Time and Again - Clifford D. Simak - reviewed
reviewed by CR:
"I have no morbid fear of death, nor any sentimental wish to gain the brief immortality that a thought accorded me after I am dead may give me, for the thought itself will be a fleeting one and the one who holds it himself will not have too many years of life, for the years of man are short...far too short for any perfect understanding of any of the problems a lifetime poses." from "Time and Again"
To be honest if you told me this story concerned a space traveler in the 80th century returning to Earth after 20 years from a mysterious 'closed" star system it would not particularly entice me to rush out and purchase a copy - if one were available that is. To compound my reluctances I'm informed that the author include a caboodle of props, conventions, and terminology - robots, time travel, and aliens - in order to be published under the "science-fiction" banner. It is remarkable that Simak could employe these inane plot elements to create a startling entertaining story with some poignant metaphysical ruminations. Then again, Simak was a dedicated craftsman laboring in a field with an overabundance of hacks. His "real" career was as a journalist, which could only help his narrative skills.
There is more to this story that meets the eye. It is apparent to this reader that Simak had some strongly held personal ideas he wished to share with an audience but not in a newspaper article. Asher Sutton returning from his mission to 61 Cygni where he died. He returns in spacecraft that is inoperable, has no air or food. He is obsessed with writing a book that will change the course of human history. Take the name of the protagonist Asher Sutton. In rabbinical literature "Asher" is regarded as the example of a virtuous man who with singlemindedness strives only for the general good. Talking to an old eithics professor friend he, Asher, ask: "Have you ever felt," asked Sutton, "as if you sat on God's right hand and heard a thing that you knew you were never meant to hear?" Interesting ruminations for a 1950's SF novel I'll say.
A character, a relative of Asher, ruminated on death:
"I have no morbid fear of death, nor any sentimental wish to gain the brief immortality that a thought accorded me after I am dead may give me, for the thought itself will be a fleeting one and the one who holds it himself will not have too many years of life, for the years of man are shot...far too shot for any perfect understanding of any of the problems a lifetime poses."
Asher mediated on nature:
"The water was warm against his body and it talked to him with a deep, important voice and Sutton thought, it is trying to tell me something, as it has tried to tell the people something all down through the ages. A might tongue talking down the land, gossiping to itself when there is no one else to hear, but trying, always trying to tell its people the news it has to tell. Some of them, perhaps, have grasped a certain truth and a certain philosophy from the river, but none of them have ever reached the meaning of the river's language, for it is an unknown language."
This book is highly recommended - possibly Simak's best, or al least one of his best.
Clifford D. Simak (1904-88) wrote 26 science-fiction novels of which "Time and Again" was his second, published in 1951. For some unknown reason it's first paperback publication was titled "First He Died"- Dell 1953. All subsequent editions were titled "Time and Again" with the last publication being in 1993.
Time and Again - Clifford D. Simak - reviewed
reviewed by CR:
"I have no morbid fear of death, nor any sentimental wish to gain the brief immortality that a thought accorded me after I am dead may give me, for the thought itself will be a fleeting one and the one who holds it himself will not have too many years of life, for the years of man are short...far too short for any perfect understanding of any of the problems a lifetime poses." from "Time and Again"
To be honest if you told me this story concerned a space traveler in the 80th century returning to Earth after 20 years from a mysterious 'closed" star system it would not particularly entice me to rush out and purchase a copy - if one were available that is. To compound my reluctances I'm informed that the author include a caboodle of props, conventions, and terminology - robots, time travel, and aliens - in order to be published under the "science-fiction" banner. It is remarkable that Simak could employe these inane plot elements to create a startling entertaining story with some poignant metaphysical ruminations. Then again, Simak was a dedicated craftsman laboring in a field with an overabundance of hacks. His "real" career was as a journalist, which could only help his narrative skills.
There is more to this story that meets the eye. It is apparent to this reader that Simak had some strongly held personal ideas he wished to share with an audience but not in a newspaper article. Asher Sutton returning from his mission to 61 Cygni where he died. He returns in spacecraft that is inoperable, has no air or food. He is obsessed with writing a book that will change the course of human history. Take the name of the protagonist Asher Sutton. In rabbinical literature "Asher" is regarded as the example of a virtuous man who with singlemindedness strives only for the general good. Talking to an old eithics professor friend he, Asher, ask: "Have you ever felt," asked Sutton, "as if you sat on God's right hand and heard a thing that you knew you were never meant to hear?" Interesting ruminations for a 1950's SF novel I'll say.
A character, a relative of Asher, ruminated on death:
"I have no morbid fear of death, nor any sentimental wish to gain the brief immortality that a thought accorded me after I am dead may give me, for the thought itself will be a fleeting one and the one who holds it himself will not have too many years of life, for the years of man are shot...far too shot for any perfect understanding of any of the problems a lifetime poses."
Asher mediated on nature:
"The water was warm against his body and it talked to him with a deep, important voice and Sutton thought, it is trying to tell me something, as it has tried to tell the people something all down through the ages. A might tongue talking down the land, gossiping to itself when there is no one else to hear, but trying, always trying to tell its people the news it has to tell. Some of them, perhaps, have grasped a certain truth and a certain philosophy from the river, but none of them have ever reached the meaning of the river's language, for it is an unknown language."
This book is highly recommended - possibly Simak's best, or al least one of his best.
Clifford D. Simak (1904-88) wrote 26 science-fiction novels of which "Time and Again" was his second, published in 1951. For some unknown reason it's first paperback publication was titled "First He Died"- Dell 1953. All subsequent editions were titled "Time and Again" with the last publication being in 1993.