Erik, I loved "Childhood's End" but was quite disappointed with RWR. My major problem was why the crew didn't simply send probes or drones to do the exploring of Rama and view the images and record other data from the safety of their spaceship? For example, in the movie " Prometheus", drones quickly mapped out the vast alien spacecraft and provided a wealth of information and was even able to detect living organisms, as well as the entire ship's architecture. To think that the space explorers of the future would have to walk and climb and float through such an enormous vessel is ridiculous and, unfortunately, makes this story seem very dated.
You make very valid points, and I admit that I turned a blind eye to this in part because of my love of the premise. I really wanted to watch the characters explore this place, even though it didn't make sense. Side note, I think more people are on your side with this book. Most people I've talked to consider it more in the 3-star range.
Great question! So I can think of some when I was a kid and just discovering books. Matilda is a good example because it was a great, funny book that also talked about the magic of books very convincingly. At a basic level, that book made reading enjoyable for me. Jurassic Park was another eye-opener. Before that, I had no idea that books could be so exciting and gritty. In adult years, I have to give credit to Meditations by Marcus Aurelius and Man's Search for Meaning by Viktor Frankl. Both of those guys seemed to have the essence of life figured out. Lastly, I should call out George Orwell - Animal Farm and 1984. With a simple story in both cases, he managed to articulate man's willingness to accept comfort over truth. Especially in Animal Farm that hit me hard, because I felt like I had that same instinct as a reader - to believe the lie. These are the great kinds of books to find, where you're reading along and you never before realized that books like this were possible. What were the stand out books for you?
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Erik, I loved "Childhood's End" but was quite disappointed with RWR. My major problem was why the crew didn't simply send probes or drones to do the exploring of Rama and view the images and record other data from the safety of their spaceship? For example, in the movie " Prometheus", drones quickly mapped out the vast alien spacecraft and provided a wealth of information and was even able to detect living organisms, as well as the entire ship's architecture. To think that the space explorers of the future would have to walk and climb and float through such an enormous vessel is ridiculous and, unfortunately, makes this story seem very dated.
You make very valid points, and I admit that I turned a blind eye to this in part because of my love of the premise. I really wanted to watch the characters explore this place, even though it didn't make sense. Side note, I think more people are on your side with this book. Most people I've talked to consider it more in the 3-star range.
Hi Erik, curious if you read any book that kind of changed the way you think or shifted your life in away? and which books have had that effect on you
Great question! So I can think of some when I was a kid and just discovering books. Matilda is a good example because it was a great, funny book that also talked about the magic of books very convincingly. At a basic level, that book made reading enjoyable for me. Jurassic Park was another eye-opener. Before that, I had no idea that books could be so exciting and gritty. In adult years, I have to give credit to Meditations by Marcus Aurelius and Man's Search for Meaning by Viktor Frankl. Both of those guys seemed to have the essence of life figured out. Lastly, I should call out George Orwell - Animal Farm and 1984. With a simple story in both cases, he managed to articulate man's willingness to accept comfort over truth. Especially in Animal Farm that hit me hard, because I felt like I had that same instinct as a reader - to believe the lie. These are the great kinds of books to find, where you're reading along and you never before realized that books like this were possible.
What were the stand out books for you?