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3.41 AVERAGE
3.41 AVERAGE
Twisty and inquisitive, Sundiver is more than just your average sci-fi novel. Brin incorporates many allegorical themes, casually dropping hints about Sherlock Holmes and Brave New World mere chapters away. Even though at times I felt the language a bit too technical for my non-astrophysics-mind, I found the story fun and look forward to picking up the sequel. I just hope some of the breaks and reasoning behind characters' actions are more thought out and purposeful.
What a fun jaunt to the Sun! It’s not one that I would recommend to first time science fiction readers, but it was a really great read.
Aboard an exploration ship attempting to reach the surface of the Sun, this group of explorers discover a sinister plot from within the surface of the planet. Are those beings on the Sun bipedal and sentient? Are they asking the crew to leave or forcing them out?
Adventure, exploration, discovery, deceit, espionage, and flat out fun.
Aboard an exploration ship attempting to reach the surface of the Sun, this group of explorers discover a sinister plot from within the surface of the planet. Are those beings on the Sun bipedal and sentient? Are they asking the crew to leave or forcing them out?
Adventure, exploration, discovery, deceit, espionage, and flat out fun.
El libro me ha parecido entretenido, pero tenía unos problemas muy grandes para mi:
Me he pasado casi la mitad del libro convencido de que tendría que haberme leído otro para enterarme de algo, que vale que ocultes cosas del pasado del protagonista para darle interés, pero no es para estar mencionandolas cada 2 o 3 paginas como si ya las conociera todo el mundo.
La descripción de las razas es muy somera, aunque teniendo en cuenta como varían entre si no se puede pedir mucho más, la verdad es que lo hace incomodo.
En la parte de misterio, se ha encajado todo bien al esquema típico (con escena del comedor y todo) pero donde algunos autores dejan pistas para que se pueda ir enlazando todo antes de que se desvele, aquí hay que abandonar toda esperanza en ese sentido.
Aún así, después de todo lo que he dicho, los personajes y la situación en la que termina la historia me parecen lo suficientemente interesantes como para querer leerme al menos el siguiente libro.
Me he pasado casi la mitad del libro convencido de que tendría que haberme leído otro para enterarme de algo, que vale que ocultes cosas del pasado del protagonista para darle interés, pero no es para estar mencionandolas cada 2 o 3 paginas como si ya las conociera todo el mundo.
La descripción de las razas es muy somera, aunque teniendo en cuenta como varían entre si no se puede pedir mucho más, la verdad es que lo hace incomodo.
En la parte de misterio, se ha encajado todo bien al esquema típico (con escena del comedor y todo) pero donde algunos autores dejan pistas para que se pueda ir enlazando todo antes de que se desvele, aquí hay que abandonar toda esperanza en ese sentido.
Aún así, después de todo lo que he dicho, los personajes y la situación en la que termina la historia me parecen lo suficientemente interesantes como para querer leerme al menos el siguiente libro.
Very enjoyable, with interesting ideas.I'm looking forward to reading his other "Uplift" novels.
Originally published on my blog here in July 2001.
Brin's first novel succeeds because of the quality of its central idea, which is not new but which is treated in a way which is very fertile. The source of the idea, in Brin's case, is an attempt to make [a:Erich von Däniken|122479|Erich von Däniken|http://d.gr-assets.com/authors/1260274345p2/122479.jpg]'s ideas about aliens being responsible for the rise of human culture a sensible basis for a science fiction story. He does this by postulating a galaxy filled with alien races all of which have become sapient through the intervention of another, through genetic manipulation and teaching (a process Brin gives the convenient name Uplift). The one exception is humanity, with no obvious guiding hand. Either intelligence on earth arose spontaneously or the human race has been abandoned halfway through an Uplift project, both possibilities which are disturbing to the galactic community.
The obvious science fiction reference for this kind of story is [b:2001|70535|2001 A Space Odyssey (Space Odyssey, #1)|Arthur C. Clarke|http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1348775483s/70535.jpg|208362], but Brin does not mention Clarke even though Daniken, comes up quite frequently. It is an interesting development of the idea to come up with an entire galactic culture based on Uplift, using humanity's anomalous status to motivate this and the other novels which follow it.
