Dreams Before the
Start of Time, by Anne Charnock (47 North, 2017) examines the effect of
evolving reproductive technology upon individual choice, relationship, and the
meaning of family. It’s told as a series of vignettes beginning in 2034 and
extending those same characters, both primary and secondary, as their lives
unfold into 2084-85 and 2120. Charnock begins with current medical methods:
in-vitro fertilization, donor sperm, and so forth, then spins the technology
forward.
What will it mean for family bonds if an adult of either sex can
become a solo biological parent? How will marriages, families, parent-child
relationships change – or will they?
The consistent focus upon the daily lives
of the characters and their emotions gives the book the feel of a mainstream or
literary piece. Devoted science fiction fans may become impatient with the
relative lack of emphasis on the technology, but at the same time, the
thoughtful exploration of how we become parents interacts with who we are may
well make this novel accessible to the general reader. Either way, the prose is
strong, the scenes evocative, the questions worth asking.
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