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O-Zone
It's New Year in paranoid, computer-rich New York, and a group of Owners has jet-rotored out to party in O-Zone.
New York is a sealed city. Visits to the eerie, radioactive wasteland of O-Zone are now rarer than moon landings. The people dumped there, 'aliens', officially do not exist. For Hooper Allbright and Fizzy, Theroux's futuristic Robinson Crusoes, the trip sets in motion an adventure of undreamed-of desire and terror.
New York is a sealed city. Visits to the eerie, radioactive wasteland of O-Zone are now rarer than moon landings. The people dumped there, 'aliens', officially do not exist. For Hooper Allbright and Fizzy, Theroux's futuristic Robinson Crusoes, the trip sets in motion an adventure of undreamed-of desire and terror.
547 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1986
7 people are currently reading
447 people want to read
About the author
Paul Theroux
219Ìýbooks2,515ÌýfollowersPaul Edward Theroux is an American travel writer and novelist, whose best known work is The Great Railway Bazaar (1975), a travelogue about a trip he made by train from Great Britain through Western and Eastern Europe, the Middle East, through South Asia, then South-East Asia, up through East Asia, as far east as Japan, and then back across Russia to his point of origin. Although perhaps best known as a travelogue writer, Theroux has also published numerous works of fiction, some of which were made into feature films. He was awarded the 1981 James Tait Black Memorial Prize for his novel The Mosquito Coast.
He is the father of Marcel and Louis Theroux, and the brother of Alexander and Peter. Justin Theroux is his nephew.
He is the father of Marcel and Louis Theroux, and the brother of Alexander and Peter. Justin Theroux is his nephew.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 51 reviews
August 28, 2010
So, me and Paul Theroux, we have this thing going on. He writes, I read, and I love what I read. It's a love affair, really, albeit a very one-sided one, since Mr. Theroux is currently unaware of my continous devotion for his works (and will remain, so, thank you very much).
And yet, in every good love affair, there comes a point when the lovers disagree. Mr. Theroux and me have reached this point with his book "O-Zone".
"O-Zone" is science-fiction, which would certainly be the first thing I'd have objected to had it been written by anyone but Theroux. But love makes you blind, and so I was a bit surprised, but still completely trusting when I started reading it. And in the beginning, it was all good. I was even beginning to admire the way he built up the characters, the writing (which is excellent of course), the way he introduces us to his fictive future world where large parts of the world are unpopulated areas, and the rest is strictly divided between the rich owners and the rest of the, barely human, population.
And it could have gone on like this. Only, one day you go to bed with a man whose different opinions you find interesting, and the next morning you wake up next to a stranger, and you realize, this is not the way you wanted your love life to turn out. And I woke up and realized that this is not the book I wanted to read. In fact, I'm only reading it because it's written by Theroux. And since he doesn't know me, I'm not really doing him any favors by continuing to read it. So I kind of skipped through the last pages, decided that there really wasn't anything in it that was worth reading more precisely, and put it away.
I tried, but I think we'll agree to disagree on this one. Or maybe we don't even disagree? Maybe this book is one of that stupid things that everyone has done in their past, and you are kind of ashamed of them, but they are also a part of you. Like, say, having had the walls of your room covered with posters of Axl Rose when you were 14. Not thatI one would ever amit to that in public.
Whatever it is, I didn't like O-Zone much. Too constructed, a subject that doesn't interest me, not drastic enough to be truly apocalyptic or dystopian. Plus, I miss the brutal openness and almost voyeuristic honesty that's present in Theroux's other works, that make them so special to me.
But a little disagreement like this certainly doesn't mean that our love affair is over!
And yet, in every good love affair, there comes a point when the lovers disagree. Mr. Theroux and me have reached this point with his book "O-Zone".
"O-Zone" is science-fiction, which would certainly be the first thing I'd have objected to had it been written by anyone but Theroux. But love makes you blind, and so I was a bit surprised, but still completely trusting when I started reading it. And in the beginning, it was all good. I was even beginning to admire the way he built up the characters, the writing (which is excellent of course), the way he introduces us to his fictive future world where large parts of the world are unpopulated areas, and the rest is strictly divided between the rich owners and the rest of the, barely human, population.
And it could have gone on like this. Only, one day you go to bed with a man whose different opinions you find interesting, and the next morning you wake up next to a stranger, and you realize, this is not the way you wanted your love life to turn out. And I woke up and realized that this is not the book I wanted to read. In fact, I'm only reading it because it's written by Theroux. And since he doesn't know me, I'm not really doing him any favors by continuing to read it. So I kind of skipped through the last pages, decided that there really wasn't anything in it that was worth reading more precisely, and put it away.
I tried, but I think we'll agree to disagree on this one. Or maybe we don't even disagree? Maybe this book is one of that stupid things that everyone has done in their past, and you are kind of ashamed of them, but they are also a part of you. Like, say, having had the walls of your room covered with posters of Axl Rose when you were 14. Not that
Whatever it is, I didn't like O-Zone much. Too constructed, a subject that doesn't interest me, not drastic enough to be truly apocalyptic or dystopian. Plus, I miss the brutal openness and almost voyeuristic honesty that's present in Theroux's other works, that make them so special to me.
