Customer Reviews

The Transmigration of Souls

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This was the first book by Barton I ever read. Albeit some of the ideas (stargates etc...) are quite worn out by now, they are intricately rendered. Interesting depiction of a background US isolated from the rest of the decaying world, employing alien technology to create a nation of immortal but infantile shapechangers. Also interesting theme of the Universe as something of a software toolkit. I found the start and middle of this "stargate"-like story actually very good, but found the end a huge letdown. It then starts to borrow to much there from Heinlein and other "classicals" to remain original, and gets entangled to much into absurd many-world quantum theoretical stuff (which the author seems to like - a little to much, for my taste). At least the "SF author becomes god" part is somewhat funny... Overall, this story is very very similar in theme, structure, setup, ideas and execution to "White Light" from the same author, albeit not so extremely entangled in sex as that story. I'd judge "Transmigration" the better story, overall, with more "involvement" in the story than e.g "Alpha Centauri". Albeit its not as good as "Acts of Conscience" or the excellent "When We Were Real" by far, I'd still judge it as recommended.

I've read this book twice now but the 2nd time allowed me a deeper understanding of my first impression. During the first read I was somewhat annoyed at the display of sexual oriented obsessive/compulsive thoughts stemming from his main characters regardless of their primary occupation at any one point in the story line. But, I honestly admit this annoyance may stem from this readers stage of life (older) where sexual thoughts have been supplanted by other occupations much more interesting to me at this time of life.

That being said: My first read-through was too fast, I was too impatient and at the end I'd sense enough to realize that I'd comprehended enough of Barton's story-telling genius to know I missed out on more of its mysteries than I'd perceived. Rereading the book filled in details that allowed me to form a more satisfying appreciation of his multiverse concept story and the driving spiritual/psychological compulsions which motivate his character's along a weirdly fantastic journey through probable realities in their ultimate search for God or at least the Committee that forms the being called God (smiley face here as this is my personal observation). Obviously the multiverse, probabilistic universe concept predates Barton but he puts the concept to good use. Barton's storytelling is fast paced with few built-in redundancies allowing the reader to luxuriate or 'space-out', the scenery and emotions are descriptively well imagined and thought provoking.

To briefly recap the story: After the Americans discovered the moon's Stargate system they reap the benefit of other alien technologies via explorations but they are careful to guard these secrets from the remaining world by building a wall around their territory and shutting themselves away from the rest of humanity. Literally. Within their self-imposed isolation the Americans, always known as a vastly superior consumer society (obviously not a compliment), have obtained knowledge which allows them to consume forever: They achieve immortality and the ability to manipulate matter. But multiverse exploration eventually confronts them with a terrifying discovery that they try to outrun (by leaving the gate systems and hiding back on earth in the American blockade). Fortunately for the story the American soldier (our heroine 100 years later) who was ordered to blow up the moon's Stargate disobeyed orders for reasons not to be explained here. So, the Stargate remains intact on the moon awaiting its next discoverer.

Some 100 years or so later (while the Americans have been living it up and growing bored) a foreign nation sends its own team to the moon with no real clue as to what lays waiting. They are driven by the diminishment of earth's available resources and predictions of man's ultimate demise. Although the story begins on earth it leaves shortly thereafter never to return. Such is the concept of reaching a cusp and triggering a probabilistic time line.

As a descriptive side note about Barton's writing style: It's never explained how the American's achieved immortality but fairly early on while ½ of the main characters (American soldiers) are chasing the other ½ (the foreign country astronauts who inadvertently discover the Moon's gate system) through very alien worlds within the multiverse the source of the Americans immortality is hinted at. During the chase the American team leader Astrid Kincaid (the soldier originally ordered to blow up the Moon's gate) makes reference to her symbiote hoping that it can withstand (and protect her) against the hard radiation weapon assaulting her team by intelligent alien green ants astride their praying mantis type beasties. The symbiote reference answered my lingering curiosity as to the means of immortality (another `Stargate' series concept). This approach is typical of how Barton slowly reveals answers to the many secrets constantly encountered by his characters (and his readers) in their adventures. Answers to secrets begging to be understood.

