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4.16 AVERAGE
4.16 AVERAGE
This was good. I just finished it and feel like I want to go back and reread so as to think more deeply. Towards the end I was rushing through, just wanting to know what happened. But there's more to this book than plot.
dark
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Content Warnings
Graphic: Rape
challenging
dark
emotional
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:
Complicated
The Sparrow is a work of art. Between the stellar pacing as well as the engaging way the story’s “reverse mystery”, the why things are the way they are unfolds, it’s a delight to read.
challenging
dark
emotional
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
challenging
dark
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
I'm not usually a fan of tragedies but this was done so well I can't help but like it; it is a risky endeavor to give away the ending on the first page.
Music being the thing that piques curiosity is just so fucking human, like the one thing that transcends all cultures and life forms is music and play; I am so moved by this - you reach out to the stars and you hear back and it's music. I think this was when I became really invested in the story.
I hope I'm this adventurous when I'm Anne's age.
There's this scene between Felipe and Giuliani and Felipe talks about him and Sandoz coming from a lower-class crime family with few opportunities before joining the priesthood. He makes the assumption that Giuliani, who clearly comes from money and sophistication and being the head of the Jesuits would never understand what it was like to be an outsider, and to still be alienated all these years later. Giuliani then reveals that he was born to the Italian Mafia and that the town he's in is owned by his family, their protection bought by dirty money. It is such a good reveal.
This book is more speculative fiction than science fiction. It heavily criticizes colonialism regardless of how "no harm is meant", and incorporates themes of theology and fate.
Music being the thing that piques curiosity is just so fucking human, like the one thing that transcends all cultures and life forms is music and play; I am so moved by this - you reach out to the stars and you hear back and it's music. I think this was when I became really invested in the story.
I hope I'm this adventurous when I'm Anne's age.
There's this scene between Felipe and Giuliani and Felipe talks about him and Sandoz coming from a lower-class crime family with few opportunities before joining the priesthood. He makes the assumption that Giuliani, who clearly comes from money and sophistication and being the head of the Jesuits would never understand what it was like to be an outsider, and to still be alienated all these years later. Giuliani then reveals that he was born to the Italian Mafia and that the town he's in is owned by his family, their protection bought by dirty money. It is such a good reveal.
This book is more speculative fiction than science fiction. It heavily criticizes colonialism regardless of how "no harm is meant", and incorporates themes of theology and fate.
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
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
Slow, boring, hints that sexual violence will be a major part of the inevitable “big reveal.” Read some spoilers and found that this is the case, so I have no interest in wasting more time on this ponderous, self-important book.
Duly impressed that someone could invent such a world, but duly disappointed by several irritating aspects of this novel that overshadow its potential. The characters are cutesy in a way that straddled the line between amusing and grating (what's with the constant eyebrow lifting?). There were a few enchanted moments in which I thought "this is unlike anything I've ever read!" and other moments in which the idea of having to pick this book back up was so insupportable that I opted to read two other books in the meantime and finally finished this one on audiobook.
It's worth a read, but I think you have to set your expectations correctly. First of all, you have to be willing to suspend disbelief to a level that is far beyond that of most novels. The book is science fiction, yes, but based upon a scientific premise that is not elucidated well enough for me to believe it (the plot almost reads like a bad joke: a jesuit priest, a grad student, a texan, and two retirees are traveling on an asteroid to a foreign planet. They don't have a single astronaut on aboard, but they do have a deck of cards for playing poker...). It is a morally-challenging work, yet tolerable (i.e. not too religion heavy) for someone who knows (or cares) little about religion. There are sections that drone on tediously (i.e. those about life among the Runa in which nothing happens) and other sections that are glossed over in one paragraph (i.e. how any of this would be possible in the first place).
Glad I read it, but I don't think I'll have the patience to ever pick it up again.
It's worth a read, but I think you have to set your expectations correctly. First of all, you have to be willing to suspend disbelief to a level that is far beyond that of most novels. The book is science fiction, yes, but based upon a scientific premise that is not elucidated well enough for me to believe it (the plot almost reads like a bad joke: a jesuit priest, a grad student, a texan, and two retirees are traveling on an asteroid to a foreign planet. They don't have a single astronaut on aboard, but they do have a deck of cards for playing poker...). It is a morally-challenging work, yet tolerable (i.e. not too religion heavy) for someone who knows (or cares) little about religion. There are sections that drone on tediously (i.e. those about life among the Runa in which nothing happens) and other sections that are glossed over in one paragraph (i.e. how any of this would be possible in the first place).
Glad I read it, but I don't think I'll have the patience to ever pick it up again.
To those who are offended by profanity, I suggest you ignore the next sentence and proceed to the rest of the review. Honestly, for most of this book, all I could think was "come the fuck on?!" Not, mind you, because I was really impressed with the brilliant writing and marvelous lot, but because of precisely the opposite!!!
Let me provide a bit of explanation by providing a partial plot summary.
Let's go on a mission to an unknown planet! Coincidentally, our group is a handful of people, which includes a love triangle (!), and we are all qualified to take an asteroid to an unexplored planet financed by the Jesuits! Let's not test the air before we touch foot to the planet! Let's not try to contact the aliens before barging on to their planet! No need to test any blessed (hahaha!) thing because God has willed this mission! Let's roast some "green guys" and feed them to one of our PILOTS to see if it's poisonous and promptly gave the entire crew eat all kinds of stuff instead of waiting for a period of time! If someone dies, let's do an autopsy and get SUPER angry because the rest of the very tiny crew asks about the results of the autopsy! Let's just lay around on the ground, asleep without any protection at all! Let's not bother exploring or documenting anything, so we are super surprised there are two species on the planet! I'm best buds with these here aliens who happen to have one young translator who knows English! These aliens need to learn how to garden! Oopsie, that caused my alien buds to reproduce and get slaughtered and know I'm a concubine!