But a little disagreement like this certainly doesn't mean that our love affair is over!
July 30, 2021
Three stars means it's an okay read.
I read this when I was 12 or 13, but the vividness of the writing still comes back to me. It also meant I took this in a different light to the pretentious New York Times review.
As with all dystopias, it sounds as implausible and laughable as Donald Trump becoming the President of the United States. And, that pretty much sums it up. It drew a line fifty years into the future and we are halfway to its world of "aliens" (illegal immigrants with no human rights), private military contractors/religious militia and vast inequality with the rich holed up in towers. It doesn't provide a backstory of how it got there, but I don't find that entirely necessary.
The book is rambling and ponderous, and basically how a travel writer would write a sci-fi novel. I really didn't care about any of the characters, and I didn't like the answer that "living in the wild/villages makes people wonderful human beings." The prose is good, the characters are uninteresting.
EDIT: no, the characters are distinctive, but I can't say I cared much for them save Fizzy, a 15 year old genius in whom I found an uncomfortable connection to as a young nerd. However, Fizzy is a snotty, selfish caricature of a brat. He experiences some growth, by turning into a techno-savage and living in the wild with his use of tech making him some kind of leader of a small tribe of "aliens".
The "aliens" also seemed to exist simply to be the "have nots". They also didn't seem to have any conflict with each other, that I can recall. People always compete for resources and screw each other over. The rest of the world doesn't seem to have the "aliens" problem. It seemed confined to the US.
I can't quite work out if the aliens were actual distinct classes of mutants like Skelly, Troll, Roach, Screamer, or just basically homeless people given tags by the rich elite. If you look at today's politics though, the social media bubbles have created the stereotypes of the bearded, gun-toting incel on the right and the blue-haired communist harpy on the left. And of course, Trolls on both sides.
One thing I took exception to were the Pilgrims, who were a spaceflight-based cult who every now and then got one of their faithful sent up to a space station. But, I guess that's the author's view of people like me who dream for the stars instead of holing up in our towers?
Special award for horrifying the mind of an uninterested prepubescent boy with decidedly unsexy descriptions of female breasts, genitalia and sex in general. I think that delayed my interest in the opposite sex by at least a year.
Anyway, that's what I think.
I read this when I was 12 or 13, but the vividness of the writing still comes back to me. It also meant I took this in a different light to the pretentious New York Times review.
As with all dystopias, it sounds as implausible and laughable as Donald Trump becoming the President of the United States. And, that pretty much sums it up. It drew a line fifty years into the future and we are halfway to its world of "aliens" (illegal immigrants with no human rights), private military contractors/religious militia and vast inequality with the rich holed up in towers. It doesn't provide a backstory of how it got there, but I don't find that entirely necessary.
The book is rambling and ponderous, and basically how a travel writer would write a sci-fi novel. I really didn't care about any of the characters, and I didn't like the answer that "living in the wild/villages makes people wonderful human beings." The prose is good, the characters are uninteresting.
EDIT: no, the characters are distinctive, but I can't say I cared much for them save Fizzy, a 15 year old genius in whom I found an uncomfortable connection to as a young nerd. However, Fizzy is a snotty, selfish caricature of a brat. He experiences some growth, by turning into a techno-savage and living in the wild with his use of tech making him some kind of leader of a small tribe of "aliens".
The "aliens" also seemed to exist simply to be the "have nots". They also didn't seem to have any conflict with each other, that I can recall. People always compete for resources and screw each other over. The rest of the world doesn't seem to have the "aliens" problem. It seemed confined to the US.
I can't quite work out if the aliens were actual distinct classes of mutants like Skelly, Troll, Roach, Screamer, or just basically homeless people given tags by the rich elite. If you look at today's politics though, the social media bubbles have created the stereotypes of the bearded, gun-toting incel on the right and the blue-haired communist harpy on the left. And of course, Trolls on both sides.
One thing I took exception to were the Pilgrims, who were a spaceflight-based cult who every now and then got one of their faithful sent up to a space station. But, I guess that's the author's view of people like me who dream for the stars instead of holing up in our towers?
Special award for horrifying the mind of an uninterested prepubescent boy with decidedly unsexy descriptions of female breasts, genitalia and sex in general. I think that delayed my interest in the opposite sex by at least a year.
Anyway, that's what I think.
February 26, 2014
The initial premise of O-Zone is a little laughable (a bunch of self-involved, rich a-holes travel to a restricted zone for a New Year's party, braving possible death from radiation poisoning and aliens), but it really picks up around the 70-page mark and rarely lets go.
There's a "twist" around that point that blew my mind, and raised what was a vaguely typical '80s post-apocalyptic sci-fi to a diatribe on the '80s culture of waste, apathy and general disdain on par with "American Psycho." This future is ugly and cold, inefficient and dangerous. Publicly-funded militias like Godseye (a future version of Blackwater, aka Academi) run rampant, given free reign to kill "aliens" without provocation.
