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Land and Overland Series #1
Kosmiczna przeprowadzka
Świat Landu, jednej z dwóch bliźniaczych planet niezwykłego układu gwiezdnego, zamieszkują ludzie nieznający metali i posługujący się prymitywną technologią. Nic nie zmienia ich życia przez wieki. Dopiero śmiertelne niebezpieczeństwo zagrażające egzystencji wszystkich, wymusza podjęcie natychmiastowego działania. Jedynym ratunkiem wydaje się przesiedlenie mieszkańców na Overland, drugą planetę systemu, oddaloną o zaledwie kilka tysięcy mil. Wymaga to jednak niezwykle ryzykownej podrózy w napełnionym gorącym powietrzem balonie...
352 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1986
14 people are currently reading
843 people want to read
About the author
Bob Shaw
213 books103 followersBob Shaw was born in Northern Ireland. After working in structural engineering, industrial public relations, and journalism he became a full time science fiction writer in 1975.
Shaw was noted for his originality and wit. He was two-time recipient (in 1979 and 1980) of the Hugo Award for Best Fan Writer. His short story Light of Other Days was a Hugo Award nominee in 1967, as was his novel The Ragged Astronauts in 1987.
Shaw was noted for his originality and wit. He was two-time recipient (in 1979 and 1980) of the Hugo Award for Best Fan Writer. His short story Light of Other Days was a Hugo Award nominee in 1967, as was his novel The Ragged Astronauts in 1987.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 48 reviews
December 31, 2024
I’ve had this book for around 30 years and just now read it. It always looked cool, not sure why it took me so long to get around to it but here we are.
Based on the cover I assumed it was going to be a Jules Verne style balloon adventure and it wasn’t exactly that.
The premise is that there are two planets, so close together that they share an atmosphere: Land and overland. Land has a sort of 17th century culture with a king and all. They are under an existential threat from organisms known as “ptertha.”
The ptertha are like bubbles that pop when near people, whatever is inside them is fatal to humans. It gets so bad that their only option is to evacuate via balloon to overland.
Quite a bit of effort went into world building, how the seasons would work on each planet, the day/night cycle and how the physics of hot air balloons would work when they neared a zero G environment at the midpoint of their journey.
I had been expecting the whole book to be taken up with the voyage and discovery of the new world. Most of the book though is spent on political machinations, personal vendettas and the design and testing of the prototype balloon.
Really enjoyed it, just thought it would be more straightforward adventure. It’s an interesting and unique mix of fantasy and science fiction with some environmental themes and a twist ending you’ll see coming before you even crack it open.
I have a few other books I’ve been dragging around for decades, maybe I’ll get to one of them next.
Based on the cover I assumed it was going to be a Jules Verne style balloon adventure and it wasn’t exactly that.
The premise is that there are two planets, so close together that they share an atmosphere: Land and overland. Land has a sort of 17th century culture with a king and all. They are under an existential threat from organisms known as “ptertha.”
The ptertha are like bubbles that pop when near people, whatever is inside them is fatal to humans. It gets so bad that their only option is to evacuate via balloon to overland.
Quite a bit of effort went into world building, how the seasons would work on each planet, the day/night cycle and how the physics of hot air balloons would work when they neared a zero G environment at the midpoint of their journey.
I had been expecting the whole book to be taken up with the voyage and discovery of the new world. Most of the book though is spent on political machinations, personal vendettas and the design and testing of the prototype balloon.
Really enjoyed it, just thought it would be more straightforward adventure. It’s an interesting and unique mix of fantasy and science fiction with some environmental themes and a twist ending you’ll see coming before you even crack it open.
I have a few other books I’ve been dragging around for decades, maybe I’ll get to one of them next.
June 4, 2020
Storyline: 4/5
Characters: 4/5
Writing Style: 4/5
World: 4/5
Not every story needs grand ambitions in order to be enjoyable. The distance between one’s ambitions and one’s actual achievements with the story can very easily turn into a measure of success, so there is risk in aiming too high. Shaw’s tactic was to promise very little and overdeliver.
