4 out of 4 stars
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Of Free Will and Providence by Chip Byers is the story of Chris, an autistic man with a constant need for control and acceptance by others. Over the years, he has created a false image of himself that highly contrasts with his true nature in order to hide his disabilities and fit into society’s standards. However, despite his great efforts, Chris still finds himself alone yet again after witnessing everyone he accustomed himself to move on with their lives – ultimately, leaving Chris behind. The fact forces Chris to take a rash decision and relocate to an orbital satellite, hoping for a fresh start and a sense of stability. It is outside the Earth where Chris’ adventure begins, and he later realizes that there’s more to life than preplanned conversations and tailoring your identity in order to please those around you.
To start off, I would like to point out that the plot discusses sensitive themes such as religion, race, ethics, and sexuality, so readers who pick this book should have an open mind while evaluating the author’s perspective of such topics. Chris’ perception of the world is unique indeed, mainly due to autism and a harsh upbringing. His thought process and beliefs are constantly varying as much as they’re solid which, consequently, make his actions unpredictable most of the time, but never farfetched or out of character. The author took great care in creating Chris’ versatile personality while also ensuring that it's as realistic as possible.
It was mentioned in the summary that the author wishes to erase the stigma behind autistic people and, hopefully, educate the readers about the condition and its varying degrees. For this reason, I think it was extremely beneficial to create Chase’s character, who is Chris’ roommate. He is a lower-functioning, autistic man who has never attempted to fit into society’s standards – unlike Chris. On the surface, both seem completely different from one another. Chase can’t bring himself to face the real world and frequently hides in the stateroom, while Chris is constantly attempting to mimic others’ mannerisms in order to generate smooth conversations and be deemed normal. Their contrasting views and different backgrounds created a rather strange yet insightful dynamic – which further stressed upon the fact that there’s a spectrum beneath the term ‘autism’, other than the known stereotypes, and broadened the scope of the discussion.
What I also enjoyed about the book is the natural flow of the storyline. The author did a fantastic job in explaining and building the futuristic world he created while also maintaining the steady pace of the plot. Of course, some aspects were still a little bit confusing – considering that the plot is set in an orbital satellite – but I think the majority of the story was thoroughly elaborated and well-developed. Moreover, each of the minor characters had a distant personality completely different from the other. Their stories and outlook of the world were definitely fresh, thought-provoking and extremely diverse. It was certainly interesting to read about their various opinions and beliefs.
I found a few typos throughout the book, but they didn’t affect the flow of the story and were very minor. Other than that, the book seemed to be professionally edited and proofread.
For the reasons above, I will rate this book 4 out of 4 stars. One word I found to be very fitting for the whole theme of the book is ‘stimulating.’ The plot itself doesn’t have a solid direction and barely gives you a moment to contemplate the ending, but it's told very skillfully and naturally that I couldn't put the book down until the very end. I absolutely loved the inclusivity of various races and religions, how the author concentrated on the tiniest details in order to showcase a character’s individuality and how this whole universe was crafted in general. I would recommend this book to anyone who’s looking for a clever and profound read.
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Of Free Will And Providence
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