Karen's Reviews > Playground

“If you want to make something smarter, teach it to play.”

I had mixed feelings about “The Overstory.” But because it was a Pulitzer Prize winner, I decided to read it. And, I still had mixed feelings about it by the time I got to the almost end. If curious as to what I am talking about, please feel free to read my review here: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

So, when this author’s new book came out, I was reluctant to read it. I had already had an emotional reaction to his previous book, “Bewilderment.” Review here: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

Could I get through this one?

Since the reviews were good, I thought that maybe I might have a different feeling about it. And, when one of the characters, Todd Keane is diagnosed with Lewy Body Dementia, I couldn’t help but feel a personal sadness about it, since the complications from that dis-ease is what took my mother’s life, 7 years ago. Still, this character is racing against his dis-ease in hopes of changing “the future of mankind.” Will he? What kind of ending will readers experience?

This story also takes readers to technical and future places, with artificial intelligence (AI) playing a central role. To be honest, these focuses are not my favorite type of stories. So, now what am I to do?

Still, Powers writing does focus on nature, and the wonders of our world. Where “The Overstory” had its central characters trees, with “Bewilderment” it was about the natural world, and this one has the ocean – and why it is worthy of our attention.

Powers is certainly a message writer.

And, with the author writing of the evolving capabilities of AI, perhaps his message is that we might want to be concerned. What powers will AI have over humanity? Over life as we know it?

The story goes back and forth in time and place. It is a story of friendship and the emotional bonds formed, as much as it is an oceanic tale. It is also a tale of a woman in a male-dominated scientific field. And a mother of two children who lives on an island in French Polynesia being considered as a platform for future floating cities.

The drama within these pages feels like a soap opera with so many storylines it appears like we are reading several novellas at once.

But the most compelling feeling about this book is a sense that the author is also sending a strong message that as humans we have a responsibility to be stewards of our planet. And, as readers we can’t help but ask if we are doing enough to ensure her future.

Still, maybe there is something more that the author wanted to convey here. Perhaps it is his love for and belief in humanity and our planet, the fragility and enchantment of it – all worth appreciating and saving. How can we not be moved by that?