This was a very clean tale. “Clean” as in free from extraneous matter. There was something sparsely effective about the writing. Rarely embellished, mostly utilitarian, it also seldom provided anything unnecessarily, focusing rather on the basics: relating the emotion, encountering the unknown, instilling the excitement. The characters were drawn well enough to serve their roles in the tale, but then each was given a single, or perhaps a few, moments in which to vividly bring out their inner selves. These small accentuations suggested a fullness to the characters that other books fail to achieve with more words and effort. The world is built in the same manner. The story occurs on a different planet, perhaps even within a different universe. Differences from our own world, both small and large, are introduced early on, fostering an awareness of possibility. With form and sparseness Shaw again draws more with less. This is a fantasy story, but because of the level of development at which the author’s world resides there are opportunities for technological discovery and innovation. These have the potential to do to the planet and their civilization what science fiction stories do for Earth: introduce radical change. Because of all these components, the story is engaging from beginning to end. When the reader is not unraveling the mysteries of the created world, they are enmeshed in the tensions of conflict, when they are not being led to implicitly make comparisons between the real and the fantastic, they are shown the inner thoughts of relatable characters, and when they are not struck with the breadth of vision, they are busied with the steps taken to achieve goals.
There were times that the sparseness tended to paucity. There were several scenes, characters, technologies, and places that would have been brought to fullness with only a little bit more. More color, components, observations, musings, interactions; there were opportunities for more emotional and fantastical climaxes. Because Shaw was so selective in what he tinkered with in his world, he does tend to adopt certain tropes as backdrop; these sometimes diminished the originality of the tale. Additionally, the story ends satisfactorily without a good hook to make the reader want to read on to the other two volumes in the series. In fact, it is not even obvious that Shaw had planned further volumes at the time of this writing. I have doubts as to whether I want to read on in the series. It is not the abandonment of a series that was unenjoyable but the feeling of being mostly sated and worried that consuming more will take away from the pleasantness with which I now sit.
Characters: 4/5
Writing Style: 4/5
World: 4/5
Not every story needs grand ambitions in order to be enjoyable. The distance between one’s ambitions and one’s actual achievements with the story can very easily turn into a measure of success, so there is risk in aiming too high. Shaw’s tactic was to promise very little and overdeliver.
This was a very clean tale. “Clean” as in free from extraneous matter. There was something sparsely effective about the writing. Rarely embellished, mostly utilitarian, it also seldom provided anything unnecessarily, focusing rather on the basics: relating the emotion, encountering the unknown, instilling the excitement. The characters were drawn well enough to serve their roles in the tale, but then each was given a single, or perhaps a few, moments in which to vividly bring out their inner selves. These small accentuations suggested a fullness to the characters that other books fail to achieve with more words and effort. The world is built in the same manner. The story occurs on a different planet, perhaps even within a different universe. Differences from our own world, both small and large, are introduced early on, fostering an awareness of possibility. With form and sparseness Shaw again draws more with less. This is a fantasy story, but because of the level of development at which the author’s world resides there are opportunities for technological discovery and innovation. These have the potential to do to the planet and their civilization what science fiction stories do for Earth: introduce radical change. Because of all these components, the story is engaging from beginning to end. When the reader is not unraveling the mysteries of the created world, they are enmeshed in the tensions of conflict, when they are not being led to implicitly make comparisons between the real and the fantastic, they are shown the inner thoughts of relatable characters, and when they are not struck with the breadth of vision, they are busied with the steps taken to achieve goals.
There were times that the sparseness tended to paucity. There were several scenes, characters, technologies, and places that would have been brought to fullness with only a little bit more. More color, components, observations, musings, interactions; there were opportunities for more emotional and fantastical climaxes. Because Shaw was so selective in what he tinkered with in his world, he does tend to adopt certain tropes as backdrop; these sometimes diminished the originality of the tale. Additionally, the story ends satisfactorily without a good hook to make the reader want to read on to the other two volumes in the series. In fact, it is not even obvious that Shaw had planned further volumes at the time of this writing. I have doubts as to whether I want to read on in the series. It is not the abandonment of a series that was unenjoyable but the feeling of being mostly sated and worried that consuming more will take away from the pleasantness with which I now sit.
May 19, 2014
The Ragged Astronauts was nominated for a Hugo a while ago, but I don't believe it won. I'm not entirely sure why it was nominated. I enjoyed it, but I don't feel that it achieves the heights that would warrant a nomination.
It's solid, entertaining science fiction, with a bit of a hidden-until-the-end environmentalist message.
It is also, oddly, the second book I've read recently that revolves around twin planets - Anarres and Urras in The Dispossessed, Land and Overland in this one. Land and Overland are even closer, close enough to share an atmosphere, so that, as the title might suggest, it is possible to attempt transit between the two planets with little more than a hot air balloon aided by jets.
