Customer Reviews

Revolt on Alpha C

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Given that this story was written in 1955, it is necessary to cut the author a great deal of slack regarding the facts. There are colonies on Mars and there is a colony on the surface of Jupiter. One of the friends of the main character is called Harl Ellison, taken no doubt from the science fiction writer with the same name. Harl grew up on Jupiter, so he is short with powerful muscles. The colonized planet around Alpha Centauri is a jungle planet populated by incredibly large dinosaurs. Silverberg seems to have forgotten the basic laws of physics. With gravity heavier than that of Earth, it would be impossible for dinosaurs to grow to the incredible dimensions stated in this book.
However, the main theme is one that has always been a part of the human existence and probably will be when humans finally establish a significant presence on other planets. Once colonies were established on other planets, the colonists consider themselves exploited by Earth and rebel. A rebellion of free colonists was crushed on Jupiter and now there are rumblings of a revolt at a colony on a planet revolving around Alpha Centauri.
Larry Stark is a cadet in the Space Patrol, the military organization that polices space. His ship is on a training mission to Alpha C and when they get there, they find a peaceful revolt in progress. Larry is the radio operator and he immediately comes into conflict with Harl, who sympathizes with the rebels. After Harl joins the rebels, Larry is ordered to pretend to join them so that he can spy on them. That fools no one and he is jailed.
Larry is released by a spaceman whose life he saved and returns to duty. However, when he gets there he is ordered to send a message requesting armed assistance to crush the rebellion. The captain asks for other ships to come and attack the colony, so instead of sending the message, he sabotages the radio. The story ends with the colonists evacuating their base and heading out into the jungle to engage in guerilla warfare.
I enjoy reading an occasional science fiction story from before the rocket age of Sputnik. Doing so reminds you of how little we used to know about the solar system and makes you realize how sparse our knowledge still is. This story has some enormous scientific flaws, but the social and political forces depicted in the struggles will always be with us.