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The Oppenheimer Alternative
While J. Robert Oppenheimer and his Manhattan Project team struggle to develop the A-bomb, Edward Teller wants something even more a weapon based on nuclear fusion - the mechanism that powers the sun. But Teller’s research leads to a terrifying by the year 2030, the sun will eject its outermost layer, destroying the entire inner solar system — including Earth.
After the war ends, Oppenheimer’s physicists combine forces with Albert Einstein, computing pioneer John von Neumann, and rocket designer Wernher von Braun - the greatest scientific geniuses from the last century racing against time to save our future.
Meticulously researched and replete with real-life characters and events The Oppenheimer Alternative is a breathtaking adventure through both real and alternate history.
384 pages, Kindle Edition
First published June 2, 2020
322 people are currently reading
1206 people want to read
About the author
Robert J. Sawyer
227 books2,485 followersRobert J. Sawyer is one of Canada's best known and most successful science fiction writers. He is the only Canadian (and one of only 7 writers in the world) to have won all three of the top international awards for science fiction: the 1995 Nebula Award for The Terminal Experiment, the 2003 Hugo Award for Hominids, and the 2006 John W. Campbell Memorial Award for Mindscan.
Robert Sawyer grew up in Toronto, the son of two university professors. He credits two of his favourite shows from the late 1960s and early 1970s, Search and Star Trek, with teaching him some of the fundamentals of the science-fiction craft. Sawyer was obsessed with outer space from a young age, and he vividly remembers watching the televised Apollo missions. He claims to have watched the 1968 classic film 2001: A Space Odyssey 25 times. He began writing science fiction in a high school club, which he co-founded, NASFA (Northview Academy Association of Science Fiction Addicts). Sawyer graduated in 1982 from the Radio and Television Arts Program at Ryerson University, where he later worked as an instructor.
Sawyer's first published book, Golden Fleece (1989), is an adaptation of short stories that had previously appeared in the science-fiction magazine Amazing Stories. This book won the Aurora Award for the best Canadian science-fiction novel in English. In the early 1990s Sawyer went on to publish his inventive Quintaglio Ascension trilogy, about a world of intelligent dinosaurs. His 1995 award winning The Terminal Experiment confirmed his place as a major international science-fiction writer.
A prolific writer, Sawyer has published more than 10 novels, plus two trilogies. Reviewers praise Sawyer for his concise prose, which has been compared to that of the science-fiction master Isaac Asimov. Like many science fiction-writers, Sawyer welcomes the opportunities his chosen genre provides for exploring ideas. The first book of his Neanderthal Parallax trilogy, Hominids (2002), is set in a near-future society, in which a quantum computing experiment brings a Neanderthal scientist from a parallel Earth to ours. His 2006 Mindscan explores the possibility of transferring human consciousness into a mechanical body, and the ensuing ethical, legal, and societal ramifications.
A passionate advocate for science fiction, Sawyer teaches creative writing and appears frequently in the media to discuss his genre. He prefers the label "philosophical fiction," and in no way sees himself as a predictor of the future. His mission statement for his writing is "To combine the intimately human with the grandly cosmic."
http://us.macmillan.com/author/robert...
Robert Sawyer grew up in Toronto, the son of two university professors. He credits two of his favourite shows from the late 1960s and early 1970s, Search and Star Trek, with teaching him some of the fundamentals of the science-fiction craft. Sawyer was obsessed with outer space from a young age, and he vividly remembers watching the televised Apollo missions. He claims to have watched the 1968 classic film 2001: A Space Odyssey 25 times. He began writing science fiction in a high school club, which he co-founded, NASFA (Northview Academy Association of Science Fiction Addicts). Sawyer graduated in 1982 from the Radio and Television Arts Program at Ryerson University, where he later worked as an instructor.
Sawyer's first published book, Golden Fleece (1989), is an adaptation of short stories that had previously appeared in the science-fiction magazine Amazing Stories. This book won the Aurora Award for the best Canadian science-fiction novel in English. In the early 1990s Sawyer went on to publish his inventive Quintaglio Ascension trilogy, about a world of intelligent dinosaurs. His 1995 award winning The Terminal Experiment confirmed his place as a major international science-fiction writer.
A prolific writer, Sawyer has published more than 10 novels, plus two trilogies. Reviewers praise Sawyer for his concise prose, which has been compared to that of the science-fiction master Isaac Asimov. Like many science fiction-writers, Sawyer welcomes the opportunities his chosen genre provides for exploring ideas. The first book of his Neanderthal Parallax trilogy, Hominids (2002), is set in a near-future society, in which a quantum computing experiment brings a Neanderthal scientist from a parallel Earth to ours. His 2006 Mindscan explores the possibility of transferring human consciousness into a mechanical body, and the ensuing ethical, legal, and societal ramifications.
A passionate advocate for science fiction, Sawyer teaches creative writing and appears frequently in the media to discuss his genre. He prefers the label "philosophical fiction," and in no way sees himself as a predictor of the future. His mission statement for his writing is "To combine the intimately human with the grandly cosmic."
http://us.macmillan.com/author/robert...
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 233 reviews
December 16, 2020
Thanks to NetGalley and the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America for sending me an ARC of The Oppenheimer Alternative in exchange for an honest review.
Years ago, I read Mr. Sawyer’s Flashforward, which I really enjoyed and which I thought struck the correct balance of sci-fi, personal narrative, and plot. Also, I’ve also read several books about and set around the Manhattan Project, such as The Making of the Atomic Bomb and Los Alamos. So when I saw this book on NetGalley, I was happy to request and review it.
Unfortunately, this book didn’t work for me. The first third or so sets out backstory on the main players of the Manhattan Project, but it lacks much drama because it focuses largely on the personalities without dwelling much on the science of it. Just as WWII is ending, we hit the alternative history part as the scientists learn that there’s an extinction-level event set to happen to the earth about 100 years in the future. While there is some discussion of the science behind the problem and possible solutions, much of the remainder of the book was about score-settling between the scientists, and the sad treatment of Dr. Oppenheimer in the 1950s. And the resolution of the crisis is shockingly far-fetched for a book rooted in a historical scientific event.
It’s not a bad book by any means. It’s well-written, and the pacing is solid. Though there are a lot of characters, they are distinct and well-drawn. In the end, I thought there was way too much personal narrative, and not enough sci-fi or plot. 2.5 stars rounded up to 3.
Years ago, I read Mr. Sawyer’s Flashforward, which I really enjoyed and which I thought struck the correct balance of sci-fi, personal narrative, and plot. Also, I’ve also read several books about and set around the Manhattan Project, such as The Making of the Atomic Bomb and Los Alamos. So when I saw this book on NetGalley, I was happy to request and review it.
Unfortunately, this book didn’t work for me. The first third or so sets out backstory on the main players of the Manhattan Project, but it lacks much drama because it focuses largely on the personalities without dwelling much on the science of it. Just as WWII is ending, we hit the alternative history part as the scientists learn that there’s an extinction-level event set to happen to the earth about 100 years in the future. While there is some discussion of the science behind the problem and possible solutions, much of the remainder of the book was about score-settling between the scientists, and the sad treatment of Dr. Oppenheimer in the 1950s. And the resolution of the crisis is shockingly far-fetched for a book rooted in a historical scientific event.
It’s not a bad book by any means. It’s well-written, and the pacing is solid. Though there are a lot of characters, they are distinct and well-drawn. In the end, I thought there was way too much personal narrative, and not enough sci-fi or plot. 2.5 stars rounded up to 3.
August 5, 2022
I have read only one other book similar to this, in which biographical facts are weaved with fiction, and that is KSR's Galileo's Dream. It's a hard task, even more so here, because the story is constructed around actual dialogues and statements.
As the author says, "Every character in this novel was a real person and, with the exception of Peter Oppenheimer, is now deceased. The Manhattan Project and Project Orion both really existed as described here, and the Institute for Advanced Study still exists. The chapter-head quotes are all real, and, thanks to the published recollections of the participants, official transcripts, illicit recording, and so on, some of this novel's dialog is real, too."
RJS calls the book a "secret history" rather than an "alternate history", because "although none of the fictional scenes are contradicted by the historical record", the story itself is fictional, even if set in a real historical context.
Every book's scene is thoroughly documented, every character painstakingly outlined. There are a lot, and I mean a lot, of attributes and characteristics related to every character, detailed descriptions of them at almost every stage in their lifetime; if biographical facts are not your thing, maybe you should skip this book.
I do have two complaints, though: one is that the exposition of the behind-the-curtain Manhattan Project is too long, in the detriment of the premise, the actual fictional part outlined in the blurb, which gets developed very late in the story. However it was compensated by the solution found in the ending, which was a total awe moment. The second is that the physics and aplication around the grounbreaking discovery in the end is too little explored. I would have liked much more to come out of it, given its huge potential.
But overall, it was a rewarding reading, and I very much enjoyed also the insight into the lives of these physics giants.
A comprehensive disection of what is real and what is not can be found at SF writer: https://sfwriter.com/ffoa.htm
I recommend to read it after the book.
As the author says, "Every character in this novel was a real person and, with the exception of Peter Oppenheimer, is now deceased. The Manhattan Project and Project Orion both really existed as described here, and the Institute for Advanced Study still exists. The chapter-head quotes are all real, and, thanks to the published recollections of the participants, official transcripts, illicit recording, and so on, some of this novel's dialog is real, too."
RJS calls the book a "secret history" rather than an "alternate history", because "although none of the fictional scenes are contradicted by the historical record", the story itself is fictional, even if set in a real historical context.
Every book's scene is thoroughly documented, every character painstakingly outlined. There are a lot, and I mean a lot, of attributes and characteristics related to every character, detailed descriptions of them at almost every stage in their lifetime; if biographical facts are not your thing, maybe you should skip this book.
