Darwin's Radio
Written by: Greg Bear
Review by: Lee Masterson
 

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I began this novel not quite knowing what to expect - the blurb on the back cover tells the reader very little, and the reviews I've seen to date only seem to sing the book's praises, all without telling me what to anticipate. All I knew is that the book was considered exceptional enough to win a Nebula Award.
 
That's a fairly hefty expectation to overcome, and usually a precursor to disappointment.
 
In this case, those praises were on the mark. I devoured this novel in around two days. I simply couldn't put it down! Admittedly, it did get off to a slow start, leaving the reader wondering where all the exposition and detailed back-story was actually heading.
 
The basic gist of the book is humanity itself is pregnant - on the verge of an evolutionary leap, so to speak. The amount of anthropological detail Mr. Bear has gone into makes this work of fiction almost too realistic in its portrayal. It's a scary thought!
 
Darwin's Radio is a triumph of strong characterizations, cleverly crafted plotlines, impeccable scientific explanations without resorting to the infamous "infodump", all pieced together in a very frightening view of our own future-world gone mad.
 
Once Mr. Bear decides to pick up the pace a little, he manages to throw the reader headlong into the storyline, and hurl more information around, until it becomes almost impossible to stop for fear of missing something important.
 
I personally found the resolution of this book a little too reminiscent of Robert McCammon's 80's novel "SwanSong" - a post-apocolyptic tale of humanity-on-the-brink-of-evolution. The use of the "caul" to signify change, and the resultant happy-ending were almost identical, however the novel Darwin's Radio itself stands alone as a great piece of fiction!
 
It's easy to understand why this book was awarded the Nebula * * * * *
 

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Rating Scale:
* * * * * = Un-put-downable, excellent reading!
* * * * = Good value, interesting reading.
* * * = Had potential, but could have been better.
* * = Slow, difficult to read, could have been improved.
* = Imminently forgettable.