What do you think?
Rate this book
Heechee Saga #1
袚械泄褌褍械泄
袚械泄褌褍械泄 鈥� 锌褉芯褏芯写褗褌 泻褗屑 胁褋懈褔泻懈 斜芯谐邪褌褋褌胁邪 薪邪 袙褋械谢械薪邪褌邪鈥� 懈 胁褋懈褔泻懈 褍卸邪褋褟胁邪褖懈 褌邪泄薪懈, 泻芯懈褌芯 褋械 泻褉懈褟褌 胁 薪械褟.
袘芯斜 袘褉芯写褏械写 鈥� 胁械褌械褉邪薪 芯褌 褌褉懈 锌芯谢械褌邪 胁 锌褉芯褋褌褉邪薪褋褌胁芯褌芯, 褔芯胁械泻 薪械胁械褉芯褟褌薪芯 懈蟹胁械褋褌械薪 懈 斜芯谐邪褌 褋械 胁褉褗褖邪 胁褗胁 胁褉械屑械褌芯 薪邪 褋胁芯褟褌邪 屑谢邪写芯褋褌, 蟹邪 写邪 锌褉械写锌褉懈械屑械 械写薪芯 锌褗褌褍胁邪薪械 泻褗屑 褋械斜械 褋懈, 锌芯-芯锌邪褋薪芯 懈 褋屑褉邪蟹褟胁邪褖芯 写芯褉懈 芯褌 屑械卸写褍蟹胁械蟹写薪芯褌芯 锌褗褌械褕械褋褌胁懈械, 懈蟹写懈谐薪邪谢芯 谐芯 薪邪 胁褗褉褏芯胁械褌械 薪邪 褋谢邪胁邪褌邪.
袘芯斜 袘褉芯写褏械写 鈥� 胁械褌械褉邪薪 芯褌 褌褉懈 锌芯谢械褌邪 胁 锌褉芯褋褌褉邪薪褋褌胁芯褌芯, 褔芯胁械泻 薪械胁械褉芯褟褌薪芯 懈蟹胁械褋褌械薪 懈 斜芯谐邪褌 褋械 胁褉褗褖邪 胁褗胁 胁褉械屑械褌芯 薪邪 褋胁芯褟褌邪 屑谢邪写芯褋褌, 蟹邪 写邪 锌褉械写锌褉懈械屑械 械写薪芯 锌褗褌褍胁邪薪械 泻褗屑 褋械斜械 褋懈, 锌芯-芯锌邪褋薪芯 懈 褋屑褉邪蟹褟胁邪褖芯 写芯褉懈 芯褌 屑械卸写褍蟹胁械蟹写薪芯褌芯 锌褗褌械褕械褋褌胁懈械, 懈蟹写懈谐薪邪谢芯 谐芯 薪邪 胁褗褉褏芯胁械褌械 薪邪 褋谢邪胁邪褌邪.
368 pages, Paperback
First published March 1, 1977
365 people are currently reading
33.5k people want to read
About the author
Frederik Pohl
1,085听books1,034听followersFrederik George Pohl, Jr. was an American science fiction writer, editor and fan, with a career spanning over seventy years. From about 1959 until 1969, Pohl edited Galaxy magazine and its sister magazine IF winning the Hugo for IF three years in a row. His writing also won him three Hugos and multiple Nebula Awards. He became a Nebula Grand Master in 1993.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 30 of 2,149 reviews
September 10, 2022
Kind of the same as Pohls麓 cooperation with Kornbluth, The Space Merchants, with an extra layer of psychiatric mind penetration
No free meals in neoliberal, turbo capitalistic alien artifact filled alien spaceports
The whole system, the immense suffering on earth with the option of risking one麓s life to get some grains of the immense wealth accumulated with patents found on suicide trips, exploiting anyone for the profit of some, was, is, and will be the key element of capitalistic systems Pohl wasn麓t quite fond of. Sarcasm drips from each black humoured page and one could imagine that this is a possible future in corporate owned space habitats, planets, and solar systems.
Is it deep or just playing with childhood trauma, relationship issues, and making fun of psychiatry.
See, the main protagonist has some serious issues and searches for help in episodes I, highly subjectively, would have preferred to instead see as more exploration, meeting the aliens, or something else not that separated from the main plot. However, there is the one or other good toilet humor pun, but besides that, I don麓t get how these stereotypical parent and partner problem drivel does anything substantial for the plot and its message of promoting leftist socialist propaganda, socializing the suffering, and stuff. Or I just don麓t get that it麓s a satire of psychology and psychiatry as a hidden bonus storyline.
Still, it should subjectively have been avoided because genre audiences don麓t like that
Without that, the work would be an instant masterpiece, but by slowing the plot, losing suspense, and not really giving a satisfying conclusion, all linked to the problem of this unnecessary extra plotline, Pohl missed his place in the grand hall of sci-fi behemoth he could easily have entered after The Space Merchants by simply cooking with the same recipes. But I don麓t want new herbs and hot cuisine experiments, I麓m a genre savvy, kind of intolerant and conservative dude regarding my sci-fi and there is no place for empty relationship drivel.
Uchronia on
Let麓s just do as if it never happened and that Pohl wouldn麓t have polluted his work with the banality of human emotional deficits, and focus on how brilliantly the companies squeeze the last buck out of all of their astronauts, how the whole system is optimized towards forcing the people to risk their lives, how the many small anecdotes, elements, puns, and innuendos make it a work that inspired future, critical minds like Richard Morgan and very probably many others. That麓s its biggest achievement, the use of sci-fi to throw society the ugly picture of itself right in the face.
Tropes show how literature is conceptualized and created and which mixture of elements makes works and genres unique:
No free meals in neoliberal, turbo capitalistic alien artifact filled alien spaceports
The whole system, the immense suffering on earth with the option of risking one麓s life to get some grains of the immense wealth accumulated with patents found on suicide trips, exploiting anyone for the profit of some, was, is, and will be the key element of capitalistic systems Pohl wasn麓t quite fond of. Sarcasm drips from each black humoured page and one could imagine that this is a possible future in corporate owned space habitats, planets, and solar systems.
Is it deep or just playing with childhood trauma, relationship issues, and making fun of psychiatry.
See, the main protagonist has some serious issues and searches for help in episodes I, highly subjectively, would have preferred to instead see as more exploration, meeting the aliens, or something else not that separated from the main plot. However, there is the one or other good toilet humor pun, but besides that, I don麓t get how these stereotypical parent and partner problem drivel does anything substantial for the plot and its message of promoting leftist socialist propaganda, socializing the suffering, and stuff. Or I just don麓t get that it麓s a satire of psychology and psychiatry as a hidden bonus storyline.
Still, it should subjectively have been avoided because genre audiences don麓t like that
Without that, the work would be an instant masterpiece, but by slowing the plot, losing suspense, and not really giving a satisfying conclusion, all linked to the problem of this unnecessary extra plotline, Pohl missed his place in the grand hall of sci-fi behemoth he could easily have entered after The Space Merchants by simply cooking with the same recipes. But I don麓t want new herbs and hot cuisine experiments, I麓m a genre savvy, kind of intolerant and conservative dude regarding my sci-fi and there is no place for empty relationship drivel.
Uchronia on
Let麓s just do as if it never happened and that Pohl wouldn麓t have polluted his work with the banality of human emotional deficits, and focus on how brilliantly the companies squeeze the last buck out of all of their astronauts, how the whole system is optimized towards forcing the people to risk their lives, how the many small anecdotes, elements, puns, and innuendos make it a work that inspired future, critical minds like Richard Morgan and very probably many others. That麓s its biggest achievement, the use of sci-fi to throw society the ugly picture of itself right in the face.
Tropes show how literature is conceptualized and created and which mixture of elements makes works and genres unique:
December 4, 2013
Can you like a book when you kind of hate the main character? Especially when that character is the first-person narrator? The answer, for me, for this book anyway, is apparently "not all that much."
Gateway is one of those sci-fi classics that I am supposed to have absorbed if I want to consider myself well read in the genre. It's one of the rare Hugo/Nebula double winners (not to mention the Locus and Campbell awards, which pretty much covers all of them)! It is by one of the stalwarts of geek writing, the man who, as an editor, made sure was published, fergoshsakes! (And congratulations to Fred Pohl, by the way, on still being alive and engaging with the fandom at the approximate age of 103!)
A good portion of the book still holds up pretty well. The imagining parts. The setup is pretty simple: Earth discovers a mysterious alien space station built into an asteroid around, I don't remember, Venus or something. It is full of little ships. No one knows how or why the ships came to be there, but they have figured out that if you get inside one and push a button, it will take you somewhere very far away, very quickly. Relatively speaking. It also might take you very, very far away, but not so fast that you don't run out of food and wind up arriving there dead, or with nothing to eat on the way back but your fellow shipmates. Butgreedy brave souls are still willing to risk these death lottery missions because a rare few of them result in the discovery of yet more alien technology, which can then be reverse-engineered and patented and everyone winds up very rich, most particularly the omnipresent Company (TM).
So, to borrow from nerd parlance, this is your signature BDO (big, dumb object) adventure. Unfortunately, our window into this intriguing world is this total asshole. I read the book a few weeks ago and his name has been lost to the mists of time and sleep deprivation, but I remember one thing: what a douchebag. I mean, ok, he had a shitty childhood, growing up mining some unpleasant crap or another on... was it Venus again? But he gets lucky and wins the lottery, and enough money to travel to Gateway and maybe become really rich. And the book is told in an alternating structure, so we know that while he does (become really rich), it also happens in a pretty miserable fashion, and we have to sit in on his whiny sessions with his robot therapist.
Aside from the fact that I just didn't particularly like the structure (too much ominous foreshadowing!), it requires us to spend half the book with the jerk, before we find out why he's such a jerk. Except he was always kind of a jerk, and while his reason for sliding further down into a jerky abyss is ultimately a pretty good one, he also did plenty of stuff earlier in the timeline to evaporate every drop of my sympathy. Like
For a sci-fi book, it is also very clearly Of Its Time, what with all the casual references to swinging sexuality and dated therapy movements like primal screaming. Which just goes to show how hard it is to write a book set in the future that won't sound rather ridiculous once you've arrived there.
This is the first in a series, and I have heard the later books go a long way to explaining the mysterious alien objects, but I like them just fine all enigmatic and obtuse; over-explaining would make them just one more piece of technology, sans the risk associated with their use -- the drive to explore and discover new things that lights a fire under humanity. Well, that and greed. And I don't know if the narrator comes back (probably not) (EDIT: oh wait, I looked it up, and he does), but there's another reason to get out while the gettin's good (EDIT: indeed).
Gateway is one of those sci-fi classics that I am supposed to have absorbed if I want to consider myself well read in the genre. It's one of the rare Hugo/Nebula double winners (not to mention the Locus and Campbell awards, which pretty much covers all of them)! It is by one of the stalwarts of geek writing, the man who, as an editor, made sure was published, fergoshsakes! (And congratulations to Fred Pohl, by the way, on still being alive and engaging with the fandom at the approximate age of 103!)
A good portion of the book still holds up pretty well. The imagining parts. The setup is pretty simple: Earth discovers a mysterious alien space station built into an asteroid around, I don't remember, Venus or something. It is full of little ships. No one knows how or why the ships came to be there, but they have figured out that if you get inside one and push a button, it will take you somewhere very far away, very quickly. Relatively speaking. It also might take you very, very far away, but not so fast that you don't run out of food and wind up arriving there dead, or with nothing to eat on the way back but your fellow shipmates. But
So, to borrow from nerd parlance, this is your signature BDO (big, dumb object) adventure. Unfortunately, our window into this intriguing world is this total asshole. I read the book a few weeks ago and his name has been lost to the mists of time and sleep deprivation, but I remember one thing: what a douchebag. I mean, ok, he had a shitty childhood, growing up mining some unpleasant crap or another on... was it Venus again? But he gets lucky and wins the lottery, and enough money to travel to Gateway and maybe become really rich. And the book is told in an alternating structure, so we know that while he does (become really rich), it also happens in a pretty miserable fashion, and we have to sit in on his whiny sessions with his robot therapist.
Aside from the fact that I just didn't particularly like the structure (too much ominous foreshadowing!), it requires us to spend half the book with the jerk, before we find out why he's such a jerk. Except he was always kind of a jerk, and while his reason for sliding further down into a jerky abyss is ultimately a pretty good one, he also did plenty of stuff earlier in the timeline to evaporate every drop of my sympathy. Like
For a sci-fi book, it is also very clearly Of Its Time, what with all the casual references to swinging sexuality and dated therapy movements like primal screaming. Which just goes to show how hard it is to write a book set in the future that won't sound rather ridiculous once you've arrived there.
This is the first in a series, and I have heard the later books go a long way to explaining the mysterious alien objects, but I like them just fine all enigmatic and obtuse; over-explaining would make them just one more piece of technology, sans the risk associated with their use -- the drive to explore and discover new things that lights a fire under humanity. Well, that and greed. And I don't know if the narrator comes back (probably not) (EDIT: oh wait, I looked it up, and he does), but there's another reason to get out while the gettin's good (EDIT: indeed).
November 27, 2021
SF Masterworks (2010- series) #9: A hugely overpopulated human race is fully focused on the Gateway, an alien (a race that is now apparently extinct) spaceport with 1,000s of interstellar space craft, however they have no idea how they work, and no idea where they are programmed to go; they could go anywhere from an Earth-like planet to the middle of black hole! Now super wealthy Robinette in therapy recounts his time at the Gateway.
The basic concept around the Gateway is so compelling, in regards to 'prospectors' (Robin is one) having to pay for board, air, water etc. and the only real way of earning money is to get in one of the interstellar aircraft and see where it goes, and get rewarded for any data (or artefacts) on the destination and/or the extinct alien race that they can retrieve. Robin is a delightfully unreliable narrator with a number of neurosis, and also living in denial of not only maybe his sexuality but also his borderline unpleasant character. Seriously this is truly Masterwork science-fiction! 8.5 out of 12.
Easily the best Pohl book I've read which has aged really well, having multi-facetted gay, non-white and female characters, and a very inclusive (=realistic) approach to how homosexuality would be perceived in the future.
2021 read
The basic concept around the Gateway is so compelling, in regards to 'prospectors' (Robin is one) having to pay for board, air, water etc. and the only real way of earning money is to get in one of the interstellar aircraft and see where it goes, and get rewarded for any data (or artefacts) on the destination and/or the extinct alien race that they can retrieve. Robin is a delightfully unreliable narrator with a number of neurosis, and also living in denial of not only maybe his sexuality but also his borderline unpleasant character. Seriously this is truly Masterwork science-fiction! 8.5 out of 12.
Easily the best Pohl book I've read which has aged really well, having multi-facetted gay, non-white and female characters, and a very inclusive (=realistic) approach to how homosexuality would be perceived in the future.
2021 read
April 20, 2019
Gateway by Frederik Pohl is good science fiction, I can see why it won the Hugo.
Essentially the story is about a time in the distant future where overpopulation and over consumption of resources have left humans in a regrettable state, but not without some promise. Oil and minerals are mined and then somehow synthetically turned into food. Also interplanetary colonization has spread the burden out some, but life on (or rather in Venus) and Mars is no picnic.
One way out is to become a prospector on Gateway. Gateway (and Gateway two) is an ancient alien spaceport, complete with a fleet of ancient spaceships that are pre-programmed to go places. The trouble is that scientists cannot figure out the big picture on how or why the ships go where they go and whether or not they will come back. The prospecting comes from taking a ship out and seeing what they can find, the alien artifacts could be worth millions if they are useful for science, or a prospector could go out and come back with nothing, or they could not come back.
All this by itself would make a good sci-fi story but Pohl adds a psychological twist that makes it even better. Finally, science fiction writers often make the best visionary prophets and though he has done an admirable job with overpopulation and Malthusian ideas about food, Pohl has (in a book written in 1977) enunciated our society鈥檚 apprehension about health care as well. Good read.
Essentially the story is about a time in the distant future where overpopulation and over consumption of resources have left humans in a regrettable state, but not without some promise. Oil and minerals are mined and then somehow synthetically turned into food. Also interplanetary colonization has spread the burden out some, but life on (or rather in Venus) and Mars is no picnic.
One way out is to become a prospector on Gateway. Gateway (and Gateway two) is an ancient alien spaceport, complete with a fleet of ancient spaceships that are pre-programmed to go places. The trouble is that scientists cannot figure out the big picture on how or why the ships go where they go and whether or not they will come back. The prospecting comes from taking a ship out and seeing what they can find, the alien artifacts could be worth millions if they are useful for science, or a prospector could go out and come back with nothing, or they could not come back.
All this by itself would make a good sci-fi story but Pohl adds a psychological twist that makes it even better. Finally, science fiction writers often make the best visionary prophets and though he has done an admirable job with overpopulation and Malthusian ideas about food, Pohl has (in a book written in 1977) enunciated our society鈥檚 apprehension about health care as well. Good read.
