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mbs's review
adventurous
challenging
reflective
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
One of the initial things I enjoyed was the narrative framing of the book: an AI that's been instructed to compose a narrative account of a generation ship's voyage to a neighbouring star. While I found it slightly heavy-handed in some of the initial parts, by the time I finished the book, I really appreciated this sort of experimentation with narrative structure, which isn't as common as it used to be in high-profile SF works.
Another high point of this book for me came about likely because I read it immediately following Seveneves. It presents an entirely different view of long-term space habitation and human nature that manages to reject the techno-solutionism and allegories condemning altruism that Stephenson indulges in, without being heavy-handed or naively rosy. There are many difficult situations in the story, and people's worst natures are on display, along with the long-reaching consequences of those situations.
I whole-heartedly recommend this book to anybody who's a fan of (relatively) hard-science space exploration stories, as a contrast to the common tropes of Bravely Pioneering a New World and Technology Always Wins.
Another high point of this book for me came about likely because I read it immediately following Seveneves. It presents an entirely different view of long-term space habitation and human nature that manages to reject the techno-solutionism and allegories condemning altruism that Stephenson indulges in, without being heavy-handed or naively rosy. There are many difficult situations in the story, and people's worst natures are on display, along with the long-reaching consequences of those situations.
I whole-heartedly recommend this book to anybody who's a fan of (relatively) hard-science space exploration stories, as a contrast to the common tropes of Bravely Pioneering a New World and Technology Always Wins.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Murder, Violence, and Mental illness
Minor: Suicide
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