Desolation Road
Sean Lambert, Staff Writer
October 27, 2009
Filed under Arts & Entertainment, Books
Desolation Road by Ian McDonald is his first novel and has won several awards upon release, including best novel of the year (Locus Award). Right from the start, the book has a very interesting ambiance of an old western legend filed with fantastic feats and numerous colorful characters. Set on the dusty red desert of Mars, it starts with Dr. Alimantado sailing over the dunes in pursuit of an elusive Greenperson. A quick twist of fate later, and he is stranded on a small oasis next to shining train tracks. From there the town of Desolation Road grows from the red dust, picking up an incredible manifest of characters brought to this town of happenstance. The number of characters is staggering; however each has their own incredibly memorable and unique personality. From Inspiration Cadillac and his children of “immaculate contraption”, to the greatest snooker player the world has ever seen, everyone seems so deep and alive.
The story is immense but it never seems convoluted or poorly planned; often the contrary. Reading it casually will not usually yield the connections, as most of the action and story takes place in the background. The book is so charming it is hard not to grin constantly while reading; at times it becomes difficult to hold back laughter.
The story, all in all, is a lighthearted science fiction with an incredibly unique style that works perfectly even with the large list of characters.
This sounds like a very interesting book to read! I’m going to check it out. Sean, you continue to write so expressively and with such imagery. It is always a pleasure to read your reviews!
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