REVIEW: 2020 HINDSIGHT by F.C. DAWKINS

F.C. Dawkins has created a masterfully chilling world in 2020 Hindsight, partially due to the fact that in some ways, the book straddles the line of even counting as sci-fi in the first place. There are no far-flung futures and hovercars, no lasers and killer robots in Dawkins' world. Much like some of the classical authors of the genre, he modifies a world that's less than a decade removed from our own with a single super-science tweak: a scientist has discovered the key to halting aging in a process called ELP, effectively granting those who undergo the procedure eternal life.

The remaining aspects of the setting in the book are hauntingly plausible: the long-anticipated collapse of infrastructure via overconsumption and over-reliance on fossil fuels has finally come to pass, leading to the large-scale destruction of the US and Canada as world powers. Most major metropolitan areas are now ruled by gangs, and the few remaining pockets of stable existence involve people living a pre-industrial existence of farming and hunting. Meanwhile, in Arizona, Gerry Wallace (the inventor of ELP) lives in the epicentre of Nirodha, a utopian city with exclusive access to the life-extending procedure. Unfortunately, paramilitary powers are mounting within the city, using paranoia and misinformation to aggregate control and risking the idyllic world that Gerry and his colleagues have worked so hard to build. Meanwhile, Tom (Gerry's estranged brother) is making the cross-country trek to try and reunite with his sibling, believing Gerry's life to be in imminent danger.

Dawkins' background is in business and economics, and it shows here in the best way. The utter failure of civilization in 2020 Hindsight is meticulously thought out, to the point where it becomes viscerally uncomfortable how easily this could occur. The same goes for the reorganization of world powers in response to the power vacuum, and the attempts of the more unsavoury groups to try and assume control by using ELP as both the justification (“everyone wants what we have”) and the carrot at the end of the stick (“prove your loyalty to us, you get to live forever”) for its operations.

At the same time, Dawkins isn't afraid to confront the philosophical, emotional, and economic implications of immortality, eventually questioning whether or not it's worth the very real costs that come with it. At times, the bald-faced nature of the conversations surrounding these ideas risk turning the book into a thought experiment rather than a story, but the genuine relationships and likeable characters help to keep the book grounded. What ultimately results is some of the smartest, most thought-provoking speculative sci-fi in the past few years. Definitely grab a copy of this one.

Vincent Smith is a taoist, aspiring writer, and dyed-in-the-wool psychology geek at the University of Guelph. You can find his writing on video games, comics, movies, and all things geek over at The Rogue's Gallery. Check out his FB page, Vincent Smith: Writer, Scholar, Gentleman, for more musings from the dark corners of the internet. Plus the occasional cat photo.

REVIEW: WE ARE CALLED TO RISE by LAURA McBRIDE

Las Vegas is not a setting that intrigues me. Nor am I a big fan of stories that document terrible events for individuals, especially for children. I would have set this book aside if I wasn’t writing a review and that would have been a mistake.

I cried at the end. I was enthralled with the author’s character development. McBride crafts four characters who don’t appear to be connected to each other. As their individual stories unfold, all of them dramatically, the connections are woven together with great sensitivity and a realistic eye to human nature’s joys, sorrows, and foibles.

There are two underlying storylines: cultural isolation as seen through the eyes of a 10 year old Albanian boy whose parents have no community connection; and two Iraq war veterans, each left with emotional and/or physical challenges that severely  impact how they make sense of returning to their Las Vegas worlds. Various supporting characters that develop the entwining stories include a caring school teacher, an insightful principal and a court appointed special advocate.  

The tension grows as the individual stories deepen and merge. Towards the end of the novel a character states: “But if, sometimes, an unspeakable horror arises from the smallest error, I choose to believe that it’s possible for an equally imaginable grandeur to grow from the tiniest gesture of love. I choose to believe that it works both ways. That great terror is the result of a thousand small but evil choices, and great good is the outcome of another thousand tiny acts of care. “

To enhance the read, I would have liked further editing in the early part of the novel as the various roles are introduced. I felt confused, at times, about their potential co-involvement which caused me to flip back and forth to see what I might have missed.

