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Review of Challenging Destiny
Number 9, April 2000
This review is by Olga Kenyon, from New Hope International Review. It appears here with the permission of the editor, Gerald England.
Challenging Destiny #9
This issue opens with an interesting short editorial on what Native Americans could teach us about medicine and farming.
The cover offers a lurid picture of dragon-like creatures about to attack a man in a flowing cloak, watched by a sexy maiden. This suggests a medieval spoof rather than Science Fiction. The first story WHEN THE TRAFFIC LIGHTS FAILED AT THE CROSSROADS OF TIME by J.S. Lyster, contains over-familiar elements of intergalactic wars, but here they take place between different eras. J.S.Lyster crafts the story well, playing with the concept of field force and the possibility of living on into centuries ahead, able to meet one's own great-great grandchildren. Sadly, there is no gain in wisdom, the main scenes consist of fighting, though more with flashes of light than blood. The writing is heavy, it needs wit to recount meetings with belligerent distant heirs.
Fortunately there is variety in the themes and styles: THE GIFT foregrounds a D.J, high on a new drug trill. In order to earn he must continue creating blits, internet images to accompany his computer music. The government is Fundamentalist, and finally arrests him for heresy, in fact an innocuous phrase: 'God accepts trillheads'. One strength of this story lies in the imagining of a religious totalitarian government, not unlike that of Margaret: Atwood's THE HANDMAIDS TALE. A further strength lies in the welcome humour.
Kate Burgauer includes her delightfully brief BREAD AND CIRCUSES, where she shows a U.S. President's speech on one side of the page, and the T.V.Teleprompter alongside. This cuts the speech whenever opinion polls purport to show that public opinion wants to hear something else. The President is left with no audience.
MARIKA'S WORLD
by Shelley Moore imagines what could happen to a lonely disembodied spirit, Marika. She longs to get inside individuals, but mainly to help them. Her help, though inspirational at times, proves destructive.
The interview with the prolific Charles de Lint gives insightful
comments on the approaches that enrich his multifaceted writing.
Yet he straightforwardly states :
My themes are basic — leave the world a better place; be loyal to your friends. If only we all do this, the world would be a much nicer place.
CHALLENGING DESTINY offers a skilful range of topics and approaches.
Last modified: January 26, 2004
Copyright © 2000 by New Hope International