And that isn’t exactly a compliment, considering 98% of my dreams are confusing, distant, and chock-full of personaThis book read to me like a dream.
And that isn’t exactly a compliment, considering 98% of my dreams are confusing, distant, and chock-full of personal embarrassing moments. Okay, don’t worry— the last part is not applicable to this book… but replace that with an “imaginative world”, “witty writing” and “very, very slow”, and you have my summary of this story. _________
2 STARS • IMAGINATIVE, PHILOSOPHICAL, SLOW-MOTION
An Overview: This book begins when the curious Dr. Ransom arrives at the wrong place at the wrong time, leading to him being abducted by two maniac scientists. He soon finds out they are on a spaceship going toward a new planet called Malacandra (not to be confused with that thing in your body, Mitochondria), and his abductors (the idiotic and intimidating Weston and Divine) plan to use him as a human sacrifice. Ransom quickly flees once they arrive at the planet, delving deep into the mysterious, alluring, and peaceful world alone.
The Pros: The world C.S. Lewis has imagined on the planet Mars is incredibly creative, brilliant, and rich in meaning (though, as you’ll learn if you read the postscript, he actuallydidn’tcreate this world by himself; the entire story is based on the “true story” of Dr. Ransom, who had a vision that this happened to him). Nonetheless, I enjoyed learning about the diverse and interesting alien species, far different than most stereotypes of aliens I’ve encountered.
Lewis’ writing, as always, is savory with candor, wit, and illustrious words. The mystical setting told through his sensible voice is an authentic combination you won’t match anywhere else.
Also, the themes of this book arelayered upon layered.In class, (this was a school assignment) my class had incredibly profound discussions from this book. What is an alien? What is a person? Is it scientifically and/or theologically possible this world actually existed/exists? Is it possible this world is an alternate reality of ours, or there are multiple universes, where humans look differently from ours? Did Lewis view this world as paradise, or a better world than ours, or just different? And I’m not at all suggesting Lewis is telling us intelligent life exists out in space— possibly, but probably not. I don’t know, and I currently don’t see how — at least theologically — this view could be plausible. But it definitely got me thinking and considering ideas, which has high value in itself.
The Cons: Now that I got the nice, pretty things out of the way— I’ll be honest. I found this book incredibly boring the entire way, and especially toward the end.
The fascinating philosophical and theological themes and ideas were bogged down by an un-suspenseful plot, which read like a wildlife documentary of peaceful mammals that do nothing but eat and sleep all day. Thiswouldhave worked, and been interesting, if I cared about the characters.But I didn't(read more on that below.) Ransom was that dry documentary host who is fascinated by the everyday, mundane tasks of these creatures in their culture. And look, if this truly happened, I could see myself wanting to know everything about this new intelligent species, no matter how boring and unrelatable they are. I love learning about new cultures! But the things Ransom and the aliens did and how they engaged with each other felt so uneventful, filler, and lack of connection to the “main plot” whatever that truly was. (This includes Ransom learning their language, which was interesting for some time, but ended up being basic and, again, not brought into the “plot” at the end.)
I didn’t find the end anything revelational, to say the least.(view spoiler)[ Meet the cool ruler of the world! Chill! He’s a little boring too, sweet! Cool ruler chides Ransom for being a coward. Aw, nice! Cool ruler humiliates the “villain” who was stupid and uninteresting from the beginning! How exciting! Ransom chooses to return home, and in the BIGGEST conflict that’s happened the entire time (they’re stuck in the ship! They’re gonna die!!!!), Ransom wakes up… from a dream. (At least that’s what I read. I wasn’t really sure because it was confusing) Wow. What in the nick of time! How utterly convenient!(hide spoiler)]
The characters were truly the worst part of this for me. They all fell flat. (Maybe you might see why)
• RANSOM: naturally curious and philosophical, though not curious enough for it to be contagious. Coward and oblivious idiot, though referred to as “remarkable” because he has enough wit to seem mildly intelligent. But otherwise, a completely perfect uninteresting cracker. • WESTON/DIVINE (they’re practically the same): blockheads, not scary in the least, motivated by greed, control, development, etc. • EVERY ALIEN: peaceful, cordial, polite, etc.; act all the same *but different*
And listen, I get, the point was that these aliens were mostly unflawed, as their world is not as sinful as Earth. Makes sense! But “perfect people/creatures” won’t act like perfectly pleasant and polite little beings. They can still be funny, and loud as well as quiet, and… you get my point, right?? That’s why I was extremely disappointed to find I wasn’t attached to any of the new creatures, who I expected would be instantly lovable and interesting.
Plus… Lewis is doing here was is very difficult to do: write a story in a world where there is next to no conflict. I admire him for trying, but for me it fell flat.
