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A review by beaconatnight
To Your Scattered Bodies Go by Philip José Farmer
4.0
To Your Scattered Bodies Go is frequently mentioned as being among the best science-fiction novels ever released. To be honest, it wasn't very high on my own TBR. The premise sounded frankly ridiculous and its 1970s release suggested that it might be too out-there for my liking. I even struggled to properly parse its title.
I picked it up because I came across a beautifully cheap vintage edition (who could resist?). Turned out, it was exactly what I needed. Pulpy, but very intriguing because of its mystery-driven plot and challenging ideas. What surprised me even more than that there even was a plot was the fact that many of the big questions are actually resolved in the cause of the story. This is where genuine science fiction comes in.
Apparently, after you die you wake up at this endless river with all the other people from Earth, including what is from your respective perspective (far) past or in the future. I think the main reason why this didn't immediately drew me in was because I couldn't imagine where the story would go from this starting point. I think the nature of the novel is best captured by the mysteries the protagonist pursues. Here is a best-of.
How have they been resurrected?
Who brought them back to life, and is there a reason why?
Where are they now? What's the nature of their environment? Is there a scientific or a supernatural explanation for their existence there? Will there be a revelation (of the Truth)?
How much time has passed since the early 21st century? How long did it take to create their world?
What will happen to people who die in this afterlife?
Would they be bald forever?
Then there is the strong cultural dimension to their challenge. Fully evolved human beings (well, there are others) must now start from scratch. What kind of society will they be able build? Would they end up with political regimes they deemed ideal (or the lesser evil) in their time? Would there bet those who would exploit others? Would they be able to overcome the prejudices of their day, given that they now have the chance to talk to people from other times and geographic or religious backgrounds?
Naturally, the entire situation poses a very difficult question to religion. It's clearly nothing like the aftermath postulated in the holy books. I loved how now even living in the afterlife puts an end to (perhaps literal) eternal theorizing. There is not even agreement on whether their (new) creators are benevolent or whether they now found themselves in purgatory.
Until now I've only talked of the ideas. I think if you enjoy the book then your enjoyment will primarily stem from how the actual turn of events are interspersed with the explicit pondering of the kind discussed above. Our hero is Sir Richard Francis Burton, a British explorer and adventurer who lived in the 19th century, and I think he was chosen as protagonist as he exemplifies strong opinions of his day while you could still assume that he would be willing to change. He's not a bad man, but born later he probably would have thought differently about some matters.
There are minor characters that are well enough developed and that lead to many interesting conversations. It would be an overstatement to say that you will miss them later on – they leave the main events quite unceremoniously – but they and their ideas are recognizable and relevant to what makes the book what it is. They are even involved in some action sequences that are fun in this pulpy way.
It's certainly amusing how Burton later teams up with Nazi leader Hermann Göring. I think the purpose of the character is much less evident – there certainly isn't any clear form of redemption or anything – but taken from the context in which he lived his historically somewhat accurate personality traits appear more tragic than despicable.
To Your Scattered Bodies Go is really something else, even if it doesn't fully stick the landing in the final act. It's certainly not the big reveals that will stay with you (maybe it was built-up for the follow-ups in the series), but for the unique and novel perspective that it offers.
Rating: 4/5
I picked it up because I came across a beautifully cheap vintage edition (who could resist?). Turned out, it was exactly what I needed. Pulpy, but very intriguing because of its mystery-driven plot and challenging ideas. What surprised me even more than that there even was a plot was the fact that many of the big questions are actually resolved in the cause of the story. This is where genuine science fiction comes in.
Apparently, after you die you wake up at this endless river with all the other people from Earth, including what is from your respective perspective (far) past or in the future. I think the main reason why this didn't immediately drew me in was because I couldn't imagine where the story would go from this starting point. I think the nature of the novel is best captured by the mysteries the protagonist pursues. Here is a best-of.
How have they been resurrected?
Who brought them back to life, and is there a reason why?
Where are they now? What's the nature of their environment? Is there a scientific or a supernatural explanation for their existence there? Will there be a revelation (of the Truth)?
How much time has passed since the early 21st century? How long did it take to create their world?
What will happen to people who die in this afterlife?
Would they be bald forever?
Then there is the strong cultural dimension to their challenge. Fully evolved human beings (well, there are others) must now start from scratch. What kind of society will they be able build? Would they end up with political regimes they deemed ideal (or the lesser evil) in their time? Would there bet those who would exploit others? Would they be able to overcome the prejudices of their day, given that they now have the chance to talk to people from other times and geographic or religious backgrounds?
Naturally, the entire situation poses a very difficult question to religion. It's clearly nothing like the aftermath postulated in the holy books. I loved how now even living in the afterlife puts an end to (perhaps literal) eternal theorizing. There is not even agreement on whether their (new) creators are benevolent or whether they now found themselves in purgatory.
Until now I've only talked of the ideas. I think if you enjoy the book then your enjoyment will primarily stem from how the actual turn of events are interspersed with the explicit pondering of the kind discussed above. Our hero is Sir Richard Francis Burton, a British explorer and adventurer who lived in the 19th century, and I think he was chosen as protagonist as he exemplifies strong opinions of his day while you could still assume that he would be willing to change. He's not a bad man, but born later he probably would have thought differently about some matters.
There are minor characters that are well enough developed and that lead to many interesting conversations. It would be an overstatement to say that you will miss them later on – they leave the main events quite unceremoniously – but they and their ideas are recognizable and relevant to what makes the book what it is. They are even involved in some action sequences that are fun in this pulpy way.
It's certainly amusing how Burton later teams up with Nazi leader Hermann Göring. I think the purpose of the character is much less evident – there certainly isn't any clear form of redemption or anything – but taken from the context in which he lived his historically somewhat accurate personality traits appear more tragic than despicable.
To Your Scattered Bodies Go is really something else, even if it doesn't fully stick the landing in the final act. It's certainly not the big reveals that will stay with you (maybe it was built-up for the follow-ups in the series), but for the unique and novel perspective that it offers.
Rating: 4/5