It's hard to know exactly how to describe Arkady and Boris Strugatsky's Russian science-fiction classic Roadside Picnic in any way that can convey the haunting, oppressive, surreal mood of the novel. Made up of four sections, each separated by periods of time, the novel unfolds in a small town near an area called the Zone, which was left behind after an alien visitation unwitnessed by any humans - indeed, the only evidence of their arrival and presence was these leftover Zones, scattered around the globe. But in the small North American town of Harmont, where the novel unfolds, men known as "stalkers" lead expeditions into the area (some legal, some not) to retrieve the alien leftovers for profit.
But what exactly are these leftovers? What was their original purpose? Study them though they might, the scientists have only barely begun to understand anything about these objects. "I'm absolutely convinced that in the vast majority of cases we're using sledgehammers to crack nuts," says a scientist at one point, illustrating how infuriating and bewildering it is to be so close to mind-expanding technology, but unable to know anything about it.
And that all goes double for the Zone, a bizarre, nightmarish area whose outward normality belies bizarre rules, deadly traps, bending gravity, and more. These are areas in which normal rules no longer apply, where the very rules of science seem to no longer hold true. But why are these Zones here? Are they testing us? Are they windows into a larger world? Or, as the same scientist says, are they simply the refuse and trash of aliens who stopped for a roadside picnic on our earth, and saw us as ants and animals - not even worth speaking to?
That's a bleak philosophical backdrop to a novel, but seems fitting for a novel written in 1972 Russia - after all, this is a culture known for its weary, laughing acceptance of all the cruelties of life, and Roadside Picnic is no different, American setting or not. Whether the book is a critique of the Russian system or an allegory for the corruption of capitalism or simply a science fiction story, I leave for each reader to decide for themselves; yes, there's a long history of censorship of the novel, but as Boris Strugatsky explains in the fascinating afterword, it was never quite clear exactly what was wrong with the novel, other than maybe its tone. But whatever the deeper meaning, Roadside Picnic ultimately feels like humanity coming to terms with its own insignificance, and trying to make peace with what that says about us. Are we just base animals, scrabbling for money and self-interest? Could we be more than that?
All of this makes Roadside Picnic sound existential and crushing, I know; indeed, if you've seen Andrei Tarkovsky's film version of the novel, Stalker, you might expect something weighty and heady like that. Instead, Roadside Picnic is remarkably down-to-earth, engaging with its ideas through drunken conversations and private musings, all while living through its primary lead, a stalker named Red whose incursions into the Zone are tense, unnerving, and unsettling, all without much ever truly happening. Indeed, one of the things that makes Roadside Picnic so effective is the way it suggests so much without ever explaining anything, allowing the reader's mind to fill in the gaps of this world around the edges, while giving us an interesting, relatable, down-to-earth character we can empathize with. After all, all Red wants is to provide for his family, and exploring the Zone is what he's good at.
I'm not wild about the ending of the novel in some ways, which seems like it comes from a different story entirely, eschewing the more existential and weirdly practical questions of the rest of the book for a quest for a mythical object which may or may not exist, but demands much. There's something fascinating about where the Strugatskys choose to end the novel, though, which ties into that larger question of what exactly we are as a human race, and whether we truly can overcome our limitations. It's a compelling ending, even if I'm not sold on the way we get there.
But even with that, it's hard to really convey how much this strange, slight novel will stick with you, informing how you see the world and creating a haunting, grim world that you'll think about for a long time after you finish the pages. Its ideas, its worldbuilding, its imagination, and its characters all live and breathe, giving you a novel whose ambitions and ideas linger beautifully and whose classic status is justly deserved.
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Roadside Picnic
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Reviews with images
A great book.
The setting is simple. Aliens have visited Earth and left behind technology that has twisted certain regions into what are called Zones. The governments all react in their own way to the Zones. In Canada they try to benefit from them, sending in trained men to collect the devices and objects left behind for study. And of course some men go in without permission - because these devices, objects, whatever they are can be sold for a great profit.A story about human nature. About loyalty, greed, friendship, and our place in the universe. I guess it was also meant to have a anti-Capitalist message but I didn't really notice that. My copy has a forward by Ursula K. Guin and afterword by Boris Strugatsky. While reading it make sure to have a short of moonshine just to get in the mood.
Top reviews from other countries
Léa Serrurier
L’histoire est géniale mais la traduction est pourrie
Reviewed in France on October 29, 2023
