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The Forever War
The latest book I've taken out of my "read pending" queue is The Forever War, by Joe Haldeman. Its credits include the Nebula Award in 1975 and the Hugo Award in 1976, and being considered one of the classics of the genre.
This is a fairly short science-fiction novel (250 pages in my mass-market paperback copy), dealing with the main character William Mandela, a young physics student drafted into the UN-controlled space army when war breaks out against the Taurans, an alien species we at first know nothing about (I'll purposefully avoid getting into a detailed discussion of the plot).
The novel is told to us from Mandela's viewpoint; Mandela narrates everything that happens in a very easy to read colloquial style, with an exquisite attention to details; the short chapters the book is divided in makes it a breeze to read -- a weekend in my case (and I'm no fast reader).
The Mandela character is well constructed, and his account reads like a friend telling you the story of his life. There are other characters that barely appear in the novel, yet they also feel properly written. The plot is simple and direct, with just a couple of nasty turns at key points in the story (you'll know them when you see them).
This description may remind some people of Heinlein's Starship Troopers: young guy (Mandela/Rico) enters the army, goes through a training period, goes to war with an unknown species, kicks butt and all that. Actually, that superficial description is where the resemblance stops: the way Mandela and John Rico get into the army is distinct, the training period is quite different, the aliens have nothing in common; both novels focus mainly on different stuff, and the few common themes are treated differently. If you expect this to be a Starship Troopers clone, you'll be surprised.
Surprisingly, the treatment of science isn't -- very detailed. There is enough of it to dismiss claims of this being a war novel simply translated into a SF setting (even if the author's acknowledged that the novel deals with his experiences in the Vietnam war), but hard-SF zealots might be disappointed.
All in all, this was a very enjoyable read, and I highly recommend it. I've voted 9 for this novel in the Top100SF.
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I also heartily recommend Haldeman's other "Forever" books: Forever Peace and Forever Free. They're not quite sequels (well, Forever Free is but it's set much later), but they give you the same sort of fantastic experience as The Forever War.
Some of my top sci fi picks of all time. They're on my shelf next to Ender's Game.
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What made the novel truely disturbing was the alienation that the soldiers experienced upon returning home.
Because they travelled at the speed of light, a tour that lasted a year could mean that hundreds of years had passed back on Earth. The accepted norms and values of society had changed remarkably, and the soldiers had to try to adapt.
I suppose this alienation parallels the experience of Vietnam veterans, as Haldeman openly mentions that the book is really about Vietnam.
The Forever Peace, which has nothing to do with the Forever War, but is none-the-less a great book.
It's awful strange to have the central plot device be the theory of relativity - the fighters' biggest problem is running into enemy ships from a non-dilated timeline that are centuries ahead of them in weaponry! The characters are not very well developed in my opinion. The women our hero sleeps with seem utterly interchangeable, and nobody really learns anything or changes much. Par for the course in a sci-fi military novel where people die off through random accidents all the time, I suppose. Remember when all the futuristic books (e.g., this one and Stand on Zanzibar - highly recommended) assumed marijuana would be legalized by the 1990s? Also, the ending is nice & a little bit of a political comment.
This shouldn't be too surprising, as Haldeman was a physics major. More information about the author can be found at his website.
The Forever War has been called an "answer" to Starship Troopers. The main contrast between the two is that Rico volunteers, as does everyone else, for federal service, whereas Mandela is drafted. Rico knows his war to be just, whereas Mandela is never sure. Rico also revels in the destruction of the enemy of his own accord, while Mandela is forced to a bloodlust via post-hypnotic suggestion. Basically, Starship Troopers justifies its war by portraying an underestimated enemy that is ruthless, while the plot of The Forever War hints at the notion that it is mostly xenophobia and economics that drives the conflict. Rico grows to be eager to fight, of his own volition, while Mandela is coerced at every turn.
I suppose the over-riding thematic difference between the two would be that Heinlein's work portrays a protagonist that through the process of becoming more mature learns that societal duty is the highest, while Mandela has his cynicism and distrust of the powers that be confirmed.
Actually, Joe snagged the title from old Will S. - it's the last line of the Hamlet "to be or not to be" soliloqy:
And thus the native hue of resolution
Is sicklied o'er with the pale cast of thought,
And enterprises of great pith and moment
With this regard their currents turn awry,
And lose the name of action.--Soft you now!
The fair Ophelia! Nymph, in thy orisons
Be all my sins remember'd.
Which pretty much sums up Joe's book.
Cheers
-bc
> Also, any comparison to Starship Troopers (the book), is merely superficial resemblance.
>
> Johnny Rico, in ST, is the device Heinlein uses to show us the effects of a "limitless war" upon both people and societies, when
> confronted with an enemy so inhuman that they are merely "Bugs" (a device Scott Card has also used and improved upon in
> his "Enders" series).....
> However, in FW, William Mandela IS the story. His POV dominates the entire book (as was Haldeman's intention).
I think you miss an important point here that makes the contrast between the two books both deep & insightful: Heinlein was an officer, & Haldeman was a grunt.
My grandfather served in the First World War in the American Expeditionary Force, where he was injured by mustard gas. According to my mother, afterwards he read a book or two, & complained that these books DIDN'T describe the war he was in. I'm sure at some point Haldeman read Heinlein's book, & not only came to the same conclusion, but found the inspiration to write his own book.
Geoff
P.S. Does anyone else remember the board game ``Warp Wars" from the late 1970's? The creator admitted he was inspired in his time-dilation mechanics by Haldeman's novel.
I think I see a trend here. Maybe for them it really would be easier to muzzle the entire internet than to produce p
Tau Zero, by Poul Anderson, is another book where the time effects of relativistic travel play a central role in the book. It's a great book that deals with the social dynamics of a group in an isolated enviroment (I guess you can't get anymore isolated than a spaceship moving at close to light speed) and the unexpected consequences of close-to-light-speed travel.
What's most remarkable about the book is Anderson's poetic but accurate depictions of the physics of the ship traveling at close to light speed and how that affects its relationship to the rest of the universe. Like Forever War, Tau Zero was written years ago, but it still a worthwhile read.
Anderson does not dumb down the physics either. The title is taken from a term in the equation describing the time effects of space travel.
I don't want to give away the plot development, but Tau Zero is a great book if you are interested in the ideas of groups in crisis and relativity.
evanchik.net
I provided a friend of mine "Forever War" and "Armor" (John Steakly) and recommendation to read "Starship Troopers" as well. The three books are similarly themed (future infantry troopers, using a variety of sci-fi powered armor/weapons).
"Armor" was the book he read twice.
FYI, "Armor" is more of a psyc profile of an indiviual experiencing severe stress and mentally/emotionally breaking down under that stress. Not weepy-teary breakdown, but the inabilty-to-care-anymore kind of breakdown. It is a very intense book.
It's beautifully drawn, similar to Druuna or other high-end euro-comics. As an avid fan of the the novel, I found the graphic novelization to be faithful in tone and characterization, but missing quite a few of the details that made the book one of my favorites. I have it on my "best of comics" shelf with Zot, Watchmen and Maus.
I'm very glad I spent the $27 on the books, and no you can't have them! =)