The Snail on the Slope

The Snail on the Slope by Arkady Strugatsky

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


*** Possible Spoilers ***

This gets 5 stars because it's well written, not because I liked it. I didn't like the ending at all, largely because there isn't one. The book is absurdist fiction somewhat along the lines of Franz Kafka. At the end is an afterward which provides some explanation or at least context for the novel. I have to question whether the need to explain what the reader has just finished is the mark of a good novel but at least it sheds some light on the subject.

In the beginning of the book all seems clear. There is the Administration set high on a cliff and the forest below. The Administration is in constant chaos, a bureaucratic nightmare from which nothing rational can be observed. In the forest is all manner of weirdness frightening to those who form the administration. Plus the authors are Russian so this is a farcical look at the Russian government, right? Well said government certainly interpreted it that way and the book was banned for many years. Possessing a copy was illegal. However the authors claim this interpretation is inaccurate, that, yes, the administration is the government but this is neither a criticism nor a parody. They suggest the absurd is the way of the future, that this is right and proper. Perhaps they had their tongues firmly planted in cheek when they wrote that but who knows.

They argue that the future is not only unknown but unknowable. More importantly it is inevitable. It might be possible to spot current trends that will come to future fruition but it is impossible to either stop, change, or encourage such things. They suggest there exist various immutable historical laws controlling all human destiny. Who knows? They may be correct.

I strongly recommend this book for any writer of fantasy. You may not enjoy reading it - quite possibly won't - but it will provide a creative workout for your mind much like going to a gym and spending time on exercise equipment provides a workout for your muscles.

This book was copy-written in the 1960s. There are elements of society in 2019 that seem to have been built by the work of these authors. Perhaps they were correct - that fundamental historical laws govern and dictate the future.



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