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3.83 AVERAGE
3.83 AVERAGE
This is actually my second time reading Arthur C. Clarke. I was not fond of Childhood's End, so I didn't have really high hopes for this book. I'm glad to be wrong!
The premise of scifi, as I understand it, is that there must be some fictional (at the time) scientific event or technology (like time travel). What I suppose I didn't really understand about scifi is not just about the promise and possibilities of that type of future, but what adjustments happen to get from this current world to that one, and how to people and society change. To my limited reading, scifi can get a little more focused on The Bigger Picture, which is obviously important, but can also make it difficult to have character-driven plot. This book does a somewhat nice balance of both, I think. Characters like Bobby, David, and Kate made this book work for me. David has sort of a personal, existential crisis. We follow Bobby throughout the book and learn about him as he learns more about himself. It's hard to not like Bobby. And I loved Kate. I love how forthright she is, her determination to the right thing throughout the book, the way she is completely upfront with Bobby. On the flipside, it's easy to strongly dislike Hiram, Bobby and David's father. (Okay, it's a little more complicated with Bobby. I get it, even though the complication there, I needed a little more explanation.) He is focused on fame, notoriety, and monopolization. He's also a phenomenal scientist who knows how to use his resources.
What is more fascinating about this book is the focus on societal attitudes. Eventually society finds out that an object called the Wormwood is a non-asteroid that will crash into Earth and destroy everything. Unfortunately it's too late for us to knock Wormwood off its course or find another place to live. So what do people do? Whatever they heckin' want! Why work when you can just enjoy the time you have left? Why go to school or into business or science if you know it's all for nothing in the long-term? So I get that, and I love that it was part of the book. Eventually Hiram creates the WormCam, which initially has the ability to give you a view of any other spot in the world (and eventually beyond it. Of course the government is interested in getting this tool (imagine the implications for domestic and foreign matters and government surveillance overall), and eventually the cat is out of the bag and the entire world knows about WormCams. Now everyone can have one. And then it gets better/worse: now you can use WormCams to look into the past. So folks in society do an even more abrupt halt, and several spend their entire lives looking into the past. This has fascinating implications: now we can really see How Things Happened, separate the truth from lies. And, as David points out, it's more transformative as real events to watch versus reading books about them.
The ending of the book continues to focus on those human relationships, perceptions, and behaviors. I enjoyed the picture of David and Bobby, who have this lifelong brotherly relationship, looking into the very depths of existence (more than the descriptions themselves, if I'm honest). The Very Ending felt weird to me. It's a different weird from me not wanting to read about a fictional end to the world. I suppose that's the main reason for not giving that last star, because otherwise I found the book to be an enjoyable enough read (and I can't always say that about this genre, and that makes me think I'm less into scifi than I used to be).
--
Having gotten a little more into reading scifi, I realize now that I am better able to read it during the day (not at night time) when I have significant time (also known as a break from work). It's just difficult for me to process the genre otherwise. I'm curious to read more, especially newer works by diverse authors.
The premise of scifi, as I understand it, is that there must be some fictional (at the time) scientific event or technology (like time travel). What I suppose I didn't really understand about scifi is not just about the promise and possibilities of that type of future, but what adjustments happen to get from this current world to that one, and how to people and society change. To my limited reading, scifi can get a little more focused on The Bigger Picture, which is obviously important, but can also make it difficult to have character-driven plot. This book does a somewhat nice balance of both, I think. Characters like Bobby, David, and Kate made this book work for me. David has sort of a personal, existential crisis. We follow Bobby throughout the book and learn about him as he learns more about himself. It's hard to not like Bobby. And I loved Kate. I love how forthright she is, her determination to the right thing throughout the book, the way she is completely upfront with Bobby. On the flipside, it's easy to strongly dislike Hiram, Bobby and David's father. (Okay, it's a little more complicated with Bobby. I get it, even though the complication there, I needed a little more explanation.) He is focused on fame, notoriety, and monopolization. He's also a phenomenal scientist who knows how to use his resources.
What is more fascinating about this book is the focus on societal attitudes. Eventually society finds out that an object called the Wormwood is a non-asteroid that will crash into Earth and destroy everything. Unfortunately it's too late for us to knock Wormwood off its course or find another place to live. So what do people do? Whatever they heckin' want! Why work when you can just enjoy the time you have left? Why go to school or into business or science if you know it's all for nothing in the long-term? So I get that, and I love that it was part of the book. Eventually Hiram creates the WormCam, which initially has the ability to give you a view of any other spot in the world (and eventually beyond it. Of course the government is interested in getting this tool (imagine the implications for domestic and foreign matters and government surveillance overall), and eventually the cat is out of the bag and the entire world knows about WormCams. Now everyone can have one. And then it gets better/worse: now you can use WormCams to look into the past. So folks in society do an even more abrupt halt, and several spend their entire lives looking into the past. This has fascinating implications: now we can really see How Things Happened, separate the truth from lies. And, as David points out, it's more transformative as real events to watch versus reading books about them.
