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jedore's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
informative
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
“You know what’s the most terrifying thing about admitting that you’re in love?…You are just naked. You put yourself in harm’s way and you lay down all your defenses. No clothes, no weapons. Nowhere to hide. Completely vulnerable. The only thing that makes it tolerable is to believe the other person loves you back and that you can trust him not to hurt you.”
This is a captivating science fiction novel that intertwines deep themes, like love, faith, humanity, and the unknown. The story follows a Jesuit priest, Emilio Sandoz, and his eclectic team of scientists and scholars on a mission to make first contact with an alien civilization on the planet Rakhat. The narrative is structured in two timelines, one detailing the mission’s hopeful beginnings and the other unraveling the tragic aftermath, which keeps readers engaged and chomping at the bit to understand the full picture.
This may very well be my very first true science fiction book! I’m not typically a fan of sci-fi, but I found myself thoroughly enjoying this one. The blend of speculative fiction with profound philosophical questions made it a compelling read.
I was initially apprehensive about the religious aspect of the book, given its heavy focus on Jesuit priests. However, Mary Doria Russell handles the religious themes objectively and the story remains balanced by her inclusion of both non-religious and Jewish characters who are integral to the plot. The religious characters are portrayed as complex humans, not as dogmatic zealots trying to convert others, which I very much appreciated. This approach made the interactions between religious and non-religious characters feel authentic and respectful.
There were so many fascinating facets to this story. The book delves into Catholicism, linguistics, alien culture, interpersonal relationships, sanctioned body mutilation, and post-traumatic stress disorder. Boredom is never an option!
Character development is fantastic. Each character is given a distinct voice and personality, making them feel real and relatable. The description of the alien species is really well-done. Russell’s vivid imagery allowed me to easily visualize the aliens and their environment.
I highly recommend "The Sparrow" to anyone interested in an intelligent and multifaceted story…whether you're a fan of science fiction or not!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Classism, Death, Grief, Medical content, Slavery, Colonisation, Confinement, Dysphoria, Body horror, Torture, Genocide, and Pregnancy
Moderate: Cannibalism, Abandonment, Child death, Chronic illness, Forced institutionalization, Rape, and Terminal illness
Minor: Drug use, Police brutality, and Gore
reenelou's review against another edition
dark
emotional
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
I wanted it to be more gorey.
There was so much exposition at the begining and it felt like the last part of the book was rushed, the horror element was more implied than gratuitous and gd I wanted to witness the true horror of the surgery, hasta'akala, emillo underwent.
There was so much exposition at the begining and it felt like the last part of the book was rushed, the horror element was more implied than gratuitous and gd I wanted to witness the true horror of the surgery, hasta'akala, emillo underwent.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual assault, Slavery, Violence, Vomit, Medical trauma, Murder, Mental illness, Genocide, Domestic abuse, Animal cruelty, Rape, Injury/Injury detail, Emotional abuse, Child death, Sexual violence, Panic attacks/disorders, Child abuse, Cannibalism, Blood, Pregnancy, Physical abuse, Colonisation, Animal death, and Torture
sincetheflood's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
medium-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? Yes
5.0
holy fuck. holy fucking shit. easily one of the best books i've ever read and also one of the hardest to get through. especially those last 50 pages. good fucking lord
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual assault, Vomit, Rape, and Death
Moderate: Colonisation, Violence, Child death, and Cannibalism
Minor: Pregnancy
brenna_kcw's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
reflective
sad
tense
slow-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? It's complicated
4.5
I’m not sure exactly how I feel about this book. I think it is a fascinating reflection on the concept of “first contact” with a new culture or species, and a beautiful reflection on God and faith. However, knowing that the author saw this book in some sense as a way to bring empathy to the colonizers and conquistadors of humanities past, I don’t find it adequately recognizes their abject cruelty towards the people they met. It is possible to have misunderstandings but the enslavement and genocide of many indigenous people’s was intentional by the people who literally stole them away in ships to be sold in Europe. Those actions can not be misconstrued as anything other than unnecessary and unprecedented cruelty, so I’m still unsure what Russell really hoped to achieve.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Panic attacks/disorders, Trafficking, War, Suicidal thoughts, Rape, Murder, Vomit, Sexual assault, Body horror, Torture, and Sexual violence
Moderate: Vomit, Blood, Death of parent, Confinement, Sexual harassment, Panic attacks/disorders, and Colonisation
The book includes a lot of descriptions of a character with intense and ongoing mental and physical illness including vomiting, body horror/medical consent stuff, which would be more difficult for some audiences. There is a VERY explicit although I wouldn’t say gratuitous description of rape. It centers the fear and horror of rape which is better than the often creepy sexualisation of rape, but it’s really awful to read so pls be aware, it’s within the last 2 chapters that any graphic description is made, the rest is vague.barry_x's review against another edition
challenging
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Often thought provoking, at times rather beautiful, in other places emotionally harrowing and yet despite this praise a book that has left me with quite an ugly taste in my mouth as I can't move past it being a thinly veiled justification for settler colonialism.
