Customer Reviews

The Boat of A Million Years

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2 star:		(7)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

"The Boat of a Million Years " is one of the best novels written by Poul Anderson.
It is constructed as a series of short stories telling about immortal people (or almost immortal). The different characters crisscross their ways along centuries and millennia. The outcomes of these encounters are sometimes friendly, sometimes antagonistic; never innocuous.

Poul Anderson show his talent to mix action, drama and humor with deep meditations about meaning of life, ethics, gender conflict, ethnic discrimination and many subjects more. He includes accurate different historical backgrounds for each episode ranging from ancient Greece thru far future.

The story is great; it mainly follows Phoenician seaman Hanno in his eternal quest to find more people like him. He is very special. He never get sick or old, his teeth grows up again when he loose one, he recover very quickly from injuries.
He soon discover that his bless is also his curse. He remains unchanged yet consorts and descents grow old, die and vanish. Neighbors usually react violently to his "witchery" blaming him to practice strange deals with demons.
To evade these circumstances Hanno becomes a master in changing personalities and evading suspicion.
The narrative starts to catch momentum and conclude with a very interesting piece situated in a far future full of new possibilities.

Take a joyful romp thru it, you won't be disappointed!
Reviewed by Max Yofre.

This is solid, if rambling, Anderson fun: scenes from the lives of a small group of immortals as they learn to hide their nature and cope with the natural suspicions of their short-lived compatriots. The oldest is Hanno, a Phoenician sailor, and the youngest is an African-American slave who eventually uses the name Corinne Macandal. The others who make it to the end of book are Aliyat (Syrian), Svoboda (Ukrainian), Tu Shan (Chinese), Yukiko (Japanese), John Wanderer (Native American), and Patulcius (Roman). Agelessness is not enough to ensure long lives, and we meet other immortals along the way, who from carelessness, bad luck, or deliberate choice, don't survive to share the ultimate fate of the eight survivors. Or rather, as they come to be known, Survivors.

Most of the book consists of the adventures the individual immortals in various well-devoloped ancient settings. Hanno joins a Greek expedition to Britain and Scandinavia. Aliyat lives too long in Palmyra while it is changing from a Christian to a Muslim city, and escapes the harem to become a prostitute--in Constantinople for a while, where she briefly meets Hanno, who has become a Rus trader. (Well, Welsh, really, for certain values of "really," but the Byzantines regard him as Rus.) Svoboda, already a great-grandmother, leaves her village before she can be killed for witchcraft, to become a merchant's wife in Kiev (and briefly meets Hanno), and later a nun, and still later a Cossack and then a soldier for Mother Russia during the Second World War. (Not for the USSR; the Soviets are better than the Nazis for Svoboda's people, but not much.) Hanno meets Richelieu; John Wanderer, under the earlier name of Deathless, survives the great cultural change brought by the arrival of the horse, and later survives the conquest of the Native American tribes by the expanding United States of America (and meets Hanno. Hanno is the unifying theme in this book.)

It's in these visits to different times and cultures that the book is strongest; it's always been one of Anderson's great strengths. Where the book drags a bit is in the late 20th century, where Hanno becomes a remarkably predictable libertarian. Only a particularly petty and unhealthy puritanism, for instance, can possibly explain laws banning smoking in elevators. Hanno's nemesis, Edmund Moriarty, a.k.a. "Neddy," U.S. Senator from some unidentified New England state, is a cartoon, about as subtle as a ton of bricks. Even John Wanderer's mild reminders that there are some real problems that are most usefully addressed at a level beyond rugged individualism carry little weight beside the fact that Moriarty's own aide has complete contempt for Moriarty's hypocrisy, evidenced in such telling signs as the fact that he has quit smoking, and the senator is too smugly oblivious to notice. Despite the fact that this is the section in which all the surviving immortals make contact, and the one in which hiding successfully becomes a serious challenge, this is a dull, draggy interlude. There is no explanation, not even hand-waving, for how clever Hanno hides them all from the nefarious forces of modern civilization for the remaining decades before aging becomes a solved problem for everyone. We then have another not very interesting section, set in the same AI-controlled world as The Stars Are Also Fire and other later Anderson works, before the real story resumes. The immortals leave this boring non-story for a far more entertaining encounter with two alien species.

Not Anderson's best work, by any means, but very enjoyable even with its weaknesses.

This is another one of those books that is hard to review because there are a lot of good parts, and a lot parts that are not so good, so you're left with a mixed bag.

