2 out of 4 stars
Share This Review
Time traveling to the future has always been a topic of curiosity and speculation in books, movies, and discussions. What will the world look like in two thousand years? How will our society change? What will be the role of technology in our lives?
Peter Campo’s fantasy novel, So This Is What Life Is, explores the future of humanity. The protagonist is Henry Bender, an architect who has a penchant for risky adventures. For his last adventure, Henry decides to go parachuting in the Arctic. While snowmobiling through the icy landscape, the ground splits and Henry plunges into a crevasse. Before he can be rescued, the ice seals him shut. When he awakens, he learns that the year is 4047 and he is on an island called Ohganiea. Ohganiea, a thriving futuristic city, is powered independently by a piece of intelligent technology called The Machine. Unfortunately, The Machine controls everything and everyone, except a few special individuals. Since Henry is originally from the distant past, he is undocumented in The Machine’s records which make him the perfect person to defeat this powerful, controlling technology. Does the past contain secrets to save the future? Will Henry succeed in this mission?
Although this book had an exciting start, it quickly became boring. There was a lot of redundancy in the story. Several of the initial chapters hinted at approaching doom and disaster, but when I finally understood what it referred to, I did not feel surprised because the author forewarned me many times before. I also noticed a trend where the majority of chapters were concluded with Henry sleeping, eating, or being told that he needed to either rest or eat. This did not leave me wanting more from the story and at times, I nearly fell asleep. Although Henry was first introduced as an adrenaline junkie, his personality on Ohganiea seemed to have changed. His actions included a lot of observation and dialogue as opposed to taking action, escaping danger, and taking risks. All of these features made the book a chore to read as I felt it could not capture my attention.
I also found it difficult to connect with Henry as a character. At one point in his adventure, he turned to the Bible for answers. He openly agreed with the teachings outlined in this religious text. He also began to teach others on Ohganiea about Christianity in the hope that the future society would understand God, ethics, peace, and love. One of the major flaws in Henry’s character was that although he believed and taught Christian ethics, he had no qualms about having sex with an unmarried woman. Since this act is considered sinful in the Bible, I could not understand his values. His character seemed neither credible nor consistent.
Despite this book’s flaws, the futuristic aspects of Ohganiea were quite imaginative. I enjoyed the author’s descriptions of nutrient-packed biscuits, artificial intelligent healing, and using flying discs as transportation. The idea that humans could create intelligence accurate enough to cater to a human being’s every need and function is incredible. The ability of an intelligence system being able to re-program itself could definitely be possible in a thousand years.
The book did not have many grammatical errors, which I applaud. However, there was a small issue with the formatting as several sentences had line breaks in the middle of them. In one instance, I also noticed that a couple of sentences were typed in a different font. In my opinion, the book should undergo another round of editing to smooth out the formatting issues.
Overall, I would rate this book 2 out of 4 stars. Science fiction and fantasy fans may enjoy this novel. Sex and reproduction are highlighted in this book so it will not be suitable for younger readers.
******
So This Is What Life Is...
View: on Bookshelves | on Amazon
Like KristyKhem's review? Post a comment saying so!
