Thursday, January 04, 2018

A Legend of the Future


A Legend of the Future is a science fiction book by Cuban author Agustin de Rojas. This book is interesting in how it manages the characters, and the ending is quite satisfying.

I want to particularly point out this statement from the back on the book:

After the fall of the Soviet Union,
de Rojas stopped writing science fiction.
He spent his final years persuaded -and persuading others- that Fidel Castro did not exist.

I like "characters" -and wow! this man sounds like a prime example of "a character".

from the back of the book:
The first book by the father of Cuban science fiction to be translated into English, this mesmerizing novel, reminiscent of Arthur C. Clarke's 2001: A Space Odyssey, is a science fiction survival story that captures the intense pressures -economic, ideological, and psychological- inside Communist Cuba. A Legend of the Future takes place within a spaceship on a groundbreaking mission to Titan, one of Saturn's moons; back home, a final conflict between warring superpowers threatens the fate of the Earth. When the ship malfunctions on the return journey, the crewmembers become the subjects of experiments that test their courage and their grasp of reality.
...
After the fall of the Soviet Union, de Rojas stopped writing science fiction. He spent his final years persuaded -and persuading others- that Fidel Castro did not exist.
SF Signal says, "BOTTOM LINE: If you like intensely psychological scifi that deftly piles on the suspense, this novel’s for you." The Portland Book Review calls it "idealistic science fiction at its best".

9 comments:

  1. Now that is an interesting conclusion. I wonder if he wrote sci-fi as a way of dealing with Castro, or if he maybe felt some new emotions once communism started to shatter. I haven't read the book so I don't if it had any symbols of Communism in it. Nice share though. Hugs-Erika

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    1. I picked it up used when my local bookstore still had a used section. I'd never have come across him otherwise. I don't usually look into the life of an author, but I was struck by how unusual this delusion was.

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  2. Gosh, he was quite young when he died. Too bad he ended up being delusional, although from the link you included, he was well loved in his country. The book certainly sounds intriguing.

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    1. He was the purveyor of the "alternative facts" of his day in his country. If he were in our country he'd have quite the following ;) He didn't let actual facts get in his way.

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  3. He definitely sounds like a character and so beloved by his country too! Sounds like an interesting read 😁. Happy Friday! J 😊

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    1. It was interesting and made me wish he had kept writing SF :(

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  4. Sounds like a good read and he certainly does sound like a character! :)

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    1. So strange! I wonder how the idea that Fidel Castro did not exist first occurred to him.

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  5. This book definitely sounds like a great read! I will have to find it.

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