Hearts, Hands and Voices
(aka The Broken Land)
by Ian McDonald

Other reviewers have described this as a challenging book to read and finish, and I am inclined to agree with that assessment.

The biopunk world building is absorbingly creative, and the excellent quality of the writing has an almost lyrical feel to it, while many of the descriptions are both dreamlike and disturbing.

The basic premise involves a conflict between two civilizations and religions in the far future when chemical and genetic engineering have reached remarkable heights.

Anyone familiar with the UK "Troubles" will recognize what is being obliquely referred to in some of the characterizations. But since many African place names are also mentioned, the reader may also be reminded of the intractable conflicts in that area of the world.

The principal message I took away from this story is related to the nature of politics, mainstream religions, and cultic organizations.

Through the narrative, politics is shown to be tribal and cultic like religion, since it causes divisions and conflicts in similar ways, which can be enumerated as follows:

1. Gross oversimplification of complex issues leading to
2. Black and white thinking, devoid of nuances and grey areas, producing
3. A 'them and us' mentality and entrenched prejudices.
4. A perception that "sitting on the fence" or maintaining a neutral stand is one of the most heinous crimes imaginable. One cannot be neither nor. Those who are not for us are against us.

Indeed, this may be one of the reasons that extreme political and religious views are often to be found inextricably intertwined with each other.

The only character who honestly attempts to treat people fairly and on an individual basis ends up being hated by both sides.

The ending seems to imply that entrenched positions and hatreds, whether political or religious, could only be overcome by physically altering the makeup of humans in some way at the genetic level, although other readers may come to different conclusions of what is meant.

This book is highly imaginative and memorable, but somewhat grim and nightmarish, and probably not suitable for someone who prefers a light and entertaining read.


( )

This densely-written book, published as 'Hearts, Hands and Voices' in the UK (a quote from the old hymn 'Now thank we all our God'), and as 'The Broken Land' in the USA, is not your average science fiction novel. In an exotic setting where biotechnology has replaced nuts-and-bolts metal-bashing, a teenage girl, Mathembe, has her life disrupted when someone in her village shelters two insurgents, refugees from the Emperor-across-the-River, and troops arrive to make an example of the whole village. From here on, we are plunged into McDonald's vibrant, exotic world, and follow Mathembe and her family as they trudge off into exile, and suffer the fate of refugees everywhere.

The language is remarkable; this is not a book that you can plunge into and it is not a quick read (at least, not unless and until you can get your head around what it is telling you). And do not be misled by the exoticism; although names suggest Africa or Asia, it quickly becomes clear that we are looking at an allegorical Ireland. The transplantation of clues is skilful; early on, there is a quotation from an Irish Republican song that flagged this up to me, but as conflict breaks out between two political and religious factions, supported by an overseas power, the parallels become impossible to ignore. Yet the reader isn't browbeaten by McDonald; he neither takes sides nor forgets that he is weaving a science fictional tale of a world where biotechnology and the ability of some of the characters to manipulate it can produce wonders.

Mathembe's journey exposes her to dangers as well as those wonders; she becomes separated from her family and spends much of the novel looking for them. Some she finds; others are lost. Those she finds are changed in one way or another. And eventually she also finds a way to resolve not just her own story, but that of her land, though redemption comes at a price, and cannot be instant. Peace and reconciliation can come, but only one step at a time. And what we have in common is more important than what separates us.

Along the way, we see exploitation, the plight of refugees, the grinding drudgery of relocation camps and the realities and dangers that imposing borders can bring to a place.

The messages in this book are timely, and timeless; unfortunately, those who most need to read it most likely won't (and if they did, they might struggle with it). It reinforces my view that Ian McDonald is probably one of the finest writers in any genre that these islands have produced. ( )

A testament to McDonald's many talents. This juicy nugget from page 20: "In solitude with the greater congregation of the forest, she passed into a spiritual grace of self-loss where, for brief numinous moments, she became aware of herself as a tiny, transient, lightning flicker of consciousness moving with incomprehensible speed through the colossal, slow sentience of the trees." And another from page 291: "Worship as you can, not as you cannot. Therefore, a couple of hours of paperwork in the out-moiety offices settling the affairs of the community in the outside world, a few minutes on the satellite link and accessing information from the Dreaming matrix, a morning or so picking fruit in the gardens and closed orchards, a little sleep, a little beer, a little lying back to watch television were the steps by which he made his way to salvation." The only irritating part about this book is the way it drifts between the microcosmic to the macrocosmic in a rather pretentious way... ( )

http://speculiction.blogspot.com/2013/09/review-of-hearts-hands-and-voices-uk.ht... ( )

...I've been thinking about how good a read this novel really is and I can't seem to make up my mind about it. The story is gripping and Mathembe a great character. I also liked the prose and McDonald's vision of what genetic research but I do think that for some readers the prose in particular is too much of a good thing. Some passages needed several rereads to be able to figure out what the author was trying to communicate, making the The Broken Land a slow read. Readers of main stream fiction might enjoy the prose but it is probably too much of a science fiction novel to have a great appeal for that market. It probably isn't a novel for a large audience. It probably takes a very specific kind of reader to fully enjoy what McDonald was trying to do here. I think I may lake a bit of patience with his prose. The poetic quality of his writing is still present in his later novels but reigned in a bit more. It is a matter of preference but for me, that later style works better. Nevertheless, if you are looking for a science fiction novel that is challenging and offers both interesting concepts and a mastery of language, this novel would be a good choice. Just take your time reading it.

Full Random Comments review ( )