Scan barcode
bellebeaumont95's review
adventurous
dark
inspiring
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.75
Do the atargati experience love, or only curiosity? Or are those all one and the same to them?
Maybe one day they'll trust a human being enough to share everything. Wouldn't that be amazing? God, I'd die to be that person.
The Little Homo Sapiens Scientist is a queer sci-fi retelling of The Little Mermaid. If that isn't one of the coolest sentences you've ever read, we've nothing to say to each other, good luck. It follows the beats of the original Hans Christian Andersen story (with a nod to the Disney version) over a backdrop that felt rich and immersive and fascinating. Instead of the mermaid being fascinated with the human world, the narrator is a "piscianthropologist" (a scientist who studies mermaid culture, which I need to be a real actual field of study I can get a degree in as soon as possible) and she is fascinated with, what else, the deep sea and all its inhabitants.
This novella is 46 pages long. I need you all to understand that this tiny little story made me cry in public and clutch at my chest and annoy my sister and all my friends with my blubbering in only 46 pages.
The themes of science as a collaborative creation that spans decades and centuries, the importance of respect and cultural appreciation (particularly in social sciences), the theme of curiosity and passion to the point of madness, the theme of love as a force of salvation and destruction!!! aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa no one perceive me
If anything I wish this had been longer. I think it would absolutely KILL as a podcast, since the format is voice-narrated journal.
Writing this review made me bump my initial 4.25 stars to 4.75 wow
maskofthedawn's review
dark
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.75
patchworkbunny's review against another edition
4.0
The Little Homo Sapiens Scientist is a short novella (or long short story) reworking The Little Mermaid with a modern twist. It follows a scientist who studies the atargati, an intelligent species that live in the depths of the ocean.
People in general call the atargati mermaids, but Dr Cadence Mbella finds that insulting. They aren't mythical creatures but an advanced people who we should show some respect to. But humans being humans, they have an unending curiosity for new and different things. The doctor herself is pretty curious. Curious enough to give up everything in pursuit of knowledge and love?
There's plenty about colonialism and the exoticism of other cultures, the casual racism that often happens when people aren't familiar with other races. The view of the military when they capture an atargati is particularly believable. The atargati are genderless and the protagonist is queer, which she feels helps her better understand them. People project a female gender onto them just because of what they look like, but their culture has no concept of this. The story shows how gender is sometimes not relevant in who you fall in love with.
In places it's a little obvious, especially where it talks about non-binary gender, but I suppose if you're hoping to educate through your stories, maybe you need to do this. I prefer a more subtle approach personally and I think I would have worked out the messages without them being spelled out. Still, an entertaining little tale to while away an otherwise boring commute.
People in general call the atargati mermaids, but Dr Cadence Mbella finds that insulting. They aren't mythical creatures but an advanced people who we should show some respect to. But humans being humans, they have an unending curiosity for new and different things. The doctor herself is pretty curious. Curious enough to give up everything in pursuit of knowledge and love?
There's plenty about colonialism and the exoticism of other cultures, the casual racism that often happens when people aren't familiar with other races. The view of the military when they capture an atargati is particularly believable. The atargati are genderless and the protagonist is queer, which she feels helps her better understand them. People project a female gender onto them just because of what they look like, but their culture has no concept of this. The story shows how gender is sometimes not relevant in who you fall in love with.
In places it's a little obvious, especially where it talks about non-binary gender, but I suppose if you're hoping to educate through your stories, maybe you need to do this. I prefer a more subtle approach personally and I think I would have worked out the messages without them being spelled out. Still, an entertaining little tale to while away an otherwise boring commute.
nostoat's review
3.5
This was okay. Deeply interesting worldbuilding. Abrupt ending that left me a bit jarred.
mrobison576's review
dark
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
This premise was NUTS. Honestly, while some of the execution and dialogue left a little to be desired, reading this really proved to me that taking big swings can more than make up for those things in short-form fiction. As soon as I finished it I told like three people in a row about it. Damn!!
laurareads87's review
emotional
mysterious
reflective
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
4.0
I quite enjoyed this short story, following a scientist getting to know the atargati, a sentient, intelligent species living deep in the oceans. I appreciated the author's explorations of identity - particularly gender and sexuality, but also the main character's identity as a scientist and her changing relationship with her "objects of study." I wish it was longer though, as the ending felt abrupt.
Content warnings: abduction/kidnapping, medical content, xenophobia, death
Content warnings: abduction/kidnapping, medical content, xenophobia, death
Content Warnings
Graphic: Xenophobia and Kidnapping
Moderate: Medical content and Death
becausebrenna's review
adventurous
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
3.5
Read this a part of the StoryGraph Onboarding reading challenge for a book from the recommended tab- the premise of a sci-fi reverse Little Mermaid was intriguing. Overall pretty good story, but the ending fell a bit flat for me.
Very “Shape of Water” vibes but more queer
Very “Shape of Water” vibes but more queer
schmoore's review
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.5