THROUGH THE LOOKING GLASS

In Rirdan’s novel, a disillusioned veteran passes through an uncanny underground portal and finds himself in a more enlightened, parallel-universe version of the United States.

Chris Walden, a young military veteran unburdened by family or marriage, seeks a back-to-the-land existence in Boulder, Colorado. While renovating an old house, his friend Ronny accesses a secret cellar hiding a gateway to a very different Boulder: There are buffalo herds, flocks of passenger pigeons, and architecture and fashions that recall the early 1900s, but the vehicles and railcars in which citizens ride are self-driving. The friends hypothesize that the portal leads to another version of the United States located in a mirror universe; dreaming of winning fame via posting videos of the place, Ronny sends Chris through to spy. This is indeed another America, one that Chris dubs “Americana.” It has no pollution; the atmosphere (both ecological and social) is healthy and comforting, and nobody knows of the recent horrors in Iraq. The society, with a decentralized government (and no national debt), operates on natural cooperation and harmony. A high-tech database carries everybody’s DNA and handprint patterns, allowing people to access free rideshares and other services via ubiquitous touchscreens. Chris is befriended by Sandra, an attractive teacher. The visitor learns of Americana’s no-waste industry, apprenticeship job training, organic farming and aquaculture, affordable healthcare, and of the possibility of a romance with Sandra—plus her comely sister, Kate (polyamory is accepted). But Chris knows that on the other side of the portal awaits go-getter Ronny, scheming to commercially exploit the paradise and render this world just as bad as the one Chris is fleeing. The text is heavy with expository dialogue about alternative socio-economic systems and communal philosophies, and the plot’s direction leaves few opportunities for big surprises. But open-minded readers will certainly join Chris in wondering why at least some of these solutions haven’t been implemented—an introductory note asserts that the technologies and eco-practices outlined here are authentic and achievable (“no hand-waving is employed”), not just SF wishful thinking.

An intriguing imagining of how a better, more sustainable world might function.