The Boat of a Million Years follows the lives of several immortals from 310 B.C. through the future. It chronicles the trials they find themselves in trying to hide or mask their immortality from their communities and even their families, and the life of wandering, and at times despair, it leads them to. In the end they come together to voyage into space to make their future -- which makes up the last chapter of the book.

Most of the book is written as short chapters chronicling events in the lives of the immortals -- some who don't even survive to modern times. The most interesting and well written of the characters is Hanno, who we find in the opening scenes of the book, and several chapters throughout in different eras and with a different name. There are other interesting characters as well. But the main problem of the novel is it's overwritten and long winded. It takes a lot of patience to wade through the slag to get to the good parts. And the prose gets a bit stodgy at times. The last chapter is almost novella length and is probably the strongest part of the book -- but it also has a bit of a dull edge. The characters just don't seem that amazing or wise given their longevity.

If all the best parts of the novel were pulled together and the chaff culled out -- this could have been an excellent piece of work. It really does have some interesting things to say about the prospect and consequences of immortality. But, as is, this is a slightly disappointing work.

Poul Anderson is not (was.. he died just recently) the most optimistic of writers. He did not believe in the predestined success of humanity.. at least as a whole. (This is as opposed to David Brin.. who is hugely optimistic.)

In this book he presents a set of characters that, by accident of genetics, find themselves immortal. We follow them from pre- or barely- historical times well into the future. Through their eyes we watch humankind as a whole struggle, achieve, fail, die and live. We watch these immortals as they set themselves apart
for survival reasons.. twice.

The grand sweep of the book through humankind's history is wonderful. The book gets a bit lost at the end.. we wander too far from humanity, though it is a natural conclusion. In the end, perhaps... it is not the book that wandered too far, but humanity itself.

Wonderful story, wonderful storytelling...

This is the first (and so far only) Poul Anderson book I read, so I did not know what to expect. After reading throught the first few chapters, it appeared that it was just a series of tales about being immortal during different periods in history. It was very interesting to see it all coalesce into one final resolution (though not a final conclusion). This book is very unusual and thought-provoking, and I recommend it for anyone who is looking more for original ideas instead of standard future-time stories (most of this novel takes place in the past, starting at 500BC(?). It is not always an instant page-turner, but leaves you with a feeling of awe.

If you look at the cover of the book, you would presume that this is a classic science fiction book. There is a futuristic spacecraft gliding amoung the stars.

The book is quite different. I thought of the classic movie "Intolerence" when I read this. It is a lot of disjointed stories that progress through time (the last 2400 years and slightly into the future) about Immortals.

This book is like Anderson's very great (5 + stars) book:
Hrofl Kraki's Saga which he translated and adapted from Scandivian lore. A lot of the characters are Norweigen. Also, a lot takes place in the Holy Land as some characters have to convert religions with the rise of Christianity and of Islam.

I liked the book - it was a good read and one can learn a lot of history in the process. I do not give it 5 stars as it is a little to disjointed and is never quite pooled together. It is
not really science fiction and it is really not fantasy; it is more like a James Mitcher epic (but far shorter). I would recomend Anderson's "Hrolf Kraki's Saga" over this one, if you like Anderson's great writing and want a historical book (not sci fi).

BoaMY tracks the progress of eight immortals through millenia, focusing on their search for others of their kind. We meet them in ancient Rome, the American West, WWII Russia, and elsewhere. We glimpse their relationships with mortals and their continual need to keep their longevity secret. Standard "Highlander" flashback fare, right? Not really. Anderson introduces some interesting concepts into the mix - how does one cope with memories of millenia, how do you hide your lack of aging while those around you grow old, how would you seek out those like you? The last section of the novel travels even more deeply into the realm of science fiction as the band of immortals blast off into space in pursuit of E.T. intelligence.

The plot has its possibilities, but Anderson is no great writer. His purple prose really grates as he meticulously describes every single person in every single scene in great detail time and again. It's obvious that he's being flowery just for the sake of being flowery - to display his acquaintance with a thesaurus. I skipped entire pages that related the fabric and hairstyles of ancient peoples.

It's a good read, but ultimately forgettable. Don't expect too much.

Poul Anderson's "The Boat of a Million Years" certainly has a lot of promise and a very interesting premise, (as the amount of times things have been written or filmed about immortals stands testament). However, I would shy from saying that the book was excellent, though I did enjoy it.

The book basically follows the lives of various immortals as they change indentities and lives from around 310 BC up to the future, (in a chapter titled "Thule" and given the year "??"). As the immortals get older and older, some begin to search for others like them, driven in a large part by the loneliness, but developing into something more encompassing and far reaching.

