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Our Dried Voices by Greg Hickey

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


A dystopian fable of a human colony of the future and one man’s quest to answer questions that no one thinks to ask.

Humanity’s progress has accelerated in recent decades and continues to do so into the future, its population increasing exponentially. While human proclivity for warfare and aggression wipes out large chunks of the population during times of conflict, the population is growing too large to be sustained on planet Earth. Medical breakthroughs and cures for numerous diseases, including cancer and HIV/AIDS, mean that larger proportions of people are living for longer – the only killers being old age and violence. Meanwhile, we continue to suffocate the planet with the by-products and waste from our progress and it becomes clear that sustaining life on Earth is finite. Technological progress has us reaching out farther into the stars; first in unmanned missions, then manned missions, and finally the beginnings of colonisation of another planet suitable for sustaining life. This planet is Pearl. The year is 2325.

So, the stage is set for the action of this particular tale set within the colony of Pearl, presumably many years later. We find ourselves in an apparent utopia – green fields and blue waters, human beings living together in peace and harmony, eating together, sleeping together, like one community. They have no need for money – food, clothing and shelter is provided for them – they live idyllic, simple lives.

But, scratch the surface and quickly you realise this is no utopia for anyone with even the slightest intellectual or emotional capacity. People do not effectively communicate; they do not wonder; they do not question. They have no identity, no individuality; they have no names. There are no friendships, no emotional bonds. Sex is essentially anonymous. This is no true community and family is non-existent.

Inevitably, there are challenges that disrupt the mechanics of the colony. But these are soon resolved and life continues as if nothing has ever happened. But one man remembers. He recognises that a human hand was required to fix the problems, that these heroes took on an identity, but soon quickly disappeared from colony life. The day comes when he, who will come to be known as Samuel, finds himself striving to solve such problems and delving into the hidden mechanics of the colony.

He develops a friendship with another colonist – whom he comes to call Penny. Their relationship is the emotional heart of the story – there’s a sweetness to it like the friendship between children. Together, they continue to address problems facing the colony. But the challenges soon begin to resemble sabotage, the result of deliberate actions by some unseen other. As the danger to life in the colony mounts, Samuel becomes determined to face this manipulative force and discover the truth behind the colony of Pearl.

Once I’d started reading, I didn’t want to put this book down. Packed with multiple ingredients – dystopian sci-fi, intriguing mystery, a growing emotional bond – Hickey has skilfully written a tale of simplicity that simultaneously addresses many thought-provoking and timely themes. Most prevalent is how humanity’s progress can become counter-productive; technology so advanced that the majority of people no longer have use for their brains. Much like the structure of the colony itself, the story can be read on two levels: an enjoyable, breezy veneer, shrouding the deeper revelation that raises moral questions. This is a story that different readers will take different things away from. I thoroughly enjoyed it and hope to read more by Greg Hickey in the future – hopefully, one day, a return to Pearl.

Throughout the novel, I was struck by the story’s fable-like quality – like an Old Testament allusion. ‘Our Dried Voices’ is a glimpse of a possible future – here is the warning, but will the lesson be learned?



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