2005 / October 27^th/ Arthur C. Clarke: Imperial Earth

Summary

Imperial Earth is a short novel about a young man named Duncan Makenzie, a resident of Titan who takes his first and last journey to Earth. The vast majority of the book is dealing with an outsider’s point of view of earth and its many lifeforms and complexities. The rest of the book deals with a myriad of struggles Duncan is forced to deal with while on Earth to give a speech in Washinton DC for the United State’s Quincentennial celebration in 2276.

The Good

This is a nice little novel that won’t take too much time out of your busy day. The writing is all Clarke and it’s a pretty cool view on the idea that the new frontier is never conquered. Titan is seen as, in many ways, the new West. The book encompases the human urge to always look forward, and to always explore further. First Mars. Then Titan. Now… who knows.

The descriptions of Titan and the futuristic Earth are very interesting. It kept me up pretty late a couple nights just from the pure intrigue in the setting around Duncan. Duncan is given a brand new view of Earth, a view which he had no expectations for – and it’s always fun to look back and see ourselves in a new light.

The Bad

It’s nothing spectacular, in all fairness. The characters fall a bit short of Clarke’s best and aren’t developed very far. At the end of the book, you’re still wondering what the hell just happened? It really begs for more background of the characters and their pasts.

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