The Experiment

by John Darnton

Dutton, 421 pp., $24.95

Darnton, who penned Neanderthal, attempts to exploit the concept of the double in every conceivable way for maximum dramatic — and occasionally comic — effect. The narrative’s parallel structure begins with two disparate characters: a New York tabloid journalist/hack slasher novelist and a Karl Popper-quoting escapee from an experimental laboratory located on an island off the coast of Georgia. When they finally cross paths, they discover that they have more in common than they could have ever imagined. While en route, the tabloid journalist admonishes various characters to trust no one on so many occasions that you keep expecting the Cigarette-Smoking Man to pop up at any time. This cautionary tale about unrestrained genetic experimentation has more in the way of expository dialogue about cloning and superlongevity than it does thrills and chills. But it does make one very good point — that in a brave new world where imperfection has been pruned away by eugenics, we wouldn’t have folks like Franz Kafka, Vincent Van Gogh, and Stephen Hawking. Now that’s scary.

This article appears in December 10 • 1999.

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