I rated this novel " D " when I read it Sept. 6, 1974.
My rating system: Since Goodreads only allows 1 to 5 stars (no half-stars), you have no option buI rated this novel " D " when I read it Sept. 6, 1974.
My rating system: Since Goodreads only allows 1 to 5 stars (no half-stars), you have no option but to be ruthless. I reserve one star for a book that is a BOMB - or poor (equivalent to a letter grade of F, E, or at most D). Progressing upwards, 2 stars is equivalent to C (C -, C or C+), 3 stars (equals B - or B), 4 stars (equals B+ or A -), and 5 stars (equals A or A+). As a result, I maximize my rating space for good books, and don't waste half or more of that rating space on books that are of marginal quality.
A rating of "D" translates to a Goodreads score of 1 star. Well, actually, it should translate to a score of 1/2 star, but Goodreads said that only a dirty rat would use half stars. [For further information on the term dirty rat - consult the cover of the book]....more
The novelette is set in the far future of the Hainish universe, lke most of Le Guin's SF.
Spoiler Alert
The story includes vignettes about the very unusThe novelette is set in the far future of the Hainish universe, lke most of Le Guin's SF.
Spoiler Alert
The story includes vignettes about the very unusual lives on a planet where men and women live utterly apart, (with men in castles and women in villages), except for sex.
A VERY powerful story.
My rating system: Since Goodreads only allows 1 to 5 stars (no half-stars), you have no option but to be ruthless. I reserve one star for a book that is a BOMB - or poor (equivalent to a letter grade of F, E, or at most D). Progressing upwards, 2 stars is equivalent to C (C -, C or C+), 3 stars (equals to B - or B), 4 stars (equals B+ or A -), and 5 stars (equals A or A+). As a result, I maximize my rating space for good books, and don't waste half or more of that rating space on books that are of marginal quality....more
You and everyone you love are hoplessly trapped in space and time.
In your midst is someone who forces you to bow to their evSuch a horrifying premise.
You and everyone you love are hoplessly trapped in space and time.
In your midst is someone who forces you to bow to their every whim.
Someone whose moods shift unpredictably.
Someone who is completely irrational.
Someone who is a child.
*** Spoiler Alert ***
As many of you other seniors will recall, this story was memorably presented on Twilight Zone. The story, and the episode (featuring Billy Mumy), are unforgettable.
My rating system: Since Goodreads only allows 1 to 5 stars (no half-stars), you have no option but to be ruthless. I reserve one star for a book that is a BOMB - or poor (equivalent to a letter grade of F, E, or at most D). Progressing upwards, 2 stars is equivalent to C (C -, C or C+), 3 stars (equals to B - or B), 4 stars (equals B+ or A -), and 5 stars (equals A or A+). As a result, I maximize my rating space for good books, and don't waste half or more of that rating space on books that are of marginal quality....more
Favourite in that "I almost wish I hadn't read that." / "I can't get those images out of my brain." / "What is wrong with One of my favourite stories.
Favourite in that "I almost wish I hadn't read that." / "I can't get those images out of my brain." / "What is wrong with Harlan Ellison that he can create these nightmare visions" sort of a way.
NOT for the faint of heart!
Caveat legit!
If you would like to try a Harlan story that doesn't damage your soul, but is still excellent, you might try "Jeffty is Five".
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My rating system: Since Goodreads only allows 1 to 5 stars (no half-stars), you have no option but to be ruthless. I reserve one star for a book that is a BOMB - or poor (equivalent to a letter grade of F, E, or at most D). Progressing upwards, 2 stars is equivalent to C (C -, C or C+), 3 stars (equals to B - or B), 4 stars (equals B+ or A -), and 5 stars (equals A or A+). As a result, I maximize my rating space for good books, and don't waste half or more of that rating space on books that are of marginal quality....more
MUCH environmental and socialist (anti-capitalist) content (Hurray!). His 18th novel - I have read all of them.
Is it a spoiler to say that we discoveMUCH environmental and socialist (anti-capitalist) content (Hurray!). His 18th novel - I have read all of them.
Is it a spoiler to say that we discover that unrestrained voracious capitalism and the relentless squandering of natural resources is bad for the planet and every single one of its species - including humans?
Vivid characters and an interesting plot BUT, sad to say, many parts drag.
