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4.0étoiles sur 5
When the lights go down in the city, Avril 26 2004
The second book (or third, if you consider the prequel the first book) in John Christopher's massive Tripod series. Continuing where, "The White Mountains" left off, the book follows the adventures of Will and his fight against the Tripods and their alien masters. The book furthers our knowledge about the invaders of Earth and their personal lives. Will and a fellow uncapped boy are given the chance to enter into the home of the Tripods. Once there, Will finds himself a slave to one of the aliens that live in the city and his companionship with this creature leads to further knowledge. This book also marks the point at which Will learns of the aliens' final solution (referred to here as The Plan) for earth's original inhabitants.
I found myself enjoying this book far more than "The White Mountains" itself. Though the first book in the series was far more action packed and filled with gripping chase and escape sequences, the second book is filled with fascinating descriptions of the Masters and their alien lifestyle. This is the kind of book we've been waiting for. Who are these creatures that fit every human with a silver mesh of a cap, making them docile and compliant? Where are they from? How extensive is their knowledge? And, most importantly, how can they be beaten?
Christopher has inserted a clever handicap into this tale that keeps Will from doing anything rash or careless. Neither Will nor his fellow uncapped slave can reveal their true intentions. From the moment they enter the city of gold and lead (so nicknamed for its design and intense gravity) to the moment they are supposed to leave, our heroes mustn't reveal to the Masters that they are uncapped or that a resistance has been planned. The writing in this tale never lingers unduly and the narrative is crisp and swift. Even reluctant readers will breeze through this tale, stopping to marvel at the amazing world the author has created within the boundaries of the city.
I'll admit it right now. Until this book I never really noticed the similarities between this series and H.G. Wells' remarkable "War of the Worlds". Certainly both stories rely on the world being conquered by huge tripods from outer space. In both cases, the aliens responsible for earth's enslavement are unwilling to consider human beings' rights. But the final similarity, and the most striking, is the physical resemblance between the aliens found here in "City of Gold and Lead" and the Wells classic. Both books contain aliens that have tentacles and can't breathe Earth's air. Has Christopher stolen his ideas and made them palatable to children? Perhaps. If so, I've no real objection to his strategy. Slightly more infuriating is his continued dismissal of women in general. If there are female aliens, we're never told of them. As for the girls sent, like the boys, to the city to work as slaves for the Masters, they are quickly dispatched. Apparently Christopher reasoned that while men can handle physical labor and pain, girls cannot. As such, women are killed and the most beautiful amongst them are placed in glass display cases to be observed. Forget trying to search for any symbolism here. It's obvious that the aliens, in addition to being wholly male, are just as sexist as their human counterpoints. While the first book in the Tripod series had a few weak willed females here and there, this book hasn't a single living woman in it AT ALL. This is fairly weird, even for a boy's adventure novel. So on a level of one to five (one being the least chauvinist and five being the most) I'd place this book squarely at 4.7. Otherwise, I've no objections at all. The book is well paced, well written, and well thought out. All in all, a delightful read that makes one even more eager to read the final chapter in the trilogy.
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de John Christopher
de John Christopher
de John Christopher
de Philip Pullman
de Philip Pullman
