Neom, by Lavie Tidhar

Central Station, the world in which this novel is set, was a fix-up from stories Tidhar wrote over a decade or so. It reads like one but it's still interesting, I read it in order to be ready for this one. Neom was not really supposed to be a fix-up novel, but it still reads like one. Much is explained in the afterword. Tidhar did not know where the narrative was going, he just took the setting and started writing chapters to see what would happen. Some writers put this stuff aside after using it to craft a narrative. Tidhar rolls with it and puts it out there. So we have interesting characters and an increasingly complex world to unpack, but as a story it's more slice of life or even soap opera (the central plot doesn't resolve in any particular way, though a side romance does). But it's fun to read, kind of an amalgamation of science fiction and magical realism. Tidhar is a capable writer and enjoys what he's done with this, so we could see more and even better stories in the future.

My Goodreads Review

Central Station, by Lavie Tidhar

I actually liked this book, but just barely enough to give it four stars. It's not really a novel--it started out as a series of short stories and novellas that have enough of a relationship to sequence them. So I didn't get a sense of continuous plot progression so much as a series of snapshots. Maybe more lifelike. I liked the characters enough to rate it well--there is a lot going on and they lead full, complex lives. Central Station is set on an Earth that has worked through some of the problems we have today and feels like it is past the crisis point. So I hope we can get to something like this, it's much better than I expect.

Central Station is science fiction, with a heavy dose of magical realism. Characters like Ibrahim the alten-zachsen man inhabit a space somewhat beyond human. It makes this book difficult to classify, in a reasonably good way. It's not a totally amazing book but it is an amazing world. I'm reading Neom now, we'll see if the novel inhabiting this space enhances it.

My Goodreads Review

Unholy Land, by Lavie Tidhar

Unholy Land by Lavie Tidhar

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


I've read many SFF books by writers of Jewish origin, but Lavie Tidhar is the first Jewish author I have read that really brings his Jewish voice and heritage to his work, so this was a treat for me. It was also really interesting to learn about the alternatives being considered for a Jewish homeland--the way Tidhar explores these alternatives shows exactly what speculative fiction can do that no other literature can.

As for the book itself, it's a good read but not quite perfect. One of the features of this set of alternative universes is that the author is in it. Tidhar attributes his most famous work, Osama, to protagonist Lior Tirosh, an author who has since that time descended into formulaic detective novels. The novel is a bit heavy in the middle--maybe not quite enough of the interesting explication for me, and a little rushed at the end. But it's good stuff--reminds me of China Mieville's "The City & the City", in a whole lot of ways. I have yet to read Central Station but this does tempt me to do so.



View all my reviews

The Old Dispensation, by Lavie Tidhar

The Old Dispensation by Lavie Tidhar

My rating: 3 of 5 stars


In this story Tidhar posits a universe that becomes a new home for Jews. It is, however, also populated by beings, including monstrous ones, that threaten them. To counter these threats they have created their own modified beings, even though this appears to go against some tenants of the faith. Thus the dispensation.

I didn't think much of this story at all until, like others here, I read the comments at the end. They are a fascinating discussion of the Jewish nature of the story. Unless you're familiar with Jewish culture you will need a lot of reference material, and then your impression will depend very much on your sources. As a story it's just OK, but set in context it's very thought provoking and interesting.



View all my reviews

Henry, Caesar of the Air, His Life and Times, or, The Book of Qat, by Lavie Tidhar

I had a little time before my next book was available at the library, so pulled up a random story on Free SF Online. Try that sometime, it's like Every Flavor Beans in Harry Potter.  And I take credit for giving the webmaster the idea.

What I got was Henry (no way I'm typing that again).  It's a serialized story on Daily SF, and is quite a fun read--you never quite know what is going on.  Henry is a white man on an island of pygmies, quickly forgetting how he came to be there.  To what extent is what is happening to him real?  Emotions and impressions are the stars here, and they carry the story well.  I spent an enjoyable hour reading it, and you would like it too. 3 stars.  

Osama, by Lavie Tidhar

My last novel to read for this year's major award nominees is Osama, by Lavie Tidhar.  I have not read any of Tidhar's work before, and wonder somewhat how representative it is.  I purchased a paperback version, so it had reviews of the hardcover on it.  Am not sure I would have expected what I got if I paid a lot of attention to them. More approachable than Mieville's The City and The City?  Not sure about that.  Many reviewers compare it to novels by Phillip K. Dick.  I think not too much.  Both Mieville and Dick have strong speculative fiction hooks in their work.  Things that can really make you think. Osama might do that for you too, but in a very different way at best.

Our protagonist, Joe the Detective, is hired by a mystery woman to find the author of low-rent paperback novels featuring the deeds of Osama Bin Laden.  But this is a place where terrorist violence didn't happen, and the stories are about the real world.  This place appears to have unacknowledged ghosts--"refugees"--and Joe might be one.  Things get weird as he progresses the case.

I think the most apt comparison here is Camus, particularly The Stranger, not Dick.  Indeed, Tidhar gives a shout-out to Camus in the book.  It's a very interior story, mostly focusing on Joe's feelings of dissociation with events, or just his feelings generally.  Joe, like The Stranger, is on a personal journey so deep into himself that he is in danger of disappearing.  Go read The Stranger for the real thing.  I give this one 3 stars, for reflection.

Thus ends my reading of the World Fantasy Award nominees, and all award nominees, for 2011.  The best for World Fantasy?  Probably Jo Walton's Among Others--might as well make it a sweep.  Which one was my favorite this year?  I am leaning toward Stephen King's 11/22/63, I just enjoyed reading every word.