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4.19 AVERAGE
4.19 AVERAGE
inspiring
reflective
another beautiful book by Becky Chambers. This one especially made me think about my own mortality and my place in the galaxy.
For some reason, it took me awhile to get back to Becky Chambers' Wayfarers Series after I finished A Closed and Common Orbit, but I tore through Record of a Spaceborn Few in about two days.
I liked the structure of following different characters through their overlapping stories, and I thought it fit well with the themes of interdependence and relationship that were prevalent in the book. There were some nice touches about the culture of a place where people come from but less often migrate toward. The rituals in the book rang liturgically true.
Like the other Becky Chambers books I have read so far, they are heavily character-driven and not so much plot driven. Things definitely happen in Record of a Spaceborn Few, and events have a cause and effect toward other events, but if you prefer a strong narrative arc, Becky Chambers might not be the author for you. I, on the other hand, love character-driven stories, so this worked well for me.
Also like other Becky Chambers books I've read, queerness is no big deal. The culture around sex was a pretty good version of possible human mores. There wasn't as much breadth of gender as in some of her other books, though it was cool that the language defaulted to xyr pronouns when the character's personal pronouns were unknown (such as when one of the main characters observed someone else in public to whom they hadn't been introduced).
I look forward to reading the fourth book in the series, though I don't look forward to running out of Becky Chambers books to read.
I liked the structure of following different characters through their overlapping stories, and I thought it fit well with the themes of interdependence and relationship that were prevalent in the book. There were some nice touches about the culture of a place where people come from but less often migrate toward. The rituals in the book rang liturgically true.
Like the other Becky Chambers books I have read so far, they are heavily character-driven and not so much plot driven. Things definitely happen in Record of a Spaceborn Few, and events have a cause and effect toward other events, but if you prefer a strong narrative arc, Becky Chambers might not be the author for you. I, on the other hand, love character-driven stories, so this worked well for me.
Also like other Becky Chambers books I've read, queerness is no big deal. The culture around sex was a pretty good version of possible human mores. There wasn't as much breadth of gender as in some of her other books, though it was cool that the language defaulted to xyr pronouns when the character's personal pronouns were unknown (such as when one of the main characters observed someone else in public to whom they hadn't been introduced).
I look forward to reading the fourth book in the series, though I don't look forward to running out of Becky Chambers books to read.
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
The third book in Chambers' Wayfarers series is a bit middling for me, which is a shame since I really enjoyed the first two books. The world building is still fantastic, the depth of culture and character are top-notch, and yet I'm struggling to define what the story actually is about. We have a handful of POV characters that sometimes interact, but it feels more like a lore-driven text contained within a single ark-style ship.
While the ship-based culture itself is interesting and the characters are well-rounded so that you want to read about them, the end result is more like six short stories (some more character studies than actual tales) that are sewn together. I hope the future parts in this series explore Chambers' interesting universe in a manner more akin to The Long Way... and A Closed and Common Orbit.
While the ship-based culture itself is interesting and the characters are well-rounded so that you want to read about them, the end result is more like six short stories (some more character studies than actual tales) that are sewn together. I hope the future parts in this series explore Chambers' interesting universe in a manner more akin to The Long Way... and A Closed and Common Orbit.
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
sad
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:
No
Content Warnings
Graphic: Bullying, Death
Record of a Spaceborn Few starts off with a major crisis aboard the Exodan fleet - a group of generation ships bearing the ancestors of humans who left Earth to escape environmental catastrophe, now orbiting a star given to them by the Aeluons and grappling with their existential purpose. But the start of the book is anticlimactic, with the crisis very much in the background - sort of like the destruction of Praxis setting the stage for the Khitomer Accords in Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country. Each of the perspective characters in this book (and there are several) is influenced in subtle and not-so-subtle ways by the crisis, but you also get the sense that the questions they grapple with were coming for a long time.
The exploration of Exodan life and society through the eyes of various individuals is enjoyable if not exactly suspenseful. Overall I found it an enjoyable read and I thought Chambers stuck the landing well in the final pages.
The exploration of Exodan life and society through the eyes of various individuals is enjoyable if not exactly suspenseful. Overall I found it an enjoyable read and I thought Chambers stuck the landing well in the final pages.
Follows the stories of people dealing with cultural change.
Addendum: It seems to me that one of the hardest world-building challenges is creating ceremonies that feel *real*, that don't seem silly or overblown. The ceremonies that Chambers incorporates into this book move me to tears every time I re-read it.
Addendum: It seems to me that one of the hardest world-building challenges is creating ceremonies that feel *real*, that don't seem silly or overblown. The ceremonies that Chambers incorporates into this book move me to tears every time I re-read it.
emotional
informative
reflective
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
reflective
relaxing
slow-paced
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Loved the previous entries in this series, but literally nothing happens in this one. No stakes. No central plot. None of the characters really do much. I suppose it’s a “feel good” book but I was so bored.