To Your Scattered Bodies Go Review

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As I continue trekking through my science fiction and fantasy TBR, lo and behold, the next book on my list was Philip José Farmer’s Hugo-award-winning novel To Your Scattered Bodies Go. Having no idea what it was about, I was excited to get into it.

Published in 1971, the book won the Hugo Award in 1972. It is also the first book in Farmer’s Riverworld series. Fun fact: the book’s title comes from one of John Donne’s “Holy Sonnets.” The book begins with Richard Francis Burton, an explorer, on his deathbed at sixty-nine. After his death, he enters a strange room where millions of other people are also suspended. He manages to escape and wakes up in another world, one that includes a gigantic river that seemingly has no beginning or end. He meets a variety of people from different cultures, time periods, and ethnicities. After encountering a person known only as “The Mysterious Stranger,” Burton sets out on a journey to find the end of the river and unravel why humanity is being resurrected there.

I want to start by saying that I enjoyed the premise of this book the most. I’m a sucker for any science fiction that deals with the big questions, such as what happens after death? What if God wasn’t what you expected? You’re free to interpret those questions on your own as you will, but this book sets up a world that fills you with questions. For example, when you get to the end, the book introduces some sort of alien conspiracy involved with the humans’ resurrection (no spoilers, obviously), so you’re left with more questions. However, it sets up a much bigger threat or salvation going on.

I found the build-up of this book interesting. My only qualm with it was that it felt like it was all building toward something much bigger that wouldn’t be explored until the next book or later. It left me with more questions than I came in with. Because of this, a lot of aspects of the story only appear toward the end. I kind of wish that the story had completed itself a little bit more in this way. But I really enjoyed the worldbuilding going on in this one. I see why it won the Hugo award back in the day.

“First, humiliation, then humility, he would have said. And then comes humanity as a matter of course.”
― Philip José Farmer, Riverworld: To Your Scattered Bodies Go

Stay tuned for another book review next week! Little by little, my science fiction and fantasy TBR whittles down. Not to say my books won’t appear on my list, of course. Also, get ready for another blog post as the holiday season rolls around. Though staying in England means no chance of celebrating Thanksgiving, but means more time to write, I guess. See you all next week!

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