Read all about it…#RRSciFiMonth
14 November 2016
Filed under Book Reviews
Tags: #RRSciFiMonth, A Closed and Common Orbit, Becky Chambers, Readalong announcement
A quick post to notify you of a readalong that starts at the beginning of December. I’m announcing this now whilst we’re still in Sci Fi Month (hosted by Rinn Reads and Over the Effing Rainbow) to give you all time to lay your hands on a copy and take part. I’m just thoughtful like that. Anyway, if you’ve read Becky Chamber’s Long Way to a Small Angry Planet and fancy getting on board for the next adventure this readalong could be just for you. Here are all the details plus the link to the Goodreads page (schedule pasted below for quick ref). If you fancy joining in then dive in with the comments or stop on over to the Goodreads page so we can all welcome you aboard.
And now, for the science bit…
A Closed and Common Orbit (Wayfarers #2):
Lovelace was once merely a ship’s artificial intelligence. When she wakes up in an new body, following a total system shut-down and reboot, she has no memory of what came before. As Lovelace learns to negotiate the universe and discover who she is, she makes friends with Pepper, an excitable engineer, who’s determined to help her learn and grow.
Together, Pepper and Lovey will discover that no matter how vast space is, two people can fill it together.
The Long Way to a Small, Angry Planet introduced readers to the incredible world of Rosemary Harper, a young woman with a restless soul and secrets to keep. When she joined the crew of the Wayfarer, an intergalactic ship, she got more than she bargained for – and learned to live with, and love, her rag-tag collection of crewmates.
A Closed and Common Orbit is the stand-alone sequel to Becky Chambers’ beloved debut novel The Long Way to a Small, Angry Planet and is perfect for fans of Firefly, Joss Whedon, Mass Effectand Star Wars.
Here’s the schedule:
Week 1: Friday 2nd December – Start of Part 1 up to Page 94 (“…yellow, silver, white…”), hosted by Over the Effing Rainbow
Week 2: Friday 9th December – Page 95 (Jane, Age 10 “Jane was still tired…”) to End of Part 1, hosted by imyril at There’s Always Room For One More
Week 3: Friday 16th December – all of Part 2, hosted by Lynn at Lynn’s Book Blog
Week 4: Friday 23rd December – Part 3 to End, hosted by Mogsy at The BiblioSanctum
Waiting on Wednesday: A Closed and Common Orbit by Becky Chambers #RRSciFiMonth
2 November 2016
Filed under Book Reviews
Tags: #RRSciFiMonth, A Closed and Common Orbit, Becky Chambers, Breaking the Spine, Waiting on Wednesday
“Waiting On Wednesday” is a weekly meme hosted by Breaking the Spine. Every Wednesday we get to highlight a book that we’re really looking forward to. My book this week is : A Closed and Common Orbit by Becky Chambers – now, you may be wondering what I’m doing highlighting this book for a WoW when in actual fact it was released a few days ago. Well, three fold, firstly, I’m still waiting on it so there’s that (okay, that’s a very skimpy excuse because I just haven’t ‘one clicked’ yet! but, even so), secondly, yesterday saw the start of SciFi Month 2016 which I’ve signed up for and am highlighting all things sci fi as much as possible; and thirdly, there’s a readalong planned for this book with a few other mighty swell bloggers – due to take place in December I’ll post further details as soon as the schedule is posted.
Lovelace was once merely a ship’s artificial intelligence. When she wakes up in an new body, following a total system shut-down and reboot, she has no memory of what came before. As Lovelace learns to negotiate the universe and discover who she is, she makes friends with Pepper, an excitable engineer, who’s determined to help her learn and grow.
Together, Pepper and Lovey will discover that no matter how vast space is, two people can fill it together.
The Long Way to a Small, Angry Planet introduced readers to the incredible world of Rosemary Harper, a young woman with a restless soul and secrets to keep. When she joined the crew of the Wayfarer, an intergalactic ship, she got more than she bargained for – and learned to live with, and love, her rag-tag collection of crewmates.
A Closed and Common Orbit is the stand-alone sequel to Becky Chambers’ beloved debut novel The Long Way to a Small, Angry Planet and is perfect for fans of Firefly, Joss Whedon, Mass Effect and Star Wars.
The Long Way to a Small, Angry Planet by Becky Chambers, readalong week No.4 #RRSciFiMonth
27 November 2015
Filed under Book Reviews
Tags: Becky Chambers, Readalong, The Long Way to a Small Angry Planet
Today is the final week of our readalong of The Long Way to a Small Angry Planet by Becky Chambers. The readalong has been organised by Lisa at Over The Effing Rainbow and is part of this year’s Sci-Fi Month.