Land has no metal, so their technology is very limited, and mostly depending on chemical interactions between two kinds of crystals found in the brakka tree. They live in a monarchy, with an inherited vocational caste system. How this was set up, and truly, what it means, is not explained. Women are not mentioned so much, but do appear to be wives. Multiple marriage is possible, but the implications are not pursued.
And therein lie my problems with the book - there are interesting ideas that are lightly touched upon, and then never pursued or developed. This would be fine if there were other things that were developed in more detail, but there really aren't.
This is the story of an Exodus, of the sudden and devastating attack by gas creatures, of the philosophers who make the trip possible, the one philosopher/military character's struggles, and the sociopathy of a prince. It is just remarkably sparse. It is not a novel of ideas. There is not enough done to develop the characters to make it a novel of character. I guess it's a novel of plot, and what's there is entertaining enough, it's just not anything more.
It's solid, entertaining science fiction, with a bit of a hidden-until-the-end environmentalist message.
It is also, oddly, the second book I've read recently that revolves around twin planets - Anarres and Urras in The Dispossessed, Land and Overland in this one. Land and Overland are even closer, close enough to share an atmosphere, so that, as the title might suggest, it is possible to attempt transit between the two planets with little more than a hot air balloon aided by jets.
Land has no metal, so their technology is very limited, and mostly depending on chemical interactions between two kinds of crystals found in the brakka tree. They live in a monarchy, with an inherited vocational caste system. How this was set up, and truly, what it means, is not explained. Women are not mentioned so much, but do appear to be wives. Multiple marriage is possible, but the implications are not pursued.
And therein lie my problems with the book - there are interesting ideas that are lightly touched upon, and then never pursued or developed. This would be fine if there were other things that were developed in more detail, but there really aren't.
This is the story of an Exodus, of the sudden and devastating attack by gas creatures, of the philosophers who make the trip possible, the one philosopher/military character's struggles, and the sociopathy of a prince. It is just remarkably sparse. It is not a novel of ideas. There is not enough done to develop the characters to make it a novel of character. I guess it's a novel of plot, and what's there is entertaining enough, it's just not anything more.
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November 25, 2022Ovo je baš onako old skul, malo smara ali takođe ima dosta zanimljivih ideja.
January 31, 2008
Here we have two planets close enough to share the same atmosphere. The population of one planet becomes victim to a deadly virus and they must leave or die. Civilization is at a medieval level and they decide to migrate to the planet above them using hot air balloons. Sounds great? You bet.
The science fiction world lost a major talent when Bob died of cancer in 1996 and sadly his books seem to all be out of print. Please read this guy and tell your friends.
The science fiction world lost a major talent when Bob died of cancer in 1996 and sadly his books seem to all be out of print. Please read this guy and tell your friends.
June 18, 2012
I'm really of two minds about this story...
To begin with the positive aspects, the setting of the story is wonderful. As always, Bob Shaw excels at creating vivid and unique ideas - from the slowglass of 'Other Days, Other Eyes' to the floating plantations of 'Shadow of Heaven'. This time, Shaw brings us a world with no metals, where society has had to evolve around its use of wood and crystals. Although simple, this concepts allows for the creation of a fantastically memorable planet that seems both advanced and technologically inferior to our's in equal measure. While the deadly ptertha are fought back with boomerangs, the society is also advanced enough to create hot air balloons capable to traversing between planets.
Great lengths are also taken to allow the reader to understand this world, and some of the best passages of the novel are spent outlining the cultural divides between the different social classes (particularly the military caste and the philosophers). All in all, the universe is very well rounded and interesting enough to capture the reader's imagination.
Unfortunately, the characters are no where near as well rounded. The villainous Leddravohr becomes increasingly 2-dimensional as the story progresses - beginning as a morally ambiguous individual and steadily becoming a single-minded psychopath. The other particularly poor character is Gesalla, the love interest. As the only major female in the novel, Gesalla is given next to no development, remaining cold and without personality until the last thirty pages. Although Shaw tries hint at the growing romance between her and Toller early on, this really does not come across well and so it still feels like their eventual coupling comes out of the blue.
The pacing of the early parts of the novel is also completely off. Toller begins the novel obsessed with joining the military. Eventually, he is offered the chance to do so only for the novel to immediately cut to him leaving the military some years later. Why even spend time developing this plot point for no payoff? In the end, it had no impact on the plot whatsoever and I'm sure that the space could have been spent fleshing out some of the other characters...
