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4.28 AVERAGE
4.28 AVERAGE
challenging
emotional
informative
inspiring
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Sci-fi’s biggest comparative advantage is generally considered to be asking questions about what it means to be human and how human society functions. I think this short story collection is one of the few that absolutely lives up to that reputation.
Unlike a lot of sci-fi authors (especially self-described hard sci-fi), Chiang actually has something interesting to say about human (and nonhuman) experience that isn’t a half-understood Philosophy 101 thought experiment slapped on top of a world building experiment. The stories “The Lifecycle of Software Objects” and “Anxiety is the Dizziness of Freedom” are clearly the best in the volume (no surprise being the longest and best developed) but there are few bad points - genuine quality through the whole book.
Unlike a lot of sci-fi authors (especially self-described hard sci-fi), Chiang actually has something interesting to say about human (and nonhuman) experience that isn’t a half-understood Philosophy 101 thought experiment slapped on top of a world building experiment. The stories “The Lifecycle of Software Objects” and “Anxiety is the Dizziness of Freedom” are clearly the best in the volume (no surprise being the longest and best developed) but there are few bad points - genuine quality through the whole book.
adventurous
dark
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
challenging
emotional
hopeful
informative
reflective
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Just ok. Not compelled to keep reading.
emotional
hopeful
informative
reflective
medium-paced
challenging
informative
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
challenging
inspiring
reflective
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:
Complicated
Best stories:
Exhalation (strong Cosmicomics vibes)
The Truth of Fact, the Truth of Feeling (slightly annoying at the beginning but it all ties together nicely in the end)
The Lifecycle of Software Objects (read this one before but it's still good)
Exhalation (strong Cosmicomics vibes)
The Truth of Fact, the Truth of Feeling (slightly annoying at the beginning but it all ties together nicely in the end)
The Lifecycle of Software Objects (read this one before but it's still good)