Science Fiction

The Long Way to a Small, Angry Planet

The Long Way to a Small, Angry Planet

  • Downloads：2067
  • Type：Epub+TxT+PDF+Mobi
  • Create Date：2021-08-06 08:53:29
  • Update Date：2025-09-06
  • Status：finish
  • Author：Becky Chambers
  • ISBN：1473619815
  • Environment：PC/Android/iPhone/iPad/Kindle
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Summary

When Rosemary Harper joins the crew of the Wayfarer， she isn't expecting much。 The Wayfarer， a patched-up ship that's seen better days， offers her everything she could possibly want: a small， quiet spot to call home for a while， adventure in far-off corners of the galaxy， and distance from her troubled past。

But Rosemary gets more than she bargained for with the Wayfarer。 The crew is a mishmash of species and personalities， from Sissix， the friendly reptilian pilot， to Kizzy and Jenks， the constantly sparring engineers who keep the ship running。 Life on board is chaotic， but more or less peaceful - exactly what Rosemary wants。

Until the crew are offered the job of a lifetime: the chance to build a hyperspace tunnel to a distant planet。 They'll earn enough money to live comfortably for years 。。。 if they survive the long trip through war-torn space without endangering any of the fragile alliances that keep the galaxy peaceful。

But Rosemary isn't the only person on board with secrets to hide， and the crew will soon discover that space may be vast， but spaceships are very small indeed。

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Reviews

Susanna ，

Solid， character-driven scifi。 Sometimes it felt more like a series of short stories than one book， but it was still a cohesive narrative。

Nicole ，

I enjoyed this book a lot， but I'm finding it hard to describe。 The best comparison I can make for it is that this book is like a TV series: it has a lot of vignettes， but other than the characters and the overall book plot， there is very little tying one chapter to another。 I enjoyed it， but it wasn't what I expected。The characters are a lot of fun。 I look forward to seeing how they develop in future books （the ones who we see again， that is。。。 I'm aware that the next book doesn't directly foll I enjoyed this book a lot， but I'm finding it hard to describe。 The best comparison I can make for it is that this book is like a TV series: it has a lot of vignettes， but other than the characters and the overall book plot， there is very little tying one chapter to another。 I enjoyed it， but it wasn't what I expected。The characters are a lot of fun。 I look forward to seeing how they develop in future books （the ones who we see again， that is。。。 I'm aware that the next book doesn't directly follow the crew of the Wayfarer）。 I also like the view of a galactic community presented here。This is a gentle science fiction book。 While I would recommend it to most readers， I would also caution you to not pick it up if you're looking for something more active。 Again， think long-running sci-fi TV series rather than summer action blockbuster movie。 It took me a while to get into the book because I had different expectations than what the book was ready to give me。 。。。more

Janine ，

I struggled a bit deciding on what my next audiobook would be。 I was a little worn down by crazy life stuff and a hectic schedule， and about to have a slightly longer commute so I knew I'd need something that kept my interest and had a good narrator。 And probably was more on the "life isn't terrible！" side of things。 This was exactly what I needed。 Almost as soon as I met the crew of the Wayfarer， I knew I had made the right choice。 Sci-fi seemed like it might be a good route to go for the escap I struggled a bit deciding on what my next audiobook would be。 I was a little worn down by crazy life stuff and a hectic schedule， and about to have a slightly longer commute so I knew I'd need something that kept my interest and had a good narrator。 And probably was more on the "life isn't terrible！" side of things。 This was exactly what I needed。 Almost as soon as I met the crew of the Wayfarer， I knew I had made the right choice。 Sci-fi seemed like it might be a good route to go for the escape I felt I needed， and this sci-fi story in particular was like a balm。 I can't think of any other way to describe it。 Over the course of a little over 14 hours， I fell in love with the rag-tag crew of the Wayfarer。 They all had their quirks， but they were als0 all （for the most part） so damn lovable。 I'm also in awe of the way Chambers brought this world to life。 So many species， each with their own history and customs， and a wholly new government system to get oriented to， and yet it never really felt overwhelming。 There were so many little lessons and mirrors to present day struggles， but all without ever feeling preachy or overbearing。 I just wanted to know more。 About the characters， and the world， and all of it。 The characters and their world all just felt so real to me， that I was incredibly invested in what happened to them， and each new adventure they found themselves on。 And I also was reluctant for the story to come to an end。 Imagine my surprise and delight， then， when I realized just how late to get on this train I was and there are 3 more books in the series！ I think what speaks for this book most is the fact that I， not necessarily an "I'm going to just drown myself in this series until I'm caught up" girl， immediately downloaded the next book to start ASAP。 I wasn't ready to leave the Wayfarer world， and so I think， for now， I just won't！ 。。。more