The Conclusion: Complex, rich in themes, discussion, and wit, it is easy to see why this book intrigues many readers. But for me, the dragging and conflict-less plot, bland and cloned characters made this, unfortunately, a tiresome story for me....more
The plot line, characters, and themes of this book were compellingly written and co3 STARS • THOUGHT-PROVOKING, CHARACTER-DRIVEN, FLUFFY ___________
The plot line, characters, and themes of this book were compellingly written and complex; however, they were out shadowed by unnecessary details that just fluffed up the story to 400 pages. And the fact that Forster took the pain to describe so much information that he never tied into the plot or characters significantly caused me to lose trust with him which are me lose interest in what was going on.Seriously,this book could be cut down to 200 pages and have just as much depth without the side comments that caused it to drag.
That being said, I have read FAR more boring books (*cough cough*Father Brown), and it was overall a medium-pace book that kept me engaged because of the character insights and impactful meaning (plus: I always love some legal drama, of course). Also, some of Forster’s writing, like the descriptions of India in the first chapter, is poetic and alluring.
By day the blue will pale down into white where it touches the white of the land, after sunset it has a new circumference—orange, melting upwards into tenderest purple. But the core of blue persists, so it is by night. Then the stars hang mine lamps from the immense vault. The distance between the valut and them is as nothing to the distance behind them, and that farther distance, though beyond color, last freed itself from blue.
Ultimately,what made this book get more than 2 stars but thechallenging and memorablediscussion it raised in my class (this was a school read). We discussed the culture differences of the English to India and individualism vs peace at all costs; the division of religions in India that was displayed in the book; the racial conflicts and whether England’s position was justified. So even though we barely discussed the plot at all, my class had one of our best discussions.
I would have to call it a must-read for that very reason —- but also I highly recommend you read this through a book club or along other people. You will get far more out of it! ____________
TW // Mention of sexual assault, but not described (mild); CW // Xenophobia (prejudice), racism, racial slurs, some sexism...more
How do you reviewHarry Potter,the ruler of all fantasy series???
(and, okay yeah, probably ALL book series in general. My special snowflake syndrHow do you reviewHarry Potter,the ruler of all fantasy series???
(and, okay yeah, probably ALL book series in general. My special snowflake syndrome struggles with loving the same books everyone else in the entire world does— but I really cannot deny it. This book series is amazing. That’s it. Done.)
Anyways— answer is:You don’t review Harry Potter. At least I won’t. I’ll just leave the long, extensive rants to the rare oddballs who dislike Harry Potter and this is the only outlet they can get their words out on.
Go ahead. Release your words. You are subject to your own opinions, and such opinions are so far out and ineffective to my life that I don’t care.
For one of you, there are a thousand HP fans giving a five-four star rating. It’s just facts.:)
Everyone loves this book but for entirely opposite reasons.
Why? I think it’s fundamentally because Orwell mainly opposes what we all hate (if you havEveryone loves this book but for entirely opposite reasons.
Why? I think it’s fundamentally because Orwell mainly opposes what we all hate (if you have any care for the betterment of society)— totalitarianism.
And then, he *seemingly* leaves up the critique of political systems for people to decide. Or so it seems, as some people quote this book as outrightly anti-communist/socialist (because those are the same thing, right?), and then other people quote this as outrightly anti-capitalist.
But, I think Orwelldideither have a purpose to refute one of those political systems, or he didn’t want to refute either at all.
I encourage everyone after this book to read it with an open mind, and then research about it. You can disagree with Orwell, of course! But make sure youknowwhat he’s actually saying before you agree/disagree.
So, expect an actual review after I follow my own advice above^^:)...more
I rate this four stars for the raw facts that it’s an important satire essay by a brilliant satirist who raised his voi4 STARS • SATIRE AT ITS RIPEST
I rate this four stars for the raw facts that it’s an important satire essay by a brilliant satirist who raised his voice against the tyranny and injustice in his society.
This essay only came when pigheaded England refused to listen to Jonathan Swift when he protested through essays of straightforward, plain logic. That’s when Swift realized he had toagreewith them first, then exaggerate their reasoning, and let it blow up in their faces. He crafts this using the deep and often-misunderstood techniques of irony, sarcasm, and wit to produce a satire that isundeniably unforgettable,if it can’t be called anything else.
So, did this make an impact on my life, though? Oh yeah. Did it raise important questions and deep discussions among my peers? Absolutely. Do I think it’s a must-read for everyone, at some point in their life? Yes.
But is it repulsive?Yep.Of course it is. And I honestly hope you find that it is absolutely horrendous. Because that’s the entire point of (most) satire:It’s supposed to feel wrong.
So will I ever read this again? Haha.Absolutely not.
But Iwillreflect upon it when I need to feel the disgusting taste of tyranny and discrimination, and the desolation yet desperation of the poverty-stricken. This essay will remind you not to numb to such things, but use the natural revulsion you feel as fuel to stand up against injustice. ___________
*Again*, It is all for satirical purposes, but FYI.....TW // Cannibalism, child abuse...more
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