β Scribed by Piers Anthony
No coin nor oath required. For personal study only.
Sometime in the near future, a lonely boy named Thor becomes attached to a genetics project named Balook. Born from reconstructed genes, Balook is a Baluchitherium , one of the largest land mammals of prehistoric times. When puberty hits Thor and Balook, Balook leads them to their female counterparts--Barb and Theria. Thor and Barb take matters into their own hands, however, after Balook is charged--in an improbable plot twist--with manslaughter. Faithful to the bug-eyed-monster tradition of SF writing, bestselling Anthony (the Xanth series) eschews his customary tongue-in-cheek tone; Thor's instant attraction to Barb, and Barb's prickly personality, hail straight from the stock characterizations of a space opera. Avid science fiction fans may enjoy this broadly done effort, but more discerning readers and followers of Anthony's popular series may be disappointed. Ages 12-up.
Copyright 1990 Reed Business Information, Inc.
Grade 6 Up-- Beware, dear readers, of the book that includes a lengthy rationalization of its troubled publishing history. Take note especially of an author's note like Anthony's that follows, rather than precedes, the story. Although he goes to great lengths to convince his audience that editors bounced this book due to differences in ideological beliefs, readers will find a simpler explanation: it's bad writing. The plot has potential: Thor and Barb, two teenagers in America's near-future, help raise Theria and Balook, two genetically designed prehistoric rhinos. Romance develops for both the rhinos and the kids. When Balook accidently kills a boy who frightens him with a firecracker, Barb and Thor must try to protect their gigantic pets from the wrath of vigilante citizens. Anthony's at his best writing action scenes. Unfortunately, the first half of the book is bogged down with tedious narrative that tells rather than shows what Thor thinks and feels. The love scenes are awkward and naive, in the manner of 1960s sci-fi pulps. But the biggest problem here is that the future described, and its inhabitants, seems almost as prehistoric as the rhinos, in comparison to the adolescent cyberpunks and MTVovites who fill the halls of high schools these days. The illustrations tend to favor static, pretty scenes instead of depicting the action. Thor and Barb look younger in the pictures than in the story, which may turn off older readers. Adult science fiction titles by William Gibson and Bruce Sterling provide more mind-expanding reading. --Cathryn A. Camper, Minneapolis Public Library
Copyright 1991 Reed Business Information, Inc.
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