Even though this wasn’t a GREAT book, and Elma wasn’t entirely likeable and Nathaniel too perfect, I don’t read a lot of scifi on my own, so I enjoyed it. Then again, I liked The Glass Room, too. The selections here are consistently the best of any book group I’ve ever joined, so kudos to our group selection process and @Mary13’s leadership!
I liked the short story even better. I was widowed a few years ago, and having been with my husband through several years of illness and at his death, I found the story particularly poignant. Few of us are deciding on space missions, but there are similar thoughts and decisions common to everyone in that situation.
It’s the coming environmental crisis that drives the push to get into space in the book, but when the crisis isn’t nearly as imminent as the public initially thinks, funding for space exploration and settlement could be in danger. How is this mirrored in our world today?
This was the theme that grabbed me the most, as it’s obviously so similar to the current climate change situation, though for different reasons. Every day while reading–and since–there have been stories in the news about skeptics of scientific predictions. I enjoyed thinking about this from the perspective of the scientists/astronauts, who are motivated not just by the science and desire to save civilization, but also by how the cataclysmic event accelerated their career ambitions and made them more important. I would have enjoyed more scenes about the political climate. If even a meteorite wiping out the Capitol doesn’t wake people up, we’re in trouble.
As for the rocket sex scenes, after groaning at the first one, I found them amusing. TMI, yes, but I could imagine this couple interacting that way.
The astronauts and former astronauts themselves don’t even seem to agree. Most are deeply concerned about climate change (Luca Parmitano, Mae Jemison, Mark Kelly), but there are a few climate deniers in the fold as well (Harrison Schmitt, among others).
Per the NASA website: “Today, we know that our climate is changing at an unprecedented rate and that humans are a key part of that change.” The site goes on say that NASA’s job is “to do rigorous science” but “not promote particular climate policies…” Don’t know what that’s all about. Maybe they are trying to avoid having to embrace policies of the current administration.
I read an article online that highlights the irony of undertaking a project to colonize Mars, because the scientific advancements required for such an achievement are the same advancements that we would need to combat climate change:
Well, I’m with those who didn’t love the book but moved on with the short story and sequel. At least, I plan to do so. So recommendation: save the short story for last? I gather it seems to deal with age and end-of-life.
@ignatius I think you can do it either way. I read the short story first because it was written first and because it had won the Hugo for best novelette. It doesn’t really contain any spoilers that I can remember. But at this point I think if I were you, I’d save the story for last.
@ignatius, I assign you the first book in Mary Robinette Kowal’s “Glamourist Histories” series: Shades of Milk and Honey. It’s a mash-up of regency romance, magical realism and fantasy. https://us.macmillan.com/books/9780765325600
@ignatius After “The Calculating Stars” I read the sequel and then the short story, i.e. in order. I didn’t even know the short story was written first.
I’m not quite ready to give up on The Calculating Stars — if only to touch upon what it could have been rather than what it turned out to be.
Many people turn to their faith in times of crisis for comfort or strength, or to reflect upon their lives, or even to rail against God. In the opening chapters (which we all seemed to like), I was moved by Elma and Nathaniel’s response to the remnants of the dead man they see on the road:
After that moment, however, Elma’s faith doesn’t seem to be a spiritual go-to for her. Rather, it is more about restraint and self-control.
Two thoughts:
As far as the character goes, this fits: For Elma, religious rituals are occasionally necessary in the same way as reciting the Fibonacci sequence.
2). As far as the quality of the writing goes, the above is an example of my frustration with the book, where rather than really explore a complex idea, the author just repeats herself. All three quotes are very similar — the first and third almost identical. I would rather she had used the word count to explore more fully what she meant by “remember who I was” and to explain what she learned about “why that was important.”
@Mary13, I suspect when the author is cursory about topics she opens like religion and discipline, perhaps it is reflecting or channeling the author’s ambivalence. I’m a bit surprised the editor didn’t try to get her to use different words but maybe the author insisted on retaining what she wrote.
I think I knew what she was getting at, but I agree, that these examples were repetitive and not very interesting. I think part of the problem is that Kowal herself is not Jewish. It felt perfunctory to me, like another dotted i. One more thing for Elme to be. It felt distracting and there were times I wondered why Kowal had made Elme Jewish. That said, there’s a scene in the second book where her Jewishness is important which I loved. It’s sort of a reflection/amplification of that first scene on the road, and shows a vulnerability and humanity to two characters who don’t always behave well. (Hope that didn’t need a spoiler alert!)
