Book Review: “The Other Valley” by Scott Alexander Howard
Go to the Left, or Go to the Right?
Imagine, if you will, that you live in a town beside a lake in a valley. If you walk far enough to the east, you will run into the same town, but set 20 years into the future. Going back to your starting point, if you then start walking to the west, and walk far enough, you will arrive in the same town, too, only this time 20 years into the past. Doing these walks is a bit moot, though, because movement between the towns and valleys is prohibited unless you’ve put in a request with a governing body called the Conseil to go to and fro in time. The valid reasons for doing this bit of time travel are if you’re dying and want to see how your future grandkids turn out, or your son or daughter has died and you’d like to go back into the past to see them one last time — all of this at a distance, as you cannot interact with anyone to not change time. Well, this is the outline of the premise for The Other Valley, the debut novel from Canadian author Scott Alexander Howard. This is time travel that is different from any kind that you may have experienced (in fiction) before. To that end, Scott Alexander Howard is a creative genius. However, is the first book from a Harvard University postdoctoral fellow all that good? Weeeellllll … that’s a harder question to answer. (Um, it’s easy, but I’m trying to play nice.)
The plot of The Other Valley is intriguing. It involves a 16-year-old girl named Odile who seems to be a shoo-in for a job at the Conseil after passing through most of her vetting with flying colours. However, initially, she was turned down for the vetting process. (Note to kids: Never give up on your dreams!) The reason the decision on her application is reversed is because she inadvertently sees the parents of a classmate named Edme who have come from the future to have a last look at their son — which is a tip-off to her that something’s about to happen to him. Has Odile been given a fast track to a coveted job because she saw something she shouldn’t have seen? And what is to become of Edme? Does he die? Does he, at least, get to play his violin at an upcoming competition? Is Odile falling a little bit in love with the soon-to-be-possibly dead boy? And, well, that’s just the first half of the book described. The rest of the novel I’m not going to give away (so I’m not spoiling it) but, suffice to say, it only fleetingly has to do with the first half. In fact, until the book’s very end, it feels as though you have walked into a completely unrelated book kept afloat by the fact the two distinct stories are connected by the same main character and world-building tissue.
The Other Valley is the kind of read that will probably have judges of the mainstream Giller Prize and science-fiction-oriented Hugo and Nebula Awards wetting their pants for how clever and original it is. That is, by far, the biggest commendation I can give this read. Scott Alexander Howard is a genius — as I’ve said earlier. He is probably, in a sense, the new Jonathan Lethem — the kind of author who comes along once in a generation to upend all preconceived notions of what defines a fantasy or science-fiction novel. I’m betting that this book sets some trends in time travel fiction. What’s also a bit of a nice — but confusing — touch is that everyone in the author’s world speaks a kind of combination of French and English. The town to the east is referred to as Est 1 and the town to the west is Ouest 1. That’s just for starters. However, all compliments end there. For one thing, you can’t think about the mechanics of the world building too hard. For one thing: everyone drives cars. Tell me, if the world is confined to a small valley that repeats itself, where are the car manufacturing plants and oil refineries? And, as touched upon in the book, how does the weather operate? If it’s sunny 20 years in the past, can it be stormy 20 years into the future? See what this is making me do? I’ve got a headache.
That’s not all. The Other Valley moves at the speed of molasses. Anything that doesn’t have to do with the politicking around who gets to control the entrance of residents to the various other valleys is, frankly, as boring as mud in this long-winded tale. I frequently found myself thinking of tasks I had yet to do — the laundry, and making supper — instead of concentrating on this book. While the characters are likable enough, outside of Odile, they’re also sort of anonymous. That is, they don’t register enough for the reader to take much of an interest in them. And, to me, that’s the death knell for a book like this. It can be as inventive as all heck but forget to put in characters that resonate, and you don’t have much of a novel to stand on. Thus, I can say that The Other Valley is all sizzle and no steak. The concept is innovative enough to warrant its publication, but I don’t know how many readers are going to make it to that confusing second half. I’m not trying to be crabby here and I realize that maybe I’m not getting the concept of this title. Still, I felt that The Other Valley was a letdown. It’s a shame because the concept is unique and original, and if you look hard enough there might be the odd pebble of interest. However, when the dust has settled on this one a bit, you might find that it’s the type of book that resonates with those who love their science fiction to push boundaries — people in charge of award juries, in other words. For the rest of us hoi polloi, this one is an unsatisfying miss. Keep walking.
Scott Alexander Howard’s The Other Valley was published by Atria Books / Simon & Schuster on February 27, 2024.
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Get in touch: zacharyhoule@rogers.com