October 24, 2009
I have a theory, based on nothing more than a dirty mind and my own propensity for making silly bets, that Pohl wrote Gateway to win a bet he'd made while drunk. He and his friends have been talking about sex scenes in SF novels (a notoriously sensitive topic), and Pohl is criticizing them on the grounds that they aren't necessary to the plot.
"Oh yeah?" asks someone. "And just how would a sex scene be necessary to the plot?"
"Well," says Pohl. "There could be any number of reasons!"
"Sure!" says the other guy. "I bet you a bottle of single malt that you can't write a story featuring an oral sex scene which categorically and undeniably is necessary to the plot. There ain't no such animal!"
"Done!" says Pohl.
He's had an idea, you see. The hero has pushed the love of his life into a black hole, but the memory is so traumatic that he's blocked it. Years later, he's talking about having sex with his current girlfriend, and he says she goes down really well. And then it all comes back to him. Goes down... into a black hole... you see?
OK, it's more than a little contrived; but anyway, that's what happens in this book. Are you telling me he came up with it sober?
"Oh yeah?" asks someone. "And just how would a sex scene be necessary to the plot?"
"Well," says Pohl. "There could be any number of reasons!"
"Sure!" says the other guy. "I bet you a bottle of single malt that you can't write a story featuring an oral sex scene which categorically and undeniably is necessary to the plot. There ain't no such animal!"
"Done!" says Pohl.
He's had an idea, you see. The hero has pushed the love of his life into a black hole, but the memory is so traumatic that he's blocked it. Years later, he's talking about having sex with his current girlfriend, and he says she goes down really well. And then it all comes back to him. Goes down... into a black hole... you see?
OK, it's more than a little contrived; but anyway, that's what happens in this book. Are you telling me he came up with it sober?
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
May 19, 2014
Frederik Pohl is still alive? Wow. And won a Hugo as recently as last year, for his blog. That I will have to check out. This is a guy who has been around science fiction for a long time, as a writer and as an editor. And Gateway was my first introduction to his work. Let me just go add him to the list of authors I want to read more of.... (That's not rhetorical - it's on a Sticky on my desktop.) I will want to be reading more of his work.
Note: The rest of this review has been withdrawn due to the recent changes in 欧宝娱乐 policy and enforcement. You can read why I came to this decision here.
In the meantime, you can read the entire review at
Note: The rest of this review has been withdrawn due to the recent changes in 欧宝娱乐 policy and enforcement. You can read why I came to this decision here.
In the meantime, you can read the entire review at
August 31, 2012
I remember reading this when I was 15 or so, I did not like it. I have no recollection of why I did not like it. Now it is years later and I am at the age of , having just re-read the book I can tell you why I did not like it then and why I do like it now. Like my 15 year old self I went in expect a fun times, something along the line of , what I ended up reading turn out to be a fairly slow moving character study within a sci-fi setting.
The story concerns one Robinette Broadhead who went to Gateway, an asteroid where fully functional mysterious alien spaceships with FTL capabilities are found. Each one pre-programmed to an unknown destination, some take the travelers to riches in the form alien technological artifacts, vehicles and devices, some go to unknown destinations never to return, or return with dead crews or even no crew.You would think such a setup would be concerned with the mystery of the aliens gradually unfolding and the aliens eventually showing up to say hello, you would be light-years from the truth.
The story is all about Robinette Broadhead and his experiences on Gateway and on his missions to the unknown. Whatever happened to him scarred him psychologically and he is a man with issues (or even more issues than before he even went on his first mission). The story is told in flashbacks with a present day frame story narrated in the first person present tense, taking place entirely within an A.I.-psychiatrist's office. Even though the book is character-centric a lot of world building actually goes on in the background. The Earth and its single colony on Venus are in a state of dystopia, food is scarce and population is overflowing. Life on the Gateway asteroid (actually a space station) is described in detail, together with some hard sf style discreet little infodumps. The aliens (Heechees) never show up and the the rate of return of the humans flying off in their ships is much less than 50%. The narration is also aided by little advertisements, letters and other types of notices interspersed through out the book.
Clearly what Pohl had in mind was to explore the psychological consequences of the circumstances surrounding his protagonist, who is not even written as a particularly amiable fellow. The amazing thing is it works very well, while Broadhead is more of an anti-hero by the end of the book I came to understand and sympathize with his issues. What makes the book remarkable is that it is an exploration of the human psyche rather than the sci-fi environment. The book reminds me of Algis Budrys' , but the relentless psycho analyses that go on in that book make it almost unbearable for me, Gateway makes the BDO and the alien tech more relevant to the protagonist's personal problems, and is simply better written. Here is a relevant example passage from Gateway:
Gateway deservedly won both the Hugo and Nebula award in 1978 but it really is more of a psychological / emotional novel, this one is not for kids.
The story concerns one Robinette Broadhead who went to Gateway, an asteroid where fully functional mysterious alien spaceships with FTL capabilities are found. Each one pre-programmed to an unknown destination, some take the travelers to riches in the form alien technological artifacts, vehicles and devices, some go to unknown destinations never to return, or return with dead crews or even no crew.You would think such a setup would be concerned with the mystery of the aliens gradually unfolding and the aliens eventually showing up to say hello, you would be light-years from the truth.
The story is all about Robinette Broadhead and his experiences on Gateway and on his missions to the unknown. Whatever happened to him scarred him psychologically and he is a man with issues (or even more issues than before he even went on his first mission). The story is told in flashbacks with a present day frame story narrated in the first person present tense, taking place entirely within an A.I.-psychiatrist's office. Even though the book is character-centric a lot of world building actually goes on in the background. The Earth and its single colony on Venus are in a state of dystopia, food is scarce and population is overflowing. Life on the Gateway asteroid (actually a space station) is described in detail, together with some hard sf style discreet little infodumps. The aliens (Heechees) never show up and the the rate of return of the humans flying off in their ships is much less than 50%. The narration is also aided by little advertisements, letters and other types of notices interspersed through out the book.
Clearly what Pohl had in mind was to explore the psychological consequences of the circumstances surrounding his protagonist, who is not even written as a particularly amiable fellow. The amazing thing is it works very well, while Broadhead is more of an anti-hero by the end of the book I came to understand and sympathize with his issues. What makes the book remarkable is that it is an exploration of the human psyche rather than the sci-fi environment. The book reminds me of Algis Budrys' , but the relentless psycho analyses that go on in that book make it almost unbearable for me, Gateway makes the BDO and the alien tech more relevant to the protagonist's personal problems, and is simply better written. Here is a relevant example passage from Gateway:
There are people who never pass a certain point in their emotional development. They cannot live a normal free-and-easy, give-and-take life with a sexual partner for more than a short time. Something inside them will not tolerate happiness. The better it gets, the more they have to destroy it.I did not expect that from a BDO adventure! This is a book that demands to be read slowly. I really did not like it because at the age of 15 I just wanted the damn Heechee to show up with some cool alien powers, gadgets and weird body parts, they never actually showed up at all (if that is a spoiler I'm sorry, but I consider it fair warning). Even today I found some description of day to day life on Gateway a little slow going.
Gateway deservedly won both the Hugo and Nebula award in 1978 but it really is more of a psychological / emotional novel, this one is not for kids.
February 19, 2019
One of the great classics of SF. On the surface, it seems to be mostly about prospecting for Alien tech and new discoveries about the missing Heechee, but in reality, it's all about psychology, and more than that, about Freudian therapy.
Say... what?
Yep! We've got ourselves something of an anti-hero written in mild shades of who we get to know very well on and off the AI therapist's couch as we learn about all the crap that turns him into a real mess. Sure, there's mommy issues, but then there are the things that go on with his girlfriend and the Black Hole that is particularly harrowing.
Survivor's guilt? Yeah, and so much more. It's like a gambler's addiction with missing body parts being the price. Save your mother and forgo the rest of your life in poverty or gamble for your future and probably not make it back. These Heechee left tons of inexplicable tech and no one around has found a way to understand it or get ahead except by dumb luck.
Kinda sounds like a metaphor for life, doesn't it? :)
The reveals are the best parts of this book. We're given all the pieces and as the mystery unfolds, I loved the details of the personal tragedy most. The fact that this reveal is a universal truth is only a bonus.
Great adventure, wonderful light but deep worldbuilding, and an even better psychological exploration. :)
Say... what?
Yep! We've got ourselves something of an anti-hero written in mild shades of who we get to know very well on and off the AI therapist's couch as we learn about all the crap that turns him into a real mess. Sure, there's mommy issues, but then there are the things that go on with his girlfriend and the Black Hole that is particularly harrowing.
Survivor's guilt? Yeah, and so much more. It's like a gambler's addiction with missing body parts being the price. Save your mother and forgo the rest of your life in poverty or gamble for your future and probably not make it back. These Heechee left tons of inexplicable tech and no one around has found a way to understand it or get ahead except by dumb luck.
Kinda sounds like a metaphor for life, doesn't it? :)
The reveals are the best parts of this book. We're given all the pieces and as the mystery unfolds, I loved the details of the personal tragedy most. The fact that this reveal is a universal truth is only a bonus.
Great adventure, wonderful light but deep worldbuilding, and an even better psychological exploration. :)
August 9, 2021
賮讴乇 讴賳賲 亘乇丕蹖 讴鬲丕亘禺賵賳丕 賵 禺氐賵氐丕賸 丕賵賳丕蹖蹖 讴賴 跇丕賳乇蹖 賲蹖鈥屫堎嗁� 賴蹖趩蹖 賳丕丕賲蹖丿讴賳賳丿賴鈥屫� 丕夭 丕蹖丿賴鈥屬囏й� 丨乇賵賲鈥屫簇� 亘丕 倬乇丿丕禺鬲賽 囟毓蹖賮 賳亘丕卮賴
丕蹖賳 讴鬲丕亘 禺賵乇丕讴卮 丕蹖賳賴 讴賴 蹖賴 賮蹖賱賲鈥屬嗀з呝団€屬嗁堐屫� 丕蹖丿賴鈥屰� 丿丕爻鬲丕賳蹖卮賵 亘乇丿丕乇賴 賵 賴賲賴鈥屭嗃屫促� 讴丕丕丕丕丕丕賲賱 卮禺賲 亘夭賳賴 讴賴 蹖賴 賮蹖賱賲 禺賵亘 丕夭卮 爻丕禺鬲賴 卮賴
丕蹖賳 讴鬲丕亘 禺賵乇丕讴卮 丕蹖賳賴 讴賴 蹖賴 賮蹖賱賲鈥屬嗀з呝団€屬嗁堐屫� 丕蹖丿賴鈥屰� 丿丕爻鬲丕賳蹖卮賵 亘乇丿丕乇賴 賵 賴賲賴鈥屭嗃屫促� 讴丕丕丕丕丕丕賲賱 卮禺賲 亘夭賳賴 讴賴 蹖賴 賮蹖賱賲 禺賵亘 丕夭卮 爻丕禺鬲賴 卮賴
October 8, 2017
4,5 / 5
Dos d铆as me ha durado, y por que no ten铆a tiempo para leer. Pero es una novela que invita a leerla del tir贸n, que no te suelta, que te entretiene, y que probablemente es diferente de lo que esperaba.
Pohl nos cuenta la historia de un pionero espacial que se hace millonario. Robinette Broadhead, m谩s conocido como Rob, habla con una IA que ejerce como su psic贸logo. All铆 habla de la culpa, del dolor o los remordimientos que lo reconcomen por dentro desde su infancia hasta su vida adulta pero que no deja salir. A lo largo del libro se intercalan estas consultas con los flashbacks sobre los acontecimientos que condujeron a Rob a su estado actual. Gracias a ellos conoceremos 笔贸谤迟颈肠辞, un asteroide reconvertido en un puerto interestelar explotado por una Corporaci贸n multimillonaria. All铆 habitaron los Heechee, unos extraterrestres de los que poco se sabe, pero que dejaron sus naves interestelares. Exploraremos con ello su funcionamiento, su tecnolog铆a, sus viajes y, seguiremos de cerca la inc贸gnita de donde estar谩n y que ser谩n los Heechee.
Publicada en 1976 por Frederik Pohl, la novela fue la primera que obtuvo de forma conjunta los premios Hugo, N茅bula y Jhon W. Campbell memorial, lo tres m谩s importantes dentro de la ciencia ficci贸n. Y no es para menos. Fuera quedan la aventura o una novela 煤nicamente de naves espaciales. Pohl nos mete en una novela innovadora, con una estructura particular para su 茅poca y una ciencia ficci贸n que nunca llega a ser hard. Esta es sencilla, coherente y explicada, pero sin profundizar en jerga cient铆fica ni nada por el estilo. Es mas por ello una novela que deja ideas, pero que su inter茅s radica en otro apartado.
笔贸谤迟颈肠辞 es todo un estudio sobre la psicolog铆a humana ante situaciones extremas, y sus consecuencias. Sobre la interacci贸n entre hombre y m谩quina, y nuestra necesidad de control. Una cr铆tica sobre la sociedad extremadamente capitalista. Pero por encima de todo es un estudio sobre la culpa, sus consecuencias y las pesadas cargas que pone en nosotros mismos como seres humanos. No es que Pohl deje de lado el ritmo de la novela para esto. Es a trav茅s de di谩logos plagados de matices, de mon贸logos internos o de las simples acciones a trav茅s de las que nos dibuja el perfil de Rob. Nunca se siente que el resto es un mero escenario para ello, si no que conjuga de forma perfecta ambas partes, sin dejar coja ninguna de las dos.
Encontrarse con 笔贸谤迟颈肠辞 ha resultado una experiencia similar a Hyperion el a帽o pasado. Piensas que es una novela de 1976 y casi no te lo crees, excepto por la aparici贸n de cassettes. El resto, tanto la tecnolog铆a como los temas que llega a tratar son peculiarmente extrapolables a cualquier momento. Por eso creo que 笔贸谤迟颈肠辞 es un cl谩sico, y uno de los que va a perdurar en el tiempo. Nunca llegar谩 a chirriar como otras novelas de CF con jerga cient铆fica que ya ha sido sobrepasada. Es su aparente sencillez lo que le da el benepl谩cito para el lector. Aparte de sus inserciones de texto (informes, conferencias y lo mejor, bizarros anuncios) que son maravillosas. Ojal谩 Nova siga reeditando cl谩sicos en este formato para que los novatos como yo nos sigamos acercando a estos cl谩sicos.
Rese帽a m谩s extensa:
Dos d铆as me ha durado, y por que no ten铆a tiempo para leer. Pero es una novela que invita a leerla del tir贸n, que no te suelta, que te entretiene, y que probablemente es diferente de lo que esperaba.
Pohl nos cuenta la historia de un pionero espacial que se hace millonario. Robinette Broadhead, m谩s conocido como Rob, habla con una IA que ejerce como su psic贸logo. All铆 habla de la culpa, del dolor o los remordimientos que lo reconcomen por dentro desde su infancia hasta su vida adulta pero que no deja salir. A lo largo del libro se intercalan estas consultas con los flashbacks sobre los acontecimientos que condujeron a Rob a su estado actual. Gracias a ellos conoceremos 笔贸谤迟颈肠辞, un asteroide reconvertido en un puerto interestelar explotado por una Corporaci贸n multimillonaria. All铆 habitaron los Heechee, unos extraterrestres de los que poco se sabe, pero que dejaron sus naves interestelares. Exploraremos con ello su funcionamiento, su tecnolog铆a, sus viajes y, seguiremos de cerca la inc贸gnita de donde estar谩n y que ser谩n los Heechee.
Publicada en 1976 por Frederik Pohl, la novela fue la primera que obtuvo de forma conjunta los premios Hugo, N茅bula y Jhon W. Campbell memorial, lo tres m谩s importantes dentro de la ciencia ficci贸n. Y no es para menos. Fuera quedan la aventura o una novela 煤nicamente de naves espaciales. Pohl nos mete en una novela innovadora, con una estructura particular para su 茅poca y una ciencia ficci贸n que nunca llega a ser hard. Esta es sencilla, coherente y explicada, pero sin profundizar en jerga cient铆fica ni nada por el estilo. Es mas por ello una novela que deja ideas, pero que su inter茅s radica en otro apartado.
笔贸谤迟颈肠辞 es todo un estudio sobre la psicolog铆a humana ante situaciones extremas, y sus consecuencias. Sobre la interacci贸n entre hombre y m谩quina, y nuestra necesidad de control. Una cr铆tica sobre la sociedad extremadamente capitalista. Pero por encima de todo es un estudio sobre la culpa, sus consecuencias y las pesadas cargas que pone en nosotros mismos como seres humanos. No es que Pohl deje de lado el ritmo de la novela para esto. Es a trav茅s de di谩logos plagados de matices, de mon贸logos internos o de las simples acciones a trav茅s de las que nos dibuja el perfil de Rob. Nunca se siente que el resto es un mero escenario para ello, si no que conjuga de forma perfecta ambas partes, sin dejar coja ninguna de las dos.