Surprisingly, keeping track of these immortals over vast gaps in time and with changing indentities is relatively easy. This helps maintain continuity throughout the narrative. Anderson shows a great deal of skill in this, I thought, and it struck me as I am one who is easily lost in details of characters. I did not need to re-read any part at all to remind myself.

The book deals a lot with loneliness of living long and watching those loved mortals grow old and die. It also betrays a small hint of arrogance in the immortals about those same loved ones when they are old and diseased, (though not apparent in all characters). The motif of loneliness and death is rehashed a lot, and I found it bothersome and repetitive at times. There was a point where I honestly thought, "I get it!"

The book raises some interesting thoughts and questions some ideas that many have had. Poul Anderson has also developed the immortal being in terms of some physiological elements, such as renewing teeth and so on. They seem to have a hugely increased sense of lust, as well, interestingly enough.

In doing this, the book does not amaze with the action side of things, and does not entirely suit the genre of science-fiction. In that sense, it kind of bends the genres, so it should appeal to most tastes in some way.

Did this book wow me? Not really, I have to admit. However, I was not disappointed either. For what it is, it is a good read and a good attempt to cover a very wide range of time and places. For those interested in historical fiction, this book may have some ironic appeal, (despite the cover art).

It was an ok read, but not one that left me disappointed to reach the last page. And it certainly left me glad that I am mortal.

This is a tale of immortals. The direct ancestor of this book is Robert A. Heinlein's "Methuselah's Children." This is hardly surprising, given the libertarian affinity of Anderson and Heinlein. However, Anderson's work is much more detailed and ambitious. He starts in the Bronze Age and ancient Tyre and travels through our own age into the distant future. As usual, Anderson laces his writing with older words and descriptions not found anywhere except ancient epics. (It just wouldn't be Anderson without a "yonder" in there!) In his treatment of the immortals, Anderson describes the practical problems of memory, learning new languages, avoiding "witch burning," and finally, even our own scientific acquisitiveness. Unlike Heinlein's immortals (like the loquacious Lazarus Long), Anderson's people remain people; a bit wiser than the average, but not immune from their own prejudices, pasts, and proclivities. Indeed, by the end of the book, the immortals become the only "real" people left.

I love this book, and highly recommend it to lovers of science fiction and history.

I found it interesting that Anderson made all of his protagonists into libertarians. He gives a lot of examples of how governments turn against their citizenry as they acquire more power. Anderson describes how immortals would chafe at erosions of personal freedom. He also shows how America's civilization, too, can fall. He particularly takes shots at the IRS.

Much of the book consists of the immortals searching for others like themselves. Our immortals come from all over the world: Phoenician, Syrian, Russian, Gaul, Native American, Chinese, Japanese, and African-American slave. The latter part describes the future, and how the immortals cope with a world where they can at last reveal themselves, but which has passed beyond their understanding. The future Anderson depicts closely resembles the future he describes in the Harvest of Stars series. I just love the way this book ends. It offers hope and closure.

If there is a downside to the book, it is that some of the characters and chapters are not as interesting as others. Hanno, the eldest immortal, is the most opinionated, creative, and paranoid of his kind. Some of the chapters surrounding the other characters do not move as quickly. I found myself skimming past some sections that I'd read before.

Perhaps the least believable immortal in my mind is John Wanderer, the Indian (Native American, or pick your own favorite title). He seems to accept the lot of his people rather too easily. Mind you, I don't have an immortal's viewpoint, but I think I'd become depressed or mad as hell, not so assimilationist, as he comes to be. The rest of the immortals seek and find inner peace in their own ways, and their behaviors seem reasonable from my own limited view.

Also, sometimes Anderson's desire to provide sensory detail can get intrusive. By golly, he puts you into third century Gaul, but enough with the smells already! And oddly enough, just around the time where conjuring up a sense of place is important (the future), this type of sensory detail is replaced by airier discussions of mental states and human-computer mental interactions.

This is a rather short work not like Anderson's usual stuff. It is a series of vignettes about "eternals", individuals who are destined to live forever. Anderson brings these immortals to life (pardon the pun) with his ever-journeying tales of the past and the far, far future.

It is his extraordinary vision of the future and how, in the end, it is companionship and love that matter. Our bodies may face and we may become all mind (doubtful since our brains require sensory input in order to conceive most concepts)but we will always be human and need human relationships. This is one of those superior scifi books (like Pamela Sarents' THE SHORE OF WOMEN) which serve as reminders that amid the garbage and throw away pamphlets, there exists stories that still have the power to invoke wonder and awe.