Timescape

Three of the last ten books I read have delved into 1962 and 1963, and of them this was the worst.

Gregory Benford has a solid science background, and creates a plausible story of what if. In this novel, a message is sent back through time in an attempt to improve the (then futuristic) world of 1998, which is suffering a massive environmental collapse. The scientists debate paradox, saying it would stop their progress, but ultimately ignore the idea. Unfortunately, the authors ideas on paradox and the many-worlds interpretation come out quite muddled. Chaos theory and the butterfly effect, in vogue as this was written, do not make an appearance.

Worse than the time speculations are the characters, who are universally unlikable. These were co-written with Benford's sister-in-law. It is said each covered their own time period, and I can say that the descriptions of Cambridge and La Jolla are well done. Another complaint I have is all the name dropping of 1960s California scientists, who mostly look approvingly on the main character. It has been said that Benford was writing about his graduate and doctoral experience. Finally, women in general are poorly portrayed.

This novel won the Nebula and Campbell award, but I think other novels of that year were more deserving. A disappointing read - 1½ stars.