Spin

Spin



Author: Robert Charles Wilson
★★★★

   A science fiction flavored with a main-stream literature atmosphere, this novel concentrates on humans and relationships. It has won a Hugo Award for Best Novel and an endorsement from Stephen King. Besides, there were no Hollywood-type heroes could save people from the doom and that made it even more non-fictionally realistic and attractive.

   The process of human beings extinction lasted for 30 years, spanning one generation. When people underwent this kind of doom, they grabbed religions and science, badly needing a faith to keep their lives going on, even though they knew they would die in near future due to the solar expansion. Jason Lawton, who put himself into the research and study of Spin, tried to save the Earth by terraforming Mars to develop a so-called remote technology. After his plan resulted in Mars also being Spined, Jason in turn changed his mind to find out the reason, and he did; he eventually traded his life for the truth. Diane Lawton, who in turn plunged into religious fanaticism, though she’s not really convinced by the faith she tried to have. Tyler Dupree, who was the story narrator, became a doctor after Spin and the doom was definitely made known. Doctor, which was a contradictory job in the theme where future and health were nothing to people. Spin chronicles the next 30-odd years in the lives of the trio, during whose life (time) 300 billion years would pass outside the shield.

   There are a lot of ironic narrations about governments, nations, and humanities. As in the real world, governments always classified everything, every piece of information and technology. Thus, conspiracies and cynicism always spreading among people; they always could not accept anything unusual and odd human being. The crimes was on the rise when people lost the hope of the future; still, the power and welfare remained charming to people though everything were doomed to be eliminated. They had nothing to lose, so they destroyed everything they do not like and robbed everything they want, for the sake of satisfying their human-nature.

   “Don’t be upset. The world is full of surprises. We’re all born strangers to ourselves and each other, and we’re seldom formally introduced.”

   The one-way love of Tyler for Diane is narrated a lot in this novel, which tends to arouse sympathy among readers. For example, “I still found myself conducting imaginary conversations with her, usually late at night, offering asides to the starless sky.”