I do have two complaints, though: one is that the exposition of the behind-the-curtain Manhattan Project is too long, in the detriment of the premise, the actual fictional part outlined in the blurb, which gets developed very late in the story. However it was compensated by the solution found in the ending, which was a total awe moment. The second is that the physics and aplication around the grounbreaking discovery in the end is too little explored. I would have liked much more to come out of it, given its huge potential.
But overall, it was a rewarding reading, and I very much enjoyed also the insight into the lives of these physics giants.
A comprehensive disection of what is real and what is not can be found at SF writer: https://sfwriter.com/ffoa.htm
I recommend to read it after the book.
October 29, 2024
An outstanding science fiction story using real-life characters and events ( Oppenheimer and the other scientists involved with the Manhattan Project). Having seen the film "Oppenheimer" before reading this book, I thought that, even though the book is fiction, Sawyer gave me an even greater understanding of the characters who are in the film, such as "Oppie," Teller, General Groves, Lewis Strauss, and others. I thought Kitty, Oppie's wife, came off much better in the book than in the movie ( in fact, she was treated shamefully in the film, which says something about director Christopher Nolan)! Sawyer certainly did his research!
I give it 5 stars because it is a great science fiction story and Robert J. Sawyer has shown once again that he's one of the best there is in the SFF field.
I give it 5 stars because it is a great science fiction story and Robert J. Sawyer has shown once again that he's one of the best there is in the SFF field.
July 30, 2020
This was a perfect fit to bridge my personal interests in physics wunderkinds and in save-the-world scenarios in science fiction. Here we first linger with the wizards of the age who during WW2 work at Los Alamos on inventing nuclear weapons under a terrible moral context. Oppenheimer leads and inspires the best and the brightest in physics and engineering to beat Hitler to the first fission bomb, only to have it used on Japanese civilians under the shady justification of saving more lives in the long run. To this day, many argue that a demonstration would have sufficed and that the second bombing (of Nagasaki) was brutal overkill (in several senses).
Soon after the war, as the scientists try to recover their souls or fight over whether to support pursuit of fusion bombs, Sawyer brings us to a big what-if. Namely, what if they got a chance to work together again on something important, and this time less muddy on doing good for humanity. How about an impending apocalypse to put their thinking caps back on and brew up their problem solving juices? The residents at Los Alamos who were experts in solar physics (as relevant to work on fusion) happen to make some spectral analyses at different times and discover the sun will undergo a cataclysm that will slag Earth and the inner planets around 90 years hence (around 2028). Boy howdy, talk about Mission Impossible!
The nexus at Los Alamos was so critical to the history of the world and to the weighing of humanity of humans that it persistently sparks my interest in stories that delve into the secret and productive ecology there. Such as the great movie “Fat Man and Little Boy”, with Paul Newman playing General Groves, the military disciplinarian who was the Army commander of the whole project (I forget who played Oppie). As a fan of the eccentric and brilliant physicist Feynmann , I also appreciated amusing tales from his memoirs and two biographies about his time there (especially his pranks like secret safecracking). I also loved two spy thrillers set there, Martin Cruz Smith’s “Stallion Gate” and Joseph Kanon’s “Los Alamos”, which brought out the reasonableness of sympathies for our Soviet allies in the war to gain access to the secret designs.
Thus, I was well primed to tune into Sawyer’s insightful portrayal of Oppenheimer as a people manager and a formative influence on key scientists such as Leo Szilard, Hans Bethe, and Eduard Teller. Oppenheimer is famous for a mystical pronouncement at the desert bomb test site called Trinity, quoting the Bhagavad Gita: “Now I am become Death, the destroyer of worlds.” Until revisiting this here, I hadn’t realized this was part of the Hindu god Vishnu’s efforts of persuasion of the general and prince to do his duty and proceed with a critical battle despite his doubts about the virtues of war. In fact, Oppy does his perceived duty and officially supports the first Japanese bombing while Szilard and Teller are clear on their misgivings. Getting them back together despite extreme divergence on positions on the Cold War and the nuclear arms race is only possible with an even bigger compelling threat.
Imagine Oppy harnessing the pool of geniuses from Los Alamos, and even picks from those who served Germany in the war, to work full-stop on far-fetched ideas of messing with solar processes, building space habitats, and Mars colonization. And all in secrecy. Instead of the remote New Mexico site, what a great choice for Sawyer to select Princeton’s Institute for Advanced Studies as a hub-site for allowing them to hide in plain sight for their desperate efforts. It was especially thrilling to me for a turning point to be spawned by Feynmann breaking into the sacrosanct walks between Einstein and Gödel: (featured in the title essay for Holt’s marvelous collection, When Einstein Walked with Gödel) to fruitfully engage them on some of his wild theoretical ideas relevant to a radical solution to avert Armageddon.
Although I don’t generally love alternative histories to read, they do render some special pleasures in bringing together historical figures in unexpected configurations and contexts. In my view, Sawyer’s reshaping of the special teamwork at Los Alamos to the challenges to escaping apocalypse from an astronomical threat was brilliantly conceived and well executed in that regard.
This book was provided by the publisher for review through the Netgalley program.
Soon after the war, as the scientists try to recover their souls or fight over whether to support pursuit of fusion bombs, Sawyer brings us to a big what-if. Namely, what if they got a chance to work together again on something important, and this time less muddy on doing good for humanity. How about an impending apocalypse to put their thinking caps back on and brew up their problem solving juices? The residents at Los Alamos who were experts in solar physics (as relevant to work on fusion) happen to make some spectral analyses at different times and discover the sun will undergo a cataclysm that will slag Earth and the inner planets around 90 years hence (around 2028). Boy howdy, talk about Mission Impossible!
The nexus at Los Alamos was so critical to the history of the world and to the weighing of humanity of humans that it persistently sparks my interest in stories that delve into the secret and productive ecology there. Such as the great movie “Fat Man and Little Boy”, with Paul Newman playing General Groves, the military disciplinarian who was the Army commander of the whole project (I forget who played Oppie). As a fan of the eccentric and brilliant physicist Feynmann , I also appreciated amusing tales from his memoirs and two biographies about his time there (especially his pranks like secret safecracking). I also loved two spy thrillers set there, Martin Cruz Smith’s “Stallion Gate” and Joseph Kanon’s “Los Alamos”, which brought out the reasonableness of sympathies for our Soviet allies in the war to gain access to the secret designs.
Thus, I was well primed to tune into Sawyer’s insightful portrayal of Oppenheimer as a people manager and a formative influence on key scientists such as Leo Szilard, Hans Bethe, and Eduard Teller. Oppenheimer is famous for a mystical pronouncement at the desert bomb test site called Trinity, quoting the Bhagavad Gita: “Now I am become Death, the destroyer of worlds.” Until revisiting this here, I hadn’t realized this was part of the Hindu god Vishnu’s efforts of persuasion of the general and prince to do his duty and proceed with a critical battle despite his doubts about the virtues of war. In fact, Oppy does his perceived duty and officially supports the first Japanese bombing while Szilard and Teller are clear on their misgivings. Getting them back together despite extreme divergence on positions on the Cold War and the nuclear arms race is only possible with an even bigger compelling threat.
Imagine Oppy harnessing the pool of geniuses from Los Alamos, and even picks from those who served Germany in the war, to work full-stop on far-fetched ideas of messing with solar processes, building space habitats, and Mars colonization. And all in secrecy. Instead of the remote New Mexico site, what a great choice for Sawyer to select Princeton’s Institute for Advanced Studies as a hub-site for allowing them to hide in plain sight for their desperate efforts. It was especially thrilling to me for a turning point to be spawned by Feynmann breaking into the sacrosanct walks between Einstein and Gödel: (featured in the title essay for Holt’s marvelous collection, When Einstein Walked with Gödel) to fruitfully engage them on some of his wild theoretical ideas relevant to a radical solution to avert Armageddon.
Although I don’t generally love alternative histories to read, they do render some special pleasures in bringing together historical figures in unexpected configurations and contexts. In my view, Sawyer’s reshaping of the special teamwork at Los Alamos to the challenges to escaping apocalypse from an astronomical threat was brilliantly conceived and well executed in that regard.
This book was provided by the publisher for review through the Netgalley program.
August 31, 2020
I immensely enjoyed this alternate history book about Oppenheimer and the men around him who created the atom bomb. As far as I could see (I'm not that experienced in the history of this era) Sawyer kept to the facts for most of the time and only added the danger of a reaction in the sun that would lead to the end of the inner planets including Earth.
Character ambivalence and the ever lingering question if everything that could be done should be done are drawn up successfully in this novel. The people I only knew by name so far (and some I hadn't even heard of until reading this book) became vivid and very human under Sawyer's 'pen'.
I devoured the book nearly in one sitting, even though most of the story is known and the ending needs a bit of suspension of disbelief. Yet the displaying of the working and working together of such great minds was so convincingly done that I was thrilled.
The approach reminds of Kowal's alternate history book "Calculating Stars". Readers who enjoyed that one should try The Oppenheimer Alternative.
Character ambivalence and the ever lingering question if everything that could be done should be done are drawn up successfully in this novel. The people I only knew by name so far (and some I hadn't even heard of until reading this book) became vivid and very human under Sawyer's 'pen'.
I devoured the book nearly in one sitting, even though most of the story is known and the ending needs a bit of suspension of disbelief. Yet the displaying of the working and working together of such great minds was so convincingly done that I was thrilled.
The approach reminds of Kowal's alternate history book "Calculating Stars". Readers who enjoyed that one should try The Oppenheimer Alternative.
January 27, 2021
This is an alt-history SF, at least on the surface. In reality, it can be one of a harbingers of a new sub-genre, a fictionalized biography/real life events with just a sprinkle of SF. I read is as a Buddy read for January 2021 at SFF Hot from Printers: New Releases group.