A definite must-read for soft sci-fi fans, especially if you prefer your sci-fi to say something about the human condition.
There's a "twist" around that point that blew my mind, and raised what was a vaguely typical '80s post-apocalyptic sci-fi to a diatribe on the '80s culture of waste, apathy and general disdain on par with "American Psycho." This future is ugly and cold, inefficient and dangerous. Publicly-funded militias like Godseye (a future version of Blackwater, aka Academi) run rampant, given free reign to kill "aliens" without provocation.
A definite must-read for soft sci-fi fans, especially if you prefer your sci-fi to say something about the human condition.
May 9, 2018
Intriguing ancillary characters and world-building are lost when your main cast of characters includes:
Fisher "Fizzy" Allbright, the most annoying character I've ever encountered in all my adventures in literature. I prayed for his gruesome death on every page.
Uncle Hooper Allbright, a pedophile whose ultimate conception of love is a voyeuristic (he really enjoys when she goes to the bathroom in a "special way") combination of father figure, lover, and Professor Henry Higgins all rolled into one loathsome package.
Mother Moira Albright, who just wants the D.
And Father Hardy Allbright, who... really just wants to impress his bosses?
I don't think these are spoilers, but if they prevent you from reading the book, you're welcome.
Fisher "Fizzy" Allbright, the most annoying character I've ever encountered in all my adventures in literature. I prayed for his gruesome death on every page.
Uncle Hooper Allbright, a pedophile whose ultimate conception of love is a voyeuristic (he really enjoys when she goes to the bathroom in a "special way") combination of father figure, lover, and Professor Henry Higgins all rolled into one loathsome package.
Mother Moira Albright, who just wants the D.
And Father Hardy Allbright, who... really just wants to impress his bosses?
I don't think these are spoilers, but if they prevent you from reading the book, you're welcome.
September 7, 2020
I read this around the time of publication, while I was new to London.
I remember both enjoying it and being annoyed by it.
The prose and pacing were good, but I thought the characters were a bit thick.
I remember both enjoying it and being annoyed by it.
The prose and pacing were good, but I thought the characters were a bit thick.
December 31, 2019
What a great book. Paul is really a genius.
April 22, 2018
While the premise here is interesting, the execution is lumbering and unbalanced. Theroux sets up an interesting premise in the first act of the book, but quickly becomes dragged down by a heavy handed and highly repetitive attempt at characterisation. At it's heart, this is a story exploring the development of two male protagonists, the surrounding ensemble are ultimately irrelevant, and Theroux is particularly poor when it comes to giving his female characters any sense of depth. The later half of the text becomes uncomfortably obsessive about sexual relations, and you wonder at times whether it is the lead character, or Theroux's own sexual predications that we are wading through. Towards the end, any hope of real resolution to any core narrative threads is lost, as Theroux runs out of space and, perhaps, his own patience with his text.
That all being said, he does predict the dominance of Amazon, which is something.
I picked this up for free in a book swap, and forced myself to wade through the second half. This is not great science fiction, and could probably stay in the book swap box.
That all being said, he does predict the dominance of Amazon, which is something.
I picked this up for free in a book swap, and forced myself to wade through the second half. This is not great science fiction, and could probably stay in the book swap box.
April 3, 2012
When a mainstream author essays to produce a science fiction novel, I am interested--sf authors having such a reputation for poor writing skills as they do.
Theroux's O-Zone, like Lessing's Shikasta series, suggests there may be something special to good futuristic fiction writing, something that doesn't necessarily go along with the skills required in producing good novels of an ordinary kind. Whatever that special gift is, neither Theroux nor Lessing demonstrate it. This book is bad, very bad, so bad and so unworthy of concern that I've appended a NYTimes review which explores the depths of its badness.
Theroux's O-Zone, like Lessing's Shikasta series, suggests there may be something special to good futuristic fiction writing, something that doesn't necessarily go along with the skills required in producing good novels of an ordinary kind. Whatever that special gift is, neither Theroux nor Lessing demonstrate it. This book is bad, very bad, so bad and so unworthy of concern that I've appended a NYTimes review which explores the depths of its badness.
August 3, 2013
I read this book quite a while ago and liked it more that time. It is still an interesting story, though the SciFi stuff is a bit dated. My main complaint is that it could have been edited down by about a hundred pages or so. The writing is of course great but I think Theroux must have intimidated a new editor or something. I skipped a few chapters and didn't feel like I missed that much.
June 11, 2008
A good intro to sci-fi. Not too heavy and "sciency" - more regular story than most sci fi books.
March 2, 2017
Awesome story with a some of ingredients I love, I.e. post-apocalyptic and anti-elite.
Rich people take a trip to the Ozarks, where leaked nuclear waste has made a closed zone, thought to be uninhabited. It's inhabited, all right, with people that military groups of elite have dumped out of the armed cities. Contact with the"aliens" in the zone changes these freakish elite forever.
Rich people take a trip to the Ozarks, where leaked nuclear waste has made a closed zone, thought to be uninhabited. It's inhabited, all right, with people that military groups of elite have dumped out of the armed cities. Contact with the"aliens" in the zone changes these freakish elite forever.
