A Borrowed Man - Gene Wolfe

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A Borrowed Man

by
Gene Wolfe

general information | review summaries | our review | links | about the author

Title:	A Borrowed Man
Author:	Gene Wolfe
Genre:	Novel
Written:	2015
Length:	297 pages
Availability:	A Borrowed Man - US
	A Borrowed Man - UK
	A Borrowed Man - Canada

	from: Bookshop.org (US)

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Our Assessment:

B : a bit underwhelming as a mystery, but otherwise very nicely done

See our review for fuller assessment.

Review Summaries
Source	Rating	Date	Reviewer
Chicago Tribune	.	5/11/2015	Gary K. Wolfe

From the Reviews:

"As these revelations emerge, so does a tantalizing picture of the oddly dystopian future they live in. (...) By this point the novel has spiraled outward into pure science fiction, and yet Wolfe knits it all together in the end with his characteristic grace and ingenuity -- and his trademark sense that there is a good deal more lurking just outside the edges of the frame." - Gary K. Wolfe, Chicago Tribune

Please note that these ratings solely represent the complete review's biased interpretation and subjective opinion of the actual reviews and do not claim to accurately reflect or represent the views of the reviewers. Similarly the illustrative quotes chosen here are merely those the complete review subjectively believes represent the tenor and judgment of the review as a whole. We acknowledge (and remind and warn you) that they may, in fact, be entirely unrepresentative of the actual reviews by any other measure.

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The complete review's Review:

A Borrowed Man is narrated by an Ern A. Smithe -- not the original one, a mystery writer, but rather a 'reclone', identical in appearance as he'd been:

grown from that guy's DNA and loaded up with his memories of things that had never happened to me and never could happen to me. "Implanted" was what they said; but all it really meant was that years and years of dead stuff had been read into me while I lay in a sort of coma.

       Though appearing human, Smithe isn't considered a real person, but rather simply property, and he's housed in a library -- "Level Three shelf in the Spice Grove Public Library". Reclones can be checked out by library patrons, or consulted on-site; those that no one takes any interest in are eventually discarded -- burned.
       The novel opens with Colette Coldbrook visiting Smithe and then checking him out. She has a book the original Smithe wrote, Murder on Mars; the reclone recalls that: "It was one of the sideline projects I did now and then", published in a limited edition; books are in any case mostly obsolete in this (future) day and age (and in particular: "There's little demand for fiction these days"), but this one is very rare. It was the one thing found in Colette's father's safe when he died -- by her brother, who was later murdered -- and Colette believes it must harbor some secret and hopes that Smithe can help her figure out what that is.
       While in her early childhood Colette's father, Conrad Coldbrook, Sr., had moved unhappily from job to job he eventually went into business for himself, putting out a newsletter with investment advice; eventually he made a fortune, and the family moved into a big house in which he also kept an elaborate laboratory. A secretive type, he never revealed the details of what he did to his family.
       Others are apparently also interested in what Conrad Sr. left behind -- ransacking his library and killing Conrad Jr, Colette's brother. Soon enough, Colette and Smithe also have some unpleasant encounters with some of those interested in Conrad Sr.'s secrets.
       The mysterious book is the key to a great deal here -- with Smithe eventually figuring out just how to put it to use. Separated from Colette, Smithe investigates on his own and then with the help of a couple he encounters; as a reclone his legal status somewhat limits him -- he is property, and doesn't have quite the same rights as actual humans -- and he also only has limited knowledge of the contemporary world, so having humans who can explain some of the technology and workings he's not up to speed with helps.
       The world in the novel is mostly not all that different from the present-day one, but some things have changed. For one, the world's human population is down to about a billion, and there are those who want to reduce it even further. 'Bots' -- robots, essentially -- are quite advanced and provide many simple services, including in the Coldbrook household. Aside from regular cars, there are also 'flitters' -- basically flying ones; the Coldbrook family had three (a sign of their wealth: as Colette notes: "Very few families can afford one flitter").
       What lies behind the well-locked doors of the fourth floor of the Coldbrook house, where Conrad Sr. worked, is more than just surprising, too -- but also not made all too much of; Smithe would soon rather just close the door on all that ..... Still, the mysteries are all resolved in the end, and Smithe can at least feel more secure about his continued existence -- always a concern for a reclone.
       Much of the appeal of A Borrowed Man lies in Smithe's narration. A (re)clone of a writer, he is not allowed to write -- as he puts it: "I have the mind of a writer. I won't call myself a writer because I'm not permitted to write" --, but finds what amounts to something of a workaround to present (t)his story, and both the tone and the need to present the story in a neat, simple, sequential way are very effective here. He's a very engaging narrator, and with the workings of his mind laid out quite clearly (by him) as he considers his various next steps and tries to make sense of what he experiences -- much of which is strange to him, given what a sheltered, sequestered 'life' he's lived -- the novel is an enjoyable kind of procedural. Smithe's status as different -- property rather than truly human -- and the consequences, potential and actual, of that also figure prominently throughout
       Wolfe's rich imagination also helps, as even though we only glimpse bits and pieces of the changed world the story is set in, it still makes for a vibrant (if also somewhat grey) picture. There's also the bit behind the door -- a much greater leap that isn't quite a foray too far but feels underutilized; there's rather more to explore there and with it.
       The 'mystery' -- about the deaths of Colette's father and brother; about some of Conrad Sr.'s secrets; and about Colette herself -- are a bit underwhelming, but the journey along the way is enjoyable enough, making for a good read. One ultimately might expect a bit more to it all, but it's fine as is as well (and there is a sequel, the posthumously published Interlibrary Loan ...).

- M.A.Orthofer, 28 September 2024

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Links:

A Borrowed Man:

Tor publicity page

Reviews:

Gene Wolfe:

Gene Wolfe at The Encyclopedia of Science Fiction

Other books of interest under review:

See Index of Science Fiction and Fantasy books
See Index of Contemporary American fiction

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About the Author:

American author Gene Wolfe lived 1931 to 2019.

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