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eebeejay's review against another edition
adventurous
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
4.25
blackaliss's review against another edition
adventurous
hopeful
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
mdiffer's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
inspiring
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.5
Better than the first book. But many of my complaints from the first book carry over. Wonderful high-minded sci-fi concepts. Questionable characters, dialogue, and plot.
loomisknows's review against another edition
adventurous
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
Weirdly xenophilic
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death, Child death, Misogyny, Racial slurs, Violence, War, and Injury/Injury detail
jaminup's review against another edition
3.0
I did enjoy this a lot, I thought the concepts were really interesting and the world building was excellent. But the format and perspective shifts really didn't make sense and wasn't consistent which really took me out of it at times, trying to figure out whose perspective I was supposed to be following.
olityr's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
hopeful
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
It was a little hard to keep the various characters straight, and I'm not sure why. It was even hard to know sometime if the POV I was listening to was a Human or a Dolphin till it was stated in each POV section. That was a little strange. Interesting, but not as good as Sundiver was.
topdragon's review against another edition
3.0
If you’re looking for interesting, thought-provoking, hard science fiction, you could certainly do worse than this second novel in the “Uplift Trilogy”. Even though it is the second book in a trilogy, it takes place more than 200 years after the events of book one ([b:Sundiver|96472|Sundiver (The Uplift Saga, #1)|David Brin|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1388176548s/96472.jpg|461555]) and has no connected story threads or characters so can easily be read without having first read book one. In fact, I recommend doing just that as I believe this novel is a much better introduction to this future universe.
The story takes place on the abandoned ocean world of Kithrup, in the year 2489 AD. The predominantly dolphin-crewed starship Streaker has found sanctuary deep underwater after having found a fleet of abandoned starships in a globular cluster that date back to the time of the fabled “Progenitors”. There is knowledge in this discovery and it turns out that there are races willing to commit murder and even genocide to learn more about the birth of intergalactic civilization. That is a particular problem for the crew of the Streaker because they have been pursued to the planet Kithrup by whole groups of alien starships with dozens of major galactic races now clashing overhead for the right to capture Streaker and her secrets. And just to make things even more interesting, the crew of the Streaker are themselves divided over which course of action to take and, indeed, the planet itself has its own secrets to be dealt with.
Try to ignore the fact that this is a novel about “dolphins in space” which, now that I type that, sounds like a silly children’s book title. In the hands of physicist/astrophysicist/futurist David Brin, there is nothing silly about this book. Rather, this is a huge concept novel that serves well to introduce the reader to the concept of “uplift” which is, essentially, the genetic altering of lower species, granting them intelligence, so they can enter Galactic civilization, and achieve star-faring status. Prior to the events of this trilogy, humans have uplifted both dolphins and chimpanzees. It can be a little confusing when reading about dolphins who can speak just as well as humans and I confess to frequently referencing the handy glossary in order to keep straight who’s a human and who’s a dolphin. (There is only one chimp aboard so that one was easy). Brin put a lot of effort into the dolphin society, organization, and language (the dolphins have a haiku-like way of speaking which bridges their primal language of squeaks, clicks and sonar and the human language, "Anglic") and it's extremely convincing.
Startide Rising was first published in 1983 and is one of the rare SF novels to 'win the double', securing both the Nebula and Hugo Awards for Best Novel, a feat also achieved by the likes of [b:Dune|234225|Dune (Dune #1)|Frank Herbert|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1434908555s/234225.jpg|3634639], [b:Neuromancer|888628|Neuromancer|William Gibson|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1281419771s/888628.jpg|909457], [b:Doomsday Book|24983|Doomsday Book (Oxford Time Travel, #1)|Connie Willis|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1403972500s/24983.jpg|2439628], [b:The Left Hand of Darkness|18423|The Left Hand of Darkness|Ursula K. Le Guin|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1488213612s/18423.jpg|817527], [b:Rendezvous with Rama|112537|Rendezvous with Rama (Rama, #1)|Arthur C. Clarke|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1405456427s/112537.jpg|1882772] and [b:Ender's Game|375802|Ender's Game (Ender's Saga, #1)|Orson Scott Card|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1408303130s/375802.jpg|2422333].