The Sparrow is the story of a Jesuit mission to the planet of Rakhat, following the receipt of transmissions from the planet as part of a SETI project in the then near-future of 2019. The story is told in two parts, with alternating chapters from 2019 when the missionaries plan their mission and 2060 telling the story of the sole survivor from the mission.
In this review I'll be talking about the themes of the book, the cultures on the planet of Rakhat and also minor points about the characterisation so whilst there won't be any major spoilers I will mention things which only become apparent during the reading of the book.
So, let's start with some positives. First of all, I did like the structure of the book. The alternating chapters of the build up to the mission and the chapters covering the return of the priest Emilio Sandez largely works. We learn very early in the book that Sandez has returned in disgrace, he has clearly undergone a kind of horrific body trauma and of course, all his fellow companions who he left Earth with are dead. That works quite effectively with the sense of hope that the characters have as they come together to prepare to jet off to several light years away. There's always some good juxtaposition of where the characters are at a point in the story and how it ends up.
Also, at times I found the writing rather beautiful. I'll share more about my relationship to faith and religion in the book later in the review, but there was scene in the book that truly touched my heart. When Sandez first meets a member of the native intelligent species on Rakhat, I could feel his joy, his rapture, that sense that god was shining on him and was 'proof' god walked beside him. That power, in that scene becomes very important later on in the book, but reading it I was struck with the notion that, 'I get why people have faith'. I love moments of beauty in a book, and I think this particular scene gave it us in spades.
I also really appreciated the world building here. This is the second novel I have read in the last month or so that has 'First Contact' as a theme and is written by an author with anthropological knowledge (the other being The Left Hand of Darkness). I observed in Le Guin's novel that she was detached as an author, viewing her world as if in a petri dish. Russell isn't like that, I feel that she is very much part of her world and characters (perhaps too much). I also think she is far gentler on her readers. Instead of mirroring the experience of the humans by continually confusing the reader like Le Guin did in 'The Left Hand of Darkness' here we have no real sense the reader is the 'stranger in a strange land'. We discover things retrospectively (mostly due to the alternating chapters) and we are gently led to work things out and discover more about Rakhat culture and join the dots. Even though it is difficult for the characters and they pay for their mistakes and misunderstandings dearly, at least it isn't difficult for the reader! There is some fine world building in here, there are no 'info dumps', it's all done well from multiple perspectives.
I really enjoyed the teasing explorations of sexuality and gender in the book. My main reason for picking up this book was to include as part of my speculative fiction LGBTQ reading challenge. In that regard I am a little disappointed as the only LGBTQ content is that one of the characters is an in the closet gay man, and other than a couple of pages eluding that others are aware it is quickly forgotten about. I suppose in 1992 it may have been considered noteworthy but I don't think, 'one of my friends is gay, but it's okay because he is a celibate priest who can never live as a gay man' is as forward thinking as it could be.
