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"'Look, trees send out chemical signals when they're attacked. The signals attract insects that prey on the bugs that attack them. Call the Orkin man. The concept works at all levels, in the ecosystem, in a species, even a society. All the individual creatures are networks of cells. All species are networks of individuals. All ecosystems are networks of species. All interact and communicate with one another to one degree or another, through competition, predation, cooperation. All these interactions are similar to neurotransmitters crossing synapses in the brain, or ants communicating in a colony. The colony changes its overall behavior based on ant interactions. So do we, based on how our neurons talk to each other. And so does all of nature, from top to bottom. It's all connected.'"
Greg Bear has already been discussed in my review of Eon, a novel published 14 years before Darwin's Radio. He is/was a noted author of hard science fiction. He passed away from stroke-related complications last year.
I was pretty hard on Eon, the one other of his books that I've read, but looking back at that review I think that my assessment of it was fair. It really wasn't up to the level of more noteworthy hard science fiction entries, and yes, it does come off like a less digestible version of Ringworld. Perhaps the sequels were better. I certainly hope so.
I'm happy to say that Darwin's Radio is a superior book in every respect. The author has a firm grasp of the science involved, the characters are fully realized and their actions make sense, and the sprawling plot manages to both fascinate and make logical sense at the same time. I sometimes disagree with the Nebula Awards, but this book amply deserved that level of recognition.
Darwin's Radio takes place in the early 2000s, as health officials across the globe come to grips with a "new" virus that seems to have lain dormant in our DNA. The danger posed by this virus is far from certain, and as a team of researchers attempts to assess this threat a new chapter in the history of our species (or at least our genus) begins.
Darwin's Radio isn't kind of book you pick up occasionally and read over a long period of time. It's a very involved novel, both in terms of the science discussed and the arguments presented its characters. It thus requires a sustained effort on the part of the reader, but if you can sit down and get to it you'll find your effort rewarded.
There's also the COVID angle. Keep in mind that this novel was written in 1999, long before we'd taken up wearing masks, washing our hands obsessively, and also long before we began attempting to keep abreast of "new developments" via cellular technology that didn't exist in 1999. For this reason Darwin's Radio can seem very prescient, in that discussions of viruses, epidemics and the paranoia engendered by both are things we grew uncomfortably close to during the pandemic years.
As for a recommendation, I'll just say that I can't recommend this book enough. It's one of the best things I've read in a while, and when I have the chance I'll be reading the sequel, Darwin's Children.
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