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A review by compmanjx3
A Case of Conscience by James Blish
4.0
I don't think I've read anything quite like A Case of Conscience. The novel follows several scientists who have been sent to a habitable planet called Lithia, populated by Spock-like hyper-rational bipedal reptiles, to determine what Earth should do with it.
The first half of the novel concerns the debate between the scientists, one of whom is also a Jesuit priest, about the fate of Lithia. I found this section totally absorbing, but this may betray my fondness for science and my Jesuit schooling.
The second half is totally nuts, and way WAY ahead of its time. It doesn't work as well as the first part, but it still raises heaps of fascinating questions. I wish it had spent more time on them, and perhaps I need to turn to Blish's other works for further exploration.
Highly recommended to anyone with a taste for science fiction and philosophy.
The first half of the novel concerns the debate between the scientists, one of whom is also a Jesuit priest, about the fate of Lithia. I found this section totally absorbing, but this may betray my fondness for science and my Jesuit schooling.
The second half is totally nuts, and way WAY ahead of its time. It doesn't work as well as the first part, but it still raises heaps of fascinating questions. I wish it had spent more time on them, and perhaps I need to turn to Blish's other works for further exploration.
Highly recommended to anyone with a taste for science fiction and philosophy.