2009 books

[peteryoung]

44) Adam Roberts, Salt, 2000
Roberts as an author is someone I need to do an almost complete catch-up on, and Salt is the obvious place to start. A human colony on the planet Salt descends into all-out war, with two diametrically opposed societies, the God-fearing, militaristic city of Senaar and the insular and matriarchal anarchy of Als, failing to agree on just about anything, especially after a Senaar incursion to reclaim some 'captive' children. Taking the form of the diaries of both cultures' default leaders as they square off against each other, Salt seems to be a broad study of masculinity, from its potential for passivity to its latent but easily roused predilection for aggression. The two viewpoints are well matched in their complete opposition to each other's way of life, and reading the self-serving memoir of the Senaarian leader Barlei is often like reading the disingenuous self-justifications of an Augusto Pinochet. Both threads culminate unexpectedly with the point of view of the female Senaarian diplomat who was caught between the effrontery of the two sides and whose own naïvety took the skirmishing to a whole new level; it almost functions as a short story in its own right and is by far the most interesting part of the book, giving all the posturing that has gone before a fresh perspective, and is something that tries to evaluate rather shy away from the ugliness of overtly masculine behaviour. Salt's simple structure makes this an easy book to unpack – it has an elegant, possibly Taoist frame (it reminds me of the Hexagram 'Kuai', which suggests a dramatic resolution to a state of tension), so in that respect it also reminds me of Le Guin and might therefore be a useful text to teach from. But while Roberts does go a bit overboard with his occasionally repetitive saline analogies (the planet composed of salt is itself the star of the story) this still falls just short of being a proper planetary romance, as the concerns he addresses are entirely human: almost all characters are unsavoury, and there is a deliberate lack of people to root for. While I'm not sure it's of quite the calibre I'd expect from something that appeared on the Clarke Award shortlist, it nevertheless sticks in the mind admirably, if also uncomfortably.

Comments

[andrewducker]

My main problem with it was the rape. The self-justification of the Al character for it didn't seem to fit in with the anarchist/matriarchal culture he came from at all.

[peteyoung.livejournal.com]

I think that's the problem most people have with Petja, but I think it's significant that he raped Rhoda while outside Als and out in the desert, and also when his feelings of power and revenge against Senaar were beginning to take shape. But yes, he does it in such a casual manner, almost out of a sense of entitlement, that it seems almost psychopathological.

[andrewducker]

It's his lack of understanding that she might be upset that got to me. It was still coming across as "Here is how we do things back home!" rather than "I have no gone mad with rage and sorrow, and am taking my revenge!".

I guess I also enjoyed it more when it was a metaphor for two kinds of societal setup, because I didn't find the people convincing as actual people, but I was happy enough to read it as philosophical argument.