In addition to the entertainment of being engrossed in a world crafted by a talented writer, I appreciated standing in the shoes of people so very different from me in culture, age and upbringing. As a result, I feel better able to appreciate some of the challenges of those living in different contexts from mine. I have deepened my understanding of the trials for young veterans returning from recent war horrors. I feel more inclined to read novels that are outside my comfort zone.

Laura McBride’s first novel is an amazing accomplishment. 

Jennifer Mackie has lived in Guelph for  over 40 years, is a business consultant with never enough hobby time for reading, sports, online puzzles and quilting. She reads for entertainment and to discover the world of ‘curious’. Along with finding value in the story, she enjoys experiencing different writer’s styles and methods for how they entice one into their made up worlds.

REVIEW: ANIMAL MADNESS by LAUREL BRAITMAN

When I was sixteen, and trying to determine what to do with my future I found the answer in a book called When Elephants Weep, by Jeffrey Moussaieff Masson. This book convinced me to go into zoology, with a particular focus on the presence of emotion in animals. While my specifics in the field of zoology may have altered a little, I always love to read about this topic. Laurel Braitman has written an approachable, emotionally-driven novel to try to show that animals have emotion.

Braitman uses a wide array of animals from whales to parrots and dogs to elephants, to show examples of emotion being present in animals. The amount of travel and study this author put into her novel is astounding. The back of the book includes a 50ish page reference list, and she spoke to hundreds of scientists to learn new things and find out more about the topics she already did know. She also took the reader through history, to see how people and animals worked together in the past, and if there was ever any evidence for emotion throughout time.

The story starts on a sad and personal note for the author, and I`m very impressed with the way she moved on with her life in a positive way, to determine why that traumatic event happened and how it could have been prevented. Many people would have broken down after that event. Braitman`s writing technique allows the readers to truly feel every emotion throughout the book; there were chapters where I would cry, laugh and sit there goofily beaming all within a few pages. 

I think any animal lover, pet owner or anyone remotely interested in psychology or animals (including humans) should add this book to their bookshelf immediately! When Elephants Weep may have been the first book that interested me in this subject, but in my personal opinion, Braitman managed to write a beautiful, easy to understand read that will always have a place in my heart. 

Wesley Wilson is a zoology student at the University of Guelph and works on campus at a microbiology lab. When Wesley isn’t studying away, she spends most of her time reading. Anna Karenina is her favourite book, but she enjoys reading a variety of different genres.  

REVIEW: THE QUICK by LAUREN OWEN

Let me come right out and say it. With no build-up, no preamble, no lead-in, here are my thoughts on this book: It's great. I mean it. The Quick is really, really good. It's hard to believe it's a debut novel. It doesn't read like one. It doesn't even read like a book. It reads like a song, a poem, a welcome intrusion into the depths of heart and mind that resonates right down into your soul

And yet, for all the praise I heap upon it, the main draw factor about this novel is that it is so very, very dark. It's negative, it's cynical; at times it is also horrifying and despondent. Lauren Owen quickly proves herself to be an author who allows her characters no happiness, no chances at redemption. The moment a character is given one positive happenstance to enjoy, it is swiftly crushed in the following pages. Just when you think the characters have been punished enough, more and more tragedy is thrown at them until it is almost as difficult for the reader to bear as it must be for the characters themselves.

The book is set in 19th century London, and chronicles the life of James, a would-be poet struggling to make end's meet in the smoky, industrial city. At first his life seems a success: he grows up in a charming house, falls in love, begins to write a poem. Then, one day, he vanishes. This leads his sister, Charlotte, to make a journey to London in search of him. There, she finds herself amongst a ragtag group of characters, each with their own complex histories and stories (and more than one destined for unbearable tragedy). She does, eventually, manage to find James... But it's not the happy ending one would expect. To say anymore about the story would only spoil the surprise for future readers, so I shall end on this note.

To conclude, if you are one of those who dream of sunny afternoons spent in contemplation of a pleasant book, perhaps relaxing out on the deck in the warm wind, a cup of tea at your side, then this book is not for you. If, however, you are someone who wants a book to grab you, that hooks you with its claws and never lets go, that you will devour endlessly through dark nights and summer storms, then this is definitely one you should add to your wish-list. Happy reading.

