You need to sign in or sign up before continuing.
Take a photo of a barcode or cover
A review by alex_ellermann
The Sparrow by Mary Doria Russell
5.0
'The Sparrow' is a masterpiece. It's the kind of book that makes me rethink other five-star reviews I've given. It's the kind of book that'll drive down my grading average for at least the next few months.
This is a science fiction story about, as C.S. Lewis called it, the problem of pain. A novel in the "first contact" subgenre, this near-future story imagines radio astronomers finding music emanating from somewhere in the Alpha Centauri System. Who sponsors mankind's first expedition to contact alien life? The Jesuits.
Things go horrifically, catastrophically wrong. This isn't a spoiler: it's revealed in the first page of the book. 'The Sparrow' is told in two parallel stories: the real-time story of the expedition's crew, how they came together, and the events of the trip; and the after-story of the internal inquisition, involving the deeply traumatized lone survivor, into what went wrong.
So, what makes 'The Sparrow' so remarkable? First, the writing itself is beautiful. Author Mary Doria Russell has a keen ear for the right turn of phrase. She conveys beauty, exaltation, horror, or despair not simply by telling us what happened but as a poet does, by making us feel the emotions in her choice of words and the very rhythms of her sentences. Second, Russel brings her academic background as a paleoanthropologist to bear in creating a wholly alien world with plausible species, cultures, and languages. If you came for the sci-fi, 'The Sparrow' brings the sci-fi! Third, and most importantly, 'The Sparrow' is a serious exploration of faith, trauma, and the problem of pain. Russel asks one of the central questions of those who believe in a personal God: if He's micromanaging the universe, how does one justify horror? If He isn't, why should one bother to worship Him?
'The Sparrow' takes these questions of faith very seriously. The Jesuits, both those on the mission and those conducting the inquiry, are serious and caring people. The mission's crew, both clergy and laypeople, bring varying perspectives, all of them reasonable and compelling. The members of the inquisition, the head of the Jesuit order, and the lone survivor's caregivers are equally diverse in their approaches and equally earnest in their desire to do the right thing.
This novel is a science fiction adventure, a philosophical/theological investigation, and a work of serious literature. It's also a masterpiece. I recommend it without reservation.
This is a science fiction story about, as C.S. Lewis called it, the problem of pain. A novel in the "first contact" subgenre, this near-future story imagines radio astronomers finding music emanating from somewhere in the Alpha Centauri System. Who sponsors mankind's first expedition to contact alien life? The Jesuits.
Things go horrifically, catastrophically wrong. This isn't a spoiler: it's revealed in the first page of the book. 'The Sparrow' is told in two parallel stories: the real-time story of the expedition's crew, how they came together, and the events of the trip; and the after-story of the internal inquisition, involving the deeply traumatized lone survivor, into what went wrong.
So, what makes 'The Sparrow' so remarkable? First, the writing itself is beautiful. Author Mary Doria Russell has a keen ear for the right turn of phrase. She conveys beauty, exaltation, horror, or despair not simply by telling us what happened but as a poet does, by making us feel the emotions in her choice of words and the very rhythms of her sentences. Second, Russel brings her academic background as a paleoanthropologist to bear in creating a wholly alien world with plausible species, cultures, and languages. If you came for the sci-fi, 'The Sparrow' brings the sci-fi! Third, and most importantly, 'The Sparrow' is a serious exploration of faith, trauma, and the problem of pain. Russel asks one of the central questions of those who believe in a personal God: if He's micromanaging the universe, how does one justify horror? If He isn't, why should one bother to worship Him?
'The Sparrow' takes these questions of faith very seriously. The Jesuits, both those on the mission and those conducting the inquiry, are serious and caring people. The mission's crew, both clergy and laypeople, bring varying perspectives, all of them reasonable and compelling. The members of the inquisition, the head of the Jesuit order, and the lone survivor's caregivers are equally diverse in their approaches and equally earnest in their desire to do the right thing.
This novel is a science fiction adventure, a philosophical/theological investigation, and a work of serious literature. It's also a masterpiece. I recommend it without reservation.