This is the story of the scientific manager of Manhattan project Robert Oppenheimer as well as other scientists, both in the project (like Hans Bethe, Edward Teller and Enrico Fermi) and outside it, from Albert Einstein to German rocketman Wernher von Braun to logician Kurt Gödel. The book starts with describing quite uneven personal life of Oppenheimer, who was in love with Freudian psychoanalyst Jean Tatlock and twice was on the verge of marrying her, but twice she backed from it; his actual wife, Katherine "Kitty" Vissering Oppenheimer. Both women in addition were members of the Communist Party of America.
Almost half of the book has passed before readers get a first glimpse of a SF element, which is stated in the book’s blurb and hardly a spoiler: the sun’s photosphere is to expand for 1.2 AU (Earth is at 1 AU) and this brief expansion will burn our atmosphere and boil oceans, making our planet just another rock. Therefore, a group of scientists from the project, as well as others start research on how to save the mankind.
A reader could have expected that the story will suddenly shift gears, but because the research is secret (even from the government) in order to prevent panic, this story continues to use heavily our timeline, including Oppenheimer security hearing of 1954.
So, while having hard SF elements, this is more a historic fiction based on real people and events in their real lives. I like history, I’ve read The Making of the Atomic Bomb and other books about the project, so it was a nice book for me, but people, who are not history fans may find it boring.
This is the story of the scientific manager of Manhattan project Robert Oppenheimer as well as other scientists, both in the project (like Hans Bethe, Edward Teller and Enrico Fermi) and outside it, from Albert Einstein to German rocketman Wernher von Braun to logician Kurt Gödel. The book starts with describing quite uneven personal life of Oppenheimer, who was in love with Freudian psychoanalyst Jean Tatlock and twice was on the verge of marrying her, but twice she backed from it; his actual wife, Katherine "Kitty" Vissering Oppenheimer. Both women in addition were members of the Communist Party of America.
Almost half of the book has passed before readers get a first glimpse of a SF element, which is stated in the book’s blurb and hardly a spoiler: the sun’s photosphere is to expand for 1.2 AU (Earth is at 1 AU) and this brief expansion will burn our atmosphere and boil oceans, making our planet just another rock. Therefore, a group of scientists from the project, as well as others start research on how to save the mankind.
A reader could have expected that the story will suddenly shift gears, but because the research is secret (even from the government) in order to prevent panic, this story continues to use heavily our timeline, including Oppenheimer security hearing of 1954.
So, while having hard SF elements, this is more a historic fiction based on real people and events in their real lives. I like history, I’ve read The Making of the Atomic Bomb and other books about the project, so it was a nice book for me, but people, who are not history fans may find it boring.
September 26, 2024
Second read – 22 January 2024 - ****. My second read was for a book club discussion, so it hasn’t been very long since my advance reader review below. Since then, the book has been nominated, but did not win the Canadian Aurora Award. Now reading it, it seems to me to be more of a secret history than an alternate history – where historical events are all as we know them, but with an additional fictional level of activity taking place behind the scenes – until the very end, when it goes full science fantasy.
First read – 22 April 2020 - ****. “What if?” is the most potent concept in all speculative fiction. Alternate history, while not exactly science fiction, does ask the question too. What if at some pivotal Point of Departure (POD), history diverged? What if during the US’s secret 1940s Manhattan Project, observations of the Sun’s nuclear fusion revealed an unexpected anomaly? That is Canadian science fiction writer Robert J. Sawyer’ POD in his new alternate history novel, The Oppenheimer Alternative. In it, he focuses on the lives and personalities of key real-world scientists of the time, especially J. Robert “Oppie” Oppenheimer. The POD comes about a quarter of the way into the novel, and after that the divergence is almost entirely among members of the research team and their families. Remember, these are mostly THEORETICAL physicists. I was waiting for major historical deviation, but many 1950s and 1960s events seemed to continue at the expected dates. Only near the end, an additional theoretical discovery makes for a heady and unexpected turn of events.
Overall, the chain of alternative events struck me as less plausible than in Gregory Benford’s 2017 The Berlin Project, also an alternate history of the Manhattan Project. In that story, the POD is that the initial choice for separating U235 is high-speed centrifuge, rather than gaseous diffusion, accelerating the creation of the world’s first fission bomb by about one year. Sawyer even acknowledges that critical issue, although it does not play into his own alteration of history. Benford has the credibility of having had his father-in-law, Karl Cohen, actually be a scientist involved with the project.
I learned all kinds of things about the person of Oppenheimer, such as his politics, his early love interest Jean, his wife Kitty, and his education at the Ethical Culture School in NY - with which I am familiar. A few of the things portrayed about his life struck me as extremely private, so I’m not sure if they are all legitimate, but it made things more intriguing. What I didn’t learn much about was nuclear physics as it is addressed somewhat simplistically. So, a good story, but disappointing to my hard-sf sensibilities.
I received this advance reader copy from SFWRITER.COM (Canada) through netgalley, for purposes of reading and publishing a review on my blog and other social media. It is due to be published June 2, 2020.
First read – 22 April 2020 - ****. “What if?” is the most potent concept in all speculative fiction. Alternate history, while not exactly science fiction, does ask the question too. What if at some pivotal Point of Departure (POD), history diverged? What if during the US’s secret 1940s Manhattan Project, observations of the Sun’s nuclear fusion revealed an unexpected anomaly? That is Canadian science fiction writer Robert J. Sawyer’ POD in his new alternate history novel, The Oppenheimer Alternative. In it, he focuses on the lives and personalities of key real-world scientists of the time, especially J. Robert “Oppie” Oppenheimer. The POD comes about a quarter of the way into the novel, and after that the divergence is almost entirely among members of the research team and their families. Remember, these are mostly THEORETICAL physicists. I was waiting for major historical deviation, but many 1950s and 1960s events seemed to continue at the expected dates. Only near the end, an additional theoretical discovery makes for a heady and unexpected turn of events.
Overall, the chain of alternative events struck me as less plausible than in Gregory Benford’s 2017 The Berlin Project, also an alternate history of the Manhattan Project. In that story, the POD is that the initial choice for separating U235 is high-speed centrifuge, rather than gaseous diffusion, accelerating the creation of the world’s first fission bomb by about one year. Sawyer even acknowledges that critical issue, although it does not play into his own alteration of history. Benford has the credibility of having had his father-in-law, Karl Cohen, actually be a scientist involved with the project.
I learned all kinds of things about the person of Oppenheimer, such as his politics, his early love interest Jean, his wife Kitty, and his education at the Ethical Culture School in NY - with which I am familiar. A few of the things portrayed about his life struck me as extremely private, so I’m not sure if they are all legitimate, but it made things more intriguing. What I didn’t learn much about was nuclear physics as it is addressed somewhat simplistically. So, a good story, but disappointing to my hard-sf sensibilities.
I received this advance reader copy from SFWRITER.COM (Canada) through netgalley, for purposes of reading and publishing a review on my blog and other social media. It is due to be published June 2, 2020.
July 6, 2020
Weak story
I'm modestly familiar with the history around Oppenheimer-his role in the Manhattan Project, his downfall in the 50's. This story leans heavily on that history. In fact, the bones of this book follow that history slavishly. My problem with the book is that it's ultimately a thin veneer in that history. The story never breaks free from it, and ultimately concludes with a deus ex machina that wraps up the plot in an improbably short amount of time. I've liked other Sawyer books, but this one disappoints.
I'm modestly familiar with the history around Oppenheimer-his role in the Manhattan Project, his downfall in the 50's. This story leans heavily on that history. In fact, the bones of this book follow that history slavishly. My problem with the book is that it's ultimately a thin veneer in that history. The story never breaks free from it, and ultimately concludes with a deus ex machina that wraps up the plot in an improbably short amount of time. I've liked other Sawyer books, but this one disappoints.
Want to read
January 28, 2021https://www.tor.com/2021/01/27/5-grea...
Sylvain Neuvel:
"All life on Earth is a few decades away from being scorched into oblivion (of course it is) and the world’s greatest minds band together to stop it. You know many of them. There’s the titular J. Robert Oppenheimer, obviously, but also Albert Enstein, Leo Szilard, Niels Bohr, Edward Teller, Wernher von Braun, Richard Feynman, Arthur Compton, Enrico Fermi, etc., etc. Every single character in this book is a real person. That’s right, all of them. Even some of the dialogue is real. This is one of the most ambitious books I’ve come across. I can’t imagine the amount of research that went into giving each character a believable voice and personality (actually, I can, the bibliography runs 30 pages on my phone), but this is Robert J. Sawyer so maybe I shouldn’t be surprised. In some ways, it reminded me of the play Copenhagen by Michael Frayn, with more thrills, cool rockets and a doomsday scenario to boot."
April 19, 2020
The World's Greatest Minds - Can They Save Humanity?
This was another brilliant, thought-provoking novel from Robert J. Sawyer, the Canadian dean of SF and modern master of scientific and philosophical science fiction. Roughly the first 30% of "The Oppenheimer Alternative" brings to life, with historical accuracy, the World War II Manhattan project. (An incredible amount of research went into this.) And then, after the two bombings in Japan (with clashing opinions over this), the physicists from the project discover something startling - and here I'll quote from the Amazon description: "...by the year 2030, the sun will eject its outermost layer, destroying the entire inner solar system - including Earth." So, what should this [motley?] group of geniuses to do? The race is on to find a way to save humanity. Stop the ejection? Shield the Earth? Colonize Mars or some other planet or moon? Or some other solution? (There's even a group whose purpose is basically to come up with wacky ideas.)
And so, right on the heels of the Manhattan Project, they have a new quest - saving humanity. The novel brings together the greatest physicists and other scientists of the 20th century, names that many will recognize - J. Robert Oppenheimer, the primary character, as well as Einstein, Bethe, Bohr, Dyson, Fermi, Feynman, Gödel, Rabi, Szilard, Teller, von Braun, von Neumann, and others, as well as various US Presidents (Truman and Johnson in particular), and General Leslie Groves. It's a page-turning adventure, including almost soap opera and historically accurate internal battles - Oppenheimer vs. Teller and the Atomic Energy Commission, Szilard vs. Groves (interrupted by a furious Einstein), and others, along with brilliant collaborations between the scientists - the Feynman/Gödel collaboration was especially memorable, as were the various shenanigans that take place, such as Feynman outsmarting and making a mockery of military security. This book will be of great interest to anyone with any interest in science, history, alternative history, the Manhattan Project, and hard SF in general.
