Empire of Ivory

[sawyl]

As hinted at yesterday, I've spent at least part of my holiday cheerfully buried in Naomi Novik's latest Temeraire novel, Empire of Ivory.

Napoleon has routed the Prussian army at the Battle of Jena-Auerstadt, at least in part because promised support from the British Air Corps failed to materialise. Fleeing to England with as many Prussians as Temeraire can carry, Will Laurence quickly discovers the reason for the dereliction: all the British dragons are sick with a mysterious grippe, to which some have already succumbed. When it discovered that Temeraire is immune to dragon 'flu, presumably because he shook it off after being treated by a group of Imperial Chefs on his voyage to China, he and the sickly members of his formation are sent off to Africa to try and locate a cure.

Alongside the mission to discover a cure, Laurence finds himself approached by his semi-estranged father, Lord Allendale, and his father's fellow abolitionist, William Wilberforce. They wish use Laurence and his military exploits to balance the growing influence of Lord Nelson who, having survived Trafalgar, has opposed abolition in the House of Lords. But, after some initial headway, Will's duties take priority and he is forced to depart for Cape Town. As a consequence, enough opposition is garnered against the Slave Trade Act in the Lords that it fails to pass.

After some initial false starts, the formation doctors eventually discover that the reason for Temeraire's recovery was a mysterious mushroom located by the Chinese cooks. After obtaining a few initial samples of the medicinal fungus — enough for a few of the squadron to recover — a quest to find enough mushrooms to cure the entire British force of dragons begins in earnest. Unfortunately, during the quest, the dragons and their captains encounter an unexpected obstacle and find themselves stung by the results of the political situation back in England.

I very much enjoyed Empire of Ivory and particularly liked the way that it didn't fight shy of the appalling racism of some of the proponents of the slave trade. I was rather taken with Novik's portrayal of Nelson as a gallant sailor with the ability to inspire — for example, he remembers that he last met Laurence at dinner just before the Battle of the Nile — also a political naive man, manipulated by his creditors and unable to see the consequences of his actions.

Also interesting was the way that the issue of abolition was linked with the emancipation of the dragons, first raised in Throne of Jade when Temeraire discovers that the Chinese dragons are treated as free citizens rather than as military assets. For just as the dragons are clearly non-human and the idea that they might have their freedom is considered laughable by all but a handful of the Air Corps, so slaves are considered non-human by their owners and the idea that they might be freed considered equally absurd. One of the strengths of the novel is that it doesn't skirt the casual racism of the time, particularly amongst the British ruling classes, who have the most to lose from abolition.

There are moments in the book where the actions of the dragons and their associated military forces are clearly intended to be read as allegories of the current political situation. So when a series of towns are obliterated with air power, it is hard to think of anything other than the Shock and Awe doctrine. And when it is suggested that lost piece of empire could be reclaimed with dragon power — something Admiral Roland dismisses on the grounds of its disproportionate cost — it can only be read as a criticism of British and US adventurism in Iraq.

So, in summary, Empire of Ivory is a interesting and fun look at the history of an alternate Britain and a worthy successor to the other books in the series.