in such wise as to resemble it remarkably. The Pub had ten tables and half-a-dozen booths along one wall. On the wall were faded posters going back to World War One days; scenes in London music halls, complete with dancing girls, war propaganda posters, including Huns cutting the hands off little children and nuns, that sort of thing." - p 52
Given that this pub on L5 is supposed to be an authentic reproduction of an actual British pub I assume that that last detail is something that Reynolds had either actually seen in such a place or knew to've been common enuf to be worth using as a detail. Still, it's strange isn't it? Who wd want to be getting drunk in a place w/ pictures of children & nuns getting their hands cut off? That wd definitely ruin the mood for me.
"It had been years since Rex Bader had been in a bar that boasted a live bartender. The class of drinkery he could afford was invariably automated. Swanker restaurants, he knew, often sported live waiters and bartenders but such were not for citizens on Negative Income Tax or Guaranteed Annual Stipend, GAS, as it was sometimes called." - p 53
It interests me that Reynolds isn't writing about a future time, in wch such things as automated bars & GAS might be expected as possibilities, but is, instead, writing about his own time as if it weren't what it was - w/o in any way justifying that in the plot w/ something like, say, a parallel universe element or some such.
Racial issues often play a big part in Reynolds's bks. In this one, a white woman engages in impromptu debate w/ a black man.
"Susie sighed and said, "The Causcasians, too, have made contributions to progress, Mr. Ford."
""Yes, from the military use of gunpowder to the atom bomb. Oh, I'll admit you've made developments in the sciences we originated, and you instituted the industrial revolution. But you never would have gotten underway if we hadn't given you such little items as the wheel. And now, as a result of your military prowess, we of Africa and Asia are second- or third-class citizens. That's why we want off the world."" - p 64
The government, such as it is, consists of a unpd council.
""Then, what do they get out of it?"
""The honor of serving. The honor and respect granted them by their fellow Lagrangists."
""To each according to his needs and from each according to his abilities, eh?"
""Why, I suppose so," Susie said, not recognizing the quotation.
""Syndicalism,"" - p 87
&, yes, there's a villain - someone who definitely wdn't be having such 'idealism'.
"Doctor Johannisberger need never fear unemployment. If all else failed, he could without difficulty have gotten a job portraying a German scientist on Tri-Di shows. He was a stereotype to end all stereotypes. He would have been particularly good as one of Adolf the Aryan's devoted experimenters on subjects pertaining to the final solution to the Jewish problem." - p 103
Reminds me of Klaus Schwab, Founder and Executive Chairman of the World Economic Forum, & architect of the "Great Reset".
""You know, I've been there. When I was a young fellow. But I finally came to this conclusion. It's the old Roman adage. Divide and Conquer. Pit whites against Blacks, youth against the older generations, nation against nation, religion against religion, one sex against the other. As long as they're so occupied, they don't see the sources of their real troubles. The last case is as good as any. As long as they were supposedly fighting each other, the two sexes didn't see who was really fucking them."
"Who is?" Whip said sourly, unaccepting.
""The socioeconomic system.["]" - pp 112-113
Yeppur.
& there's an ongoing mystery character. I had my educated guess as to who it was from more or less the get-go but there's no sense in giving that away here, eh?!
"When the two men had gone, Susie sank back into her chair and let air out of her lungs.
"Another entered the room from a different door. The newcomer said, "Well, things are coming to a head, aren't they?"
""It looks that way," Susie said, tiredness in her voice, "I think that Rex, in particular, is beginning to smell a rat."" - pp 124-125
Lagrange Five really is a paradise by my standards. Here's further 'proof':
"The lack of advertising signs came to him again. And, now that he thought about it, he realized that there had been no advertising whatsoever in New Frisco as well. Not even signs before restaurants or theatres. But it would seem that the Lagrangists took it to the extreme, made a real principle of it. No advertising period. He assumed that it applied to their Tri-D and radio programs as well. Come to think of it, there would be no need for advertising if you produced only the best quality of everything and everything amounted to being free." - p 138
We get a little back-story on Rex, the PI:
"["]When I was younger, I used to like to read stories about the old private eyes, Philip Marlowe, Sam Spade, even Mike Hammer, and it occured to me that here was a profession I might be able to get into. I studied up on everything that seemed to apply and, sure enough, got my private investigator's license.["]" - p 142
As an autodidact, I have an ongoing problem w/ the fraudelnce problems connected w/ PHDs. I like to say that I "Give it the old anti-college try". Reynolds, very much 'a man of the world', expresses similar thoughts thru his characters:
"Rex took a pull at his drink and said, "The fact that a man's got a phenomenal Ability Quotient, a doctor's degree or so, and a stupendous I.Q. doesn't mean that he has integrity. Some of them seem to think that their strength is the strength of ten because their hearts are pure. And why are their hearts pure? Because they've spent several thousand hours in classrooms, lecture halls, and laboratories. It doesn't prove out. Some of the most vicious people in history have had high I.Q.s and probably Ability Quotients had they been able to test them in those days. Look at Napoleon. Look at Hitler, Goering, Schacht, and Speer.["]" - p 153
Alas, Rex isn't really a very good detective. He has opportunities to learn more about what's going on & seems to miss his chances:
"As he turned, someone jostled him.