I’ve always wanted to be one of those smart readers who enjoyed hard sci-fi, especially when I was young and tried to compete with my older brother. But usually when I tackled one, I would find my mind wandering off the plot and thinking about other things. It’s not so much that I was bored but I think they tended to be so science-heavy that important story-telling techniques such as relatable characters, intriguing plots, and proper pacing suffered. But I still keep trying once in a while even if I must work up my courage to do so. This novel suffered a little bit of that but my experience this time around was a generally positive one. The ideas were so intriguing, and I really enjoyed the little thought-provoking touches in the story like a dolphin that goes a little off the wire and thinks he is an orca, or the concept of the food chain as a religion. While the novel does feature a lot of science and “future-scientific terms”, in general it was easy enough to follow and the characters were memorable.
I do plan to pursue book three, [b:The Uplift War|234489|The Uplift War (The Uplift Saga, #3)|David Brin|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1375272637s/234489.jpg|98235] and likely the follow-on trilogy as well.
The story takes place on the abandoned ocean world of Kithrup, in the year 2489 AD. The predominantly dolphin-crewed starship Streaker has found sanctuary deep underwater after having found a fleet of abandoned starships in a globular cluster that date back to the time of the fabled “Progenitors”. There is knowledge in this discovery and it turns out that there are races willing to commit murder and even genocide to learn more about the birth of intergalactic civilization. That is a particular problem for the crew of the Streaker because they have been pursued to the planet Kithrup by whole groups of alien starships with dozens of major galactic races now clashing overhead for the right to capture Streaker and her secrets. And just to make things even more interesting, the crew of the Streaker are themselves divided over which course of action to take and, indeed, the planet itself has its own secrets to be dealt with.
Try to ignore the fact that this is a novel about “dolphins in space” which, now that I type that, sounds like a silly children’s book title. In the hands of physicist/astrophysicist/futurist David Brin, there is nothing silly about this book. Rather, this is a huge concept novel that serves well to introduce the reader to the concept of “uplift” which is, essentially, the genetic altering of lower species, granting them intelligence, so they can enter Galactic civilization, and achieve star-faring status. Prior to the events of this trilogy, humans have uplifted both dolphins and chimpanzees. It can be a little confusing when reading about dolphins who can speak just as well as humans and I confess to frequently referencing the handy glossary in order to keep straight who’s a human and who’s a dolphin. (There is only one chimp aboard so that one was easy). Brin put a lot of effort into the dolphin society, organization, and language (the dolphins have a haiku-like way of speaking which bridges their primal language of squeaks, clicks and sonar and the human language, "Anglic") and it's extremely convincing.
Startide Rising was first published in 1983 and is one of the rare SF novels to 'win the double', securing both the Nebula and Hugo Awards for Best Novel, a feat also achieved by the likes of [b:Dune|234225|Dune (Dune #1)|Frank Herbert|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1434908555s/234225.jpg|3634639], [b:Neuromancer|888628|Neuromancer|William Gibson|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1281419771s/888628.jpg|909457], [b:Doomsday Book|24983|Doomsday Book (Oxford Time Travel, #1)|Connie Willis|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1403972500s/24983.jpg|2439628], [b:The Left Hand of Darkness|18423|The Left Hand of Darkness|Ursula K. Le Guin|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1488213612s/18423.jpg|817527], [b:Rendezvous with Rama|112537|Rendezvous with Rama (Rama, #1)|Arthur C. Clarke|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1405456427s/112537.jpg|1882772] and [b:Ender's Game|375802|Ender's Game (Ender's Saga, #1)|Orson Scott Card|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1408303130s/375802.jpg|2422333].
I’ve always wanted to be one of those smart readers who enjoyed hard sci-fi, especially when I was young and tried to compete with my older brother. But usually when I tackled one, I would find my mind wandering off the plot and thinking about other things. It’s not so much that I was bored but I think they tended to be so science-heavy that important story-telling techniques such as relatable characters, intriguing plots, and proper pacing suffered. But I still keep trying once in a while even if I must work up my courage to do so. This novel suffered a little bit of that but my experience this time around was a generally positive one. The ideas were so intriguing, and I really enjoyed the little thought-provoking touches in the story like a dolphin that goes a little off the wire and thinks he is an orca, or the concept of the food chain as a religion. While the novel does feature a lot of science and “future-scientific terms”, in general it was easy enough to follow and the characters were memorable.
