As a first-time reader of David Brin, I did not know what to expect from Existence. Luckily, Brin provides a lengthy preview, which I recommend that you read before buying, especially given that this is a pricey book.
While reading Existence, I was reminded of Heinlein in some respects. Brin explores political, philosophical, scientific, religious, moral and ethical considerations from a number of different perspectives. His musings are truly kaleidoscopic. This is, of course, both good and bad: the positive perspective is that Brin criticizes modernity, particularly its politics and more parochial tendencies, thus providing the reader with a refreshing or perhaps more refined understanding of polemical issues, while challenging everyday "post-modern" platitudes; the negative flip side is that all of Brin's introspection, questioning and pontificating becomes repetitive, if not a bit tiresome, depending on your interest in these more existential questions, along with your attention span.
Indeed, Existence has been written--make no mistake--for avid science fiction readers. The language is, in addition to pedantic, somewhat turgid, even pretentious, so make sure you are prepared to read a book whose author isn't afraid to challenge your vocabulary; if this turns you off, then there are times when the writing will bother you.
The plot itself is rather straightforward: Gerald, aboard a spaceship orbiting Earth, encounters an anomalous object: is it alien; is it a hoax; where did it come from? Immediately after apprehending this object, later dubbed the "Artifact," Brin explores the various reactions humans have toward the object. He provides the full gamut of human reaction, which courses through every nook and cranny in society. However, Brin is principally concerned with the Artifact's effect on society as a whole; Brin's characters, being sort of one-dimensional and easily forgettable, serve as symbols for greater collective cliques. You've got the inquisitive scientist, the ultra-rich elitist, the conservative and reactionary politician, and so on. But none of these characters seem very real. Character development is altogether lacking, although there are a few characters who are more indelible than others.
As a work of science fiction, Brin has a rather optimistic perspective of humanity's future, in spite of the many predictable and inevitable potholes ahead. Existence takes place around 2040, then jumps ahead to 2060 or so, and again toward the end of the twenty-first century. Most of the novel takes place around 2040, or the time frame near which time the Singularity, and the dawn of transhumanism, is hypothesized to take place. Like in the real world, Existence captures both the wonderment and anxious nostalgia revolving around transhumanism, cyborgs, artificial intelligence, and so forth. If you recall what Arthur C. Clarke writes in his Space Odyssey saga, the material out of which a being is made is immaterial; what we humans identify as truly special is our intelligence, and if that intelligence is manifested by biological beings, technological-silicon cyborgs, or hybrids between the two is of lesser concern than the possibility of a harmonious or commensal relationship between like-minded sentient beings. A federation of intellectual and moral beings, if you will. This lofty yet satisfying goal of a federation encompassing an panoply of sentient beings reminds me of Star Wars wherein every being, regardless of species, is accepted. Brin breathes life into this quasi-utopian but nonetheless noble possibility: he, in short, merges the morality of progressivism with the politics and technology of futurism, if you will.
Moreover, Brin's society incorporates many of modernity's predictions of the future: escalated sea levels, virtual reality (albeit with a more unique flavor), a fragmented United States (not unsimilar to Suzanne Collins's Hunger Games, though not dystopic), an autism pandemic, etc. Amid the partisan politics, basically boiled down to conservative versus moderate versus progressive-"futurist," Brin weaves a tapestry of narratives that coincide--or sometimes even wither away prematurely, on the other hand--all the while raising important questions about the Artifact, from which questions about the nature of intelligent life, extraterrestrial beings, the feasibility of interstellar space travel arise, and receive startling answers. Aside from all these big questions, Brin somewhat solemnly tackles the quandary that has been irking sci-fi aficionados for possibly decades, if not centuries: Are we alone in our galaxy, or even in the entire cosmos? Have we yet, or will we ever, encounter intelligent life elsewhere? If not, what does this say about humanity? Do we have a responsibility to mother and husband up-and-coming civilizations, once we have mastered the science of interstellar space travel? But what if we destroy ourselves first? What does this say about the possibility of intelligent life in general? Is it a spoof?