One of the characters, a nearly retired doctor and anthropologist has some quite forthright views on sexuality that are teased, and I'd have loved them to be explored more. Dr. Anne Edwards, in this regard shares many of my own views - that monogamy, and, or celibacy can struggle when they bounce into the real world and relationships. That actually, no one is bothered if you are attracted to different genders. That attraction can take many forms, and that love, friendship, romantic attraction and sexual attraction can fluctuate and are not always necessarily best packaged up into single relationships. Since many of the characters are priests, the role of celibacy is explored throughout and Anne often draws focus to celibate life intersecting with romantic and, or sexual needs being met temporarily elsewhere and how it may not impact a relationship with god (or a partner). There is some flipping of gender roles and misunderstandings of gender but not enough to make it feel like LGBTQ content.
Indeed, in the book there is a wonderful opportunity to explore this, and it is kind of teased in the form of a potential love triangle, but in the end, in an attempt to reconcile I kind of think it ends as a cop-out and a much more interesting novel would be for characters not to conveniently settle elsewhere, but instead be more daring in how they feel.
In places this is quite a challenging read for me as an atheist who has a strong sense of my own spirituality, whilst having a youth spent as a practicing Catholic. I guess this is where the novel becomes quite problematic for me. I mentioned that Russell is part of the world-building, that Dr. Anne effectively speaks for her. In matters of faith, sexuality and colonialism I get a strong sense throughout I am being preached at, that Russell the author is asking me to consider the questions she is interested in, and also that I am bombarded with her world view (which at times has a racist undercurrent to it). This may sound unfair - after all, what writer doesn't inject some of their self into their writing? I know my own values scream out in any creative writing I have undertaken, and yet throughout the book it is so obvious I just want to ask her to shut up and just tell me a story.
The general question of faith in the book can largely be distilled into, 'does god exist'? and 'what is god responsible for?' which then leads to an additional question from me which is, 'so what is the purpose of god?' The way the characters come together so perfectly, the way that the mission overcomes insurmountable odds, the fact that they can make contact with an alien species - all this is 'proof' that god is guiding the way and 'everything happens because god wants it to'. Obviously, when everything goes disastrously wrong, this leads to the challenge back of, 'if god gets the credit for all the good stuff, why isn't god blamed for all the bad stuff too'? There is some theological discussion throughout the book but the same points appear to be made multiple times. It's interesting to a point, but if one has no faith, or are assured in their faith and has little interest in the question then I feel there are slim pickings here. As characters wrestled with this stuff, as a reader I wasn't to fussed.
The pacing isn't to great. It seemingly takes hundreds of pages to get the mission together, bring the characters into the same place and set off for Rakhat. It is very slow to start. The key plot in the novel, 'so what happened to everyone' is exceptionally rushed, including the reveal of what happened to Sandez. I know I sound unkind but it reminded me of writing a story at school and not knowing how to end it so just writing, 'and then everyone died. The end'. It's quite unfulfilling and a huge disappointment. Likewise, it seems hundreds of pages are spent with a bunch of priests interrogating Sandez as to what happened, in pages that just go nowhere fast.
The characterisation is off. Everyone is just a little too perfect, to friendly, and 'perfectly suited'. One character Sofia Mendes at least has the opportunity to be interesting as she has a harrowing introduction, is treated as a hyper intelligent, yet emotionally cold and distant woman yet all the men are insanely attracted to her. Considering she is a love interest, and she shows limited to no interest in the male characters for a long time it's clear it is her body and face that people fall in love with and not her. When she does open her heart she loses everything that makes her interesting and becomes a housewife (more or less).
The mission has a cast of eight and other than a couple of them they kind of just drop in and out. Sometimes a minor character you haven't read about for 300 pages suddenly has a personality for a chapter. I'm not sure it works.