March 5, 2011
Paul Theroux’s Ozone shows humanity for all its flaws and imperfections. It is a novel about a group of privileged, sheltered, and egotistical members of the upper echelons of society and their confrontation with the unchartered wilderness and inhabitants of Ozone. Throughout the novel the characters find themselves asking the question what does it mean to be human and what separates the humans from the “aliens�? As the novel progresses the answers become more and more blurred and the idea that nurture and luck factor more into one’s quality of life versus innate intelligence prevails. As well as critiquing class and superiority complexes, the novel critiques corporate greed and the willingness to sacrifice the environment and people’s lives to make a profit. Hardy’s job is to find places in impoverished, undeveloped nations to build artificial thermal mountains in order to use up surplus oil; he does not care how many people die or what the repercussions are on the land. The job appeals to his ego because it allows him to play God—by creating thermal mountains he can alter and control the weather; meanwhile the company is using him to keep the price of oil high and in demand.
Another idea being critiqued is the idea of a hyper-secure, privacy-violating police state. Because of the unrationalizing fear of the other, the Owners of Cold Harbor waive all their rights and go through intense security checks in order to obtain safety. However, as the book progresses we see how unsafe, despite all its security checks, Cold Harbor really is. Godseye flies over the city every night and attacks anyone who displays fear or seems suspicious; on one of these hunts a female mistaken for an “alien� is murdered and the murderers are not only unprosecuted, but encouraged to continue their nightly massacres. And as we later discover, many aliens are masquerading as Owners, showing that the security measures are all a farce.
The book—though set in the future—deals with many of the problems of today, including: immigration, oppression of the poor to sustain the high quality living of the developed world, corporate greed, political cover up (the government hides information about Ozone’s contamination by Nuclear waste), fear leading to a police state, etc. When I first started this book, I detested the characters and found the book a little dry, but as the story progresses one begins to understand the characters psyches and it is fun to watch their transformations. Theroux shows how the primitive often are the most civilized of us all. Theroux writes an entertaining, suspenseful novel that warns us of a future that might come to fruition if we do not alter our current course.
Another idea being critiqued is the idea of a hyper-secure, privacy-violating police state. Because of the unrationalizing fear of the other, the Owners of Cold Harbor waive all their rights and go through intense security checks in order to obtain safety. However, as the book progresses we see how unsafe, despite all its security checks, Cold Harbor really is. Godseye flies over the city every night and attacks anyone who displays fear or seems suspicious; on one of these hunts a female mistaken for an “alien� is murdered and the murderers are not only unprosecuted, but encouraged to continue their nightly massacres. And as we later discover, many aliens are masquerading as Owners, showing that the security measures are all a farce.
The book—though set in the future—deals with many of the problems of today, including: immigration, oppression of the poor to sustain the high quality living of the developed world, corporate greed, political cover up (the government hides information about Ozone’s contamination by Nuclear waste), fear leading to a police state, etc. When I first started this book, I detested the characters and found the book a little dry, but as the story progresses one begins to understand the characters psyches and it is fun to watch their transformations. Theroux shows how the primitive often are the most civilized of us all. Theroux writes an entertaining, suspenseful novel that warns us of a future that might come to fruition if we do not alter our current course.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
July 13, 2008
I found O-Zone to be a really enjoyable science-fiction novel, impressively well written with an intriguing premise and a series of good ideas to explore.
Theroux treats ideas of civilization, racism, decadence and closed communities with a huge dose of humanism, and creates a very memorable central character in Fizzy, the 15 year-old supermoron.
Unfortunately at times he appears in two minds as to whether he intends to write a thriller or a more philosophical piece, and as a consequence the pacing seems to slip in some areas - there's really no need for the story itself to be 500 pages long, but it's justified because Theroux wants to do more than tell the story.
The grim and uncompromising lives of the 'aliens' who live outside closed cities such as New York are skilfully contrasted with the ridiculous notions of the well-off owners, who take an almost childlike attitude to technology, wealth, liberty and sex. Theroux has tremendous skill in character observations and I thoroughly enjoyed these humorous passages.
O-Zone's post-apocalyptic setting is familiar ground for sci-fi, and the motivations of his characters can seem contradictory and ultimately confusing. But despite these flaws Theroux is a good storyteller who retains our interest through to his tale's finale.
Theroux treats ideas of civilization, racism, decadence and closed communities with a huge dose of humanism, and creates a very memorable central character in Fizzy, the 15 year-old supermoron.
Unfortunately at times he appears in two minds as to whether he intends to write a thriller or a more philosophical piece, and as a consequence the pacing seems to slip in some areas - there's really no need for the story itself to be 500 pages long, but it's justified because Theroux wants to do more than tell the story.
The grim and uncompromising lives of the 'aliens' who live outside closed cities such as New York are skilfully contrasted with the ridiculous notions of the well-off owners, who take an almost childlike attitude to technology, wealth, liberty and sex. Theroux has tremendous skill in character observations and I thoroughly enjoyed these humorous passages.
