Soldier of Sidon - BookWyrm

Hardcover, 320 pages

English language

Published Oct. 31, 2006 by Tor Books.

ISBN:: 978-0-7653-1664-6
OCLC Number:: 69241551

(6 reviews)

"Latro forgets everything when he sleeps. Writing down his experiences every day and reading his journal anew each morning gives him a poignantly tenuous hold on himself, but his story's hold on readers is powerful indeed. The two previous novels, combined in Latro in the Mist (Soldier of the Mist and Soldier of Arete), are generally considered classics of contemporary fantasy. At last we have a new book." "Latro now finds himself in Egypt, a land of singing girls, of spiteful and conniving deities, of mysterious dangers. Without his memory, he is unsure of everything, except for his desire to be free of the curse that causes him to forget." "The visions Gene Wolfe conjures of the wonders of Egypt and of the adventures of Latro as he and his companions journey south up the great Nile into unknown and legendary territory are truly unique and compelling."--BOOK JACKET.

4 editions

Jim Rion reviewed Soldier of Sidon by Gene Wolfe

Review of 'Soldier of Sidon' on 'Goodreads'

5 stars

This is the continuing story of Latro, a Greek warrior who fought for the Romans and is blessed (or cursed?) by the gods. A head injury took from him his ability to make new memories (yes, like Memento) and so he must write down everything that happens to remember anything. At the same time, he is able to see the gods and demons that others follow on blind faith: although he does not know who they are, since he cannot remember their names.

One other element of the story is that the author claims that this is a translation of an ancient scroll written in broken Latin, full of mysterious abbreviations and illegible words... So a translation of a partially unreadable story written by someone with a severe brain injury. This conceit piles layer upon layer of mystery, creating the ultimate expression of one of Wolfe's favorite devices: the unreliable …

This is the continuing story of Latro, a Greek warrior who fought for the Romans and is blessed (or cursed?) by the gods. A head injury took from him his ability to make new memories (yes, like Memento) and so he must write down everything that happens to remember anything. At the same time, he is able to see the gods and demons that others follow on blind faith: although he does not know who they are, since he cannot remember their names.

One other element of the story is that the author claims that this is a translation of an ancient scroll written in broken Latin, full of mysterious abbreviations and illegible words... So a translation of a partially unreadable story written by someone with a severe brain injury. This conceit piles layer upon layer of mystery, creating the ultimate expression of one of Wolfe's favorite devices: the unreliable narrator. Here we can never be sure what is "really happening," and what's more, neither can the protagonist. There are, in fact, times when we as readers know more of what is happening than the MC since we can remember, but he cannot.

It's a fascinating story, but even without the convoluted depth, it's also just interesting. Soldier of Sidon takes Latro into Africa, through Egypt of the Ptolemies and south into Kush/Nubia (the borders are unclear, and the names change like water).

It's complex, and maddening, and fun, and exciting, and endlessly explorable. Just like the lands Latro stumbles through.