Encontrarse con 笔贸谤迟颈肠辞 ha resultado una experiencia similar a Hyperion el a帽o pasado. Piensas que es una novela de 1976 y casi no te lo crees, excepto por la aparici贸n de cassettes. El resto, tanto la tecnolog铆a como los temas que llega a tratar son peculiarmente extrapolables a cualquier momento. Por eso creo que 笔贸谤迟颈肠辞 es un cl谩sico, y uno de los que va a perdurar en el tiempo. Nunca llegar谩 a chirriar como otras novelas de CF con jerga cient铆fica que ya ha sido sobrepasada. Es su aparente sencillez lo que le da el benepl谩cito para el lector. Aparte de sus inserciones de texto (informes, conferencias y lo mejor, bizarros anuncios) que son maravillosas. Ojal谩 Nova siga reeditando cl谩sicos en este formato para que los novatos como yo nos sigamos acercando a estos cl谩sicos.
Rese帽a m谩s extensa:
April 26, 2019
Old science fiction, what is it, let鈥檚 see 鈥� 1976. Hmm, kind of quaint, no?
Oh but I like old stuff, new science fiction gives me a headache, all that sensory overload and made up words.
So you admit you can鈥檛 take the pace any more. Just settling down with a 43 year old Hugo 鈥榥鈥� Nebula winner, kids all grown up, maturing your annuities, undoing one more notch on your belt, I get the picture.
Well, that鈥檚 not exactly the way I鈥檇 have put it 鈥�
So what鈥檚 it about, this old classic?
Well, er鈥� it鈥檚 kind of sad. Leaving aside the Heechees 鈥�
Heechees?
Yes, they are the long since vanished aliens who left stuff around on an asteroid including lots of their old spaceships鈥�.
Did they work still?
Oh yes, but no one could figure out how to work them except to be able to switch them on and off, and they only went to one pre-programmed destination (and back) and you never knew where you were going to end up, so you might come back dead, or you might come back rich, an intriguing idea.
Okay, but you were going to say something else.
I think what Gateway is really about is money, therapy and indecision.
Odd subjects for science fiction?
Yes, quite odd. And also quite dull. This narrator guy spends most of the book hanging about on Gateway (the asteroid) trying to get up the nerve to volunteer to go on one of these possibly-suicide missions. Otherwise we flash forward and he鈥檚 spending hours in therapy with an AI psychotherapist. The hanging around on a smelly asteroid part is dull and the analysis is extremely tiresome.
How come you didn鈥檛 bin this one then?
Well, I think the main idea is a good minor-chord variation on the usual SF-in-the-70s stuff. He had something going here. But he couldn鈥檛 quite get to it.
Could have used some of that therapy himself, then, old Fred Pohl, to unblock his writerly drains, so to speak?
Ah 鈥� yes 鈥� of course 鈥� that鈥檚 what Gateway is all about. The dilemma of a science fiction writer. You can鈥檛 decide if you really want to carry on writing sf because there鈥檚 no money in it, so you go to a shrink. Which costs money.
Case closed! Now you can get back to your rocking chair and your Brexit debates.
Thanks. I'm so glad you popped around for a chat.
Oh but I like old stuff, new science fiction gives me a headache, all that sensory overload and made up words.
So you admit you can鈥檛 take the pace any more. Just settling down with a 43 year old Hugo 鈥榥鈥� Nebula winner, kids all grown up, maturing your annuities, undoing one more notch on your belt, I get the picture.
Well, that鈥檚 not exactly the way I鈥檇 have put it 鈥�
So what鈥檚 it about, this old classic?
Well, er鈥� it鈥檚 kind of sad. Leaving aside the Heechees 鈥�
Heechees?
Yes, they are the long since vanished aliens who left stuff around on an asteroid including lots of their old spaceships鈥�.
Did they work still?
Oh yes, but no one could figure out how to work them except to be able to switch them on and off, and they only went to one pre-programmed destination (and back) and you never knew where you were going to end up, so you might come back dead, or you might come back rich, an intriguing idea.
Okay, but you were going to say something else.
I think what Gateway is really about is money, therapy and indecision.
Odd subjects for science fiction?
Yes, quite odd. And also quite dull. This narrator guy spends most of the book hanging about on Gateway (the asteroid) trying to get up the nerve to volunteer to go on one of these possibly-suicide missions. Otherwise we flash forward and he鈥檚 spending hours in therapy with an AI psychotherapist. The hanging around on a smelly asteroid part is dull and the analysis is extremely tiresome.
How come you didn鈥檛 bin this one then?
Well, I think the main idea is a good minor-chord variation on the usual SF-in-the-70s stuff. He had something going here. But he couldn鈥檛 quite get to it.
Could have used some of that therapy himself, then, old Fred Pohl, to unblock his writerly drains, so to speak?
Ah 鈥� yes 鈥� of course 鈥� that鈥檚 what Gateway is all about. The dilemma of a science fiction writer. You can鈥檛 decide if you really want to carry on writing sf because there鈥檚 no money in it, so you go to a shrink. Which costs money.
Case closed! Now you can get back to your rocking chair and your Brexit debates.
Thanks. I'm so glad you popped around for a chat.
March 14, 2016
A warning: this novel's main plot is not about Big Dumb Object (BDO) or space opera. This novel is about psychological issue of the main protagonist. The protagonist get the psych problem due to the science-fiction setting.
This novel offers an idea of a psychological/mental problem that haven't happened to human in real-life yet. At final revelation, the author deliver the situation so well, I could imagine the psych (huge) impact to the protagonist. That's all I can say without spoiling anything important.
If you are interested with the BDO and the setting after reading this novel, don't worry. Gateway is the first novel of a series, Heechee Saga.
In my opinion, the characterization of main protagonist is perfect for this novel, if the author choose another characterization, the story could become less interesting.
This novel offers an idea of a psychological/mental problem that haven't happened to human in real-life yet. At final revelation, the author deliver the situation so well, I could imagine the psych (huge) impact to the protagonist. That's all I can say without spoiling anything important.
If you are interested with the BDO and the setting after reading this novel, don't worry. Gateway is the first novel of a series, Heechee Saga.
In my opinion, the characterization of main protagonist is perfect for this novel, if the author choose another characterization, the story could become less interesting.
December 30, 2010
"Gateway" by Frederik Pohl has long been considered a classic of Science Fiction and deservedly so. It's earned its status honestly and is one of the best books I have ever read.
What separates this from the myriad other science fiction and fantasy offerings out there?
It's the characters.
The Plot
Gateway is an asteroid in our Solar System that was hollowed out and made into a base of operations by the mysterious ancient alien race known as the "Heechee". They abandoned it long before mankind stopped throwing their feces at each other and invented the wheel.
The only thing left on Gateway are the Heechee ships. These ships can be programmed via 5 movable dials to automatically go to a destination and return. A huge multinational corporation pays intrepid "prospectors" to get aboard these ships, go to a destination, and then come back with any new discoveries. The prospectors then get paid a sum relative to any new discoveries they make. If they come back with nothing, they get nothing.
However, these missions have a very high failure rate. Sometimes the missions never return. Other times, the ships return on automatic with all hands lost due to an accident or some disaster met on the other end. Still others take too long and the crew dies of starvation due to their rations running out. Therefore the chances of hitting it big are rather remote.
When the book begins, we meet Robinette Broadhead; a man who has hit it big on Gateway and is living the life of luxury on Earth. He is also in voluntary therapy and on the edge of a massive mental breakdown.
The action switches in between Broadhead's past story of how he came to Gateway and struck it big and Broadhead's present therapy sessions. Also interspersed throughout the book are little snippets of Gateway trivia: fun facts, interviews with Heechee scholars, classified ads from the local Gateway paper, and mission summaries from prospectors who struck it big and from those who didn't do so well.
The Good
The plot itself is intriguing. The Gateway station has a kind of 1849 Gold Rush San Francisco feel to it. Everyone is there to strike it rich and improve their lot in life by taking the risk of a Gateway trip. I couldn't help but feel admiration towards these people and wonder if I would have the stones to put my neck on the line for that kind of a reward.
The characters in this book are what separates it from everything else. Each character introduced in the novel was distinct enough to be memorable. I never found myself reading a character's name and saying "who is this?". A lot of times, in any literature, there's a memorable protagonist and maybe a memorable antagonist if you're lucky. The rest of the characters just seem to meld into each other. Gateway doesn't have this problem: all the characters are memorable.
Robinette Broadhead, the main character, is the most complex character in the book. This becomes more apparent as the reader experiences more and more of his therapy sessions. Others here on GoodReads have been critical saying they didn't like Broadhead or they wanted to slap him. I heartily agree. However, I don't think pathos was Pohl's object in the way he wrote Broadhead: Robinette Broadhead simply is who he is and the reader gets to understand why he is who he is throughout the course of the book. I didn't like Broadhead, but I was definitely interested in him. This book is all about Broadhead's private face; his true face. His public, outwardly going face may have been completely charming, but the reader doesn't see that face very much because that's not what this book is about. I readily admit that I did not like Robinette Broadhead as a person; but the fact that I felt enough about him as a person to not like him was marvelous.
Another interesting character is Klara. She's another prospector on Gateway and she has a pretty complex relationship with Robinette Broadhead. A couple of incidents happen between her and Broadhead that made me question why she'd want to be with him. However, with two people in such a close context, these things were bound to happen. You can't be around someone constantly without getting on each other's nerves eventually. Also, the idea that a woman could desire a relationship with a man who's no good for her is, sadly, not unrealistic.
Other characters presented in the book are also done well; from the other prospectors on Gateway to Broadhead's computerized therapist on Earth.
The Not-So-Good
I can't think of anything that really detracts significantly enough from this book to not give it the full 5 stars.
I didn't really like the name "Heechee" for an alien race: it just sounds childish to me. The book didn't explain why they were called "Heechee". I suspect someone dared the author to use that name during a pot-infused booze-soaked bull session.
Being somewhat scientifically minded, I was very mildly annoyed that the book didn't explain how the Heechee ships were able to travel at massive speeds, yet no time dilation effect was observed. That is, the Heechee ships were able to move at the speed of light and even faster, but one month of time passing on the ship meant one month of time passing on Gateway when, in reality, one month passing on the ship would mean many years of time passing on Gateway. Admittedly, the book is narrated by a non-scientist, so it would have been out of character for him to know the reason for this. Also, the book itself states that the Heechee ship engine is a mystery because, whenever they try to disassemble it, it explodes with tremendous force.
The women of the book seemed to fall into bed with Robinette Broadhead a little too readily. This book was written in the 70s, so perhaps it has a little of that kind of sensibility to it. Also, we don't really see Broadhead's public, outgoing face in the novel so perhaps he's really handsome and charming in social situations: there are certainly hints to that effect interspersed throughout the novel.
Conclusion
Gateway is rightfully considered a classic of Science Fiction. If the premise sounds intriguing at all, please read it. You'll like it.
What separates this from the myriad other science fiction and fantasy offerings out there?
It's the characters.
The Plot
Gateway is an asteroid in our Solar System that was hollowed out and made into a base of operations by the mysterious ancient alien race known as the "Heechee". They abandoned it long before mankind stopped throwing their feces at each other and invented the wheel.
The only thing left on Gateway are the Heechee ships. These ships can be programmed via 5 movable dials to automatically go to a destination and return. A huge multinational corporation pays intrepid "prospectors" to get aboard these ships, go to a destination, and then come back with any new discoveries. The prospectors then get paid a sum relative to any new discoveries they make. If they come back with nothing, they get nothing.
However, these missions have a very high failure rate. Sometimes the missions never return. Other times, the ships return on automatic with all hands lost due to an accident or some disaster met on the other end. Still others take too long and the crew dies of starvation due to their rations running out. Therefore the chances of hitting it big are rather remote.
When the book begins, we meet Robinette Broadhead; a man who has hit it big on Gateway and is living the life of luxury on Earth. He is also in voluntary therapy and on the edge of a massive mental breakdown.
The action switches in between Broadhead's past story of how he came to Gateway and struck it big and Broadhead's present therapy sessions. Also interspersed throughout the book are little snippets of Gateway trivia: fun facts, interviews with Heechee scholars, classified ads from the local Gateway paper, and mission summaries from prospectors who struck it big and from those who didn't do so well.
The Good
The plot itself is intriguing. The Gateway station has a kind of 1849 Gold Rush San Francisco feel to it. Everyone is there to strike it rich and improve their lot in life by taking the risk of a Gateway trip. I couldn't help but feel admiration towards these people and wonder if I would have the stones to put my neck on the line for that kind of a reward.
The characters in this book are what separates it from everything else. Each character introduced in the novel was distinct enough to be memorable. I never found myself reading a character's name and saying "who is this?". A lot of times, in any literature, there's a memorable protagonist and maybe a memorable antagonist if you're lucky. The rest of the characters just seem to meld into each other. Gateway doesn't have this problem: all the characters are memorable.
Robinette Broadhead, the main character, is the most complex character in the book. This becomes more apparent as the reader experiences more and more of his therapy sessions. Others here on GoodReads have been critical saying they didn't like Broadhead or they wanted to slap him. I heartily agree. However, I don't think pathos was Pohl's object in the way he wrote Broadhead: Robinette Broadhead simply is who he is and the reader gets to understand why he is who he is throughout the course of the book. I didn't like Broadhead, but I was definitely interested in him. This book is all about Broadhead's private face; his true face. His public, outwardly going face may have been completely charming, but the reader doesn't see that face very much because that's not what this book is about. I readily admit that I did not like Robinette Broadhead as a person; but the fact that I felt enough about him as a person to not like him was marvelous.
Another interesting character is Klara. She's another prospector on Gateway and she has a pretty complex relationship with Robinette Broadhead. A couple of incidents happen between her and Broadhead that made me question why she'd want to be with him. However, with two people in such a close context, these things were bound to happen. You can't be around someone constantly without getting on each other's nerves eventually. Also, the idea that a woman could desire a relationship with a man who's no good for her is, sadly, not unrealistic.
Other characters presented in the book are also done well; from the other prospectors on Gateway to Broadhead's computerized therapist on Earth.
The Not-So-Good
I can't think of anything that really detracts significantly enough from this book to not give it the full 5 stars.
I didn't really like the name "Heechee" for an alien race: it just sounds childish to me. The book didn't explain why they were called "Heechee". I suspect someone dared the author to use that name during a pot-infused booze-soaked bull session.
Being somewhat scientifically minded, I was very mildly annoyed that the book didn't explain how the Heechee ships were able to travel at massive speeds, yet no time dilation effect was observed. That is, the Heechee ships were able to move at the speed of light and even faster, but one month of time passing on the ship meant one month of time passing on Gateway when, in reality, one month passing on the ship would mean many years of time passing on Gateway. Admittedly, the book is narrated by a non-scientist, so it would have been out of character for him to know the reason for this. Also, the book itself states that the Heechee ship engine is a mystery because, whenever they try to disassemble it, it explodes with tremendous force.
The women of the book seemed to fall into bed with Robinette Broadhead a little too readily. This book was written in the 70s, so perhaps it has a little of that kind of sensibility to it. Also, we don't really see Broadhead's public, outgoing face in the novel so perhaps he's really handsome and charming in social situations: there are certainly hints to that effect interspersed throughout the novel.
Conclusion
Gateway is rightfully considered a classic of Science Fiction. If the premise sounds intriguing at all, please read it. You'll like it.
May 31, 2021
I didn't like this book.
Why?
A whiny jackass narrator spends half his time raging against a psychopathic punch card Freud machine during "therapy sessions".
The story is supposedly about a great trauma that happened to the main character, Rob, when he went off to a space station to go take prospecting trips on alien ships and hopefully make it rich.
Except I don't think anything really horrible happened to him, he turned out to be an absolute coward, and he inflicted more pain on those around him than he got in return.
He beat up his on-again off-again "girlfriend" because she slept with another man right after he had slept with another woman. HE BEAT A WOMAN UP. And then you just get the sense that he considers himself the victim of the whole thing, of his whole life, of other people's choices.
It also had some seriously effed up psychological concepts in it (primal screaming? Being forced to yell out euphemisms for oral sex during your therapy sessions? I think I am actually too young to know if this was considered a real medical treatment).
Bottom line for me: the main character you're supposed to sympathize with is a casual playboy mysognist.
I don't think I ever want to read another book by Pohl. Man Plus was really flawed, and Gateway just made me mad.
Why?
A whiny jackass narrator spends half his time raging against a psychopathic punch card Freud machine during "therapy sessions".
The story is supposedly about a great trauma that happened to the main character, Rob, when he went off to a space station to go take prospecting trips on alien ships and hopefully make it rich.
