Einstein Intersection

By Samuel R. Delany and Neil Gaiman

A nonhuman race reimagines human mythology.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Wesleyan
• Release date: Mar 1, 2011
• ISBN: 9780819571960

Samuel R. Delany

Samuel R. Delany published his first novel, The Jewels of Aptor, at the age of twenty. Throughout his storied career, he has received four Nebula Awards and two Hugo Awards, and in 2008 his novel Dark Reflections won the Stonewall Book Award. He was inducted into the Science Fiction and Fantasy Hall of Fame in 2002, named a Grand Master by the Science Fiction Writers of America in 2014, and in 2016 was inducted into the New York State Writers Hall of Fame. Delany’s works also extend into memoir, criticism, and essays on sexuality and society. After many years as a professor of English and creative writing and director of the graduate creative writing program at Temple University, he retired from teaching in 2015. He lives in Philadelphia with his partner, Dennis Rickett.  

Reviews for Einstein Intersection

[jonfaith · Rating: 2 out of 5 stars]

As morning branded the sea, darkness fell away at the far side of the beach. I turned to follow it.
So ends The Einstein Intersection. My own interest in Delany may be terminated as well. The novel began as Orpheus and became Red River and ended as David Copperfield. All that without Walter Brennan. Delany lards his fiction with ideas, with theory. Unfortunately he can't stop acknowledging that. A future grimdark place where the humans have left. Mutants remain, clinging to our myths. This novel appeared to be all sprint. I do not wish to end this Delany endeavor. We shall see. 2.3 stars

[leslie398 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

A very interesting book - I liked it a lot even though I am not sure that I understood it! I loved the myths which entwined the science fiction (and had some laughs at the 1960s references to 45s & 33s; Ringo Starr & "the great rock and the great roll").

[sffstorm · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

It was interesting and well written, but quite often I found myself wondering what the hell was going on. I feel like Delany actually intended on that reaction though. I did enjoy the read, but I'm not entirely sure what it is that I read or what actually happened.

[karlstar_1 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

I added this to my 'to read' list a long time ago as I'm trying to get through all of the older Hugo winners and I've read other Delaney. Unfortunately, while this may be a classic, its a strange one. It takes place in some sort of post-human (possibly post Apocalyptic) Earth where supposedly an alien race has come to live on an Earth with no humans. The aliens seem to suffer from mutations, some of which are viable, some are not. There is a whole new form of personal pronouns which seem to correspond to him, her and a third option. In addition, the aliens seem to be ranked both by their lack of mutations and by the strength of their mutations. When one of the aliens with a peculiar psychic talent (that 'he'? is not aware of) goes from the country to the city, he finds that city folk reject the categorization of people by both gender and mutation/ability - city folks just do NOT discuss differences. Along the way the young alien is also questing to bring back to life his 'girlfriend'? who died, killed by a monster from an old human ruin. The 'journey of discovery' plot for the young alien is not tremendously original and in places is extremely confusing as he seems to confront death and in fact another alien 'Kid Death' in several different ways. Perhaps this whole book is Delaney's way of envisioning a future with no gender or other distinctions. I may not be taking enough prescription medicine to understand this book fully, it really didn't make a lot of sense.

[dreamweaversunited · Rating: 1 out of 5 stars]

It was with a heavy heart that I abandoned this book halfway through, because normally I love Delany. He is truly an inspiration to me. But while I loved the worldbuilding in this book, as I always do with Delany, I found the book confusing and hard to follow, and the main character not very compelling.

[quondame · Rating: 2 out of 5 stars]

I don’t think too well of this one. I would have thought less of it when it first came out. Alien human re-interpreter Orpheus who doesn’t even get as far as walking out of Hades.

[neil_luvs_books · Rating: 2 out of 5 stars]

The Einstein Intersection was just an ok read for me. I doubt that I will read it again. I think I missed the point of aliens inhabiting human form after humans have left the earth. I suspect that Delany was trying to say something about the significance of difference and myth but it was unclear to me. In contrast, I really enjoyed reading Dhalgren four decades ago despite that book having a meandering plot. But that one was still interesting. I wonder if I just missed something in TEI.

