Blind Lake
Robert Charles Wilson
(Reviewer - D. H. BROWN)
2003 TOR Books
ISBN: 0765302624

Scientists, beside a remote Minnesota lake, watch everyday life on a distant planet.

Recently bitterly divorced Margeurite & Raymond must work side-by-side studying a city of lobsterlike aliens millions of miles away, who they can't contact or understand. All they can do is watch.

Then, without any warning, a military cordon is imposed on the Blind Lake site. All communication with the outside world is cut off. Food & supplies are delivered by remote control, & no one knows why.

Raymond is sure the project is doomed, that culture is arbitrary & the aliens will forever be an enigma. Margeurite believes the commonality of sentient thought will make a breakthrough & it is our ignorance that is threatening the research -- not nature.

Reviewer - D. H. BROWN writes:

Blind Lake is a first contact story, & how technology can lead to unexpected places, & get totally unexpected results. This story is about those results, & how the human race finds that it is not alone, & only a minute part of a larger universe of life.

Robert Charles Wilson likes to write about the human condition & our reactions amongst ourselves to what we find. His relationships are very real & the weaving of those relationships with technology is what determines the results.

More & more these days, we glom onto technology without the seeming forethought of what the results may be. Like a child following an ant as it makes its way through a larger world, just to see where it might go. When said child is dancing with hysterics in the midst of a roiled ants nest, the denizens of which are crawling up its legs. Then all the fun is gone, & the child is wishing the ant had never been seen.

Watching the news at any time with its techno-bytes of information about great advances, we often hear someone exclaim how the results were not foreseen. All this makes me wonder when the human species will grow up, look ahead, & try to spot the ants' nest before we step in it!

I thoroughly enjoyed Blind Lake! As improbable as the technology & the results were, the strangeness of the conclusion made it an extremely worthwhile read.

I liked it! Well worth the price.

More from Robert Charles Wilson:
Darwinia
The Divide
Bios
The Chronoliths
A Hidden Place & more!

This book is also a 2004 Hugo nominee. You can read Nicholas Whyte's take on all the 2004 Hugo nominees HERE.
(04/04/04)

D. H. BROWN
A RebeccasReads.Com Reviewer -

Reviewer's Bio:
D. H. BROWN is the author of the critically acclaimed HONOR DUE and the Citizens Warrior Series. The son of missionary parents and with the help his Uncle Sam, he has touched base in more than 40 countries. In 1986 he produced the independent children's film Lessie's Rainbow. During the late 80s and early 90s, he wrote the book Common Sense and delivered the seminars of the same name for the Community Action Network of Seattle (CAN). While doing his early Vietnam recovery work, he counseled Veterans and spoke widely to men's groups in Washington state, and was a founder of The Lodge of the Wolf.

D. H. BROWN has worked as a Logistics and Weapons Specialist in Viet Nam; day laborer; Director of Security; Armored Car Driver; Police Officer; Professional Hunting Guide; Trapper; Dog Sledder; Homesteader; Truck Driver; General Contractor; Minister; Editor; Writer; Speaker; Restaurateur; Movie Producer; Antique Restoration Specialist; Personal Care Worker; PC Repair Specialist; Computer Instructor; Webmaster and Web Designer. "I write about what I know."

He lives deep in the Pacific Northwest rainforest with his wife, author and editor Rebecca and Buddy Dog, working on his next book.
Visit him at: www.dhbrownbooks.com