Except I don't think anything really horrible happened to him, he turned out to be an absolute coward, and he inflicted more pain on those around him than he got in return.
He beat up his on-again off-again "girlfriend" because she slept with another man right after he had slept with another woman. HE BEAT A WOMAN UP. And then you just get the sense that he considers himself the victim of the whole thing, of his whole life, of other people's choices.
It also had some seriously effed up psychological concepts in it (primal screaming? Being forced to yell out euphemisms for oral sex during your therapy sessions? I think I am actually too young to know if this was considered a real medical treatment).
Bottom line for me: the main character you're supposed to sympathize with is a casual playboy mysognist.
I don't think I ever want to read another book by Pohl. Man Plus was really flawed, and Gateway just made me mad.
February 18, 2019
I was told to read this book since I've already read Heinlein's Starship Troopers as well as Haldeman's The Forever War. Apparently, these three authors form a triangle of classic scifi views on humanity, space exploration, conflicts with aliens and how we could/would (or not) get through all that as a species.
As you can see from my very first update to this book, I wasn't too enthused. Maybe it had to do with the protocol from the sessions with the shrink bot or with the MC being a crybaby over everything (he actually said something along the lines of "you don't know what it's like having my kind of life" despite him being filthy rich and not needing to worry about food or even life-prolonging medical care *snorts*). However, my opinion drastically changed since then.
The titular Gateway is a station built into a hollow asteroid. No, we silly little humans did not achieve this technological feat. However, we've discovered artefacts throughout Sol. Apparently, there has been another race, named Heechee, and they left these structures behind (as well as thousands of ships at Gateway). We have no idea what happened to the Heechee and can hardly understand their tech at all. Here, as in so many other scifi books, Earth is overcrowded, impoverished, food is scarce, living conditions are ... let's put it politically correct: not ideal. Thus, despite there only being the dangerous method of trial and error with which to operate the Heechee ships, many humans pay one hell of a lot of money (or try their luck in a lottery) to get to Gateway and be allowed to hop to unknown coordinates with said ships. Most don't survive. One of the problems is that these ships have weird sizes: either one, three or five humans can be on board in addition to different gear used for landing on planets, which also limits the amount of supplies one can take on any journey so starvation is a real possibility on top of everything else.
One lucky winner of the lottery is our MC, Bob (or Rob or a number of other versions of Robinette). Maybe the name explains some of his psychological problems. *lol*
He started out as a food shale miner but then travels to Gateway, overcomes his fears and hops through the galaxy. Naturally, it's not exactly a scenic trip though I can't get into details. Suffice it to say that he was a douchebag on Gateway () but one of his trips, despite making him rich, really messes with his mind.
However, Bob being in such a state is exactly where the novel starts. Because he has therapy sessions with an AI Freudian therapist (of a very funny name), the reader gets a mosaic of events that slowly (but not boringly) come together. Moreover, this also means the reader gets a take on survivor's guilt and a number of other mental health issues.
No, I did not like the MC. However, the book really worked for me. It is, in my opinion at least, utterly realistic that we wouldn't stumble upon alien artifacts that magically did our bidding or came with a manual (and in a Terran language at that) so I liked how we were still stumbling about, utterly clueless. Of course it's tragic how many people got killed trying to unlock the secrets of the Heechee but that gave the whole endeavor a kinda frontier flair. Not to mention that space really is a dangerous place - even more so if you don't really know what you're doing.
Like I said, Bob, to me, was not likeable. Part of me . Why . I think I just like it when stupid people get punished. . Bwahahahahahaha!
Another interesting thing about this novel is its form. Not just that the narration is not in a straight line, adding to the mystery, but also that the story was interspersed with mission reports, technical bulletins and other files the MC probably read while he was taught on Gateway.
I know this is a trilogy and can imagine what comes next, but I'm not sure I'll read the other volumes. It's the same with the other scifi classics I mentioned (and linked to) above. For me, these are whole and therefore more than sufficient - and maybe I'm a little bit scared that the sequels would ruin the tale for me.
If you get a chance, read this. There are no space battles with lots of explosions or cool space weapons, no fascinating or revolting aliens, but there is a very intimate look at humanity and its psyche and that sort of tale often gets underestimated or even treated unkindly.
As you can see from my very first update to this book, I wasn't too enthused. Maybe it had to do with the protocol from the sessions with the shrink bot or with the MC being a crybaby over everything (he actually said something along the lines of "you don't know what it's like having my kind of life" despite him being filthy rich and not needing to worry about food or even life-prolonging medical care *snorts*). However, my opinion drastically changed since then.
The titular Gateway is a station built into a hollow asteroid. No, we silly little humans did not achieve this technological feat. However, we've discovered artefacts throughout Sol. Apparently, there has been another race, named Heechee, and they left these structures behind (as well as thousands of ships at Gateway). We have no idea what happened to the Heechee and can hardly understand their tech at all. Here, as in so many other scifi books, Earth is overcrowded, impoverished, food is scarce, living conditions are ... let's put it politically correct: not ideal. Thus, despite there only being the dangerous method of trial and error with which to operate the Heechee ships, many humans pay one hell of a lot of money (or try their luck in a lottery) to get to Gateway and be allowed to hop to unknown coordinates with said ships. Most don't survive. One of the problems is that these ships have weird sizes: either one, three or five humans can be on board in addition to different gear used for landing on planets, which also limits the amount of supplies one can take on any journey so starvation is a real possibility on top of everything else.
One lucky winner of the lottery is our MC, Bob (or Rob or a number of other versions of Robinette). Maybe the name explains some of his psychological problems. *lol*
He started out as a food shale miner but then travels to Gateway, overcomes his fears and hops through the galaxy. Naturally, it's not exactly a scenic trip though I can't get into details. Suffice it to say that he was a douchebag on Gateway () but one of his trips, despite making him rich, really messes with his mind.
However, Bob being in such a state is exactly where the novel starts. Because he has therapy sessions with an AI Freudian therapist (of a very funny name), the reader gets a mosaic of events that slowly (but not boringly) come together. Moreover, this also means the reader gets a take on survivor's guilt and a number of other mental health issues.
No, I did not like the MC. However, the book really worked for me. It is, in my opinion at least, utterly realistic that we wouldn't stumble upon alien artifacts that magically did our bidding or came with a manual (and in a Terran language at that) so I liked how we were still stumbling about, utterly clueless. Of course it's tragic how many people got killed trying to unlock the secrets of the Heechee but that gave the whole endeavor a kinda frontier flair. Not to mention that space really is a dangerous place - even more so if you don't really know what you're doing.
Like I said, Bob, to me, was not likeable. Part of me . Why . I think I just like it when stupid people get punished. . Bwahahahahahaha!
Another interesting thing about this novel is its form. Not just that the narration is not in a straight line, adding to the mystery, but also that the story was interspersed with mission reports, technical bulletins and other files the MC probably read while he was taught on Gateway.
I know this is a trilogy and can imagine what comes next, but I'm not sure I'll read the other volumes. It's the same with the other scifi classics I mentioned (and linked to) above. For me, these are whole and therefore more than sufficient - and maybe I'm a little bit scared that the sequels would ruin the tale for me.
If you get a chance, read this. There are no space battles with lots of explosions or cool space weapons, no fascinating or revolting aliens, but there is a very intimate look at humanity and its psyche and that sort of tale often gets underestimated or even treated unkindly.
November 7, 2016
As I work my way through the classics of Science Fiction I haven't read, I find most of the classics are considered classics for a reason.
For me, Gateway has a classic premise:
Humans of the future finds a hollowed out asteroid that contains a few hundred small, alien ships. The aliens, called the "Heechee" left the ships, ranging in size from 1 to 5 seaters, half a million years ago. Humanity has no idea how the ships work but they press the coloured buttons and are blasted off at light speed to some distant destination. No idea how to refuel, no idea how far/long it will take or if they have locked in the coordinates to a supernova. Many ships never come back.
Some make it back safely but find nothing, or find a planet to harsh for human life.
BUT some ships return with alien artefacts and technologies making them anywhere from slightly to filthy rich.
And thus begins the great Heechee Goldrush.....
So I was IN on this premise.
The part that interested me was the idea of a space gold rush to discover the Heechee and the archaeology to recover interesting artefacts. The element of high risk, all or nothing stakes while being charged extravagant daily fees ramped up the urgency to start the dangerous prospecting.
I couldn't WAIT to read this story....
Well...we actually spend half the book in a psychologist's office, as our "hero" vents his issues at Sigmund the Freudian robot shrink.
- Of the half that we spend on Gateway, almost the entire time is spent thinking about possibly taking one of the ships out on a mission.
Now I am all for book that is light on action and heavy on character and intrigue. The problem with "Gateway" is that if we were brainstorming ideas on ways to make the reader dislike a character, our protagonist Robinette really ticks a lot of the boxes.
"Rob" hates going to his Robot therapist. I hate Rob going to his robot therapist.
Rob gets frustrated with his robot therapist. I am frustrated reading about his frustrating time with the robot therapist.
Now obviously the idea is that in these therapy session we peel back the layers of Rob's personality and get to his deepest thoughts and fears and understand who he is as a person.
The only problem with this is that Rob is a giant douchebag
Spending so much time listening to Rob avoid his issues and yell at his therapist over and over is just not that interesting or fun.
When we switch to the past perspective on Gateway -
We learn that Rob went on 3 missions from Gateway. So THIS is clearly "the exciting part of the book". This is what I want to read about.
Instead when we are on Gateway, Rob just mills around being a self centered arsehole and worrying that he will soon run out of money.
So get on a ship Rob! Do the damn thing!
Pohl didn't bother with too much science, just a few interesting scientific details here and there to convince us he's, you know - scientific and stuff. And eventually we learn about the "real issues" facing Bob personally and what happened for him to get rich.
Narrator Oliver Wyman was a little below average. His narration and "aw shucks" persona was a good attempt at making Bob seem the tiniest bit NOT like an a-hole.
His voice acting was on the weaker side but not bad enough to ruin things. Thankfully his female characters didn't really have that many lines to say.
Gateway can best be summarised as "Freudian Therapy in Space". I loved the Heechee gold rush premise but was let down by this character drama about a character I didn't care about.
Possibly the other books in the series get into that aspect a bit more but this didn't exactly convince me to put more Pohl high up on the reading list.
SPOILERS
So while this book deals with some larger themes and issues it also comes off as a bit of hippy dippy psychology and I'm not really sure I got the message it was trying to send.
For me, Gateway has a classic premise:
Humans of the future finds a hollowed out asteroid that contains a few hundred small, alien ships. The aliens, called the "Heechee" left the ships, ranging in size from 1 to 5 seaters, half a million years ago. Humanity has no idea how the ships work but they press the coloured buttons and are blasted off at light speed to some distant destination. No idea how to refuel, no idea how far/long it will take or if they have locked in the coordinates to a supernova. Many ships never come back.
Some make it back safely but find nothing, or find a planet to harsh for human life.
BUT some ships return with alien artefacts and technologies making them anywhere from slightly to filthy rich.
And thus begins the great Heechee Goldrush.....
So I was IN on this premise.
The part that interested me was the idea of a space gold rush to discover the Heechee and the archaeology to recover interesting artefacts. The element of high risk, all or nothing stakes while being charged extravagant daily fees ramped up the urgency to start the dangerous prospecting.
I couldn't WAIT to read this story....
Well...we actually spend half the book in a psychologist's office, as our "hero" vents his issues at Sigmund the Freudian robot shrink.
- Of the half that we spend on Gateway, almost the entire time is spent thinking about possibly taking one of the ships out on a mission.
Now I am all for book that is light on action and heavy on character and intrigue. The problem with "Gateway" is that if we were brainstorming ideas on ways to make the reader dislike a character, our protagonist Robinette really ticks a lot of the boxes.
"Rob" hates going to his Robot therapist. I hate Rob going to his robot therapist.
Rob gets frustrated with his robot therapist. I am frustrated reading about his frustrating time with the robot therapist.
Now obviously the idea is that in these therapy session we peel back the layers of Rob's personality and get to his deepest thoughts and fears and understand who he is as a person.
The only problem with this is that Rob is a giant douchebag
Spending so much time listening to Rob avoid his issues and yell at his therapist over and over is just not that interesting or fun.
When we switch to the past perspective on Gateway -
We learn that Rob went on 3 missions from Gateway. So THIS is clearly "the exciting part of the book". This is what I want to read about.
Instead when we are on Gateway, Rob just mills around being a self centered arsehole and worrying that he will soon run out of money.
So get on a ship Rob! Do the damn thing!
Pohl didn't bother with too much science, just a few interesting scientific details here and there to convince us he's, you know - scientific and stuff. And eventually we learn about the "real issues" facing Bob personally and what happened for him to get rich.
Narrator Oliver Wyman was a little below average. His narration and "aw shucks" persona was a good attempt at making Bob seem the tiniest bit NOT like an a-hole.
His voice acting was on the weaker side but not bad enough to ruin things. Thankfully his female characters didn't really have that many lines to say.
Gateway can best be summarised as "Freudian Therapy in Space". I loved the Heechee gold rush premise but was let down by this character drama about a character I didn't care about.
Possibly the other books in the series get into that aspect a bit more but this didn't exactly convince me to put more Pohl high up on the reading list.
SPOILERS
So while this book deals with some larger themes and issues it also comes off as a bit of hippy dippy psychology and I'm not really sure I got the message it was trying to send.
July 24, 2022
毓賱丕賯賴鈥屬呝嗀з� 亘賴 丿丕爻鬲丕賳鈥屬囏й� 毓賱賲蹖鈥屫屬勠屫� 亘禺氐賵氐 毓賱丕賯賴鈥屬呝嗀з� 亘賴 乇賲丕賳鈥屬囏й� 賲乇亘賵胤 亘賴 丿賵乇丕賳 胤賱丕蹖蹖 毓賱賲蹖鈥屫屬勠屫� 賮乇丿乇蹖讴 倬賱 乇丕 亘禺賵亘蹖 賲蹖卮賳丕爻賳 賵 丕夭 賲賵賯毓蹖鬲 賵 卮賴乇鬲 丕蹖賳 賳賵蹖爻賳丿賴 丿乇 賲毓乇賮蹖 賵 倬蹖卮亘乇丿 丕蹖賳 诏賵賳賴 丕夭 丕丿亘蹖丕鬲 丌诏丕賴蹖 丿丕乇賳.
亘丕蹖丿 亘诏賲 亘丕 鬲賵噩賴 賵 丕賳鬲馗丕乇蹖 讴賴 丕夭 賮乇丿乇蹖讴 倬賱 丿丕卮鬲賲 禺賵丕賳丿賳 讴鬲丕亘 丿乇賵丕夭賴 蹖丕 诏蹖鬲鈥屬堐屫� 丕賵賱蹖賳 讴鬲丕亘 丕夭 賲噩賲賵毓賴鈥屰� 丨賲丕爻賴鈥屰� 賴蹖鈥屭嗃屫� 讴賴 亘毓賳賵丕賳 賲毓乇賵賮鈥屫臂屬� 讴丕乇 賮乇丿乇蹖讴 倬賱 賴賲 丿乇 賲蹖丕賳 禺賵丕賳賳丿诏丕賳 丿賵乇丕賳 胤賱丕蹖蹖 卮賴乇鬲 丿丕乇賴貙 亘乇丕蹖 賲賳 蹖讴 賳丕 丕賲蹖丿蹖 睾丕賮賱鈥屭屫� 讴賳賳丿賴 亘賵丿!
賲噩丕賱 丿乇丕夭 讴乇丿賳 氐丨亘鬲 賳蹖爻鬲. 鬲氐賲蹖賲 诏乇賮鬲賲 亘乇丕蹖 丿丕丿賳 丕賲鬲蹖丕夭 亘賴 丕蹖賳 讴鬲丕亘 趩賳蹖賳 毓賲賱 讴賳賲. 鄣 丕賲鬲蹖丕夭 賲賵乇丿 賳馗乇 乇丕 亘賴 丿賵 賯爻賲鬲 鄄.鄣 丕賲鬲蹖丕夭蹖 鬲賯爻蹖賲 讴賳賲 賵 賴乇 讴丿丕賲 乇丕 亘賴 丿賵 賲賵囟賵毓 夭蹖乇 丕禺鬲氐丕氐 丿賴賲.