There is no question that some suspension of disbelief is required to enjoy science fiction (or even some general fiction). However, Ms. Russell is asking way too much out of this reader.
Every person on the mission frames everything with what we believe to be known on Earth without trying to be the eensiest but interested in being objective and observing. Here's an irritating sentence:
"The principle were the same: firm follows function, reach high for sunlight, strut your stuff to attract a mate, scatter lots of offspring or take good care of a previous few, warn predators that you're poisonous with bright colors or blend into the background to escape detection."
Fucking seriously?!
Sandoz is well-painted and the best thing about this claptrap, while other characters are one-dimensional. Anne and George are always HILARIOUS and she always cooks intricate meals based on a guests' ETHNICITY. Voelker is just plain sinister. Ed is super supportive and helpful in an aw-shucks way.
The author took over 400 pages to slap together a real mess. I should have believed my initial reaction to the first few pages where the author tried to wow the reader with the written equivalent of multi-camera shots, not really describing what's going on. The narrative gets a little more interesting for about 70 pages, but devolves into Dan Brown style schlock and never resurfaces.
Last year, I read "The Book of Strange New Things," by Michael Farber also about a man of God visiting a planet inhabited by aliens. It is so, so, so much better than "The Sparrow," so I recommend that to those who did and did not enjoy this book.
Let me provide a bit of explanation by providing a partial plot summary.
Let's go on a mission to an unknown planet! Coincidentally, our group is a handful of people, which includes a love triangle (!), and we are all qualified to take an asteroid to an unexplored planet financed by the Jesuits! Let's not test the air before we touch foot to the planet! Let's not try to contact the aliens before barging on to their planet! No need to test any blessed (hahaha!) thing because God has willed this mission! Let's roast some "green guys" and feed them to one of our PILOTS to see if it's poisonous and promptly gave the entire crew eat all kinds of stuff instead of waiting for a period of time! If someone dies, let's do an autopsy and get SUPER angry because the rest of the very tiny crew asks about the results of the autopsy! Let's just lay around on the ground, asleep without any protection at all! Let's not bother exploring or documenting anything, so we are super surprised there are two species on the planet! I'm best buds with these here aliens who happen to have one young translator who knows English! These aliens need to learn how to garden! Oopsie, that caused my alien buds to reproduce and get slaughtered and know I'm a concubine!
There is no question that some suspension of disbelief is required to enjoy science fiction (or even some general fiction). However, Ms. Russell is asking way too much out of this reader.
Every person on the mission frames everything with what we believe to be known on Earth without trying to be the eensiest but interested in being objective and observing. Here's an irritating sentence:
"The principle were the same: firm follows function, reach high for sunlight, strut your stuff to attract a mate, scatter lots of offspring or take good care of a previous few, warn predators that you're poisonous with bright colors or blend into the background to escape detection."
Fucking seriously?!
Sandoz is well-painted and the best thing about this claptrap, while other characters are one-dimensional. Anne and George are always HILARIOUS and she always cooks intricate meals based on a guests' ETHNICITY. Voelker is just plain sinister. Ed is super supportive and helpful in an aw-shucks way.
The author took over 400 pages to slap together a real mess. I should have believed my initial reaction to the first few pages where the author tried to wow the reader with the written equivalent of multi-camera shots, not really describing what's going on. The narrative gets a little more interesting for about 70 pages, but devolves into Dan Brown style schlock and never resurfaces.
Last year, I read "The Book of Strange New Things," by Michael Farber also about a man of God visiting a planet inhabited by aliens. It is so, so, so much better than "The Sparrow," so I recommend that to those who did and did not enjoy this book.
This was a pretty goddamned devastating read. I could see that bit at the end coming for hundreds of pages but Russell so expertly unfolded the story bit by bit that it was like standing there with a bloody heart in your hand, butcher's paper crumpled at your feet.
One of the novels I'm working on (and have been since... 2010? way before I read this and I believe also before I'd heard about this one) would do well to be informed by what she does here. A good first contact story reminds you of how similar we might be across species across the universe, but also that the differences -- when we see them -- will be the ones that we could never have imagined [1] and are thus all the more terrifying for it.
I'll leave it at that for now. I have nothing else to add to the narrative of reviews that hasn't already been said; try:
• Aerin's review:
• Manny's review:
See also:
• http://io9.com/361597/the-twenty-science-fiction-novels-that-will-change-your-life
• http://io9.com/5957073/10-science-fiction-novels-that-will-definitely-never-be-movies
----
[1]: And yes, I'm well aware that we obviously just did imagine it, because someone wrote it. But you know what I mean.
One of the novels I'm working on (and have been since... 2010? way before I read this and I believe also before I'd heard about this one) would do well to be informed by what she does here. A good first contact story reminds you of how similar we might be across species across the universe, but also that the differences -- when we see them -- will be the ones that we could never have imagined [1] and are thus all the more terrifying for it.
I'll leave it at that for now. I have nothing else to add to the narrative of reviews that hasn't already been said; try:
• Aerin's review:
It's a view of God that my atheist mind can fathom.
• Manny's review:
This is the third SF story I've read where a Jesuit priest goes on an expedition to another planet and suffers a spiritual crisis as a result. It's almost becoming a sub-genre.
See also:
• http://io9.com/361597/the-twenty-science-fiction-novels-that-will-change-your-life
• http://io9.com/5957073/10-science-fiction-novels-that-will-definitely-never-be-movies
----
[1]: And yes, I'm well aware that we obviously just did imagine it, because someone wrote it. But you know what I mean.