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macthekat's review against another edition
5.0
Loved it. It was wonderful, interesting and adorable. The fact that for half the book I didn't really want the plot to start because I was spellbound and didn't want anything bad to happen to anyone. By The end the book made me stay up easy past my bedtime, though I have stopped doing that.
A fascinating contemplation on sentient wrapped up in an adorable story about little furry creatures and friendship.
A fascinating contemplation on sentient wrapped up in an adorable story about little furry creatures and friendship.
mynameisnemo's review against another edition
4.0
My brother and I once had a discussion that involved the question 'if you could go back in time to any point and change one thing, what would you do?'
My brother said that, given any point in time and any change, he would go back and convince H. Beam Piper that he would be a successful writer and not to kill himself.
Given that, the profound influence that one of my favourite people in the world experienced at the hand of the writing of this man, I figured it would probably be good to read some of his works.
So today I started and finished my first H. Beam Piper book. I need a little more of a sample size to be convinced if my brother's impression is the same for me, but I have to say it has been a long time since I started and finished a new book all in the same day.
This is a book that has it all. A space colony on an unspecified world, a long court proceeding, a hint of mystery, a lot of discussion of psychology, and a happy ending. Also cute fuzzy creatures. I mean, who can resist? I really like how much time is given in this book to attempting to define what sapience is. There is very little question of right and wrong in this story, and no question of who is on what side other than one very obvious exception, but the question of sapience, while obviously important to the plot, seems to be the greater point of contemplation behind this novel for the author and I very much appreciate the framing in which he opted to explore it.
Speaking of that one little obvious exception, I also enjoyed the flavourings here and there of cold war era political and military tactics. It was a great reminder of the environment in which the story was born but also it was fun to imagine those circumstances applying on another planet in the distant future. Given the current state of affairs in America, it's not hard to see how those sort of machinations might reoccur in another time and place.
Lastly, I also wanted to mention how much I loved the naming of the colonies. Naming them after various deities was an absolute stroke of genius on the part of Piper and definitely puts his works, in a mechanical sense, apart from any other contemporary era science fiction that I have read.
My brother said that, given any point in time and any change, he would go back and convince H. Beam Piper that he would be a successful writer and not to kill himself.
Given that, the profound influence that one of my favourite people in the world experienced at the hand of the writing of this man, I figured it would probably be good to read some of his works.
So today I started and finished my first H. Beam Piper book. I need a little more of a sample size to be convinced if my brother's impression is the same for me, but I have to say it has been a long time since I started and finished a new book all in the same day.
This is a book that has it all. A space colony on an unspecified world, a long court proceeding, a hint of mystery, a lot of discussion of psychology, and a happy ending. Also cute fuzzy creatures. I mean, who can resist? I really like how much time is given in this book to attempting to define what sapience is. There is very little question of right and wrong in this story, and no question of who is on what side other than one very obvious exception, but the question of sapience, while obviously important to the plot, seems to be the greater point of contemplation behind this novel for the author and I very much appreciate the framing in which he opted to explore it.
Speaking of that one little obvious exception, I also enjoyed the flavourings here and there of cold war era political and military tactics. It was a great reminder of the environment in which the story was born but also it was fun to imagine those circumstances applying on another planet in the distant future. Given the current state of affairs in America, it's not hard to see how those sort of machinations might reoccur in another time and place.
Lastly, I also wanted to mention how much I loved the naming of the colonies. Naming them after various deities was an absolute stroke of genius on the part of Piper and definitely puts his works, in a mechanical sense, apart from any other contemporary era science fiction that I have read.
charleshb's review against another edition
5.0
An old book, but one of my favorites. Some anachronisms, example film movie cameras for people traveling to other star systems whereas we currently shoot most of our video directly to electronic formats. Very interesting examination of what it means to be sapient. Also a look at corporate and governmental corruption. Lots packed into this short scifi novel.
hckypylon's review against another edition
*SPOILER*
Interesting to read this right after John Scalzi's Fuzzy Nation which is based on this. The differing elements that they used to prove sapience, the difference in the way they present Jack Holloway - one as having a conscious the other as being the right guy because he is driven by self interest.
Interesting to read this right after John Scalzi's Fuzzy Nation which is based on this. The differing elements that they used to prove sapience, the difference in the way they present Jack Holloway - one as having a conscious the other as being the right guy because he is driven by self interest.
swekster's review against another edition
5.0
I love reading old-timey SF once in a while. It's a breath of fresh air to have clear-cut heroes and villains, and the loveable and huggable fuzzies are a big plus.
ssindc's review against another edition
3.0
Quick & fun, and I can see how and why this became somewhat of a sci-fi classic or, at a minimum, a cult favorite.... Like its recent tribute re-boot, Fuzzy Nation, this one a hugely entertaining lawyers in space free-for-all. Having read the two back-to-back, Fuzzy Nation - in addition to being more "modern" and feeling less "dated" - pushed more of my buttons. I particularly liked the re-imagining of the protagonist - not that the protagonist in Little Fuzzy wasn't attractive and effective, but he wasn't nearly as complex, and his side story didn't seem to add nearly as much value to the whole. Still, plenty of fun for a short read.....
realbooks4ever's review against another edition
3.0
Read my review here: http://realbooks4ever.tumblr.com/post/51308493304
ericb's review against another edition
4.0
Wonderful little story. I thoroughly enjoyed it. I think I like this original story better than the reboot by John Scalzi. It has more heart. Recommended.