Daniel Adams ，

I was expecting more from this book。 There's a quote on the cover from the Guardian that it is a "profound。。。 tour de force"。 I didn't find it to be either， frankly。 Its telling that the book is self-published， praised for its gender politics， and was originally submitted to the Kitschies awards （which "reward the year's most progressive。。。 fiction"）。Its not a bad book or a terrible book， its just。。。 average。 Essentially， I made it through the book， but I wasn't blown away and I didn't come away I was expecting more from this book。 There's a quote on the cover from the Guardian that it is a "profound。。。 tour de force"。 I didn't find it to be either， frankly。 Its telling that the book is self-published， praised for its gender politics， and was originally submitted to the Kitschies awards （which "reward the year's most progressive。。。 fiction"）。Its not a bad book or a terrible book， its just。。。 average。 Essentially， I made it through the book， but I wasn't blown away and I didn't come away with any real sense of enjoyment or having discovered anything new。 I feel like the book has been praised and pushed "above its grade" because it fits in with the of a mix of pro-feminist "affirmative action" on the part of award organisers in the last few years and a rush to ride the new zeitgeist of inclusive LGBTQIA acceptance - female author， queer female lead character。The overall impression is that the book is just soft/bubblegum - its inoffensive but not challenging。 The aliens aren't really alien， its like a gentle episode of Star Trek where the aliens are just humans with ridges glued to their heads but no real sense of alienness - you could hear more varied dialogue in a local coffee shop than from supposedly different alien races sat around a table on a spaceship in this book。There's no real challenge or "hero's journey" or character arc for any of the characters， its just a series of soft sequences almost like episodes of a weekly sci-fi show。I'm just disappointed。 。。。more

Tahiya ，

4。25/5

Phoebe ，

Not perfect， but a totally original picture of an alien， interspecies road trip: the intercultural parts are the best part。 A nice setup for the next book， which I think is better。 3。5 stars rounded up。

Relena_reads ，

The characters are delightful and everybody gets an arc。 Plus there's some interesting ideas about science and civilization。 *chef's kiss* The characters are delightful and everybody gets an arc。 Plus there's some interesting ideas about science and civilization。 *chef's kiss* 。。。more

Hope ，

this was so good！ i had a lot of fun with it and want to continue with the series。 i think the plot/characters fell short of what they could have been at times， but for some reason i still just had a great time with this

Stephanie Mccallum ，

I don't read a ton of sci-fi， but this was a wonderful read！ I see that there are some mixed reviews from some harder core genre fans， and I suppose that's to be expected。 For me though， Chamber's voice was the selling point。 She crafted a multiple POV work where the focus wasn't a single main character but the crew itself。 Her world building was deliciously spaced and thoroughly plotted。 Honestly， just a great book all in all。 I don't read a ton of sci-fi， but this was a wonderful read！ I see that there are some mixed reviews from some harder core genre fans， and I suppose that's to be expected。 For me though， Chamber's voice was the selling point。 She crafted a multiple POV work where the focus wasn't a single main character but the crew itself。 Her world building was deliciously spaced and thoroughly plotted。 Honestly， just a great book all in all。 。。。more

Heather Venard ，

I really enjoyed this。 This is world-building done right。 Really well flashed out characters， drama but also feel good and so much more in store。

Ineken ，

I thought this was ok。 I like the world and the characters， but I would have liked a more interesting plot。

