book review of bacigalupi's 'the wind-up girl' (2009)

the only regret i have with this book is that i haven't read it sooner. it has just been sitting on my desktop for months after i have gotten it. now that i am almost finished with it, i am going to write my assessment.

the windup girl belongs to the science fiction subgenre of 'biopunk.' it is kinda like 'cyberpunk.' whereas the scientific field that is fictionalized and explored in cyberpunk is that of computers and cyberspace, biopunk looks at genetics - biodiversity of crops, and genetic manipulation techniques for example. In both, there is the idea of 'the street finding its own uses for things.' The effects of technologies are often unintended and the black market and its illegal activities are depicted constantly.

what stands out with the windup girl also is the setting. the future is bleak, far bleaker than in any of the gibson novels i have read. whereas with gibson it is the western and highly-developed megalopolis that is looked at, the humid tropical city is what bacigalupi describes. the characters move and interact with each other in this space. the miasma of odours and sights and sounds made me feel claustrophobic. there is a suffocating quality to it, though not as much as for example in dan simmons' depiction of calcutta in 'song of kali.'

the characters also make this book highly compelling. you feel their their motivations through their pasts which are often painful and dark. in some, it is their present that is their nightmare, having gone down in life from a more affluent and comfortable station. the wind-up girl, which is the titular character is a beautifully tragic creature in so many ways than one.

the story starts out slow, taking you into the gears and workings of its world. it has a good structure and the plot unfolds slowly, then picks up speed, faster and faster. besides being action-packed, the book tackles the big issues of loyalty, humanity, and survival amidst tragedy.

i won't make this longer anymore so you can go and start reading. overall this is the best book i have read this year so far.