Reviews with content warning for War - To Be Taught, If Fortunate

I really enjoyed this novella. It was an interesting exploration of the question of interstellar travel. I liked Chambers' ideas about community funded space travel and strong scientific ethics. As a letter to the reader, the book felt kind of sleepy to read. It was interesting and I didn't want to put it down, but it was also soothing and calming.

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avocadosocks's review against another edition

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adventurous dark emotional reflective tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Diverse cast of characters? Yes

4.5

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smitha_r's review against another edition

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adventurous hopeful informative reflective tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.5

This was a really, really amazing story but I couldn't give it a higher rating because: 1) I wanted it to be longer; 2) I don't feel like I truly knew Ariadne as well as I knew the other characters, and she's the narrator/the story is in her POV, and 3) something about the vibe of this book was depressing. Especially when

the crew never heard back from Lawki 5,

that really sealed the deal on the downer mood. But MAN the scientific explanations! The creativity of the alien worlds! How they altered their bodies for each planet! Loved all of that. I still feel weirdly uneasy about how it ended which says a lot in a good way. If the feeling stays with me, that's a positive. 4.3/5 stars.

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sammy357's review against another edition

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emotional reflective fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

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the_reading_wren's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging emotional inspiring reflective fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

This book perfectly fulfilled the form of a novella; it’s punchy and got me thinking. I also like the inclusion of the bonus content in this edition, which gives more context about Chambers’ thinking behind the book and how she was able to weave so much science so well into the story.

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messymimms's review against another edition

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adventurous informative reflective medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.25

Every time I read a Becky Chambers book (yes, the two whole times) I feel fortunate to be taught. Taught about something new, hopeful and inspiring.

The relationships between the characters of this book are not explained or displayed, but so much closeness is hinted at. You just know there’s so much behind it. Experience, love, complexity. Even if you wish you could witness it a little more.

As someone who took an astrobiology module on Coursera once (an expert), I loved the detail of this book. As always, the worldbuilding is epic yet thoughtful. The critters are excellent. Far-fetched and grounded and begging to be televised, honestly. Becky Chambers, CGI is ready for you. I’m ready.

As a bit of a philosopher (still not an expert but more so than I am in astrobiology) I loved the reflective, tender thread running through this novel. “Why are we here? What are we doing? Why are we doing it?” Ontologists, metaphysicians, epistemologists; my dudes, this one’s for you.

If anything, I wish this had been longer, I wish I was able to hear the crew’s deliberations and meander longer on these strange worlds. I wish I knew a tiny bit more of what was going on inside the characters’ heads, their history, their lives. But as Ariadne says, some things aren’t to be shared. I guess.

Still, it filled my mind with a sense of wonder. Which is one of my top one things a book can do. I guess it’s bigger on the inside.

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penofpossibilities's review against another edition

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adventurous emotional reflective fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Diverse cast of characters? Yes

3.0

I enjoyed this alot and read it almost in one sitting, to me the pacing was really pleasant and I didn't feel infodumped upon despite the amount of new terms and concepts to learn. The only reason I am disappointed in the ending is that if you present a mystery to me, I am going to want it answered. Rarely does an open ending work satisfactory to me. I figured, after reading a psalm for the wild built, that Becky Chambers is more about creating a world and some characters in order to explore philosophical questions, and isn't particularly interested in developing a clear cut answer for you. That's nice and interesting, but I still wanted to know so many specifics

what happened to earth, what happened to the lawki 5,...

I don't want to criticise the book for this though - it's definately more a style/genre preference on my end than a fault of the book or the writing. I like Becky Chambers' writing a lot and will probably read her other works as well.

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marsh_mall0w's review against another edition

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adventurous hopeful informative reflective medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.5

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