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3.65 AVERAGE
3.65 AVERAGE
No sir, I didn't like it. Een meesterwerk! schreeuwt de cover. A classic for the ages! John Varley is our greatest writer!
Jammer doch helaas: geschreven in de jaren 70, en heel slecht verouderd (die sex! woohoo! zo gewààgd!). En vooral: misschien ben ik het wel, maar zó een slecht einde.
Jammer doch helaas: geschreven in de jaren 70, en heel slecht verouderd (die sex! woohoo! zo gewààgd!). En vooral: misschien ben ik het wel, maar zó een slecht einde.
adventurous
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Un roman de big dumb object assez original, essentiellement grâce à la plume de l'auteur, qui multiplie les situations incongrus, les références science- fictives diverses et variées, et les moments de poésie plus ou moins charnelle. J'ai exceptionnellement apprécié la scène de révélation finale, dans laquelle les mystères sont dévoilés, alors que ces moments me tombent généralement des mains.
An interesting tale of an exploratory space ship sent from Earth to investigate the moons of Saturn. Seeing a strange object, the crew moves the ship closer to take a look. Realizing that it is NOT a planet, moon, or asteroid, they move closer to see if they can dock.
Waking up inside of the object, they are subjected to many changes both personal, physical and mental. Titan, the first book in the series, details how they got here, what the world of Gaea is like, and the trials and tribulations they face as they try to determine, why and how come.
Waking up inside of the object, they are subjected to many changes both personal, physical and mental. Titan, the first book in the series, details how they got here, what the world of Gaea is like, and the trials and tribulations they face as they try to determine, why and how come.
This is one of those books I read back when it came out and then let sit on my shelf for a couple of decades.
I did the same thing with Dune, Silverberg’s Majipoor
Chronicles, and other books of that era.
There were somethings I remember, like the centaur-like Titanides, And a lot of stuff I didn’t.
It’s a good book, and I’m interested in reading the next two novels if they ever come out cheap on the Kindle. I’m pretty sure I’ve tossed the old paperbacks I owned.
Good classic Sci-Fi. It hasn’t aged terribly poorly.
I did the same thing with Dune, Silverberg’s Majipoor
Chronicles, and other books of that era.
There were somethings I remember, like the centaur-like Titanides, And a lot of stuff I didn’t.
It’s a good book, and I’m interested in reading the next two novels if they ever come out cheap on the Kindle. I’m pretty sure I’ve tossed the old paperbacks I owned.
Good classic Sci-Fi. It hasn’t aged terribly poorly.
Wide-ranging adventure in imagination, exploring some very '70s love and gender themes, some done well and others awkwardly hokey.
I’ve read quite a lot of John Varley, and one thing you can generally count on is a somewhat gratuitous weird sex scene, often in zero gravity. “Titan” does not disappoint, basically starting out with the zero G sex as if wanting to get it out of the way so the plot can start. Varley was once described as the new Heinlein, but while Heinlein's politics tended to the crypto-fascist and his female characters always seem like objects to be analyzed by the male gaze, Varley is more of an unrepentant 60s hippy whose female characters have no problem passing the Bechdel test.
So, what of the story? Well, imagine "Rendezvous With Rama", but take away the cold, closeted English sensibilities of Arthur C Clarke, and replace them with something more pansexual and Texan. (I don't know if Varley is actually a queer author, but he seems to me to write like one.) Instead of strange robot-like tripedal aliens, we get a rainbow of multicolored genderqueer alien centaurs, so well hung that they are endowed twice. But if you can get past the feeling that you're reading some kind of My Little Pony slash that was inexplicably written in 1978, there's some great SF here. The sex never gets too frequent or too Piers Anthony, and in the mean time there's a living alien space station built with biological technology, an intricate biosphere following its own rules, collective intelligences, mind control, layers of mystery, inner turmoil, action and adventure… It was nominated for a Hugo and Nebula and won a Locus award, and deservedly so.
The novel is unapologetically the setup for a trilogy, though it has enough payoff and closure to stand alone if you don't feel like continuing the series. Me, I'm not quite convinced I want to read all three, but I'm glad I read this one.
So, what of the story? Well, imagine "Rendezvous With Rama", but take away the cold, closeted English sensibilities of Arthur C Clarke, and replace them with something more pansexual and Texan. (I don't know if Varley is actually a queer author, but he seems to me to write like one.) Instead of strange robot-like tripedal aliens, we get a rainbow of multicolored genderqueer alien centaurs, so well hung that they are endowed twice. But if you can get past the feeling that you're reading some kind of My Little Pony slash that was inexplicably written in 1978, there's some great SF here. The sex never gets too frequent or too Piers Anthony, and in the mean time there's a living alien space station built with biological technology, an intricate biosphere following its own rules, collective intelligences, mind control, layers of mystery, inner turmoil, action and adventure… It was nominated for a Hugo and Nebula and won a Locus award, and deservedly so.
The novel is unapologetically the setup for a trilogy, though it has enough payoff and closure to stand alone if you don't feel like continuing the series. Me, I'm not quite convinced I want to read all three, but I'm glad I read this one.