304 pages
English language
Published Aug. 13, 2020 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
Written in 1973, a massive 50 kilometre long alien cylinder begins to pass through the solar system provoking a hurried effort to intercept it. The closest available ship rushes to rendezvous so as to have a quick study before it gets too close to the sun. Able to enter via an airlock on one end of the ship, the crew explores the huge world found inside, a world full of wonder and mystery. As usual, the science is spot on. This is the best novel of Clarke's since 2001 and Childhood's End and is a truly grand adventure full of puzzles and ideas that lead you asking more questions than are answered. Enough questions in fact to lead to numerous inferior sequels, but enough answers to leave you satisfied. Don't pass up this gem of hard science fiction.
Bordkartonnen karakters, vrouwen ondergeschikt, verouderde technieken en toch met veel plezier gelezen.
Tal y como dice otro comentario: "[...]it's 50% description of a docking maneuver, and 50% setup for an exciting book[...]". Y así es, dan ganas de leer las siguientes novelas de la saga porque esta deja muchos hilos por atar. Pongo cinco estrellas porque es de un grande y como episodio piloto me ha gustado bastante, aunque revisaré mi valoración cuando lea el resto de la saga.
... that is, it's 50% description of a docking maneuver, and 50% setup for an exciting book.
I guess that makes it one of those books you should read once, but I didn't manage to enjoy it much.
the characters were a bit no-nonsense and technical, but the setting was immensely good
До этой книги я честно считал, что hard sf стареет медленно: научные парадигмы сменяют друг друга, техника мельчает и ускоряется, но считать, что мы приходим в жанр за достоверными прогнозами — это... слишком функциональный ответ. Для меня хороший hard sf это исследование загадки, в котором процесс важнее и правдивости результата и достоверности условий.
Проблема с Rendezvous with Rama: вы в любой момент впереди автора на восемь шагов. У вас больше вопросов, и у вас куда более интересные ответы. Мы знаем, что книга собрала все важные sf-награды и считается классикой жанра. Неуежели, всё, что определяет выдающийся sf — это новизна?
Потому что кроме не годящейся уже на эпизод телесериала центральной интриги здесь ничего особенно и нет. Герои почти всегда определяются своей основной функцией в рамках повествования, а в моменты, когда нет... Моя рабочая теория: списаны с рекламных материалов сигаретных брендов. В наличии проницательный историк, ещё пара каких-то Работающих Над Важной Проблемой …
До этой книги я честно считал, что hard sf стареет медленно: научные парадигмы сменяют друг друга, техника мельчает и ускоряется, но считать, что мы приходим в жанр за достоверными прогнозами — это... слишком функциональный ответ. Для меня хороший hard sf это исследование загадки, в котором процесс важнее и правдивости результата и достоверности условий.
Проблема с Rendezvous with Rama: вы в любой момент впереди автора на восемь шагов. У вас больше вопросов, и у вас куда более интересные ответы. Мы знаем, что книга собрала все важные sf-награды и считается классикой жанра. Неуежели, всё, что определяет выдающийся sf — это новизна?
Потому что кроме не годящейся уже на эпизод телесериала центральной интриги здесь ничего особенно и нет. Герои почти всегда определяются своей основной функцией в рамках повествования, а в моменты, когда нет... Моя рабочая теория: списаны с рекламных материалов сигаретных брендов. В наличии проницательный историк, ещё пара каких-то Работающих Над Важной Проблемой выдающихся учёных, целеустремлённый посол, атлет-олимпиец, и капитан корабля, мужчина решительный и имеющий двух жён на разных что ли планетах; "прекрасно ладящих друг с другом", как не забывает уточнить автор.
Вместе с генетически модифицированными суперобезьянами, выполняющими тяжёлую работу (подлежат эвтаназии в нештатных ситуациях), и гордыми милитаристичными колонизаторами жарких внутренних планет эти закадровые женщины (капитан с хитрецой: шлёт одинаковые письма, правя только имена, поди ж ты) видимо должны формировать общую утопическую картину; не могу избавиться от впечатления, что получается практически идеальная in-universe книга из обновлённой серии Wolfenstein.
Довольно тошно.
The end of this novel was weak; the rest of the story was quite good. Since I can not give a half point (3.5) I gave the first book in series the benefit of the extra half point. I will try the next in the series to see what happens. Who knows from there.
