Rikki Ducornet's Trafik

 

Yesterday I read Rikki Ducornet's novel Trafik. Michael Silverblatt, then at the radio show Bookworm, named Trafik as one of the ten best books of 2021. 

Science fiction! In a very postmodern form. In this book, Rikki Ducornet explores the future of the universe as viewed from spaceships by characters who hardly know their past or their destinies. It's fast and funny. Ducornet is not only brilliant, as usual, but entertaining as the creator of a new science fiction form as well.

The first line of the book, which sets the tone quite well is

Sometimes Quiver feels so outside of everything, so peculiar, she catches herself scratching and poking her face in the manner of a caged monkey on the verge of insanity.

The publisher offers the following plot summary

Quiver, a mostly-human astronaut, takes refuge from the monotony of harvesting minerals on remote asteroids by running through a virtual reality called the Lights, chasing visions of an elusive red-haired beauty. Her high-strung robot partner, Mic, pilots their Wobble and entertains himself by surfing the records of the obliterated planet Earth stored on his Swift Wheel for Al Pacino trivia, recipes for reconstituted sushi, and high fashion trends. But when an accident destroys their cargo, Quiver and Mic go rogue, setting off on a madcap journey through outer space toward an idyllic destination: the planet Trafik. 

However, I am not sure Trafik is a book that anyone reads for plot. If you enjoy experimental fiction where fun with language is more important than traditional elements like world building, plot, or character development, then Trafik is highly recommended.