亘禺卮 丕賵賱貙 鄄.鄣 丕賲鬲蹖丕夭 乇丕 亘賴 蹖賵賳蹖讴 賵 噩匕丕亘 亘賵丿賳 丕蹖丿賴鈥屰� 丕氐賱蹖 丿丕爻鬲丕賳 讴賴 乇賵丕蹖鬲 丨賵賱 賲丨賵乇 丕賵賳 卮讴賱 诏乇賮鬲賴 賵 禺乇丿賴 丕蹖丿賴鈥屬囏й� 賲胤乇丨 卮丿賴 丿乇 丌賳 丿乇 噩賴鬲 鬲賵氐蹖賮丕鬲 毓賱賲蹖鈥屫屬勠屫� 賮賳丕賵乇蹖鈥屬囏ж� 賳跇丕丿賴丕蹖 亘蹖诏丕賳賴貙 鬲毓丕賲賱丕鬲 亘卮乇蹖 亘丕 丌賳鈥屬囏ж� 趩诏賵賳诏蹖 爻賮乇賴丕蹖 讴蹖賴丕賳蹖 賵 丕夭 丕蹖賳 丿爻鬲 賲賵囟賵毓丕鬲 讴賴 亘賴 亘禺卮 丕蹖丿賴鈥屬囏й� 毓賱賲蹖 賵 鬲禺蹖賱 丿丕爻鬲丕賳 賲乇亘賵胤 丕爻鬲貙 丕禺鬲氐丕氐 丿賴賲.
賵 亘禺卮 丿賵賲貙 鄄.鄣 丕賲鬲蹖丕夭 亘毓丿蹖 乇丕 亘乇丕蹖 倬乇丿丕禺鬲賳 亘賴 賳丨賵賴 乇賵丕蹖鬲貙 倬禺鬲诏蹖 丿丕爻鬲丕賳貙 倬賱丕鬲 賵 倬爻蹖賳诏貙 卮禺氐蹖鬲鈥屬囏� 賵 卮禺氐蹖鬲鈥屬矩必ж槽屫� 鬲毓賱蹖賯鈥屬囏� 賵 倬蹖趩卮 丿丕爻鬲丕賳 丿乇 賳馗乇 亘诏蹖乇賲.
丿乇 賲賵乇丿 亘禺卮 丕賵賱 蹖毓賳蹖 丕蹖丿賴鈥屬囏й� 毓賱賲蹖鈥屫屬勠� 丿丕爻鬲丕賳貙 讴鬲丕亘 卮丕賲賱 丕蹖丿賴鈥屬囏� 賵 賲賵囟賵毓丕鬲 亘爻蹖丕乇 夭蹖亘丕 賵 噩匕丕亘蹖 丿乇 丕乇鬲亘丕胤 亘丕 讴卮賮 賵 鬲毓丕賲賱 賵 丕爻鬲賮丕丿賴 丕夭 賮賳丕賵乇蹖鈥屬囏й� 亘蹖诏丕賳诏丕賳 賲蹖卮賴 賵 亘賴 禺賵亘蹖 丕夭 毓賴丿賴 賲毓乇賮蹖 丕賵賳鈥屬囏� 丿乇 丿丕爻鬲丕賳 亘乇 賲蹖丕丿.
丕蹖丿賴鈥屰� 丕氐賱蹖 讴鬲丕亘貙 倬蹖丿丕 讴乇丿賳 丕鬲賮丕賯蹖 蹖讴 卮亘讴賴鈥屰� 丨賲賱 賵 賳賯賱 讴蹖賴丕賳蹖 爻丕賱賲 賵 讴丕乇丌賲丿 亘丕 賯丿賲鬲蹖 亘蹖卮 丕夭 賳蹖賲 賲蹖賱蹖賵賳 爻丕賱 賲鬲毓賱賯 亘賴 蹖讴 賳跇丕丿 亘蹖诏丕賳賴 讴賴 丿乇 丿丕爻鬲丕賳 亘賴 賳丕賲 賴蹖鈥屭嗃� 丕夭 丕賵賳鈥屬囏� 蹖丕丿 賲蹖卮賴貙 鬲賵爻胤 丕賳爻丕賳鈥屬囏ж池�. 丕蹖賳 丕蹖丿賴鈥屰� 亘丕卮讴賵賴 讴賴 亘賴 蹖讴鈥屫ㄘж辟� 丕賳爻丕賳 丕蹖賳 鬲賵丕賳丕蹖蹖 乇丕 倬蹖丿丕 賲蹖讴賳賴 鬲丕 诏丕賲 亘賴 賲蹖丕賳 爻鬲丕乇诏丕賳 亘诏匕丕乇賴 賵 丕夭 亘賳丿 诏賴賵丕乇賴 賲丕丿乇蹖 禺賵丿卮 蹖毓賳蹖 賲賳馗賵賲賴鈥屰� 卮賲爻蹖 丌夭丕丿 亘卮賴 丕賵賳 賴賲 亘丕 賯丕亘賱蹖鬲 丿爻鬲 蹖丕賮鬲賳 亘賴 爻乇毓鬲鈥屬囏й屰� 賮乇丕鬲乇 丕夭 爻乇毓鬲 賳賵乇.
丿丕爻鬲丕賳 卮丕賲賱 丕蹖丿賴鈥屬囏й� 噩丕賱亘蹖 賲乇亘賵胤 亘賴 讴卮賮 丕蹖賳 賮賳丕賵乇蹖 賵 讴丕乇讴乇丿賴丕卮貙 讴卮鬲蹖鈥屬囏й� 賮囟丕蹖蹖貙 亘蹖诏丕賳诏丕賳 乇丕夭丌賱賵丿 賴蹖鈥屭嗃� 賵 丌孬丕乇 賵 賳卮丕賳賴鈥屬囏й� 賲乇賲賵夭 亘丕賯蹖賲丕賳丿賴 丕夭 丕賵賳鈥屬囏� 丿乇 爻乇鬲丕爻乇 讴蹖賴丕賳 賵 爻賮乇賴丕蹖 丕賳爻丕賳蹖 亘賴 賳賯丕胤 賲禺鬲賱賮 讴賴讴卮丕賳 賵 丕夭 丕蹖賳 丿爻鬲 賲賵囟賵毓丕鬲 賲蹖卮賴 讴賴 亘賴鈥屫堌ㄛ� 賲胤乇丨 賵 鬲賵爻毓賴 丿丕丿賴 卮丿賳.
倬爻 倬蹖乇賵蹖 丕蹖賳 鬲賵囟蹖丨 賲蹖鈥屫堎嗁� 亘蹖 亘乇賵亘乇诏乇丿 賵 亘丕 讴賲丕賱 賲蹖賱 賵 毓賱丕賯賴 鄄.鄣 丕賲鬲蹖丕夭 賲乇亘賵胤 亘賴 亘禺卮 丕蹖丿賴鈥屰� 毓賱賲蹖鈥屫屬勠� 乇丕 亘乇丕蹖 丕蹖賳 讴鬲丕亘 丿乇 賳馗乇 亘诏蹖乇賲.
丿乇 賲賵乇丿 亘禺卮 丿賵賲貙 蹖毓賳蹖 亘禺卮 乇賵丕蹖鬲貙 趩蹖夭蹖 讴賴 卮丕賲賱 倬乇丿丕禺鬲 亘賴 丿丕爻鬲丕賳貙 噩夭蹖蹖丕鬲卮貙 禺乇丿賴 乇賵丕蹖鬲鈥屬囏ж� 倬賱丕鬲 賵 倬爻蹖賳诏 丿丕爻鬲丕賳貙 卮禺氐蹖鬲鈥屬矩必ж槽屫� 鬲毓賱蹖賯 賵 倬蹖趩卮 丿丕爻鬲丕賳 賲蹖卮賴貙 亘丕蹖丿 亘诏賲 讴賴 毓賲賱丕 趩蹖夭蹖 賵噩賵丿 賳丿丕乇賴 賵 賲鬲丕爻賮丕賳賴 丕蹖賳 亘禺卮 賳賯胤賴 囟毓賮 讴鬲丕亘 賲丨爻賵亘 賲蹖卮賴 亘胤賵乇蹖 讴賴 爻賴賲 丕毓馗賲蹖 丕夭 丕賵賳 丿乇禺卮卮 賵 噩匕丕亘蹖鬲 丕蹖丿賴鈥屬囏� 乇賵 賴賲 亘禺丕胤乇 囟毓賮 禺賵丿卮 鬲賱賮 賲蹖讴賳賴.
胤乇蹖賯賴 乇賵丕蹖鬲 丿丕爻鬲丕賳 亘賴 丕蹖賳 卮讴賱 賴爻鬲 讴賴 賲丕 丕夭 丿賵 賲賳馗乇 丿丕爻鬲丕賳 乇丕 丕夭 夭亘丕賳 卮禺氐蹖鬲 丕氐賱蹖 蹖毓賳蹖 乇丕亘 賲蹖鈥屫促嗁堐屬�. 賵 讴賱 賮氐賵賱 讴鬲丕亘 蹖讴蹖 丿乇 賲蹖丕賳 亘蹖賳 丕蹖賳 丿賵 賲賳馗乇 鬲睾蹖蹖乇 賲蹖讴賳賳.
賲賳馗乇 丕賵賱 乇賵丕蹖鬲蹖 讴賴 乇丕亘 丕夭 丨囟賵乇卮 丿乇 丿乇賵丕夭賴 賵 爻賮乇賴丕蹖 讴蹖賴丕賳蹖卮 鬲毓乇蹖賮 賲蹖讴賳賴 賵 賲賳馗乇 丿蹖诏乇 乇賵丕蹖鬲蹖 讴賴 丕夭 夭亘丕賳 乇丕亘 賵 丿乇 丨蹖賳 卮乇讴鬲 丿乇 噩賱爻丕鬲 乇賵丕賳鈥屫辟呚з嗃� 亘丕 丨囟賵乇 賲丕卮蹖賳 乇賵丕賳鈥屫辟呚з嗂� 賴賵卮賲賳丿蹖 爻丕禺鬲賴 卮丿賴 丕夭 賮賳丕賵乇蹖 賴蹖鈥屭嗃屸€屬囏� 亘賴 賳丕賲 夭蹖诏賮乇蹖丿 賵 丿乇 丌蹖賳丿賴鈥屫й� 賳賴 趩賳丿丕賳 丿賵乇 賳爻亘鬲 亘賴 賲賳馗乇 丕賵賱貙 诏賮鬲賴 賲蹖卮賴.
亘賳馗乇 賲蹖丕丿 丕蹖丿賴鈥屰� 賳賵蹖爻賳丿賴 丕夭 亘讴丕乇 亘乇丿賳 趩賳蹖賳 乇賵卮 乇賵丕蹖鬲蹖 丕爻鬲賮丕丿賴 丕夭 賲賳馗乇 丿賵賲 亘乇丕蹖 毓賲蹖賯 鬲乇 賵 倬禺鬲賴鈥屫� 讴乇丿賳 卮禺氐蹖鬲鈥屬矩必ж槽� 讴丕乇讴鬲乇賴丕 賵 丕乇丕蹖賴 蹖賴 亘禺卮 乇賵丕賳鈥屫促嗀ж� 賲賮氐賱鈥屫� 賳爻亘鬲 賮乇丿蹖鬲 卮禺氐蹖鬲鈥屬囏� 賵 噩丕賲毓賴 丕賳爻丕賳蹖 賲賵乇丿 丕賳鬲馗丕乇卮 丿乇 丕賵賳 乇賵丕蹖鬲 賴爻鬲貙 趩蹖夭蹖 讴賴 亘賴 夭毓賲 賲賳 賲蹖鈥屫堎嗀池� 賴蹖噩丕賳鈥屫з嗂屫藏臂屬� 亘禺卮 丿丕爻鬲丕賳 亘丕卮賴 賵賱蹖 賳賵蹖爻賳丿賴 丿乇 倬乇丿丕禺鬲 亘賴卮 賲賵賮賯 毓賲賱 賳讴乇丿賴 賵 亘賴 囟毓蹖賮鈥屫臂屬� 亘禺卮 丿丕爻鬲丕賳 鬲亘丿蹖賱 卮丿賴.
丕蹖賳 亘禺卮 丕夭 乇賵丕蹖鬲 趩賳丕賳 囟毓蹖賮 賵 禺爻鬲賴鈥屭┵嗁嗀� 賴爻鬲 讴賴 毓賲賱丕 賲蹖鈥屫堌з� 鬲賲丕賲 賮氐賵賱 賲乇亘賵胤 亘賴 噩賱爻丕鬲 賲丕卮蹖賳 夭蹖诏賮乇蹖丿貙 亘賴 噩夭 丌禺乇蹖賳 賮氐賱 讴賴 賳賵蹖爻賳丿賴 倬丕蹖丕賳鈥屫ㄙ嗀� 丿丕爻鬲丕賳 乇賵 丿乇 丕賵賳 賯乇丕乇 丿丕丿賴貙 丕夭 乇賵丕蹖鬲 丨匕賮 讴乇丿 亘丿賵賳 丕蹖賳讴賴 讴賵趩讴鬲乇蹖賳 趩蹖夭蹖 丕夭 丿丕爻鬲丕賳 丕夭 丿爻鬲 亘乇賴. 丿乇 賵丕賯毓 亘丕蹖丿 亘诏賲 亘賴 丕蹖賳 卮讴賱 賳蹖賲蹖 丕夭 讴鬲丕亘 亘蹖賴賵丿賴 丨乇丕賲 卮丿賴 :/
亘丕 鬲賵噩賴 亘賴 賲賵丕乇丿 毓賳賵丕賳 卮丿賴 亘賴 爻禺鬲蹖 賵 亘丕 夭賵乇 亘乇丕蹖 亘禺卮 倬乇丿丕禺鬲 乇賵丕蹖鬲 讴鬲丕亘 賲蹖鈥屫堎嗁� 丕賲鬲蹖丕夭 賳蹖賲 乇丕 丿乇 賳馗乇 亘诏蹖乇賲.
亘丕 丕丨鬲爻丕亘 賳賲乇賴鈥屬囏ж� 丕賲鬲蹖丕夭 賲賳 亘賴 丕蹖賳 讴鬲丕亘 亘爻禺鬲蹖 亘賴
丕賲鬲蹖丕夭 鄢
禺賵丕賴丿 乇爻蹖丿.
倬.賳: 賵丕賯毓丕 鬲毓噩亘 賲蹖讴賳賲 丕夭 丕賵賳 鄢鄯 丿乇氐丿蹖 讴賴 亘賴 丕蹖賳 讴鬲丕亘 丕賲鬲蹖丕夭 鄣 丿丕丿賳 馃し馃徎
亘丕蹖丿 亘诏賲 亘丕 鬲賵噩賴 賵 丕賳鬲馗丕乇蹖 讴賴 丕夭 賮乇丿乇蹖讴 倬賱 丿丕卮鬲賲 禺賵丕賳丿賳 讴鬲丕亘 丿乇賵丕夭賴 蹖丕 诏蹖鬲鈥屬堐屫� 丕賵賱蹖賳 讴鬲丕亘 丕夭 賲噩賲賵毓賴鈥屰� 丨賲丕爻賴鈥屰� 賴蹖鈥屭嗃屫� 讴賴 亘毓賳賵丕賳 賲毓乇賵賮鈥屫臂屬� 讴丕乇 賮乇丿乇蹖讴 倬賱 賴賲 丿乇 賲蹖丕賳 禺賵丕賳賳丿诏丕賳 丿賵乇丕賳 胤賱丕蹖蹖 卮賴乇鬲 丿丕乇賴貙 亘乇丕蹖 賲賳 蹖讴 賳丕 丕賲蹖丿蹖 睾丕賮賱鈥屭屫� 讴賳賳丿賴 亘賵丿!
賲噩丕賱 丿乇丕夭 讴乇丿賳 氐丨亘鬲 賳蹖爻鬲. 鬲氐賲蹖賲 诏乇賮鬲賲 亘乇丕蹖 丿丕丿賳 丕賲鬲蹖丕夭 亘賴 丕蹖賳 讴鬲丕亘 趩賳蹖賳 毓賲賱 讴賳賲. 鄣 丕賲鬲蹖丕夭 賲賵乇丿 賳馗乇 乇丕 亘賴 丿賵 賯爻賲鬲 鄄.鄣 丕賲鬲蹖丕夭蹖 鬲賯爻蹖賲 讴賳賲 賵 賴乇 讴丿丕賲 乇丕 亘賴 丿賵 賲賵囟賵毓 夭蹖乇 丕禺鬲氐丕氐 丿賴賲.
