I cannot praise this book high enough. Such a mix of beautiful, baroque language and high tech on a breath-taking scale is really rare. If you like AI concepts or the simulation of personalities in a computer environment including all the options that this offers, this book is for you. But that's not all. As the story unfolds it's less and less clear which side plays which role and how our hero can overcome the obstacles. A true masterpiece. ( )

I cannot praise this book high enough. Such a mix of beautiful, baroque language and high tech on a breath-taking scale is really rare. If you like AI concepts or the simulation of personalities in a computer environment including all the options that this offers, this book is for you. But that's not all. As the story unfolds it's less and less clear which side plays which role and how our hero can overcome the obstacles. A true masterpiece. ( )

The future! ( )

The future! ( )

Unfortunately for John C. Wright, the sci-fi of today must exist in the shadows of its predecessors. Wright has tried to live up to standards set by authors such as Aldous Huxley and Philip K. Dick. He has created a utopian society of the future. He included the initial of his middle name on the cover.

The Golden Age is an NMP: novel of mass production; as potentially dangerous for the literary world as any country’s WMDs for our world. In an attempt to overcome this problem, Wright created another. The horrendous amount of scientific jargon. The reader is mercilessly bombarded with Wright’s habit of displaying his scientific knowledge. Sure, the intricacy of the setting and theme demands some scientific explanation but Wright has gone too far.

It is hard to feel a part of Wright’s world, which is an important aspect of any good story. You should be transported to the fictional world and perhaps haggle for a beard with one of the characters. You simply cannot relate to a character named Nebuchednezzar! No bullshit! Get on your knees in the bookstore and find out for yourself. The scientific jargon and unpronounceable names serve only to inhibit the flow of a good story.

In the end, I do not regret reading this book. It was enlightening – I now know never to read John C. Wright again. But seriously, for what it is – a sci-fi NMP – The Golden Age is worthy. You will never be bored with the myriad of characters and ever changing settings. Some trippy scenes spark a competent reader’s imagination well.

To finish on the best note possible, the concept behind the book – though borrowed from the above authors amongst others – was great. Set 10, 000 years in the future, The Golden Age is a story amongst intergalactic worlds. It is a prediction of what our world could come to be, should it survive our mistreatment of it.

If you’re a sci-fi geek, you’ll love this book. If you’re a pseudo literary critic, steer clear.

This review was originally published in On Dit, the student newspaper of Adelaide University. ( )