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jennaroseshannon's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
informative
inspiring
mysterious
reflective
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.25
misterwombat's review against another edition
4.0
If you've seen the Kubrick film you'll be happy to know this is much more fast paced and fun. Very interesting and at times exciting classic sci-fi. By today's standards there isn't much action, but there is some. Clark is more interested in speculating a) where humanity will be with technological progress and the ability to explore our solar system and b) what potential alien life may look like and accomplish. This feels a lot like Project Hail Mary in its focus on discovery and survival.
There isn't much character development or really any insight into the human condition so it was a bit disappointing in that regard.
There isn't much character development or really any insight into the human condition so it was a bit disappointing in that regard.
ronpayne's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
hopeful
mysterious
reflective
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
hrishyank's review against another edition
5.0
If you have watched the movie and loved it, you would love this book too. If you couldn't last more than 10 minutes, just like me, you would still love the book. The author has gone into details, yet not bogged you down with them. The plot is crisp and moves ahead at a steady pace, which makes it a wonderful 6 hour read :3
whereishaleh's review against another edition
4.0
What took me so long to read this book? It was far more enjoyable, nuanced, and beautiful than the movie. I loved the story and the voyage through the solar system aboard the Discovery, seeing the fiery ring of Saturn illuminated by the sun, and gazing in awe at the majestic view of Jupiter.
rakshaaaaaa's review against another edition
4.0
What was that ending and why did it remind me of Akira?
matttj17's review against another edition
4.0
This book was amazing and is easily one of the best science fiction books out there. Extremely ground-breaking, and thought-provoking. I’m a huge fan of the movie, and was very interested in Arthur C. Clarke’s original take on the story. I highly recommend reading this, especially if the movie confused you, since Clarke wrote the book at the same time as the script for the film. To actually understand what the movie is explaining, this book is plainly necessary. That being said, the novel is much slower, and it does drag a bit in the middle. But very enjoyable, and a great staple of science fiction. Highly recommend.
all_seeing_ifer's review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
reflective
slow-paced
3.0
Perhaps I'm biased because I love the film so much - but much as I enjoyed this I can't shake the feeling this story is just so much better suited to the cinema. In novel form it's too detailed, too precise, too easy to understand. The sense of mystery and majesty and scale and alienness is diminished. BUT ☝️ we still have hal and he's the funniest bitch alive
boboswell's review against another edition
4.0
While the movie is quite impressive visually considering when it was made, I was restless and bored through the first thirty minutes, and left a little bewildered at the ending. This impression left me with little enthusiasm to read the book, and I mostly picked it up as a means to help interpret the meaning.
I didn't realize, until reading the afterword, that the book and the movie were written together. Clarke and Kubrick more or less collaborated on many of the ideas. While Kubrick made a few changes to better suit the format and constraints of the film, the two work well together and tell much the same story.
From the start, the book does a better job explaining what is happening in the first part, though Kubrick's efforts to show this without the use of words is commendable. I would say the trade-off is that HAL 9000 doesn't quite come off as chilling as he does in the movie, but the sense and scope of isolation for the protagonist is retained.
Overall, I think both the book and movie work well together, and separately. The ideas as told in the book seem more fully baked than in the movie, which is again understandable considering the differences between the two mediums. I'm interested in reading more of this series despite the fact that Clarke claims he never intended to write any sequels for this work.
I didn't realize, until reading the afterword, that the book and the movie were written together. Clarke and Kubrick more or less collaborated on many of the ideas. While Kubrick made a few changes to better suit the format and constraints of the film, the two work well together and tell much the same story.
From the start, the book does a better job explaining what is happening in the first part, though Kubrick's efforts to show this without the use of words is commendable. I would say the trade-off is that HAL 9000 doesn't quite come off as chilling as he does in the movie, but the sense and scope of isolation for the protagonist is retained.
Overall, I think both the book and movie work well together, and separately. The ideas as told in the book seem more fully baked than in the movie, which is again understandable considering the differences between the two mediums. I'm interested in reading more of this series despite the fact that Clarke claims he never intended to write any sequels for this work.
nelleish's review against another edition
5.0
I just love this book, in all its oscillating between minute practicalities of human space flight to grandiose visions of humanity’s origins and destinies. So many lines and images imprinted in my nerdling heart: the little Moon-born girl disgusted by the idea of visiting Earth where it hurts to fall down, the tragedy of conflicted consciousness in an AI, dispassionate weeding, uplifting man apes, the monolith, being full of stars … I could go on and on. Nowadays I think new readers may experience the John Carter effect, in that it may feel derivative when so, so much of science fiction has been directly or in-directly influenced by this book and/or its companion movie. One star should be deducted for the sad shabbiness of the period typical treatment of women characters (there really aren’t any) and other signs of age that act as a time capsule of pre-Moon landing gumption. But I can trace so much of my perception of the world to seeing 2001 at 10 years old, lying on the cough high on cough syrup - so a bonus point for making me a nerd.