Half Past Human by T.J.Bass
Week 14 - 02/01/2017
Goodreads review
Half Past Human by T.J.Bass
Heavens but that was heavy going.
Good points: Bass' imagination of the future of mankind, with so many people crammed in they've had basic human emotions bred out... The author competently considers the psychology of the 'hive' and delivers the shocking consequences of over-population in a very underplayed way. The ending was satisfying and enables the reader to envision how the story continues once the last page has been read.
Bad points: Even with a degree in psychobiology, I frequently found myself having to dictionary.com words and phrases. The story is so peppered with biological and physiological references that it becomes wearing after a while. Although a few candidates raise their head above the parapet, there is no real protagonist, and it's hard to find anyone to root for. Plus, women in the novel are little more than walking-uteruses (uterii?) and are notable by their absence. I have no qualms about a story led by a strong male cast, but as noted above, that's lacking here too.
Summary: Read the book. It took me a month to battle through it as I had to keep putting it down and coming back to it. But I'm delighted that it did. Wanting to understand the story was what lead me to this very website, hence why I feel the need to say my piece. I must add, I read for fun and for distraction - this book probably deserves far closer attention than I was able to give it and I'm sure subsequent re-readings would be more satisfying.
