Most Helpful Customer Reviews
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111 of 115 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
A multidimensional, open ended morality tale, July 9, 2002
Your reaction to Iain Pears' new novel is likely to depend on what you liked about "Instance of the Fingerpost." If it was the Chinese puzzle box of its plot within a plot within a plot, you won't find that here. "The Dream of Scipio" places its bets on depth rather than cleverness. Was it the colorful, cunning, swaggering characters, telling their stories in memorably distinct voices? Calm, third person narrative is the rule this time. Our three main characters - the gregarious aristocrat Manlius Hippomanes, in the final months of the Roman Empire; the impetuous itinerant poet Olivier de Noyen, caught up in papal politics as the Black Death descends on Avignon; and the reclusive historian Julien Barneuve, coping with the demands of the Vichy regime during the Nazi hegemony - are all restrained and bookish men who aspire to live above the storms of passion. Many readers will find them disappointingly bloodless, but I'm not sure this is a flaw. Despite the three peculiar, parallel love stories at the center of the plot, this work intends to be classical rather than romantic in spirit. But if you are the sort of person who dips into Gibbon's Decline and Fall for pleasure; if what attracted you to "Fingerpost" was the way it made bygone, alien ways of being human palpable; or the subtlety of its characters' intrigues and political calculations; or its philosophical sophistication; or its grasp of both the moral ambiguity of the human situation, and the imperative to behave morally in the face of that ambiguity - then "The Dream of Scipio" will give you at least the same level of satisfaction as the last book. Be warned that there are murders here (what is human history if not a catalogue of murders?), but no murder mystery. There are elaborate compositional patterns to be noted, and a good deal of real history to be learned, but no "Name of the Rose" style conumdrums to be unravelled. Nevertheless, you'll be left bristling with questions - not the kind of questions that make you instantly begin rereading in order to collect clues, but the kind that make you hungry for a book club so the questions can be thought through in company: What is civilization, really, and why should we value it? What is and is not worth sacrificing in order to preserve it? What makes an act virtuous, its intents or its effects? Unlike most "idea" books, this one doesn't push one set of answers on you, rather it sets out the dilemmas, through concrete hard cases, in all their painful unresolvability. Four and a half stars, highly recommended, but be aware of what you're getting into.
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93 of 98 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
A serious and stimulating novel for our times., June 9, 2002
In this remarkable and hugely conceived novel of ideas, Pears gives us three intense, emotionally gripping stories set in Provence during the fifth, fourteenth, and 20th centuries. In each of these, a sensitive and thoughtful man of letters faces not only a crisis of belief, but also of action, as outside forces threaten to destroy civilization as he knows it. As each man fights to save the values he finds important, Pears explores the ethical underpinnings of western thought and history, those ideas first proffered by Plato which continue to influence men and governments two thousand years later.
A mysterious 5th century manuscript by Manlius Hippomanes connects the parallel plots and eras: the waning days of the Roman Empire, as the barbarian hordes attack Gaul's borders and Manlius Hippomanes writes The Dream of Scipio; the 14th century in Avignon, when poet Olivier de Noyen discovers some of Manlius's writing and deals with papal intrigue, the Hundred Years War, and the Black Death; and the Vichy government in France during World War II, when Julien Barneuve, a scholar who has traced the Manlius manuscript, joins the Vichy government in an effort to "civilize" the German occupiers and prevent deportation of the Jews.
This is not a beach book--its excitement is far more thoughtful than sensational. Pears' characters are real, flawed people living and loving in times of crisis and experiencing conflicts with parents, teachers, friends, and mentors. These conflicts clearly parallel those in the wider world of their political alliances and governments, and ultimately affect their attitudes toward humankind in general. Beautiful love stories, which bring warmth to the narrative, are portrayed with the delicacy such fragile relationships deserve and the strength which allows them to endure. As we, too, face uncertain times and threats to our own civilization, Pears offers a reflective and thought-provoking framework for contemplating our own future. Mary Whipple
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40 of 44 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
An Absolute Masterpiece, September 21, 2002
The Dream of Scipio is one of the smartest, powerful, and stimulating novels I have ever read. It's hard to describe what a good book this is. There's such a profound message in the writing that I can't believe Pears managed to fit it into 400 pages. To accomplish this feat, Pears entwines three separate story lines, in three different historical settings. These backdrops, and the three main characters that inhabit them make this book a real testament to Pears skill and knowledge.The first story, chronologically speaking, centers around Manlius Hippomanes, a prominent landlord of Roman Gaul in the last 5th century. The Empire is collapsing as Gothic hordes pour down from the north. Manlius, a cultured man, intensely proud of his Roman heritage, watches as a civilization he believes superior (and it is) dies around him. He is a man lost to the chaos, until he becomes aquainted with Sophia, the brilliant daughter of a prominent Roman scholar. He quickly falls into love with her, more for her mind than her body. Their learned conversations are fascinating, definitly applicable to modern times. She convinces him to join the new order in Western Europe, the Catholic Church. Manlius becomes a Bishop. He is faced with problems unimaginable, invading armies, internal strife and decay. His transformation is fascinating to follow. Roughly ten centuries later, a young poet and scholar Olivier de Noyen, begins to study the writings of Manlius. Noyen also lives in times of trouble, with the Catholic Church absolutely corrupt and the Black Death sweeping through Europe. Noyen gets swept up in a plot to move the papacy back to Rome from its position in France, giving power back to the Italian church officials. During his travels, Noyen falls in love with the servant girl of his Jewish teacher. He falls absolutely in love with her, but he can never have her because of her religion. As the plague sweeps through Europe, many in the church urge the mass slaughter of the Jews of Europe. Noyen must see to it that this does not happen, while continuing an academic tradition that is quickly dying. The last story center around Julien Barneuve, a 20th century scholar from France. Julien is a student of Oliviers writing, and begins to understand the dedication of the man and his campaign to preserve knowledge. Julien's Europe is one of trouble, with the Nazi's ascendent and many in France, including the "learned" class, encouraging new forms of government, i.e Fascism or Communism. Freedom is old, a failure. As the Nazi's invade, Julien becomes a censor for the Vichy government. He too falls in love with a Jew, who he hides desperately from the authorities. He is forced to examine his own actions and his personal philosophy as civilization, again, seems to be quickly dying. The Dream of Scipio's central point, to me, is that when the world fails, that when people forget themselves and give in to the easy comfort of ignorance and hate, it's up to a few brave indiviuals to keep the flame alive for future generations. The book offers haunting reminders to us on how important the search for truth and knowledge is. The best novel I've read this year.
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