Call number
Genres
Publication
New York: Bantam, 1980
Pages
182
Description
In the drowsy tranquility of Little Belaire, the Truthful Speakers lead lives of peaceful self-sufficiency ignoring the depopulated wilderness beyond their narrow borders. It is a society untouched by pain or violence and the self-destroying 'Angels' of the past are barely remembered. But when Rush That Speaks leaves his home on a pilgrimage of self-enlightenment, he finds a landscape haunted by myths and memories. The overgrown ruins reflect a world outside that is stranger than his people ever dreamed ...
Awards
National Book Award (Finalist — 1980)
Locus Award (Nominee — Science Fiction Novel — No. 9 — 1980)
John W. Campbell Memorial Award for Best Science Fiction Novel (Finalist — 1980)
British Science Fiction Association Award (Shortlist — Novel — 1980)
Language
Original language
English
Original publication date
1979-03
Physical description
182 p.; 7.2 inches
ISBN
0553131990 / 9780553131994
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User reviews
LibraryThing member dulac3
Fey, muted, beautiful. The story of Rush-that-speaks is a bildungsroman that will haunt you long after you have read the last page. The story follows the charming and inquisitive Rush as he grows up in his enclave of 'True Speakers', one of the few groups of humanity left after an apocalypse has
Don't expect to find the mutant zombies or flesh-eating reavers of many other post-apocalyptic stories. Instead prepare to see with Rush the melancholy remnants of our society, given new strangeness and wonder when viewed through his eyes. Tied to this are the strange people we meet; those who survived the cataclysm and continued to live their lives, forever changed by the harsh reality of the end of civilization.
The ways in which these groups choose to meet the challenges presented by this world mark each of them in significant ways, and as Rush witnesses these things he is changed by them, becoming both more, and less, than he was when he started his journey.
This is one of my very favourites by Crowley (I seem to prefer his early work to his later) and I highly recommend it to any and all.
Edit: June 12/12 Upon reflection I think I have to give this one five stars.
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destroyed most of civilization. It then follows him as he ventures out into the world to see what strangeness it may offer and in the hopes of finding his lost love.Don't expect to find the mutant zombies or flesh-eating reavers of many other post-apocalyptic stories. Instead prepare to see with Rush the melancholy remnants of our society, given new strangeness and wonder when viewed through his eyes. Tied to this are the strange people we meet; those who survived the cataclysm and continued to live their lives, forever changed by the harsh reality of the end of civilization.
The ways in which these groups choose to meet the challenges presented by this world mark each of them in significant ways, and as Rush witnesses these things he is changed by them, becoming both more, and less, than he was when he started his journey.
This is one of my very favourites by Crowley (I seem to prefer his early work to his later) and I highly recommend it to any and all.
Edit: June 12/12 Upon reflection I think I have to give this one five stars.
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LibraryThing member paperloverevolution
There are some books that are bigger on the inside than on the outside. They may be small, but are so densely layered that they feel like they're opening onto infinite space, and when you finish reading you're dazed, like you've woken up from a vivid dream to find your waking life transformed.
Engine Summer is such a book, a deceptively slim novella set in a far-future world, which is at once a picaresque tale of love and adventure, and a dreamily gorgeous story about the nature of time, identity, consciousness, and the stories that make us really live.
You should read it.
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Engine Summer is such a book, a deceptively slim novella set in a far-future world, which is at once a picaresque tale of love and adventure, and a dreamily gorgeous story about the nature of time, identity, consciousness, and the stories that make us really live.
You should read it.
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LibraryThing member bragan
In a long-post-apocalyptic future, a young man sets out on a journey, as young men in such stories do, and has some strange experiences.
I started this one with a fair amount of interest in learning more about the protagonist's society, in piecing together hints about what happened in this world's
It is quite well written, and there are a couple of revelations at the end that I thought worked nicely, but I must confess that my attention kept wandering away from it. I think maybe I just wasn't in the right kind of mood.
I started this one with a fair amount of interest in learning more about the protagonist's society, in piecing together hints about what happened in this world's
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past, and in puzzling out the slightly cryptic framing story. As it went on, though, it became less obviously about any of these things and more oblique and metaphorical. There's something about stories, something about the passing of time, something about men and women... I don't entirely know. It is quite well written, and there are a couple of revelations at the end that I thought worked nicely, but I must confess that my attention kept wandering away from it. I think maybe I just wasn't in the right kind of mood.
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LibraryThing member sonofcarc
My goodness, this is the essence of a hippie SF novel! A nice read, but pretty forgettable.
LibraryThing member kiparsky
A good early novel from a writer who was clearly just discovering his skills. The novel is not perfect, but its strengths are always enough to pull the reader along to the next bend in the road. These strengths include an engaging protagonist with enough dark corners to keep a reader interested, an
Not a perfect novel indeed, but in an era where authors seem to think their readers are buying on page count it's nice to see a novel with a sense of restraint and purpose. This is not a guidebook to some imaginary land, it's a simple story with few nice twists and a well-made turn a the end.
Quite a pleasant read - and you can't ask for more than that, really.
