Digital audio read by Patricia Rodriguez; unabridged; 15 h 41 m
English language
Published June 14, 2018 by Hodderscape, Hodder & Stoughton, Booktrack Holding.
4 stars
(7 reviews)
The Long Way to a Small, Angry Planet: Booktrack Edition adds an immersive musical soundtrack to your audiobook listening experience!
SHORTLISTED FOR THE BAILEY'S WOMEN'S PRIZE FOR FICTION
The beloved debut novel that will restore your faith in humanity
When Rosemary Harper joins the crew of the Wayfarer, she isn't expecting much. The ship, which has seen better days, offers her everything she could possibly want: a small, quiet spot to call home for a while, adventure in far-off corners of the galaxy, and distance from her troubled past.
But Rosemary gets more than she bargained for with the Wayfarer. The crew is a mishmash of species and personalities, from Sissix, the friendly reptillian pilot, to Kizzy and Jenks, the constantly sparring engineers who keep the ship running. Life on board is chaotic, but more or less peaceful—exactly what Rosemary wants.
Until the crew are offered the job of a …
The Long Way to a Small, Angry Planet: Booktrack Edition adds an immersive musical soundtrack to your audiobook listening experience!
SHORTLISTED FOR THE BAILEY'S WOMEN'S PRIZE FOR FICTION
The beloved debut novel that will restore your faith in humanity
When Rosemary Harper joins the crew of the Wayfarer, she isn't expecting much. The ship, which has seen better days, offers her everything she could possibly want: a small, quiet spot to call home for a while, adventure in far-off corners of the galaxy, and distance from her troubled past.
But Rosemary gets more than she bargained for with the Wayfarer. The crew is a mishmash of species and personalities, from Sissix, the friendly reptillian pilot, to Kizzy and Jenks, the constantly sparring engineers who keep the ship running. Life on board is chaotic, but more or less peaceful—exactly what Rosemary wants.
Until the crew are offered the job of a lifetime: the chance to build a hyperspace tunnel to a distant planet. They'll earn enough money to live comfortably for years . . . if they survive the long trip through war-torn interstellar space without endangering any of the fragile alliances that keep the galaxy peaceful.
But Rosemary isn't the only person on board with secrets to hide, and the crew will soon discover that space may be vast, but spaceships are very small indeed.
Booktrack is an immersive format that pairs traditional audiobook narration and complementary music. The tempo and rhythm of the score are in perfect harmony with the action and characters throughout the audiobook. Gently playing in the background, the music never overpowers or distracts from the narration so that listeners can enjoy every minute. When you purchase this Booktrack edition, you receive the exact narration as the traditional audiobook available, with the addition of music throughout.
I enjoyed this thoroughly and don't think I've ever read anything else which so aptly weaves relatable examples of how to be kind into an engaging story. That said, it's not just a story which is a container for giving examples of #kindness. The worldbuilding seems quite strong and consistent to me and reminded me favorably of Vernor Vinge's Zones of Thought, right down to the way data streams are presented, but containing a lot more admirable behavior.
I listened to the #Booktrack edition, which gave the audiobook a pleasantly cinematic feel. Some of the choices for background music didn't really seem to fit, but in most cases the production was nicely done, especially the sound effects.
Bien heureuse de ne pas avoir lu la 4ème de couverture avant de terminer, elle raconte presque toute l’histoire !!
C’est assez rare les livres de SF et les spaces opera où l’on est agréablement confuse presque tout le long de l’histoire sur l’apparence, origine, us et coutumes des différentes espèces (au point que je me disais qu’il y avait un tome à lire avant celui-ci).
Wunderschöne, herzerwärmende und optimistische Space-Opera
5 stars
Sterne, wie habe ich dieses Buch geliebt. 🤩
Sympathische Charaktere, die alle auf ihre Art liebenswert sind, als Crew und Freund*innen aufeinander aufpassen und einen liebevollen Umgang miteinander pflegen. Gemeinsam erleben sie herzerwärmende und zugleich unterhaltsame Geschichten auf ihrer Reise zu diesem kleinen, zornigen Planeten.
