Just Finished Reading The Last Theorem by Arthur C. Clarke and Frederick Pohl

Arthur C. Clarke, and Frederick Pohl to a lesser extent, are considered two of the twentieth century's most renown and respected science fiction writers.  Both made it to this century as well before succumbing to ailments well into their eighties.  The Last Theorem, published in 2008, is Clarke's final work, and his physical and mental conditions forced him to hand over its completion to Pohl.  The novel's release coincided with the death of Clarke, known mostly to the general public for his 2001: A Space Odyssey...

The Space Odyssey series bears a similarity to The Last Theorem in that both involve advanced alien civilizations discovering humanity's emergence into space and use of nuclear weapons and judging the fate of our species based on the level of threat they believe we present.  But the setting of The Last Theorem, which I just finished reading, is entirely different: Sri Lanka, an island nation just off the southern peninsula of India (and where Clarke lived), a few years (but not many) into the future.  The chief protagonist, Ranjit Subramanian, is a young mathematician from there who is struggling to write an elegant proof for Fermat's Last Theorem...a problem that had baffled mathematicians for centuries until, in the 1990s, a very cumbersome computer-aided solution was provided.  Ranjit's compelling personal story eventually intertwines with the book's other main subplot, namely the invasion of Earth and planned annihilation of humanity.  Along the way, the authors take predictably political potshots at nationalism, militarism, and war...focusing chiefly against the policies of the United States and often referring to their invasion and occupation of Iraq.  I get it...but I felt that, at times, I was being preached to instead of being told a story.  Also, toward the end of the book the characters became less and less believable...especially the "Space Olympics" role of Ranjit's daughter...

But all things considered, this is but a story and they all break down on one level or another.  After all, weren't Scott in Ivanhoe, Hugo in Les Miserables, and Tolstoy in War and Peace all deeply engaged in barely disguised political commentary?  And to make a character memorable, he or she can't be completely ordinary and has to stand out from the crowd in some way.  So yes, I enjoyed The Last Theorem for its story of Ranjit, as well as the many speculations about the possibilities and opportunities for us humans on Earth in the future...that is, if we can ever stop trying to destroy each other...