Recently I am running into some really
interesting classic science fiction novels. One example is this one by the
elusive Charles Carr, author of only two books, of whom there is really little
information, so much that some people think his name is a pseudonym.
Unfortunately I have not got to read the previous “Colonists of Space”, of
which “Salamander War” is the sequel, but this did not affect the enjoyment of
this novel at all, thanks to the brief introduction at the beginning of the
edition I read.
The story is about two groups of survivors of
the human race living on the planet Bel, in the zone wrapped in a perpetual
twilight. The first comes from the star ship called Colonist, whose journey is
narrated in the previous novel, the second is a group of Swiss, arrived on the
planet beforehand and that have developed a very rigid model of society.
If you ignore some '“fantasy” aspects as the
fact that the characters never sleep and age more quickly or about the
feasibility of producing oxygen on a large scale to make the air breathable,
the novel itself is well thought out. The story, which is shown from the point
of view of the young Taylor, who is part of the Colonist group, tells about the
battle between humans and an alien species, living in the part of the planet
perpetually radiated by the sun, the Salamanders. On one hand it describes the
vicissitudes related to the defence of the human colony and the attempt to
combat and defeat the aliens, on the other one you see the confrontation
between two opposite-minded societies, which succeed to reach an agreement
before a common enemy. There is even a little romance.
In its simplicity, the one can you expect from a
science fiction novel from 1955, “Salamander War” is a truly enjoyable and
exciting book. The language is certainly a bit dated, but it does not sound
obsolete, indeed, seems almost a style choice instead of an effect of the
passing of time. There are very fascinating narrative glimpses.
But what is more surprising is the originality
of the plot, which remains so after almost sixty years, as well as its
development, which has nothing to envy to many contemporary novels.
The only thing that betrays its age is the
measured way in which some controversial aspects are treated, making it a
reading also suitable for a very young audience. Similarly I would recommend it
to a reader unaccustomed to the genre, but who wanted to begin to discover it.
In short, it is really a good book.
Salamander War
on Amazon.com.
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