This was another brilliant, thought-provoking novel from Robert J. Sawyer, the Canadian dean of SF and modern master of scientific and philosophical science fiction. Roughly the first 30% of "The Oppenheimer Alternative" brings to life, with historical accuracy, the World War II Manhattan project. (An incredible amount of research went into this.) And then, after the two bombings in Japan (with clashing opinions over this), the physicists from the project discover something startling - and here I'll quote from the Amazon description: "...by the year 2030, the sun will eject its outermost layer, destroying the entire inner solar system - including Earth." So, what should this [motley?] group of geniuses to do? The race is on to find a way to save humanity. Stop the ejection? Shield the Earth? Colonize Mars or some other planet or moon? Or some other solution? (There's even a group whose purpose is basically to come up with wacky ideas.)
And so, right on the heels of the Manhattan Project, they have a new quest - saving humanity. The novel brings together the greatest physicists and other scientists of the 20th century, names that many will recognize - J. Robert Oppenheimer, the primary character, as well as Einstein, Bethe, Bohr, Dyson, Fermi, Feynman, Gödel, Rabi, Szilard, Teller, von Braun, von Neumann, and others, as well as various US Presidents (Truman and Johnson in particular), and General Leslie Groves. It's a page-turning adventure, including almost soap opera and historically accurate internal battles - Oppenheimer vs. Teller and the Atomic Energy Commission, Szilard vs. Groves (interrupted by a furious Einstein), and others, along with brilliant collaborations between the scientists - the Feynman/Gödel collaboration was especially memorable, as were the various shenanigans that take place, such as Feynman outsmarting and making a mockery of military security. This book will be of great interest to anyone with any interest in science, history, alternative history, the Manhattan Project, and hard SF in general.
February 21, 2021
I'm going to lead off this review with a prediction, and it goes like this: Robert J. Sawyer has won just about every major award in the science fiction field there is to win. He's won the Nebula for Best Novel, for THE TERMINAL EXPERIMENT, the Hugo Award for best novel for Hominids, the John W. Campbell Memorial Award for Best Science Fiction Novel for MINDSCAN, *9* Prix Aurora Awards (not counting the Lifetime Achievement Prix Aurora), 3 Seiun Awards, and a handful of others. What I don't see on the list that I'm looking at right now is the Sidewise Award for Alternate History. I believe that Sawyer's latest novel, THE OPPENHEIMER ALTERNATIVE,
must be a contender for that award (I would say it should be the winner, but since I don't, as a rule, read alternate histories I don't think I know enough about the competition to make that kind of definitive statement).
THE OPPENHEIMER ALTERNATIVE is a terrifically researched and written tale of Oppenheimer's involvement with the research and development of the bombs that were dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki. It is abundantly clear that Sawyer did a ton of research for this book. In fact, a very large portion of the novel is not science fiction, but science fact. Not only is most of the story public record, but the extensive bibliography at the end of the book shows how much research Sawyer put into the novel to make it as absolutely authentic as possible. Even some of the dialog can be found in the pages of history. The story of what actually happened is gripping. I didn't know much, if anything, about the story of Los Alamos, the University of Chicago, the Manhattan Project, and other parts of the historical record that make up this novel. I found it fascinating.
I've called this an alternate history story; it could be called a secret history story. Yes, Oppenheimer and his high powered physics colleagues were all involved here. The book reads like a who's who of physics. But what really happened to them after the bomb was dropped and the war was over? The answer to this question is what turns this novel from an accurate historical account into an alternate history.
While Oppenheimer and his team are developing the atomic bomb that will eventually be used to end World War II, Edward Teller wants to develop what he calls "the super", a bomb that uses nuclear fusion, not fission. Teller's research causes his to research how the sun generates its energy, and he comes to a frightening realization: In the early to mid 21 century, the sun will eject
its outer layer, the result being that the entire inner solar system will be destroyed, including the Earth. The story then shifts to how Oppenheimer, Einstein, von Braun, Teller, Dyson, and all the rest of the high powered physicists of that era work to solve the problem.
The beauty of the novel is that Sawyer doesn't beat the reader over the head with how it was all worked out. He dropped hints and suggestions, things the reader might throw aside - and no, I'm not going to tell you what those clues were; you need to read the book - and then pulls them all together at the very end of the book when he finally *does* drop the hammer on you, but in a subtle, gentle, touching way. The ending is fabulous, and makes you believe that humanity does indeed have the power to solve problems that seem out of reach.
Sawyer used to crank out a novel a year, on average. The last two novels, RED PLANET BLUES and QUANTUM NIGHT, took roughly two years each, and THE OPPENHEIMER ALTERNATIVE was published four years after QUANTUM NIGHT. While there were indeed several reasons for the delay, it gave Sawyer the time to spread his writing wings and turn out what I believe to be his best written novel to date. While it was great to get a novel from him every year - and the novels were terrific at that pace - I'm willing to wait the extra time for a novel from him that is even better than those in the past. I just don't want him to take too long.
must be a contender for that award (I would say it should be the winner, but since I don't, as a rule, read alternate histories I don't think I know enough about the competition to make that kind of definitive statement).
THE OPPENHEIMER ALTERNATIVE is a terrifically researched and written tale of Oppenheimer's involvement with the research and development of the bombs that were dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki. It is abundantly clear that Sawyer did a ton of research for this book. In fact, a very large portion of the novel is not science fiction, but science fact. Not only is most of the story public record, but the extensive bibliography at the end of the book shows how much research Sawyer put into the novel to make it as absolutely authentic as possible. Even some of the dialog can be found in the pages of history. The story of what actually happened is gripping. I didn't know much, if anything, about the story of Los Alamos, the University of Chicago, the Manhattan Project, and other parts of the historical record that make up this novel. I found it fascinating.
I've called this an alternate history story; it could be called a secret history story. Yes, Oppenheimer and his high powered physics colleagues were all involved here. The book reads like a who's who of physics. But what really happened to them after the bomb was dropped and the war was over? The answer to this question is what turns this novel from an accurate historical account into an alternate history.
While Oppenheimer and his team are developing the atomic bomb that will eventually be used to end World War II, Edward Teller wants to develop what he calls "the super", a bomb that uses nuclear fusion, not fission. Teller's research causes his to research how the sun generates its energy, and he comes to a frightening realization: In the early to mid 21 century, the sun will eject
its outer layer, the result being that the entire inner solar system will be destroyed, including the Earth. The story then shifts to how Oppenheimer, Einstein, von Braun, Teller, Dyson, and all the rest of the high powered physicists of that era work to solve the problem.
The beauty of the novel is that Sawyer doesn't beat the reader over the head with how it was all worked out. He dropped hints and suggestions, things the reader might throw aside - and no, I'm not going to tell you what those clues were; you need to read the book - and then pulls them all together at the very end of the book when he finally *does* drop the hammer on you, but in a subtle, gentle, touching way. The ending is fabulous, and makes you believe that humanity does indeed have the power to solve problems that seem out of reach.
Sawyer used to crank out a novel a year, on average. The last two novels, RED PLANET BLUES and QUANTUM NIGHT, took roughly two years each, and THE OPPENHEIMER ALTERNATIVE was published four years after QUANTUM NIGHT. While there were indeed several reasons for the delay, it gave Sawyer the time to spread his writing wings and turn out what I believe to be his best written novel to date. While it was great to get a novel from him every year - and the novels were terrific at that pace - I'm willing to wait the extra time for a novel from him that is even better than those in the past. I just don't want him to take too long.
June 26, 2020
It's clear that Sawyer has done extensive research and possesses vast amounts of detailed knowledge about the Manhattan Project and the man who led it, Robert Oppenheimer. However, he was smart enough not to flood the reader with all of it and rather did use only details that well serve the intelligent plot, clarify the Physics and help bring the personages involved back to life. Like most of the world, Oppenheimer is still a mystery to me, even after I have read American Prometheus and other books about him. He was a man of many contradictions, has an extremely complex personality and it seems that even he didn't fully understand some of his own decisions and actions. But Sawyer is successful in making his main character feel real, and brings us the closest we can get to understanding what drove the man.
I loved the plot, too. Sawyer found a clever way to tell us the historical story and explaining the science behind it (at least some of it), as well as a highly abstract philosophical idea, while creating suspense, drama and emotional involvement in the reader. It was very enjoyable how the novel kept switching between historical fiction, personal drama, speculative fiction, alternative history and a few other genres in between, all expertly done.
All in all, this was a very satisfying and engrossing read and I truly enjoyed it.
I loved the plot, too. Sawyer found a clever way to tell us the historical story and explaining the science behind it (at least some of it), as well as a highly abstract philosophical idea, while creating suspense, drama and emotional involvement in the reader. It was very enjoyable how the novel kept switching between historical fiction, personal drama, speculative fiction, alternative history and a few other genres in between, all expertly done.
All in all, this was a very satisfying and engrossing read and I truly enjoyed it.
June 8, 2021
This is an unusual alternate-history novel that features a giant cast of all real life characters in factual events of their lives and in a meticulously researched accurate recreation of history. Oppenheimer is the main focus, of course, but there's a four page long list of other people who appear in the book with a line or two explaining their place in the story, from Luis Alvarez to Henry A. Wallace, with many of the notable twentieth century scientists such as Bethe, Bohr, Dyson, Einstein, Fermi, Feynman, Godel, Rabi, Szilard, Teller, von Braun, and many others all having roles. The science-fiction part of the story is by far the weakest link of the book, and is fact not even mentioned until halfway through and winds up swiftly and with little fanfare. Oppenheimer's trial is much more suspenseful. On the other hand, it's a somewhat fictional portrayal of scientists doing science, which is of course the root of science fiction. Sawyer does an excellent job of bringing the characters to life, and tells the story of twentieth-century physics with verve and veracity. It's a very educational and thought-provoking read.