I do plan to pursue book three, [b:The Uplift War|234489|The Uplift War (The Uplift Saga, #3)|David Brin|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1375272637s/234489.jpg|98235] and likely the follow-on trilogy as well.
cathepsut's review against another edition
adventurous
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
I read this a few years after it was published. Back then I liked it. Sentient dolphins were a huge draw. Even then I liked everything involving the ocean.
Humanity is part of a large universe full of uplifted species. There are patron races (the uplifters) and client races (uplifted). Uplifting another race adds status, being an uplifted client race means being beholden to one‘s patrons and having to be subservient for a certain time. Eventually the client race becomes a patron race as well, is free of its own patrons and can uplift other races. Patron races eventually evolve and disappear (ascend?).
Humans are the odd ones out. They achieved sentience on their own, without being uplifted by another race. And they in turn uplifted chimpanzees and dolphins, without strings attached. The galactic equilibrium is disturbed, as this has never happened before — all sentient races have always been uplifted by others. The greatest mystery of all remains who uplifted humankind.
So much for the backstory.
The Terran exploration vessel Streaker has crashed in the uncharted water world of Kithrup, bearing one of the most important discoveries in galactic history. Below, a handful of her human and dolphin crew battles armed rebellion and a hostile planet to safeguard her secret--the fate of the Progenitors, the fabled First Race who seeded wisdom throughout the stars.
(I felt lazy, taken from the book blurb)
I liked the development of some of the dolphin characters. The tone of the narrative felt a little dated. Some of the deaths were tragic.
Spaceships filled partially with water, because dolphins! Dolphins flying spaceships is pretty cool. I wonder what water in spaceships does to the creating of ship gravity?
Great alien races! Most of them not very nice. Fighting each other over the right to grab our crashed crew of humans, uplifted dolphins and one uplifted chimpanzee. Who in turn not only have to figure out how to survive and get off that planet, but also have to deal with a rebellion in their own ranks, that turns pretty nasty.
I did not connect emotionally to the characters or the story, mainly because of the dated tone. 🐬🐬🐬
It’s very unlikely that I will continue with this series.
Hugo Award for Best Novel (1984), Nebula Award for Best Novel (1983), Locus Award for Best Science Fiction Novel (1984)
Humanity is part of a large universe full of uplifted species. There are patron races (the uplifters) and client races (uplifted). Uplifting another race adds status, being an uplifted client race means being beholden to one‘s patrons and having to be subservient for a certain time. Eventually the client race becomes a patron race as well, is free of its own patrons and can uplift other races. Patron races eventually evolve and disappear (ascend?).
Humans are the odd ones out. They achieved sentience on their own, without being uplifted by another race. And they in turn uplifted chimpanzees and dolphins, without strings attached. The galactic equilibrium is disturbed, as this has never happened before — all sentient races have always been uplifted by others. The greatest mystery of all remains who uplifted humankind.
So much for the backstory.
The Terran exploration vessel Streaker has crashed in the uncharted water world of Kithrup, bearing one of the most important discoveries in galactic history. Below, a handful of her human and dolphin crew battles armed rebellion and a hostile planet to safeguard her secret--the fate of the Progenitors, the fabled First Race who seeded wisdom throughout the stars.
(I felt lazy, taken from the book blurb)
I liked the development of some of the dolphin characters. The tone of the narrative felt a little dated. Some of the deaths were tragic.
Spaceships filled partially with water, because dolphins! Dolphins flying spaceships is pretty cool. I wonder what water in spaceships does to the creating of ship gravity?
Great alien races! Most of them not very nice. Fighting each other over the right to grab our crashed crew of humans, uplifted dolphins and one uplifted chimpanzee. Who in turn not only have to figure out how to survive and get off that planet, but also have to deal with a rebellion in their own ranks, that turns pretty nasty.
I did not connect emotionally to the characters or the story, mainly because of the dated tone. 🐬🐬🐬
It’s very unlikely that I will continue with this series.
Hugo Award for Best Novel (1984), Nebula Award for Best Novel (1983), Locus Award for Best Science Fiction Novel (1984)
marygeer's review against another edition
Too much going on. I didn’t read the first one. A professor recommended it and I finally admitted to myself it’s not for me
full_quieting's review against another edition
4.0
Came up in my recommendations, and I remembered reading it and liking it when I was in junior high school. Wonder what I'd think of it now.