A review by mlklein1
Embassytown by China Miéville
5.0
I thoroughly enjoyed this very smart novel about an off Earth colony in the distant future. I read some science fiction, but not a lot. So many of the elements I really enjoyed may be old hat to regular SF readers, but I really liked them.
For example, the issue of age. Here on Earth we measure age in years and months. But since one year is equal to one trip around the sun for us...the unit of measurement is meaningless on a planet so far from Earth and the Milky Way. And the measurement is even meaningless amongst the planets in close proximity to each other. Mieville covers this in an ingenuous way that explains everyone's age relative to each other, and gives us Earthikins a sense of their "Earth-equivalent age." (As I said, regular SF readers may find this obvious.)
The novel is about political intrigue and language and diplomacy and it reminded me somewhat of the film "The Arrival" in that human-alien communication is a central theme. (And yes, in this novel it is the humans who are actually the aliens, since it's their world and we're guests in...Embassytown.)
Anyway, this was a really nice novel with big themes and exciting action and great, complex characters. And a very nuanced, deep, compelling female protagonist, for what it's worth.
(I also enjoyed this book because it was the first real novel recommended to me by my 20-year-old daughter! #RaisedRight)
For example, the issue of age. Here on Earth we measure age in years and months. But since one year is equal to one trip around the sun for us...the unit of measurement is meaningless on a planet so far from Earth and the Milky Way. And the measurement is even meaningless amongst the planets in close proximity to each other. Mieville covers this in an ingenuous way that explains everyone's age relative to each other, and gives us Earthikins a sense of their "Earth-equivalent age." (As I said, regular SF readers may find this obvious.)
The novel is about political intrigue and language and diplomacy and it reminded me somewhat of the film "The Arrival" in that human-alien communication is a central theme. (And yes, in this novel it is the humans who are actually the aliens, since it's their world and we're guests in...Embassytown.)
Anyway, this was a really nice novel with big themes and exciting action and great, complex characters. And a very nuanced, deep, compelling female protagonist, for what it's worth.
(I also enjoyed this book because it was the first real novel recommended to me by my 20-year-old daughter! #RaisedRight)