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effervescentsoul's review against another edition
4.0
Tepper makes me think. I love hert fascinating future worlds that investigate the real issues of survival that face humanity today. This book, in particular, looks at how good ideas can mutate over time into trouble and chaos. Tolerance and diversity are good values, but sometimes holding on to what makes us different than others can drive us apart rather than bring us together. Sometimes it is important to decide what parts of our past are worth hanging on to and what is worth letting go of.
If you enjoy mythopoetic speculative fiction, you will find a lot to think about in Sideshow.
If you enjoy mythopoetic speculative fiction, you will find a lot to think about in Sideshow.
noelrk's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
reflective
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
maenad_wordsmith's review against another edition
This book is an excellent example of how science fiction can examine diversity, (non)intervention, and transcendence. Asking questions about when to intervene and when to respect cultural differences on imaginary worlds offers the reader more perspectives than asking these questions in a realistic setting--the mind is not limited to known worlds, but is free to explore new paths. Also, having a female main character (one of a strong ensemble) who is not interested in marriage and love is important for female readers; women are far more than their romantic relationships, and literature should reflect this. That being said, Tepper does have a couple passages that beautifully describe an experience of love. And there were wonderful connections to her previous novel, Grass.
rustykingswood's review against another edition
challenging
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
2.5
corymojojojo's review against another edition
4.0
I finally found the time and motivation to read the final book in Tepper’s Arbai trilogy, and while it didn’t have quite the same impact on me that the first two books did, without fail Tepper manages to captivate me with her imaginative world-building. This particular world of Elsewhere was dense with customs and cultures that were admittedly often hard to follow, and the plot is not something I could manage to explain to someone without rambling for 20 minutes. After the first two books were entirely standalone with a few minor references to connect them in any meaningful way, it was a real pleasure to see the return of some of my favorite characters from earlier books make an appearance in this final book. That didn’t stop Tepper from writing another essentially standalone book, but it was nice to wrap everything up with a bit more cohesion than expected. While I still prefer Grass to Sideshow, and Sideshow certainly didn’t age quite as well, I’m never let down by Tepper’s books and hopefully that trend continues.
msaari's review
3.0
Intriguing. I've read [b:Grass|104342|Grass (Arbai, #1)|Sheri S. Tepper|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1348772895s/104342.jpg|14066792] years ago, so I noticed some of the references there, even though I've forgotten just about everything. [b:Raising the Stones|104348|Raising the Stones (Arbai, #2)|Sheri S. Tepper|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1387719424s/104348.jpg|879710] I've never read; perhaps that would've helped.
In any case, this was an interesting read – quite convoluted and perhaps somewhat too long, but the story did cover some fascinating philosophical ground for interventions, gods, diversity and what not. Not Tepper's best book, by far, but worth reading.
In any case, this was an interesting read – quite convoluted and perhaps somewhat too long, but the story did cover some fascinating philosophical ground for interventions, gods, diversity and what not. Not Tepper's best book, by far, but worth reading.
luosymekawa's review against another edition
challenging
dark
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
Surprisingly more gory than the first two books. Still extremely compelling with a thesis the ties the entire trilogy together.
judenoseinabook's review
4.0
Enigmatic at times but most of the enigmas are answered further on in the text.
The idea of the tyranny of diversity and political correctness is interesting. It seems prophetic i many ways.
The idea of the tyranny of diversity and political correctness is interesting. It seems prophetic i many ways.
0l1v1a's review
3.0
Sideshow’s was an engaging enough story—it had to be, considering I kept reading despite pausing to roll my eyes every 10 to 15 pages. The writing was not up to the standard I’d expected. Every moment of exposition is miserably expositiony, far too “told,” if you will. The concepts with which Tepper engages are interesting, sure, but the way in which she goes about it feels heavy-handed at times.
The characters almost redeemed the book for me. They’re all interesting, all mostly round with a few flat spots. But the ways in which they think about gender—and they ALL think about gender—were either an undecipherable attempt at social commentary with no follow-through, or just weird.
This book came with a compelling recommendation from my brother, but I’m left with regret at having bumped other titles down on my list to accommodate this one. Would not recommend, unless you just really love sci-fi concepts and you don’t care if you’re occasionally jerked out of the narrative by an unwelcome awareness of the writing.
The characters almost redeemed the book for me. They’re all interesting, all mostly round with a few flat spots. But the ways in which they think about gender—and they ALL think about gender—were either an undecipherable attempt at social commentary with no follow-through, or just weird.
This book came with a compelling recommendation from my brother, but I’m left with regret at having bumped other titles down on my list to accommodate this one. Would not recommend, unless you just really love sci-fi concepts and you don’t care if you’re occasionally jerked out of the narrative by an unwelcome awareness of the writing.
hornyforbooks's review
5.0
I really loved this series. Enough that I bought it in hardback for myself and paperback copies to send to a friend.
Something about the struggle of intention vs action vs results seems particularly relevant now and the argument that being paralyzed by minute ethical concerns instead of acting to help people makes you somewhat responsible for horrors that you could have prevented or limited by trying to help. Also an overall good play on what is the definition and purpose of humanity.
Something about the struggle of intention vs action vs results seems particularly relevant now and the argument that being paralyzed by minute ethical concerns instead of acting to help people makes you somewhat responsible for horrors that you could have prevented or limited by trying to help. Also an overall good play on what is the definition and purpose of humanity.