Reviews

The Long Way to a Small, Angry Planet by Becky Chambers

skepticalmoose's review

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adventurous hopeful medium-paced

5.0

saranies's review

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3.0

This was fine and probably is more of a 3.5 than 3. I enjoyed it as much as I enjoy Firefly and will probably read the rest of the series. It was written perfectly fine (it was certainly not bad) but it didn't go into bigger thoughts about some of the moral and existential questions that were raised in the plot.

gotta_read_them_all's review

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adventurous challenging emotional funny hopeful inspiring sad tense fast-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

5.0

One of my all time favorites. 

drj's review against another edition

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adventurous emotional funny inspiring slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? No

5.0

bookwormjimmy's review

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adventurous challenging emotional fast-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? It's complicated

4.0

An interspecies crew aboard a space tunneling ship adventure across many adventures. Rosemary is new to the crew, and is hiding a dark history. Sissix is the reptilian pilot who is still missing something even though everything feels right. Jenks and the AI Lovey have a complicated relationship, and Kizzy cannot stop talking Dr. Chef's ears off. All this while Captain Ashby is trying to maintain his own secret relationship with another species. But though it all, this is a crew that will come together.

This book read more like a season of episodic TV. Once I realized that each chapter felt like its own self-contained episode that focused on different characters' plotlines, I started to really enjoy it for what it was worth. Each chapter gives us a new perspective to look at these characters, to realize that they're all much more multi-faceted than what their initial introductions might've appeared to the reader.

There are a lot of themes that are brought up within the book that take a look at our own humanity and pose big questions on the labels that we apply to our everyday lives. What does it mean to love someone different than us? What is one's right to refuse life-saving medicine if it goes against your beliefs? At what point is gene editing beyond what's ethical and right? These are questions with no easy answers in society today, and The Long Way to a Small, Angry Planet offers an entryway to these discussions through classic science fiction.

If you're looking for a lighthearted jaunt through space with a crew that treats each other like a found family, then this would be a fun read for you!

zoturn98's review against another edition

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adventurous emotional funny hopeful inspiring lighthearted mysterious reflective tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

I'm not usually a sci-fi person, but that was before I knew such a poignant, cosy, character-driven sci-fi exists! There's a touch of "space drama and fighting" that you'd probably more expect from the a sci-fi, yet with So. Much. More. It was moderately paced, giving time for some excellent character development at a deep level, while the storyline continued on as we got to explore this dystopian future life where humans are just one of the many species in the universe. As a biologist, what I particularly enjoyed about this book was the exploration of themes around what makes humans different (or perhaps, actually quite similar) to other species, the notion of culture and integrating such differences, as well as the technological advancements of AI and technology alongside our ever-struggling planet. All within the ideology of space exploration and different sapient species from across the universe. Beautifully written, I truly got lost in the storyline, and I'm keen to explore this world further. 

orangeblorange's review

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adventurous funny lighthearted slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes

3.0

rainberry's review

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adventurous relaxing fast-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

3.5

Very lovely and nice book with nice characters but the plot is a bit whateva

anonymousbike's review

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adventurous reflective medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? No

nicola_june's review against another edition

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adventurous emotional funny hopeful informative inspiring reflective relaxing sad tense slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? No

5.0