Reviews and Comments

This is the 3rd book of the Anty Boisjoly mystery series. If you are not familiar with this series, Antony Boisjoly is an upper-crust dilettante detective. He usually uses his bright mind to fix his upper-class friend's perils, that, by the way, are not at all in the same category as the problems of the rest of the humane kind. Set in the 20s decade of the last century, in a world between wars, when skirts became shorter and the fun had just started, this book goes along with the tone of the times. As a mystery book is not the greatest, the author prefers locked room mysteries, that, for those who know, have very limited options. But I don’t read these books because of the super intricate story, or the incredible deductions of the central character. No, I read these books because they are a blast. Mister Anty Boisjoly is a witty commentator of the sarcastic persuasion, yes, the stylish, rich, and a tad snob young man, is funny and clever and has something horribly and funny to say about everything. If you like this kind of humor, don’t think it twice and grab this book. In this installment, the not quite heroic hero, has to solve the mysterious murder/duel of the two uncles of a club member and friend. In a locked room. Yes, that is how it goes, it’s not a mistake. Of course, he solves the conundrum in time for tea, well, drinks.

This is a book I had read when I was a teenager and I didn't have that much experience in this world, but it still left a deep impression on me. The book is a mix of fantasy, psychological thriller and science fiction, divided into three parts that make up a more complex story. More than human, it deals with the next form of human evolution, one in an entirely different sense than we might expect. This is a magnificent book, especially if we put it in perspective, since it was written in the early 1950s. Although it has aged wonderfully. It takes as its main characters those on the fringes of society. A drifter with no intellectual ability whatsoever, a girl unappreciated by her mother, two black twins who don't speak, a street child, will be the protagonists not only of the novel but of what humanity can become. Remember that this book was written in the 1950s, it is not surprising that not many people liked what Mr. Sturgeon was trying to tell us. Theodore Sturgeon is one of the fathers of science fiction, and one of the best writers of the genre. Who, unfortunately, has fallen into oblivion because he did not write about spaceships or robots, which most people understand as a fundamental part of the genre. At the time, he was accused of being too sentimental because he included in his stories and novels the emotional needs of every human being, an issue that caused other writers of the genre great discomfort. After all, feelings were reserved for women and these men much preferred to exalt machines. More Than Human is a novel worth reading or rereading in my case. In retrospect, now I can appreciate it much more deeply. I can also say that its message left me with a way of seeing social codes of conduct in a very different way from the conventional one. Today, I can say that I am glad to have read it when I was so young. I must say that the “N” word is used once in the book, but the moment and the action related to it, has nothing to do with the word as we understand it now.

Este es un libro que había leído cuando era una adolescente y no tenía mucha experiencia en este mundo; aun así, me dejó una honda huella. El libro es una mezcla entre fantasía, thriller psicológico y ciencia ficción, dividido en tres partes que conforman una historia más compleja. Más que humano, trata de la siguiente forma de evolución humana, una en un sentido completamente diferente del que podríamos esperar. Este es un libro magnífico, sobre todo si lo ponemos en perspectiva, ya que fue escrito en la primera parte de los años cincuenta del siglo pasado. Aunque ha envejecido maravillosamente. Toma como personajes principales a aquellos en las orillas de la sociedad, un vagabundo sin ninguna capacidad intelectual, una niña nada apreciada por su madre, dos gemelas negras que no hablan, un niño de la calle, serán los protagonistas no solamente de la novela sino de lo que la humanidad puede llegar a ser. Recordemos que este libro fue escrito en los cincuenta, no es de extrañar que no a mucha gente le agradara lo que el señor Sturgeon estaba tratando de decirnos. Theodore Sturgeon es uno de los padres de la ciencia ficción, y uno de los mejores escritores del género, quien por desgracia ha caído en el olvido debido a que no escribió sobre naves espaciales ni robots, lo que la mayor parte de la gente entiende como parte fundamental del género. En su momento se le acusó de ser demasiado sentimental porque incluía en sus cuentos y novelas las necesidades emocionales de todo ser humano, cuestión que a otros escritores del género les causaba una profunda incomodidad. Después de todo, los sentimientos estaban reservados a las mujeres y estos hombres preferían con mucho exaltar a las máquinas. Más que humanos es una novela que vale la pena leer o releer en mi caso. A la luz de los años puedo apreciarla mucho más profundamente, pero también puedo decir que su mensaje me dejó una forma de ver los códigos de conducta muy distinta de la convencional y hoy me alegro de haberlo leído siendo tan joven.

Más que humano, es un libro que estoy releyendo. Lo leí cuando era una adolescente y en definitiva no lo disfruté tanto como ahora, que lo comprendo con mucha más profundidad. El señor Sturgeon, no trae una novela que es mitad ciencia ficción, un cuarto fantasía y un cuarto thriller psicológico. Como siempre, comienza con algo de crueldad exquisita que nos roba el aliento, para luego llenarnos el alma de vuelta. Una lectura interesante y muy distinta de los sobreentendidos del género, que no solo es robots y naves espaciales.

Esta vez lo estoy leyendo en su idioma original.