The ending of the book continues to focus on those human relationships, perceptions, and behaviors. I enjoyed the picture of David and Bobby, who have this lifelong brotherly relationship, looking into the very depths of existence (more than the descriptions themselves, if I'm honest). The Very Ending felt weird to me. It's a different weird from me not wanting to read about a fictional end to the world. I suppose that's the main reason for not giving that last star, because otherwise I found the book to be an enjoyable enough read (and I can't always say that about this genre, and that makes me think I'm less into scifi than I used to be).
--
Having gotten a little more into reading scifi, I realize now that I am better able to read it during the day (not at night time) when I have significant time (also known as a break from work). It's just difficult for me to process the genre otherwise. I'm curious to read more, especially newer works by diverse authors.
Fun read, nothing revolutionary, but very entertaining and thought provoking.
I found the social SF enjoyable, a few other readers are critical because of plot or character development. The book however is about humanity.
Excellent treatment of a world with no privacy and time travel into the past. The ending was very Clarke-like; lame and unsatisfying but everything else was top-notch.
adventurous
challenging
mysterious
reflective
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
informative
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Conceptually this book is really interesting. The idea of complete loss of privacy is topical and worth exploring. Unfortunately the execution in this book is wanting. It's very clearly an Arthur c Clarke idea, but not an Arthur c Clarke execution.
The sci-fi concepts are thought provoking and fully realized, but the characters are hard to empathize with, particularly as the novel nears the end.
Decepcionante
1. Prefiero mil veces el final deprimente y oscuro de "El fin de la infancia" porque no me terminó de convencer esa idea de que todos reviven y son felices en el espacio, (dejando de lado la cuestion de si el individuo sería realmente el mismo que fue alguna vez) si pertenecen a la mente unificada ¿realmente son individuos? y ¿cuál es la necesidad de imponer a gente de la edad de piedra o que vivió a principios del siglo XX a la vida de altísima tecnología en el espacio? Considero que el planteamiento final va en contra mi filosofía del final y mi adoración a la muerte; además es claro que esa gente no sabe superar las cosas, que si la gente sufrió y la historia está llena de sangre, pero lo pasado, pisado.
2. Como libro es decepcionante; tienes esta idea super genial de una tecnología que borra la vida privada y permite ver TODO como realmente es y como realmente fue, me prometen que será (obviamente) algo que sacudirá la sociedad, y lo que obtuve fue una muestra muy breve de eso y más de Bobby y sus putos traumas, y Kate siendo insoportable. Yo no quería ver a los personajes y cómo cambiaban sus vidas, quería ver a la sociedad en conjunto cambiar, convulsionarse; demonios había tantas posibilidades de especular con el impacto social de semejante cosa y fue decepcionante: tenían putas guerras por agua, un puto asteroide que de seguro iba a impactar la Tierra, tecnología asombrosa, la posibilidad de ver la historia, y al final NADA.
Esa parte de la retrospectiva de los antepasados en realidad prometía mucho, en especial cuanto más retrocedían, pero al final también se quedó en el aire para mi, incluso con el símil perfecto que expusieron con el mito de Sísifo.
1. Prefiero mil veces el final deprimente y oscuro de "El fin de la infancia" porque no me terminó de convencer esa idea de que todos reviven y son felices en el espacio, (dejando de lado la cuestion de si el individuo sería realmente el mismo que fue alguna vez) si pertenecen a la mente unificada ¿realmente son individuos? y ¿cuál es la necesidad de imponer a gente de la edad de piedra o que vivió a principios del siglo XX a la vida de altísima tecnología en el espacio? Considero que el planteamiento final va en contra mi filosofía del final y mi adoración a la muerte; además es claro que esa gente no sabe superar las cosas, que si la gente sufrió y la historia está llena de sangre, pero lo pasado, pisado.
2. Como libro es decepcionante; tienes esta idea super genial de una tecnología que borra la vida privada y permite ver TODO como realmente es y como realmente fue, me prometen que será (obviamente) algo que sacudirá la sociedad, y lo que obtuve fue una muestra muy breve de eso y más de Bobby y sus putos traumas, y Kate siendo insoportable. Yo no quería ver a los personajes y cómo cambiaban sus vidas, quería ver a la sociedad en conjunto cambiar, convulsionarse; demonios había tantas posibilidades de especular con el impacto social de semejante cosa y fue decepcionante: tenían putas guerras por agua, un puto asteroide que de seguro iba a impactar la Tierra, tecnología asombrosa, la posibilidad de ver la historia, y al final NADA.
Esa parte de la retrospectiva de los antepasados en realidad prometía mucho, en especial cuanto más retrocedían, pero al final también se quedó en el aire para mi, incluso con el símil perfecto que expusieron con el mito de Sísifo.