Lis Mattson
I had really high hopes for this book, since it was recommended to me by two people who I hold in generally high regard. But man, I found it disappointing.
The prose is a drag. The characters are flat. I keep forgetting who’s who on the ship but it doesn’t seem to matter anyway. This book does not need to be nearly 600 pages.
The politics feel jarringly dated even for the time, compared to other great works of sci-fi published in the late 60s and early 70s. In general, I don’t have a problem enjoying works by authors who have politics I disagree with, but when terrible politics are the main focus of the novel, and not particularly compelling, it’s impossible to ignore.
There are some genuinely great elements to the story, but I wish I didn’t have to wallow through the rest to get to them.
I kept giving this book the benefit of the doubt, but at the end, I’ve come to the conclusion that it’s really just a shallow work of fiction.
The first half reads like a rejected episode of TOS. The second half is worse. 3/10. I wouldn’t bother.
I had really high hopes for this book, since it was recommended to me by two people who I hold in generally high regard. But man, I found it disappointing.
The prose is a drag. The characters are flat. I keep forgetting who’s who on the ship but it doesn’t seem to matter anyway. This book does not need to be nearly 600 pages.
The politics feel jarringly dated even for the time, compared to other great works of sci-fi published in the late 60s and early 70s. In general, I don’t have a problem enjoying works by authors who have politics I disagree with, but when terrible politics are the main focus of the novel, and not particularly compelling, it’s impossible to ignore.
There are some genuinely great elements to the story, but I wish I didn’t have to wallow through the rest to get to them.
I kept giving this book the benefit of the doubt, but at the end, I’ve come to the conclusion that it’s really just a shallow work of fiction.
The first half reads like a rejected episode of TOS. The second half is worse. 3/10. I wouldn’t bother.
Oh man where to begin.
I (re-)read this while sick over the span of 4 days and it was a tough, tough read. I had initially read it about 10 years ago as a high school assignment and didn’t get much out of it, not surprisingly.
Now, I find it terribly haunting and aggravating. I honestly don’t think I have anything intelligent to say right now. I have so many wispy, uncollected, deeply rooted thoughts about this book and pride and sin and character and sacrifice and selfishness.
Structurally, I love how Faulkner bends time and perspective and omniscience, it’s just remarkable. I’m obsessed with the concept of giving the reader just enough to understand everything without ever being explicit. How far can you blur the lines and still make the sketch visible? Is it a surprise? It’s pretty damn far.
Oh man where to begin.
I (re-)read this while sick over the span of 4 days and it was a tough, tough read. I had initially read it about 10 years ago as a high school assignment and didn’t get much out of it, not surprisingly.
Now, I find it terribly haunting and aggravating. I honestly don’t think I have anything intelligent to say right now. I have so many wispy, uncollected, deeply rooted thoughts about this book and pride and sin and character and sacrifice and selfishness.
Structurally, I love how Faulkner bends time and perspective and omniscience, it’s just remarkable. I’m obsessed with the concept of giving the reader just enough to understand everything without ever being explicit. How far can you blur the lines and still make the sketch visible? Is it a surprise? It’s pretty damn far.