Sarah Senior ，

Unpopular opinion， but this book was kinda meh to me。 I am new to the Sci Fi genre and am thinking that maybe it’s just not a genre that works for me。 I enjoyed quite a bit of the book but I got bored and felt I skimmed some of it towards the end。 There was good banter and lots of story lines building for the series。 I was a bit lost with some of the mixed species romances though （ like how can you be in love with an AI machine and want to be physical with it？ I guess I am missing a point here） Unpopular opinion， but this book was kinda meh to me。 I am new to the Sci Fi genre and am thinking that maybe it’s just not a genre that works for me。 I enjoyed quite a bit of the book but I got bored and felt I skimmed some of it towards the end。 There was good banter and lots of story lines building for the series。 I was a bit lost with some of the mixed species romances though （ like how can you be in love with an AI machine and want to be physical with it？ I guess I am missing a point here） I get why it is so popular but I don’t know if I will continue with the series。 。。。more

Linda Hollingsworth ，

This was my first Becky Chambers sci-fi， and I liked it a lot！ I’m 74 and have been a sci-fi admirer since I was a teen。 If it helps， I like the writing of Kim Stanley Robinson， too， which is more tech oriented perhaps， but the Mars series particularly also has some wonderful character development over a long period of time。 I don’t go for the violent war oriented sci-fi， and that makes it sometimes difficult to find authors I enjoy reading。I’ll weigh in on my insights into the next book in her This was my first Becky Chambers sci-fi， and I liked it a lot！ I’m 74 and have been a sci-fi admirer since I was a teen。 If it helps， I like the writing of Kim Stanley Robinson， too， which is more tech oriented perhaps， but the Mars series particularly also has some wonderful character development over a long period of time。 I don’t go for the violent war oriented sci-fi， and that makes it sometimes difficult to find authors I enjoy reading。I’ll weigh in on my insights into the next book in her Wayfarer series when I’ve finished it。 I had trouble putting her first book down， so it probably won’t be long… 。。。more

Linda Irving ，

Good character development。 Ready for the next in the series。

Φαιη Μ。 ，

There are just some books that find you in the right place in life， or simply in the right time。 Maybe its the pandemic or the fact that nothing is different or maybe its that i am stuck 。。。。 But this book hit me hard。The plot of this book is almost non existent-it picks up in the last 70 paiges and is over before you know it。 The plot of the book is a trick to invite you to dive head first in this colourful universe full on new species， places， tech and most importantly more humanity that i hav There are just some books that find you in the right place in life， or simply in the right time。 Maybe its the pandemic or the fact that nothing is different or maybe its that i am stuck 。。。。 But this book hit me hard。The plot of this book is almost non existent-it picks up in the last 70 paiges and is over before you know it。 The plot of the book is a trick to invite you to dive head first in this colourful universe full on new species， places， tech and most importantly more humanity that i have i ever encountered in my life。 This books is more about the friends we made along the way （cause trust me by the end of they book you will cry and beg that this book would never end， and you will consider all of the crew you friends）。At the end this book asks us to answer the question if this is a comfort book and what a comfort book is in the first place。This book feels like a warm hug。 Its a book to curled up with before the fire or like me to read it near the beach with a cold glass of water（or any beverage） near you。 Its a book that will help you relax and it will help you escape in a better place， in a place we wish we could achieve。 A place where making friends is easies， people are more inclusive and kinder and dare i say happier。 Its a place with faults too。 Place where prejudices still exists and the end shows that the hate will always exist。 Now， if you ask me， the author proposes that hate can seem to flare up and cause damages， but overall we can work together to overcome it。 I really dont wont to get into details about this book because i could talk for HOURS about the characters and the universe and about how much i love it， though i wont for your sake and because i dont want to spoil anything。I will say though this。 Do you wanna feel good？ Do you wanna feel that you will belong？ Do you wanna see a place where people are a little kinder ？ Do you need a hug ？ Did you binge watch （insert here your favourite sitcom） and you need something holesome to take its place？ If you answer yes to one or more buy this book。 And check the history of the publication cause its super interesting on its own。*I have already ordered the rest of her books in this universe* 。。。more

Alex ，

I don't know what I was expecting， but to fall in love with a series like this wasn't one of them。 I'm going to devour this series and savor every damn bite。 I don't know what I was expecting， but to fall in love with a series like this wasn't one of them。 I'm going to devour this series and savor every damn bite。 。。。more

sari ，

heyyyyy ohan 😘

Loren Mueller ，

2。5Too didactic， the characters weren't believable to me。 If the other books have more plot it could be really good， but this first fell flat。 2。5Too didactic， the characters weren't believable to me。 If the other books have more plot it could be really good， but this first fell flat。 。。。more