I rarely find myself engrossed in a book so much that I cannot put it down. This book however managed to do just that, but why is that?
Firstly, I really liked Clarke's style of writing. The way he describes the interior of Rama and everything else really got me excited. The characters, for the most part, I did not find very gripping. However, I didn't think that was that big of a problem.
The biggest reason for me liking this book so much however is the fact that it reminded me of an old (audio)book I listened to which I unfortunately forgot the name of. I believe though that it was part of the Perry Rhodan series.
All in all, I would definitely recommend this book to everyone who likes scifi, exploration and mystery!
In 2131, astronomers detected what they initially believe to be an asteroid near Jupiter. It is named "Rama" after the Hindu god. An unmanned space probe named "Sita" (after Rama's wife) is sent to investigate and sends back photos, which show that this is no asteroid - it is a perfectly smooth cylinder 34 miles long and 12 miles wide. It is an alien spacecraft. The solar survey vessel the "Endeavor" is sent to investigate "Rama."
This is an intriguing, realistic (if I can use that word for science fiction) story by one of the masters of science fiction. This novel won't appeal to anyone (check out the reviews on Amazon) due to its focus on "Rama" and not characterization. The characters are rather flat and not drawn well, which is why I subtracted a star. Attitudes have also changed since "Rama" was first published in 1973. If you read …
In 2131, astronomers detected what they initially believe to be an asteroid near Jupiter. It is named "Rama" after the Hindu god. An unmanned space probe named "Sita" (after Rama's wife) is sent to investigate and sends back photos, which show that this is no asteroid - it is a perfectly smooth cylinder 34 miles long and 12 miles wide. It is an alien spacecraft. The solar survey vessel the "Endeavor" is sent to investigate "Rama."
This is an intriguing, realistic (if I can use that word for science fiction) story by one of the masters of science fiction. This novel won't appeal to anyone (check out the reviews on Amazon) due to its focus on "Rama" and not characterization. The characters are rather flat and not drawn well, which is why I subtracted a star. Attitudes have also changed since "Rama" was first published in 1973. If you read the book, I think you'll notice what I mean. The emphasis is on the discovery and exploration of "Rama." Another reviewer commented that it was like seeing it all through your own eyes and I agree. I think that's one reason why this book was successfully adapted as PC game twice. I'm amazed it hasn't been made into a movie, though it apparently served as inspiration for "Interstellar."
There are other books in the series: [b:Rama II|17692863|Rama II (Rama, #2)|Arthur C. Clarke|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1364237300s/17692863.jpg|1907786], [b:The Garden of Rama|17690723|The Garden of Rama (Rama, #3)|Arthur C. Clarke|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1364236000s/17690723.jpg|876293], and [b:Rama Revealed|17692870|Rama Revealed (Rama, #4)|Arthur C. Clarke|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1364237442s/17692870.jpg|828267]. Though they have Arthur C Clarke's name on them, they were actually written by [a:Gentry Lee|65129|Gentry Lee|https://d.gr-assets.com/authors/1358130743p2/65129.jpg]. Clarke simply read them and making editing suggestions. I haven't read them myself and cannot comment on their quality (or lack of it).
P.S. Just for fun, google "O'Neill cylinder" and "McKendree cylinder," which are real-life versions of "Rama."
Interesting and classic first contact story, Clarke's Rendezvous with Rama distinguishes itself in the way that the first contact almost feels like a dud. The tension of the encounter with Rama and its surprising interior is captivating and well-executed. The brilliance of the novel is that the aliens do not care about humanity and simply passes us over, on the way to somewhere else. That we are completely insignificant, even to the point of being completely ignored by the first intelligent life encountered, is a masterful reversal of our own self-centeredness
I love stories about alien artifacts and Rendezvous with Rama is always heralded as one of the classics of that particular subgenre. The problem is that it is not a good book. There is basically no characterization and the utopian future Clarke describes feels so silly that it's painful to read. That these world-building parts feel forced in does not help.
I started the book with high expectations but was disappointed about 40 pages in. I felt no connection to any of the characters; mainly because there are none. They are just names that drive the story. So I gave up and read the summary on Wikipedia. If you are curious about this book, I suggest you skip it entirely and be content with the summary.
