Non-Stop by Brian Aldiss

First published in 1958

Having recently reviewed the digital release of Brian Aldiss' Hothouse, I want to give a shout-out to Aldiss' first science fiction novel. Non-Stop was published in various paperback editions in the United States under the title Starship.

The plot of Non-Stop is ingenious: a generations ship travels on a seemingly non-stop journey through space, its mission long forgotten, carrying descendants of the original crew who now live in warring tribes, some foraging for food in the jungle that has overgrown the ship's aft corridors while guarding against those who live on the more organized "forward" decks. Legends tell them they are on a voyage through space, but lacking windows, they have no understanding of the meaning of space; they picture it as a darkness where distant lanterns burn. The concept of religion perseveres, but it is a religion based on the teachings of "Froyd": they pray for Consciousness to save them from the Subconscious and use "Expansion to your ego" as a ritualized greeting. Aldiss creates a clever and fully realized future for this lost ship: instead of saying "to hell with ...," for instance, inhabitants say "to the hull with ...."

The story follows a small band of explorers who make their way from the aft region known as Quarters to the Forwards, where they hope to learn the truth about their environment. Apart from some "why would they do that?" moments, the novel works not only as a well-written adventure story, but also as sort of a Lord of the Flies commentary on how easily civilization can descend into chaos and superstition.

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