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badseedgirl's review against another edition
5.0
Choices. Choices made, or not made. For every choice we make, we have to abandon another one. This wonderful gorgeous story is all about these choices. And I loved it. I teared up at all the right times, and more importantly, when it was done, I wanted more.
Ms. Kowal, may I have some more please. (in my best Oliver voice)
Ms. Kowal, may I have some more please. (in my best Oliver voice)
tricapra's review against another edition
4.0
I adored this novelette. I may or may not have been sniffling by the end. You can read it in its entirety for free, and it is well worth it. I see why this won a Hugo award.
mpoper's review
emotional
inspiring
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
colindalaska's review against another edition
5.0
Compact and charming.
Brilliantly realised world.
Beautiful story.
Brilliantly realised world.
Beautiful story.
rachelmfcoles's review against another edition
5.0
Mary Robinette Kowal can make me cry in 33 pages without having ever known any of her characters or stories before.
jclermont's review against another edition
4.0
A nice quick read. I picked it up because it won the Hugo for short story this year. Well deserved.
pewterwolf's review
4.0
Review Taken From The Pewter Wolf
Sixty-three year old Elma is offered her dream - one last mission in space. It will be a three year-long mission. But there's a problem. Her husband, Nathaniel, has barely a year to live.
So, this a short sci-fi story that isn't sci-fi.
For a story that's inspired by the opening line of Wizard of Oz, we see very little of Dorothy, but we focus of the story/marriage of Elma and Nathaniel and I found this the main reason why I stream through this short story within an hour.
It's a sweet, yet sad and I feel you guys will enjoy this tale that will make you look at the stars (and your grandparents) in a slightly different way...
Sixty-three year old Elma is offered her dream - one last mission in space. It will be a three year-long mission. But there's a problem. Her husband, Nathaniel, has barely a year to live.
So, this a short sci-fi story that isn't sci-fi.
For a story that's inspired by the opening line of Wizard of Oz, we see very little of Dorothy, but we focus of the story/marriage of Elma and Nathaniel and I found this the main reason why I stream through this short story within an hour.
It's a sweet, yet sad and I feel you guys will enjoy this tale that will make you look at the stars (and your grandparents) in a slightly different way...
jarichan's review
emotional
hopeful
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
bunrab's review
5.0
Got me started on the series
I was already familiar with, and liked, the author's fantasy series; this short introduced me to her SF, and then I went and read the 2 novels in the series as soon as I could get my hands on them.
I was already familiar with, and liked, the author's fantasy series; this short introduced me to her SF, and then I went and read the 2 novels in the series as soon as I could get my hands on them.
tani's review against another edition
5.0
I was going through my massive to-read list last night, and when I sorted it by number of pages, I realized I have some short stories/novelettes/novellas on there. Knowing that some publishers will offer these free to read online, I checked out this one, and sure enough! There it was on Tor's website. So if you're at all interested in this story, you should go read it at once!
I'm not a huge fan of the short story/novelette/whatever you call this short stuff. I grew up on Robert Jordan and other epic fantasy, and there's a part of me that looks at short works and instantly labels them as a disappointment. They're just too short! However, after reading this and some other shorter works recently, I think I'm going to have to work on eliminating that knee-jerk reaction.
This is the story of the first lady astronaut of Mars, years later, when she's too old to fly most missions. She lives on Mars with her husband, who is very ill. Dying, in fact, a slow and humiliating death. She is 63, and doesn't expect to ever get another mission. Until she does, and she's faced with the choice of being there for her husband's death, or returning to the stars that she loves.
I teared up several times while reading this. It really struck an emotional note with me as far as the relationship between Elma and her husband, and the choice that she is faced with. I never want to be faced with that kind of decision. The mere thought terrifies me. My rating is based almost entirely on that emotional reasoning. The story is quite short, so the emotion was more than enough to carry me through. I didn't need anything other than the tears in my eyes to make it warrant the five star rating.
I'm not a huge fan of the short story/novelette/whatever you call this short stuff. I grew up on Robert Jordan and other epic fantasy, and there's a part of me that looks at short works and instantly labels them as a disappointment. They're just too short! However, after reading this and some other shorter works recently, I think I'm going to have to work on eliminating that knee-jerk reaction.
This is the story of the first lady astronaut of Mars, years later, when she's too old to fly most missions. She lives on Mars with her husband, who is very ill. Dying, in fact, a slow and humiliating death. She is 63, and doesn't expect to ever get another mission. Until she does, and she's faced with the choice of being there for her husband's death, or returning to the stars that she loves.
I teared up several times while reading this. It really struck an emotional note with me as far as the relationship between Elma and her husband, and the choice that she is faced with. I never want to be faced with that kind of decision. The mere thought terrifies me. My rating is based almost entirely on that emotional reasoning. The story is quite short, so the emotion was more than enough to carry me through. I didn't need anything other than the tears in my eyes to make it warrant the five star rating.