October 10, 2004
Bruce Sterling: The Zenith Angle
As Bruce Sterling is admittedly one of my favorite authors, I was happy when the package from Libri (I avoid Amazon if I can, for its unacceptable privacy policy) with The Zenith Angle arrived. Sterling has a very seldom found ability to construct plausible futures, to make you feel like it is really how things could be. Unfortunately Zenith Angle is one of his weaker books, but it certainly has its bright moments.
It is set in the cyberspace part of the post-9/11 US-"homeland security" scene, which is interesting in itself as it captures the mood of "things will never be bright and nice again" that seemed to prevail. But the whole security-craze is also called "The Security Bubble", implying the weak hope that the whole paranoia thing could be over one day like the high-tech stock bubble has been.
The story is full with carefully selected references to secret projects and how the black part of the US defense establishment works, which makes it interesting on more then one level. The plot is, as already mentioned, not one of Sterlings biggest achievements. It feels cynical and spiritless, as if Sterlings publisher told him to "write something that fits into todays general mood". But the description of the world, of trends and styles is brilliant again.
Apparently, we are not the only ones who need to cope with a world whose outlooks we dont like at all, and it is not easy...