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4.07 AVERAGE
4.07 AVERAGE
This is my favorite science fiction novel because it epitomizes all that is science fiction; the theory and imagination of what science can do, the discovery of intelligent alien lifeforms (everyone loves a good "first contact" story), the moral and religious debate which naturally arise in science and after reading it you are left to make your own decision about what you believe is right or even possible. Required reading for science fiction lovers!
Flash summary:
A far-reaching story of an understanding radio astronomer leading the effort to decode a message broadcasted to Earth by an intergalactic spacefaring civilization. After a successful decode, humanity uses the message as instructions to build The Machine, a transportation device which can take a few humans for a visit to the aliens. The astronomer is assembled into an international team of 5 astronauts who are then sent to meet with the aliens. The aliens, the learn, act as a cultural aggregator and run a “Grand Central Station” of sorts for other civilizations to visit and stitch their infinitely-deep cultures together into a tapestry of universal understanding. With a “metro system” of Einstein-Rosen bridges using black holes, they develop a method of traveling between these empires beyond the speed of light.
She comes back after visiting the civilization and, with her fellow explorers, attempts to corroborate her true-but-seemingly-false to the skeptical world using an extremely long calculation of pi (the ratio of a circle’s circumference to its diameter). An even more advanced civilization than the one she visited, likely in a higher dimension) has hidden a message in the geometric proportions of a circle.
What I liked:
- philosophically, I love the optimistic picture painted about the long-term success of civilizations. They are warm and compassionate, and it’s later revealed that nearly every hostile civilization blows themselves up eventually, leaving behind only the loving. The aliens are also extremely welcoming towards humans and other civilizations, acting as administrators more than warmongers
- The main character is more warm-bloodedly romantic than cold-bloodedly technical, something which can’t be said for Cixin Liu’s Remembrance of Earth’s Past trilogy!
- As an electrical engineer, I really appreciated the technical detail on radio frequency (RF), information theory, communications engineering, and the general know-how Sagan brings to the table
Gripes:
- the aliens instruct them to build The Machine, which can take them to their destination (26 light years away) and back in 20 minutes. The instructions to build this machine were broadcasted to all of humanity, and millions of people with trillions of dollars worked on designing, manufacturing, and assembling the machine. Sagan mostly skips over this description (probably to continue with the plot), and I think that detracted with some of the grandiosity of the alien civilization’s plans!
- clearly written with a strong political intent in mind. This is not necessarily bad, it’s just in bad taste when your story is so fundamentally grand in scale. Sagan weaves his opinions on Russia, China, Islamic fundamentalism, etc. using a few sentences of description here and there. If the book was written today I would expect a different perspective written in the same fashion, but one which is still similarly ignorant. But Sagan gets a pass because he’s Sagan.
A far-reaching story of an understanding radio astronomer leading the effort to decode a message broadcasted to Earth by an intergalactic spacefaring civilization. After a successful decode, humanity uses the message as instructions to build The Machine, a transportation device which can take a few humans for a visit to the aliens. The astronomer is assembled into an international team of 5 astronauts who are then sent to meet with the aliens. The aliens, the learn, act as a cultural aggregator and run a “Grand Central Station” of sorts for other civilizations to visit and stitch their infinitely-deep cultures together into a tapestry of universal understanding. With a “metro system” of Einstein-Rosen bridges using black holes, they develop a method of traveling between these empires beyond the speed of light.
She comes back after visiting the civilization and, with her fellow explorers, attempts to corroborate her true-but-seemingly-false to the skeptical world using an extremely long calculation of pi (the ratio of a circle’s circumference to its diameter). An even more advanced civilization than the one she visited, likely in a higher dimension) has hidden a message in the geometric proportions of a circle.
What I liked:
- philosophically, I love the optimistic picture painted about the long-term success of civilizations. They are warm and compassionate, and it’s later revealed that nearly every hostile civilization blows themselves up eventually, leaving behind only the loving. The aliens are also extremely welcoming towards humans and other civilizations, acting as administrators more than warmongers
- The main character is more warm-bloodedly romantic than cold-bloodedly technical, something which can’t be said for Cixin Liu’s Remembrance of Earth’s Past trilogy!
- As an electrical engineer, I really appreciated the technical detail on radio frequency (RF), information theory, communications engineering, and the general know-how Sagan brings to the table
Gripes:
- the aliens instruct them to build The Machine, which can take them to their destination (26 light years away) and back in 20 minutes. The instructions to build this machine were broadcasted to all of humanity, and millions of people with trillions of dollars worked on designing, manufacturing, and assembling the machine. Sagan mostly skips over this description (probably to continue with the plot), and I think that detracted with some of the grandiosity of the alien civilization’s plans!
- clearly written with a strong political intent in mind. This is not necessarily bad, it’s just in bad taste when your story is so fundamentally grand in scale. Sagan weaves his opinions on Russia, China, Islamic fundamentalism, etc. using a few sentences of description here and there. If the book was written today I would expect a different perspective written in the same fashion, but one which is still similarly ignorant. But Sagan gets a pass because he’s Sagan.
What a trailblazer this book must have been! Focusing on a young woman in STEM, the sexism she experiences, the doubt she must have felt going where so few feet her size had tread before, looking past the end of the Cold War, the beginning of the ecological demise, the inevitable posturing of politics...really, this book holds up pretty well.
CONTENT WARNING:
I also liked that despite all the nitty gritty of human ugliness it demonstrates, the book still feels hopeful, and implores us to reframe our sense of the divine to unite us rather than divide. A little heavy on the philosophical and metaphysical side of things, but still, a thoughtful, positive story.
CONTENT WARNING:
Spoiler
sexism, racism, discussion of the conditions for scientists in Soviet Russia, nationalism, bombing, loss of a loved one, so much religion, pro and con.I also liked that despite all the nitty gritty of human ugliness it demonstrates, the book still feels hopeful, and implores us to reframe our sense of the divine to unite us rather than divide. A little heavy on the philosophical and metaphysical side of things, but still, a thoughtful, positive story.
The plot is good, I'm always in for a first-contact-with-aliens novel. You can tell he knows what he is talking about and it's delightful to read the science behind his story (real or not). However, the writing dragged me down at certain parts. I think it would have benefited from some extra editing.
adventurous
challenging
emotional
hopeful
informative
mysterious
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:
Yes
challenging
hopeful
informative
inspiring
mysterious
I loved reading this for the very first time. Even though it’s far more about religion than I expected, it’s really about awe and our place in the universe. I can’t believe I’d never read it before, honestly.
I enjoyed the first two parts so much. The third part was fascinating but, also, a bit frustrating for me. I think as someone who isn’t religious I kinda wish we’d focused a little less on it in the end, but it was (obviously) brilliant and inspiring.
I enjoyed the first two parts so much. The third part was fascinating but, also, a bit frustrating for me. I think as someone who isn’t religious I kinda wish we’d focused a little less on it in the end, but it was (obviously) brilliant and inspiring.
adventurous
informative
inspiring
mysterious
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
adventurous
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