Kaye Nicholson-Horn ，

I absolutely *loved* this book！ It’s a brilliant sci-fi adventure with queer/non-binary/polyamorous themes forming part of the narrative without any fanfare and without being tokenistic。 The crux of the story is that earth became uninhabitable and humans have had to set up colonies elsewhere in the galaxy， co-existing with alien species。 The main character， Rosemary， joins the crew of a ship tasked with creating a new hyperspace tunnel。 For me， the vibrancy came through in the characters， who ar I absolutely *loved* this book！ It’s a brilliant sci-fi adventure with queer/non-binary/polyamorous themes forming part of the narrative without any fanfare and without being tokenistic。 The crux of the story is that earth became uninhabitable and humans have had to set up colonies elsewhere in the galaxy， co-existing with alien species。 The main character， Rosemary， joins the crew of a ship tasked with creating a new hyperspace tunnel。 For me， the vibrancy came through in the characters， who are engaging and varied， including a reptilian female pilot who I’d like to be friends with 😂 it’s just feel good and escapist; I’m so glad there are more books in this series！ 💫 。。。more

Benno Meijer ，

Could not put this down。 I am definately continuing this series。

Jaylen ，

Very indulgent， cute。 I didn't think I had issues yesterday， but thought about it more and honestly， I feel like this book had a checklist of emotional traumas it wanted to address， and so it went through the motions of getting those done， with some cheesy dialogue and poignant scenes that weren't as poignant as I hoped。 I feel like it glossed over the events that actually develop a character， into just hit scenes that would provide an answer for any issues that arose。 Very indulgent， cute。 I didn't think I had issues yesterday， but thought about it more and honestly， I feel like this book had a checklist of emotional traumas it wanted to address， and so it went through the motions of getting those done， with some cheesy dialogue and poignant scenes that weren't as poignant as I hoped。 I feel like it glossed over the events that actually develop a character， into just hit scenes that would provide an answer for any issues that arose。 。。。more

SF Guy ，

Science Fiction mit wohligem Gefühl im Bauch。 Positiv und trotzdem spannend。

Whispring ，

I did like both the characters and the universe that this book was set in。 Unfortunately this book seemed like a series of startrek episodes instead of a fully formed book。 Each character did change throughout the arc of the story but mostly these changes seemed sudden， and not truly believable and/or were foisted upon them instead of true change of heart。 I feel there was a lot of missed opportunities as well。 The very first few pages really draw in the reader， focusing on Rosmary's mysterious I did like both the characters and the universe that this book was set in。 Unfortunately this book seemed like a series of startrek episodes instead of a fully formed book。 Each character did change throughout the arc of the story but mostly these changes seemed sudden， and not truly believable and/or were foisted upon them instead of true change of heart。 I feel there was a lot of missed opportunities as well。 The very first few pages really draw in the reader， focusing on Rosmary's mysterious plight， and then this aspect just fizzles out and is nothing is really done with it。 。。。more

Bender ，

Brilliant worldbuilding and prose but let down to weak characters and plot。 The prose was good and worldbuilding spectacular！ But aside from that， it was a sci-fi travelogue with notes of different people， cultures and interactions over some specific incidents。 Scene starts， there is a background on the location， then the people and their cultures and one obligatory incident to demonstrate their own goodness。 Rinse and repeat all through。 Author takes the time to philosophize about various stuff Brilliant worldbuilding and prose but let down to weak characters and plot。 The prose was good and worldbuilding spectacular！ But aside from that， it was a sci-fi travelogue with notes of different people， cultures and interactions over some specific incidents。 Scene starts， there is a background on the location， then the people and their cultures and one obligatory incident to demonstrate their own goodness。 Rinse and repeat all through。 Author takes the time to philosophize about various stuff like inter-species relationships， AI Sentience etc， but doesn't delve too deep。 The characters just too much to be nice。 I mean honorable space pirates？ Everyone in the cast is good and so are all the people they meet！ Rosemary's hidden history was another letdown。 Even in Earth right now， it's common to hear stories of people running away from their parents for various reasons， but then nobody runs away to Siberia on a fake identity！ There's whole lot of space out there for her and she just runs into a wild corner。。。only to find it filled with nice people and a family-in-waiting！ I mean， come on！I really won't recommend this as "for Firefly fans"。 The characters have a （bastardized） similarity to Firefly， but are just vanilla without the moral complexities that made them interesting。 。。。more