""Sorry," the other apologized and grabbed Rex to keep him from stumbling.
""That's all right," Rex said. "I wasn't looking very carefully, myself."" - p 176
& , then, here's a little tidbit of interest:
"["]You know, until Mao's communists took over, a sizeable percentage of China's land was devoted to graveyards, going back for centuries, even millennia. The communists plowed them under."" - p 207
If there were a revolution in the US maybe the golf courses wd go.
Gotta love the author's bio:
For the full review go here: https://www.goodreads.com/story/show/...
March 16, 2022
This book is the kind of terrible that is deeply instructive in how not to write. For that and only that, I'm grateful. Syntax features nail on chalkboard redundancies such as “he was stocky, was almost fat, had too much belly,” “Rex shook his head negatively,” “he turned to look at her with his eyes.” The SF concept is somewhat automated eugenics space syndicalism. The book never tires of mentioning the 130 IQ requirement for entry, and the most utopic feature of living in a space station is as a future tech gated community. It’s post police but by the logic of “I’d simply build a society where everyone’s nice.” So when a crime does occur they hire a private eye who pointedly doesn’t meet their IQ quota and spends most of the book asking how they get a certain crop to the station (they grow it). “But what about THIS crop?” (They also grow it). “But surely you wouldn’t be able to produce THIS champagne?” (Yes). The author’s only redemptive quality is that his jaw dropping racism is borne not of hatred but sheer laziness. Why bother writing another character when a stereotype can fill that spot just as easy? The story ends with Lagrange declaring independence from Earth, but due to the demographics of the REUNITED Nations (See? It's the future) officials, this amounts to deporting every Muslim character. I read this book because it was on a list of recommendations from China Miéville of SF books every socialist should read. I'm a big fan of Miéville and there are some great books on that list too! I cannot fathom why he would do this to me.
June 9, 2023
It's got a cool name, an intriguing premise, and stunning cover art. But it quickly devolves into (support of) eugenics and page after page of racism that is just so thick it's hard to see anything else. It's just so horribly racist. And there are seeds of interesting plots but they never really develop into anything other than "what if this existed? wouldn't it be cool?". I really wanted to like this but even the main character is just... too much. And all the female (yes, the ONE female character) ever does is cook and get down with the private eye. It's just bad. Two stars because there was some interesting worldbuilding that I think in the right author's hands could have really been something. And I love when future worlds have their own slang. Wizard.
December 24, 2023
Ultimately I did very much enjoy this book and thought its portrayal of syndicalism being applied in the real world and the issues that would then arise due to human nature was well done, it admittedly feels very dated by the "cis-white-dude-writer-from-the-70s"isms such as how Whip Ford is written and (without spoiling things) the way the villain is written. Would be very interested in seeing a modern writer write a story about the same themes and premise of this novel because the political theory behind this story is definitely worth expounding on and it kept my interest through the whole thing
June 9, 2013
In un lontano futuro la Terra è un pianeta destinato a morire, sconvolto dalle guerre e dall'inquinamento, solamente le enormi stazioni orbitanti di Lagrange offrono ai pochi coloni terrestri che le abitano una vita serena e prospera, in un mondo artificiale molto simile ad un vero e proprio paradiso. Solo pochi eletti hanno il privilegio di vivere a Lagrange. Mentre una strana epidemia si diffonde tra gli abitanti della colonia spaziale, Rex Bader, uno squattrinato investigatore privato, viene incaricato di indagare sulla misteriosa scomparsa di un importante scienziato. Rapimento o cospirazione? Per Rex non sarà facile arrivare alla soluzione. "La sindrome della furia" è un romanzo che regala al lettore divertimento e tensione. L'autore Mack Reynolds ha creato un mondo fantascientifico molto realistico che fa da sfondo alle avventure di un detective vecchio stampo. Il contrasto, assai originale, è senza dubbio riuscito.
November 24, 2015
This was my first Mack Reynolds read. I fell in love with his dystopian utopia's and his brilliantly modest main character, that is constantly proving that too much emphasis on IQ doesn't necessarily make you a good critical thinker or "smart".
July 31, 2015
Entertaining. Jejune social theory. Everybody uses the word wizard as a universal epithet--annoying.
August 10, 2015
More like 1,5
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