August 31, 2020
How can a book go so long without anything interesting happening?
I did not finish it.
I did not finish it.
August 4, 2020
The bulk of the book is a history lesson on Oppenheimer which is interesting. It's only the last few short chapters where we get the science fiction part of the story line.
Good author
Good author
February 3, 2024
I’m glad I read this when I did, because having seen Christopher Nolan’s Oppenheimer already gave me a solid background of each of the characters before I even picked it up. And considering how much I like alternate history (including For All Mankind, which gave me background on Werner von Braun), it was pretty much guaranteed that I was going to like this.
And I did like it a lot, the ending was a little out there but I don’t mind because that’s sort of the point of these sorts of stories. Changing a couple of major things is supposed to affect the world in a crazy way in theory. So the Manhattan Project scientists along with Einstein and von Braun trying to save the world from a future solar flare being crazy is fine with me, and I was thoroughly entertained by this one.
And I did like it a lot, the ending was a little out there but I don’t mind because that’s sort of the point of these sorts of stories. Changing a couple of major things is supposed to affect the world in a crazy way in theory. So the Manhattan Project scientists along with Einstein and von Braun trying to save the world from a future solar flare being crazy is fine with me, and I was thoroughly entertained by this one.
January 16, 2021
Beautifully written. I felt like I was there in the story. Did not see the end coming, and when it arrived... brilliant! Whether you are a history buff, an SF fan, or just enjoy wonderful fiction, don't miss this read.
June 6, 2020
Experiencing the birth of the Atomic Bomb
Celebrated Canadian author Robert J Sawyer has published more the fifty books and his impressive resume includes the John W. Campbell Memorial Award, the Robert A. Heinlein Award, the Edward E. Smith Memorial Award, the Hal Clement Memorial Award, the top Science Fiction awards in China, Japan, France, and Spain, and a sixteen Canadian Science Fiction and Fantasy Awards ("Auroras"). He has been bestowed many high Canadian honors – Order of Canada, Order of Ontario, and one of the initial inductees into the Canadian Science Fiction and Fantasy Hall of Fame! He lives near Toronto.
The publication of this new book – THE OPPENHEIMER ALTERNATIVE – is superbly well timed: 2020 marks the 75th anniversary of the birth of the Atomic Age. In this book Sawyer posits his deep research and exploration of recently declassified documents that allow a fresh look at the world and thought at the beginning of the atomic age. The characters of this story include J. Robert Oppenheimer, Edward Teller, Richard Feynman, Enrico Fermi, Leo Slizard, Wernher von Braun – all delineated with precise attention to detail and accuracy – as well as facts that are little known about the birth of the atomic bomb and the influence of the Japanese diplomacy, Einstein’s communication with FDR, Truman’s jibes, and the controversy in general that arose over the creation and use of the atomic bomb.
Given that degree of factual accuracy, Sawyer opens his lengthy but completely fascinating, story with a factual dramatis personae – a history lesson in itself – and weaves this ‘refiguring’ of the Manhattan Project with pithy candor, infectious enthusiasm, and inimitable prose style. Example, a Prologue opines – “What pithy words should one use to sum up the life of J. Robert Oppenheimer before dropping the urn with his ashes overboard? Do you wax poetic about the precocious child who, at age twelve, gave a lecture to the venerable New York Mineralogical Club? Perhaps you’d discuss his rise to fame in 1945 as “the father of the atomic bomb” – and then lament the McCarthy Era witch-hunt that later sought to strip his security clearance? You might even include a word or two about his supposedly quiet twilight overseeing the monastic Institute for Advanced Study in Princeton…’ Facts fused with Sawyer’s gift for sci-fi fiction make this a wholly memorable invitation to be present at the ‘time of the bomb.’
How does this become a sci-fi fantasy story? The plot synopsis suggests, ‘While J. Robert Oppenheimer and his Manhattan Project team struggle to develop the A-bomb, Edward Teller wants something even more devastating: a weapon based on nuclear fusion — the mechanism that powers the sun. But Teller’s research leads to a terrifying discovery: by the year 2030, the sun will eject its outermost layer, destroying the entire inner solar system — including Earth. After the war ends, Oppenheimer’s physicists combine forces with Albert Einstein, computing pioneer John von Neumann, and rocket designer Wernher von Braun — the greatest scientific geniuses from the last century racing against time to save our future.’
A success on every level, this book is both entertaining and edifying. Brilliant!
Celebrated Canadian author Robert J Sawyer has published more the fifty books and his impressive resume includes the John W. Campbell Memorial Award, the Robert A. Heinlein Award, the Edward E. Smith Memorial Award, the Hal Clement Memorial Award, the top Science Fiction awards in China, Japan, France, and Spain, and a sixteen Canadian Science Fiction and Fantasy Awards ("Auroras"). He has been bestowed many high Canadian honors – Order of Canada, Order of Ontario, and one of the initial inductees into the Canadian Science Fiction and Fantasy Hall of Fame! He lives near Toronto.
The publication of this new book – THE OPPENHEIMER ALTERNATIVE – is superbly well timed: 2020 marks the 75th anniversary of the birth of the Atomic Age. In this book Sawyer posits his deep research and exploration of recently declassified documents that allow a fresh look at the world and thought at the beginning of the atomic age. The characters of this story include J. Robert Oppenheimer, Edward Teller, Richard Feynman, Enrico Fermi, Leo Slizard, Wernher von Braun – all delineated with precise attention to detail and accuracy – as well as facts that are little known about the birth of the atomic bomb and the influence of the Japanese diplomacy, Einstein’s communication with FDR, Truman’s jibes, and the controversy in general that arose over the creation and use of the atomic bomb.
Given that degree of factual accuracy, Sawyer opens his lengthy but completely fascinating, story with a factual dramatis personae – a history lesson in itself – and weaves this ‘refiguring’ of the Manhattan Project with pithy candor, infectious enthusiasm, and inimitable prose style. Example, a Prologue opines – “What pithy words should one use to sum up the life of J. Robert Oppenheimer before dropping the urn with his ashes overboard? Do you wax poetic about the precocious child who, at age twelve, gave a lecture to the venerable New York Mineralogical Club? Perhaps you’d discuss his rise to fame in 1945 as “the father of the atomic bomb” – and then lament the McCarthy Era witch-hunt that later sought to strip his security clearance? You might even include a word or two about his supposedly quiet twilight overseeing the monastic Institute for Advanced Study in Princeton…’ Facts fused with Sawyer’s gift for sci-fi fiction make this a wholly memorable invitation to be present at the ‘time of the bomb.’
How does this become a sci-fi fantasy story? The plot synopsis suggests, ‘While J. Robert Oppenheimer and his Manhattan Project team struggle to develop the A-bomb, Edward Teller wants something even more devastating: a weapon based on nuclear fusion — the mechanism that powers the sun. But Teller’s research leads to a terrifying discovery: by the year 2030, the sun will eject its outermost layer, destroying the entire inner solar system — including Earth. After the war ends, Oppenheimer’s physicists combine forces with Albert Einstein, computing pioneer John von Neumann, and rocket designer Wernher von Braun — the greatest scientific geniuses from the last century racing against time to save our future.’
A success on every level, this book is both entertaining and edifying. Brilliant!
June 3, 2020
It has been a few years since I have read a book by Robert J. Sawyer, I read a few when much younger before I started keeping track of what I read. And I very much enjoyed the Neanderthal Parallax trilogy when the first book, Hominids, was the one book for the Kitchener Waterloo community. But this book I have been excited to read since it was first announced. I followed Robert’s social media and some cover variations, and discussion about the book and the themes presented. The novel released on the 75th anniversary of the dropping of the atomic bomb.
The story begins with a list of 63 Dramatis Personae. Many of the names will stand out from history, even for those with just a general knowledge. We are informed that all the characters were real persons. And all but one is now deceased. We are also informed that the chapter head quotes are all real. And also that some of the dialogue in the story is from historic sources.
I would start by stating that this book is hard to put down. In fact, I read it in a single sitting. I kept saying just one more chapter, again and again. It is a wonderful piece of science fiction. And overall an amazing story. I was surprised by the ending, even though I knew a twist was coming. The novel is just brilliant. It is thought provoking and immensely entertaining. It is An alternative history story or should we say alternative future story but based on real events, real people, and science proven and theorized.
In this story a group of brilliant scientists lead by J. Robert Oppenheimer, Oppie, to his friends. After the destruction wrought by the atomic bombs, and the potential destructive power let loose in the world, Oppie gathers a group to work towards saving humanity from a natural disaster. Oppies’s team with the addition of Einstein, and Wernher von Braun race against time, all while trying to keep their discoveries from the public and the government. Author Matthew Kelly often states: “We overestimate what we can do in a year, and underestimate what we can accomplish in a decade.” In this story they have under 100 years a lot to accomplish if they hope to succeed.
The story balances science fact with science fiction. Walking a fine line weaving between the two. It is masterfully written. It presents many of the historic characters in at times unflattering light. It also presents the core group as doing what it takes to try and reach their goal. This story is an excellent read. I have not read a lot of science fiction or fantasy over the last few years. But after returning with this work I know I will need to track down more of Sawyers writings. An excellent read from a master of the genre.
Read the review on my blog Book Reviews and More and reviews of other books by Robert J. Sawyer.
The story begins with a list of 63 Dramatis Personae. Many of the names will stand out from history, even for those with just a general knowledge. We are informed that all the characters were real persons. And all but one is now deceased. We are also informed that the chapter head quotes are all real. And also that some of the dialogue in the story is from historic sources.
I would start by stating that this book is hard to put down. In fact, I read it in a single sitting. I kept saying just one more chapter, again and again. It is a wonderful piece of science fiction. And overall an amazing story. I was surprised by the ending, even though I knew a twist was coming. The novel is just brilliant. It is thought provoking and immensely entertaining. It is An alternative history story or should we say alternative future story but based on real events, real people, and science proven and theorized.