The story of Sundiver is fairly typical of hard science fiction, about manned travel into the interior of the sun, where strange creatures are encountered which are unknown even to the superior science of the galactics. The hard science component, while interesting, is comparatively unimportant; Sundiver is really about the different personalities, human and alien, involved in the project. The portrayal of the aliens is particularly impressive, each species being convincingly non-human in a different way.
One criticism of Sundriver which has to be made is that the prose style is rather pedestrian, and this is off-putting to start with. It is the quality of the ideas which engages the attention rather than that of the writing.
Brin's first novel succeeds because of the quality of its central idea, which is not new but which is treated in a way which is very fertile. The source of the idea, in Brin's case, is an attempt to make [a:Erich von Däniken|122479|Erich von Däniken|http://d.gr-assets.com/authors/1260274345p2/122479.jpg]'s ideas about aliens being responsible for the rise of human culture a sensible basis for a science fiction story. He does this by postulating a galaxy filled with alien races all of which have become sapient through the intervention of another, through genetic manipulation and teaching (a process Brin gives the convenient name Uplift). The one exception is humanity, with no obvious guiding hand. Either intelligence on earth arose spontaneously or the human race has been abandoned halfway through an Uplift project, both possibilities which are disturbing to the galactic community.
The obvious science fiction reference for this kind of story is [b:2001|70535|2001 A Space Odyssey (Space Odyssey, #1)|Arthur C. Clarke|http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1348775483s/70535.jpg|208362], but Brin does not mention Clarke even though Daniken, comes up quite frequently. It is an interesting development of the idea to come up with an entire galactic culture based on Uplift, using humanity's anomalous status to motivate this and the other novels which follow it.
The story of Sundiver is fairly typical of hard science fiction, about manned travel into the interior of the sun, where strange creatures are encountered which are unknown even to the superior science of the galactics. The hard science component, while interesting, is comparatively unimportant; Sundiver is really about the different personalities, human and alien, involved in the project. The portrayal of the aliens is particularly impressive, each species being convincingly non-human in a different way.
One criticism of Sundriver which has to be made is that the prose style is rather pedestrian, and this is off-putting to start with. It is the quality of the ideas which engages the attention rather than that of the writing.
3.5 stars
I went in knowing this was considered the weakest of the series. However, I was still blown away by the world Dr. Brin has constructed. His description of the few alien species is especially noteworthy. The Kanten, plant-like photosynthizers, were probably my favorite alien creature. Dr. Brin knows his science, and you will come away from certain passages feeling enlightened. This is why I love the "hard" science fiction sungenre.
Yes, the protagonist is a ding dong. Yes, some the plot elements could have been handled more carefully. Yes, his characterization can be infuriatingly shallow. But, this is his first book.
Don't skip this.
I went in knowing this was considered the weakest of the series. However, I was still blown away by the world Dr. Brin has constructed. His description of the few alien species is especially noteworthy. The Kanten, plant-like photosynthizers, were probably my favorite alien creature. Dr. Brin knows his science, and you will come away from certain passages feeling enlightened. This is why I love the "hard" science fiction sungenre.
Yes, the protagonist is a ding dong. Yes, some the plot elements could have been handled more carefully. Yes, his characterization can be infuriatingly shallow. But, this is his first book.
Don't skip this.
Sundiver is easily my least favorite of the Uplift Saga, I'll say that right off the bat. The mystery feels like upbeat, predictable 1950s film noir, and the story itself is only tangentially related to the rest of the series. That said, I would recommend Sundiver as a relatively straightforward and un-intimidating entrée to the Uplift universe. If you intend to jump straight into Startide Rising (or, God forbid, Brightness Reef) without this gentle introduction, prepare to be confused and frustrated. At the end of the day, it's a fun little detective story, with a generous helping of world-building that will set you up nice for the rest of the saga.
2014 re-read. The first book of the uplift trilogy and somewhat different in style from the novels that followed. This is mostly a murder mystery in space and was enjoyable for what it was. You should read this one to see how much the story progressed as it went along...
yeah it was ok. Great ideas and concepts to wrap your head around while reading. However, it does fall a bit short on the actual storytelling. I kept reading for the mystery and intrigue of the plot, but found it hard to focus on the less than gripping style. I only read this to get a background before the sequel Startide Rising, but i'll reserve judgement on the whole saga until i've at least read that...
