By: Tyler Saumur, ORT Times Science Writer
In the second part of this Summer Book Club series, we delve into science fiction novels that are sure to keep you busy this summer.
The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho
Review by: Dr. Jason De Melo
“There is only one thing that makes a dream impossible to achieve: the fear of failure.”
― Paulo Coelho, The Alchemist
Santiago’s journey is an allegory of our own quest to listen to our hearts and find our purpose. Like many journeys, his begins easily enough, but challenges arise and difficult choices are encountered. Setbacks alter his path, but in the end, it is his fear of failure that keeps him from reaching his goals. Perseverance is the truest mark of a graduate student, and in Santiago’s journey we see our own struggle to find joy, happiness and peace as we live to fulfil our own personal legends.
Dune by Frank Herbert
Review by: Joe Walton
Frank Herbert’s sci-fi classic transports readers to a distant future where noble houses vie for power against the backdrop of a galactic imperium. The story follows House Atreides as they take control of the desert planet Arrakis, commonly referred to as Dune. This disturbingly hostile planet is the only known source of ‘spice’—a highly valuable, addictive commodity that extends life, facilitates interstellar travel and requires huge risk to harvest. Spice mining takes place in the south deserts where colossal sandworms threaten attack at any time. Treachery, betrayal and prophecy beset the House Atreides as they struggle to navigate their new home.
Winner of the Hugo and Nebula awards for science fiction, a blockbuster film adaptation will hit theatres this December.
Brave New World by Aldous Huxley
Review by: Tyler Saumur
Brave New World explores the tensions between human nature and a scientific, genetically-engineered society in which social standing is mass-produced in a test tube. Citizens of Huxley’s World State live a drug-addled life of sexual promiscuity, and their own social, physical and intellectual bonds are dictated by eugenics. The highest Alphas to the lowest Epsilons traverse a world conditioned to consume and celebrate community, where individuality, Shakespeare and God are sequestered to reservations. The story follows a lovesick Alpha, Bernard, and a passionate savage, John, who seek to disrupt the status quo.
The Martian by Andy Weir
Review by: Candice Tang
If you love space, science, humour and a do-it-yourself mentality, then this is the book for you. Andy Weir’s 2011 science fiction novel, The Martian, follows an American astronaut stranded on Mars, after a dust storm tears him away from his crew. With no way to communicate with Earth and limited supplies left onboard his spacecraft, the engineer-botanist-astronaut is forced to survive on wits alone. Weir easily switches between highly technical aerospace jargon and the ramblings of a man living in isolation, making the read thrilling from start to finish. If you are not sold on the very first line of the book, check out the 2015 movie adaptation instead.