Ann ，

3。5

Bhavitha ，

Skirts the line between boring and pleasant slice-of-life， all packaged in a nice little message about accepting diverse cultures and people。 Honestly I would have enjoyed it more if the book better showed the slow building of the relationships between the crew members rather than having them immediately friendly， already considering each other found family by the time we see their interactions。 Only Corbin is somewhat of an exception to this， and honestly he doesn't get much screentime。 Skirts the line between boring and pleasant slice-of-life， all packaged in a nice little message about accepting diverse cultures and people。 Honestly I would have enjoyed it more if the book better showed the slow building of the relationships between the crew members rather than having them immediately friendly， already considering each other found family by the time we see their interactions。 Only Corbin is somewhat of an exception to this， and honestly he doesn't get much screentime。 。。。more

Pat ，

This was a satisfying read for me， containing everything I love in outer space sci-fi: a quirky， creative， multicultural crew on a quirky ship; interspecies， A。I。， and family relationships; thought-provoking situations; and just the right amount of physics， technology， danger， shooting and explosions。 I'll be reading more books by this author。 This was a satisfying read for me， containing everything I love in outer space sci-fi: a quirky， creative， multicultural crew on a quirky ship; interspecies， A。I。， and family relationships; thought-provoking situations; and just the right amount of physics， technology， danger， shooting and explosions。 I'll be reading more books by this author。 。。。more

Kris M。 ，

Such a lovely book！If you need comfortable and cozy sci-fi this is definitely for you。 （I’m sorry but I have to say it: This book is basically the Mass Effect 3 citadel DLC but on a spaceship and a year long and without the weird feeling of “normal life in the face of certain doom”。）I thoroughly enjoyed how well this book was edited - there was not a single scene or sentence that felt like it could’ve been left out even though this was more or less a collection of mundane scenes from the crew’s Such a lovely book！If you need comfortable and cozy sci-fi this is definitely for you。 （I’m sorry but I have to say it: This book is basically the Mass Effect 3 citadel DLC but on a spaceship and a year long and without the weird feeling of “normal life in the face of certain doom”。）I thoroughly enjoyed how well this book was edited - there was not a single scene or sentence that felt like it could’ve been left out even though this was more or less a collection of mundane scenes from the crew’s long way to a small， angry planet （ayyy）。 Every one of those scenes served to build up the reader’s understanding of another scene later on， even the ones that seemed entirely like fluff at first。My favourite bit was probably the way the author just cut whatever didn’t need to be shown from the narrative and explain the outcome via the next scene in which the repercussions were tangible。 I LOVED that and it sometimes came unexpectedly even though I KNEW this was the author’s modus operandi。It always made for a pleasant surprise when I expected to see the characters deal with xyz after having decided how to do it but instead was presented with the result of their efforts。 It made the narration very… crisp？Overall I just fell in love with the crew of the Wayfarer and I cannot wait to see them set off to new adventures。 I’ll have to take some time to deal with the adrenaline from the final section of the book first， though。 。。。more

Daniel A ，

vary entertaining with a unique look at sustained commercial space travel。good character development ， you really start to feel for them in their own ways。

Kris ，

This first book was more about alien habits than a story。

Reference

google book https://www.google.com/search?tbm=bks&q=The Long Way to a Small, Angry Planet

hathitrust digital library https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/ls?q1=The Long Way to a Small, Angry Planet&field1=ocr&a=srchls&ft=ft&lmt=ft

The British Library https://bll01.primo.exlibrisgroup.com/discovery/search?query=any,contains,The Long Way to a Small, Angry Planet&tab=LibraryCatalog&search_scope=Not_BL_Suppress&vid=44BL_INST:BLL01&lang=en&offset=0