Sparrow, The

No cover

Mary Doria Russell: Sparrow, The (AudiobookFormat, 1996, Nova Audio Books)

audio cassette

English language

Published Oct. 1, 1996 by Nova Audio Books.

ISBN:
978-1-56100-918-3
Copied ISBN!

View on OpenLibrary

(103 reviews)

The Sparrow is a novel about a remarkable man, a living saint, a life-long celibate and Jesuit priest, who undergoes an experience so harrowing and profound that it makes him question the existence of God. This experience--the first contact between human beings and intelligent extraterrestrial life--begins with a small mistake and ends in a horrible catastrophe.

9 editions

Review of 'Sparrow, The' on 'Goodreads'

When The Sparrow is good, it's really good, but when it's bad, it's really bad. The setup is utterly absurd and almost made me abandon the book, and the jovial banter (poor suffering Cubs fans, now on another planet!) was tedious. But my desire to know what Bad Thing happened on that planet kept me going, and by the end, Russell had me again. The last two chapters were quite something. Maybe it should have been a novella.

reviewed The Sparrow by Mary Doria Russell (The Sparrow, #1)

Review of 'The Sparrow' on 'Goodreads'

This is perhaps the most disturbing book I've ever enjoyed. Russell painstakingly doles out the events of the Rakhat mission in an excruciatingly anticipatory, yet frequently surprising, way. It's like watching a train wreck in slow motion, just knowing that the engine is about to explode, only to witness the caboose explode instead. Followed by the engine. Knowing from the beginning that Emilio is the only survivor of the mission just adds critical mass.

The first two thirds of this story made me think of [b:A Canticle for Leibowitz|164154|A Canticle for Leibowitz|Walter M. Miller Jr.|http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1329408540s/164154.jpg|250975], with its sense of purpose in authority and tradition despite the lack of candor and clarity about that purpose. However, as I neared the end I found myself thinking more about [b:A Prayer for Owen Meany|4473|A Prayer for Owen Meany|John Irving|http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1260470010s/4473.jpg|1734019] and the opaque assurance of a presumed reason for present tragedy. I'm always a …

reviewed The Sparrow by Mary Doria Russell (The Sparrow, #1)

Review of 'The Sparrow' on 'Goodreads'

This book is beautiful, thought-provoking, and tragic. It's a story of an exploratory mission gone wrong. Just like the early explorers of the Americas, these explorers think they are completely prepared, but make a lot of erroneous assumptions about the culture they encounter.

From the beginning of the book you are told that everyone dies except the main character, and that he has been tortured both physically and mentally. Some of what happens to the characters is pretty gruesome; if you can't handle that, stay away from this book. The violence and torture are necessary for the questions that the book poses about why God allows suffering.

The story ends on a depressing note. The sequel, Children Of God, is not as good but takes the story in a more hopeful direction. If you are going to read this book, I would plan on reading that one as well.

Review of 'The Sparrow' on 'Goodreads'

I lack the capacity to adequately describe this book. Russell worldbuilds with the trained eye of a sociologist, but the light touch of truly a gifted novelist. However, what really makes her work is a dedication to exploration of issues of moral complexity, grittiness, desperation and redemption.
The Sparrow is without equal.

avatar for kbradnam

rated it

avatar for cerieshunter

rated it

avatar for neilernst

rated it

avatar for rleyton

rated it

avatar for lakrispastill

rated it

avatar for haagen_daz

rated it

avatar for inga-lovinde

rated it

avatar for khanhas

rated it

avatar for kaakow

rated it

avatar for mattmcmanus

rated it

avatar for palousegeo

rated it

avatar for stim

rated it

avatar for michaelthec

rated it

avatar for jumpinggrendel

rated it

avatar for joejoh

rated it

avatar for sansaraf

rated it

avatar for pearlbear

rated it

avatar for julienmartlet

rated it

avatar for nic

rated it

avatar for Mollarom

rated it

avatar for Dunedinmouse

rated it

avatar for lbthomas

rated it

avatar for wafonso

rated it

avatar for rschulman

rated it

avatar for stinkingpig

rated it

avatar for michjnich

rated it

avatar for 73pctGeek

rated it

avatar for jayemar

rated it

avatar for Mignon

rated it

avatar for cjhubbs

rated it

avatar for paudie

rated it

avatar for Ivia

rated it

avatar for colerobison

rated it

avatar for jaybushman

rated it

avatar for zumbador

rated it

avatar for Skedaddle

rated it

avatar for Dvmheather

rated it

avatar for YouNaughtyMonsters

rated it

avatar for philiporange

rated it

avatar for dev_tea

rated it

avatar for Jorn

rated it

avatar for kevbot9000

rated it

avatar for laprunminta

rated it

avatar for ToadyNerd

rated it

avatar for Shepy

rated it

avatar for princeofspace

rated it

avatar for gregorygandy

rated it

avatar for ntavish

rated it

avatar for alexmorse

rated it

avatar for Nikita

rated it

avatar for ion

rated it

avatar for tcgoetz

rated it

avatar for rlittleton

rated it

avatar for pdrbstmnt

rated it

avatar for brzy

rated it

avatar for inti

rated it

avatar for faceleg

rated it

avatar for PinGZ

rated it

avatar for SAKs

rated it

avatar for Scopique

rated it

avatar for madklowns

rated it

avatar for Lucius

rated it

avatar for kursis

rated it

avatar for littlezen

rated it

avatar for erinlcrane

rated it

avatar for kosure

rated it

avatar for mad_frisbeterian

rated it

avatar for elreycriollo

rated it

avatar for gwcoffey

rated it

avatar for hadaly

rated it

avatar for Bibulousphile

rated it

avatar for deoxys314

rated it

avatar for noahrichards

rated it

avatar for smobe

rated it

avatar for Scordatura

rated it

avatar for cygnoir

rated it

avatar for akmassey

rated it

avatar for eagleeyedtiger

rated it

avatar for LeoVarnet

rated it

avatar for Xifax

rated it

avatar for timbrown

rated it

avatar for kholdstare

rated it

Subjects

  • Audiobooks
  • Audio - Science Fiction / Fantasy
  • Audio Adult: Books On Tape
  • Religious - Science Fiction
  • Science Fiction - Adventure
  • Fiction / General

Lists