elinor_thirteen 's review for:

Solaris by Stanisław Lem

5.0

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This is one of the most hardcore books I've ever read. It's true tip-top eternal tier literature that I'm sure will long outlive us all. Every once in awhile you read one of these kinds of books and you understand why a classic is a classic. It's not hardcore because it's huge and impenetrable, as I expected it to be, given its reputation. On the contrary, it's fairly slight and clearly written and the plot moves quickly. It's hardcore because it's simultaneously one of the saddest, scariest and most disturbing books I've ever read. A very challenging combo. The very profound sadness of it overwhelmed me and I had to stop reading for periods of time, as did the disturbingness, which would sometimes stay with me for hours after I put it down. The fact that it's dealing with the incomprehensible, the deepest philosophical questions about the universe and our place in it and basic human yearnings, had my imagination in high gear, the world of Solaris I created in my mind was vivid, beautiful, terrifying and painful. I wept at the end. I'll never forget reading this book. If you're looking for something that attempts to engage with what our own minds cannot comprehend, suitable for this period in human history, then this book will move you.