I must confess that my four star rating likely reflects the fact I am a huge gigantic fan of Kim Stanley Robinson. If you enjoy his novels, be sure to check out his short stories. You may also wish to find "The High Sierra: A Love Story". You don't even have to be a geologist to enjoy it. Or an environmentalist. Or rational - but it probably helps....more
The page count for this book includes 18 pages of appendices - A catalogue of Fifth Seasons; a Glossary (both are the same as in volumes 1 and 2); andThe page count for this book includes 18 pages of appendices - A catalogue of Fifth Seasons; a Glossary (both are the same as in volumes 1 and 2); and Acknowledgements. This page count felt a bit like padding.
SPOILER ALERT SPOILER ALERT SPOILER ALERT The text below includes spoilers.
The novel was interesting BUT I do NOT like teleporting around the planet. Also - I do NOT like the stone-eaters very much at all. The imminent apocalypse makes it all seem rather pointless. It is a bit like our current situation - I am diligently cataloguing my books on Goodreads / rearranging the deck chairs on the Titanic - while the average global temperature of my home planet creeps up toward and past the apocalyptic 1.6 degrees.
The process of getting to the moon in the novel was asinine. Was this really the best the author could do??? If so - leave it out altogether!
Being a geologist, I really enjoyed the first novel of the series, and found it very thought-provoking. When it arrived, at the about the same time as Naomi Novik's excellent fantasy "Uprooted", I was torn between the two - undecided over which was the better of the two. As with a great many (most?) series, the general trendline of the Broken Earth series quality was downward - with a rather abrupt drop-off (for me) between the second and third novels. All the more surprising, then, that this third novel won a Nebula as well as a Hugo.
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Incidentally, it is noteworthy that that every single novel in this trilogy won a Hugo Award. This is apparently the first time that it has happened. This is a major achievement, and I want to state clearly that I fully acknowledge her success, and have no wish to detract from it.
However, if you were to judge by the clamour over this event, you would misjudge what has occurred. The big, striking record overall for Hugo Awards for novel is the fact that Robert A. Heinlein won an astounding four in his career - more than anyone else ever. And he did so way back in 1966 (only 13 years after the awards were instituted)! Were the commentators who were obsessing over N.K. Jemisin’s 3 Hugos unaware of these facts – did they not have access to a search engine/computer/smartphone? Even a quick check of Wikipedia would have set the record straight.
If we pull back and focus on the big picture, I look at which novels have won one or the other of the two biggest awards each year – namely the Hugos and the Nebulas. A total of 106 novels have won either a Hugo and/or a Nebula Award (begun in 1966), as of Aug. 1, 2024 – it might increase by 1 next week). I think the vast majority of SF & F fans (at least in the west) would regard the Hugo and Nebula as the 2 of the major awards (and it really is not clear that one or the other takes precedence). On that score, only 1 author has won 5 awards (Lois McMaster Bujold), 3 authors have won 4 awards (Ursula K. Le Guin, Kim Stanley Robinson, and the aforementioned RAH). When you go one step further – to authors who have won an award for 3 different novels – there are FOUR authors – namely Joe Haldeman, Vernor Vinge and Connie Willis – in addition to N.K. Jemisin.
Winning a Hugo Award for every novel in a series is important, but it is equally important to place this feat in context.
My rating system: Since Goodreads only allows 1 to 5 stars (no half-stars), you have no option but to be ruthless. I reserve one star for a book that is a BOMB - or poor (equivalent to a letter grade of F, E, or at most D). Progressing upwards, 2 stars is equivalent to C (C -, C or C+), 3 stars (equals to B - or B), 4 stars (equals B+ or A -), and 5 stars (equals A or A+). As a result, I maximize my rating space for good books, and don't waste half or more of that rating space on books that are of marginal quality. I rated this book C+. This translates to a Goodreads score of 2 stars.
Absolutely wonderful!!! Paolo Bacigalupi is one of the best and brightest of our new science fiction wonders. This is one of the very best novels to hAbsolutely wonderful!!! Paolo Bacigalupi is one of the best and brightest of our new science fiction wonders. This is one of the very best novels to have ever won a Hugo OR a Nebula! Also be sure to check out his wonderful collection: Pump Six and Other Stories, and many stories in Gardner Dozois' Year's Best Science Fiction Collections, etc.