O-Zone's post-apocalyptic setting is familiar ground for sci-fi, and the motivations of his characters can seem contradictory and ultimately confusing. But despite these flaws Theroux is a good storyteller who retains our interest through to his tale's finale.
May 23, 2018
Unappealing characters and an underwhelming ending. The world was interesting - a dystopian society that our privileged protagonists don't really want to change (not that they really know much about it) - but the story often lacked pace and the narrative waxed overly descriptive. I made it to the end, and was occasionally interested in the vague storylines, but I didn't really enjoy it much.
December 15, 2007
I demolished O-Zone while sat next to a pool in Spain when I was 16. It's one of the few sci-fi books I've read and I really liked it. I keep meaning to read more sci-fi...
October 8, 2012
this book was mad long and boring but it's been almost a year and i still think about it sometimes.
September 4, 2012
A disappointing foray into sci fi by Mr Theroux. Written in the 80s, yet it reads like a book from the 40s.
August 31, 2019
547 pages
June 30, 2021
Detta var nog den sämsta boken jag någonsin läst ut. Dock ett intressant tidsdokument, som säger mycket mer om 1980-talet än om "science fiction"-framtiden.
July 26, 2021
Det är när jag försöker kategorisera den jag inser hur bökig den här romanen faktiskt är. Jag överväger försts att placera den på "apokalyps"-hyllan, eftersom den ändå skildrar ett samhälle förändrat efter (antyds det) flera olika typer av katastrofer - både miljömässiga och andra. Men egentligen handlar det mer om ett extremt segregerat samhälle; en slags karikatyr av "gated community"-tanken, parat med en "vi och dem"-mentalitet som överskrider det rasistiska för att istället låta sig omfamnas av fascistiska ideal där den Andre knappt anses vara människa. Inte "apokalyps", alltså, mer än samhälleligt. "Fantastik" då? Det är science fiction, inget snack om saken. En dystopisk framtidsskildring med fantasifull teknologi och den nästan obligatoriska samhällskommentaren. Men det är nästan för torrt för att ställa i "fantastik"-hyllan även om den hamnar där till slut, i gråzonen bredvid "sociologi"-hyllan.
Theroux beskriver ett samhälle som i vissa delar påminner om dagens (men som utspelar sig om ca 15 år). Vi har superrika postordermiljardärer (tänk Jeff Bezos) som åker till en plats dit "ingen människa tidigare färdats" bara för att de kan. Vi har vapenfetischistiska fascister (tänk Breivik) som åker ut och dödar "främlingar" för att de kan det eftersom polisen/staten ser mellan fingrarna på det. Och vi har ett samhälle så rotat i rädslan och mytbildningen av den Andre att det formar hur vi lever våra liv.
Visst finns det inslag som jag upplever irrelevanta, som inställningen till sex och det känslolösa, affärsmässiga alstrandet av barn. Men de delarna stör bara periodvis och utgör till vissa delar en sidoberättelse som jag får erkänna att jag mer eller mindre skummade under läsningen. Och personporträtten är lite skumma. De är å ena sidan trovärdiga och välskrivna, men de kommer också med långa utläggningar om deras psykologiska profiler/utveckling som ibland får mig att undra om Theroux verkligen litar på min förmåga som läsare. Att de, vilket en del andra recensioner också vittnar om, är rätt osympatiska ser jag som avsiktligt. Det här är inte tänkt att handla om några människor att se upp till - snarare är det en varning till läsaren att inte bli för mycket som dessa människor. Och kanske bottnar en del av recensenternas motvilja i just detta: Att Theroux sätter upp en slags spegel för läsaren att se de delar av sig själv i, som man inte direkt är stolt över, men också att vi lever i en värld som vi kanske är maktlösa att förändra - Hoopers och Hardys avsky mot de militanta fascisterna i Godseye är lika mycket en avsky mot den maktlöshet de själva och samhället har, och som gör det möjligt för dessa att fortsätta terrorisera och mörda "Främmande" - och som får mig att dra en parallell till de fascistiska inslag som ryms inom den allt med inflytelserika högerpopulismen inom politiken idag. Han skriver någonstans i boken att ju räddare Godseye-medlemmarna blev, desto farligare blev de också - och det är precis det som händer idag: Den rädsla som piskas upp av aktörer som Sverigedemokraterna skapar farliga människor - och när de blir tillräckligt rädda uppstår reaktioner som Utöya eller Trollhättan. Och vilka metoder finns egentligen för att stävja denna rädsla? Samtliga karaktärer vi får följa bär på den här rädslan, även om Murdick är den ende som bejakar den med våld (eller drömmar om våld). Samtliga har accepterat bilden av de "Främmande" som farliga - eller åtminstone tillräckligt annorlunda för att inte vara välkomna. Det är i den insikten dystopin blommar ut fullständigt i min läsning av romanen.
