Describe Out Of Books The Sparrow (The Sparrow #1)
| Title | : | The Sparrow (The Sparrow #1) |
| Author | : | Mary Doria Russell |
| Book Format | : | Paperback |
| Book Edition | : | Deluxe Edition |
| Pages | : | Pages: 516 pages |
| Published | : | September 8th 1997 by Ballantine Books (first published 1996) |
| Categories | : | Science Fiction. Fiction. Fantasy. Religion |
Mary Doria Russell
Paperback | Pages: 516 pages Rating: 4.16 | 56629 Users | 6920 Reviews
Narrative As Books The Sparrow (The Sparrow #1)
In 2019, humanity finally finds proof of extraterrestrial life when a listening post in Puerto Rico picks up exquisite singing from a planet that will come to be known as Rakhat. While United Nations diplomats endlessly debate a possible first contact mission, the Society of Jesus quietly organizes an eight-person scientific expedition of its own. What the Jesuits find is a world so beyond comprehension that it will lead them to question what it means to be "human".Point Books Toward The Sparrow (The Sparrow #1)
| Original Title: | The Sparrow |
| ISBN: | 0449912558 (ISBN13: 9780449912553) |
| Edition Language: | English |
| Series: | The Sparrow #1 |
| Characters: | Emilio Sandoz, Jimmy Quinn, Vincenzo Giuliani, John Candotti, Johannes Voelker, Edward Behr, Sofia Mendez, Anne Edwards, George Edwards, Alan Pace, Felipe Reyes, D.W. Yarbrough, Marc Robichaux, Supaari, Askama, Hlavin Kitheri |
| Setting: | Borgo Santo Spirito, Rome,2059(Italy) Arecibo,2019(Puerto Rico) Naples,2060(Italy) …more San Juan,2019(Puerto Rico) Rakhat,2039 …less |
| Literary Awards: | Arthur C. Clarke Award for Best Novel (1998), Kurd-Laßwitz-Preis for Foreign Novel (2001), British Science Fiction Association Award for Best Novel (1997), John W. Campbell Memorial Award Nominee for Best Science Fiction Novel (1997), James Tiptree Jr. Award (1996) Puddly Award for Science Fiction (2001) |
Rating Out Of Books The Sparrow (The Sparrow #1)
Ratings: 4.16 From 56629 Users | 6920 ReviewsWeigh Up Out Of Books The Sparrow (The Sparrow #1)
I love when I skim through pages of reviews of a book and they are nearly all either 5 stars or one star. Only a really good book produces that range of opinion! This is a really good book.The Sparrow is science fiction with class. It is well written, there is a satisfying amount of science fiction and then there is a whole lot more besides. Russell's greatest talent is in characterisation. I enjoyed every single one of the characters in this book and when I had to put it down and do other6.0 stars. This book was beautifully written and the best way I can think to describe it is emotionally devastating (but in a good way). Nominally, it is a book about "first contact" with an alien race but the heart of the story is the age old question, "How can someone believe in a just, loving God when such horrible things happen to good people?" It has been over a year since I have read this book (in fact I just finished the sequel, Children of God), and I can still remember feeling blown
I had picked this up years ago due to all the terrific reviews, but when I started it, since it involves priests and such, I thought it was going to be a Christian book. So I'm really glad that a group decided to read this, because it is NOT a yah-yah Christian book at all. I would instead call it a spiritual book in that the journey involves time old questions, of faith, of God, of religion, of humanity. And altho most of the main characters are indeed Jesuits and so many questions and
I really loathed this book, I think because it was such a lazy piece of work. The characters had absolutely no clue, no situational awareness of what was going on around them. A real astronaut, hell, Captain Picard himself would never have made the bonehead moves these characters make in a first contact situation, and then--then! to have one of them kidnapped and sold into sexual slavery? Are you KIDDING me? Any scientist, no, make that anyone who made it through freshman biology could have told
If I wanted to read about sexual slavery, rape, gang rape, and gang rape with an audience, I'd just read the news everyday. Actually, I do read the news every day. This kind of stuff is rampant. It always blows my mind that SF-F authors - who can write about ANYTHING, no limits - often choose to return to stuff like sexual slavery.This is not entertainment for me. It is real life, it is every day, and it is NOT what I seek out in my fiction.Russell is a great writer - this one-star is not a
If God is anything like a middle-class white chick from the suburbs, which i admit is a long shot, it's what you do about what feel that matters.(4.25?) This was a beautiful and heart wrenching book. The characters were attaching and you can't help but root for them... but also cry with them. An interesting take on the first contact with alien trope.
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