In this story a group of brilliant scientists lead by J. Robert Oppenheimer, Oppie, to his friends. After the destruction wrought by the atomic bombs, and the potential destructive power let loose in the world, Oppie gathers a group to work towards saving humanity from a natural disaster. Oppies’s team with the addition of Einstein, and Wernher von Braun race against time, all while trying to keep their discoveries from the public and the government. Author Matthew Kelly often states: “We overestimate what we can do in a year, and underestimate what we can accomplish in a decade.” In this story they have under 100 years a lot to accomplish if they hope to succeed.
The story balances science fact with science fiction. Walking a fine line weaving between the two. It is masterfully written. It presents many of the historic characters in at times unflattering light. It also presents the core group as doing what it takes to try and reach their goal. This story is an excellent read. I have not read a lot of science fiction or fantasy over the last few years. But after returning with this work I know I will need to track down more of Sawyers writings. An excellent read from a master of the genre.
Read the review on my blog Book Reviews and More and reviews of other books by Robert J. Sawyer.
July 25, 2020
Big fan of Robert J Sawyer, was looking forward to this.
Unfortunately it has the worst case of Deus ex machina I've ever seen in a professional science fiction story. I won't spoilt it with the details, but if you imagine a poor Star Trek fanfic resolution you will probably guess it.
And not only is the whole shebang wrapped up in the final chapter with a Big Red Reset Button, it makes absolutely zero logical sense. It's like, "Oh we have this magic ring which we can use directly to save a large part of humanity for sure and maybe even all of humanity" or "Wait we can use it to enact a super complicated unlikely plan that has a tiny chance of saving a tiny sliver of humanity" oh I guess we'll go with that then!
So poorly thought out - not an accusation I ever thought I would level at this author! - that it just ruins the whole book.
Unfortunately it has the worst case of Deus ex machina I've ever seen in a professional science fiction story. I won't spoilt it with the details, but if you imagine a poor Star Trek fanfic resolution you will probably guess it.
And not only is the whole shebang wrapped up in the final chapter with a Big Red Reset Button, it makes absolutely zero logical sense. It's like, "Oh we have this magic ring which we can use directly to save a large part of humanity for sure and maybe even all of humanity" or "Wait we can use it to enact a super complicated unlikely plan that has a tiny chance of saving a tiny sliver of humanity" oh I guess we'll go with that then!
So poorly thought out - not an accusation I ever thought I would level at this author! - that it just ruins the whole book.
April 5, 2021
This one... is a bit of an odd duck. It's generally an alternate-history story featuring J. Robert Oppenheimer. At the same time, it's more of a fictionalized biography of him, especially as the alternate part of history is largely minimized.
In fact, it doesn't really split off into alt-history until about page 110 (and it's not that long a book). There's some minor bits before that, but that's where it turns into something plot-driving. From there, there's some real differences in the careers of the various people the plot follows, but at the same time, some big events still play out the same way, and transcripts from later government hearings are used to rebuild events.
Now, you have some of the finest minds of the 20th Century featured in this novel, and you have a big science-based problem for them to chew on. I'd expect the book to focus on scientific theorizing and questioning (as done very well in Inherit the Stars), but it doesn't. It stays focused on the character-side of everyone's lives, which means the actual plot never picks up a lot momentum.
Worse, the eventual solution comes a bit from the side, and has understandably lost some readers who've asked for explanations. I found it laid out well enough, but I have gigantic problems with innumerable logistic and engineering concerns that aren't addressed at all. (We're given a possible way out, and then it happens, with no look at a massive project whose budget would be completely in the top secret file.)
So, I can only give this a weak and qualified recommendation. From what very little I know, Sawyer does do a very good job understanding the characters of the major figures of the novel, and if you'd like to breathe some life into your knowledge of Oppenheimer, Szilard, von Braun, Feynman, and others, this will do it. The main plot however, never really delivers.
In fact, it doesn't really split off into alt-history until about page 110 (and it's not that long a book). There's some minor bits before that, but that's where it turns into something plot-driving. From there, there's some real differences in the careers of the various people the plot follows, but at the same time, some big events still play out the same way, and transcripts from later government hearings are used to rebuild events.
Now, you have some of the finest minds of the 20th Century featured in this novel, and you have a big science-based problem for them to chew on. I'd expect the book to focus on scientific theorizing and questioning (as done very well in Inherit the Stars), but it doesn't. It stays focused on the character-side of everyone's lives, which means the actual plot never picks up a lot momentum.
Worse, the eventual solution comes a bit from the side, and has understandably lost some readers who've asked for explanations. I found it laid out well enough, but I have gigantic problems with innumerable logistic and engineering concerns that aren't addressed at all. (We're given a possible way out, and then it happens, with no look at a massive project whose budget would be completely in the top secret file.)
So, I can only give this a weak and qualified recommendation. From what very little I know, Sawyer does do a very good job understanding the characters of the major figures of the novel, and if you'd like to breathe some life into your knowledge of Oppenheimer, Szilard, von Braun, Feynman, and others, this will do it. The main plot however, never really delivers.
June 20, 2020
This is a tricky review to write. My feelings about this book are mixed.
First of all, I LOVE Robert J. Sawyer. When I heard that he'd written an alternate history about Oppenheimer and the scientists at Los Alamos having to deal with a science fiction problem on an epic scale, I was intrigued and couldn't wait to dive in. And I t0tally admit that the alternate history plot was interesting and compelling, and didn't (in and of itself) disappoint.
My problem was that this book seemed to have very little in the way of "alternate", and quite a lot in the way of "history". It seemed like I was about halfway through the novel before events diverged off from the true path of history, and the science fiction problem for our cast to resolve was introduced. And even then, I'd say the second half of the book was probably only about 20% "alternate" while most of it remained true to what really happened.
Now, it's possible that Sawyer just did THAT great of a job, and it only SEEMED like the vast majority of this story was non-fiction. If so, I'd say that I'd've preferred for him to bring the sci-fi elements even more to the forefront. But I suspect (from a little research I've done) that in reality, most of this story told the true story, while only a very little revolved around the alternate sci-fi plot.
All that said, I loved the final 35 pages, when the book took a turn into what was clearly a solid sci-fi alternate version of events. Unfortunately, for my tastes, it was a case of "too little, too late". My preference would've been to get to that much earlier, and explore that side of the story in much greater detail.
I still love your work, Mr. Sawyer, and I'm looking forward to what you have in store next.
First of all, I LOVE Robert J. Sawyer. When I heard that he'd written an alternate history about Oppenheimer and the scientists at Los Alamos having to deal with a science fiction problem on an epic scale, I was intrigued and couldn't wait to dive in. And I t0tally admit that the alternate history plot was interesting and compelling, and didn't (in and of itself) disappoint.
My problem was that this book seemed to have very little in the way of "alternate", and quite a lot in the way of "history". It seemed like I was about halfway through the novel before events diverged off from the true path of history, and the science fiction problem for our cast to resolve was introduced. And even then, I'd say the second half of the book was probably only about 20% "alternate" while most of it remained true to what really happened.
Now, it's possible that Sawyer just did THAT great of a job, and it only SEEMED like the vast majority of this story was non-fiction. If so, I'd say that I'd've preferred for him to bring the sci-fi elements even more to the forefront. But I suspect (from a little research I've done) that in reality, most of this story told the true story, while only a very little revolved around the alternate sci-fi plot.
All that said, I loved the final 35 pages, when the book took a turn into what was clearly a solid sci-fi alternate version of events. Unfortunately, for my tastes, it was a case of "too little, too late". My preference would've been to get to that much earlier, and explore that side of the story in much greater detail.
I still love your work, Mr. Sawyer, and I'm looking forward to what you have in store next.
September 4, 2022
20 % Alt history Sci/fi - 80 % Oppenheimer biography - 100 % brilliant
Apart from the obvious, that this is a captivating well told tale, from a time where nuclear physicists was the heroes every boy wanted to become (now everyone want to be a you-tube star, how we have progressed !), there are two issues with the novel that probably diminishes the enjoyment of it it for many readers.
1. the false goods declaration - The novel is marketed as a Sci/fi Alt history novel, which as i understand it, is what Sawyer normally writes, however what you get is mostly a biography of Oppenheimer and an account of scientist community around the times of the creation of the the atomic bomb, no matter how riveting and interesting that might be to some (and count me in amongst those) it's hardly hard sci/fi. - Personally i didn't mind, I tend not to read the Blurb's anyway and loves to be pleasantly surprised.
2. The use of real life contemporary people in fiction novels - This is a rather new trend which we have also seen in Tv-Series as The Crown, which i find somewhat problematic, the lines between fiction and reality becomes really blurred when 95 % real historical events and quotes are mixed up with 5 % fiction and hear-say and in the process the reputation of real people becomes tarnished forever. - This for me bumped a clear 5 star novel one star down.
Apart from the obvious, that this is a captivating well told tale, from a time where nuclear physicists was the heroes every boy wanted to become (now everyone want to be a you-tube star, how we have progressed !), there are two issues with the novel that probably diminishes the enjoyment of it it for many readers.
1. the false goods declaration - The novel is marketed as a Sci/fi Alt history novel, which as i understand it, is what Sawyer normally writes, however what you get is mostly a biography of Oppenheimer and an account of scientist community around the times of the creation of the the atomic bomb, no matter how riveting and interesting that might be to some (and count me in amongst those) it's hardly hard sci/fi. - Personally i didn't mind, I tend not to read the Blurb's anyway and loves to be pleasantly surprised.
2. The use of real life contemporary people in fiction novels - This is a rather new trend which we have also seen in Tv-Series as The Crown, which i find somewhat problematic, the lines between fiction and reality becomes really blurred when 95 % real historical events and quotes are mixed up with 5 % fiction and hear-say and in the process the reputation of real people becomes tarnished forever. - This for me bumped a clear 5 star novel one star down.
