October 18, 2008

Book 48: 2061: Odyssey Three

2061: Odyssey Three
Arthur C. Clarke

Clarke returns to his successful and classic Space Odyssey series with this third installment, set a convenient fifty years after the events of the second book and following up on familiar characters and situations from the series. Other than the occasional nod here and there and the general framework in which the narrative operates, however, 2061 can be easily distinguished from its two predecessors. Though it fits seamlessly in to the time frame and general universe of the series at large, incorporating familiar characters, a shared history, and even material from the previous book, 2061 lacks the sense of higher purpose and cosmic destiny that drives the series and makes it so magnificent. The plot is interesting and more than adequate, as is the writing, but as the story glides along without the greater implications readers are accustomed to in the series, it seems increasingly standard. This lack of purpose further handicaps the work when, at the end, the Star Child makes a surprise cameo: instead of seeming like a logical completion to the story, this appearance comes off as a contrived way for Clarke to retroactively insert greater cosmic and series relevance into the preceding plot. 2061 is definitely a novel in the Space Odyssey tradition, but its distinct lack of cosmic scope means that it cannot live up to expectations.

That said, it is still a marvelous work of speculative fiction. Set in the compelling and ever-expanding Space Odyssey future, 2061 takes the world that Clarke has meticulously constructed and expands it in relevant and interesting ways. It is obvious by the middle of 2010 that Europa is the next logical stop for the intrepid astronauts of Earth, and the book's plot is closely linked with the other books thematically and through specific events. Though a couple of chapters get off track, they depict a future vision that is surprisingly realistic in its optimism. Nuclear weapons have been outlawed and Clarke's vision of the development of China (particularly his brilliant skewering of both the one-child policy and the idea that China is a hard-core communist nation in one fell swoop) is eerie as China looms on the horizon as a major global power. Though the revolution of globalization was beginning while Clarke was writing his book, the development of the Internet has led humanity a lot closer to becoming one state than he probably imagined, and because these conclusions seem more like a logical outflow of current events than idle speculation, the book resists becoming outdated in its predictions. Its only really dated prediction is in its references to developments in South Africa, but that country's turbulent colonial and apartheid past makes this vision reasonable enough to escape deep skepticism. Sections of the book describing worldly events are a little distracting from the space-based narrative at large, but Clarke's vision is interesting enough that these diversions are pleasurable and enlightening.

2061 does run into certain construction problems that are more distracting, however. Some of its coverage of future world events appears at random and isn't well integrated into the text at large, and one chapter in particular is interesting but only tangentially relevant to the plot line of a minor, minor character. Additionally, certain elements of the backstory are ill-thought out and explained with an absolute lack of clarity. The end of the book is particularly troublesome as a crucial scene is skipped entirely, completely ruining the pacing of the book and far too easily dispelling tension that had built up through a few previous chapters. The characters that dominate the plot simply take a back seat as Clarke clumsily brings in the Big Picture in the book's final moments, an ending that makes no sense and that blows open a gaping plot hole that contradicts the final warning of 2010, a warning that is echoed and referenced time and again throughout all of 2061. Clarke simply disposes of this, and his major plot threads, at will and makes no genuine attempt to follow up on his excellent sense of character. The ending is enigmatic, sure, but it is too sudden and too unexplained to fit in to the preceding narrative at all except to have its characters allude to recent events. 2061 is, despite its flaws, an excellent work of science fiction that will hold readers' interest as it zooms through the Solar System. Arthur C. Clarke again demonstrates his vast and vivid imaginative powers but is in some ways hampered by the brilliance of his previous work. 2061: Odyssey Three is definitely worth reading for science fiction buffs and anyone who enjoys a good futuristic space story, but be warned that it deviates a bit from the scope and focus of the first two books in the series.

Grade: B+

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