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greeniezona's review
4.0
Okay, let's get this out of the way: Slonczewski is my favorite writer currently writing works of science fiction. I am highly disposed to adore anything that she writes. But there were so many things going on in this novel that at times even I wondered if she was going to be able to pull it all together in the end. (Spoiler alert: she did.)
The very basics of the story: It's one hundred years in the future. Jenny Kennedy is now the only daughter of a powerful and very political family. Reeling from the death of her twin brother, she chooses to go to college in an orbiting space habitat, billed as ultra-secure. Of course, things are never what they seem.
Things I really loved about this story: It's hard science fiction -- specifically in the field of molecular biology/microbiology/evolution. She plays with some really fascinating ideas here: bioengineering HIV for gene therapy - "Did you take your HIV, dear?", bioengineering plants to mimic human systems, can we produce signaling molecules for humor, piety, wisdom? It's feminist science fiction -- not just a "strong female protagonist," but a variety of female and male characters, in positions of power and without, who are strong, flawed, and gentle in turns, and sometimes all at once.
One of the most interesting aspects of the book is fed by Slonczewski's experience as a college department chair. Most of the action in this book takes place at Frontera College. It was really interesting to see issues and crises from the viewpoints of students, professors, administrators, parents, funders al at once. Conflicts of interest that had never occurred to me before were suddenly obvious.
The issue that I'm not sure if I loved, hated, or what was race. Which was complicated -- like it is. This is a future where almost all well-off children are genetically engineered. They may or may not share the same genetic race as their parents. A Quaker couple chooses their two favorite indigenous tribes for the racial characteristics of their twins. "Racism" as we currently know it isn't on display here, though it's definitely not post-prejudice. It's just that prejudice has mostly shifted to if you were engineered or not. There are also a lot of stupid assumptions made by characters of a character who was raised Amish. Oh, and while there are definitely prominent gay characters, there is still some orientation weirdness. And don't even get me started on the gender-performance weirdness of the First Lady debates.
Okay, really. I could write and write and write about this. (If you've read this and want to chat, send me a message!) I have some opinions. But I really loved this, and am wondering if Slonczewski is planning any more novels in this universe. (Some signs seemed to indicate yes, some no.)
No, wait! Two more things! I really loved the exchange of religious ideas in this book. And also the Foundation trilogy shout-outs. Okay. Done.
The very basics of the story: It's one hundred years in the future. Jenny Kennedy is now the only daughter of a powerful and very political family. Reeling from the death of her twin brother, she chooses to go to college in an orbiting space habitat, billed as ultra-secure. Of course, things are never what they seem.
Things I really loved about this story: It's hard science fiction -- specifically in the field of molecular biology/microbiology/evolution. She plays with some really fascinating ideas here: bioengineering HIV for gene therapy - "Did you take your HIV, dear?", bioengineering plants to mimic human systems, can we produce signaling molecules for humor, piety, wisdom? It's feminist science fiction -- not just a "strong female protagonist," but a variety of female and male characters, in positions of power and without, who are strong, flawed, and gentle in turns, and sometimes all at once.
One of the most interesting aspects of the book is fed by Slonczewski's experience as a college department chair. Most of the action in this book takes place at Frontera College. It was really interesting to see issues and crises from the viewpoints of students, professors, administrators, parents, funders al at once. Conflicts of interest that had never occurred to me before were suddenly obvious.
The issue that I'm not sure if I loved, hated, or what was race. Which was complicated -- like it is. This is a future where almost all well-off children are genetically engineered. They may or may not share the same genetic race as their parents. A Quaker couple chooses their two favorite indigenous tribes for the racial characteristics of their twins. "Racism" as we currently know it isn't on display here, though it's definitely not post-prejudice. It's just that prejudice has mostly shifted to if you were engineered or not. There are also a lot of stupid assumptions made by characters of a character who was raised Amish. Oh, and while there are definitely prominent gay characters, there is still some orientation weirdness. And don't even get me started on the gender-performance weirdness of the First Lady debates.
Okay, really. I could write and write and write about this. (If you've read this and want to chat, send me a message!) I have some opinions. But I really loved this, and am wondering if Slonczewski is planning any more novels in this universe. (Some signs seemed to indicate yes, some no.)
No, wait! Two more things! I really loved the exchange of religious ideas in this book. And also the Foundation trilogy shout-outs. Okay. Done.
cameliarose's review
4.0
A GR friend says nowadays dystopian science fictions read like non-fictions. I agree, and The Highest Frontier is one of them.
The story is set 90 years in the future. At a glance, the future world looks good, technologically and biologically advanced. Humans have built sustainable habitats in the earth's lower orbit; cyborgs are every day existence; HIV has been tamed to fight diseases; genetic engineering everywhere, even in humans; human brains can be connected to virtual network through "brainstream", etc, etc... However, the advance of technology has not solved the environmental problems of our time. Carbon immersion is banned globally but it is already too late. The buried methane is unleashed. The sea rising becomes unstoppable. Cities lose to the sea. The death belt replaces Amazon rain forest. Countries fight over the ice free Antarctica. The ozone depletion makes un-treated humans blind by age of 30 and allows an alien microb-like life form descends onto the earth.
