You need to sign in or sign up before continuing.
Take a photo of a barcode or cover
4.17 AVERAGE
4.17 AVERAGE
An engaging yet quick read. More of a legal drama set in a sci-fi locale than true sci-fi.
funny
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
A rewrite of the classic H. Beam Piper Fuzzy books. I wanted not to like it. But Scalzi just has a fun way of writing and the Fuzzy's are great aliens.
Soooooo good! This book was hilarious and packed an emotional punch in just over 300 pages. As my first John Scalzi book, I'm very impressed.
I really loved it. Couldn't put it down. Stayed up all night reading.
This was straight up fun wish-fulfillment. I had to roll my eyes at Papa Fuzzy's last line. Just a step too far.
If you like fairly serious explorations in your first contact stories, don't go here. If you like little smart-ass guy takes on big corporation stories, you'll probably get a kick out of this.
If you like fairly serious explorations in your first contact stories, don't go here. If you like little smart-ass guy takes on big corporation stories, you'll probably get a kick out of this.
I picked this up from the book sale table at the local library for 20 cents. I’ve picked up some gems that way, as well as lots of clunkers. But in general it’s a ‘what the heck’ impulse. You can’t go far wrong for 20 cents.
This book is a curious project, to my mind: a modern re-writing by Scalzi of the classic SF novel Little Fuzzy by H. Beam Piper. It’s a pretty bold venture to tamper with a beloved classic. We’ve certainly had any number of imagined sequels of classics like Jane Austen’s novelsway too many, in fact. But it’s a lot rarer for someone to actually re-write the original in the original context. It’s as though Helen Fielding had decided to pay homage to Pride and Prejudice by setting Bridget Jones’s Diary in England in the Regency period and to call her heroine Elizabeth Bennett. Is Scalzi trying to show that he could do a better job than Piper with the concept? It just seems odd.
Nevertheless, considered by itself without reference to the original, it’s an entertaining enough read. This version, like the original, deals with the corporate exploitation of a planet which is threatened when a prospector encounters a cute little animal which eventually turns out to be a sentient species. The consequent legal battles constitute most of the fun. The good guys, of course, triumph in the end.
This book is a curious project, to my mind: a modern re-writing by Scalzi of the classic SF novel Little Fuzzy by H. Beam Piper. It’s a pretty bold venture to tamper with a beloved classic. We’ve certainly had any number of imagined sequels of classics like Jane Austen’s novelsway too many, in fact. But it’s a lot rarer for someone to actually re-write the original in the original context. It’s as though Helen Fielding had decided to pay homage to Pride and Prejudice by setting Bridget Jones’s Diary in England in the Regency period and to call her heroine Elizabeth Bennett. Is Scalzi trying to show that he could do a better job than Piper with the concept? It just seems odd.
Nevertheless, considered by itself without reference to the original, it’s an entertaining enough read. This version, like the original, deals with the corporate exploitation of a planet which is threatened when a prospector encounters a cute little animal which eventually turns out to be a sentient species. The consequent legal battles constitute most of the fun. The good guys, of course, triumph in the end.
adventurous
funny
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
N/A
This was a surprisingly good one! Didn't know what to expect from it, but I found I really liked it. It was sci-fi light; really more of a space court drama.
"Get off my planet, you son of a bitch!"
At first I felt like this book is more legal jigsaw puzzle than scifi novel, like an episode of Law and Order set on a faraway planet. But then I think about the necessarily sci-fi elements and realize that it is just a solid sci-fi book, the kind whose story and characters stand independently of the sci-fi ideas. But it definitely ventures into the speculation of planetary exploration and the legal complexities that might involve.
But the intrigue and legal complexities of the plot itself are extremely cool. Well worth the read.
At first I felt like this book is more legal jigsaw puzzle than scifi novel, like an episode of Law and Order set on a faraway planet. But then I think about the necessarily sci-fi elements and realize that it is just a solid sci-fi book, the kind whose story and characters stand independently of the sci-fi ideas. But it definitely ventures into the speculation of planetary exploration and the legal complexities that might involve.
But the intrigue and legal complexities of the plot itself are extremely cool. Well worth the read.