June 5, 2020
Shortly after the 'Enola Gay' drops a bomb on Hiroshima, a chance discovery causes the Manhattan Project scientists to reevaluate everything they thought they knew.
Excellently written, Sawyer delivers a parallel universe story which is well worth reading!
Excellently written, Sawyer delivers a parallel universe story which is well worth reading!
August 20, 2020
THIS IS LONG AND INCLUDES SPOILERS
I very occasionally enjoy "alternate histories," but only very occasionally. Okay, rarely. This is especially true when I know details about the history involved. Several people I know sang the praises of this book. I have no idea what they were singing about, or maybe they were just tone deaf. How many different ways can you do this so extraordinarily wrong? Assume these things ... historical figures will act like poor caricatures of themselves. Rereading a page or two becomes a frequent occasion as you are so astonished by what you read you read it again to make sure that’s what you just read.
The story begins with one of the most exciting times in history for practical applications of physics. Ethical concerns aside, World War II was an exciting time for science. The first third of the book was a historical sketch of The Manhattan Project. Throughout real people are depicted in real-ish situations. There is some unfortunately turgid prose, though. “Luck. Einstein said God does not play dice with the universe — but then again, God was probably not itching to get laid.” A few paragraphs later, we have the even more unfortunate “Well, well: look at those dice. Six the hard way.” And so, Robert Oppenheimer meets Jean Tatlock for the first time.
Now that we’re about a third of the way through the book, let’s downplay the defeat of japan, make a couple of mournful remarks about “those poor little people,” and move on. But there is a larger problem, based, iit seems, on real pre-war work done by scientists on The Manhattan Project. Almost as an offhand comment, it is discovered that there are irregularities in the Sun, and that it’s going to bake everything out to and including the Earth to a crisp in a relatively short period of time.And oh, there is a brief comment with no follow up suspecting aliens. But let’s not tell anyone, we’ll work on a solution in secret, but not accomplish a whole lot through much of the 1960s.Because there isn’t a space program yet to speak of, and we haven’t figured out how to build a decent colony ship, and there isn’t anywhere decent to colonize, anyway.
So time passes, expected events happen, Teller is resentfully angry, Kennedy is assassinated, Oppie loses his security clearance, and yet, despite this heads another secret project to deal with the McGuffin. Which then receives secret black bag funding from General Leslie Groves, which doesn’t dry up at any point. Richard Feynman engages in some dense scientific exposition while picking up a woman in a bar. Because physics is always a turn on for women looking for a one-night stand. All of the secret work, though, turns out to be in vain when scientists who darn well knew Mars was an airless void suddenly discover that it is an airless, uninhabitable void. All plans are crushed at that point ... except there is a completely ridiculous deus ex machina waiting in the wings. And a bit of a tear jerker. You knew there was going to be a romance in here somewhere, right? Roll those dice again, why don’t you, have them end point down, and spinning endlessly. Because that’s a far better resolution that this book got.
One strange curiosity of this book is that it provides a link to the author's website where the “Easter Eggs” in the book are explained. Sigh. It’s only an Easter Egg if the reader actually notices it on her/his/hir own. Otherwise, it’s just an inside joke, and worse, one that is not at all funny or particularly interesting. .
There is a bibliography at the end of the book which does give a fairly comprehensive list of resources related to Oppenheimer, The Manhattan Project, Project Orion, and other topics of science. I should have skipped straight to the end and picked one of these books I hadn’t yet read. It would have been a better use of my reading time, I’m afraid.
I very occasionally enjoy "alternate histories," but only very occasionally. Okay, rarely. This is especially true when I know details about the history involved. Several people I know sang the praises of this book. I have no idea what they were singing about, or maybe they were just tone deaf. How many different ways can you do this so extraordinarily wrong? Assume these things ... historical figures will act like poor caricatures of themselves. Rereading a page or two becomes a frequent occasion as you are so astonished by what you read you read it again to make sure that’s what you just read.
The story begins with one of the most exciting times in history for practical applications of physics. Ethical concerns aside, World War II was an exciting time for science. The first third of the book was a historical sketch of The Manhattan Project. Throughout real people are depicted in real-ish situations. There is some unfortunately turgid prose, though. “Luck. Einstein said God does not play dice with the universe — but then again, God was probably not itching to get laid.” A few paragraphs later, we have the even more unfortunate “Well, well: look at those dice. Six the hard way.” And so, Robert Oppenheimer meets Jean Tatlock for the first time.
Now that we’re about a third of the way through the book, let’s downplay the defeat of japan, make a couple of mournful remarks about “those poor little people,” and move on. But there is a larger problem, based, iit seems, on real pre-war work done by scientists on The Manhattan Project. Almost as an offhand comment, it is discovered that there are irregularities in the Sun, and that it’s going to bake everything out to and including the Earth to a crisp in a relatively short period of time.And oh, there is a brief comment with no follow up suspecting aliens. But let’s not tell anyone, we’ll work on a solution in secret, but not accomplish a whole lot through much of the 1960s.Because there isn’t a space program yet to speak of, and we haven’t figured out how to build a decent colony ship, and there isn’t anywhere decent to colonize, anyway.
So time passes, expected events happen, Teller is resentfully angry, Kennedy is assassinated, Oppie loses his security clearance, and yet, despite this heads another secret project to deal with the McGuffin. Which then receives secret black bag funding from General Leslie Groves, which doesn’t dry up at any point. Richard Feynman engages in some dense scientific exposition while picking up a woman in a bar. Because physics is always a turn on for women looking for a one-night stand. All of the secret work, though, turns out to be in vain when scientists who darn well knew Mars was an airless void suddenly discover that it is an airless, uninhabitable void. All plans are crushed at that point ... except there is a completely ridiculous deus ex machina waiting in the wings. And a bit of a tear jerker. You knew there was going to be a romance in here somewhere, right? Roll those dice again, why don’t you, have them end point down, and spinning endlessly. Because that’s a far better resolution that this book got.
One strange curiosity of this book is that it provides a link to the author's website where the “Easter Eggs” in the book are explained. Sigh. It’s only an Easter Egg if the reader actually notices it on her/his/hir own. Otherwise, it’s just an inside joke, and worse, one that is not at all funny or particularly interesting. .
There is a bibliography at the end of the book which does give a fairly comprehensive list of resources related to Oppenheimer, The Manhattan Project, Project Orion, and other topics of science. I should have skipped straight to the end and picked one of these books I hadn’t yet read. It would have been a better use of my reading time, I’m afraid.
August 27, 2020
Would we do if we knew the world was ending? It's a question posed in any number of works on page and screen. Suppose, though, that those who knew were some of the brightest minds of twentieth-century science? Those who would not go quietly into the night? That's the premise behind Robert J Sawyer's The Oppenheimer Alternative, the latest offering from the award-winning author.
Though, having laid out the premise, the first thing worth noting is Sawyer takes some time getting to it. Indeed, for say the first quarter to third, it's honestly a historical fiction work about Oppenheimer and the Manhattan Project. As someone who enjoys historical fiction as a genre and has an interest in the events depicted, the reading here was never dull as the research and characterizations shine throughout as the reader receives a crash course in the history of the atomic bomb's project and the titular character's life.
Once the divergence comes, however, Sawyer's prose remains firmly rooted in history as we know it. For, despite the title, this isn't so much a work of alternative history as it is a work of secret history. Think of it as an SF equivalent of, say, Jack Higgins' thriller The Eagle Has Landed, with a story lurking behind the history we know. In this case, from 1945 to the mid-1960s, Oppenheimer and many of those involved with the Manhattan Project were involved in an effort to save humanity. An effort that also draws in the likes of Wernher von Braun and others, as well. The novel becomes a journey through one of the most dramatic periods in modern history, though, at times, it feels more like a series of linked vignettes involving famous names in science than a cohesive story. Indeed, Sawyer goes about introducing elements only to either get rid of them soon afterword or hardly reference them at all. For a novel promoted as being an alternative history, with the word in its very title, it doesn't seem keen on being one.
At least until its conclusion. It's there, in the last twelve percent of the novel or thereabout, Sawyer firmly takes out of historical fiction and into SF territory. It's a shift that's both welcome but, not surprisingly, perhaps, immensely jarring as well. It all goes by in a hurry, covering a novel's worth of details in a matter of concluding paragraphs across a few pages. It's full of big ideas, but ones revealed so hurriedly that their scope and meaning almost gets lost. It's an ending full of both possibilities and immense frustrations, not unlike the novel as a whole.
In the final analysis, The Oppenheimer Alternative should be The Oppenheimer Secret instead. What Sawyer has created is compelling, even worthy of the over-used moniker of a page-turner, but it's an uneasy mix of elements. Is it a work of historical fiction with a dose of SF thrown into the mix? Or is it a novel too firmly rooted in our history that, when a drastic change does come, it's too much? The answer, for this reader at least, is both, and it makes it an intriguing but unsatisfying read that never lives up to its premise.
Though, having laid out the premise, the first thing worth noting is Sawyer takes some time getting to it. Indeed, for say the first quarter to third, it's honestly a historical fiction work about Oppenheimer and the Manhattan Project. As someone who enjoys historical fiction as a genre and has an interest in the events depicted, the reading here was never dull as the research and characterizations shine throughout as the reader receives a crash course in the history of the atomic bomb's project and the titular character's life.
Once the divergence comes, however, Sawyer's prose remains firmly rooted in history as we know it. For, despite the title, this isn't so much a work of alternative history as it is a work of secret history. Think of it as an SF equivalent of, say, Jack Higgins' thriller The Eagle Has Landed, with a story lurking behind the history we know. In this case, from 1945 to the mid-1960s, Oppenheimer and many of those involved with the Manhattan Project were involved in an effort to save humanity. An effort that also draws in the likes of Wernher von Braun and others, as well. The novel becomes a journey through one of the most dramatic periods in modern history, though, at times, it feels more like a series of linked vignettes involving famous names in science than a cohesive story. Indeed, Sawyer goes about introducing elements only to either get rid of them soon afterword or hardly reference them at all. For a novel promoted as being an alternative history, with the word in its very title, it doesn't seem keen on being one.
