Scan barcode
suzemo's review against another edition
5.0
When I finished this book, I picked up another to read, and just couldn't do it. The "message" in this book is really strong and it takes a bit to digest. Even better, I don't think there is a single message. This short book was written brilliantly, so you can see whatever you want in the relationships.
This story takes place in some future or alternate timeline. Through whatever means, there are aliens living on earth. Emshwiller did a fantastic job describing, not so much what they look like (she did use some descriptors, but except for some fuzzy descriptions, you are left entirely to your own devices to imagine what you would like) as their relationships with and actions towards humans, who have (through, again, whatever means that is not described) become their "mounts" or servants.
I loved that Emshwiller did not bother with details about how they came to Earth, how long ago they did it or how it is they have actually tamed and selectively bred the human species. Clearly, it must have been generations, because the characters in the story were unaware of a lot of these details, and many people have been bred into distinct lines (Seattles, Tennessees). I've read a lot of books slamming her for leaving out these details, but I think it's not the focus, or even remotely important to the book.
This specific story is mostly about a young adolescent named Charley, who has been selected because of his superb breeding and conformation to be the mount for the next ruler. They both start off young to be trained to be the best mount and rider they can be. Charley is rescued by his father, Heron, and is taken to a village in the mountains where Heron is leading be beginnings of a revolution of people, which Charley objects to, but cannot fight. Eventually Charley and the future ruler of all get back to "civilization", changed and in a changed world and begin something new.
This novel lands itself squarely in the "speculative fiction" arena, and it's not so much fantasy or sci-fi, and anyone looking for fantasy/scifi will be very disappointed. The writing is as tight and fantastic as any I have read in a VERY long time. The story isn't plot driven and there is plenty of plot to keep anyone from getting bored. It's about characters and relationships, and this author has packed more relationships into a short book than most could put into an entire series, and the psychology in this book is amazing.
The themes of this book are strong, and consistent: slave/master relationships, slavery and individualism, adolescence and "finding" ones-self, and the struggle between parent and child. Reading the book, I kept thinking of the brainwashing/raising that Charley went through, and how it reminds me of the justifications and Stockholm Syndrome-like behavior of victims who always justify their abusers. Charlie is a pre-teen/early teenager in the book, and he does go through conflicting emotions, thought processes, and behaviors, which might seem inconsistent, but I read it as a conflicted and confusing boy trying to rationalize what was going on and find his place with what little he had to work with.
My biggest quibble with a book is the immensely unrealistic ending, but it's not terrible, it was just a little unbelievable, even though it did leave some questions and unresolved issues.
I really wish Goodreads had a half star system, because I think this book is stronger than four stars, but not quite five stars. Because I really did find it amazing and interesting, I figured I would push it to five stars.
This story takes place in some future or alternate timeline. Through whatever means, there are aliens living on earth. Emshwiller did a fantastic job describing, not so much what they look like (she did use some descriptors, but except for some fuzzy descriptions, you are left entirely to your own devices to imagine what you would like) as their relationships with and actions towards humans, who have (through, again, whatever means that is not described) become their "mounts" or servants.
I loved that Emshwiller did not bother with details about how they came to Earth, how long ago they did it or how it is they have actually tamed and selectively bred the human species. Clearly, it must have been generations, because the characters in the story were unaware of a lot of these details, and many people have been bred into distinct lines (Seattles, Tennessees). I've read a lot of books slamming her for leaving out these details, but I think it's not the focus, or even remotely important to the book.
This specific story is mostly about a young adolescent named Charley, who has been selected because of his superb breeding and conformation to be the mount for the next ruler. They both start off young to be trained to be the best mount and rider they can be. Charley is rescued by his father, Heron, and is taken to a village in the mountains where Heron is leading be beginnings of a revolution of people, which Charley objects to, but cannot fight. Eventually Charley and the future ruler of all get back to "civilization", changed and in a changed world and begin something new.
This novel lands itself squarely in the "speculative fiction" arena, and it's not so much fantasy or sci-fi, and anyone looking for fantasy/scifi will be very disappointed. The writing is as tight and fantastic as any I have read in a VERY long time. The story isn't plot driven and there is plenty of plot to keep anyone from getting bored. It's about characters and relationships, and this author has packed more relationships into a short book than most could put into an entire series, and the psychology in this book is amazing.