Slutligen: Eftersom jag tjuvläst några andra recensioner måste jag kanske avsluta med ett par extra ord om karaktärerna. De är generellt trista eller osympatiska, och de utsätts för någon slags öppen psykologisering av Theroux, som inte tycks lita på att de blir förståeliga utan återkommande förklaringar till varför de gör si eller säger så. Det är synd, för de har ändå ett visst värde, vilker jag nämner ovan. Den karaktär som fångar mig mest är förstås Fisher eller "Fisken", som han senare kommer att kallas. Denna nästan tvångsmässigt skitstövlande tonåring som är precis så jobbig som mina egna barn kan vara ibland. Han är lätt bokens minst sympatiska person - till och med hans snuskgubbe med pedofilvarning till farbror och den fascistiske Murdick och hans vänner i Godseye, vilka Theroux förövrigt beskriver med befriande öppenhjärligt förakt, bleknar i jämförelse med denna otroligt jobbiga - om än relativt normala - tonåring i gränslandet mellan barn och ung vuxen. Jag vill att han ska dö, samtidigt som jag önskar honom all lycka.
Vilket, ironiskt nog, sammanfattar min uppfattning om boken: Den är inte särskilt bra, men den är samtidigt (ändå?) mycket läsvärd.
Theroux beskriver ett samhälle som i vissa delar påminner om dagens (men som utspelar sig om ca 15 år). Vi har superrika postordermiljardärer (tänk Jeff Bezos) som åker till en plats dit "ingen människa tidigare färdats" bara för att de kan. Vi har vapenfetischistiska fascister (tänk Breivik) som åker ut och dödar "främlingar" för att de kan det eftersom polisen/staten ser mellan fingrarna på det. Och vi har ett samhälle så rotat i rädslan och mytbildningen av den Andre att det formar hur vi lever våra liv.
Visst finns det inslag som jag upplever irrelevanta, som inställningen till sex och det känslolösa, affärsmässiga alstrandet av barn. Men de delarna stör bara periodvis och utgör till vissa delar en sidoberättelse som jag får erkänna att jag mer eller mindre skummade under läsningen. Och personporträtten är lite skumma. De är å ena sidan trovärdiga och välskrivna, men de kommer också med långa utläggningar om deras psykologiska profiler/utveckling som ibland får mig att undra om Theroux verkligen litar på min förmåga som läsare. Att de, vilket en del andra recensioner också vittnar om, är rätt osympatiska ser jag som avsiktligt. Det här är inte tänkt att handla om några människor att se upp till - snarare är det en varning till läsaren att inte bli för mycket som dessa människor. Och kanske bottnar en del av recensenternas motvilja i just detta: Att Theroux sätter upp en slags spegel för läsaren att se de delar av sig själv i, som man inte direkt är stolt över, men också att vi lever i en värld som vi kanske är maktlösa att förändra - Hoopers och Hardys avsky mot de militanta fascisterna i Godseye är lika mycket en avsky mot den maktlöshet de själva och samhället har, och som gör det möjligt för dessa att fortsätta terrorisera och mörda "Främmande" - och som får mig att dra en parallell till de fascistiska inslag som ryms inom den allt med inflytelserika högerpopulismen inom politiken idag. Han skriver någonstans i boken att ju räddare Godseye-medlemmarna blev, desto farligare blev de också - och det är precis det som händer idag: Den rädsla som piskas upp av aktörer som Sverigedemokraterna skapar farliga människor - och när de blir tillräckligt rädda uppstår reaktioner som Utöya eller Trollhättan. Och vilka metoder finns egentligen för att stävja denna rädsla? Samtliga karaktärer vi får följa bär på den här rädslan, även om Murdick är den ende som bejakar den med våld (eller drömmar om våld). Samtliga har accepterat bilden av de "Främmande" som farliga - eller åtminstone tillräckligt annorlunda för att inte vara välkomna. Det är i den insikten dystopin blommar ut fullständigt i min läsning av romanen.
Slutligen: Eftersom jag tjuvläst några andra recensioner måste jag kanske avsluta med ett par extra ord om karaktärerna. De är generellt trista eller osympatiska, och de utsätts för någon slags öppen psykologisering av Theroux, som inte tycks lita på att de blir förståeliga utan återkommande förklaringar till varför de gör si eller säger så. Det är synd, för de har ändå ett visst värde, vilker jag nämner ovan. Den karaktär som fångar mig mest är förstås Fisher eller "Fisken", som han senare kommer att kallas. Denna nästan tvångsmässigt skitstövlande tonåring som är precis så jobbig som mina egna barn kan vara ibland. Han är lätt bokens minst sympatiska person - till och med hans snuskgubbe med pedofilvarning till farbror och den fascistiske Murdick och hans vänner i Godseye, vilka Theroux förövrigt beskriver med befriande öppenhjärligt förakt, bleknar i jämförelse med denna otroligt jobbiga - om än relativt normala - tonåring i gränslandet mellan barn och ung vuxen. Jag vill att han ska dö, samtidigt som jag önskar honom all lycka.
Vilket, ironiskt nog, sammanfattar min uppfattning om boken: Den är inte särskilt bra, men den är samtidigt (ändå?) mycket läsvärd.