So, to the questions, with a timely reminder before we start that the following may contain spoilers:
1. Let’s start with the Toremi, since we’ve waited this long to get to them! As we’ve been discussing for a while, we do get to learn more about the Toremi, about their culture and how they think and behave. In light of what happens when the Wayfarer reaches Hedra Ka, what’s your take on the Toremi now? Are the GC right to abandon their negotiations or could there have been a chance to make something of it?
At the end of the day the GC didn’t really know enough about the Toremi did they? Basically their culture and ways are very different and, whilst there’s nothing wrong with being different, I wonder whether they’ll ever be compatible. I think the GC were too busy thinking of the benefits of this agreement and not enough time on how, or whether, they could make it work. The motivations were frankly wrong and it all felt a little rushed. Plus the snapshot we saw of the Toremi before they met with the Wayfarer crew seemed to show that not all of them were content with the agreement with the GC and it seems like their response to disagreement, whether between themselves or others, is violence! I don’t know, it’s a difficult one, partly because I’m not quite sure what motivated the Toremi to ever want such an agreement in the first place. Perhaps they could both make it work in the future but for the moment I would say not. The lack of knowledge and understanding and the risk of causing offence and the resulting bloodshed are too great.
2. A visit to a Solitary Sianat colony in “Heresy” provides a potential cure for Ohan’s illness, but they make it fairly clear they don’t want it – though there may be some debate about whether or not Ohan is in their right mind… Corbin takes matters into his own hands in that respect, and he does it in a crucial moment following the attack on the Wayfarer. Do you think Corbin did the right thing?
Well, yes and no. Yes, because of the way Ohan responded and acted at the end of the story. He seemed happy and he wanted to stay with the crew so in that respect I think Corbin’s decision was good. I suppose you could say that Corbin did this with selfish reasons, keeping Ohan alive because the crew would suffer if another member of their team died – but really, his intent was not bad. Then again, no, because he took away Ohan’s rights and ability to choose. Now, I’m going to have a bit of an argument with myself. Okay, Corbin did take away Ohan’s ability to choose, but, if Ohan’s mental capacity was being affected by the illness wouldn’t that be the right thing to do? If Ohan couldn’t make the choice due to mental issues then I suppose somebody would have to do that for him. At the end of the day you wouldn’t just let somebody die if they weren’t able to reasonably make that decision – would you? On the whole I’m going with yes, primarily because if it was me and I wasn’t in the right mind to make the decision I think I’d sooner somebody make that decision and keep me alive! And now, Ohan is having cooking lessons with Dr Chef – so it’s all good!
3. Ohan survives the attack on the ship, but Lovey (as we know her) doesn’t. Were you at all prepared for what happened to the AI? And in light of all that, do you think Pepper’s offered solution was the right one?
I really didn’t see that coming at all and it really was so sad. But, I think Pepper’s solution was good and I do think it was the right choice. Lovey could have stayed on the ship – and Jenks would constantly be reminded of what they had, and maybe even try to recreate it. But the circumstances that led to Lovey becoming the character she was could never be duplicated, they were unique and all the crew contributed towards the way her character developed. We do lose people we love and we have to come to terms with it and it would be pretty awful, for example, to think that somebody you loved had died but then the body still lived with a different personality inside – it’s the same thing here, Lovey doesn’t have a body as such, she is part of the ship but once she was reset it was no longer the Lovey that everyone knew but a different personality altogether living inside the ship. Plus, it felt like it would be a good choice for Lovey to be honest. Pepper seemed to be making her a really good offer.
4. This one is less of a “thinky” question and more of a “wrap up” one, but I’m curious for your answers – now that we’ve finished the story, what scenes/moments do you remember best as your favourites, if any?
Well, I’m obviously a sucker for the happier moments to be honest and these were thankfully scattered liberally throughout. I think my favourite parts of the story were the introductions to the crew, watching the dynamics between them all and seeing the relationships grow. Sissix was undoubtedly my favourite character and I think that’s simply because she was so loving and affectionate – it’s difficult to not like a character with that type of nature.
Thanks to Lisa for organising this readalong and to all the other participants for all the thought provoking discussion. Stars! It’s been a blast!
The Long Way to a Small, Angry Planet by Becky Chambers, readalong week No.3 #RRSciFiMonth
20 November 2015
Filed under Book Reviews
Tags: #RRSciFiMonth, Becky Chambers, Readalong week 3, The Long Way to a Small Angry Planet
Today is week three of a readalong of The Long Way to a Small Angry Planet by Becky Chambers. The readalong has been organised by Lisa at Over The Effing Rainbow and is part of this year’s Sci-Fi Month. The details for the readalong are here and the schedule looks like this:
Week 1 (Friday, November 6th): “Transit” to “The Job” – hosted by Over The Effing Rainbow
Week 2 (Friday, November 13th): “Port Coriol” to “Cricket” – hosted by Chris @ Galleywampus
Week 3 (Friday, November 20th): “The Last War” to “October 25” – hosted by Claire Rousseau
Week 4 (Friday, November 27th): “Heresy” to end – hosted by Over The Effing Rainbow
All welcome.
