neg_g's review against another edition
2.0
Frustrating.
It's either me failing to understand this book or that All Flesh is Grass is an example of fully prioritizing the ideas over storytelling.
It's either me failing to understand this book or that All Flesh is Grass is an example of fully prioritizing the ideas over storytelling.
drakaina16's review against another edition
mysterious
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
2.5
bigenk's review against another edition
lighthearted
sad
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? Yes
2.5
My second Simak after reading City. Gotta say that I'm a bit disappointment by this one.
The best thing I can say about it is that Simak has moments of really elegant and and eloquent prose. I would be reading along and suddenly be taken aback by a really strong few paragraphs that pulled me in and left me thinking. It was really enjoyable to see some of that level of writing that I saw in City again. All Flesh Is Grass has a melancholic and austere tone that pairs well with its condemnation of humanity. Simak makes it clear that he thinks that humanity is not ready for first contact with another intelligence species. The ideas/technology and aliens themselves are also interesting.
My main point of criticism is that it's just so damn boring. There are very few moments of actual excitement or intrigue. Most of the time the reader has to endure the characters hand wringing over the events of the plot, or giving massive text block exposition on background information, other characters, or the way that the world works. This is all exacerbated by the mostly dead simple writing style, and the painfully slow plotline. I don't think it's nessasarily bad, but I just can't get all that excited about anything this book does or has to say because of the drudgery it entails.
Oh, yeah, I should mention the ending too I suppose. F-tier ending. Not only did it resolve so quickly that I nearly had whiplash, but the ending itself was schmaltzy to the point that I laughed. Ah yes, love and ability to perceive beauty, that's what sets us humans apart. If we could only all learn that, and harness its power, we could do anything. Ugh.
This hasn't put me off from reading more of Simak, mostly because of how strong City was, but dang. What a bummer.
The best thing I can say about it is that Simak has moments of really elegant and and eloquent prose. I would be reading along and suddenly be taken aback by a really strong few paragraphs that pulled me in and left me thinking. It was really enjoyable to see some of that level of writing that I saw in City again. All Flesh Is Grass has a melancholic and austere tone that pairs well with its condemnation of humanity. Simak makes it clear that he thinks that humanity is not ready for first contact with another intelligence species. The ideas/technology and aliens themselves are also interesting.
My main point of criticism is that it's just so damn boring. There are very few moments of actual excitement or intrigue. Most of the time the reader has to endure the characters hand wringing over the events of the plot, or giving massive text block exposition on background information, other characters, or the way that the world works. This is all exacerbated by the mostly dead simple writing style, and the painfully slow plotline. I don't think it's nessasarily bad, but I just can't get all that excited about anything this book does or has to say because of the drudgery it entails.
Oh, yeah, I should mention the ending too I suppose. F-tier ending. Not only did it resolve so quickly that I nearly had whiplash, but the ending itself was schmaltzy to the point that I laughed. Ah yes, love and ability to perceive beauty, that's what sets us humans apart. If we could only all learn that, and harness its power, we could do anything. Ugh.
This hasn't put me off from reading more of Simak, mostly because of how strong City was, but dang. What a bummer.
crowfood's review against another edition
2.0
Some interesting ideas, not least of which is the similarity to Stephen King's The Dome (but written decades earlier) but tiring characters and flat dialogue failed to hook my interest.
While it shared themes with his other novel that I liked, Way Station, All Flesh is Grass just seemed to miss the mark. The writing seemed to be worse, but that may have been because of the increased amount of dialogue. Lastly, seeing things through the main character's eyes was just tiring. In his own words, what a heel.
While it shared themes with his other novel that I liked, Way Station, All Flesh is Grass just seemed to miss the mark. The writing seemed to be worse, but that may have been because of the increased amount of dialogue. Lastly, seeing things through the main character's eyes was just tiring. In his own words, what a heel.
bundy23's review against another edition
4.0
There’s a while lot going on here; an invisible dome, aliens invading earth in the form of weeds, various alternate earths, morbid time travelling tourists, and to combat all that the human race only has a very average hero named Brad that never really seem in too much of a hurry.
For a sci-fi “classic” this is a little bit light on the science but Brad’s pretty likeable when he’s not flying off the handle and assaulting his former bully or being a bit sexist...
”She was like any other woman. She asked the damndest questions.”
He’s also quite pessimistic...
They would fail. We would always fail. We weren’t built to do anything but fail. We had the wrong kind of motives and we couldn’t change them. We had a built-in short-sightedness and an inherent selfishness and a self-concern that made it impossible to step out of the little human rut we traveled…
...but how can anyone not be a pessimist when it comes to the nature of our political leaders?
Despite a strong build up towards the end I felt a bit let down by the final page but overall I’d still recommend it.
