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4.22 AVERAGE
4.22 AVERAGE
I chose this book of short stories after seeing Arrival, the movie that is based on the story "The Story of Your Life." That story is at about the midpoint of the collection. I was a little disappointed in the story after seeing the movie, which I thought was a richer and more emotional rendering.
My favorite story in this collection is the first one, "Tower of Babylon." it takes a familiar legend as a seed and grows a completely different set of circumstances from it. It is an epic story, not in length but in scale. Chiang imagines how a culture can grow up on a man-made tower, and also imagines many technical details of a tower to heaven--the engineering feats that are necessary, but practical ones, such as how to feed the workers, as well. And yet, he retains the conceit that the tower is built to breach the barrier between heaven and earth, and that in fact there is such a barrier to be breached. The ending is nothing like the original tale, but completely interesting and believable.
Most of the stories have both the strength and the weakness of science fiction--imagining a different set of conditions than our world/universe has, but leaving human nature the same. Chiang is good at setting the scene and not focussing too much on that scene, but rather on the logical consequences of it. His imagination for alternate ways that the world could work are fun. But he is an imperfect stylist; there is a monotony and distance in his voice in most of the stories, and he has particular tics that get annoying when reading for awhile (his use of contractions like "would've" is one of them). You know that the main enjoyment of the story is coming from the premise rather than the writing when you keep flipping forward to find out how many pages are left.
Only one story was particularly off-putting to me: "Understand." In creating a character whose mind is enhanced and becoming self-aware, the voice he chose is that of a tedious mansplainer, and the fact that all of the characters (including his super-intelligent foe) were men just compounded the problem.
But it's too seldom the case that writers of science fiction are focused on the human condition as revealed by alternate worlds, and so I am glad to see Chiang writing this kind of story.
My favorite story in this collection is the first one, "Tower of Babylon." it takes a familiar legend as a seed and grows a completely different set of circumstances from it. It is an epic story, not in length but in scale. Chiang imagines how a culture can grow up on a man-made tower, and also imagines many technical details of a tower to heaven--the engineering feats that are necessary, but practical ones, such as how to feed the workers, as well. And yet, he retains the conceit that the tower is built to breach the barrier between heaven and earth, and that in fact there is such a barrier to be breached. The ending is nothing like the original tale, but completely interesting and believable.
Most of the stories have both the strength and the weakness of science fiction--imagining a different set of conditions than our world/universe has, but leaving human nature the same. Chiang is good at setting the scene and not focussing too much on that scene, but rather on the logical consequences of it. His imagination for alternate ways that the world could work are fun. But he is an imperfect stylist; there is a monotony and distance in his voice in most of the stories, and he has particular tics that get annoying when reading for awhile (his use of contractions like "would've" is one of them). You know that the main enjoyment of the story is coming from the premise rather than the writing when you keep flipping forward to find out how many pages are left.
Only one story was particularly off-putting to me: "Understand." In creating a character whose mind is enhanced and becoming self-aware, the voice he chose is that of a tedious mansplainer, and the fact that all of the characters (including his super-intelligent foe) were men just compounded the problem.
But it's too seldom the case that writers of science fiction are focused on the human condition as revealed by alternate worlds, and so I am glad to see Chiang writing this kind of story.
challenging
emotional
mysterious
reflective
emotional
reflective
challenging
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Ted Chiang is one of the most intelligent science fiction writers I've seen. He stands out from the rest due to his emphasis on science rather than fiction, as if every short story acts as a vessel for him to explore abstract theories and philosophical ideas as thought experiments, while the reader indulges in the narrator's train of thought to learn how each story reaches its ultimate conclusion. A very profound read. My only criticism is that stories end way earlier than anticipated, I want to hear more from Ted Chiang!
Wowowowowowowowowowowowowowow
I don't usually like short stories, but what an exception.
I don't usually like short stories, but what an exception.
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
I was SO devastated by this book. Ted Chiang is such an iconic author and he’s had so many beautiful quotes but I just did not enjoy this book.
adventurous
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
adventurous
informative
inspiring
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
N/A
Loveable characters:
N/A
Diverse cast of characters:
N/A
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
Smart, clear, and thought provoking stories. A few of the stories were a little unrefined and scientifically dense making them not as accessible to the general reader. My favourites were Tower of Babylon, Division by Zero, and Hell is the Absence of God.