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smartflutist661's review
adventurous
hopeful
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Living out my dream in books. And doing it with 1960s technology. The alternate history is impressively convincing. The science is terrible (differential pressure gauges should show 0 if two hatches have the same pressure on both sides; the moon's gravity is 1/6 Earth's, not 1/16). Luckily this has effectively zero impact on the story, which is more about how this crew navigates all the tensions of the 50s and 60s, plus both a recent and incipient catastrophe. I hope we get to see plenty more of this timeline.
c_morning's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
beccaand's review against another edition
adventurous
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
4.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Excrement, Racism, Panic attacks/disorders, and Grief
Moderate: Chronic illness, Sexual content, and Vomit
daniber's review
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
informative
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.25
jeannis's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
inspiring
reflective
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? Yes
5.0
luminous's review
5.0
I just love these books. Narration excellent. Only issue is Kowal can't do all the accents. I'm especially thinking of Brooklyn and Spanish accents, which made me cringe. Minor complaints, though, in this fun, quite positive series about colonizing the moon and Mars. Social commentary was much better done in this installment as well, along with character growth.
wood656's review
adventurous
hopeful
inspiring
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
okevamae's review
5.0
This sequel to The Calculating Stars continues its alternate history timeline into the 1960s, and sees the space program continue on in the goal of getting to Mars. Rocketry and spaceflight have made great leaps forward, but computer technology has not advanced in the same way, so computations are still done by hand. Elma York has become somewhat bored of flying shuttles back and forth to the Moon colony. After a high-profile incident once again places Elma in the spotlight of the press, it’s decided that the beloved “Lady Astronaut” should be a computer on the Mars mission, mostly to try and drum up enthusiasm from a public that increasingly sees the space program as a waste of money that could be spent helping people on Earth, which is experiencing more drastic weather changes and political unrest with each passing year.
The plot of the book centers around the Mars mission, but race relations are at the center of emotional conflict in this novel. The question of what types of people are getting the privilege of participating in the space program – and its reflection on who will be left behind when humanity eventually has to flee the planet – looms large. In spite of the sci-fi setting of the Mars mission, the book never lets you forget exactly what time period it is set in. The timeline for people of color and women being astronauts is far ahead of real history, but the racial tensions and prejudices of that time period are still prevalent, even among the astronauts of the Mars mission.
Elma has a better handle on her anxiety than she did in the first book, but it still rears its ugly head from time to time. The biggest surprise for me was a sort of redemption arc for Parker, who is still an asshole by nature but (A) his character is fleshed out so that that’s not the only thing we know about him, (B) prolonged time together leads him and Elma to understand and sympathize with each other better, and (C) he is somewhat eclipsed by a much bigger asshole in the form of De Beer, whose home country of South Africa is still under apartheid.
I think I liked this novel even better than the first. It moves quite a bit faster than the first installment.
Representation: Major side characters of color (Black, Asian, Muslim), Jewish main character, main character with mental illness, gay characters and mention of gay relationships
CW: racism, sexism, first-person depiction of mental illness, dismissive attitudes toward mental illness, disposal of human remains
The plot of the book centers around the Mars mission, but race relations are at the center of emotional conflict in this novel. The question of what types of people are getting the privilege of participating in the space program – and its reflection on who will be left behind when humanity eventually has to flee the planet – looms large. In spite of the sci-fi setting of the Mars mission, the book never lets you forget exactly what time period it is set in. The timeline for people of color and women being astronauts is far ahead of real history, but the racial tensions and prejudices of that time period are still prevalent, even among the astronauts of the Mars mission.
Elma has a better handle on her anxiety than she did in the first book, but it still rears its ugly head from time to time. The biggest surprise for me was a sort of redemption arc for Parker, who is still an asshole by nature but (A) his character is fleshed out so that that’s not the only thing we know about him, (B) prolonged time together leads him and Elma to understand and sympathize with each other better, and (C) he is somewhat eclipsed by a much bigger asshole in the form of De Beer, whose home country of South Africa is still under apartheid.
I think I liked this novel even better than the first. It moves quite a bit faster than the first installment.
Representation: Major side characters of color (Black, Asian, Muslim), Jewish main character, main character with mental illness, gay characters and mention of gay relationships
CW: racism, sexism, first-person depiction of mental illness, dismissive attitudes toward mental illness, disposal of human remains