TOM’S REVIEW
All head and no heart. That's Ted Chiang's Stories of Your Life and Others. Cerebral, meticulous and challenging, for sure. Original, philosophical and even spiritual, yep. Moving, emotive and poignant, nuh-uh.
If I had one word to describe this collection of seven stories written over the course of twenty years it would be "detached". One of the recurring themes that Chiang explores--you could say it's the primary one--is how language connects not just humanity with itself but also with AI and ETs. But Chiang's lexicon centres on words such as gestalt and logogram and teleological and eunonym and hermeneutics, not exactly quotidian idiom. "Coca-cola, ok" it ain't.
And maybe that's the point. Maybe Ted Chiang is the forerunner of Yuval Noah Harari, describing worlds in which you up your brain or get left behind. Or, if you fall prey to such sloppy sentiment as undying love, an eternity in Hell.
3.77629 stars
Written in the Gatwick departure lounge. Radios, amigo.
No comments:
Post a Comment
Add a comment, review, or rating