I am not sure the author intended it but the reader has to suspend a lot of disbelief in how they get to Rakhat and also the dumb stuff they do when they land. It's like if the A-Team had a space travel church group. I'm all for hand-waving in a novel to get to the good stuff, but in a novel that questions the nature of faith so strongly the reader shouldn't be laughing at the inept way they get to another planet. It's definitely not a strong part of the book, and it takes a while to get there.
Likewise, I had a reflection that I haven't seen anywhere, and it's the comparator to how brutally unfair and morally wrong speciesim is. There are two intelligent species on Rakhat, a dominant 4% carnivore species and a vegetarian species making up the 96% who do all the work and are effectively bred for different types of servitude. At times it is considered a systemic relationship rather than a brutally oppressive one. The Ruana, who are the 'lesser' species take our party in, feed them, let them have access to their homes, have no notion of private property and a strong sense of community occasionally leave. Our brave heroes then go murdering the local wildlife because they miss meat so much. They completely miss the point about the relationships on the planet, or how they are perceived. I'm struck by the notion that when bad stuff happens to our characters that they kind of deserve it, that their uncaring and unfeeling sense of entitlement to other life despite their faith means they have it coming.
I mentioned about the worldview of the author and how it is loud and clear in the book. Indeed, the reason for writing the book is a critique against 'revisionist' histories of Columbus and to not put modern values on their actions. That alone means we should never review the history and impact of actions and instead just say, 'well they knew no better?' Does she really think the quest for gold and slavery has been unfairly judged? She mentions the PKK as a possible influence for a war that devastates the Middle East - yeah because the Kurds are the bad guys in Syria, Iraq and Turkey? She describes Sandez's journey as a 'personal Holocaust' and compares his relationship to god with that of modern day Jews. There is a line about 'modern day Israel rising from the ashes of the Holocaust' which feels exceptionally problematic in a book that seems to be an apologia for colonialism. A blasé approach to, and justification of subjugated people on Rakhat feels a bit grubby when you read lines which use real world history and exclude perspectives from the oppressed. Indeed, the concept of Catholic men lusting after a Jewish woman based on her superficiality, rather than who she really is kind of makes me uncomfortable.
This 'ick' factor is compounded towards the end of the book (see content warnings). I think I get what she is trying to say about the nature of god and real life analogies but in answering her big questions, I am finding her answers and I am not sure I can accept them.
I'll go back and forth on this one. It's quite well written, there is an interesting story and it definitely makes you think. But, it's the first time in a long time I've felt I've read a book by an author I don't think I'd like. I doubt I'll be reading the second book in the series.
The Sparrow is the story of a Jesuit mission to the planet of Rakhat, following the receipt of transmissions from the planet as part of a SETI project in the then near-future of 2019. The story is told in two parts, with alternating chapters from 2019 when the missionaries plan their mission and 2060 telling the story of the sole survivor from the mission.
In this review I'll be talking about the themes of the book, the cultures on the planet of Rakhat and also minor points about the characterisation so whilst there won't be any major spoilers I will mention things which only become apparent during the reading of the book.
So, let's start with some positives. First of all, I did like the structure of the book. The alternating chapters of the build up to the mission and the chapters covering the return of the priest Emilio Sandez largely works. We learn very early in the book that Sandez has returned in disgrace, he has clearly undergone a kind of horrific body trauma and of course, all his fellow companions who he left Earth with are dead. That works quite effectively with the sense of hope that the characters have as they come together to prepare to jet off to several light years away. There's always some good juxtaposition of where the characters are at a point in the story and how it ends up.
Also, at times I found the writing rather beautiful. I'll share more about my relationship to faith and religion in the book later in the review, but there was scene in the book that truly touched my heart. When Sandez first meets a member of the native intelligent species on Rakhat, I could feel his joy, his rapture, that sense that god was shining on him and was 'proof' god walked beside him. That power, in that scene becomes very important later on in the book, but reading it I was struck with the notion that, 'I get why people have faith'. I love moments of beauty in a book, and I think this particular scene gave it us in spades.