My rating system: Since Goodreads only allows 1 to 5 stars (no half-stars), you have no option but to be ruthless. I reserve one star for a book that is a BOMB - or poor (equivalent to a letter grade of F, E, or at most D). Progressing upwards, 2 stars is equivalent to C (C -, C or C+), 3 stars (equals B - or B), 4 stars (equals B+ or A -), and 5 stars (equals A or A+). As a result, I maximize my rating space for good books, and don't waste half or more of that rating space on books that are of marginal quality....more
It is basically a fix-up novel. It combines 3 connected novellas into a single novel: Fiat Homo (which I rated A++), Fiat Lux (which I rated A - -), aIt is basically a fix-up novel. It combines 3 connected novellas into a single novel: Fiat Homo (which I rated A++), Fiat Lux (which I rated A - -), and Fiat Voluntas Tua (which I rated B+). This was only the seventh novel to win the Hugo award for best novel (and 2 of those previous awards had been won by a single author - Robert A. Heinlein).
See also the much later ~sequel, "Saint Leibowitz and the Wild Horse Woman" ~~written by Terry Bisson~~ (although "officially" Bisson only provided "editorial assistance", and the "official author" is Walter Miller Jr. - despite the fact that Walter Miller Jr. was essentially a short-fiction writer, and had not actually completed the novel at the time of his death 8 years earlier)....more
There are some very good aspects to ‘The Saint of Bright Doors”, a novel by Varja Chandrasekera. The characters are well-drawn, and the personality ofThere are some very good aspects to ‘The Saint of Bright Doors”, a novel by Varja Chandrasekera. The characters are well-drawn, and the personality of Fetter, the protagonist, is vivid. His origin story is fascinating, if pretty bizarre, and his family is likewise ‘noteworthy’. To its credit, the novel exhibits the author's significant social conscience, and raises valid questions about how to behave ethically in an unjust world. It also raises questions about religious sensibilities, and their moral ramifications in such a world. A world pretty similar to ours, in some respects.
Unfortunately, things go south from there. Fetter’s life and thoughts are often wild and utterly incomprehensible. This situation changes, course, when the author tells us what's going on. Sad to say, things often become even less understandable after the explanations.
Think Philp K. Dick - when he was being obscure - when he was being intentionally (?!?) confusing - when he was being particularly PKD-ish. When someone was throwing the I-Ching, for example, to try to understand the world – and discovering that it was impossible to comprehend what was going on. When it seemed as though you were viewing some unknown planet through assorted dark distorting lenses, after consuming vast quantities of mind-altering substances. In short - muddled.
Since I only rated this novel C+, my Goodreads rating was just 2 stars. This is essentially a failed novel, so I consider this assessment reasonable – the rating could easily have been lower. There were significant stretches of the book, particularly in the last one-third to one-quarter, when I was checking regularly just how many more pages I would have to trudge through before the end.
The good news? I won’t have to force my way through the text again if it wins best novel at the Hugo ceremonies on August 11. I sincerely hope that one of the other nominees wins – but I won’t be placing any wagers. The Hugos (and the Nebulas) have disappointed too many times. At least we will avoid last year’s Hugo fiasco, when the best novel (which had won the Nebula) couldn’t even be nominated.
My rating system: Since Goodreads only allows 1 to 5 stars (no half-stars), you have no option but to be ruthless. I reserve one star for a book that is a BOMB - or poor (equivalent to a letter grade of F, E, or at most D). Progressing upwards, 2 stars is equivalent to C (C -, C or C+), 3 stars (equals to B - or B), 4 stars (equals B+ or A -), and 5 stars (equals A or A+). As a result, I maximize my rating space for good books, and don't waste half or more of that rating space on books that are of marginal quality....more
I rated this novel " A - " when I read it June 30, 1974.
My rating system: Since Goodreads only allows 1 to 5 stars (no half-stars), you have no option I rated this novel " A - " when I read it June 30, 1974.
My rating system: Since Goodreads only allows 1 to 5 stars (no half-stars), you have no option but to be ruthless. I reserve one star for a book that is a BOMB - or poor (equivalent to a letter grade of F, E, or at most D). Progressing upwards, 2 stars is equivalent to C (C -, C or C+), 3 stars (equals B - or B), 4 stars (equals B+ or A -), and 5 stars (equals A or A+). As a result, I maximize my rating space for good books, and don't waste half or more of that rating space on books that are of marginal quality....more
![Way in the Middle of the Air [June 2003/2034]](https://cdn.statically.io/img/i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1414186900l/18136916._SX50_.jpg)
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