Expendable [Hardcover]

This book is basically about disability. People who go through life with some affliction. The premise of the book is that if someone popular in an organisation dies, then it affects the morale of the organisation. Thus in the future those people who become space explorers undertaking dangerous missions will the the ugly the deformed. That way if they keep getting killed no one is to upset.

Of course in the future people will probably only have selected clones as children or the technology will exist to remove things like birthmarks. So really this is a book about being ugly or suffering from a disfigerment and the problems that it brings.

The thrust of the book is that the main character of the book goes through a number of adventures and although in the end she is able to cure the defect that she has ( a large birthmark on her face) she is not concerned about it and feels at peace with herself.

The book of course is written for young people who despite all looking youthfull and attractive go through a period of feeling that they are ugly. A book like this is no doubt a good idea as they can learn the very real message that physical beauty is something which has its advantages but in real life ones sense of self depend on so many things apart from appearance.

The book is very easy to read and it creates a world which is interesting and new, even if in the end it is about a very here and now theme.

Many science-fiction novels, television series, and films present the future as something which should be desired by the people of our present time. Expendable, however, shows the future as not-so-desirable in two pertinent ways: 1.) Humanity can rule itself, but must constantly act within the strict guidelines established and summarily enforced by The League of Peoples, which take on a nearly-mystical, nearly-godlike role, knowing all without ever being seen; 2.) Not everyone is "beautiful," and those with both the aptitude and the lack of beauty are made into Explorers, also known as Expendable Crew Members because of the logic that "no one will miss someone who is not beautiful" - this despite the easy availability of numerous surgical procedures to essentially MAKE someone beautiful.

This second point is what truly grabbed my attention from the second page. The main character, Festina Ramos, was born with a "birthmark" condition which has left "a lurid port-wine birthmark covering the right half of my face from cheekbone to chin." A very close friend of more than a decade has the same "birthmark," so the tale spun by Gardner is particularly personal.

Gardner's writing style is excellent - easy to follow, providing technological explanations without being deeply detailed, and split into short segments (ranging from several paragraphs to - rarely - several pages in length) grouped together as chapters to enable the reader to stop at really any point and feel it is a good stopping point (thus making it a great book for those who are often interrupted when reading). Unfortunately, however, the story is told in the first person in flashback, which takes some of the "danger" element away from the overall mood of the narrative.

Overall, Expendable is a very good read. The primary world Gardner creates is both familiar and foreign, and the narrative twists mostly unexpected. Especially for those with or those who care deeply for someone with the "birthmark" condition, this mark of "disfigurement" takes on a new light and helps to cause the reader to consider concepts of beauty in our present reality.