Ok, these are all the usual science fiction stuff. Nothing surprising. What give my goosebumps are the politics and the presidential election that so eerily similar to what we have been going through since 2016. The rise of Christian far-right groups, extreme religious believes hindering social and scientific development, the follies of American democracy, voting fraud and voter repression, voting against one's own interests, lies and misinformations, the blurred line between entertainment and politics, all too gut-wrenching to read.
Joan Slonczewski is a biologist. I always love the life science in her books. The Highest Frontier is no exception.
The story is set 90 years in the future. At a glance, the future world looks good, technologically and biologically advanced. Humans have built sustainable habitats in the earth's lower orbit; cyborgs are every day existence; HIV has been tamed to fight diseases; genetic engineering everywhere, even in humans; human brains can be connected to virtual network through "brainstream", etc, etc... However, the advance of technology has not solved the environmental problems of our time. Carbon immersion is banned globally but it is already too late. The buried methane is unleashed. The sea rising becomes unstoppable. Cities lose to the sea. The death belt replaces Amazon rain forest. Countries fight over the ice free Antarctica. The ozone depletion makes un-treated humans blind by age of 30 and allows an alien microb-like life form descends onto the earth.
Ok, these are all the usual science fiction stuff. Nothing surprising. What give my goosebumps are the politics and the presidential election that so eerily similar to what we have been going through since 2016. The rise of Christian far-right groups, extreme religious believes hindering social and scientific development, the follies of American democracy, voting fraud and voter repression, voting against one's own interests, lies and misinformations, the blurred line between entertainment and politics, all too gut-wrenching to read.
Joan Slonczewski is a biologist. I always love the life science in her books. The Highest Frontier is no exception.
squirrelfish's review
5.0
An alternate future not too far away, tangentially exploring many of the issues we're just beginning to see, this is a coming of age novel that let's us explore what it means to be a person. The plot is all over the place, but the world is fascinating. I would love a full series with the protagonist, or even more books just set in the same world.
amandamarie's review
4.0
I really wanted to love this, and there was a lot to like, but in the end there was something missing for me. Joan Slonczewski has been my favorite author since I was 14, so the thought of a new book from her was thrilling! I've read that this is only the first book in a cycle, so hopefully once I've read the rest of the books the story will really gel. The world building, as is expected, is absolute brilliant, but not so dense that lay people such as myself can't understand what's going on. The writing is good, but I found the characters really grating. I think if there was more time spent on the alien invaders I would have found the story more compelling. Ultra was fascinating! If you could give a book 3.5 stars on this site I would, but I went for the higher rating until I've read the next books.
wealhtheow's review
3.0
Jenny Ramos Kennedy is the heir to two presidential families and a great deal of wealth. After her charming and extroverted twin dies, Jenny feels overwhelmed by the expectations of the world. Seeking to escape them, and to flee her fears of the increasingly frequent natural disasters on Earth, Jenny decides to go to college on a spacehub. There, her botany experiments, social life, and the upcoming elections all create a situation in which Jenny may either take the easy path of non-resistance, or agitate to change the world around her.
I liked the characters, but I thought there were too many view-point characters, with too little attention paid to each. I had the same problem with the plots and the future tech; there were just too many, all jostling for space. Slonczewski is fantastic at creating plausible but currently-fictitious creatures and technology, but I wish there had been better explanations of some of the tech (after numerous arguments between characters about what to do with the solarplates, someone finally explained what they were 200 pages in! Without knowing what they were, all those instances of discussion were meaningless to me.) and fewer biology lessons (I already know the differences between RNA and DNA, but even if I hadn't, that knowledge wasn't pertinent to the story). This felt a bit like a Connie Willis story, actually; I wish it had been a little more focused. My one other concern is that there are whole lines of dialog exclusively in Spanish, with no translation or guide in the back of the book.
All in all, though, this book features fascinating concepts with a likable but unique main character.
Trigger warning: a character is probably raped but doesn't remember it; no details are provided, one character talks about it in a victim-blaming way but the narrative does not support him, and it is not a major part of the book.
I liked the characters, but I thought there were too many view-point characters, with too little attention paid to each. I had the same problem with the plots and the future tech; there were just too many, all jostling for space. Slonczewski is fantastic at creating plausible but currently-fictitious creatures and technology, but I wish there had been better explanations of some of the tech (after numerous arguments between characters about what to do with the solarplates, someone finally explained what they were 200 pages in! Without knowing what they were, all those instances of discussion were meaningless to me.) and fewer biology lessons (I already know the differences between RNA and DNA, but even if I hadn't, that knowledge wasn't pertinent to the story). This felt a bit like a Connie Willis story, actually; I wish it had been a little more focused. My one other concern is that there are whole lines of dialog exclusively in Spanish, with no translation or guide in the back of the book.