So, to the questions, with a timely reminder before we start that the following may contain spoilers:
1. There is a lot of focus on some of the different alien races in this section, from Dr Chef recounting the story of his people’s decline and Sissix introducing Rosemary to her families, to the surprise visit from the Aeluons and the much less welcome search by the Quelin. What are your thoughts on the various beliefs systems we encounter? Does anything specific pique your interest more than the rest?
These were all really interesting little glimpses into the different alien races we’re encountering and I think all deserve a mention. It was lovely to see Sissix amongst her own people and to witness how comfortable and happy she was. Their family systems are quite fascinating but are clearly very effective for them. I really liked the explanations – for example, the way the older members look after the children – because they have more knowledge and experience (not to mention patience ) – and also because the younger members want to go off exploring. You have to admit that the reasoning really stacked up. I just really enjoyed that whole episode to be honest. The Aeluons – they seem a very calm, almost detached race – and yet that’s not really true as we see through Pei – perhaps that feeling arises simply because they communicate differently. Another enjoyable story – bit scary having all those bombs on board their ship. And the Quelin, well they didn’t really come out in a very good light did they. It just goes to show that you can simply look at the different races on a planet or you can go into space and look at all sorts of different species, but, at the end of the day, you’ll find a certain element who treat others wrong. Course I can’t speak for all Quelin – as this could be a small group and not representative and I wouldn’t like to tar everyone with the same brush?? (Although that didn’t really come across here).
2. Ashby gets the chance to give Pei a tour of his ship and introduce her to his crew, meanwhile Jenks and Lovey decide not to risk transferring the AI into a body just yet, and Rosemary initiates a relationship of sorts with Sissix. Were you happy to see any of these developments, or not so fussed?
I think Jenks and Lovey made a good decision – based on very sound reasoning and actually I thought it was really touching they they don’t want to risk losing each other or damaging what they have now. It was lovely and at the same time a little bit sad that the current legal system prevents them from taking that step but who knows… Pei and Ashby, again, a forbidden relationship! It was again very touching to see how Pei was just as affected by Ashby and his crew’s recent scrape with danger as he usually is by hers. It makes the whole relationship seem more balanced – it’s also interesting that quite a few people know about their relationship and nobody thinks it’s wrong – things need to be put in order don’t they! Finally, Sissix and Rosemary. I think at the moment they’re absolutely perfect for each other and they seem to be going into this with their eyes open which is a good plan, after all they both have things to learn about and from each other. I kind of get the feeling that Rosemary’s family is maybe very cold and calculating and she seems absolutely enamoured with the way Sissix is so open and demonstrative about her feelings and I think it will be lovely for Rosemary to experience that warmth and Sissix of course is missing some TLC being so far removed from her family so it will be great for her to be on the receiving end of some loving attention too. I must admit I think Sissix is a great character. Really fascinating and I love the way she’s written.
3. Cloning technology exists and is used in many sci-fi universes, but the GC does not look kindly on it and it is abomination to the Quelin. Did the reveal of Corbin’s nature change your view of the character?
I don’t think the revelation of Corbin being a clone changed my view of him, I didn’t really have a bad opinion of him – I just think he doesn’t interact well with others. What really made very interesting reading was the conversation between him and his father which I thought was very revealing and quite sad – for both Corbin and his father to be locked into that kind of relationship and also, not really wanting to hurt each other but doing so anyway. Corbin has a lot to come to terms with now so that will be interesting to observe. I’m also keen to see if this changes the way he interacts with the crew – particularly Sissix.
4. Each chapter told a different and fairly self-contained story, without any big cliffhangers from one to the next. How did you feel about the pacing of the story so far? Are you satisfied with how long the long journey is taking or are you impatient for the crew to finally get to their destination and do some tunnelling?
Well, it’s completely different than I expected to be honest. Not in a bad way but I think I was thinking more in terms of grand space opera type sci fi whereas what we have here feels more like little clusters of individual stories that run together as the travel progresses – it feels kind of more like little watching individual series of star trek rather than watching a full blown movie (if that makes sense). I think I would have enjoyed a grand epic type of tale but that being said I’m an absolute sucker for characterisation and the cast in the story really get a chance to shine and show you their true selves. I’m keen to get to the destination as well of course just to see what’s afoot but at the moment I think the pacing is great.
