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I just discovered earlier this week that a classmate of mine reads SF. We started the usual "ooh, what about X? Have you read any of X's stuff?" conversation that I have when I meet someone who has similar taste in fiction, but our authors didn't overlap that much, which could either mean that I'm about to get turned on to a bunch of great authors or that we'll think that the other one's taste in fiction is crap. I'm hoping for (and, given what I've seen of this woman, expecting) the former.
Anyway, she recommended Mary Doria Russell's The Sparrow incredibly highly, and I'll probably either be buying a used copy or borrowing hers in the relatively near future. Anybody familiar with this book, or any of the author's other stuff? If so, what do you think?
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It's the best SF I've read in two years. Granted, I don't read a lot of science fiction, but I thoroughly enjoyed the story. The book was populated with people I respected making decisions I understood under tough circumstances.
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Thanks Irami. I've noticed that your taste in fiction generally corresponds with my own, even if it isn't for the same reasons, so that confirms what I suspected. I'll make a point of tracking down a copy of the book. Have you read any of her other stuff?
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I didn't find it to be a truly wonderful story or a great piece of writing - it was worth the time to read, but I'm sorry I bought it instead of getting it from the library. Then, someone gave me the sequel for Christmas, and well, I'm glad I didn't spend money on it.
I'm not saying it's horrible or anything, it's just...okay.
I'm the type that if I enjoy a book I'll re-read it at least once or twice, and I've never picked these back up since finishing each of them.
Compared to the Song of Ice and Fire, which I've re-read several times and still enjoy.
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Thanks Belle! I'll make sure to get a used copy, if the library doesn't have it (or if I can't just borrow a copy of it from this woman).
I know what you mean about books passing the reread test. A Song of Ice and Fire has definitely passed that one several times over for me. Belle, have you read Nadya: The Wolf Chronicles? It's an amazingly good book--the author did a lot of research to get the historical setting right, and the character development was quite good (not that that's anything but typical for Pat Murphy).
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Noemon, I haven't read it - but I will! It's at my local library, and I have books due back today, so I'll try to head over there and pick it up. Thanks for the suggestion.
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The writing in "The Sparrow" isn't nearly as poetic as the Song of Ice and Fire, but the world is populated with decent people trying to do the right thing. The Song of Ice and Fire is a lovely story, sentence to sentence, paragraph to paragraph, an astounding feet. the [i]Sparrow didn't succeed on that level, there were times where the prose and the people were too clinical and not musical enough.
Here is why I appreciated the characters in both books. None of the characters were trying to work the system. It wasn't just a story of intrigue and fear. Everyone had a sense of each other and nobody was trying to take advantage of each other. They are not merely stories of strategy. I don't read books to watch people think strategically. I could watch bad punditry if I want strategy.
The characters don't derive their worth from trying to merely live, or survive, they derive get their sense of virtue from trying to live well, be upright and true.
Both Russell and Martin do well in contextualizing the decisions the characters make. I'm a believer that culture is a vehicle that needs to be enabled to see virtue in any individual decision. Norms and reasons are put forth, then watching the character move through them or change them is educational.
The characters act out of a sense of reverence, respect, or duty to something larger than their mere wants. With Ned, it's his sense of virtue with respect to the kingdom, with Cat, a awareness of the dignity of her family, and Jon, an honest yearning to find his place. Nobody is doing anything because it's easy or because they can, and I think that eliminates any pettiness among the characters. And most importantly, all of the troubles they face are troubles endemic to the human condition. SpoilersNed's vitrue kills him, Cat's love of family banishes Jon, and Jon's lack of home earns him a place on the other side of the wall. These are good, bright people, trying to do something worth doing, that they suffer at all speaks to the fact that no matter how hard we try, there is going to be suffering, so the issue isn't that they should avoid suffering, but rather they they strive greatly inspite of it. I respect almost all of the decisions the characters make, even if I don't agree with them, and when the results are bad-- and they seem to always be bad-- I'm sad.
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I'm about half way through The Sparrow, and so far I'm really enjoying it. Russell is great at building suspense and curiosity through allusion. I'm also a sucker for first contact novels.
Has anyone read the sequel, and is it as good?
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I thought the sequel was worse than the first one. But, then I didn't enjoy The Sparrow as much as many people here appeared to.
Noemon - I just finished it last night. It was a very interesting read.
I had some issues with the pacing. I think we spent so much time on the journey west that it felt as if the novel was wholly about the journey, and in fact it wasn't.
I was so caught up in Elizabeth and Jenny, that to end their part of the story with just brief mentions of how the rest of their life went, and then to move on with Nadya bothered me a little.
I enjoyed the ending, very much. It was a perfect ending.
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However, I was disappointed by a major plot point of the sequel. The "bad guy" from Earth was too much of a cartoon.
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Belle, glad you found it interesting. The pacing was a bit off, it's true, but the strength of the characterizations was enough to carry the book for me. I agree with you about the ending, by the way. I suspect that the encounter described in it was real, and that the rest of the book sprang from it. Of course, I could be completely wrong about that.
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