The Zenith Angle

This new Bruce Sterling work is cloaked in the guise of a techno-thriller but it is not a typical techno-thriller in the traditional Tom Clancy sense. 'Zenith Angle' is not a typical Sterling SF novel nor a cyberpunk novel.

What is it?

Well, it is a tale of machinations within the government organs. A tale where a cliched computer genius has to grapple with different elements in the bureaucracy. In a sense, it describes one man's struggle with the system.

There is some amount of 'info-dumping' throughout in the 'Zenith Angle' where the protaganist explains nebulous concepts or the narration includes some explanations of certain scientific applications. Mumbo jumbo? Perhaps. Given Sterling's contacts and conversations with members of the scientific community, computer community, and more, he is more than capable of extrapolating current technologies and technologies of the next future.

Is this a satire? There is certainly a feeling of the absurd at times, though I suspect it is unintended. The 'Zenith Angle' doesn't feel clever and it appears to take itself seriously. Is this a stand-up of Homeland Security and the resulting hysteria? Well, it is not humourous and it doesn't have that strident loudness found typically in left-wing and Liberal works critical of the Iraq War. If this is a satire, it doesn't work. I think this is a failed attempt at satire.

The prose is somewhat lighter than the usual dry and tedious prose that one finds in the typical Sterling novel. The characters in Zenith Angle are rather cliched and the dialogue is flat. The all too common Everyman professor or technical type with a loving brilliant wife and child who has to make sacrifices. Oh dear. The commando right-wing redneck stereotype. The money-grabbing dotcommer. What else? The list goes on and on. One dimensional characters galore.

This is an unusual novel in that it is chiefly concerned with an imaginery description of the Leviathan. How does it compare with reality? And would Sterling know? Not unlikely. Again, he has spoken with all sorts, from corporate futurists to policy-makers to SF writers. Well, I find 'Zenith Angle' entertaining but it may find sympathy with a certain set who have experienced the ironicy inherent in a bureaucracy of sorts. Sterling may not have worked in a bureaucracy within the government. However, one may be better off reading Dilbert if one is looking for parody. The plot and ending are rather like that of a lacklustre James Bond thriller.

If one is looking for a satire, look no further than Tom Clancy. They can be laugh out loud material if you know how to read them. Hahaha.

Tom Clancy's awful right-wing, patriotic, breast-beating techno-thrillers aren't exactly exemplary literary works; and they don't work as pulp fiction, they can be tedious and cliched rather than entertaining. Still, his expression of patriotism is not as bad as the fanatical nationalistic sentiments expressed by immature Asians around the region. Wait till you encounter Thai or Malaysian nationalistic sentiments, it's unbelievable.

All in all, the 'Zenith Angle' is entertaining but it is not worth the time. Why? There is simply a lot of fiction of good quality out there. This lightweight attempt at satire promises much but delivers very little ultimately.

"They were raining from the sky
Exploding in my heart
Is this a love in disguise
Or just a form of modern art"
'Tora! Tora! Tora!' Depeche Mode