From Booklist
Salt employs the classic sf situation of colonists engaged in the risky business of settling a new world far from Earth. When the colonists land, they discover that their new home has far less water than was expected, and seemingly endless, desolate, inhospitable deserts of another necessity of life, salt. The story concerns the two different groups of colonists, the Senaarians and the Alsists, and is told in alternation by Petja, an Alsist, and Barlei, a Senaarian. The two peoples are divided over a cultural misunderstanding about the "ownership" of children sired by Senaarians but mothered by Alsists. Begun while in transit to the salty planet, the dispute erupts in full-scale war after the decades-long voyage and first frantic period of settlement. The opponents' language and attitudes ring all too familiarly. A satisfying piece of standard sf that affords a chilling look at how clashes of ideology work out on a harsh world.
Regina SchroederCopyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved
Product Description
After 37 years on a brutal and dangerous journey through space, a federation of settlers finally arrives on the planet Salt. Thus begins the colonization of this brave new world--a process that inevitably slips into a tragedy of biblical proportions. The two communities who undertook the voyage originally united in peace and a shared vision of a fresh beginning. Once isolated in a landscape of cruel majesty and minimal resources, however, ancient enmities begin to tear them apart. Related alternately by Petja, from the Alsist people, and Barlei (a Senaarian), their different voices, perspectives, and experiences come together to make an unusually rich and complex story about the fragility of life. A remarkable debut novel. "...in the same vein as Frank Herbert's Dune...accomplished, engaging and fascinating."--Locus. "...brilliantly written."--Starlog.
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