The years of rice and salt
by Kim Stanley Robinson · first published 2002
53% recommend42% neutral5% critical
Why HN recommends it
Alternate history imagining a world where the Black Death wipes out Europe, then following multiple lifetimes across cultures. Its characters are vivid, and it examines how arbitrary history can be.
Summarised by Claude from recommending comments
With the incomparable vision and breathtaking detail that brought his now-classic Marstrilogy to vivid life, bestselling author KIM STANLEY ROBINSON boldly imagines an alternate history of the last seven hundred years. In his grandest work yet, the acclaimed storyteller constructs a world vastly different from the one we know....The Years of Rice and SaltIt is the fourteenth century and one of the most apocalyptic events in human history is set to occur--the coming of the Black Death. History teaches us that a third of Europe's population was destroyed. But what if? What if the plague killed 9
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The Years of Rice and Salt by Kim Stanley Robinson may fit. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Years_of_Rice_and_Salt > The Years of Rice and Salt is an alternate history novel by American science fiction author Kim Stanley Robinson,…
on “Intriguing maps that reveal alternate histories” ↗…Wars / Faded Sun Trilogy', 'Merovingen Nights', Morgaine Cycle, Foreigner Universe, and none of her Fantasy. Much from Kim Stanley Robinson, no matter if early or recently. Most memorable though, 'The Years of Rice and Salt'. Probably almost anything (Post-)Cyberpunkish from anyone. Steam- or Dieselpunk? Err no, thx. Some stuff from Stephen Baxter and Gregory Benford. Rameez Naam's https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Nexus_Trilogy…
on “Ask HN: What is your favorite fiction book?” ↗Kim Stanley Robinson's "2312" carries on from the Mars Trilogy. Stephenson's "REAMDE", "The Diamond Age", "Cryptonomicon" and "Snow Crash" Does alternate history count her? If so, Robinson's "The Years of Rice and Salt" is great
on “What are your favourite sci-fi books?” ↗An alternate history novel by Kim Stanley Robinson: [1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Years_of_Rice_and_Salt Wherin the plague eliminates almost everyone in medieval Europe, thereby eliminating 'colonisation'. Painting development of the world from there, up until around now. Showing to me how arbitrary much…
on “Ask HN: What are the best unknown books you have read?” ↗The Years of Rice and Salt by Kim Stanley Robinson An alternate future where the Europeans are completely wiped out by the plague, and how society could have changed.
on “Ask HN: What is the best thing you read in 2024?” ↗You may enjoy "The Years of Rice and Salt," by Kim Stanley Robinson.
on “1491: It’s likely that everything you know about American prehistory is wrong” ↗"The years of rice and salt' by Kim Stanley Robinson
on “Ask HN: What's the "best" book you've ever read?” ↗…Mars trilogy when I was a teenager. The clunky character development and invented politics haven't aged super well, but the stories are still interesting. I also enjoyed The Memory of Whiteness and The Years of Rice and Salt. More recently I tried reading Aurora (2015), but the book is a downer and a slog. Not recommended. Didn't finish it. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aurora_(novel)
on “The Realism of Our Times: Kim Stanley Robinson on how science fiction works” ↗People can have wild differences of opinion. The Years of Rice and Salt is one of my favourite books. I hope you come to enjoy it :)
on “Kim Stanley Robinson’s “New York 2140”” ↗Right on. Guessing many who are reading this have already come across it, but "The Years of Rice and Salt" by KSR is a great counter factual history in this vein. I'm going to use it as a "textbook" of sorts next time I teach a world history survey.
on “Were There Dark Ages?” ↗R G B Mars But what about (AM)OLED, and the https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/PenTile_matrix_family ? Did you read his "The Years of Rice and Salt" btw? I've found this to be more entertaining, though less epic. Just one paperback of slightly alternate history, showing how arbitrary things come to be and are.
on “Lichens can survive almost anything, and some might survive Mars” ↗The Years of Rice and Salt is amazing, very vivid characters, and (SPOILER) it's amazing how he ties in multiple lifetimes. Shaman is another one I'd recommend.
on “Lichens can survive almost anything, and some might survive Mars” ↗Again. Why no love for "The Years of Rice and Salt"?
on “We are all nerds: The literary works of Neal Stephenson” ↗This article reminds me of a book written by Kim Stanley Robinson, "The Years of Rice and Salt". It's a historical fiction which explores a history in which the bubonic plague wiped out Europe, precluding Western civilization as we know it. The cultural and religious vacuum left behind is filled…
on “A subterranean world of water offers a glimpse of Ramla’s past” ↗I've just about given up halfway through Years of Rice and Salt. If the writing is this pedestrian, I need more of a point than reincarnation! In truth, I'll probably read the whole thing eventually, since I bought the paperback already, but it's certainly not a…
on “Kim Stanley Robinson’s “New York 2140”” ↗