At least until its conclusion. It's there, in the last twelve percent of the novel or thereabout, Sawyer firmly takes out of historical fiction and into SF territory. It's a shift that's both welcome but, not surprisingly, perhaps, immensely jarring as well. It all goes by in a hurry, covering a novel's worth of details in a matter of concluding paragraphs across a few pages. It's full of big ideas, but ones revealed so hurriedly that their scope and meaning almost gets lost. It's an ending full of both possibilities and immense frustrations, not unlike the novel as a whole.
In the final analysis, The Oppenheimer Alternative should be The Oppenheimer Secret instead. What Sawyer has created is compelling, even worthy of the over-used moniker of a page-turner, but it's an uneasy mix of elements. Is it a work of historical fiction with a dose of SF thrown into the mix? Or is it a novel too firmly rooted in our history that, when a drastic change does come, it's too much? The answer, for this reader at least, is both, and it makes it an intriguing but unsatisfying read that never lives up to its premise.
July 17, 2021
My first Sawyer novel, I read this for consideration in the 2021 Aurora Awards, where it's a nominee for Best Novel.
The Oppenheimer Alternative is primarily a work of historical fiction, a "biopic" with some science fictional elements thrown in. It follows J. Robert Oppenheimer, who I was familiar with on the basis of his infamous statement at the first successful detonation of an atomic bomb: I am now become Death, destroyer of worlds. But Sawyer's book takes this man's life, about which I knew nothing, and explores his work and relationships with the generation of physicists who grew up around him -- names which I've encountered many times in my SF reading, Einstein, Fermi, von Neumann, Dyson, Feynman, but which I've never read about until now. I was delighted with that.
Partway through, the book introduces an element of alternate history into the narrative, but otherwise seems to stick to biographical facts and the real historical record as the foundation of the story. I found myself favourably comparing the alt-history to The Calculating Stars by Mary Robinette Kowal, a book I didn't like -- for many reasons --- because of the way its story and characters were detached from historical context and its ham-fisted and anachronistic focus on identity politics from a 21st century perspective. Where Kowal includes disconnected world-building blurbs to each of her chapters, I appreciated how Oppenheimer's 59 chapters featured a quote from characters taken from the historical record, which directly to the drama featured in that chapter.
In its 11th hour it veers hard into science fiction, and I see that other readers didn't appreciate that or found it unbelievable in a book otherwise mostly grounded in historical realism. I focused mostly on the relational aspect, as that's where Sawyer put most of his emphasis: on the work lives and personal relationships of the great physicists of the 20th century.
It's not for everyone, it's fairly dry, and there are moments where the characters go pretty full-on into science-speak. But it also doesn't focus on the science in the way you might expect were this a hard SF novel. But it's not, it's a fictionalized biography of Oppenheimer and his compatriots, and the emphasis remains on the people.
I enjoyed it, and will be looking forward to reading from Sawyer's backlist of previous award winners.
The Oppenheimer Alternative is primarily a work of historical fiction, a "biopic" with some science fictional elements thrown in. It follows J. Robert Oppenheimer, who I was familiar with on the basis of his infamous statement at the first successful detonation of an atomic bomb: I am now become Death, destroyer of worlds. But Sawyer's book takes this man's life, about which I knew nothing, and explores his work and relationships with the generation of physicists who grew up around him -- names which I've encountered many times in my SF reading, Einstein, Fermi, von Neumann, Dyson, Feynman, but which I've never read about until now. I was delighted with that.
Partway through, the book introduces an element of alternate history into the narrative, but otherwise seems to stick to biographical facts and the real historical record as the foundation of the story. I found myself favourably comparing the alt-history to The Calculating Stars by Mary Robinette Kowal, a book I didn't like -- for many reasons --- because of the way its story and characters were detached from historical context and its ham-fisted and anachronistic focus on identity politics from a 21st century perspective. Where Kowal includes disconnected world-building blurbs to each of her chapters, I appreciated how Oppenheimer's 59 chapters featured a quote from characters taken from the historical record, which directly to the drama featured in that chapter.
In its 11th hour it veers hard into science fiction, and I see that other readers didn't appreciate that or found it unbelievable in a book otherwise mostly grounded in historical realism. I focused mostly on the relational aspect, as that's where Sawyer put most of his emphasis: on the work lives and personal relationships of the great physicists of the 20th century.
It's not for everyone, it's fairly dry, and there are moments where the characters go pretty full-on into science-speak. But it also doesn't focus on the science in the way you might expect were this a hard SF novel. But it's not, it's a fictionalized biography of Oppenheimer and his compatriots, and the emphasis remains on the people.
I enjoyed it, and will be looking forward to reading from Sawyer's backlist of previous award winners.
June 4, 2020
Real and alternate history blend seamlessly together in this explosive new novel by one of Canada’s best and well-known sci-fi authors, Robert J. Sawyer.
The Oppenheimer Alternative delves into the complex lives of J. Robert Oppenheimer—the father of the atomic bomb, along with a supporting cast of other real-life scientists of the era like Einstein, von Braun, Teller and more. But, as the plot deviates from the exquisitely accurate and thoroughly researched events leading up to and following the bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, it’s Edward Teller’s discovery that gives the scientists a new task and a chance for redemption as they become humanities only hope for survival.
As Sawyer often does, the novel is filled with moral, ethical, scientific, and “what if” questions as he reaches into the minds of these brilliant characters and pulls out answers that will leave you thinking long after you’ve finished.
But, what makes The Oppenheimer Alternative truly a must-read for everyone, not just for history and science buffs, is the carefully entwined love story between Oppenheimer and Jean Tatlock that unravels between the pages and becomes the real, although tragic, heart of this novel.
With strong characterization, rich prose, well-thought-out and plausible science, and an incredible plot, the four-year wait between this and his last work was absolutely worth it. Sawyer has yet again outdone himself and surely The Oppenheimer Alternative will blow-up the charts and be one this year’s award contenders.
The Oppenheimer Alternative delves into the complex lives of J. Robert Oppenheimer—the father of the atomic bomb, along with a supporting cast of other real-life scientists of the era like Einstein, von Braun, Teller and more. But, as the plot deviates from the exquisitely accurate and thoroughly researched events leading up to and following the bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, it’s Edward Teller’s discovery that gives the scientists a new task and a chance for redemption as they become humanities only hope for survival.
As Sawyer often does, the novel is filled with moral, ethical, scientific, and “what if” questions as he reaches into the minds of these brilliant characters and pulls out answers that will leave you thinking long after you’ve finished.
But, what makes The Oppenheimer Alternative truly a must-read for everyone, not just for history and science buffs, is the carefully entwined love story between Oppenheimer and Jean Tatlock that unravels between the pages and becomes the real, although tragic, heart of this novel.
With strong characterization, rich prose, well-thought-out and plausible science, and an incredible plot, the four-year wait between this and his last work was absolutely worth it. Sawyer has yet again outdone himself and surely The Oppenheimer Alternative will blow-up the charts and be one this year’s award contenders.
September 20, 2020
I like books that both entertain and inform and this Speculative fiction novel works on both levels. It is an excellent "biography" of Oppenheimer and the Manhattan Project. It is real history mixed with some very intriguing and imaginative speculation. The novel drills into exactly what caused "Oppie's" loss of security clearance in the Red Scare days. We get penetrating and entertaining portraits of the great scientists with whom he worked, including Teller, Einstein, Richard Feynman, and many others. The novel tells the story straight - with one wrinkle. Oppenheimer was a great physics theorist in addition to being the greatest "science project" administrator ever. His work related to the nuclear processes in stars, and (here is the wrinkle) in 1938 it was discovered, (using his theories) that - something bad was going to happen. The novel is a story of how all of the superstars of the Manhattan project worked to overcome their disagreements and come up with a plan to prevent the bad thing from happening.
The story is told in a non-sensational way, and this was its strength and perhaps it tiny weakness. It stays true the plodding nature of the way real science actually works, and the manner that real history happens, and sometimes as a reader you want it "sexed up' a little. But I recommend the book highly because it will keep you engaged, and will teach anyone (whether they are experts in science or in history, or both) something profound and interesting. Sawyer proves again why he is a master.
The story is told in a non-sensational way, and this was its strength and perhaps it tiny weakness. It stays true the plodding nature of the way real science actually works, and the manner that real history happens, and sometimes as a reader you want it "sexed up' a little. But I recommend the book highly because it will keep you engaged, and will teach anyone (whether they are experts in science or in history, or both) something profound and interesting. Sawyer proves again why he is a master.
June 29, 2021
I really liked this one. I am no expert on the people or events that serve as the basis for this novel, but as far as I can tell, Sawyer hews extremely close to the facts. This comes across almost as a historical novel rather than SF. Indeed, interest piqued, I did occasionally look up one thing or another referenced in the book, and everything seems accurate. I didn't even recognize a SF element until about a quarter of the way into the book, when anomalous data reveals to those who can understand it that a solar event is going to lead to an extinction-level event in about 100 years. So, the architects of the Manhattan Project, creators of the bomb, become involved in a secret mission to try to save humanity (the Earth will be fried regardless) via colonization of another planet, say Mars. Nevertheless, the focus is never really on the SF elements but instead on the characters themselves and the historical events. This focus makes for an insightful commentary on how, even when faced with potential extinction, humans can let the personal and the comparatively trivial stand in the way of the greater good. I especially liked how Sawyer uses the changing state of scientific knowledge as a key plot element here. I also really liked how he uses classic SF as a reference point at various places in the book, as the save ends up being rooted in classic SF tropes, notably a fascinating combination of time travel (which I did not see coming until very late in the book) and terraforming. Any fan of hard and/or classic SF will enjoy this, I think.
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