Between the Rivers [Hardcover]

Harry Turtledove (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: March 1998

Young Sharur is the scion of a merchant family in the city of Gibil, loyal - he thinks - to his city's god, Engibil, and to that god's human deputies. But like his fellows in Gibil, Sharur is less interested in gods than in progress in invention and trade. Then, on a routine trading expedition, he learns that the gods of the other cities, resentful of Engibil's relaxed attitude toward his people, are uniting to punish Gibil and squelch the growing power of human creativity, epitomized by the city-state's easygoing ways. Now only Sharur's wits can save the city from the aroused divinities...and he's going to need all the inventiveness he can muster.

Editorial Reviews

From Library Journal

When the gods declare war against the city of Gibil, Sharur the merchant's son takes upon himself the task of discovering the reason for their anger. Bolstered by his belief in the ability of mortals to act without the direct intervention of divine powers, Sharur travels beyond the confines of the twin rivers that demarcate his homeland, disseminating his strange ideas of free will and independent thought. The advent of the Bronze Age and its impact on human civilization forms the backdrop of Turtledove's (How Few Remain, LJ 8/97) latest excursion into the realms of alternate history. The author's cadenced prose imparts an epic feel to this tale of humanity's attempt to forge its own destiny. A good selection for most libraries.
Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Booklist

Turtledove turns from the grand scale of his alternate-history novels (e.g., How Few Remain ) to a mythological theme. The living gods of each city and land in a world resembling ancient Mesopotamia intervene in human affairs or even rule directly. Except in Gibil, that is, where the lazy god Engibil has allowed the people to make their own decisions, which has led to the invention of writing, metal casting, and skepticism. For his crime, the other gods are about to descend in their wrath on Gibil. The young merchant Sharur, the city's ruler Kimash, and a foreign thief named Habbazu form an unlikely alliance to steal a talisman that holds the power of the most hostile gods and thus to free Gibil in particular and people in general from the whims of the gods. This new version of the old sf concept of the triumph of reason over faith Turtledove renders excellently, thanks to his customary historical scholarship, narrative gifts, balanced judgment, and dry wit. Roland Green

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 381 pages
• Publisher: Tor Books; 1st edition (March 1998)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0312862024
• ISBN-13: 978-0312862022
• Product Dimensions: 9.3 x 6.5 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.3 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 3.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (24 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #3,174,351 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Harry Turtledove is the award-winning author of the alternate-history works The Man with the Iron Heart; The Guns of the South; How Few Remain (winner of the Sidewise Award for Best Novel); the Worldwar saga: In the Balance, Tilting the Balance, Upsetting the Balance, and Striking the Balance; the Colonization books: Second Contact, Down to Earth, and Aftershocks; the Great War epics: American Front, Walk in Hell, and Breakthroughs; the American Empire novels: Blood & Iron, The Center Cannot Hold, and Victorious Opposition; and the Settling Accounts series: Return Engagement, Drive to the East, The Grapple, and In at the Death. Turtledove is married to fellow novelist Laura Frankos. They have three daughters: Alison, Rachel, and Rebecca.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

7 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Turtledove does it again!, March 7, 1998

By 

S. M Stirling "Steve" (Santa Fe, NM United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

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This review is from: Between the Rivers (Hardcover)

Harry Turtledove's work has certain characteristic strengths -- solid characterization, realistic motivations, good description, and fast-paced action. BETWEEN THE RIVERS adds a witty, intriguing look at the Bronze Age... in a world much like ancient Sumeria, but one where the gods are very real. Turtledove's extrapolations from this idea are solid, down-to-earth and a mixture of the hilarious and the horrific. For as one character says, to be a god you don't have to be very smart -- just very _strong_. His hero's adventures in a world where humans are still -- literally -- as insects beneath the feet of a very solidly realized pantheon are a treat for any reader of SF, fantasy or historical fiction. Highly recommended!

5 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Impressive, July 27, 1999

By A Customer

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This review is from: Between the Rivers (Mass Market Paperback)

I think that Harry Turtledove is a writer of uneven talent. In my opinion, his novels alternate between the brilliant and the banal. Between the Rivers is one of the former.

The core concept of the book, alone, deserves high praise for its innovativeness. Such a high-concept plot, by itself, could make a book worth reading. Turtledove takes the story to a higher level by brilliantly capturing the feel of what it would be like to live in the early bronze age. Under his authorship, he turns what could have been a simple story about simple folk into a complex tale of faith and reason. Most importantly, he shows that, in their own way, the people of that time were extremely sophisticated and that they were undergoing the equivilant of high-tech revolution in their culture.

This is certainly one of the better books that I've read this year and I'm certain that I shall long remember it.

4 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Original fantasy, believable history, March 11, 2003

By 

Janice (Sudbury, ON Canada) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Between the Rivers (Mass Market Paperback)

I teach ancient history and regularly recommend this book to my students as a fun accompaniment to our course. Turtledove's usual meticulous scholarship works wonderfully in Between the Rivers where he creates a believable take on Bronze Age Mesopotamian society (with a fantasy twist, of course). Some idiosyncracies can only be appreciated if you know the history: for instance, the characters' habits of restating key phrases reads just like some early Sumerian texts. There are many wonderful historical tidbits about daily life, dining, business and housing that Harry Turtledove has worked into this book.

That said, this is a historical fantasy and, by giving these cities "real" gods, Turtledove deftly works in the fantasy elements to his story. The conflict between humans and the gods, starting with the people of Gibil and spreading to the other cities (through trade and example) is a bit predictable and the hero's character might seem one-dimensional, but Between the Rivers still makes for a rollicking good read!