Robert Green is a confirmed bibliophile and aspiring writer whose love of sci-fi has caused him to own many more books than he has physical room for. He is also the owner and creator of the up-and-coming company Verity Books, which can be seen at various cons throughout the year. Any questions or comments can be sent to veritybooksanddvds@gmail.com or facebook.com/veritybooksanddvds.

REVIEW: TASTEMAKERS by DAVID SAX

David Sax’s newest report on the wondrous world of food explores the rise and decline of food trends that captivate the media, doctors and dieticians, food producers, and, most importantly, our appetites. Sax introduces his book with a discussion of our recent obsession with cupcakes and appropriately ends with just a few quick notes on the affects of food on our health, which would be hard to completely avoid in a nonfiction text devoted entirely to food itself. While most current food-centered books focus heavily on the dangers of bacon to our waistlines or the health benefits of chia seeds, Sax makes it clear that his book aims to look at food without creating guilt or gently pushing the reader towards a “healthier” lifestyle because he simply avoids, for the most part, making any association between food trends and obesity.

And what a relief. The ultramodern approach of speaking about what we eat and not providing some kind of diet counseling lets the reader focus solely on the topic at hand and allows them to appreciate Sax’s careful and detailed study of society’s fascination with food and why we eat what we eat. The book is divided into three parts, the first of which describes the four types of trends, including the “sexy” trend like the aforementioned cupcakes that spiked our interest because of their visual appeal and the fact that popular female characters on TV enjoyed them, too. The influences of the farmer, the chef, and the many self-proclaimed nutritionists are likewise examined in Part I, and Sax’s personal interactions with each participant in this sequence lend credibility to his analysis.

In Part II of The Tastemakers, the author studies the most intriguing aspect of food trends, which is how they come to be, so naturally and seamlessly, a part of our lives. Sax challenges the notion that there’s no formula to the rise of a food trend by unveiling the setting of the corporate food company board room where mass data collected on consumers’ interactions with food is meticulously considered before the company in question develops a new product. A food-themed Oscars event and the subsequent appraisals from critics alongside devious marketing ploys that can turn an ordinary red apple into a Prince are also influential in the admittance of food to the “cool table” where we ravenously devour the next big thing as though we’ll never see it again (ahem, the cronut).

In some cases, Sax points out that we might in fact not be able to buy our new, favourite treat forever as Part III of the text discusses the demise of food trends like fondue, whose specialty utensils now collect dust in many pantries and cupboards. The politics of food trends are another interesting aspect of Part III as Sax throws himself into the war-torn world of food trucks and municipal legislation that threatens their existence.

The Tastemakers succeeds because its language is clear while its ideas are compelling, in the sense that Sax helps us understand why we like what we like without relying on complex psychological analyses or newfound theories about the effects of the leptin hormone on our desire to eat. Yes, we love food, but we’re also prone to marketing strategies and pretty labels and GMO Free accreditations. The human diet is conceived both from our bodily needs and the society around us that directs our appetites based on our history of interests.

This book is not a call for change to your lifestyle or to the way food is made. It is however a well-written and hard-to-put-down study about delicious, innovative, and sometimes healthful things at your grocery store or on the street corner or in that new café that you and everyone else wants to put in their mouths. The Tastemakers is absolutely worth reading, and considering.

Alicja Grzadkowska is finishing up her final semester at the University of Guelph before moving on to study Journalism at Ryerson in the fall. Her bookshelf is stacked with yet-to-read fiction titles, which hasn't stopped her from regularly adding to her collection. Traveling to big cities across North America is another one of her obsessions, and one which she hopes to indulge in again this summer.

REVIEW: BIRDMEN by LAWRENCE GOLDSTONE

Why are we fascinated by pilots? That’s the question Birdmen explores while examining the literal ups and downs of America’s earliest aviators. It was also the question that I was trying to answer in my personal life at the time, since I was actually dating a pilot while reading this book. Aviation still has a huge hold on our imaginations; although as we discover in Birdmen, today’s pilots pale in comparison to both the glamour and tumultuous risks of the first flyers.