亘禺卮 丕賵賱貙 鄄.鄣 丕賲鬲蹖丕夭 乇丕 亘賴 蹖賵賳蹖讴 賵 噩匕丕亘 亘賵丿賳 丕蹖丿賴鈥屰� 丕氐賱蹖 丿丕爻鬲丕賳 讴賴 乇賵丕蹖鬲 丨賵賱 賲丨賵乇 丕賵賳 卮讴賱 诏乇賮鬲賴 賵 禺乇丿賴 丕蹖丿賴鈥屬囏й� 賲胤乇丨 卮丿賴 丿乇 丌賳 丿乇 噩賴鬲 鬲賵氐蹖賮丕鬲 毓賱賲蹖鈥屫屬勠屫� 賮賳丕賵乇蹖鈥屬囏ж� 賳跇丕丿賴丕蹖 亘蹖诏丕賳賴貙 鬲毓丕賲賱丕鬲 亘卮乇蹖 亘丕 丌賳鈥屬囏ж� 趩诏賵賳诏蹖 爻賮乇賴丕蹖 讴蹖賴丕賳蹖 賵 丕夭 丕蹖賳 丿爻鬲 賲賵囟賵毓丕鬲 讴賴 亘賴 亘禺卮 丕蹖丿賴鈥屬囏й� 毓賱賲蹖 賵 鬲禺蹖賱 丿丕爻鬲丕賳 賲乇亘賵胤 丕爻鬲貙 丕禺鬲氐丕氐 丿賴賲.
賵 亘禺卮 丿賵賲貙 鄄.鄣 丕賲鬲蹖丕夭 亘毓丿蹖 乇丕 亘乇丕蹖 倬乇丿丕禺鬲賳 亘賴 賳丨賵賴 乇賵丕蹖鬲貙 倬禺鬲诏蹖 丿丕爻鬲丕賳貙 倬賱丕鬲 賵 倬爻蹖賳诏貙 卮禺氐蹖鬲鈥屬囏� 賵 卮禺氐蹖鬲鈥屬矩必ж槽屫� 鬲毓賱蹖賯鈥屬囏� 賵 倬蹖趩卮 丿丕爻鬲丕賳 丿乇 賳馗乇 亘诏蹖乇賲.
丿乇 賲賵乇丿 亘禺卮 丕賵賱 蹖毓賳蹖 丕蹖丿賴鈥屬囏й� 毓賱賲蹖鈥屫屬勠� 丿丕爻鬲丕賳貙 讴鬲丕亘 卮丕賲賱 丕蹖丿賴鈥屬囏� 賵 賲賵囟賵毓丕鬲 亘爻蹖丕乇 夭蹖亘丕 賵 噩匕丕亘蹖 丿乇 丕乇鬲亘丕胤 亘丕 讴卮賮 賵 鬲毓丕賲賱 賵 丕爻鬲賮丕丿賴 丕夭 賮賳丕賵乇蹖鈥屬囏й� 亘蹖诏丕賳诏丕賳 賲蹖卮賴 賵 亘賴 禺賵亘蹖 丕夭 毓賴丿賴 賲毓乇賮蹖 丕賵賳鈥屬囏� 丿乇 丿丕爻鬲丕賳 亘乇 賲蹖丕丿.
丕蹖丿賴鈥屰� 丕氐賱蹖 讴鬲丕亘貙 倬蹖丿丕 讴乇丿賳 丕鬲賮丕賯蹖 蹖讴 卮亘讴賴鈥屰� 丨賲賱 賵 賳賯賱 讴蹖賴丕賳蹖 爻丕賱賲 賵 讴丕乇丌賲丿 亘丕 賯丿賲鬲蹖 亘蹖卮 丕夭 賳蹖賲 賲蹖賱蹖賵賳 爻丕賱 賲鬲毓賱賯 亘賴 蹖讴 賳跇丕丿 亘蹖诏丕賳賴 讴賴 丿乇 丿丕爻鬲丕賳 亘賴 賳丕賲 賴蹖鈥屭嗃� 丕夭 丕賵賳鈥屬囏� 蹖丕丿 賲蹖卮賴貙 鬲賵爻胤 丕賳爻丕賳鈥屬囏ж池�. 丕蹖賳 丕蹖丿賴鈥屰� 亘丕卮讴賵賴 讴賴 亘賴 蹖讴鈥屫ㄘж辟� 丕賳爻丕賳 丕蹖賳 鬲賵丕賳丕蹖蹖 乇丕 倬蹖丿丕 賲蹖讴賳賴 鬲丕 诏丕賲 亘賴 賲蹖丕賳 爻鬲丕乇诏丕賳 亘诏匕丕乇賴 賵 丕夭 亘賳丿 诏賴賵丕乇賴 賲丕丿乇蹖 禺賵丿卮 蹖毓賳蹖 賲賳馗賵賲賴鈥屰� 卮賲爻蹖 丌夭丕丿 亘卮賴 丕賵賳 賴賲 亘丕 賯丕亘賱蹖鬲 丿爻鬲 蹖丕賮鬲賳 亘賴 爻乇毓鬲鈥屬囏й屰� 賮乇丕鬲乇 丕夭 爻乇毓鬲 賳賵乇.
丿丕爻鬲丕賳 卮丕賲賱 丕蹖丿賴鈥屬囏й� 噩丕賱亘蹖 賲乇亘賵胤 亘賴 讴卮賮 丕蹖賳 賮賳丕賵乇蹖 賵 讴丕乇讴乇丿賴丕卮貙 讴卮鬲蹖鈥屬囏й� 賮囟丕蹖蹖貙 亘蹖诏丕賳诏丕賳 乇丕夭丌賱賵丿 賴蹖鈥屭嗃� 賵 丌孬丕乇 賵 賳卮丕賳賴鈥屬囏й� 賲乇賲賵夭 亘丕賯蹖賲丕賳丿賴 丕夭 丕賵賳鈥屬囏� 丿乇 爻乇鬲丕爻乇 讴蹖賴丕賳 賵 爻賮乇賴丕蹖 丕賳爻丕賳蹖 亘賴 賳賯丕胤 賲禺鬲賱賮 讴賴讴卮丕賳 賵 丕夭 丕蹖賳 丿爻鬲 賲賵囟賵毓丕鬲 賲蹖卮賴 讴賴 亘賴鈥屫堌ㄛ� 賲胤乇丨 賵 鬲賵爻毓賴 丿丕丿賴 卮丿賳.
倬爻 倬蹖乇賵蹖 丕蹖賳 鬲賵囟蹖丨 賲蹖鈥屫堎嗁� 亘蹖 亘乇賵亘乇诏乇丿 賵 亘丕 讴賲丕賱 賲蹖賱 賵 毓賱丕賯賴 鄄.鄣 丕賲鬲蹖丕夭 賲乇亘賵胤 亘賴 亘禺卮 丕蹖丿賴鈥屰� 毓賱賲蹖鈥屫屬勠� 乇丕 亘乇丕蹖 丕蹖賳 讴鬲丕亘 丿乇 賳馗乇 亘诏蹖乇賲.
丿乇 賲賵乇丿 亘禺卮 丿賵賲貙 蹖毓賳蹖 亘禺卮 乇賵丕蹖鬲貙 趩蹖夭蹖 讴賴 卮丕賲賱 倬乇丿丕禺鬲 亘賴 丿丕爻鬲丕賳貙 噩夭蹖蹖丕鬲卮貙 禺乇丿賴 乇賵丕蹖鬲鈥屬囏ж� 倬賱丕鬲 賵 倬爻蹖賳诏 丿丕爻鬲丕賳貙 卮禺氐蹖鬲鈥屬矩必ж槽屫� 鬲毓賱蹖賯 賵 倬蹖趩卮 丿丕爻鬲丕賳 賲蹖卮賴貙 亘丕蹖丿 亘诏賲 讴賴 毓賲賱丕 趩蹖夭蹖 賵噩賵丿 賳丿丕乇賴 賵 賲鬲丕爻賮丕賳賴 丕蹖賳 亘禺卮 賳賯胤賴 囟毓賮 讴鬲丕亘 賲丨爻賵亘 賲蹖卮賴 亘胤賵乇蹖 讴賴 爻賴賲 丕毓馗賲蹖 丕夭 丕賵賳 丿乇禺卮卮 賵 噩匕丕亘蹖鬲 丕蹖丿賴鈥屬囏� 乇賵 賴賲 亘禺丕胤乇 囟毓賮 禺賵丿卮 鬲賱賮 賲蹖讴賳賴.
胤乇蹖賯賴 乇賵丕蹖鬲 丿丕爻鬲丕賳 亘賴 丕蹖賳 卮讴賱 賴爻鬲 讴賴 賲丕 丕夭 丿賵 賲賳馗乇 丿丕爻鬲丕賳 乇丕 丕夭 夭亘丕賳 卮禺氐蹖鬲 丕氐賱蹖 蹖毓賳蹖 乇丕亘 賲蹖鈥屫促嗁堐屬�. 賵 讴賱 賮氐賵賱 讴鬲丕亘 蹖讴蹖 丿乇 賲蹖丕賳 亘蹖賳 丕蹖賳 丿賵 賲賳馗乇 鬲睾蹖蹖乇 賲蹖讴賳賳.
賲賳馗乇 丕賵賱 乇賵丕蹖鬲蹖 讴賴 乇丕亘 丕夭 丨囟賵乇卮 丿乇 丿乇賵丕夭賴 賵 爻賮乇賴丕蹖 讴蹖賴丕賳蹖卮 鬲毓乇蹖賮 賲蹖讴賳賴 賵 賲賳馗乇 丿蹖诏乇 乇賵丕蹖鬲蹖 讴賴 丕夭 夭亘丕賳 乇丕亘 賵 丿乇 丨蹖賳 卮乇讴鬲 丿乇 噩賱爻丕鬲 乇賵丕賳鈥屫辟呚з嗃� 亘丕 丨囟賵乇 賲丕卮蹖賳 乇賵丕賳鈥屫辟呚з嗂� 賴賵卮賲賳丿蹖 爻丕禺鬲賴 卮丿賴 丕夭 賮賳丕賵乇蹖 賴蹖鈥屭嗃屸€屬囏� 亘賴 賳丕賲 夭蹖诏賮乇蹖丿 賵 丿乇 丌蹖賳丿賴鈥屫й� 賳賴 趩賳丿丕賳 丿賵乇 賳爻亘鬲 亘賴 賲賳馗乇 丕賵賱貙 诏賮鬲賴 賲蹖卮賴.
亘賳馗乇 賲蹖丕丿 丕蹖丿賴鈥屰� 賳賵蹖爻賳丿賴 丕夭 亘讴丕乇 亘乇丿賳 趩賳蹖賳 乇賵卮 乇賵丕蹖鬲蹖 丕爻鬲賮丕丿賴 丕夭 賲賳馗乇 丿賵賲 亘乇丕蹖 毓賲蹖賯 鬲乇 賵 倬禺鬲賴鈥屫� 讴乇丿賳 卮禺氐蹖鬲鈥屬矩必ж槽� 讴丕乇讴鬲乇賴丕 賵 丕乇丕蹖賴 蹖賴 亘禺卮 乇賵丕賳鈥屫促嗀ж� 賲賮氐賱鈥屫� 賳爻亘鬲 賮乇丿蹖鬲 卮禺氐蹖鬲鈥屬囏� 賵 噩丕賲毓賴 丕賳爻丕賳蹖 賲賵乇丿 丕賳鬲馗丕乇卮 丿乇 丕賵賳 乇賵丕蹖鬲 賴爻鬲貙 趩蹖夭蹖 讴賴 亘賴 夭毓賲 賲賳 賲蹖鈥屫堎嗀池� 賴蹖噩丕賳鈥屫з嗂屫藏臂屬� 亘禺卮 丿丕爻鬲丕賳 亘丕卮賴 賵賱蹖 賳賵蹖爻賳丿賴 丿乇 倬乇丿丕禺鬲 亘賴卮 賲賵賮賯 毓賲賱 賳讴乇丿賴 賵 亘賴 囟毓蹖賮鈥屫臂屬� 亘禺卮 丿丕爻鬲丕賳 鬲亘丿蹖賱 卮丿賴.
丕蹖賳 亘禺卮 丕夭 乇賵丕蹖鬲 趩賳丕賳 囟毓蹖賮 賵 禺爻鬲賴鈥屭┵嗁嗀� 賴爻鬲 讴賴 毓賲賱丕 賲蹖鈥屫堌з� 鬲賲丕賲 賮氐賵賱 賲乇亘賵胤 亘賴 噩賱爻丕鬲 賲丕卮蹖賳 夭蹖诏賮乇蹖丿貙 亘賴 噩夭 丌禺乇蹖賳 賮氐賱 讴賴 賳賵蹖爻賳丿賴 倬丕蹖丕賳鈥屫ㄙ嗀� 丿丕爻鬲丕賳 乇賵 丿乇 丕賵賳 賯乇丕乇 丿丕丿賴貙 丕夭 乇賵丕蹖鬲 丨匕賮 讴乇丿 亘丿賵賳 丕蹖賳讴賴 讴賵趩讴鬲乇蹖賳 趩蹖夭蹖 丕夭 丿丕爻鬲丕賳 丕夭 丿爻鬲 亘乇賴. 丿乇 賵丕賯毓 亘丕蹖丿 亘诏賲 亘賴 丕蹖賳 卮讴賱 賳蹖賲蹖 丕夭 讴鬲丕亘 亘蹖賴賵丿賴 丨乇丕賲 卮丿賴 :/
亘丕 鬲賵噩賴 亘賴 賲賵丕乇丿 毓賳賵丕賳 卮丿賴 亘賴 爻禺鬲蹖 賵 亘丕 夭賵乇 亘乇丕蹖 亘禺卮 倬乇丿丕禺鬲 乇賵丕蹖鬲 讴鬲丕亘 賲蹖鈥屫堎嗁� 丕賲鬲蹖丕夭 賳蹖賲 乇丕 丿乇 賳馗乇 亘诏蹖乇賲.
亘丕 丕丨鬲爻丕亘 賳賲乇賴鈥屬囏ж� 丕賲鬲蹖丕夭 賲賳 亘賴 丕蹖賳 讴鬲丕亘 亘爻禺鬲蹖 亘賴
丕賲鬲蹖丕夭 鄢
禺賵丕賴丿 乇爻蹖丿.
倬.賳: 賵丕賯毓丕 鬲毓噩亘 賲蹖讴賳賲 丕夭 丕賵賳 鄢鄯 丿乇氐丿蹖 讴賴 亘賴 丕蹖賳 讴鬲丕亘 丕賲鬲蹖丕夭 鄣 丿丕丿賳 馃し馃徎
August 7, 2015
This is a well structured sci fi novel, and I can see why it is considered an influential classic, but it has one major problem that I can't get around: the protagonist is a whining, self-absorbed shithead. Since the main story is told in flashback, and he is still a whining, self-absorbed shithead in the frame story, we spend the whole book knowing that he will not grow or change at any point through the adventure he is relating to us, and for all we know his whining self-absorbed shitheadedness will only get worse. It does, in both the frame story and the main story. I appreciated Pohl's critique of capitalism, as well as his willingness to depict a future teeming with gender/ethnic/sexual diversity, but most of those depictions are as stereotypical and unflattering as the arrested adolescent that passes for the novel's hero. Pohl's cynicism is a little too deep for my taste, and there's a lot of pseudo-Freudian hokum that passes for character motivation.
Trigger-warning: Scene of domestic violence is especially brutal and the book is ambivalent at best about the protagonist's justification for it.
Trigger-warning: Scene of domestic violence is especially brutal and the book is ambivalent at best about the protagonist's justification for it.
September 1, 2016
This turned out to be a surprisingly good and entertaining sci-fi tale. When I picked up a copy of the novel I thought I was heading for an Edgar Rice Burroughs type pulp sci-fi story. I'll admit it was the name of the series, the Heechee Saga, that caught me out. It totally sounds like pulp sci-fi! I only realized this was a Hugo and Nebula award winner when it was mentioned by Robert.J.Sawyer in an introduction to the audiobook. That had me a little worried as I've a poor track record with critically acclaimed books, but within the first chapter I realized I had nothing to be concerned about with this particular story. Frederik Pohl story was filled with a ton of intriguing concepts and interesting themes but he had an engaging writing style and this was above all else a character driven sci-fi story.
The world Pohl created was an intriguing one. Earth is suffering from overpopulation and a lack of resources. Scientific advancement has led to some level of space travel and colonies have been set up on the nearby planets of Venus and Mars to limited success. The big chance for the humans comes when a human finds an alien mining facility in the depths of Venus. The Heechee are a long gone race who have lead little trace of their existence except from a few abandoned outposts. The most significant discovery is of a space station that has a weird orbit close to the sun. It is filled with almost a thousand ships. The problem is that no one understands the technology behind them. Luckily for the humans most of the ships are set with preprogrammed destinations. Unluckily for the humans the pre-set destinations are not always safe for humans! The ships are also very small. The largest are 5 man vessels and the smallest just fit just one person so are useless for things like colonisation of potential new worlds. The aim of the Gateway travellers is to seek out new Heechee outposts in order to discover more of their ancient technology and to search for anything else that might be useful. The rewards for finding something are huge, so are the risks as almost 2/3 of prospectors are killed or never return from their unknown missions.
We followed the story of Gateway prospector Robinette Broadhead. His story was told in two halves. In the present time through a series of therapy sessions with his AI therapist and through flashbacks to his time as a Gateway prospector. Both turned out to be fairly interesting though I did personally enjoy the space adventuring the most.