The Long Way to a Small, Angry Planet by Becky Chambers, readalong week No.2 #RRSciFiMonth
13 November 2015
Filed under Book Reviews
Tags: #RRSciFiMonth, Becky Chambers, Readalong week No.2, The Long Way to a Small Angry Planet
Today is week two of a readalong of The Long Way to a Small Angry Planet by Becky Chambers. The readalong has been organised by Lisa at Over The Effing Rainbow and is part of this year’s Sci-Fi Month. The details for the readalong are here and the schedule looks like this:
Week 1 (Friday, November 6th): “Transit” to “Port Coriol” (95 pages)
Week 2 (Friday, November 13th): “Port Coriol” to “The Last War” (110 pages)
Week 3 (Friday, November 20th): “The Last War” to “Heresy” (107 pages)
Week 4 (Friday, November 27th): “Heresy” to end (90 pages)
All welcome.
So, to the questions, with a timely reminder before we start that the following may contain spoilers:
1. There has been significant conversation about AI, what it means to be alive, whether or not AI should have rights, whether or not a person can fall in love with a specific instance of AI, etc. This is a bit of a sticky situation. After the discussion between Pepper and Jenks, how do you feel about Lovey’s and Jenks’ relationship? Should they move forward with their plan?
This is a really fascinating train of thought to be honest. Clearly a person can fall in love with an AI and Jenks is the proof of that. And I can understand why Lovey wants a body – she’s an AI, she develops and learns and I suppose having a body will give her much more freedom to do so. Can she feel for Jenks in the same way that he does for her? It’s really difficult to know isn’t it. Is she manipulating him in order to get a body? It’s a possibility I suppose – and she does need him in that respect – does she equate need with love? Again, I’m not sure. More importantly why does she want a body – does she want a body in order to break out of her confines and learn more, does she want to progress their relationship, does she think it will please Jenks? And, no matter what the answer – are any of those things really so bad? Then again, does Jenks need Lovey – not in the same way perhaps but certainly it must be appealing to him that Lovey has no judgement in terms of him and his stature for example. In that respect they’re both equal in that they haven’t judged each other or had prejudices based on expectations and whatever feelings they have are built on something other than appearance. I am enjoying this storyline and I’m keen to see how it develops. In terms of Pepper and her fears, well, perhaps there is a time in history where AIs had bodies and maybe things didn’t go so well – maybe they did rise up – a la Terminator style- although clearly a body isn’t totally necessary to cause destruction is it? I’m not totally sure that I’ve answered anything here – in fact I seem to have come up with more questions than answers. I’m interested to see what happens but whatever action they take – well, it could have implications for others. So, in one respect I really find it kind of sweet but in another, well, we’ll have to see.
2. In the chapter “Intro to Harmagian Colonial History,” we see Dr. Chef’s perspective of having been a mother, though he is currently male, and Sissix’s perspective that children aren’t people yet. Ohan is referred to as they/them. The Akarak are referred to as xyr/xe. These perspectives and preferences are perspectives actually held by different groups of humans in our own world. Do you think assigning these perspectives to aliens rather than humans make them easier or harder to sympathize with?
I guess it makes it easier in a way – although barely. Probably just that thing about looking for common ground. People – and aliens are all different though aren’t they – as we see from this book.
3. How might the ship robbery have been different if the Wayfarer were armed?
Well, I suppose it depends on how it was armed. I think it is a good idea to take precautions against being attacked – like a shield. However, I think it could have potentially been a lot worse if they were more armed. Both were only small parties but if one person started shooting then they all could have started shooting and it could have escalated massively. At the end of the day they can replace the goods. The only injury was Ashby and that was simply as a result of a misunderstanding in communication. So yeah, I think there’s wouldn’t be any harm in taking some precautions – just be reasonable about it. Ashby seems to have his head screwed on in that respect anyway.
4. As I finished the fourth chapter in my section, “Cricket,” I thought it might be a good place to stop and talk about some of our favorite humorous moments so far. What scenes really tickled your funny bone? Who makes you laugh the most?
I like the humour. It’s not like outright guffawing but I enjoy keeping my dignity when I’m reading in Public! The humour is more subtle – like Rosemary being consoled by her Pixel plant after a dressing down by Corbin. I liked the humour between Dr Chef and Sissix when they were talking about humans – and putting something into the food to stop them being so smelly. Or, after the robbery Sissix saying ‘I took some time to freak out. Didn’t you?’ I loved the chapter ‘Cricket’. The planet and the way the people live – reminiscent of earlier settlers from history – who have little but band together to help each other. And I liked Bear – he’s a gigantic softie isn’t he – building guns and other things – and letting Kizzy plait his hair. Good stuff.
Books and travelling with Lynn 