Book Review: A World Out Of Time by Larry Niven
Jerome Branch Corbell awakens from cryonic freeze to find himself cured of the cancer that had begun to ravage his body two centuries ago. To his dismay, the reason for his cure becomes quickly apparent--his mind had been transferred to an entirely different body, that of a young felon whose memory had been wiped as punishment for his crime.
Corbell quickly finds himself a stranger in a strange land where the only human who speaks English is his caretaker, a harshly detached man known only as Pierce. Corbell must badger Pierce for any information about modern society. Finally, Pierce relents and informs Corbell that Earth is ruled by a merciless governing body known only as the "State" and that they have ordered Pierce to oversee Corbell's training as a starship pilot. His mission: to fly a preset course through interstellar space and deploy canisters containing genetically modified algae onto planets that have been targeted as life-sustaining, thereby planting the seeds for future human expansion.
Corbell need know nothing else about the world. He won't be staying.
However, shortly after leaving the solar system, Corbell changes course and decides to flee to the galactic core, hoping to return to Earth 70,000 years later after the State would likely be long dissolved. No sooner does he reveal his plans than Pierce uploads his consciousness into the ship's computer just before the vessel is out of range. Pierce, revealing his true name as Peersa, attempts to bully Corbell into continuning the State's mission, but fails when it becomes apparent that he must obey Corbell's orders.
Corbell extends his life through long periods in cryonic sleep, but is an elderly man by the time they reach the galactic core. There is no way he will ever see Earth again...or is there? Calculating the result of skirting the accretion disc of a nearby black hole, Peersa indicates that they could return to Earth's solar system, but it would be three million years in the future!
Upon arrival, what they discover is a solar system completely out of order. Planets that resemble Saturn, Earth, and Uranus are far from their normal orbits. Earth now orbits Jupiter! How could the planets have been moved? Corbell and Peersa determine a way to convert an algae canister into a one-way landing craft which would allow Corbell to explore the Earth's surface. Before departing, Corbell informs Peersa that he will be released from Corbell's authority upon his arrival on the surface--dead or alive.
After surviving the descent to the Earth's surface, Corbell remains in contact with Peersa for a short time while he explores what appear to be the abandoned ruins of an advanced civilization and a drastically altered climate. It is not long before Corbell realizes that he is not alone when he is captured by an elderly woman named Mirelly-Lyra who is convinced that Corbell has knowledge of a substance known as "dictator immortality", a solution developed by the State eons ago to extend the life of its leaders.
Mirelly-Lyra reveals herself to have been a traitor to the State who, like Corbell, fled in a starship and returned approximately a century ago. The State no longer existed, but the childlike members of modern society arrested her for treason, tried her based on the laws of her time, and imprisoned with other criminals in a zero-time jail. They had only recently been released.
With no further help from Peersa, who had taken the ship elsewhere in the solar system, Corbell escapes in a stolen air car and flees across the ocean to another continent only to find a bizarre society where former State dictators, also freed from zero-time prison, are ruled by the same intelligent children mentioned by Mirelly-Lyra.
Taken prisoner yet again, Corbell explores this new world with wary wonder. As he learns about Earth's past, will he unlock the secrets of dictator immortality and discover who moved the planets?
Of the three Larry Niven books I read over the past few months, A World Out Of Time was the one of the more enjoyable and imaginative stories. Niven adroitly employed a mix of science and conflict to drive the plot. The relationship between Peersa and Corbell, initially antagonistic then progressively cooperative, was well-developed during their interstellar journey to and from the galactic core. I was fascinated by Niven's vision of a primitive post-war society not only as a consequence of a devastating conflict after the State's fall, but also by the displacement of the planets and the resulting drastic climate change.
I wasn't entirely convinced by the mechanism used to move the planets and there was much detail missing regarding exactly how Earth's society had evolved as a battle-of-the-sexes schism. Overall, though, it was a fun and well-paced read.
Corbell quickly finds himself a stranger in a strange land where the only human who speaks English is his caretaker, a harshly detached man known only as Pierce. Corbell must badger Pierce for any information about modern society. Finally, Pierce relents and informs Corbell that Earth is ruled by a merciless governing body known only as the "State" and that they have ordered Pierce to oversee Corbell's training as a starship pilot. His mission: to fly a preset course through interstellar space and deploy canisters containing genetically modified algae onto planets that have been targeted as life-sustaining, thereby planting the seeds for future human expansion.
Corbell need know nothing else about the world. He won't be staying.
However, shortly after leaving the solar system, Corbell changes course and decides to flee to the galactic core, hoping to return to Earth 70,000 years later after the State would likely be long dissolved. No sooner does he reveal his plans than Pierce uploads his consciousness into the ship's computer just before the vessel is out of range. Pierce, revealing his true name as Peersa, attempts to bully Corbell into continuning the State's mission, but fails when it becomes apparent that he must obey Corbell's orders.
Corbell extends his life through long periods in cryonic sleep, but is an elderly man by the time they reach the galactic core. There is no way he will ever see Earth again...or is there? Calculating the result of skirting the accretion disc of a nearby black hole, Peersa indicates that they could return to Earth's solar system, but it would be three million years in the future!
Upon arrival, what they discover is a solar system completely out of order. Planets that resemble Saturn, Earth, and Uranus are far from their normal orbits. Earth now orbits Jupiter! How could the planets have been moved? Corbell and Peersa determine a way to convert an algae canister into a one-way landing craft which would allow Corbell to explore the Earth's surface. Before departing, Corbell informs Peersa that he will be released from Corbell's authority upon his arrival on the surface--dead or alive.
After surviving the descent to the Earth's surface, Corbell remains in contact with Peersa for a short time while he explores what appear to be the abandoned ruins of an advanced civilization and a drastically altered climate. It is not long before Corbell realizes that he is not alone when he is captured by an elderly woman named Mirelly-Lyra who is convinced that Corbell has knowledge of a substance known as "dictator immortality", a solution developed by the State eons ago to extend the life of its leaders.
Mirelly-Lyra reveals herself to have been a traitor to the State who, like Corbell, fled in a starship and returned approximately a century ago. The State no longer existed, but the childlike members of modern society arrested her for treason, tried her based on the laws of her time, and imprisoned with other criminals in a zero-time jail. They had only recently been released.
With no further help from Peersa, who had taken the ship elsewhere in the solar system, Corbell escapes in a stolen air car and flees across the ocean to another continent only to find a bizarre society where former State dictators, also freed from zero-time prison, are ruled by the same intelligent children mentioned by Mirelly-Lyra.
Taken prisoner yet again, Corbell explores this new world with wary wonder. As he learns about Earth's past, will he unlock the secrets of dictator immortality and discover who moved the planets?
Of the three Larry Niven books I read over the past few months, A World Out Of Time was the one of the more enjoyable and imaginative stories. Niven adroitly employed a mix of science and conflict to drive the plot. The relationship between Peersa and Corbell, initially antagonistic then progressively cooperative, was well-developed during their interstellar journey to and from the galactic core. I was fascinated by Niven's vision of a primitive post-war society not only as a consequence of a devastating conflict after the State's fall, but also by the displacement of the planets and the resulting drastic climate change.
I wasn't entirely convinced by the mechanism used to move the planets and there was much detail missing regarding exactly how Earth's society had evolved as a battle-of-the-sexes schism. Overall, though, it was a fun and well-paced read.
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