A review by the_laibararian
The Long Way to a Small, Angry Planet by Becky Chambers

5.0

This book was soooo good! The author does an amazing job worldbuilding and exploring all the different characters' lives. It reads as genuinely realistic and like an adventure book simply set in space rather than *Space Adventure* if that makes sense. Many things the characters are experiencing are just average everyday parts of life in the future, while still remaining interesting and including more "out there" fun experiences and characters. The history and technology just blends right in to the writing instead of being a bunch of exposition or feeling out of place, and the aliens seemed like actual other species and not just knock-off humans. The romantic couples in this were also really nice - sweet and subtle without lots of drama since it's not the focus of the book. The majority of the writing is more character-based than plot (though that still has satisfying writing throughout with a good conclusion) which I personally enjoyed. I found that listening to it as an audiobook definitely upped the experience, especially with the booktrack. The narrator did a great job and the sound effects were well-placed and blended in with the "background" nicely. I've already recommended to some friends and will continue to do so because I absolutely loved it!