I’ve had interesting discussions with my Jewish friends and how they navigate being relatively secular in outlook, but still feeling it’s important to keep certain Jewish rituals alive. (Yom Kippur, Seders, Bar/Bat Mitzvahs, Hannukah and some do Shabbat others don’t.) It’s clear to me that the Holocaust has made people who might have drifted away from religion, keep it in their lives.
Years ago I read a YA book about a Canadian family (One more River by Lynn Reid Banks) which emigrates to Israel to live on a kibbutz. They kept kosher in Canada, but go to a kibbutz that does not keep kosher. The Dad explains to the kids (IRC) that when they were in the minority it was important to keep traditions to remind themselves of who they were, but once they were surrounded by Jews it was no longer necessary.
I had trouble figuring out what Elma’s faith meant to her. It seemed like the references were thrown in just to show that the character was Jewish. But given the stated basis for the observances, there were other ideas that could have been explored - like ongoing connections with whatever Jewish community existed. Unless I missed that?
I guess I don’t understand observing Shabbat because “it’s good discipline”. I’m always hearing Rabbi’s encourage any degree of observance to feel part of the greater Jewish community and to mark the day of rest. But not to make it a habit just because.
@Mary13 's quote from the author almost sounds self congratulatory -i.e., look how much I know about Jewish practices to not make mistakes. Yay me. It’s good to know that there’s more development in the second book, which I still am waiting for on hold.
I got the 2nd book in e-format from the library and am slowly making my way through it.
If never feels like Elma and Nathaniel ever make any connections with any Jewish community at any time. When I was dating a Jewish man, he tried to make connections with the Jewish community, especially around the Passover season and we celebrated several seders with others in the university community.
Well, I’m finally done with the book! It’s been one of those months and I haven’t had a chance to sit down and read till this week.
What can I say that all of you haven’t said already? I think not much. I’m with the majority that didn’t love the book - it had too much going on and not enough depth. I like that Kowal tried to address the gender inequality and the racial prejudices, while trying to write a book that engaged her readers enjoyably. But it was like she had a political correctness manual that said: check these boxes and you’re good. It was also less ‘sci’ and more ‘fi’ than the sci-fi books that I like to read.
I very much liked the first part of the book perhaps because Elma seemed more real in it. In the second part, despite all the effort to humanize her by showing her as vulnerable, she seemed less real to me.
And I was also flabbergasted that she didn’t go looking for her grandmother in Charleston after the meteor struck - it seemed like it was more convenient to leave it alone.
I think the biggest criticism that I have about the author is that she’s not prepared to go through the doors that she opens to fully explore what can be found there. Actually, I will give her this - she did a fairly good (based on my limited knowledge) job with making her protagonist Jewish when she herself isn’t.
I haven’t read the other book or the short story yet - don’t know when I would actually have time this month. But her writing style is easy enough that I would like to read them someday soon.
The book was like a disappointing multi course meal that started spectacularly with appetizers that whetted the appetite and led to a meh entree that didn’t deliver on its promise. Dessert was good: imagining Elma seeing the stars from space was satisfying.
True, I have to give her that…She did her best to make her protagonist enlightened (or at least heading that way), and she succeeded in making the book a fairly fun read, which is why so many of us went on to read another one (or two) of her works.
I was going to say that big pockets of Jews probably got killed by the meteor, but Kansas City and Omaha both have large vibrant Jewish populations. I just assumed the two of them were too busy to look very far beyond work for a community. She had thought that there was no way her aunt could have gotten away in time, so I think that somewhat excuses her for not going looking, but not for not telling her brother!
Hello, notice my strange looking screen name? Anyone else having trouble logging on? Mary13 has been having problems too.
So I created a similar but mixed up screen name to just post that we are having problems logging in.
Apparently there are tons of issues on CC with logging in? I’m part of a FB group that is an offshoot of one of the threads here on CC – LOTS of talk about LOTS of issues! I only ever get on CC with my laptop, and I stay logged in, so I haven’t had any problems yet. Let’s hope they get everything straightened out soon!
I had problems logging in for a day. After they fixed it yesterday, I still couldn’t log in till I reset my password to one that was between 8-16 characters and included at least one each of a symbol, and a number, in addition to the letters. That worked but now the site automatically logs me out so that I have to enter my password every time I want to do something other than read posts.
Hope the login problems are sorted out soon - the frustration of not being able to log in will lose CC a lot of people.
The selections here are consistently the best of any book group I’ve ever joined, so kudos to our group selection process and @Mary13’s leadership!