Theodore Sturgeon should be as well known to the public as Ray Bradbury or Robert Heinlein, authors to whom his writing was seminal. He was the scriptwriter for several Star Trek episodes including Amok Time which introduced the Vulcan hand symbol and first used the sentence "Live Long and Prosper", and another which introduced the prime directive. He has been inducted into the Science Fiction and Fantasy Hall of Fame, and The Theodore Sturgeon Award for excellence in short science fiction has been awarded each year since 1987 by the Center for the Study of Science Fiction.
His first novel, The Synthetic Man (also known as The Dreaming Jewels) was published in 1950. It's a very strange tale, a fantasy where you leave logic at the door. There are many leads which are unexplained - but wait for it, they are all revealed in the end.
Horty is an abandoned eight year-old taken in by an uncaring and abusive couple. Losing several fingers in a violent fight, he escapes into the night, hitchhiking on a truck with some odd characters. Solum the alligator man and Zena the midget are two of the travelling carnival's freaks who befriend him and give him a job - dressed as a girl in a sister act with Zena. For years Horty never grows beyond a child. The carnival owner, a mentalist named Monetre has a special interest in his freaks and accepts Horty. Monetre does have legitimate powers, absorbed from his collection of precious crystals found and collected. These otherworldly organisms possess a group consciousness and can replicate any living thing, with various degrees of success. Horty has his own powers - photographically absorbing knowledge at a phenomenal rate, and his fingers have quickly grown back.
When Horty leaves the carnival, he ages into an adult and is located by his father. There are those who protect Horty and those who wish him dead. Converging at the circus, they all witness the true power of the crystals and Horty's abilities.
I found this totally fascinating. I love a dark carnival story and here is science fiction, fantasy, noir, mystery, tragedy, and telepathy combined into a captivating read - though it isn't always clear where it's going, that's part of the charm. You have to roll with it until Sturgeon weaves all the loose ends in masterfully - all is revealed, leaving me at the end impressed at the feat.
Impressive and original.
1950 / Paperback / 174 pages
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