Book Review – The Long Earth

by Terry Pratchett and Stephen Baxter (Doubleday) ISBN 978-0-857-52009-8

This is the most well written book I have ever read.

That aside, the plot is not novel and its ideas are old. But who cares? At the pace you will be turning pages in this book you won’t have time to have long thoughts like those. This book grips you from page one and drags you through its story like a hyperactive child desperate to show off a new toy.

The Long Earth is your classic multi-dimensional science fiction story. Many versions of earth have suddenly appeared none of them seem to have any human life on them. Why is this? Humanity sets out to find out the answer to these questions. The story as I say is rehashed and feels a bit like a Frank Herbert story mixed with Douglas Adams’ humour. In this way I guess it is a novel idea in bringing the two styles together.

The important thing is, unlike so much fantasy, I felt for the characters. I liked and hated them. The dialogue was exceptional. It was not just a romp through a well imagined world. The authors made it feel as if I were the main character. And that counts for more than pretty scenery that you have to imagine anyway.

Christopher Dean
5.5/5