As you can see, these questions are a bit arresting: and yet these are the questions you will encounter throughout Existence.
A great deal of Existence is spent trying to figure out what the Artifact is, what it wants, what utilitarian purpose can it serve humans, etc. Brin provides many cliffhangars, however: after you're starting to figure things out, Brin leaves you hanging for several chapters, until, almost randomly, one of those lingering, nagging questions at the back of your mind is finally answered. In this regard the plot, at times, feels somewhat anticlimactic: I felt no intense, adrenaline-filled anticipation for something to ever happen with Existence. The big questions are answered, but kind of schizophrenically: Brin takes you out to sea, slams multiple waves into your seafaring ship, some of which are unexpected while others are redundant and therefore superfluous, then brings you out of the storm, into calm waters, finally satisfies some of your curiosity by showing you the "land ahead," but then seemingly makes a roundabout turn before you ever get to see that land, taking you off to sea again--sometimes through the same waters, leading to more redundancy and therefore boring superfluity.
However, eventually Brin does offer an exciting plot twist, that dwarfs the importance of the "Artifact." After much skepticism and waffling, your spirit for adventure is whetted again. But Brin, nevertheless, provides the same formula: rephrasing of the same questions, answering them from a number of perspectives, and eventually providing a resolution.
What sets Existence apart from many First Encounter sci-fi novels is its ultimate optimism. This isn't a work for Cassandras. You'll be reminded of "The Rational Optimist" by Matt Ridley in some ways.
So, for a work with such an ambitious title as Existence, is it worth reading? Well, if you don't mind existential musings and shallow characters, while having your patience tested at times, then yes. If you want thrillers, horrors, tons of action and constant plot twists like many sci-fi novels today, then no: this isn't for you. Whatever your predilections may be, Existence offers a new, more intelligent-than-usual, and engrossing take on the first contact sci-fi genre. Still, for a book named Existence, you'd expect something truly marvelous; unfortunately, Brin's latest work is too ambitious, contains much redundancy, and is ultimately more about the possibilities of the existence of extraterrestrial life rather than course of human existence.
3.5-4/5
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All David Brin's greatest hits, plus several new twists.
Reviewed in the United States on January 21, 2016
"Hermione Radagast of the Rowling Foundation" (snort snort). Why can I not find by google anyone else mentioning this? Including references to both HP, LOTR, and magic (VR) in a story is a first for Brin (I believe). The other Brin things are there. Humor (check), Dolphins (check) (I have to take off a star for not enough dolphin). Uplift (check). Dolphins playing pranks (check). Aliens (check). Galactic civilization (check). However, I'm almost, but not quite, frustrated that this is NOT a prequel to the Galactic Civilization/Uplift stories, apparently. Instead it reuses some favorite Brin topics and throws in cyberpunk that skirts dangerously close to GITS as a way of showing humanity evolving to something new.The central plot thread is (for me) a brand new twist on first contact that I don't think should be spoiled. That was very interesting, and unfolded as a mystery very nicely with interesting and varied characters. And... dolphins. Gets 10 sins knocked off for that, and since I only have a handful of things to carp about, I believe that ends up net positive. You will easily be able to see where Brin writes himself into a corner and utterly fails to get out of it with a very short scene at the very end. It ends up looking not so much as a hook for a sequel as Brin just losing interest and getting exhausted. I'd also take off half a star, if I could, for the oversized dolphin on his web site. Relative to the diver, that thing is the size of a large male killer whale, not a dolphin.At least one of the "one star" reviewers was upset by a subplot that was aimed at Faux News/ Limbaugh fans. In fact, I'm adding back a star for that, come to think of it. It has deep significance as I write this in January of '16. You could call Brin prescient, but really he's only doing what a good science fiction/social commentator would do. He's extrapolating the decades long development of right wing "news" to a possible conclusion. It's certain to upset any Trump supporter, so add back a half star.
Reviewed in the United States on January 21, 2016
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