Making History |
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Stephen Fry
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Pages: 320 (Paperback)
ISBN: 0099464810
Pub: Arrow Books Ltd
Pub date: 1997-10-02
Amazon.co.uk Sales Rank: 144238
Reader Reviews:
Making History (1/1 people found this helpful)
Stephen Fry's 3rd novel finds him entering science fiction territory, as a university student and a physcicist team up to erase Adolf Hitler from history, only to find that the new world they have created may not be an improvement after all. The alternate world storyline is one of the staples of SF, and the idea of a world without Hitler is certainly a well-worn one, but Fry still manages to throw in a couple of good plot twists along the way, while familiar authorial tropes - humour, academia, homosexuality - are prevalent. THe novel is not without it's flaws - the concept is old-hat, the prose occasionally overblown, and the random jumps to screenplay form seem less to do with stylistic choices than Fry trying to wade through expositionary sections at top speed - but what makes this so enjoyable is the vivid characterisation and fluid writing style. Reminiscent of Douglas Adams, 'Making History' is entertaining and hugely readable.
Smart, light-weight and highly enjoyable. (0/0 people found this helpful)
Having never read any of Stephen Fry's novels before I have to say I was surprised by how accomplished a writer he really is. The novel is pretty long at well over five hundred pages, but manages to remain extremely quick and light-weight reading throughout, with Fry's trademark sparkling wit lending the whole thing an admittedly slightly self-indulgent but nonetheless very intelligent tone.
The story is an extremely well thought through peice of sci-fi working around the old question of whether or not it would be justifiable to kill Hitler before he had a chance to commit his attroticies. There's a good understanding of history present here though and Fry avoids over simplifying his portayal of the people and the time, in fact lending the whole thing a great deal more complexity then most writers would have. The principle character is very relatable, he's sympathetic for all the same reasons as a Douglas Adams character but is very much Fry's creation and a protagonist who the reader can't help but like.
The story has enough thematic intricacies and philosophical questions to keep hardcore sci-fi fans satisfied but remains highly accessible throughout and as such never excludes the reader regardless of their personal taste and preferences.
This is an inventive little sci-fi adventure that should keep both newcomers and stalwart fans of the genre entertained for all of it's pretty considerable length. Definitely one to check out if you get the chance.
enjoyable read (1/1 people found this helpful)
I found this an enjoyable and engrossing read, but to be honest I could see the way the plot was going a mile off. I nearly through it out the window when reading his description of a laboratory, he clearly doesn't have a clue there. Has made me want to try his other books.
Excellent (1/2 people found this helpful)
A most enjoyable book from a man who is a guiding light in media. Cleverly written. An absolute joy.
Appalling (1/6 people found this helpful)
I can't fathom the overwhelmingly positive reviews this has been getting. I read it soon after it was published, and found it intellectually lazy, poorly-written and self-indulgent crap. Nothing more in fact than we have come to expect from a man who has managed to spin a highly lucrative career out of his Happy Shopper Oscar Wilde act. Add the totally implausible plot (I could have suspended disbelief, Fatherland-style, if the thing had been better overall) and you have a book with no redeeming features whatever.
Fry only half-acknowledges the central issue: had Hitler or a Hitler-like leader won World War 2, intellectuals today would be arguing out of the other side of their faces. Curiously he sets himself up as history's arbiter while clinging to the postmodern liberal absolutes that make him a product of this reality.
Maybe Orwell, who he name-drops, would have had the insight and courage to wring an half-decent novel out of his premise, but this isn't it.
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