Doomsday Book by Connie Willis Summary and Reviews
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Book Reviews of Doomsday Book
Book Review: 1% SciFi, 99% plain fiction
Summary: 3 Stars
I'm VERY surprised this book won the Hugo and Nebula awards. The Science Fiction part of this book is VERY minor. I wouldn't say it's a bad read, but it just isn't really science fiction. Other than the fact that 'Kivrin' timejumps to the middle ages, there is pretty much NO science fiction to it. Even the parallel storyline of her 'contemporaries' dealing with a virulent flu epidemic in 2048 could easily (other than the fact they are able to send people back in time) be set in 2011.
If you want to read a plausible story about what it might have been like to live with an 'upper-middle-class' family in a small village in England when the black death hits, this book is for you. The parallel storyline of a virulent flu epidemic that hits the 2048 timeline is a similarly plausible story of what might happen to us today if a 'strange' flu epidemic hit us. If you're looking for science fiction, I suggest you look elsewhere (if you haven't read the Nights Dawn Trilogy yet, I suggest you check that out!).
Book Review: 4.5-Star title, really hard to find fault
Summary: 5 Stars
This is the first book by this author I have read. She writes a time-travel story while maintaining a present-time plot and thread, which is no easy challenge. Eifelheim, which I read recently, had notable problems with this Then and Now 2-thread structure.
Some spoilers will appear in this review. You are warned.
The NOW thread depends on 2 awkward devices to keep Dunworthy et al in the dark about Kivrin's complication - Gilchrist's incompetence and personality, and (name of the tech who did the drop)'s coming down with the Virus almost immediately after the drop, preventing him from reporting the issues and likely causing the miscalculation in the first place. Basingame has become almost a joke, does the person even exist? Beyond that, discussion of life in near-future England, with quarantines, communication issues, etc., was not very illuminating. The story was apolitical. By the above devices, the author did bind the story to the Then story, with the need to retrieve Kivrin while surviving the virus.
The Then story was a good bit more interesting, with the device of Kivrin not knowing the correct year leading to a number of important misconceptions. The description of the near-absolute lack of understanding of basic hygiene and medical care is accurate (reality may have been worse?), and in any event the black death was really quite bad by all accounts. A major relationship in the story is Kivrin with Roche, but oddly very little comes of it, little dialogue is reported, etc.
Once the Now and Then thread re-merge, the author chooses to use the tactic of simply dropping the curtain without any epilogue. It seemed abrupt, but once I thought about what the author could do for an epilogue, none of the options seemed more effective that simply ending the story with the rescue.
I have noted some quibbles above, but let me state clearly that this was a very enjoyable novel, and that I will read more by this author.
Book Review: 400 pages of British people acting stupid + 200 pages of Black Death
Summary: 2 Stars
This book consists of a 400-page fluff novel about British people being pointlessly and unrealistically supercilious and punctilious, followed by a tragic, intense, apocalyptically dark 200-page novella about the Black Plague.
The novel could have definitely stood to be cut by at least 100 pages, all from the present-day stuff. Eliminating 90% of the side plots about the American bell-ringers, Mrs. Gaddson's 50s-vintage conservatism, William Gaddson's lothario exploits, and nurses demanding that people fill out contact history forms would have done the trick. The premises of the book were highly unbelievable (50% untreated flu mortality rate, cavalier use of time travel), which worked fine for the comedy portions but made the tragedy parts just seem more pointless.
All in all, Connie Willis is a very gifted writer, but if I want unending meticulous descriptions of British people being silly, I think I'd better stick with Susanna Clarke.
Book Review: 600 pages and Nothing Happens
Summary: 1 Stars
Hugo and Nebula????? are you serious???????
I dont know how many people could enjoy this terrible book. 600 pages and nothing happens. Miss Connie Willis never explains anything about how the NET and its paradox work, how can this be?.
Boring, Predictable and a waste of time.
Book Review: A Bit Too Long and Drawn Out
Summary: 3 Stars
Once again, Connie Willis shows how well she researches a book before she writes it. Unfortunately, in this book, it appears she wanted to put too much of her research into it. For the most part, the book is gripping. But, as you get near the end, you start to notice that although your eyes are seeing a lot of words, nothing's really happening. First, in the book's "present," there's really no emotional satisfaction with how things get resolved. Essentially, something happens that allows one of the protagonists to do what he's been trying to do for the last 400 pages or so. Secondly, in the book's "past," you're pretty darn sure what's going to happen, but it takes forever to get there. Also, once it happens, Willis spends far too much time getting to the point where everything comes together. But, I think the biggest disappointment was that she ends the book too early (yes, I know that seems to contradict my "long and drawn out" comment). I can't say too much here, but just a few more footsteps and a couple of conversations to bring everyone up-to-date would have given the ending a better feel. For the most part, I enjoyed the book. But, it's nowhere near as good as "To Say Nothing of the Dog."