I also really appreciated the world building here. This is the second novel I have read in the last month or so that has 'First Contact' as a theme and is written by an author with anthropological knowledge (the other being The Left Hand of Darkness). I observed in Le Guin's novel that she was detached as an author, viewing her world as if in a petri dish. Russell isn't like that, I feel that she is very much part of her world and characters (perhaps too much). I also think she is far gentler on her readers. Instead of mirroring the experience of the humans by continually confusing the reader like Le Guin did in 'The Left Hand of Darkness' here we have no real sense the reader is the 'stranger in a strange land'. We discover things retrospectively (mostly due to the alternating chapters) and we are gently led to work things out and discover more about Rakhat culture and join the dots. Even though it is difficult for the characters and they pay for their mistakes and misunderstandings dearly, at least it isn't difficult for the reader! There is some fine world building in here, there are no 'info dumps', it's all done well from multiple perspectives.
I really enjoyed the teasing explorations of sexuality and gender in the book. My main reason for picking up this book was to include as part of my speculative fiction LGBTQ reading challenge. In that regard I am a little disappointed as the only LGBTQ content is that one of the characters is an in the closet gay man, and other than a couple of pages eluding that others are aware it is quickly forgotten about. I suppose in 1992 it may have been considered noteworthy but I don't think, 'one of my friends is gay, but it's okay because he is a celibate priest who can never live as a gay man' is as forward thinking as it could be.
One of the characters, a nearly retired doctor and anthropologist has some quite forthright views on sexuality that are teased, and I'd have loved them to be explored more. Dr. Anne Edwards, in this regard shares many of my own views - that monogamy, and, or celibacy can struggle when they bounce into the real world and relationships. That actually, no one is bothered if you are attracted to different genders. That attraction can take many forms, and that love, friendship, romantic attraction and sexual attraction can fluctuate and are not always necessarily best packaged up into single relationships. Since many of the characters are priests, the role of celibacy is explored throughout and Anne often draws focus to celibate life intersecting with romantic and, or sexual needs being met temporarily elsewhere and how it may not impact a relationship with god (or a partner). There is some flipping of gender roles and misunderstandings of gender but not enough to make it feel like LGBTQ content.
Indeed, in the book there is a wonderful opportunity to explore this, and it is kind of teased in the form of a potential love triangle, but in the end, in an attempt to reconcile I kind of think it ends as a cop-out and a much more interesting novel would be for characters not to conveniently settle elsewhere, but instead be more daring in how they feel.
In places this is quite a challenging read for me as an atheist who has a strong sense of my own spirituality, whilst having a youth spent as a practicing Catholic. I guess this is where the novel becomes quite problematic for me. I mentioned that Russell is part of the world-building, that Dr. Anne effectively speaks for her. In matters of faith, sexuality and colonialism I get a strong sense throughout I am being preached at, that Russell the author is asking me to consider the questions she is interested in, and also that I am bombarded with her world view (which at times has a racist undercurrent to it). This may sound unfair - after all, what writer doesn't inject some of their self into their writing? I know my own values scream out in any creative writing I have undertaken, and yet throughout the book it is so obvious I just want to ask her to shut up and just tell me a story.
The general question of faith in the book can largely be distilled into, 'does god exist'? and 'what is god responsible for?' which then leads to an additional question from me which is, 'so what is the purpose of god?' The way the characters come together so perfectly, the way that the mission overcomes insurmountable odds, the fact that they can make contact with an alien species - all this is 'proof' that god is guiding the way and 'everything happens because god wants it to'. Obviously, when everything goes disastrously wrong, this leads to the challenge back of, 'if god gets the credit for all the good stuff, why isn't god blamed for all the bad stuff too'? There is some theological discussion throughout the book but the same points appear to be made multiple times. It's interesting to a point, but if one has no faith, or are assured in their faith and has little interest in the question then I feel there are slim pickings here. As characters wrestled with this stuff, as a reader I wasn't to fussed.
