Customer Reviews

The Enemy Papers

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Even if you have read the previous versions of Barry Longyear's books Enemy Mine and the Tomorrow Testament, buy this book! Besides definitive editions of those two books, Longyear adds the concluding volume, The Last Enemy, plus a fascinating alien Bible called the Talman and some humorous essays(such as what happens when you discover you have to invent an alien language.) As a three volume history of war and peace these books are tremendous science fiction. The ending to the last book was an unparalleled piece of writing that I cannot forget. Longyear is sometimes humorous,sometimes serious,and he writes about his aliens anthropologically so that by the end you understand their culture as well as their philosophy. It is a complete story, and well worth reading.

This is the book that got me hooked on Longyear. Unfortunately he hasn't written too much, but what's there (and not out of print yet) is great.

The three stories, Enemy Mine, The Tomorrow Testament and The Last Enemy, are all great and fairly different in topic. The first one is about two enemy soldiers forced to rely on each other - a fairly basic plot but it gets to you, especially after the alien child Zamis is born. The Tomorrow Testament centers around a blind human (female) POW that is destined for greatness... and the story has one of the best plot twists I've ever seen. We're in the League of movies like The Sixth Sense and The Usual Suspects here (for lack of a better way to compare it). The Last Enemy tells us something about wars such us the one that rages in Palestine or in Northern Ireland, written from the perspective of a Drac Freedom Fighter who's fed up with fighting.

The aliens are beautifully rendered; they have their own culture that may well be the most finely worked out alien culture I've ever encountered. Even though a lot of it is borrowed from our own cultures and schools of philosophy, it still makes a beautiful whole.

The Talman, the alien bible, is a neat feature to add to the book and stands on it's own.

Science fiction that captures you, makes the book a page-turner and still manages to cut deep. You'll come away from these stories deeply moved and wishing for more.

Rumor has it the tenitive title for this book was "Enemy Mine Omnibus", but in the long run I'm glad they didn't call it that.

"The Enemy Papers" is a collection of stories having to do with the war between the Dracs and Humans. The collection starts with an "abridged" version of the Draconian Talman or holy book.

A revised/extended author's addition of "Enemy Mine" comes next in line with contains a closer look at Shigan and Davidage's relationship and, later, the relationship Davidage has with the Jeriba family.

"The Tomorrow Testement" is the story of a human female soldier who gets taken to the Dracon as a POW and how she caught the eye of a leading Draconian offical and helped bring an end to the war. Bear this in mind; "Enemy Mine" and "Tomorrow Testement" occur at the same time.

"The Last Enemy" takes place around 30 years after "Enemy Mine", only this time from the point of view of a Draconian terrorist living on the planet that started the entire war. This unique view into the after effects of the peace treaty and the universal mindset of a war weary soldier is a nice addition to this collection.

The collection is completed with a set of essays about writing alien languages, Longyear's experiences writing the stories and a small Drac/English-English/Drac dictionary for those of us who are obsessed with these stories. Longyear does admite that, with a little persuassion, he might continue the series, complete the Talman and lenghten the dictionary.

With a little persuassion.

This vastly under-appreciated novel by Barry Longyear has more to say about war and peace than any book I've ever read. In a science fiction setting peopled by fascinating aliens, the author tells some troubling tales of interstellar war, and why peace is so hard to come by, in their world and in ours. There are no pat formulas or solutions put forward, and the questions that are raised have no happy answers. In addition to the famous short story, "Enemy Mine" (not to be confused with the truly awful movie version), the book contains two complete novels which continue the train of events set in motion by the original story, plus the complete text of the Talman, the "Alien Bible" of the Dracs. Be warned: this is not an easy read. It will tear your guts out. But you will love it anyway.

The Enemy Papers is a compilation that includes three novels, Enemy Mine, The Tomorrow Testament and The Last Enemy, as well as The Talman, an alien Bible. Barry Longyear's trilogy of the war between humans and the alien Dracs was always a fantastic story, philosophically deep while entertaining to read, but today the story is even more timely. In this world of renewed terrorist activity and threat of war, a well-thought-out treatise of unrequited hate, fierce nationalism and the horrors of war reads like a world relations primer. The issues of how to establish and keep peace are dealt with honestly and with human (and alien) nature always considered. Nothing is easy, and nothing is straightforward. Longyear is a spectacular writer and this is one of his best. I guarantee that the ending to the last novel will knock your socks off, whether you are wearing socks or not. I promise. Read this book, it will engrave itself on your soul.

I have bought eight copies of this book for my friends and family. I have never been brought to tears reading a book until this one. Longyear has a writing style that amuses, engages and surprises the reader in a way that makes every page worth reading carefully.

Another person compared this book to Tolkien's but that it was condensed. I have to disagree, never did Tolkien deal with an enemy that required reconcilliation and understanding. The orcs (and others) were vile creatures that all good beings were diametrically opposed to. In Longyear's books these are not cut and dry/ black and white. His good guys are on both sides with the common difficulties that exist in the world that arise from differences in race and individuals.

This book is especially meaningful given the Sept. 11th attacks on the WTC. I have read my copy a total of 10 times and each time it seems like I gain a deeper understanding of what is within the pages.

When the silly question of what 10 things will you take if stranded on a desert island is asked of me this would rank in that list (maybe twice, in case it got damaged).

As many people I suppose I was introduced to this story by the movie done in the late 80's. But as the prefface of his book say's"if you have seen the movie, this is the version the author will hold a gun to your head and make you read". I know he meant that in jest but this is truely one of the greatest story's I have ever read, I cried when I finished each piece of the story, and the fact that he compacts so much meaning into so few pages, imagine if Tolkien had condenced The Rings Trilogy into about 200 pages. This is not just a great work of Scienece Fiction, this is one of the greatest pieces of Literature of the late 20th century. We all can learn a little about who we are from these pages. BY THIS NOW, TELL YOUR FRIENDS

The first part of this all-in-one volume is The Talman, the Holy Book of the alien Drac race. The Talman is the premise for the rest of the three novels that follow in the volume. I consider scripture to be inspired search for truth, including the true definition of the relationship between man (or Drac, in this case) and God (or other Higher Power). While reading The Talman, I had the distinct feeling that I was reading real scripture disguised as fictional scripture. Mr. Longyear's insight was thought-provoking as well as entertaining. The series is a worthy entry among the classics dealing with the problem of the relationship between theology/spirituality and science, such as James Blish's A Case of Conscience and Robert Sawyer's Calculating God.

The first part of this all-in-one volume is The Talman, the Holy Book of the alien Drac race. The Talman is the premise for the rest of the three novels that follow in the volume. I consider scripture to be inspired search for truth, including the true definition of the relationship between man (or Drac, in this case) and God (or other Higher Power). While reading The Talman, I had the distinct feeling that I was reading real scripture disguised as fictional scripture. Mr. Longyear's insight was thought-provoking as well as entertaining. The series is a worthy entry among the classics dealing with the problem of the relationship between theology/spirituality and science, such as James Blish's A Case of Conscience and Robert Sawyer's Calculating God.

It is wonderful to see all of Longyear's books back in print. I can't wait to place my order.