Tuesday, November 25, 2014

Review: The Book of Strange New Things

The Book of Strange New Things
By Michel Faber
Hogarth October 2014
500 pages
Read for review via Netgalley

The Book of Strange New Things

Peter Leigh is equal parts excited and apprehensive about his new job. He travels to a distant planet to bring Christianity to an alien race. Everything is new and unnerving and he doesn't have the support of his beloved wife Bea who remains behind on Earth. Peter tentatively begins work with the natives and slowly begins to build a relationship with his congregation as they work together and he teaches from "the book of strange new things," as they call the Bible. But all is not well - Bea's letters from home become more desperate as she recounts the terrible events happening on Earth and her fear and depression as she begins to doubt the faith that has always united the couple.

The Book of Strange New Things is a long book but the length of it is necessary for Michel Faber to explore the experience of a new life and the slow transition to normalcy. Peter obviously takes some time to reorient to a new world. His first few days after the ship lands are spent being sick, experiencing new food, and meeting his human companions. He soon discovers that his fellow humans are focused on their jobs and few of them care about the people back on Earth or the things that are happening there. Peter can't imagine ever feeling so little connection to or compassion for the people they have left behind.

Once Peter has acclimated, he is eager to start his work and is driven out to meet his congregation. They greet him warmly and seem eager for his teaching. But Peter quickly hits some roadblocks when he tries to translate the Bible into the Oasan's own language. How does he describe the imagery of Jesus as the Good Shepherd to creatures who have never seen a sheep?

This book is classified as sci-fi, although it is more concerned with humanity than the aliens. What does it mean to be human? How can the human residents of Oasis hold on to their humanity when they are all alone and cut off from their loved ones and the culture of their home? How does Peter navigate between the welcoming Oasan community and his fellow humans who don't seem to need him at all?

Our protagonist often seems incompetent, as if he doesn't really know how to relate to people or anticipate their reactions. This demonstrates so clearly that Bea and Peter are used to working as a team, where each one covers the other's weaknesses. But nothing is as simple as it seems or as easy as Peter and Bea once took for granted. Their relationship, their faith, their understanding of themselves all start to fall apart when they are separated and one succeeds while the other watches her world fall apart around her.

The Book of Strange New Things is both a quiet, beautifully written story and an invitation for the reader to reconsider their closely held ideas about relationships, faith, and humanity. Faber doesn't force answers, but he does raise a lot of questions that will leave you thinking about Peter, Bea, and the Oasans long after you finish this book.

9 comments:

  1. I've been super interested in reading this and hope I can squeeze it in soon! It sounds a little like sci-fi almost in the way that The Sparrow is sci-fi.

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    1. I've seen many comparisons to The Sparrow actually. There's another book to add to my list because I haven't read that one yet!

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  2. I saw the length of this book and was going to dismiss it, but then I read your review and I'm rethinking it. :) Hope you have a very Happy Thanksgiving!

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    1. I think you have to be in a certain kind of mood for this book. It's definitely not a page turner; it's one of those books you immerse yourself in for a while.

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  3. Sounds amazing! It's always interesting to see how different books treat faith - I feel most of the time you see the extreme side of Christian faith but not the day to day part. Look forward to reading this one.

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    1. I think the interesting thing here is to see how Peter and Bea hold on to their faith (or don't) when the things they took for granted change. When everything that bolsters our faith is gone, can we still hold on to it?

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  4. Very well-written review! I've seen this book around and the length doesn't bother me because if I pick up the book it will be on my schedule to review it. I am open to reading books about faiths, any faiths or interpretations of the faithful, if the book intrigues me. I am not a sci-fi fan in general, but I do read a few in particular if it fits my mood. This looks like something I would pick up and read on the side while also reading a quick, fluff book.

    Thanks so much for your thoughts.

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  5. I thought this was quite an interesting book . . . very thought-provoking questions indeed. I really hope this is NOT Faber's last novel, as he has indicated in interviews!

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  6. Oh, this sounds lovely. I really enjoy sci-fi which raises interesting moral questions and I'm always excited to read beautiful writing.

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