Barton enriches his story throughout with clever, subtle references to other famous SF concepts originated from Jules Verne and Edgar Rice Burroughs through EE Doc Smith, Robert Heinlein, Isaac Asimov, and so forth. It's these concepts that make the story line fun. His brilliant and exciting (multi)universe is limited only by the depth of imagination in his readers and interestingly enough by the reluctance of his characters to believe what they see in front of them. That is until they take a second look (reading) then all becomes clear(er). They can then react with better comprehension as does the reader.

William Barton, author of what is beginning to be a significant corpus of literary science fiction, does it, again, here. I don't mean literary in the classic sence, though. Barton excells at referencing the sci-fi literature. He alludes to the great works of the genre for purpose. Too bad, I think, that many readers of the genre are not noticing it. This is a writer with great potential. In the present work, among his best, Americans have uncovered an alien technology hidden on the moon and have used it to makethemselves rather god-like. But these are gods afraid of the return of the REAL gods. At heart a quest work like Simmons "Endymion" or, even, "Gilgamesh," Barton's work glows with a knowledge of the genre and the will to pull the past into the present. One of the best (and least appreciated) writers around.

Based on reviews and word of mouth, I had high hopes for this book. But I found the narrative difficult to follow: half the time I didn't know what was going on or who was who. The only thing that kept me going was the interesting story line. But I found that even when the story's characters were being stabbed, hacked, killed, etc., I had no sympathy or empathy with them. I just didn't care! One of the most tedious books I have ever read, well, I still haven't finished it, and don't really care if I ever do. ~MB

Barton's tales are a different read. Good, hard sci-fi but always with a central thread of sexual obsession. I liked this book and "Acts of Conscience" almost despite the prevalent thread. Subtitled Americans tour the multiverse in search of God or fleeing from him. Similar themes to Simmon's Hyperion series but a whole different view.

Unlike many of the science fiction novels I read, this book actually started me down the road of thinking and researching the philosophy used in the title. It was the first book by Barton that I've read, and it took me two reads before I really understood the characters and their motivations. There are plenty of issues left at the end that I want more clarity on, and the constant references to sex left me a little repulsed, not by the sex, but by the complete lack of humanity in most of it.

William Barton, with The Transmigration of Souls, has created something rarely seen in the SciFi genre; a story that resonates within people who feel the existential pain of life deep in their gut and who long for worlds without number, far from the mundane existence and quiet desperation that haunts those whose souls and dreams are too big to be contained within our tepid Western society.

It may take a few readings spread over a couple of years, but for those who glimpse a Universe so much greater than we know, and who yearn for adventure out among the worlds of infinite possibility, this story will become one that is never forgotten, and will always remain close at hand for those desperate times when hope begins to slip away and daydreams from better times fade into memory. In those hours, when you revisit this story and the light of wonder again brightens, you will begin to understand.

Saturday, February 25, 2006
"The Transmigration of Souls" by William Barton, ©1996
This is one story that goes all over the place! It begins with an Earth that is developed into something we really do not foresee: United Arab Republic with free Jewish people still living, China that rules over Asia, Sub-Saharian Africa is still in the doldrums and the United States has effectively withdrawn from the life of the world. The story develops into an adventure through many worlds by the transmission of the people by 'stargates'. The necessary technology is God given. The dangers are also God given: the infinite choices we make cause infinite universes to be created, causing the administrators to send in the Juggernaut to stop the chaos from enveloping the universe.
This reminds me of another story that deals with the same delimna. It takes off from the old H. G. Wells story, "The Time Machine". The problem of multiple universes is beyond our comprehension, but gives some fodder to story writers.
Another notion that was touched on within the story was whether or not Christians would opt for immotality or would wait for the second coming or Christ. How firm is your belief in the second coming? Sure it is a flight of fancy, but it brings up a question that most people would never think of or would consider, and it truly only applies to the actually religious folks.

Several years from now, a joint US and Russian team discover something on the moon, something that leads to greater advances in technology than anything ever before. However, shortly after the discovery, both groups pull out, hiding themselves in their respective countries, without a word of explanation. Decades later, other governments, seek to discover the secrets that could frighten the two greatest powers on the world. The Americans send a force to prevent this, and the two groups unfortunately find out that somethings are better left undisturbed. What follows is a Panuniversal traveling adventure, as they discover more about their universe than they, or anyone else, ever hoped to know. And gain a glimpse of What may be God, or the Devil. If you like Barton's stuff, I sincerly suggest you take a look at the works of Robert A Heinlein. He works with similar ideas, but does them in a lighter approach which should appeal to most people.