Kaleidoscope Century (Meme Wars) (Mass Market Paperback)

~ (Author) "I wake up for the fourth time I can remember..." (more)
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Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

A stunning evocation of humanity's violent downward slide, Barnes's fourth SF novel is set on Mars during the early part of the 22nd century, in a universe chimerically similar to that of his first, Orbital Resonance. The novel consists primarily of a series of escapades undertaken by narrator Joshua Ali Quare, whose violent career path under the aegis of the Organization, a successor group to a super-efficient amalgam of KGB/Communist Party, is the ultra-leftist equivalent of many Heinlein protagonists. Born in 1968, Joshua had been recruited by the KGB in the late 20th century, which infected him with a virus that incapacitates him in a near-coma every 15 years, from which he awakens, rejuvenated, 10 years younger each time, but nearly amnesiac. Joshua has been ruthless in pursuit of his missions, most of which have concerned scientific discoveries. Like others around him, he has lost almost all human feeling: he voices only the occasional expression of regret after "serbing" a sorority or defiling his father's grave. The environment Barnes creates is appalling: Josh and his cohort-in-crime, Sadi, appear to delight in their repeated antisocial actions and attitudes. Josh spouts such homilies as "if you don't want a brain to think the wrong thoughts, the surest way is to put a hole in it." Whether or not one is put off by the pervasive cynical mentality, as a picture of the degradation of society in the 22nd century, the novel is gripping.
Copyright 1995 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From Library Journal

In Barnes's latest, a tailored virus allows a man to live for centuries.
Copyright 1995 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

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Product Details

• Mass Market Paperback: 256 pages
• Publisher: Tor Science Fiction; 1st THUS edition (September 15, 1996)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0812533461
• ISBN-13: 978-0812533460
• Product Dimensions: 6.9 x 4.3 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 3.2 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 3.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (29 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #796,715 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Complex, challenging and excellent, August 27, 1999

By A Customer

Unfortunately, most of the customer reviewers missed the entire point of this book. Even more unfortunately, to correct them requires spoiling the flash of excitement and pleasure when the reader realizes what is going on here.

This is a very Heinleinesque - high praise! - story of The Man Who Learned Better. Yes, it's very grim, because the world described is not merely dystopian, but apocalyptic.

Now for the clues, for those who didn't get it, or didn't finish it (stop here if you haven't read it yet!):

1) This is a time travel novel.

2) The reason the main character remembers different events differently is not that his records are faulty, but that he has experienced them multiple times, in different timelines.

3) The characters aren't merely unlikable - one of them is a psychpath!

4) The first time around, things were terrible, because the psychopath was the one who was travelling in time and arranging things to her liking.

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A masterpiece -- but a bummer, July 27, 1998

By	Glenn H. Reynolds "Instapundit" (Knoxville, TN USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This is a tour de force in every way; a consistent and sensible future-world, interesting action, and characters who hold your interest. But there's the problem (it's not a flaw, because Barnes did it on purpose). The characters are so damned repulsive that by the end of the book you feel unclean. Ugh. And it doesn't help that, in a wholly unadmirable way, it's at core a love story. It's truly a masterpiece in terms of craft, but it's not beach reading. At least, not if you want to enjoy the beach.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Josh, the quintessential evil anti-hero, March 28, 2004

By A Customer

This is a VERY good story about a VERY evil man. How do you become emotionally invested in a main character who is a rapist, murderer, KGB spy, and all around selfish bastard? The answer is here. I have no idea how an American KGB spy is made but chances are the answer is in this book.

It is the story about how Josh became a spy for the wrong side and did their dirty work--and let me assure you, the work is about as dirty as you will ever read. You become emotionally invested when you find out his father was an abusive drunk and his mother was a commie activist nut. No wonder he is such a basket case! In fact, this story would be a good text book in a "How to make an anti-hero" writing class.

The main story details his search for security (since he had none growing up). He never looks beyond himself. He has no love of communism, certainly no love of capitalism and not much love period. He is out for himself and the rest of the world can go to hell.

If the story interests you so far then read the book. It's a dark, fascinating, downward spiral into depravity. Quite frankly, you hate the main character but you keep reading to find out what happens to him at the end of the story. If, so far, this is not your kind of story, then don't read it. It's doubtful you will like it.

Not knowing much about John Barnes, I find it interesting that later on he worked with all-American Buzz Aldrin on some other projects making him a truly complex writer. Five stars for showing me something I've never seen before.