Midnight Robber

In recent years many sci-fi authors have been attempting to project non-First World cultures into the future and into the supernatural, to avoid the golden age sci-fi trap of white Americans in space. I like to dabble in such literary experiments, and have found few better at the task than Nalo Hopkinson. Here we have Caribbean culture transplanted onto multiple versions of an alien world, and that's a cool enough start. But that's just the backdrop to an expertly-written and fully-realized story of personal redemption in a universe in which creatures and characters from Caribbean folklore come to life. Some of the other reviewers here seem to be unfairly criticizing Hopkinson's efforts to inject homegrown mythology into the plotline, and while I'm quite hesitant to say that other reviewers are flat-out wrong, they are at least missing most of the point of the book. Without that unique cultural worldview you'd have just another boring near-future experiment. Instead, Hopkinson delivers a fascinating exploration of how another culture would react to new technologies and alien worlds and make them its own, through characters that are culturally specific but somehow universal. The homegrown Caribbean thoughts and views of the characters, the enjoyable patois of the narration and dialogue, and especially the seamless integration of authentic culture, all propel this book far beyond tired old stereotypes. [~doomsdayer520~]

Occasionally one is privileged to stumble across a new writer who has it all: plot, style, wit and emotion. Nalo Hopkinson's Brown Girl in the Ring was a startling debut. Midnight Robber is even better. Midnight Robber is a fast paced sf novel which moves between two different worlds; between reality and myth making; and between human and alien. The language is a delight, intrinsic to a plot in which each character appropriates metaphor and sound for their individual purpose. One of the best sf books of the year.

I've just finished this book, and I enjoyed it tremendously, even the heartbreaking parts. Even the parts that pose major moral questions for which nobody has any answers. It's a great read, like all books by this author. It's also unusual because although it's written in a dialect (a Creole dialect) the language never gets in the way of the story or distracts the reader. On the contrary; the dialect is an advantage rather than a drawback. I recommend _Midnight Robber_ without reservation.Suzette Haden Elgin ocls@madisoncounty.net

On the planet Toussaint, womanizing Cockpit county Mayor Antonio catches his wife sleeping with Quashee. Irate, Antonio moves out of their home, but for the next five months does nothing about being cuckolded. He has only a few hours left to challenge Quashee to a duel of honor in the fight yard before the legal limit for such a matter ends. The rules do not allow for loss of life, but Antonio kills his opponent anyway.Under arrest for murder, Antonio, accompanied by his daughter Tan-Tan flees their technically advanced planet through a dimension shifter to land on its primitive "twin," New Half Way Tree. On their new home planet, the dinosaur-like Douen that are mythological creatures on Toussaint thrive. As the years pass Antonio drifts into a world of alcohol and sexually abuses his daughter, who ultimately kills him in self-defense. As she flees from her stepmother's ire, Tan-Tan begins to understand her new tree mates the Douen and soon becomes the MIDNIGHT ROBBER, a legend on her former home planet.The MIDNIGHT ROBBER is an excellent science fiction tale because author Nalo Hopkinson makes both of her worlds seem vividly real. Toussaint appears to be a technologically advanced Caribbean planet while New Half Way Tree seems very primal. Antonio is a strange, but fully developed character while Tan-Tan will steal the hearts of the audience. As with BROWN GIRL IN THE RING, the award winning Ms. Hopkinson proves she has a unique and wonderful perspective that provides a fresh voice in the science fiction arena.Harriet Klausner

Patois speaking frilled lizard creatures, succulent fruits, deadly plants, a problematic father and a main character with fire in her soul. This book was hard to put down as soon as I cracked it open. The blend of Caribbean folklore and the sci-fi genre was very cool and unique. It also teaches you some patois as you read. If you want to be taken somewhere realistically fantastic, check out this book!