For a sci-fi “classic” this is a little bit light on the science but Brad’s pretty likeable when he’s not flying off the handle and assaulting his former bully or being a bit sexist...
”She was like any other woman. She asked the damndest questions.”
He’s also quite pessimistic...
They would fail. We would always fail. We weren’t built to do anything but fail. We had the wrong kind of motives and we couldn’t change them. We had a built-in short-sightedness and an inherent selfishness and a self-concern that made it impossible to step out of the little human rut we traveled…
...but how can anyone not be a pessimist when it comes to the nature of our political leaders?
Despite a strong build up towards the end I felt a bit let down by the final page but overall I’d still recommend it.
catcherinthepi's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
medium-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? No
4.0
I enjoyed this book more than I thought I would. It's in a long line of first-encounters sci-fi novels, but the fun twist here was sentient plants. Of the works I've read with sentient plants, this may be my favorite. The way the plants harvest intelligence seems pretty planty to me.
I didn't enjoy the 1960s-era inability for women characters to pass the Bechdel test, which makes this novel very much of its time.
The ending was tacky and felt rushed, but there were a lot of good ideas and weird aliens to be had.
I didn't enjoy the 1960s-era inability for women characters to pass the Bechdel test, which makes this novel very much of its time.
Spoiler
Reading this in the 2020s places the bomb threat as a stand-in for climate change, the rise of fascism, etc. quite easily.The ending was tacky and felt rushed, but there were a lot of good ideas and weird aliens to be had.
toniherrero's review against another edition
2.0
2/5
Avorridot, avorridot. Confesso que Clifford D. Simak és un autor que m'agrada: m'agrada com escriu i m'agrada el que explica. En aquest cas, però, el llibre m'ha decebut. És inconcebible que un text amb uns elements tan potents —primer contacte alienígena, una estranya cúpula que encapsula una població sencera i els seus habitants (reminiscències a Stephen King), un color morat vingut d'un altre món (reminiscències a H.P. Lovecraft)— pugui resultar tan poc entretingut.
Crec que el problema és l'extensió. M'ha fet l'efecte que la història, que és bona, dona per a un relat o fins i tot per a una novel·la curta, però no pas per a un volum de tantes pàgines. És una pena, perquè Simak desplega tot el seu potencial d'idees —ecologisme, antibel·licisme, etc.— i ho fa de forma prou original (Stephen King va escriure «Under the Dome» quaranta-quatre anys més tard), però s'embarbussa en trames insubstancials sobre els habitants de Milville, que curiosament comparteix nom amb la població on va néixer el mateix Simak.
En definitiva: li compro el missatge, sobretot la reflexió final, però em sobra gairebé 2/3 de la novel·la. La veritat és que fins ara Simak mai m'havia decebut. Té obres mestres i llibres més fluixets, però fins i tot novel·les mediocres com «Shakespeare's Planet» tenen idees interessants i estan millor resoltes. No obstant això, continuaré llegint qualsevol llibre de Simak que caigui a les meves mans, encara que sigui per descobrir una nova joia que poder reivindicar com a editor dins de la col·lecció Tràntor.
Avorridot, avorridot. Confesso que Clifford D. Simak és un autor que m'agrada: m'agrada com escriu i m'agrada el que explica. En aquest cas, però, el llibre m'ha decebut. És inconcebible que un text amb uns elements tan potents —primer contacte alienígena, una estranya cúpula que encapsula una població sencera i els seus habitants (reminiscències a Stephen King), un color morat vingut d'un altre món (reminiscències a H.P. Lovecraft)— pugui resultar tan poc entretingut.
Crec que el problema és l'extensió. M'ha fet l'efecte que la història, que és bona, dona per a un relat o fins i tot per a una novel·la curta, però no pas per a un volum de tantes pàgines. És una pena, perquè Simak desplega tot el seu potencial d'idees —ecologisme, antibel·licisme, etc.— i ho fa de forma prou original (Stephen King va escriure «Under the Dome» quaranta-quatre anys més tard), però s'embarbussa en trames insubstancials sobre els habitants de Milville, que curiosament comparteix nom amb la població on va néixer el mateix Simak.
En definitiva: li compro el missatge, sobretot la reflexió final, però em sobra gairebé 2/3 de la novel·la. La veritat és que fins ara Simak mai m'havia decebut. Té obres mestres i llibres més fluixets, però fins i tot novel·les mediocres com «Shakespeare's Planet» tenen idees interessants i estan millor resoltes. No obstant això, continuaré llegint qualsevol llibre de Simak que caigui a les meves mans, encara que sigui per descobrir una nova joia que poder reivindicar com a editor dins de la col·lecció Tràntor.
fedor_ulysses's review
adventurous
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.0