Customer Reviews

The Guardener's Tale

5 star:		(11)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(0)
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I had a very hard time setting this fast-paced, easily-read novel down. Boston takes us on a compelling ride into a frightening yet utterly believable city-state of the future, with multifaceted characters, plot twists galore, and thought-provoking social, philosophical and psychological reflections upon our lives now as well as upon future possibilities. Those who know Boston's work will expect masterful and moving use of the English language - they will not be disappointed. Those who don't will be delighted. Don't miss it!

In some ways The Guardener's Tale reminds of P.K. Dick. In others, J.G. Ballard. This dystopian tale of the future is all Boston, however. To the Guardeners of the story, utopia is at hand, and just needs pruning now and again. It's not a terrible world - creature comforts and job security a given - as long as you don't think for yourself. Free thought is discouraged, to say the least. You could label it a tyranny, but one imposed on its populace for "its own good". Of course one man's utopia is another man's dystopia. All the elements are here for a thought provoking read, with enough action to keep one turning the pages. The Guardener's Tale is character driven, poetic at times, and stylistically friendly, and, a very satisfying way to spend a few evenings.

Not since Ray Bradbury's FAHRENHEIT 451 have I read such a beautifully wrought and realistic cautionary tale of what our lives might become without constant governmental oversight and vigilance. Sol Thatcher is a Guardener--a City State police operative--who has compiled a lengthy profile of Richard Thorne, a formerly good citizen who once lead an exemplary City State life, but who somehow veered into "aberrance" and anarchy. Unsatisfied by subtle degrees with his perfect marriage, home and job, Richard Thorne drifts from the institutionally mandated lock-step lifestyle. Although he's been comfortable with his easy, uncomplicated life, a constant feeling of vague dissatisfaction sends Richard on a journey of self-knowledge into the rapidly dwindling red-light areas where he discovers a sense of freedom and individuality that has been insidiously expunged from society. When he meets a free-spirited prostitute named Josie, Richard's formerly serene existence is changed forever, and he becomes a societal outlaw despite the City State's best attempt to reprogram Richard with mind-altering drugs and brainwashing techniques. This disturbing novel is a glimpse into a possible future where shiny objects and a false sense of freedom become mankind's ultimate prison. Already recommended for a Bram Stoker Award for Best Novel, this is visionary work from a writer of fierce conviction and a mighty talent.

This is a well told cautionary tale of the ultimate goal of governmental social engineering. When government enters the social arena with welfare, sin taxes and political largesse, this becomes the final destination, sketched in Bruce's typically bold and empathic personal strokes, all leading to a wistful but satisfying conclusion for the various characters. The writing reflects his penchent for poetry. 5 stars for another winner, Bruce!
John Cooley, author, Dear Madman

The Guardener's Tale comes from the personal files of Sol Thatcher, Guardener, G-21, retired. It is written semi-informally as a scholarly investigation of and reconstruction of the aberration of Richard Thorne. We're somewhere between Brave New World and the role-playing system Paranoia--no specific date is given, but tech has moved a bit beyond ours, and the society is recognizable. Wars have made large swaths of the Earth largely uninhabitable, and society has "learned from its past mistakes", has rebuilt itself, and is expanding outwards ever so slowly, with no enemy but the past--the structured and cultivated city reforming the slums. Advancement is possible from any rank, though a well-formed "flower" of a mind is required for citizenship. This flower can either be natural or conditioned in; and tending and pruning the flowers is the bailiwick of the Guardeners.

Bruce Boston has a light touch, and while neither the world nor the story are light-hearted, it is, on the surface, a simple tale and a swift read, with just enough humor to ease you through. The story follows several primary players--Richard Thorne, his chosenmate Diana Logan, Daniel DeLyon, and DeLyon's half-sister Josie. Richard is the aberrant that the story revolves around--it is his choices and actions that our narrator seeks to understand. All of the other characters are stripped down to their causes and intents, but Sol is at a loss to explain the eventuality of Richard Thorne.

As a scholar coming to the story after the fact, the narrator has full foreknowledge of events--he is seeking, through the recreation of Richard's story and all the details therein, to understand Richard's fall; and through that, how to keep others from such pained ends. We are constantly having events foretold, but where this would usually offput me no end, in this tale I find it fun, and even tantalizing.