The themes of this book are strong, and consistent: slave/master relationships, slavery and individualism, adolescence and "finding" ones-self, and the struggle between parent and child. Reading the book, I kept thinking of the brainwashing/raising that Charley went through, and how it reminds me of the justifications and Stockholm Syndrome-like behavior of victims who always justify their abusers. Charlie is a pre-teen/early teenager in the book, and he does go through conflicting emotions, thought processes, and behaviors, which might seem inconsistent, but I read it as a conflicted and confusing boy trying to rationalize what was going on and find his place with what little he had to work with.
My biggest quibble with a book is the immensely unrealistic ending, but it's not terrible, it was just a little unbelievable, even though it did leave some questions and unresolved issues.
I really wish Goodreads had a half star system, because I think this book is stronger than four stars, but not quite five stars. Because I really did find it amazing and interesting, I figured I would push it to five stars.
scheu's review against another edition
2.0
I probably would have gotten more out of this book when I was in high school. Sadly I was long out of high school when it was written.
ipomoea's review against another edition
4.0
Whaaaat a weird, good book. Good intro to speculative fic for book groups.
hagbard_celine's review against another edition
4.0
This book has plenty of interesting things to say about the mental and emotional experience of enslavement and colonization, I think.
If someone reads this and the analogy blurs for them between the enslavement of humans and the treatment of animals, well then. Perhaps that's something further to think on for them.
If someone reads this and the analogy blurs for them between the enslavement of humans and the treatment of animals, well then. Perhaps that's something further to think on for them.
tasharobinson's review against another edition
4.0
This was one of those books where I read the first few pages to see whether it should be the next up on my to-read pile… and then I wound up reading the whole thing within a day, because I just couldn't wait to see what happened next. Set in a world where small, weak-legged aliens crash-landed on Earth, most of humanity "coincidentally" died of a virus, and the rest were turned into riding animals, it sets up a culture where tame humans have been raised from birth to think that their greatest value is as "sturdy, steady" mounts for the much superior aliens, and that their worth comes from how well they conform to certain thoroughbred qualities.
The protagonist, Charley, is somewhere between 11 and 13 when he's rescued by wild humans led by his father, and he and his owner, Little Master, go to live with them in the woods. Much of the book is just about Charley's internal battle between wanting to be like and please his father, and wanting to go back to luxury and comfort. There's just something so appealing and fascinating about his attempts to reconcile the humility he's been taught with his own personal ego and desire to be more, and about all the muddled ways he's internalized his oppressors' teachings.
The ending wound up being a bit disappointing for me because so much of that choice is taken out of his hands, as a lot of the important action either goes over his head or happens out of his sight. He's much more a passive pawn and representative symbol in all of this than a character with real agency. But the setting and the story are compelling, and they could so readily be taken as emblematic of any historical setting where people have been raised to devalue themselves at the expense of an oppressive class that elevates themselves above others.
The protagonist, Charley, is somewhere between 11 and 13 when he's rescued by wild humans led by his father, and he and his owner, Little Master, go to live with them in the woods. Much of the book is just about Charley's internal battle between wanting to be like and please his father, and wanting to go back to luxury and comfort. There's just something so appealing and fascinating about his attempts to reconcile the humility he's been taught with his own personal ego and desire to be more, and about all the muddled ways he's internalized his oppressors' teachings.
The ending wound up being a bit disappointing for me because so much of that choice is taken out of his hands, as a lot of the important action either goes over his head or happens out of his sight. He's much more a passive pawn and representative symbol in all of this than a character with real agency. But the setting and the story are compelling, and they could so readily be taken as emblematic of any historical setting where people have been raised to devalue themselves at the expense of an oppressive class that elevates themselves above others.
dnschmidt's review against another edition
1.0
Aliens take over the earth and use humans as horses, enslaving humanity for piggyback rides. One of their "horses" escapes and joins the rebellion, but spends half his time complaining that he wishes he was back home doing horse stuff.
lib_britannia's review against another edition
dark
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.75
tbim's review against another edition
3.0
My 12 year old self would have liked this much more than my XX aged self. But I was advanced for my age and am slowly reverting.