Songs Of Distant Earth

by Arthur C. Clarke 1986 Editorial Reviews Book Description Thalassa was a paradise above the earth. Its beauty and vast resources seduce its inhabitants into a feeling of perfection. But then the Magellan arrives, carrying with it one million refugees from the last mad days of earth. Paradise looks indeed lost.... Synopsis The arrival of a spaceship from Earth--destroyed when its sun went nova--carrying five million Earthlings in suspended animation, as well as an uncensored cultural record of Earth, threatens to destroy the paradisiacal planet of Thalassa. Spotlight Reviews Don't Miss It, July 7, 2002 Reviewer: In "The Songs of Distant Earth", Arthur C. Clarke seems to have a good grasp of the elements of writing, and he's eliminated some of the flaws that appeared in his earlier works. Like most of his novels, this one presents a lot of ideas in a small space and leaves some major questions unresolved at the conclusion. It's a book that will leave you thinking for days afterward. The story, which is told partially in explanatory flashbacks, begins when scientists discover that the sun will explode within a few thousand years, leading to the destruction of Earth. In order to save humanity, several small colonies are established on nearby planets. Later, after the discovery of a new technology, large spaceships are able to carry millions of colonists out to the stars. Most of the plot concerns what happens when one of these ships arrives on a planet that was already colonized earlier. The original concept that drives this book is that the first round of colonies was very carefully engineered by people from Earth. They were designed to be paradises where people would be raised in an environment quite different from Earth. Thus, there is a definite culture clash when the big spaceship arrives. I found that Clarke handled the characterization of the two different groups of people quite well. It was really possible to understand how their backgrounds were totally different and how this gave rise to two different worldviews. Also, Clarke cut down on unnecessarily thorough descriptions, so "The Songs of Distant Earth" is more compact and readable than some of his earlier efforts. Finally, as others have mentioned, his language and dialogue is very lyrical and poetic, which helps the reader understand the mood of the characters in this distant paradise. Arthur C. Clarke's vision of Star Trek, August 12, 2000 Reviewer: In his author's foreword, Arthur C. Clarke writes that this is his vision of the "space opera" or Star Trek, and here he uses real science to give us a more realistic view of inter steller travel. No Warp Six could get you to another solar system in just a week's time. The actual travel would last several centuries. Hence this book deals with the last races of man who travel to another solar system to begin a new life, after Earth's sun goes Nova. They land for refueling and rest on a planet called Thalassa where human beings have already lived for 300 years, and this clash of cultures could alter the planet's culture in very harmful and unseen ways. Great book. Should also be made into a movie. All Customer Reviews Avg. Customer Review: I LOVE this book!!, May 3, 2003 Reviewer: I remember buying this book - not really expecting much from it. I also wasn't that familair with Arthur C. Clarke (but that has changed). This is one of the best (if not the best) books that I've ever read. Hmmm.. it could very well be my "favorite". I'm not usually drawn to male writers. Although male myself, female writers are usually... well, in my opinion - b