Lawrence Goldstone’s non-fiction saga focuses on the famous Wright Brothers and their rival of choice, Glenn Curtiss. However, Birdmen also recounts the tragic fates of countless enthusiastic young aviators who plummeted to their deaths performing death-defying spins and dives. Horrifyingly, the vast majority of these young pilots paid for these acts of fearless defiance with their lives. However, what is really sickening is discovering that scarcely a century ago ravenous audiences at airshows resembled bloodthirsty spectators at a Roman amphitheatre. They would egg on these ambitious young fliers, only to see them crash. Far from mourning these heroic adventurers, crazed fans would leap over and steal every scrap of morbid memorabilia left, sometimes even before the pilots were dead. It was a shocking world, filled with amazing showmanship and equally terrifying spectators.

Perhaps aviation has always been and always will be prone to disaster. During the reading of Birdmen, my relationship with my pilot derailed. The mysterious Malaysian Airlines Flight 370 also disappeared during this time, leading me to discover that a passenger of the previously doomed Air France Flight 447 flight was also alumni of my high school. It’s all a chilling reminder that no matter how eagerly we take to the skies, even today the skies are still a fascinating yet dangerous place to be.

--Mike Fan

REVIEW: NO RELATION by TERRY FALLIS

What does it mean to follow your destiny? Or to figure out what your destiny is? Or to establish whether, in fact, you actually have something that could, for all intents and purposes, be described as destiny?

These are the questions posed in Terry Fallis' new novel, No Relation. Well, actually, they aren't really posed. But they are explored, and in detail. They form intersecting pathways that are approached from numerous angles, and with a level of humour and insight that is channelled by few other Canadian authors.

Terry Fallis is probably best known for his political humour, as exemplified by his debut novel, The Best Laid Plans—most recently serialized on television—and its sequel, The High Road. No Relation has nothing to do with Angus McClintock, Ottawa or politics. It has a great deal to say, however, about purpose, meaning, family, love, friendship, misunderstanding, connection, corporate intrigue and what it means to grow up with a famous name. If that doesn't entice you to pick up the book, then you may be interested in tomes on practical taxidermy or competitive flower pressing. I just won't be reviewing those.

No Relation is the story of Earnest Hemmingway, no relation. It is also the story of Marie Antoinette, Mahatma Gandhi, Mario Andretti, Professor James Moriarty, Diana Ross and Jackie Kennedy, among others, all ordinary people with extraordinary monikers. An aspiring author whose professional career as a copywriter has been less than fulfilling, Hemmingway is haunted by a familial obligation to assume the helm of the family underwear business. He also firmly believes himself to be tormented by the sparse prose and outsized countenance of the ghost of his namesake. In an attempt to tackle head-on the writer's block he attributes to the spectral shenanigans of the bull-fighting, cat-loving, shotgun-toting ghost of Ernest Hemingway, Earnest Hemmingway (no relation) embarks on the Ernest Hemingway Exorcism World Tour. A week-long around-the-world odyssey exploring all things Papa, Hemmingway finds himself in Toronto, Paris, Pamplona, Key West and Ketchum, Idaho. All the while, intrigue and artifice are the order of the day at Hemmingwear, the family firm.

No Relation is a departure from Fallis' earlier novels. Shifting from politics to Papa, and from parliament to (in part) Paris, Fallis has nonetheless produced a compelling and entertaining book. His characters are multi-dimensional, and are presented as being in equal parts hilarious, humble and humane. His comedy is subtle, while his empathy is profound. Fallis has taken the seemingly simple construct of ordinary people with famous names, and spun from this initial premise a tale that is delightful, absorbing and intriguing. He is a highly visual writer, and one can readily see the story being adapted to the screen. At the same time, the writing is entertaining and engaging, and the dialogue is often wry and witty, but is nonetheless refreshingly realistic.

For anyone that has enjoyed Fallis' previous books, you should love No Relation. The book also deserves (and will hopefully find) a much wider audience. It is funny, it is engaging and it is exceptionally well crafted. Fallis takes initially simple and straightforward premises and interweaves them into an intriguingly complex plot. The result is a tale that will absorb you, inspire you to laugh out loud, surprise you, but ultimately leave you satisfied. It's a wonderful book that should go to the very top of your summer reading pile.

Mark Mullaly is an avid reader, sometimes writer, enthusiastic motorcyclist and lover of wine (and endeavours to engage in only one of these pursuits at any given time).