All in all, though, this book features fascinating concepts with a likable but unique main character.
Trigger warning: a character is probably raped but doesn't remember it; no details are provided, one character talks about it in a victim-blaming way but the narrative does not support him, and it is not a major part of the book.
meags1's review
4.0
Strong, idea packed, but a bit unclear. As in, I thought a character was two different people based on how they were referred to in different contexts, until like, the last page.
bb70's review against another edition
3.0
I read this as part of the WWEnd Women of Genre Fiction reading challenge. In general I liked it, tho the amount of Spanish put me off. It is a quite believable semi-apocalyptic story — the end of the world hasn't been reached yet, but with the ongoing religious fundamentalist denialism it is fast approaching. A tale of warning then.
But even though this book bashes anti-scientific biblical literalism, it gives a pass to liberal reliosity, which is why I couldn't give this book more than 3 stars.
But even though this book bashes anti-scientific biblical literalism, it gives a pass to liberal reliosity, which is why I couldn't give this book more than 3 stars.
ineffablebob's review against another edition
4.0
The world setting in The Highest Frontier is fascinating, and it takes the whole book to catch all the nuances of what such a world would be like. This is a good thing, since in my opinion the plot of the book was pretty thin, and some of the "twists" were telegraphed badly. It reads like a "year in the life" of the main character, which isn't bad necessarily, but it wouldn't by itself be enough to keep me engaged. All the interesting parts of the world, though, those are engaging. From alien lifeforms to virtual classrooms to space habitats to future politics, there's plenty to surprise and interest the reader. And it's not all good...in fact, I'd argue it's well on its way to dystopia. Well worth the read just to see what the author has imagined for the mid-term not-so-perfect future.
useriv's review against another edition
3.0
Ambitious. I wanted to like this book more, but some of the language left me out, I think maybe it was election politics jargon. It was also an odd mix of satire and straight up science fiction. I liked the ultraphites but it bothered me a lot that the protagonist didn´t see it earlier that her roommate was one. A lot of themes going on, elections, bipartisan system, creationism, college administration. I cannot blame Professor S. for writing about what worries her in her daily life. Overall a good one, I will totally read the next one.
cameliarose's review against another edition
4.0
A GR friend says nowadays dystopian science fictions read like non-fictions. I agree, and The Highest Frontier is one of them.
The story is set 90 years in the future. At a glance, the future world looks good, technologically and biologically advanced. Humans have built sustainable habitats in the earth's lower orbit; cyborgs are every day existence; HIV has been tamed to fight diseases; genetic engineering everywhere, even in humans; human brains can be connected to virtual network through "brainstream", etc, etc... However, the advance of technology has not solved the environmental problems of our time. Carbon immersion is banned globally but it is already too late. The buried methane is unleashed. The sea rising becomes unstoppable. Cities lose to the sea. The death belt replaces Amazon rain forest. Countries fight over the ice free Antarctica. The ozone depletion makes un-treated humans blind by age of 30 and allows an alien microb-like life form descends onto the earth.
Ok, these are all the usual science fiction stuff. Nothing surprising. What give my goosebumps are the politics and the presidential election described the book that so eerily similar to what we have been going through since 2016. The rise of Christian far-right groups, exploited religious believes hindering social and scientific development, the follies of American democracy, voting fraud and voter repression, voting against one's own interests, lies and misinformations, the blurred line between entertainment and politics, all too gut-wrenching to read.
Joan Slonczewski is a biologist. I always love the life science in her books. The Highest Frontier is no exception.
The story is set 90 years in the future. At a glance, the future world looks good, technologically and biologically advanced. Humans have built sustainable habitats in the earth's lower orbit; cyborgs are every day existence; HIV has been tamed to fight diseases; genetic engineering everywhere, even in humans; human brains can be connected to virtual network through "brainstream", etc, etc... However, the advance of technology has not solved the environmental problems of our time. Carbon immersion is banned globally but it is already too late. The buried methane is unleashed. The sea rising becomes unstoppable. Cities lose to the sea. The death belt replaces Amazon rain forest. Countries fight over the ice free Antarctica. The ozone depletion makes un-treated humans blind by age of 30 and allows an alien microb-like life form descends onto the earth.
Ok, these are all the usual science fiction stuff. Nothing surprising. What give my goosebumps are the politics and the presidential election described the book that so eerily similar to what we have been going through since 2016. The rise of Christian far-right groups, exploited religious believes hindering social and scientific development, the follies of American democracy, voting fraud and voter repression, voting against one's own interests, lies and misinformations, the blurred line between entertainment and politics, all too gut-wrenching to read.
Joan Slonczewski is a biologist. I always love the life science in her books. The Highest Frontier is no exception.