The pacing isn't to great. It seemingly takes hundreds of pages to get the mission together, bring the characters into the same place and set off for Rakhat. It is very slow to start. The key plot in the novel, 'so what happened to everyone' is exceptionally rushed, including the reveal of what happened to Sandez. I know I sound unkind but it reminded me of writing a story at school and not knowing how to end it so just writing, 'and then everyone died. The end'. It's quite unfulfilling and a huge disappointment. Likewise, it seems hundreds of pages are spent with a bunch of priests interrogating Sandez as to what happened, in pages that just go nowhere fast.
The characterisation is off. Everyone is just a little too perfect, to friendly, and 'perfectly suited'. One character Sofia Mendes at least has the opportunity to be interesting as she has a harrowing introduction, is treated as a hyper intelligent, yet emotionally cold and distant woman yet all the men are insanely attracted to her. Considering she is a love interest, and she shows limited to no interest in the male characters for a long time it's clear it is her body and face that people fall in love with and not her. When she does open her heart she loses everything that makes her interesting and becomes a housewife (more or less).
The mission has a cast of eight and other than a couple of them they kind of just drop in and out. Sometimes a minor character you haven't read about for 300 pages suddenly has a personality for a chapter. I'm not sure it works.
I am not sure the author intended it but the reader has to suspend a lot of disbelief in how they get to Rakhat and also the dumb stuff they do when they land. It's like if the A-Team had a space travel church group. I'm all for hand-waving in a novel to get to the good stuff, but in a novel that questions the nature of faith so strongly the reader shouldn't be laughing at the inept way they get to another planet. It's definitely not a strong part of the book, and it takes a while to get there.
Likewise, I had a reflection that I haven't seen anywhere, and it's the comparator to how brutally unfair and morally wrong speciesim is. There are two intelligent species on Rakhat, a dominant 4% carnivore species and a vegetarian species making up the 96% who do all the work and are effectively bred for different types of servitude. At times it is considered a systemic relationship rather than a brutally oppressive one. The Ruana, who are the 'lesser' species take our party in, feed them, let them have access to their homes, have no notion of private property and a strong sense of community occasionally leave. Our brave heroes then go murdering the local wildlife because they miss meat so much. They completely miss the point about the relationships on the planet, or how they are perceived. I'm struck by the notion that when bad stuff happens to our characters that they kind of deserve it, that their uncaring and unfeeling sense of entitlement to other life despite their faith means they have it coming.
I mentioned about the worldview of the author and how it is loud and clear in the book. Indeed, the reason for writing the book is a critique against 'revisionist' histories of Columbus and to not put modern values on their actions. That alone means we should never review the history and impact of actions and instead just say, 'well they knew no better?' Does she really think the quest for gold and slavery has been unfairly judged? She mentions the PKK as a possible influence for a war that devastates the Middle East - yeah because the Kurds are the bad guys in Syria, Iraq and Turkey? She describes Sandez's journey as a 'personal Holocaust' and compares his relationship to god with that of modern day Jews. There is a line about 'modern day Israel rising from the ashes of the Holocaust' which feels exceptionally problematic in a book that seems to be an apologia for colonialism. A blasé approach to, and justification of subjugated people on Rakhat feels a bit grubby when you read lines which use real world history and exclude perspectives from the oppressed. Indeed, the concept of Catholic men lusting after a Jewish woman based on her superficiality, rather than who she really is kind of makes me uncomfortable.
This 'ick' factor is compounded towards the end of the book (see content warnings). I think I get what she is trying to say about the nature of god and real life analogies but in answering her big questions, I am finding her answers and I am not sure I can accept them.