Wer einen stringenten, zusammenhängenden und sich aufbauenden Plot erwartet, wird hier zwar nicht fündig (auch wenn ein Plot durchaus exisitert). Wer sich hingegen an herzlichen Charakteren, mitfühlendem und freundschaftlichem Zusammenhalt und optimistischen emotionalen Erzählungen erfreuen kann, wird dieses Buch lieben, denn davon enthält es eine Menge.
Ich jedenfalls musste das Lesen mehrfach kurz pausieren, um vor Rührung und positiver Ergriffenheit zu seufzen. 😌
Kurzum eine wirklich wunderschöne, herzerwärmende und optimistische Space-Opera mit bewegendem, spannendem und emotionalem Finale.
Absolute Leseempfehlung!
Reading this feels a lot like watching a soap opera. It's very much a character driven story with the plot serving merely to prod the story along as and when needed. And the characters are an entertaining and likeable bunch of misfits, doing their job and surviving as best they can.
It's also worth noting that this is a really nice story. The characters have spent years learning to get along with each other and... they get along with each other. What tensions there are are relatively minor and never distract from the fact that these people are looking out for each other.
The Long Way to a Small, Angry Planet is a very easy read and a solid debut from Becky Chambers.
The basic storyline of this book is nothing entirely out of the ordinary: Space crew gets dangerous but lucrative job offer, travels to their destinations, stuff happens there and along the way. You can take the title literally: it's a long way but only a small planet (episode).
I liked the world building, but especially the way the protagonists interact with each other. It's a story that is, for once, not driven by toxic behavior and the inability to communicate, but instead based on empathy and mutual support. The characters belong to different alien and human races, they do sometimes face conflicts over their specific needs, but frequently try to find solutions that work for everyone. In some ways, it seemed like an enhanced and more diverse version of the "Firefly" crew to me (which I loved).
This is a read leaves you with more positive than negative emotions, while …
The basic storyline of this book is nothing entirely out of the ordinary: Space crew gets dangerous but lucrative job offer, travels to their destinations, stuff happens there and along the way. You can take the title literally: it's a long way but only a small planet (episode).
I liked the world building, but especially the way the protagonists interact with each other. It's a story that is, for once, not driven by toxic behavior and the inability to communicate, but instead based on empathy and mutual support. The characters belong to different alien and human races, they do sometimes face conflicts over their specific needs, but frequently try to find solutions that work for everyone. In some ways, it seemed like an enhanced and more diverse version of the "Firefly" crew to me (which I loved).
This is a read leaves you with more positive than negative emotions, while being interesting enough to always keep you engaged.
The basic storyline of this book is nothing entirely out of the ordinary: Space crew gets dangerous but lucrative job offer, travels to their destinations, stuff happens there and along the way. You can take the title literally: it's a long way but only a small planet (episode).
I liked the world building, but especially the way the protagonists interact with each other. It's a story that is, for once, not driven by toxic behavior and the inability to communicate, but instead based on empathy and mutual support. The characters belong to different alien and human races, they do sometimes face conflicts over their specific needs, but frequently try to find solutions that work for everyone. In some ways, it seemed like an enhanced and more diverse version of the "Firefly" crew to me (which I loved).
This is a read leaves you with more positive than negative emotions, while …
The basic storyline of this book is nothing entirely out of the ordinary: Space crew gets dangerous but lucrative job offer, travels to their destinations, stuff happens there and along the way. You can take the title literally: it's a long way but only a small planet (episode).
I liked the world building, but especially the way the protagonists interact with each other. It's a story that is, for once, not driven by toxic behavior and the inability to communicate, but instead based on empathy and mutual support. The characters belong to different alien and human races, they do sometimes face conflicts over their specific needs, but frequently try to find solutions that work for everyone. In some ways, it seemed like an enhanced and more diverse version of the "Firefly" crew to me (which I loved).
This is a read leaves you with more positive than negative emotions, while being interesting enough to always keep you engaged.
Review of 'The Long Way to a Small, Angry Planet' on 'Storygraph'
4 stars
It's good, but there is no plot to speak of -- it's John Scalzi on a ship if you took out all the fighting. Or.. well, Firefly. Wit more aliens. And no fighting. And everyone is nice. But they don't always understand each other and so sometimes they need long talks and hugs and maybe something the gourmet chef on board whipped up. And there's no fighting.
