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mwalsh97's review
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
4.5
It’s beautiful, it’s dark, it fucking weird. And it was utterly amazing. This is the kind of book that should be in high school English classes.
Add-on as of 7/3: I have not been able to stop thinking about this book. I like it more and more as it marinates in my brain.
Moderate: Body horror, Misogyny, and Alcohol
Minor: Pregnancy
speir's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Cursing and Fire/Fire injury
Moderate: Alcoholism, Body horror, Sexism, and Alcohol
Minor: Child abuse, Death, and Pregnancy
sunn_bleach's review
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.75
However, the book itself is... kind of boring. Perhaps this is because it's so short, at less than 200 pages for most modern editions. You have an initial foray into the Zone, but it's bookended by lots of talking and drinking with what felt like cursory examination of the weirdness that comes from the Zone. And I'm not convinced that banality is its own point; "Roadside Picnic" isn't a character study, as bolstered by Boris Strugatsky's own afterword. Dialogue feels mismatched, and chapters stop right as events start t move. For a book about the Zone and people's relationship to it, there's an awful lot of puttering about.
The high point is the conversation between Pillman and Noonan. The former's theory about aliens having the eponymous roadside picnic and leaving their trash for smaller creatures to obsess over is an absolutely fascinating postmodern outlook on man's purpose in the universe. The Strugatskys knocked those 10 or 15 pages out of the Zone's garage.
I'm glad I read this for the influence on some media that I adore, but it would be a hard sell to someone who isn't deeply invested in the history of Russian science fiction or just wants to get more out of the "Stalker" media.
Graphic: Body horror, Violence, and Alcohol
Moderate: Cursing and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Infidelity, Sexism, and Pregnancy
spacecorn's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
I argue that it shouldn't be any other way.
When you think of science fiction, what do you typically think of? Star Wars, Star Trek, Back to the Future, Metropolis, heck even Dune. What do all of these pieces of media have in common?
They all feature things so improbable that they tiptoe the line between science and fantasy, and most importantly, they are all set in the future.
I would argue that Roadside Picnic is a true science fiction novel. It is set in the present day and features normal people facing the cosmic horror of the unknown. Now yes, you could argue that the events of the book are extremely unlikely, but what would you place your money on? Lightsabres or the Zone? I don't mean to bash these franchises, I love conventional sci-fi to bits, but this book has made me rethink the term 'sci-fi' altogether.
Roadside Picnic invites the reader to explore a conceptual world, merely glimpsing through a window at how the authors predict humanity would react to the appearance of the zones. Yes, it doesn't have much of a plot, but that's because it doesn't need one. It could almost be read as a thesis paper, with characters holding different views on the events of the book and conversing with each other about said views.
Roadside Picnic is a truly remarkable piece of Science Fiction that has made me rethink the entire genre, and I implore anyone with a fascination with the unknown or interest in the sciences to read it.
Graphic: Alcoholism and Alcohol
Moderate: Death
Minor: Body horror and Sexual content
erikwmj's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Body horror and Death
Moderate: Domestic abuse
Minor: Racism and Sexism
helloits_sam's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
Moderate: Alcoholism, Body horror, Death, Violence, Alcohol, Injury/Injury detail, and Pandemic/Epidemic
Minor: Ableism and Misogyny
lynxpardinus's review against another edition
4.25
Graphic: Alcoholism, Death, Medical content, Alcohol, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Ableism, Body horror, Body shaming, Confinement, Fatphobia, Misogyny, Pedophilia, Sexism, Violence, Medical trauma, Death of parent, Gaslighting, and Toxic friendship
Minor: Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Racism, Toxic relationship, and War
mlewis's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
Graphic: Alcoholism, Death, Alcohol, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Body horror, Misogyny, and War
Minor: Pregnancy and Pandemic/Epidemic
kellyofcali's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Moderate: Body horror, Gun violence, Violence, Alcohol, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Death and Pregnancy
ashleymg99's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Loveable characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.0
This is the cosmic horror novel of the 20th century -
My favorite part of the novel was in the chapter from Noonan’s perspective.
Valentine sees humanity for all its flaws, and in a world where aliens have visited us, he sees the insignificance of us - we are not worth testing, or training or observing. We are simply primitive animals, “using sledgehammers to crack nuts” - picking up alien space junk that we can never hope to understand the true use of, and adapting it for a more primitive purposes.
This is a short read, and overall I was pretty engaged, but there were some slower parts (particularly the beginning of Noonan’s chapter) that struggled to capture my attention.
This is a must read for any sci-fi, cosmic horror, or dystopian fans. Also, watch Tarkovsky’s STALKER - it’s written by the same authors and tells a similar story in the same universe, but is by no means an adaptation.
Moderate: Alcoholism, Body horror, Death, and Alcohol