I'll go back and forth on this one. It's quite well written, there is an interesting story and it definitely makes you think. But, it's the first time in a long time I've felt I've read a book by an author I don't think I'd like. I doubt I'll be reading the second book in the series.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Forced institutionalization, Rape, Body horror, and Sexual violence
Moderate: Cannibalism, Pregnancy, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Murder, and Grief
Minor: Antisemitism and Colonisation
missbear's review against another edition
challenging
dark
reflective
medium-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? It's complicated
4.75
The Sparrow has been on my radar for quite awhile—I've seen people mention it, people quote it, people but it's only in the last year or two that I've fully grown into my absolute First-Contact-With-Aliens obsession. A surprisingly large percentage of my recent five star reads have fit into this trope. And I'm not even usually much of a trope or plot reader — I can't think of any other topic like this, a theme that makes me so very confident that I'll like a book.
What really gets to me are these books about encountering an alien race, where the focus of the story is on linguistics and anthropology and diplomacy and (some) biology, like the aliens are being approached from an academic rather than political perspective. This was such a perfect example of this kind of story, because Russell goes out of her way to develop the philosophical questions that her characters are interested in exploring through the existence of the inhabitants of Rakhat (this is why I didn't mind the questionable science in this book, since it just seemed like obviously not the point). And although some of those questions are related to religion, I felt like most of them were broader than that and were presented in a surprisingly subtle way, given the plot summary of this book. I'll admit that not all of this book is super subtle — probably the most obvious criticism of it is that the characters are kind of caricatures who are unbelievably optimistic, bordering on dangerously and foolishly so, and joyously happy in each other company all the time.
I also was very impressed with the pacing and structure of The Sparrow. It's a bold move to give away a tragedy at the beginning of your story, especially a story that is packed full of hope and community and joy. It is almost too brutal to read this book, knowing that there's no way out of the ending that's been promised by the beginning. But it worked for me.
What really gets to me are these books about encountering an alien race, where the focus of the story is on linguistics and anthropology and diplomacy and (some) biology, like the aliens are being approached from an academic rather than political perspective. This was such a perfect example of this kind of story, because Russell goes out of her way to develop the philosophical questions that her characters are interested in exploring through the existence of the inhabitants of Rakhat (this is why I didn't mind the questionable science in this book, since it just seemed like obviously not the point). And although some of those questions are related to religion, I felt like most of them were broader than that and were presented in a surprisingly subtle way, given the plot summary of this book. I'll admit that not all of this book is super subtle — probably the most obvious criticism of it is that the characters are kind of caricatures who are unbelievably optimistic, bordering on dangerously and foolishly so, and joyously happy in each other company all the time.
I also was very impressed with the pacing and structure of The Sparrow. It's a bold move to give away a tragedy at the beginning of your story, especially a story that is packed full of hope and community and joy. It is almost too brutal to read this book, knowing that there's no way out of the ending that's been promised by the beginning. But it worked for me.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child death, Colonisation, Rape, and Death
y_rui's review against another edition
adventurous
medium-paced
1.25
Word of Warning: I may be biased because I put this on my TBR after I read Silence. I used to read tons of Sci-Fi as a kid so most concepts in this book have already been explored. I also don't care if this book is some fantasical allegory to whatever biblical or golden-age-of-exploration tale. It does not excuse the author from the following criticism.
A decent story mired in poor worldbuilding, poor writing, lots of telling-not-showing, poor pacing, capricious characters, ham-fisted plot contrivances, etc. It took me two weeks to read the first 40% of the book and one day to read the rest. The blurb is misleading, it certainly did not make me question my humanity. (Maybe how stupid humanity is becausethe Father General decides to send another mission. I can see some dumbfuck world/co-orporation leader doing this. lol .) I find it insulting to my intelligence that it is expected for a reader to just go along with everything the author throws at us. 1 star for the first third, 2.5 stars for the middle, 0 stars for the end.
Sometimes I wonder if I read the same book as everyone else.
