Subject: REVIEW: "The Alien Years" by Robert Silverberg

From: [email-masked] (P.D. TILLMAN)
Date: 21 Sep 1998 13:03:23 -0400

The Alien Years by Robert Silverberg  
	Review Copyright 1998 Peter D. Tillman

Rating: Strong "A" -- best Silverberg novel in years. Highly recommended.

"The Alien Years" has been long in gestation - regular Silverberg readers
will recognize parts of at least 5 previously-published stories [1],
dating back to 1987. It's his best SF novel in many years; maybe his best
yet?  Silverberg dedicates the book to HG Wells - this is the centennial
year of "War of the Worlds" - and, in this 10th year after Heinlein's
death, it can hardly be coincidence that the patriarchal protagonist is
named "Anson" [2].

The Aliens land "seven years from now," touching off massive brush fires
in the LA basin and, shortly thereafter, seismic changes in humanity's
place on our home planet. The alien Entities pay little attention to
humans, but any attack on them triggers massive retaliation. Human
institutions simply fall apart after the Conquest. This is a long way from
ID4 or the optimistic Campbellian invasions of yore. Silverberg is working
in terrain similar to Wm. Barton's "When Heaven Fell", but with a more
elegaic tone, something like "Earth Abides" -- or "Nightwings."

"The Alien Years" is told thru the viewpoints of the Carmichaels, an old
California clan headed by a patriarchal Vietnam-era Colonel. Thru 50 years
of Entity rule, the Carmichaels never quite give up hope or the memory of
freedom. They are active in a nominal Resistance, but real resistance is
almost unthinkable - the last, futile military attack on the Entities
resulted in the death of half of humanity. We see the gradual passing of
people who grew up free, and new generations coming of age who have known
nothing but the unpredictable rule and irresistible whims of the Entities
and their quisling government. Silverberg weaves a rich tapestry of life
and love, birth and death, hope and despair. Highly recommended. Look for
it on the award ballots.

Silverberg's best work in this decade has been short-form [3] - in
particular the spectacular novellas "Letters from Atlantis" (1990), "Lion
Time in Timbuctoo" (1990), and "Thebes of the Hundred Gates" (1992) --
historical fantasies all. He has written that he doesn't really want to
keep up with sci/tech to write cutting-edge sf, but he's zigged before.
I'm pleased to see him return to the heart of his home genre.

%D 1998
%I HarperPrism
%O $24
%P 428 pp
%T The Alien Years
%A Robert Silverberg

----------------
[1] The stories I recognized include:

The Pardoner's Tale (1987)
Chip Runner (1989)
--the opening chapter, fighting the brushfire, Title??
Beauty in the Night (1997)
On the Inside (1997)
The Colonel in Autumn (1998)

As might be expected of an artist of Silverberg's stature, these stories
are seamlessly integrated into the novel. This is not a "fixup" in the
usual sense.

[2] the "A" in "RAH" - as if you didn't know.

[3] Indeed, I could argue that all of his best work is novella-length or
shorter. My current all-time Silverberg favorite is the brilliant
novelette "Enter a Soldier. Later: Enter Another" (1989).