[stige_3 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

I don't think I got it... Pretty, but (to me) nonsense

[dinadansfriend · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

A post-apocalyptic World is the setting for this novel about how an alien might try to understand who the human race was. We're gone, and all we have left behind is a computer, who has a good deal of explaining to do. The larger theme is an exploration of how the "Odd" among us, come to terms with "Normal" life.

[cynthiajmm · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

engaging...thought provoking...

[timothyl33 · Rating: 1 out of 5 stars]

For the most part the story seems to hint an at intriguing premise of post-apocalyptic Earth being inhabited by someone trying to become humans. But almost 10 pages before the end, it feels like this concept was more than the author could handle and he just gave up. Overall, not a book I would recommend, except for those who love to say "huh??" at the end of books.

[catfantastic_1 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

The Einstein Intersection is wonderfully weird, intentionally bizarre and delightfully confusing. It takes place in a post-human universe, the main characters are genetic mutations clinging to half-forgotten ideas and myths about humanity. Delany's writing is poetic, with surreal imagery couched in symbolism, and characters who are obvious archetypes relating to Christianity, Greek mythology, historical persons and 1960's popular culture. The plot loosely revolves around Lobey, a hunter with a machete-flute which can slay monsters or play beautiful music, music he steals from inside other people's minds. Lobey is on a quest to fight Kid Death and win back his dead lover, Friza. But the plot, the Orpheus myth, is just a frame off which hangs ideas about difference, humanity, reality and perception. The more I think about it, the more I like it. The novel is short, but there is a wonderful complexity of ideas and imagery, and I can almost guarantee it won't be like anything you've ever read before.

[jim53_1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

A very young (25 I think) and self-conscious Delaney gives us a story of a young man in a far future who reenacts aspects of Orpheus's journey to the underworld. Genetics play a key role in this world, with people having to earn the right to be considered "full norms." Semi-educated Lobey, our protagonist, falls in love with a girl who dies, and undertakes a journey to kill Kid Death and bring her back. Along the way he meets characters clearly based on Christ, Judas, Billy the Kid, and Jean Harlow. Delaney introduces chapters with quotations from other writers and entries from the journal he kept while writing. Overall the story is confused, but isn't really helped by his journal entries or the explanations one character feels compelled to provide. It's fun to see Delaney just starting out, feeling his way into the mythological material and combining it with the popular culture of the time. One thing he does well, for the most part, is NOT explaining the world his characters inhabit... we learn things along with Lobey, and we know enough to process the story. The style, like the story, is confused and inconsistent; it jars occasionally but overall it fits well with the characters and the story.

[jimmaclachlan · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

This is the only book by Delany that I've ever cared for & I love it. He blends SF & mythology, a post-apocalyptic world filled with wonders & monsters. Our hero journeys through this world, discovering more about it, himself & the human race. He shows mankind's greatest failures & achievements through the eyes of something else. A very interesting read & re-read.I read it again & although the words are very familiar after all these years, still they move me in different ways & make me think of different things. Certainly a classic.

[clong_818048 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Delany was 25 when this book won the 1968 Nebula for best novel (his third!). It is a strange, yet compelling read. It's kind of a fantasy/horror story set in a science fiction universe, with a strong thread of mythology running throughout. Add to this a collection of quotes both from other authors and from Delany's notes that he was keeping as he was writing this book (he was touring Italy and Greece), and you have a thoroughly confusing, genre-hopping, yet oddly poetic quick read. The book is populated with archetypal characters who explore difference vs. sameness, reality vs. perception, observation vs. action. I'm not sure that I understood what happened at the end, and I'm not sure that repeated readings would make it any clearer, but I think it would be worth repeated readings to find out.

[ikeman100 · Rating: 1 out of 5 stars]

There are a couple of Delany books I really like but this is not one of them. I prefer "SF" and this is "Fantasy". To many good books in the pile to waste my time on this one. Did not finish.