Pastwatch: The Redemption of Christopher Columbus, by Orson Scott Card

Reviewed by: The Goose

…Twenty years after Columbus’ Crusade. What Rome called ‘The Final Victory over the Infidel’. Europe and Asia are on fire as the Tlaxcalan Confederacy storms East. Jeruselum is raised and a Temple to Huitzilopoctli is dedicated with the blood of Europe’s royalty. It could have been…

Science Fiction is SUPPOSED to deal with the future. GOOD Science Fiction takes cultural and sociological issues of today and transposes them into an alien environment so that those issues stand out in STARK relief. Novels that deal with how things Might Have Been are called Fictional or Alternative History. So, what do you call a book that deals with two, count them TWO pasts? One of those being a very strict Historical Fiction and the other being a Wild Alternate History. Plus, THREE Futures. As if that were not enough complexity, there are at least SIX identifiable protagonists. As you can tell, Orson Scott Card’s Pastwatch: The Redemption of Christopher Columbus takes these disparate threads, multitude of characters, and weaves a compelling story of the struggle for Utopia.

Imagine a world just after the Cataclysm. Humanity reduced to a very small fraction of its former size. The technology needed to save the planet (read Homo Sapiens) in the Near Past (read Our Present) is now available in the Near Future. It is, of course, too late. Envision this near future with the ability to View the past and One Person who rages at the fact that it cannot be changed. What happens when these Descendants discover that they are living in a world Not entirely of their making. And what if these people discover the ONE individual who can change it all… Again.

Enough, way too much really. Read it! Decide for yourself.

Card, a consummate writer in the Science Fiction Genre, (See Monkey’s Top Ten List) thouroughly researched the historical, cultural, and scientific data presented in this…Novel. There is even an annotated bibliography. With the usual Card Flare he creates entirely believable Worlds, some past, some present, some future. With the Exception of Ender’s Game this would be his Magnum Opus. The characters are Strong, Real, and create a level of Empathy and Compassion in the reader rarely seen from this type of writer. The ‘What Ifs’ it raises are overwhelming and intriguing. The Alienism of the environment is enough to elucidate the social and cultural issues that Card wishes to explore (See Paragraph 2). Yet, Harry Turtledove would stand in Awe of the Alternate Histories raised in this story.

Go! Read! Reply!
I already know what I think. You tell me what you think!

Mass Market Paperback – 422 pages 1 Mass mkt edition (January 1999) Del Rey; ISBN: 0345424603 ; Dimensions (in inches): 1.11 x 6.85 x 4.22