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enduring infatuation with so little justification that it remains plausible, and a world seen only through the eyes of one character, and not developed past his gaze. Not a perfect novel indeed, but in an era where authors seem to think their readers are buying on page count it's nice to see a novel with a sense of restraint and purpose. This is not a guidebook to some imaginary land, it's a simple story with few nice twists and a well-made turn a the end.
Quite a pleasant read - and you can't ask for more than that, really.
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LibraryThing member dbsovereign
All of Crowley's books are worth reading - though I have to say I prefer some of his others to this one. This is a very dark and moody take on the classic end-of-the-world tale. Poignant and compelling, Crowley's characters break through whereas some of the rest of us still hide out in our
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comfortable worlds. Show Less
LibraryThing member Gwendydd
I almost want to go back and re-read this one immediately because there are a lot of revelations at the end that completely change how you understand the rest of the book. This book is going to haunt me for a long time.
It is set in a post-apocalyptic future, where some disaster has wiped out most
As a teenager, Rush That Speaks goes on a quest, hoping to become a Saint. In his travels he learns different ways of understanding the world: in his native culture, he was a truthspeaker. He encounters other people who see the world in terms of dark and light instead of truth. He encounters scavengers who see the world in utilitarian terms. All along, he is trying to understand the world, and trying to form a relationship with Once a Day, a girl he played with as a child. His pursuit of her is part of his quest to understand the world.
All along, the reader gets more and more hints about how the world came to be how it is. It takes some sleuthing to piece them all together, and I'm sure I missed a lot of it along the way because I couldn't see how it was relevant.
The book can be mysterious and confusing, and sometimes as a reader you feel a bit unmoored and it's hard to follow what's happening, but it's still compelling. Rush That Speaks and his fellow people have a childlike wonder and innocence that makes the novel sparkle, even in the dark parts.
It all comes into sharp focus at the end, so if you're feeling lost, stick with it because it does all eventually make sense.
I love John Crowley's books. With this one, just like all of his others, I feel like I'm not quite smart enough to totally appreciate everything he's doing, and I might need two or three readings to fully appreciate it, but it's well worth two or three readings.
It is set in a post-apocalyptic future, where some disaster has wiped out most
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of humanity. The story is narrated by Rush That Speaks in his old age, being interviewed about his youth. He grew up in a communal society, where people struggle to understand the lives of the humans who came before, who they call Angels. They still have some discarded Angel technology and artifacts, which they revere but do not understand (one character spends most of his life in a quest to understand "crostic words"). The human society was clearly far more advanced than ours, and there are elements of magic too - the people don't have to grow food, but can survive by smoking stuff they harvest from weird trees that were left by aliens. As a teenager, Rush That Speaks goes on a quest, hoping to become a Saint. In his travels he learns different ways of understanding the world: in his native culture, he was a truthspeaker. He encounters other people who see the world in terms of dark and light instead of truth. He encounters scavengers who see the world in utilitarian terms. All along, he is trying to understand the world, and trying to form a relationship with Once a Day, a girl he played with as a child. His pursuit of her is part of his quest to understand the world.
All along, the reader gets more and more hints about how the world came to be how it is. It takes some sleuthing to piece them all together, and I'm sure I missed a lot of it along the way because I couldn't see how it was relevant.
The book can be mysterious and confusing, and sometimes as a reader you feel a bit unmoored and it's hard to follow what's happening, but it's still compelling. Rush That Speaks and his fellow people have a childlike wonder and innocence that makes the novel sparkle, even in the dark parts.
It all comes into sharp focus at the end, so if you're feeling lost, stick with it because it does all eventually make sense.
I love John Crowley's books. With this one, just like all of his others, I feel like I'm not quite smart enough to totally appreciate everything he's doing, and I might need two or three readings to fully appreciate it, but it's well worth two or three readings.
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LibraryThing member Ken-Me-Old-Mate
Sometimes I forget just how good science fiction can be when is not Cowboys in space. A post apocalypse world is what you have dropped into and then you journey deeper into it. I am always amazed by how simple this seems when it is done so well. You do not have to wade through page after page of
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boring description to get a very clear picture of the world in which you find yourself. Come to think of it, I have read lots of non-science fiction novels in which you have to wade through page after page of boring descriptions when they are talking about a world we know so well. If you don't read or have never read science fiction I'd recommend picking one up and giving it a go. Show Less
LibraryThing member questbird
Rush That Speaks is a dweller in Little Belaire, a self-sufficient community of Truthful Speakers in a post-apocalyptic world. He leaves this inward-looking place to seek truth in the wider world, where he pieces together stories of the Angels and the Storm which overwhelmed their world. The
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post-apocalypse world is a mostly peaceful and strange one, with few inhabitants. I like that the attitudes of these inhabitants are very different to today's. It reminded me of the very end of Doris Lessing's 'Shikasta'. I really enjoyed the language of this book, and I dreamed about it. Show Less
LibraryThing member zjakkelien
I really liked this. It had some pretty cool ideas for post-apocalypse societies, but I'll admit, I liked the truthful speakers the best. I got a little bored and distracted at Dr. Boots' List, which is a shame, because it ties in really well with the main story. I hope I didn't miss anything
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because of it. I very much liked the idea of Path, and the Filing System, and I was intrigued by the League of women. Quite interesting! Show Less