Brain Plague by Joan Slonczewski Sometime in the future, on Iridis, capital city of the planet Valedon, the struggling artist Chrysoberyl answers an ad asking for subjects for a medical experiment on brain enhancers. After running numerous tests on her, the hospital decides she's perfect for their study. They call her in and tell her that they'd like her to become host to a colony of micro-organsims. She is more than a little startled- currently the biggest health concern is brain plague, groups of micro-organisms that release dopamine into the brain and make slaves of their hosts. Ads always on her "window" tell her- if someone offers to put micro-organisms in your brain... just say no! But the people at the hospital convince her that the micros are people. She allows two micro elders in her brain, and they speak to her, addressing her as their God, and she consents to receiving a group of micros.
Her life as a carrier is very different from her life as a struggling artist. For one, the micros help her with her art. For another, her friends shun her as a carrier. She becomes involved in defeating the brain plague, using her micros to help. And because her micros are a group that originally lived in the mind of a brilliant dynatect- now dead because now everybody likes carriers- she is hired to repair some of his work. Being a carrier is in and of itself not an easy job- she must be a good god to her people. Many witty references are made to the bible, with the micros as the Jewish people.
This book does contain errors- in a reference to the Jewish belief in 613 commandments, Fern gives 613 laws on behalf on her God to her people, but later, the 600 commandments are reffered to. Some other parts of the plot also seem to contradict themselves. The opinions presented in this book are anti-communist and anti-religous.
Happy reading.
