the long way to a small and angry planet

If you can, if you want to go on this fun ride through the gallery of alien biology, customs, and foods that Chambers has created, then you will have a good time.Īnother noticeable stylistic element is just the way that Chambers weaves humour throughout the book. But I think that’s the case for a lot of science fiction (Charles Stross called), so this is more about whether or not you like or can tolerate infodumping. That is a legitmate critique here, and I’m not going to say you’re wrong. Some people will no doubt fault the level of exposition in this book, and you know … cool. I love the thoughtfulness Chambers has put into her species. Though I would likely describe this book as a slow burn, there are moments of action and tension that kick the pace up into heart-pounding territory. Chambers explores the conflicts that arise from multiple species living in close quarters, the misunderstandings and the fun, as well as the stress that is possible when you are an unarmed vessel out in deep space.

This crew lives and works primarily in space, and the story is more about their relationships than their mission to tunnel a wormhole from alien space back to familiar territory.

There are moments when you love each character as well as moments you dislike them, and that takes talent to do repeatedly. What’s interesting to me is how Chambers manages to make most of the characters fairly round. Rather than trying to introduce them all, let me just say that there is an eclectic mix of Humans and other aliens, each of whom has distinctive personality traits, some as a result of their species and some as a result of their personality. Chambers takes the time to ensure each of the crew receives at least some time in the spotlight. This is a difficult book to summarize, because the back cover makes it seem like Rosemary is the main character, but in actuality this is an ensemble cast. Becky Chambers hasn’t written space opera so much as space pop, and I’m cool with that.

This story is about the Wayfarer crew, their journey rather than their destination, and the things you learn along the way. The Wayfarer is in the middle of a tense diplomatic situation for sure, but this story isn’t about that. Although nominally space opera, if you were hoping for sweeping galactic politics and high stakes, you might want to look elsewhere. Well, this book lives up to its title: they definitely take the long way around.

The long way to a small and angry planet