We learn how Richard meets Daniel, and through him, Josie; see a few chance encounters grow naturally to greater things; we learn of Diana's hopes and fears, and through them learn about the society; see Richard and Diana struggle with their relationship; and Richard and Josie struggle with theirs; and eventually have to accept the consequences, and at least consider the premise that there is no perfection while free will exists.

"The Guardener's Tale" is told plainly, with simple characters that let the society shine through them. As with any dystopian story, it's a "cautionary" tale of modern society, a story about the society envisioned by the author as much as about any of the individual characters. It's a fun romp for those who love dystopias, as I do, and filled with interesting technologies and things to contemplate--bacchanalian "personal freedom nights" hearken to Brave New World, and "Halls of Expression" Star Trek's holodeck, while "virtual vacations" have more the taste of Total Recall; and glideways bring a smile to my face with memories of "The Roads Must Roll". And amidst it all is just the tale of humans struggling to exist and co-exist.

The Guardener's Tale offers an old-fashioned, good read about a deceptively pleasant and controlled future, a la Brave New World. An extra element of eeriness creeps into the novel when it becomes clear who narrates the story. This tale is a real page turner, and I was quite taken by the ending, which absolutely soars. Boston is a masterful story teller on all levels--clean and compelling prose, genuine characters, meaningful themes, and creating a satisfying and believable science fiction setting.

The Guardener's Tale is, perhaps, the most enjoyable read I've had from Bruce Boston, and that's saying a lot when one notes he is the most lauded science fiction poet of his generation. Boston's prose in TGT is an extension of his poetry; painting rich visuals for one's mind with an economy, though not a sparseness of words that can still be read at speed.

Boston's technique is very important to achieve the greatest effect; however, TGT is a great story, having not necessarily a unique social theme - questioning of, and resistance to, meaningless, unfulfilling conformity - but with a fresh approach and a sprinkling of inspired plot twists. The Guardener, Thatcher, a retired member of the "conformity police", narrates the Tale, mostly through the eyes and actions of citizen Thorne, who gradually realizes he is unsatisfied with his seemingly secure, but boring life. Eventually Thorne `crosses over' to the enlightened side with inevitable, though not necessarily predictable consequences, and an eventual encounter with Thatcher that includes reprogramming.

Boston creates interesting terms, such as `dermask' and `chosenmate' to convey the effects he wishes to impart. There are metaphors, such as the `cyberscan', which creates a holographic flower-like profile of a citizen's mind. This is used by Guardeners to assess purity or aberration, as to a person's likely behavioral deviant, dependent on the flower's conformity to `normal' growth and patterning, past and future. Boston pays great, interesting detail to building a believable world for his engrossing story. It's an exhilarating ride.

Bruce Boston is best known and admired for his incandescent, hypnotic poetry, but he has always been an inventive and insightful story-teller as well. In this new novel, he has created a detailed narrative of a dystopian future populated by believable and nuanced characters who evoke images not only of an Orwellian future but of the present and recent past. For Boston, what others might consider Bohemian or escapist comprises the essential foundations of necessary social change - this is obviously the case in the hyper-controlled world of the Guardener's Tale. The story is carefully and cleverly plotted, and the characters evocative. The heroine, in fact, called up for me memories of a special time in my life and a remarkable woman. Who knows? If you've been lucky, maybe it will for you as well. An enjoyable and thought-provoking read.

Marvelous world/character-building and verbal brushstrokes. I love the way Boston has woven this tale together with its parallels and reversals. And the places where I broke into a grin.

In his novel, The Guardener's Tale, Bruce Boston creates a stunning new world for us to delve into-a society in which an idolized utopian model is the end goal. While this world remains filled with delicious memories of what would be our past should we live as a citizen of the City State, the ideal often needs careful gardening to secure its path towards a perfect future.

Boston gives us wonderfully fleshed-out characters, with a deluge of quandaries to ponder, as he carries the reader to the end in his roller-coaster of prose. Through his writing, we discover how unique our focus character Richard Thorne is. We follow his travels through the text of a superior, as we explore this strange new world where certain liberties are now deemed negative. As with all things supposedly perfect, the City State is no different, having its own flaws.

As the struggle to maintain control falters, the system's weaknesses become exposed in this skillfully spun tale. The reader has the benefit of being able to witness a sliver of its decay. Boston succeeds at giving us a glimpse of a future that might not seem to otherworldly for many of us. This book is a refreshing reminder of how much we take our freedoms for granted.