June 29, 2022
You see the the book rates between 5 and 2. I went with 3 (average) because I agree with parts of nearly all of them in one area or another. This is 2nd reading since 1986 publication for some who have changed their ratings due to age and experience in reading and life in general.
Not much has changed since it was published in 1986-- or since the dawn of "civilization" for that matter -- there have always been rich and poor, arrogant and ignorant (often in the same person), stereotyping of individuals and groups, periods of peace and violence. There are no heroes or truly interesting people; none seem to know or acknowledge) any kind of history, and they don't attempt to learn anything about what happened to them or WHY -- they don't ponder what went wrong or potential resolutions for a better future. (No philosophies.) This story portrays the "haves" with high tech innovations and military armory, their obsession with feeling safe and being afraid of the dark (in the cities). The "have-nots" have none of these, if a few of the out-of-date ones.
How appalling to imagine futures more even more divisive and fearful--even hateful as a result-- than our contemporary Covid/s and war/s fears (through mostly political manipulations) that have made this country already worse. This story capitalizes on all the worst in human nature by describing "Owners" (ultra-rich) against various groupings of "Aliens" (not as rich as Owners or poor and homeless) as subhumans without authorized I.D.s, and thereby making them good only for the work the rich don't want to do themselves-- including what we refer to as middle-class workers, or taken for prostitution, or "lovers" who are sometimes taken as spouses with fake I.D.s). (Think "Pretty Woman"? Or more likely, Looking For Love In All The Wrong Places?) In other words: money equals power equals control over those without any or who want more. None of these rich have morals or even a conscience, it would appear, even when some seem more inclined than others.
Even all forms of "social media" (oxymoron) cant't control ALL of us. If we THINK, no one can control or fool all the people all the time. Enough motives are transparent to prevent that for any length of time, but long enough to be dangerous.
I ASSume the end of the book is the attempt at (unlikely) romance to remind us that HOPE, DREAMS, and DETERMINATION FOR A BETTER LIFE, is always alive as long as we are.
Not a MUST READ for anyone.
Not much has changed since it was published in 1986-- or since the dawn of "civilization" for that matter -- there have always been rich and poor, arrogant and ignorant (often in the same person), stereotyping of individuals and groups, periods of peace and violence. There are no heroes or truly interesting people; none seem to know or acknowledge) any kind of history, and they don't attempt to learn anything about what happened to them or WHY -- they don't ponder what went wrong or potential resolutions for a better future. (No philosophies.) This story portrays the "haves" with high tech innovations and military armory, their obsession with feeling safe and being afraid of the dark (in the cities). The "have-nots" have none of these, if a few of the out-of-date ones.
How appalling to imagine futures more even more divisive and fearful--even hateful as a result-- than our contemporary Covid/s and war/s fears (through mostly political manipulations) that have made this country already worse. This story capitalizes on all the worst in human nature by describing "Owners" (ultra-rich) against various groupings of "Aliens" (not as rich as Owners or poor and homeless) as subhumans without authorized I.D.s, and thereby making them good only for the work the rich don't want to do themselves-- including what we refer to as middle-class workers, or taken for prostitution, or "lovers" who are sometimes taken as spouses with fake I.D.s). (Think "Pretty Woman"? Or more likely, Looking For Love In All The Wrong Places?) In other words: money equals power equals control over those without any or who want more. None of these rich have morals or even a conscience, it would appear, even when some seem more inclined than others.
Even all forms of "social media" (oxymoron) cant't control ALL of us. If we THINK, no one can control or fool all the people all the time. Enough motives are transparent to prevent that for any length of time, but long enough to be dangerous.
I ASSume the end of the book is the attempt at (unlikely) romance to remind us that HOPE, DREAMS, and DETERMINATION FOR A BETTER LIFE, is always alive as long as we are.
Not a MUST READ for anyone.
Read
December 10, 2024This was my first read of this Author as I delve into the world of Science Fiction and Science Fantasy. Let me begin by saying that it is important to note that this book was written in 1986. So much of what the author writes needs to be placed in that context. Spoiler alert on this Second thing..... you better park your morality someplace if you want to get through it. There is overt racism and basically statutory rape. All discussed in a matter-of-fact way and in the context of the story, all acceptable it seems. So having said that although this certainly not my favourite SF by any means I found it entertaining and smart, he does not talk down to you and you must appreciate his insights into this dystopian future as bleak as it is. He paints a very interesting picture, not uplifting or gratifying but one that is certainly a possibility given human nature.
December 19, 2018
O-Zone is one of those little known sci-fi books that came out in the 80s and has a rather predictable theme, but it was fun to read. If you like movies like Escape From New York, you’ll probably be into this.
October 16, 2022
Got about 100 pages in and still didn't really care about anyone or anything. If I was half way through I might have stuck it out, but the book's about 500+ paged, so I'm out.
March 22, 2024
Prescient. Long. Cheesy. Irritating.
