Tar Daddoo
12/11/2014
What is the Science Fiction Premise?
In Way Station we meet Enoch Wallace who is secretly running a relay stop on an intergalactic transportation system. He is more than one hundred twenty years old and has been running the Way Station since the civil war. (The book was published in 1963.) While his activities are hidden in the wilds of Wisconsin where people mind their own business, his longevity is beginning to arouse interest.
Is the science of the premise explored?
The transportation system has the flavor of a transporter as in Star Trek. The information defining a person (aliens mostly) is captured, transported, and reassembled at its destination. It is clearly faster-than-light and there is some secondary communication mechanism that must be faster-than-light as well, but the theory behind these things is not well explained.
While the book is short on theory, it is filled with an assortment of alien technologies that Wallace has accumulated through the decades. These gizmos, the workings of the Way Station, and its side effects are all discussed.
Is the impact of the premise on an individual explored?
Much of the story is presented from Wallace's point of view. We learn how he runs the station and why he has been able to be a virtual hermit for so many years. It has been a very stable world, but it is starting to change and he must figure out how to deal with that.
Is the impact of the premise on society explored?
A major point of the book is that the Way Station has not been interacting with human society and that's the way they want it. Most of the discussion of how the Way Station might help or hurt humans is in Wallace's musings, since he is the only human who knows what is going on.
How well written is the story?
I found this book easy and enjoyable to read.
For my taste the book strays a bit from Science Fiction near the end. I don't think the author intended it to be experienced that way, but the ideas drifted towards fantasy. Unless you're a purist, it doesn't harm the story. For me, it was disappointing. These unnecessary fantastic elements clouded the conclusion of an otherwise first-class Science Fiction story.
Can I recommend the book?
Way Station is a good example of late-50's/early-60's Science Fiction. The story is simple and direct. The writing is accessible. It is not loaded with adventure (though there is a bit), but it is thoughtful. I enjoyed it and happily recommend it.