Robinette Broadhead was an interesting character. He was not all that likeable a guy but he was a fascinating character to follow.
I found this an incredibly engaging read from the very start and will definitely pick up the sequel as there is more stories to be told in this word for sure.
Rating: 4.5 stars.
Audio Note: The audio was narrated fantastically by Oliver Wyman.
The world Pohl created was an intriguing one. Earth is suffering from overpopulation and a lack of resources. Scientific advancement has led to some level of space travel and colonies have been set up on the nearby planets of Venus and Mars to limited success. The big chance for the humans comes when a human finds an alien mining facility in the depths of Venus. The Heechee are a long gone race who have lead little trace of their existence except from a few abandoned outposts. The most significant discovery is of a space station that has a weird orbit close to the sun. It is filled with almost a thousand ships. The problem is that no one understands the technology behind them. Luckily for the humans most of the ships are set with preprogrammed destinations. Unluckily for the humans the pre-set destinations are not always safe for humans! The ships are also very small. The largest are 5 man vessels and the smallest just fit just one person so are useless for things like colonisation of potential new worlds. The aim of the Gateway travellers is to seek out new Heechee outposts in order to discover more of their ancient technology and to search for anything else that might be useful. The rewards for finding something are huge, so are the risks as almost 2/3 of prospectors are killed or never return from their unknown missions.
We followed the story of Gateway prospector Robinette Broadhead. His story was told in two halves. In the present time through a series of therapy sessions with his AI therapist and through flashbacks to his time as a Gateway prospector. Both turned out to be fairly interesting though I did personally enjoy the space adventuring the most.
Robinette Broadhead was an interesting character. He was not all that likeable a guy but he was a fascinating character to follow.
I found this an incredibly engaging read from the very start and will definitely pick up the sequel as there is more stories to be told in this word for sure.
Rating: 4.5 stars.
Audio Note: The audio was narrated fantastically by Oliver Wyman.
April 12, 2021
袙褋械谢械薪邪褌邪 蟹芯胁械 泻邪褌芯 褋懈褉械薪邪. 袨斜械褖邪胁邪 斜芯谐邪褌褋褌胁邪, 褔褍写械褋邪 懈 胁械褔薪芯褋褌, 薪芯 褔械褋褌芯 - 泻邪褌芯 褋泻褉懈褌芯 芯谐谢械写邪谢芯 - 胁褉褗褖邪 褋邪屑芯 屑褗泻邪 懈 褋屑褗褉褌. 肖邪薪褌邪褋褌懈泻邪褌邪 芯褌 褋褌邪褉邪褌邪 褕泻芯谢邪 械泻褋锌谢芯邪褌懈褉邪 谢褞斜芯锌懈褌褋褌胁芯褌芯 懈 械屑芯褑懈懈褌械 薪邪 屑邪泻褋懈屑褍屑. 袩褉懈褕锌芯褉胁邪 胁褗芯斜褉邪卸械薪懈械褌芯 懈 褋褌褉邪薪懈褑懈褌械 褋邪屑懈 褋械 懈蟹褔懈褌邪褌. 袨斜械褖邪胁邪 蟹胁械蟹写薪懈 写懈邪屑邪薪褌懈, 蟹邪 写邪 锌褉懈屑邪屑懈 薪械芯锌懈褌薪懈褟 械薪褌褍褋懈邪褋褌 胁 薪褟泻芯褟 褔械褉薪邪 写褍锌泻邪. 袠 写邪 褉邪蟹褌械谐薪械 蟹邪泻芯薪懈褌械 薪邪 褎懈蟹懈泻邪褌邪 芯褌胁褗写 褏芯褉懈蟹芯薪褌邪 薪邪 胁褗蟹屑芯卸薪芯褌芯.
袘芯斜 袘褉芯写褏械写 薪械 械 薪懈泻邪泻褗胁 屑芯写械褉械薪 锌褉芯褌邪谐芯薪懈褋褌, 邪 薪芯褉屑邪谢薪芯, 锌褉懈谢懈褔薪芯 褌褗屑薪芯 懈 懈蟹屑褗褔械薪芯 褔芯胁械褕泻芯 褋褗褖械褋褌胁芯. 袟邪 写邪 懈蟹斜褟谐邪 芯褌 屑懈蟹械褉懈褟褌邪 薪邪 褋褌褉邪写邪褖邪褌邪 芯褌 锌褉械薪邪褋械谢胁邪薪械 懈 懈蟹褔械褉锌邪薪懈 褉械褋褍褉褋懈 袟械屑褟 懈 芯褌 褋芯斜褋褌胁械薪懈褌械 褋懈 写械屑芯薪懈, 褌芯泄 锌芯械屑邪 泻褗屑 褋胁械褌邪 薪邪 褔褍写械褋邪褌邪. 袗 懈屑械薪薪芯 锌芯褉褌邪谢, 芯褋褌邪胁械薪 芯褌 薪械懈蟹胁械褋褌薪邪 褑懈胁懈谢懈蟹邪褑懈褟 褋 薪械懈蟹胁械褋褌薪懈 (胁褋褗褖薪芯褋褌 薪械 芯褋芯斜械薪芯 胁懈褋芯泻懈) 褕邪薪褋芯胁械 蟹邪 芯褑械谢褟胁邪薪械 胁 锌褉芯褍褔胁邪褌械谢薪懈 屑懈褋懈懈 褋 薪械锌芯蟹薪邪褌邪 褌械褏薪芯谢芯谐懈褟. 袝褋褌械褋褌胁械薪芯, 褔褍写械褋邪褌邪 薪械 褋邪 褌芯褔薪芯 芯褌 褋芯褉褌邪, 泻芯泄褌芯 袘芯斜 械 芯褔邪泻胁邪谢. 袗 褋褌褉邪褏芯胁械褌械 懈 薪械写芯褋褌邪褌褗褑懈褌械 屑褍 谐芯 褋谢械写胁邪褌 锌芯 锌械褌懈褌械 懈 胁 薪芯胁懈褌械, 薪械泻邪褉褌芯谐褉邪褎懈褉邪薪懈 锌褉械写械谢懈.
袠蟹锌芯谢蟹胁邪薪邪褌邪 芯褌 邪胁褌芯褉邪 褌械褏薪芯谢芯谐懈褟 械 屑邪谢泻芯 褋褌邪褉懈褔泻邪 薪邪 屑芯屑械薪褌懈, 薪芯 褌褟 褋褗胁褋械屑 薪械 械 泻谢褞褔芯胁邪. 袣谢褞褔芯胁懈 褋邪 胁械褔薪懈褌械 胁褗锌褉芯褋懈 泻褗写械 械 锌褉械写械谢褗褌 薪邪 褔芯胁械褔械褋褌胁芯褌芯 懈 薪邪 胁褋械泻懈 芯褌写械谢械薪 褔芯胁械泻. 袣褗写械 械 褌芯褔泻邪褌邪 薪邪 芯褌褌谢邪褋泻胁邪薪械 薪邪 锌褉芯谐褉械褋邪 芯褌 褋褌褉邪褏芯胁械褌械 懈 锌褉械写褉邪褋褗写褗褑懈褌械. 袠, 芯 写邪, 锌褉懈泻谢褞褔械薪懈褟 写芯 写褍锌泻邪. 些邪褋褌谢懈胁懈褟褌 泻褉邪泄 薪械 械 谐邪褉邪薪褌懈褉邪薪. 袧懈泻芯泄 薪械 褋锌邪褋褟胁邪 褋胁械褌邪. 效懈褌邪褌械谢褟褌 褔械褌械 薪邪 褋胁芯泄 褉懈褋泻.
***
鈥溞樞夹� 褏芯褉邪, 泻芯懈褌芯 薪懈泻芯谐邪 薪械 屑芯谐邪褌 写邪 锌褉械胁褗蟹屑芯谐薪邪褌 芯锌褉械写械谢械薪 屑芯屑械薪褌 芯褌 褋胁芯械褌芯 械屑芯褑懈芯薪邪谢薪芯 褉邪蟹胁懈褌懈械. 孝械 薪械 屑芯谐邪褌 写邪 胁芯写褟褌 薪芯褉屑邪谢械薪, 斜械蟹谐褉懈卸械薪, 锌褉懈褟褌械薪 卸懈胁芯褌 褋 锌芯谢芯胁懈褟 褋懈 锌邪褉褌薪褜芯褉 锌芯-写褗谢谐芯 胁褉械屑械. 袧械褖芯 胁褗褌褉械 胁 褌褟褏 薪械 屑芯卸械 写邪 锌芯薪邪褋褟 褖邪褋褌懈械褌芯.鈥�
鈥溞毿拘承把傂� 斜褟褏 写械褌械, 锌芯 锌邪薪邪懈褉懈褌械 锌褉芯写邪胁邪褏邪 械写薪邪 泻薪懈卸褔懈褑邪 芯褋褌褉芯褍屑薪芯 芯蟹邪谐谢邪胁械薪邪: 鈥炐捬佇秆囆盒�, 泻芯械褌芯 蟹薪邪械屑 蟹邪 褏懈褔懈褟薪褑懈褌械鈥�. 袘械褕械 褋褗褋 褋褌芯 写胁邪泄褋械褌 懈 芯褋械屑 褋褌褉邪薪懈褑懈 鈥� 胁褋懈褔泻懈褌械 锌褉邪蟹薪懈.鈥�
袘芯斜 袘褉芯写褏械写 薪械 械 薪懈泻邪泻褗胁 屑芯写械褉械薪 锌褉芯褌邪谐芯薪懈褋褌, 邪 薪芯褉屑邪谢薪芯, 锌褉懈谢懈褔薪芯 褌褗屑薪芯 懈 懈蟹屑褗褔械薪芯 褔芯胁械褕泻芯 褋褗褖械褋褌胁芯. 袟邪 写邪 懈蟹斜褟谐邪 芯褌 屑懈蟹械褉懈褟褌邪 薪邪 褋褌褉邪写邪褖邪褌邪 芯褌 锌褉械薪邪褋械谢胁邪薪械 懈 懈蟹褔械褉锌邪薪懈 褉械褋褍褉褋懈 袟械屑褟 懈 芯褌 褋芯斜褋褌胁械薪懈褌械 褋懈 写械屑芯薪懈, 褌芯泄 锌芯械屑邪 泻褗屑 褋胁械褌邪 薪邪 褔褍写械褋邪褌邪. 袗 懈屑械薪薪芯 锌芯褉褌邪谢, 芯褋褌邪胁械薪 芯褌 薪械懈蟹胁械褋褌薪邪 褑懈胁懈谢懈蟹邪褑懈褟 褋 薪械懈蟹胁械褋褌薪懈 (胁褋褗褖薪芯褋褌 薪械 芯褋芯斜械薪芯 胁懈褋芯泻懈) 褕邪薪褋芯胁械 蟹邪 芯褑械谢褟胁邪薪械 胁 锌褉芯褍褔胁邪褌械谢薪懈 屑懈褋懈懈 褋 薪械锌芯蟹薪邪褌邪 褌械褏薪芯谢芯谐懈褟. 袝褋褌械褋褌胁械薪芯, 褔褍写械褋邪褌邪 薪械 褋邪 褌芯褔薪芯 芯褌 褋芯褉褌邪, 泻芯泄褌芯 袘芯斜 械 芯褔邪泻胁邪谢. 袗 褋褌褉邪褏芯胁械褌械 懈 薪械写芯褋褌邪褌褗褑懈褌械 屑褍 谐芯 褋谢械写胁邪褌 锌芯 锌械褌懈褌械 懈 胁 薪芯胁懈褌械, 薪械泻邪褉褌芯谐褉邪褎懈褉邪薪懈 锌褉械写械谢懈.
袠蟹锌芯谢蟹胁邪薪邪褌邪 芯褌 邪胁褌芯褉邪 褌械褏薪芯谢芯谐懈褟 械 屑邪谢泻芯 褋褌邪褉懈褔泻邪 薪邪 屑芯屑械薪褌懈, 薪芯 褌褟 褋褗胁褋械屑 薪械 械 泻谢褞褔芯胁邪. 袣谢褞褔芯胁懈 褋邪 胁械褔薪懈褌械 胁褗锌褉芯褋懈 泻褗写械 械 锌褉械写械谢褗褌 薪邪 褔芯胁械褔械褋褌胁芯褌芯 懈 薪邪 胁褋械泻懈 芯褌写械谢械薪 褔芯胁械泻. 袣褗写械 械 褌芯褔泻邪褌邪 薪邪 芯褌褌谢邪褋泻胁邪薪械 薪邪 锌褉芯谐褉械褋邪 芯褌 褋褌褉邪褏芯胁械褌械 懈 锌褉械写褉邪褋褗写褗褑懈褌械. 袠, 芯 写邪, 锌褉懈泻谢褞褔械薪懈褟 写芯 写褍锌泻邪. 些邪褋褌谢懈胁懈褟褌 泻褉邪泄 薪械 械 谐邪褉邪薪褌懈褉邪薪. 袧懈泻芯泄 薪械 褋锌邪褋褟胁邪 褋胁械褌邪. 效懈褌邪褌械谢褟褌 褔械褌械 薪邪 褋胁芯泄 褉懈褋泻.
***
鈥溞樞夹� 褏芯褉邪, 泻芯懈褌芯 薪懈泻芯谐邪 薪械 屑芯谐邪褌 写邪 锌褉械胁褗蟹屑芯谐薪邪褌 芯锌褉械写械谢械薪 屑芯屑械薪褌 芯褌 褋胁芯械褌芯 械屑芯褑懈芯薪邪谢薪芯 褉邪蟹胁懈褌懈械. 孝械 薪械 屑芯谐邪褌 写邪 胁芯写褟褌 薪芯褉屑邪谢械薪, 斜械蟹谐褉懈卸械薪, 锌褉懈褟褌械薪 卸懈胁芯褌 褋 锌芯谢芯胁懈褟 褋懈 锌邪褉褌薪褜芯褉 锌芯-写褗谢谐芯 胁褉械屑械. 袧械褖芯 胁褗褌褉械 胁 褌褟褏 薪械 屑芯卸械 写邪 锌芯薪邪褋褟 褖邪褋褌懈械褌芯.鈥�
鈥溞毿拘承把傂� 斜褟褏 写械褌械, 锌芯 锌邪薪邪懈褉懈褌械 锌褉芯写邪胁邪褏邪 械写薪邪 泻薪懈卸褔懈褑邪 芯褋褌褉芯褍屑薪芯 芯蟹邪谐谢邪胁械薪邪: 鈥炐捬佇秆囆盒�, 泻芯械褌芯 蟹薪邪械屑 蟹邪 褏懈褔懈褟薪褑懈褌械鈥�. 袘械褕械 褋褗褋 褋褌芯 写胁邪泄褋械褌 懈 芯褋械屑 褋褌褉邪薪懈褑懈 鈥� 胁褋懈褔泻懈褌械 锌褉邪蟹薪懈.鈥�
April 23, 2020
4/5
Puedes leer mi rese帽a completa en Fabulantes:
笔贸谤迟颈肠辞 abre La Saga de los Heeche compuesta en su totalidad por 4 libros y que se completa con un quinto, un libro de relatos. La idea de esta novela me parece magn铆fica y logra transmitir una sensaci贸n de desolaci贸n y confusi贸n como pocas lo hacen. Los Heechee son unos seres extraterrestres que dejaron una serie de naves en una estaci贸n con destinos previamente establecidos. Ante esta situaci贸n de desconcierto que abre la puerta a exploraciones sin l铆mites, surge la figura de los 芦prospectores禄, seres -en esta ocasi贸n humanos- que se montan en las naves, lanz谩ndose a un futuro pr谩cticamente incierto, a un m谩s que probable suicidio. Pero esto, dir谩 el lector interesado, carece de sentido. Pero el que escribe esta rese帽a le dir谩 que no, porque ah铆 aparece, una vez m谩s, el factor econ贸mico que tanto lo mueve todo. Al no tratarse de una muerte segura cabe la posibilidad de sobrevivir y encontrar restos que estos seres tan peculiares dejaron dondequiera que las naves acaben llegando y recibir, de este modo, una cuantiosa recompensa que les permita vivir sin complicaciones en la Tierra.
Entre todos los prospectores Frederik Pohl elige a Robinette Broadhead como el protagonista de la novela. La historia alterna dos tipos de cap铆tulos, los que narran los hechos acaecidos en 笔贸谤迟颈肠辞, la estaci贸n espacial que los Heechee dejaron para confundir y condenar -es una percepci贸n personal- a los humanos, con las sesiones del protagonista con su psicoanalista, que es una m谩quina, bautizado como Sigfrid por 茅l mismo.