1) ''Then the orbit was calculated, and the mystery was resolved---to be replaced by an even greater one. 31/439 was not traveling on a normal asteroidal path, along an ellipse which it retraced with clockwork precision every few years. It was a lonely wanderer among the stars, making its first and last visit to the solar system---for it was moving so swiftly that the gravitational field of the Sun could never capture it. It would flash inward past the orbits of Jupiter, Mars, Earth, Venus, and Mercury, gaining speed as it did so, until it rounded the Sun and headed out once again into the unknown.
It was at this point that the computers started flashing their 'We have something interesting' sign, and, for the first time, 31/439 came to the attention of human beings. There was a brief flurry of excitement at SPACEGUARD headquarters, and the interstellar vagabond was …
1) ''Then the orbit was calculated, and the mystery was resolved---to be replaced by an even greater one. 31/439 was not traveling on a normal asteroidal path, along an ellipse which it retraced with clockwork precision every few years. It was a lonely wanderer among the stars, making its first and last visit to the solar system---for it was moving so swiftly that the gravitational field of the Sun could never capture it. It would flash inward past the orbits of Jupiter, Mars, Earth, Venus, and Mercury, gaining speed as it did so, until it rounded the Sun and headed out once again into the unknown.
It was at this point that the computers started flashing their 'We have something interesting' sign, and, for the first time, 31/439 came to the attention of human beings. There was a brief flurry of excitement at SPACEGUARD headquarters, and the interstellar vagabond was quickly dignified with a name instead of a mere number. Long ago, the astronomers had exhausted Greek and Roman mythology; now they were working through the Hindu pantheon. And so 31/439 was christened Rama.''
2) ''There was a rustle of excitement among the other scientists on the committee. Most of them had felt that the astronomer, with his well-known cosmic viewpoint, was not the right man to be chairman of the Space Advisory Council. He sometimes gave the impression that the activities of intelligent life were an unfortunate irrelevance in the majestic universe of stars and galaxies, and that it was bad manners to pay too much attention to them. This had not endeared him to exobiologists such as Dr. Perera, who took exactly the opposite view. For them, the only purpose of the universe was the production of intelligence, and they were apt to talk sneeringly about purely astronomical phenomena. 'Mere dead matter' was one of their favorite phrases.''
I am sad to say that this was the first of Clarke’s novels that I’ve ever read, especially since I enjoyed it so much! That’s an especially amazing feat since this novel of a brief encounter with an alien civilization didn’t involve any aliens, had plenty of unexplained exploration, and at the end you have more questions than answers. I find myself curious not only about Rama II but about the 17 years between the writing of Rendezvous with Rama and Rama II.
This is one of those classics of science fiction that you would think I would have read by now. Well, I am hoping to get to it now. I found my copy really cheap in the second hand store. We'll see how it goes.
* *
It was not as riveting as I thought it would be. While the science is good, i.e. Clarke does pay attention to the science in the story, overall, the story itself moves very slowly. In a way, reading this book was like playing the game Myst, and I am not saying that as praise. That game is great visually, but that is about it: it's a puzzle that looks pretty, but in the end, remains a puzzle. This book is pretty much like looking into a puzzle, a mystery. In that sense, it immerses the reader. The environment of Rama is great. However, the …
This is one of those classics of science fiction that you would think I would have read by now. Well, I am hoping to get to it now. I found my copy really cheap in the second hand store. We'll see how it goes.
* *
It was not as riveting as I thought it would be. While the science is good, i.e. Clarke does pay attention to the science in the story, overall, the story itself moves very slowly. In a way, reading this book was like playing the game Myst, and I am not saying that as praise. That game is great visually, but that is about it: it's a puzzle that looks pretty, but in the end, remains a puzzle. This book is pretty much like looking into a puzzle, a mystery. In that sense, it immerses the reader. The environment of Rama is great. However, the plot itself is so slow that it lost me. It just plods along. Do A, then do B, then done and gone. On the one hand, I enjoyed discovering Rama, as much as we were allowed to see. But in the end, it left me with a feeling of "is that all there is?" So, not a bad book, but certainly not the big deal a lot of people seem to make out of it. I am glad I read it, for it had some interesting moments, but I will likely be skipping the sequels.