April 21, 2013
A dark, complex vision of the future with Sci/Fi overtones that is actually a thought provoking character study. The story takes place many decades from now and involves a group of "Owners" i.e. monied, society people living in a walled, ultra-protected New York City who take an excursion into the forbidden, radiation laden O-Zone, which is what is left of the Ozarks. The eight Owners go to the forbidden zone for a New Year's Eve party and their encounters with the beauty and sensations of the open land and also its frightening "alien" inhabitants change all of them in subtle and not so subtle ways.
The various characters return to the walled city from O-Zone but something has awakened in each that makes them question their lives and loves, who they are and what they have become. They embark on other journeys internal and external. Some of the characters are vibrantly drawn, especially Fizzy a genius nerd who is so involved with systems and machines that he can't communicate with humans. Fizzy fears the world outside his room and only grudgingly agrees to travel to O-Zone and when he ends up stranded there his fight for survival and ultimate transformation is powerful.
The novel's subject matter is a departure for Theroux and the tale is told in a very old fashioned B-movie style. The future represented here is not one of flash and high tech gadgetry, but one of many of the same traumas we currently face. At times, especially at the outset, the pacing is slow but ultimately the characters and their journeys pull you in.
The various characters return to the walled city from O-Zone but something has awakened in each that makes them question their lives and loves, who they are and what they have become. They embark on other journeys internal and external. Some of the characters are vibrantly drawn, especially Fizzy a genius nerd who is so involved with systems and machines that he can't communicate with humans. Fizzy fears the world outside his room and only grudgingly agrees to travel to O-Zone and when he ends up stranded there his fight for survival and ultimate transformation is powerful.
The novel's subject matter is a departure for Theroux and the tale is told in a very old fashioned B-movie style. The future represented here is not one of flash and high tech gadgetry, but one of many of the same traumas we currently face. At times, especially at the outset, the pacing is slow but ultimately the characters and their journeys pull you in.
December 27, 2010
This is a "Blade Runner"-like noir utopia. In the middle of the 21st century, the United States became as egalitarian compared to the present (the novel was published in 1986) as South Africa is compared to Belarus. The rich Owners live in walled compounds in sealed cities and commute by helicopters; the poor live in squalid crime-ridden slums, many joining the various gangs of "aliens": Starkies go around naked (which is possible even in wintertime due to climate change), Diggers live underground etc.; yet in the world of fashion, the rich imitate the poor. A Ku Klux Klan-like militia "Godseye" hunts the aliens, sometimes killing them, sometimes dumping them into the Atlantic Ocean, and sometimes dropping them into radioactive wastelands, which were formed when nuclear waste leaked from supposedly sealed containers. The plot of the novel revolves around a confrontation between a group of Owners and a group of "aliens" living in the radioactive "O-Zone" on the Ozark Plateau.
I don't know, why I am still reading utopias, being as old as I am. It is so hard for me to suspend disbelief when Theroux describes his villains; the American imperialists played by Sidney Rittenberg in Chinese propaganda movies must have been as villainous as Theroux's Godseye vigilantes.
I don't know, why I am still reading utopias, being as old as I am. It is so hard for me to suspend disbelief when Theroux describes his villains; the American imperialists played by Sidney Rittenberg in Chinese propaganda movies must have been as villainous as Theroux's Godseye vigilantes.
February 26, 2024
Just read some other reviews and it looks like this only gets worse...so not going to put anymore time and energy into this book. Now I wonder what made me put this on my to read list anyway? And then go out and buy a copy? Not a good way to start the year, but I'm sure other books will be better.
I didn't enjoy the writing style. All of the characters annoyed me to no end. The culture was horrendous (certainly the author was commentating on the current culture when the book was written in the 1980s) I found the book quite antagonistic, so many derogatory names for people, usually poor people or those without papers. Then the belief that it was okay to burn them all "aliens, blacks, prostitutes, polygamists, professional beggars, stowaways, lepers, and psychopaths." There were groups who would go on "hunts," looking for these bums to burn. Ugh!
Don't think this one aged well.
I didn't enjoy the writing style. All of the characters annoyed me to no end. The culture was horrendous (certainly the author was commentating on the current culture when the book was written in the 1980s) I found the book quite antagonistic, so many derogatory names for people, usually poor people or those without papers. Then the belief that it was okay to burn them all "aliens, blacks, prostitutes, polygamists, professional beggars, stowaways, lepers, and psychopaths." There were groups who would go on "hunts," looking for these bums to burn. Ugh!
Don't think this one aged well.
January 12, 2010
This book by one of my favorite authors (because he's a master travel and adventure writer as well as a former peace corps volunteer in africa, offers an apocalyptic view of the future not too too unlike, say, Bladerunner. The wealthy and powerful in society live in tiny, heavily armed and guarded enclaves in what used to be Manhattan and LA, essentially banned from traveling to most parts of the country because they have been officially warned that the territory is dominated by dangerous "aliens" who want nothing but to kill the rich. A few of the privileged actually venture out into the forbidden territory -- the O-Zone -- and find instead the answer to that dreams, even if that includes an old guy like Paul Theroux having a love affair with an unsocialized but sensuous teenage alien. It was worth more than the dollar I paid for it at a library book sale, but not much more.
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