The Chronoliths

Brooks Peck writes: "The Chronoliths, by the underappreciated* Robert Charles Wilson, is a finalist for the 2001 Hugo Award and Campbell Award. The tale begins in 2021 with the abrupt arrival of the first Chronolith, a 200-foot-high monument of unknown composition that memorializes a military victory. It's dated twenty years in the future. More Chronoliths follow, blinking into existence with explosive force--usually in the centers of cities. Each is grander than the last, and each lauds another victory by a leader who does not currently exist." The Chronoliths author Robert Charles Wilson pages 301 publisher Tor Books rating 8.5 reviewer Brooks Peck ISBN 0812545249 summary Big honking monoliths beam in from the future.

Witness to it all is our narrator, Scott Warden. There's nothing special about this guy. He's no clever scientist, no tough soldier. He's just a computer programmer who happens to be close to the location of the first arrival. After that he's pulled into the Chronolith investigation by a series of seeming coincidences. But where the manipulation of time is involved, coincidence becomes a slippery concept--something his co-investigators are well aware of.

I consider this quiet, unassuming novel to be on the cutting edge of science fiction for this reason: it creates a literary metaphor for our current view (and fears) of the near future. Just as giant, mutant bugs stood for our fear of the bomb in the '50s, the Chronoliths represent our fear of what's just around the corner today. But today we can no longer easily predict what the future holds. Science changes things too quickly--so quickly that we can only say with confidence that we cannot say what the future will be like.

Science fiction writers have devised a variety of means to cope with this threat to their livelihood. Vernor Vinge pulls off a plausible (and excellent) space opera in A Fire Upon the Deep by having the universe limit how far science can progress depending on its location in the galaxy. Other writers retreat to the very near future. The rise in popularity of alternate history stories could be another byproduct of this dilemma.

But in The Chronoliths Wilson doesn't resort to any tricks. The novel is all about the unknowableness of the future, as represented by the Chronoliths themselves: impenetrable, unstoppable, and, most importantly, of our own making.

*Perhaps one reason Wilson isn't as well known as he should be is that his novels are not as strong as his short fiction. The Chronoliths, interestingly, is his first novel written in first-person, the point of view he chose for many of his best short stories including "The Perseids" and "The Inner Inner City."

You can purchase The Chronoliths from bn.com. Slashdot welcomes readers' book reviews -- to see your own review here, read the book review guidelines, then visit the submission page.

Comments

"just a computer programmer"

[DrVxD]

> He's just a computer programmer
Whaddya mean, JUST a computer programmer. Didn't you know that the geeks will inherit the earth?

Re:Review is confusing

[dmarien]

The reviewer allready answered this. Look in the table that precedes the review...

"summary: Big honking monoliths beam in from the future."

Don't know how much more concise it can get... :)

cronolith?

[Sogol]

Cronolith: (noun) any entry in /etc/crontab whose width exceeds 80 characters

Re:Future Dating?

[Anonymous Coward]

**Disclaimer*** I'm not roman but
...you could just carve MXLI on it.

Woo hoo!

[LittleGuy]

The tale begins in 2021 with the abrupt arrival of the first Chronolith, a 200-foot-high monument of unknown composition that memorializes a military victory.

So, the Red Sox finally win a World Series?

Re:Good scifi

[DrVxD]

> The plausibility of these scenarios _actually happening_ is slim to none

So, earth creature, we have succeeded in lulling you into a false sense of security. You will kneel before the might Kr'a,nuth when he comes to take your pathetic little planet. All your chronoliths are belong to us.

Re:F.Y.I

[DrVxD]

> "unknowableness" is a.k.a. uncertainty.
Heisenberg unknowableness principle doesn't have the same ring to it though, does it?

Re:Future Dating?

[mikerich]

And of course there is the opposite effect caused by all the C12 we're pumping into the environment thanks to our use of fossil fuels.

I feel sorry for the radiocarbon dating people.

Best wishes,
Mike.

I didn't read the book or the review...

[errxn]

...but I have to say that "The Chronoliths" would be a cool name for a heavy metal band.

(Sorry for the OT post, but I couldn't resist)

Simple solution.

[blair1q]

Why would two of them appear?

All you need to do after the first one is make your own, saying "Stop spamming our time period!" They're bound to see it and realize their mistake.

That'll stop them.

--Blair

Re:Simple solution.

[Click 0 Nett]

All you need to do after the first one is make your own, saying "Stop spamming our time period!" They're bound to see it and realize their mistake.

Naw, that'll just validate your time zone to them, and before you know it, BAM, you've got ads for 'hot alien escorts' and the like:)

Re:oysters

[merlyn]

It's enough so that you can pull an oyster from the ocean, eat most of the meat, and date the rest as thousands of years old.

Hey, I've been to that oyster bar. That explains it!

Re:Review is confusing

[Jonathan]

But you're right, they both have monoliths

Wouldn't that be multiliths if there is more than one?