Normally I avoid dystopian novels. I read a review of "Station Eleven," and saw that it was one of the NY Times 10 best books of the year, so I thought I would give it a try. Well, I loved this gripping and brilliant book. I was completely enthralled and pretty much read it straight through. What made it interesting for me was the realization that a catastrophe as that described in the book could actually happen; maybe not in such a quick dramatic way, but a similar event is possible.
The story opens on stage in Toronto where "King Lear" is being performed. Arthur Leander, a well-known star of stage and screen dies of a heart attack in the middle of the show. Leander is the catalyst around which all the characters and events revolve. The story keeps circling back to Leader, his life and wives. His first wife, Miranda, has created a series of comic books with the character, Dr. Eleven, a physicist living on a space station, thus the title of the novel.
What happens shortly after Leander's death is horrifying. A world wide pandemic wipes out 99% of mankind. Soon there are no planes, no fuel, no phones, computers or electricity. Isolated pockets of survivors have gathered in small villages and settlements for safety and companionship.
The story fast-forwards twenty years, and the reader keeps company with a traveling symphony of about 20 members who perform remembered pieces of music and the plays of Shakespeare. They wander among settlements along Lakes Huron and Michigan entertaining villagers and occasionally picking up a member or two. We are reintroduced to Kirsten Raymonde who was 8 years old when the story opened, and who was a cast member in "Lear" with Leander. Being fond of young Kirsten, Leander gives her two copies of Station Eleven which are treasured by her, though tattered and worn.
Our traveling company arrives at the settlement of St. Deborah by the Water looking for two former cast members who had temporarily settled there to await the birth of their child. The town is mysterious and under the sway of a religious fanatic called "The Prophet." After a series of disturbing and sinister events, the symphony quickly breaks camp and moves on, hoping to reach a larger settlement at a former airport. Here there is a famous landmark called the Museum of Civilization run by an old friend of Leander. Another character who reappears at this time is a paramedic named Jeevan who was in the audience on the night of Leander's death and tried to revive him.
The small band of actors and musicians find themselves targeted, and several members become separated from the main troupe. Tension mounts as the story works to a climax and ending, connecting the characters once again.
In the end this is a story of survival in unusual circumstances along with mankind's yearning to keep the past present and memories alive. I highly recommend "Station Eleven" as an entertaining and interesting novel with a plausible premise.
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