A decent story mired in poor worldbuilding, poor writing, lots of telling-not-showing, poor pacing, capricious characters, ham-fisted plot contrivances, etc. It took me two weeks to read the first 40% of the book and one day to read the rest. The blurb is misleading, it certainly did not make me question my humanity. (Maybe how stupid humanity is because
Sometimes I wonder if I read the same book as everyone else.
Perhaps I've missed some things, because I was either supremely bored or seething mad, but I state my case:
Worldbuilding:
Look, I won't get into the thick of things and nitpick everything but the worldbuilding is not there. The aliens have similar technologies, and sure, if it was stated that 'oh this is just the word that can be best used to describe this thing that serves the same purpose but is not completely the same', I can 100% give that a pass. But Rakhat is just Earth but with giant cat people and pseudo-cat people and other funny animals.
Why was this not made into a fantasy? "Something something different realm or dimension" and "that's just how it is in magical fantasyland" and the author does not have to explicitly explain why they failed to do sufficient, technical worldbuilding.
Characters:
The one interaction I did like: Sandoz and Anne's conversation just before landing. That was cute.
Writing:
X does this and Y is that. That's it, that's the prose. Dry. Bland. Much like this paragraph, everything is told to you. Pet Peeve no.3: telling me everything instead of showing me and letting me decide for myself. The author knows no subtlety nor purpose.
Tell me the lesson to be learned from this book. Tell me what it is, because I cannot for the love of god extract anything of meaning from this godforsaken book. Christopher Columbus is misunderstood? (For reference, author was inspired to write this book due to Columbus's actions. Whole drama there, I won't get too much into it.) Forcing someone to testify to his rape when he does not want to is…somehow a satisfying conclusion? (Look, I know in court they question every action you do to, to establish precedent. And the Church has a long history of not giving a damn about rape victims. This wasn't that. It was meant to shock the readers. He must admit that He Was Raped, in those exact words, to spell it out for the dumbfuck readers. In court they question what happened, did you consent, did you do this or that. This was more in the line of 'state explicitly that you were raped by aliens' to prove it to us. Its fucking disgusting - not what happened, but the audacity of the author. IS ALIEN PROBING TOO SUBTLE A TRAUMA? THE ALIENS HAVE TO BE OUTRIGHT RAPISTS OF THE HUMAN FASHION FOR THE CHARACTERS TO BE CONSIDERED ASSAULTED?) The arrogance of a bunch of dumbasses always gets them killed or tortured? It is not enough to watch people be exploited or a world go to shit or your friends die or your life change forever, one must be brutally tortured on top of that to question their existence and philosophies? What is the revelation?
Somewhere in the author's notes she writes (in not so many words) that she consulted a man of the Church and any inaccuracies regarding Christianity are not his fault, but due to her own arrogance. That's what this book is: an author, full of themselves, telling you these Big Important Lessons and throwing in all these things that she found funny or clever or entertaining but failing to account for reality and humanity and the craft of storytelling along the way.
Somewhere in the author's notes she writes (in not so many words) that she consulted a man of the Church and any inaccuracies regarding Christianity are not his fault, but due to her own arrogance. That's what this book is: an author, full of themselves, telling you these Big Important Lessons and throwing in all these things that she found funny or clever or entertaining but failing to account for reality and humanity and the craft of storytelling along the way.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body horror, Colonisation, and Rape
ashbcgc's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
inspiring
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
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Rape, Sexual assault, Child death, Death, and Body horror
Moderate: Colonisation, Panic attacks/disorders, Medical trauma, and Confinement
Minor: Cannibalism
lesbegays's review
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
slow-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
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Body horror, Child death, Death, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Trafficking, Violence, and Vomit
Moderate: Cannibalism, Chronic illness, Excrement, Medical content, Murder, and Terminal illness
Minor: Alcohol, Animal death, Antisemitism, Car accident, Child abuse, Colonisation, Death of parent, Drug abuse, Drug use, Infertility, and Xenophobia
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