Bernard Beckett

This book was more philosophy than dystopia or science-fiction. I found it strange, though intriguing for the most part.

This entire book takes place through an interview, which was a novel approach. Anaximander is interviewing for the Academy, which isn't just a place of study. People prepare for these interviews by becoming experts in one particular subject area. As such, Anax talks, prompted by the examiners, about Adam Forde and one of the first artificially intelligent machines, this one show more called Art.

I really enjoyed this set up. In a way, it felt like a podcast or a lecture, and it heightened the tension as Anax was under so much pressure. The examiners prodded her to get more complex answers from her and to encourage her to explain her reasoning.

Anax had supposedly different views on the series of events Adam Forde had been part of, radically different views, and she supported these through making holograms based on real dialogue transcriptions from Adam and Art.

Though we didn't see much directly about Anax, I felt like I got to know her through seeing how she interpreted events differently from those who came before her. She was also the type of person to watch the sunset every day, which makes her a kindred spirit. Her relationship with her mentor was additionally fun.

I loved the ideas presented in this book, especially when Beckett talked about the idea of Ideas being as much a force as humanity. The ending was a lovely plot twist that added dimensions to this book.

For those looking for something philosophical, this book will get you thinking about humanity and how we perceive the world. show less

Intriguing, thought-provoking, entertaining, fast-paced--what more would we want from a novella? The less you know about the plot going in, the more you'll enjoy your experience, especially the jarring end. While it is classified as science fiction, it is more in the realm of The Giver and 1984 with echoes of Socratic discussions. The plot hums along as ideas are treated like tennis balls on a fast court. For the reader, it's like watching a champion match at Wimbledon, to torture that show more metaphor further--polite but intense and determined.

The format of a teenage girl undergoing an oral examination to enter The Academy, THE elite institution of this society, allows a retelling of the history of this post-apocalyptic world. Sound dry? NOT. It's more like the dance of the 7 veils, because you think you can see through to the ultimate image but with each reveal comes a shape-changing surprise.

Because this is a novel of ideas, it begs to be discussed and it would be especially interesting to share with 'sentient teens' if you're lucky enough to know any. A great choice for book groups, school discussions, family vacations. I really enjoy being forced to question basic assumptions, and the aptly named Genesis does that in a increasingly challenging manner, but it never forgets to entertain, and occasionally, force a brief hoot of laughter to escape.

Stop reading reviews, and go read the book. show less

## Spoiler-free

It's been almost three weeks since I finished this book, and every time since then that I sat to write down something about it (which admittedly wasn't quite often), I would stare at the blank page, and feel unequipped to do the book justice yet. I didn't have the right words for it yet. Tomorrow I'll try again, I told myself, more times than I can count, was it procrastination? I am not sure. But here we are, I have finally managed to try to put my thoughts and feelings about show more this book into words (I want to say on paper but as you can see....)

Let me start by trying to describe the book first, without giving away anything that might potentially hinder the reader experiencing the book in it's entirety. The book starts with Anax (Anaximander) going into 'The Academy' to take part in an oral examination (I had pre-exam jitters!!) on a topic of her choice, to enter the said Academy. The Academy is said to be one of the most prestigious institutes in the Republic. Some people may bristle at how much the world is borrowed from Philosophical works, specifically Plato's Republic, but I was, am quite ignorant here, probably having lived under a rock most of my thinking life, and hence haven't read or heard much about Plato's Republic, a shortcoming on my part really, but it in no way hindered my understanding or enjoyment of the book, at least I think so, but then again to quote the book itself

> You think you're the end of it, but that's what thinking is best at: deceiving the thinker.

As the examination progresses, so does Anax's understanding of herself, of the Subject she had chosen to study, and most of all why she had chosen the subject at all. We get to take the journey with her, and a subtle theme I found weaved throughout the book was, 'Pay attention to what you pay attention to.' There were of course more overt themes examined i.e. what it means to be human, is pure thought something we should strive for, would a world populated by beings of pure thought and no emotions or empathy be rational as one would expect it to. Another quote from the book that stands out in this regard is:

>Are you saying a society wracked by plague is preferable to one wracked by indifference?

Give this a read, if you want to follow a more introspective journey, of the Anax trying to understand herself , of trying to understand why she sees the world the way she does and much more. I also feel compelled to mention this was quite a short book, as books go, but in no way was it lacking on ideas, or lingering thoughts. As Adam said when trying to explain what made him human:

>"I am not a machine. For what can a machine know of the smell of wet grass in the morning, or the sound of a crying baby? I am the feeling of the warm sun against my skin; I am the sensation of a cool wave breaking over me. I am the places I have never seen, yet imagine when my eyes are closed. I am the taste of another's breath, the color of her hair. "You mock me for the shortness of my life span, but it is this very fear of dying that breathes life into me. I am the thinker who thinks of thought. I am curiosity, I am reason, I am love and I am hatred. I am indifference. I am the son of a father, who in turn was a father's son. I am the reason my mother laughed and the reason my mother cried. I am wonder and I am wondrous. Yes, the world may push your buttons as it passes through your circuitry. But the world does not pass through me. It lingers. I am in it and it is in me. I am the means by which the universe has come to know itself. I am the thing no machine can ever make. I am meaning."

This book lingers. And that's the highest compliment I can give the author. show less

Set in a post-apocalyptic world, this story is told through the main character's oral exam for entrance into an exclusive academy. We learn the history of her society as she explains her interpretation of a key event in their history to her examiners. Has a twist (which I figured mostly out beforehand), which I am a little "Hmmm" about, but the most interesting part about the story to me was the way Beckett got it on the page, the way he slowly revealed information about the society he'd show more created. Recommended. show less