Me ha gustado mucho la novela, a pesar de sus defectos y de algunos temas que trata que para alguien como yo, un aburrido y poco actual con algunas ideas, le chirr铆an. Pero aunque no comparta algunas cosas, tampoco me escandalizo tan pronto, as铆 que el resultado me ha satisfecho. A ver qu茅 me depara Tras el incierto horizonte.
Puedes leer mi rese帽a completa en Fabulantes:
笔贸谤迟颈肠辞 abre La Saga de los Heeche compuesta en su totalidad por 4 libros y que se completa con un quinto, un libro de relatos. La idea de esta novela me parece magn铆fica y logra transmitir una sensaci贸n de desolaci贸n y confusi贸n como pocas lo hacen. Los Heechee son unos seres extraterrestres que dejaron una serie de naves en una estaci贸n con destinos previamente establecidos. Ante esta situaci贸n de desconcierto que abre la puerta a exploraciones sin l铆mites, surge la figura de los 芦prospectores禄, seres -en esta ocasi贸n humanos- que se montan en las naves, lanz谩ndose a un futuro pr谩cticamente incierto, a un m谩s que probable suicidio. Pero esto, dir谩 el lector interesado, carece de sentido. Pero el que escribe esta rese帽a le dir谩 que no, porque ah铆 aparece, una vez m谩s, el factor econ贸mico que tanto lo mueve todo. Al no tratarse de una muerte segura cabe la posibilidad de sobrevivir y encontrar restos que estos seres tan peculiares dejaron dondequiera que las naves acaben llegando y recibir, de este modo, una cuantiosa recompensa que les permita vivir sin complicaciones en la Tierra.
Entre todos los prospectores Frederik Pohl elige a Robinette Broadhead como el protagonista de la novela. La historia alterna dos tipos de cap铆tulos, los que narran los hechos acaecidos en 笔贸谤迟颈肠辞, la estaci贸n espacial que los Heechee dejaron para confundir y condenar -es una percepci贸n personal- a los humanos, con las sesiones del protagonista con su psicoanalista, que es una m谩quina, bautizado como Sigfrid por 茅l mismo.
Me ha gustado mucho la novela, a pesar de sus defectos y de algunos temas que trata que para alguien como yo, un aburrido y poco actual con algunas ideas, le chirr铆an. Pero aunque no comparta algunas cosas, tampoco me escandalizo tan pronto, as铆 que el resultado me ha satisfecho. A ver qu茅 me depara Tras el incierto horizonte.
August 20, 2024
Check out my full, spoiler free, video review This novel won 4 different awards for best novel in 1978, and I can see why. Part space opera and part psychological science fiction. Our immoral, mostly unlikeable main character Rob wins the lottery which allows him to leave a bleak, dystopian earth and travel to Gateway where he becomes a prospector. Gateway is an ancient alien hollowed out asteroid with ~1000 faster than light spaceships that travel to unknown parts of the galaxy. Prospectors gamble with their lives to find artifacts or phenomena that will make them rich, and there is a lot of debauchery going down on the station. There are alternating chapters with Rob having psychological sessions with an AI phycologist he calls Sigfrid von Shrink. I loved the ideas and set up in this one as well as the way the novel鈥檚 narrative built the suspense and kept me engaged the whole way though. This is a classic that I鈥檓 glad I finally got around to reading.
April 28, 2015
Civilizaciones extraterrestres desaparecidas, expediciones suicidas, inteligencias artificiales dise帽adas para el psicoan谩lisis, sexo intergal谩ctico... Aunque todos los elementos de la historia que encontramos en 笔贸谤迟颈肠辞 resultan bastante atractivos de por s铆, lo que convierte el cl谩sico de Pohl en una novela tan sobresaliente es sin duda su trepidante ritmo narrativo, la inteligencia con que est谩n hiladas las diferentes tramas y el certero perfil psicol贸gico que hace Frederik Pohl de su personaje principal, quien poco a poco ir谩 perdiendo el benepl谩cito del lector e ir谩 revelando en su lugar una personalidad grotesca, repleta de inseguridades. Por si fuera poco, esa excelente ambientaci贸n capaz de saciar nuestro m谩s sediento sentido de la maravilla, un excepcional reparto de secundarios y una apote贸sica conclusi贸n en forma de mazazo emocional completan una novela redonda que con toda probabilidad tardar谩 much铆simo tiempo en salir de tu memoria.
April 5, 2021
Gateway was Pohl's most successful, popular, and best known novel, quite deservedly. He captured the nostalgic Golden Age sense-of-wonder feeling of the vastness and mystery of outer space, the grandiose and awesome passage of time with the artifacts of the ancient Heechee civilization, and blended it quite successfully with the more modern, New Wave characterization and exploration of the mind. One of the main characters is an A.I. therapist, Sigfrid von Shrink, and protagonist Robinette Broadhead is surely Pohl's best developed and most complex character. It's one of the best hard-sf novels ever printed.
March 29, 2017
On this dull, foggy, and cold day, I reluctantly finished this sixth re-read of "Gateway." It's still as fresh as when I first read it in a tent in the Orkney Islands 30 years ago, waiting for the rain to stop for just a moment, for the clouds to raise their petticoats before the hint of a horizon. Eyes-closed wonder.
February 28, 2023
So you can either live out your days in a miserable overpopulated polluted world where nobody cares about you and nothing has any point or joy in it... or you can sell out everything you possess (possibly including every organ of a family member) for a chance at an elaborate suicide inside an alien spaceship that no one actually knows how to drive?
That's a lot better than us - at least they have a way out!
Life sucks and everything's going to shit.
Mindless nihilism aside, this is an odd duck. One part space prospecting, one part therapy, neither of them with much traditional narrative beats, neither of them seeming to have so much to do with one another, both filled with seemingly irrelevant downtime and at-time meandering bits that seemed to have little point - but they join together at the very end and at that point it all, for the most part, makes sense. Imagine being a coward your whole life, and the one time you stop being a coward you accidentally a huge disaster. Or maybe you were a coward the whole time after all. See, just because it makes sense doesn't mean everything's clear.
And if the story is esoteric, then the characters pull through. I got to like all of them and wanted to see where they ended up and whether any of them blow up in space. Even the robot was likeable. It was not just a jumble of stuff taken out of the internet and mixed together in a horrifying amalgamation of logic and patterns, like ours. Another way this world is better.
Didn't care as much for the romance, though. Too much telling, not enough showing, little chemistry. They bickered a lot and didn't seem to have much in common.
I may pick up another in the series. See if the aliens do show up or something.
That's a lot better than us - at least they have a way out!
Life sucks and everything's going to shit.
Mindless nihilism aside, this is an odd duck. One part space prospecting, one part therapy, neither of them with much traditional narrative beats, neither of them seeming to have so much to do with one another, both filled with seemingly irrelevant downtime and at-time meandering bits that seemed to have little point - but they join together at the very end and at that point it all, for the most part, makes sense. Imagine being a coward your whole life, and the one time you stop being a coward you accidentally a huge disaster. Or maybe you were a coward the whole time after all. See, just because it makes sense doesn't mean everything's clear.
And if the story is esoteric, then the characters pull through. I got to like all of them and wanted to see where they ended up and whether any of them blow up in space. Even the robot was likeable. It was not just a jumble of stuff taken out of the internet and mixed together in a horrifying amalgamation of logic and patterns, like ours. Another way this world is better.
Didn't care as much for the romance, though. Too much telling, not enough showing, little chemistry. They bickered a lot and didn't seem to have much in common.
I may pick up another in the series. See if the aliens do show up or something.
May 14, 2010
4.0 stars. I just re-read this story on May 13, 2010 after having first read it back in 1998. The downgrade from 4.5 stars to 4.0 stars has less to do with the quality of this book (which I still think is excellent) and more to do with the quality of other books I have read since my first reading of Gateway which have caused me to rasie the bar somewhat.
This is still a "classic SF story" that is worthy of the title and one that I recommend to any fan of science fiction. It is not as dated as many of its contemporary novels and I thought the themes explored through the main character were deftly handled and well written. Also, the central idea of the novel (i.e., the Gateway and the Heechee technology which humans use but do not understand) was highly original when first written and has been copied (a clear sign of its brilliance) by many authors since.
Recommended!!
Winner: Hugo Award for Best Science Fiction Novel
Winner: Nebula Award for Best Science Fiction Novel
Winner: John W. Campbell Award for Best Science Fiction Novel
Winner: Locus Award for Best Science Fiction Novel
Listed on Locus List of "All Time Best" Science Fiction Novel
This is still a "classic SF story" that is worthy of the title and one that I recommend to any fan of science fiction. It is not as dated as many of its contemporary novels and I thought the themes explored through the main character were deftly handled and well written. Also, the central idea of the novel (i.e., the Gateway and the Heechee technology which humans use but do not understand) was highly original when first written and has been copied (a clear sign of its brilliance) by many authors since.
Recommended!!
Winner: Hugo Award for Best Science Fiction Novel
Winner: Nebula Award for Best Science Fiction Novel
Winner: John W. Campbell Award for Best Science Fiction Novel
Winner: Locus Award for Best Science Fiction Novel
Listed on Locus List of "All Time Best" Science Fiction Novel
April 9, 2022
Jako teska knjiga za oceniti.
Ne znam da li bih se pre uhvatio za njen naucno fantasticni deo ili za onaj ljudski, socijalno psiholoski.
Naucno fantasticni deo je po malo sirov i grubo obradjen, dok me druga polovina onoga sto ja smatram najvaznijim u ovoj knjizi neodoljivo podseca na Orsona Skota Karda (Govornik za Mrtve, Ksenocid i Deca Uma). Odnosno sto bi rekao moj prijatelj Dusan:"O nekim stvarima se ne prica, a Orson Skot Kard to uporno cini". Pa dobro ne bih rekao da se ne prica, mozda pre ne ocukujemo tako nesto u knjizi naucne fantastike, ali je upravo to jedan od razloga zasto je ovaj zanr toliko superioran barem kada se radi o polaznoj tacki za pisanje romana. U knjigu naucne fantastike mozete strpati SVE, BAS SVE sto pozelite. Zato ako volite SF i Sigmunda Frojda onda je ovo PRAVA KNJIGA ZA VAS!
Zbog nekog cudnog osecaja koji je ovaj roman usadio u mene dajem mu 5 zvezdica.
Ne znam da li bih se pre uhvatio za njen naucno fantasticni deo ili za onaj ljudski, socijalno psiholoski.
Naucno fantasticni deo je po malo sirov i grubo obradjen, dok me druga polovina onoga sto ja smatram najvaznijim u ovoj knjizi neodoljivo podseca na Orsona Skota Karda (Govornik za Mrtve, Ksenocid i Deca Uma). Odnosno sto bi rekao moj prijatelj Dusan:"O nekim stvarima se ne prica, a Orson Skot Kard to uporno cini". Pa dobro ne bih rekao da se ne prica, mozda pre ne ocukujemo tako nesto u knjizi naucne fantastike, ali je upravo to jedan od razloga zasto je ovaj zanr toliko superioran barem kada se radi o polaznoj tacki za pisanje romana. U knjigu naucne fantastike mozete strpati SVE, BAS SVE sto pozelite. Zato ako volite SF i Sigmunda Frojda onda je ovo PRAVA KNJIGA ZA VAS!
Zbog nekog cudnog osecaja koji je ovaj roman usadio u mene dajem mu 5 zvezdica.
February 24, 2023
I wanted to like this book but ended up annoyed and slightly disgusted. I was hopeful at first because the sci-fi elements were interesting and seems to have potential (the Heechee ships, Gateway, the food mines etc). I'd also recently finished his enjoyable capitalist-dystopian novels and sequel .
Sadly there is nothing to like about Pohl's protagonist in this novel, in fact Bob is a despicable human being on all accounts (and not in an intentionally anti-hero sorta way either). Bob is a selfish, sometimes violent, womanizing, homophobic prick. What's worse is there's no indication that Pohl is aware of this fact about his hero as no real attempt is made to redeem the lead character. In Pohl's Venus Inc. series the protagonist starts off as deplorable and goes through a redemption arch of disillusionment and discovery. In Gateway this doesn't happen, which is especially odd and vexing considering that a full half of the book is devoted to Bob's lengthy sessions with a computerized psychiatrist.
(Spoilers ahead)
About 2/3rds through the already self-obsessed, sexist and abominable protagonist viciously beats up his lover in a hypocritical fit of jealously and tops it off with a deeply homophobic self-hating crises. The horrific domestic violence incident passes with little comment and pathetically the writer tries to absolve the character of wrongdoing via some ridiculous and offensive Freudian psychobabble nonsense about the animalistic nature of wolves. Earth to Pohl - a simple "I'm really really sorry and want to marry you" does not adequately deal with serious domestic violence!
At this point I wanted to throw the book out the window but I held out hope for some form of redemption. It didn't happen and instead got even more offensive. Thankfully, in the real world, many of Freud's theories have been largely debunked as nonsensical and homophobic so its almost laughable when Pohl attempts to blame the protagonist's homosexual desire (and resulting homophobic reaction) on his mother's nurturing techniques and a rectal thermometer - I say "almost laughable" because its also a deeply oppressive and damaging world view that is sadly still prevalent today. Annoyingly these types of story points are typical when it comes to many straight white male class-privileged sci-fi writers. Sigh.
I'd recommend skipping this book and reading the series instead.
Sadly there is nothing to like about Pohl's protagonist in this novel, in fact Bob is a despicable human being on all accounts (and not in an intentionally anti-hero sorta way either). Bob is a selfish, sometimes violent, womanizing, homophobic prick. What's worse is there's no indication that Pohl is aware of this fact about his hero as no real attempt is made to redeem the lead character. In Pohl's Venus Inc. series the protagonist starts off as deplorable and goes through a redemption arch of disillusionment and discovery. In Gateway this doesn't happen, which is especially odd and vexing considering that a full half of the book is devoted to Bob's lengthy sessions with a computerized psychiatrist.
(Spoilers ahead)
About 2/3rds through the already self-obsessed, sexist and abominable protagonist viciously beats up his lover in a hypocritical fit of jealously and tops it off with a deeply homophobic self-hating crises. The horrific domestic violence incident passes with little comment and pathetically the writer tries to absolve the character of wrongdoing via some ridiculous and offensive Freudian psychobabble nonsense about the animalistic nature of wolves. Earth to Pohl - a simple "I'm really really sorry and want to marry you" does not adequately deal with serious domestic violence!
At this point I wanted to throw the book out the window but I held out hope for some form of redemption. It didn't happen and instead got even more offensive. Thankfully, in the real world, many of Freud's theories have been largely debunked as nonsensical and homophobic so its almost laughable when Pohl attempts to blame the protagonist's homosexual desire (and resulting homophobic reaction) on his mother's nurturing techniques and a rectal thermometer - I say "almost laughable" because its also a deeply oppressive and damaging world view that is sadly still prevalent today. Annoyingly these types of story points are typical when it comes to many straight white male class-privileged sci-fi writers. Sigh.
I'd recommend skipping this book and reading the series instead.
March 17, 2018
Hay muy buena ciencia ficci贸n en esta novela de 1977, ganadora de los premios Hugo, Locus, Nebula y John W. Campbell. Definitivamente se ha convertido en una de mis favoritas.
En un futuro en donde la Tierra se encuentra superpoblada y sus recursos son limitados, existe la posibilidad de convertirse en un prospector de 笔贸谤迟颈肠辞: un asteroide usado como puerto espacial por una civilizaci贸n desaparecida hace miles de a帽os. 笔贸谤迟颈肠辞 cuenta con miles de naves espaciales alien铆genas cuyo funcionamiento es un misterio para los cient铆ficos debido en gran parte a que el destino de las naves est谩 pre-programado y es desconocido. Como prospector, puedes arriesgarte a viajar en una de estas naves con la esperanza de descubrir artefactos alien铆genas o conocimientos cient铆ficos valorados en millones de d贸lares.
La historia es contada en primera persona a manera de recuerdos de un prospector durante su 茅poca en 笔贸谤迟颈肠辞.
En un futuro en donde la Tierra se encuentra superpoblada y sus recursos son limitados, existe la posibilidad de convertirse en un prospector de 笔贸谤迟颈肠辞: un asteroide usado como puerto espacial por una civilizaci贸n desaparecida hace miles de a帽os. 笔贸谤迟颈肠辞 cuenta con miles de naves espaciales alien铆genas cuyo funcionamiento es un misterio para los cient铆ficos debido en gran parte a que el destino de las naves est谩 pre-programado y es desconocido. Como prospector, puedes arriesgarte a viajar en una de estas naves con la esperanza de descubrir artefactos alien铆genas o conocimientos cient铆ficos valorados en millones de d贸lares.
La historia es contada en primera persona a manera de recuerdos de un prospector durante su 茅poca en 笔贸谤迟颈肠辞.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 2,149 reviews
Can't find what you're looking for?
Get help and learn more about the design.