Hawksbill Station by Robert Silverberg (book review).
Rebel American dissidents face minimal tolerance in an alternate version of Earth’s history. There is only one group of rebel American dissidents, and they are affiliated with the Continental Liberation Front. When they are finally captured, one of their people, Edmond Hawksbill, uses a time machine to imprison them while he was working for the government to secure funding.
Edmond Hawksbill divides the men and women and sends them to two locations in the distant past, during the era of trilobites in the late-Silurian age, where they find themselves trapped in time. I’d probably dispute the back cover, saying they were a billion years ago in another galaxy, because they weren’t. They would send supplies to the present, but Hawksbill Station was a life sentence for them. A new arrival upends their destiny, particularly since most of them are now elderly and on the verge of mental instability.
The story of their current activities, primarily focused on evading capture and torture, intertwines with this. Their leader, Michael Barrett, who was among the last captured, provides a unique perspective on much of this. In many ways, our understanding of their operations is limited. Rather than engaging in active terrorist activities, a significant portion of their operations involve a wait and see approach. Silverberg ups the political aspect but doesn’t really do much with it. Even Barratt acknowledges their ineffectiveness. Considering that Silverberg’s work was first published in 1969, there likely wasn’t much to compare it to that would cause alarm. Only the capture and torture of the government they rebelled against casts them in a negative light. From a writer’s perspective, you really do need to demonstrate what is wrong or right from both perspectives.
However, ‘Hawksbill Station’ showcases Silverberg’s strengths as a character writer and provides an intense reading experience. If you’re struggling to find new science fiction that inspires you, it’s definitely worth checking out. When I sort out its mechanics, I’ve got a gleam in my eye, envisioning a different plot for a time travel story. As a result, books like this tend to be an inspiration, so if you can’t find any recent books to inspire you, take a look at some of the earlier SF books out there.
GF Willmetts
September 2024
(pub: Star/WH Allen, 1982. 192 page paperback. Price: varies. ISBN: 0-352-310901)