For a science fiction fan, the book is certainly worth a read just so you can enjoy the setting. Don't expect a masterpiece though...
To begin with the positive aspects, the setting of the story is wonderful. As always, Bob Shaw excels at creating vivid and unique ideas - from the slowglass of 'Other Days, Other Eyes' to the floating plantations of 'Shadow of Heaven'. This time, Shaw brings us a world with no metals, where society has had to evolve around its use of wood and crystals. Although simple, this concepts allows for the creation of a fantastically memorable planet that seems both advanced and technologically inferior to our's in equal measure. While the deadly ptertha are fought back with boomerangs, the society is also advanced enough to create hot air balloons capable to traversing between planets.
Great lengths are also taken to allow the reader to understand this world, and some of the best passages of the novel are spent outlining the cultural divides between the different social classes (particularly the military caste and the philosophers). All in all, the universe is very well rounded and interesting enough to capture the reader's imagination.
Unfortunately, the characters are no where near as well rounded. The villainous Leddravohr becomes increasingly 2-dimensional as the story progresses - beginning as a morally ambiguous individual and steadily becoming a single-minded psychopath. The other particularly poor character is Gesalla, the love interest. As the only major female in the novel, Gesalla is given next to no development, remaining cold and without personality until the last thirty pages. Although Shaw tries hint at the growing romance between her and Toller early on, this really does not come across well and so it still feels like their eventual coupling comes out of the blue.
The pacing of the early parts of the novel is also completely off. Toller begins the novel obsessed with joining the military. Eventually, he is offered the chance to do so only for the novel to immediately cut to him leaving the military some years later. Why even spend time developing this plot point for no payoff? In the end, it had no impact on the plot whatsoever and I'm sure that the space could have been spent fleshing out some of the other characters...
For a science fiction fan, the book is certainly worth a read just so you can enjoy the setting. Don't expect a masterpiece though...
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
July 12, 2011
Of all its merits (and there are many), what intrigues the most is the characterization of Prince Leddravohr. His vendetta against the entire Maraquine family, established as the result of a minor altercation, is as vicious as it is irrational.
While the portrayal of an antagonist as a vicious monster is nothing new, and neither is showing him as a capable if brutal leader laboring against a national crisis, there is something otherworldly about his inexplicably poisonous nature. The reader is given very little insight into this aspect of his character. Why would the heir apparent to the most powerful nation on the planet, leader of its armies, savior to its population, stoop to such meaningless and destructive revenge against people who pose no real threat to him?
While the portrayal of an antagonist as a vicious monster is nothing new, and neither is showing him as a capable if brutal leader laboring against a national crisis, there is something otherworldly about his inexplicably poisonous nature. The reader is given very little insight into this aspect of his character. Why would the heir apparent to the most powerful nation on the planet, leader of its armies, savior to its population, stoop to such meaningless and destructive revenge against people who pose no real threat to him?
June 13, 2023
Me gustó esta novela de ciencia ficción capa y espada. Un universo parecido al nuestro, pero no igual, con realidades físicas que limitan el desarrollo, un mundo sin metales, planetas que comparten atmosfera y la “humanidad” sin memoria siguiendo un estilo de vida extractivista (algo tiene de novela de desastre ecológico).
Me parecía a veces ver a Elric de Melniboné cuando se describía la vida en mundo de Land.
Lectura rápida, auto conclusiva, y la primera parte de una trilogía. No sé cuándo leeré las otras dos novelas, pero lo haré.
Los personajes son interesantes y consistentes con la sociedad ficticia que están representando (no busquen corrección política, por favor recuerden que es una novela de caballeros en una sociedad violenta que viajan por el espacio en globos aerostáticos). Podrían ser más profundos seguramente, pero esta es una novela de aventuras y está bien.
La novela ganó el BSFA y casi el Hugo. Tiempos más simples que se recuerdan con una sonrisa.
Bob Shaw, un autor para tener en el radar de la historia cf.
Me parecía a veces ver a Elric de Melniboné cuando se describía la vida en mundo de Land.
Lectura rápida, auto conclusiva, y la primera parte de una trilogía. No sé cuándo leeré las otras dos novelas, pero lo haré.
Los personajes son interesantes y consistentes con la sociedad ficticia que están representando (no busquen corrección política, por favor recuerden que es una novela de caballeros en una sociedad violenta que viajan por el espacio en globos aerostáticos). Podrían ser más profundos seguramente, pero esta es una novela de aventuras y está bien.
La novela ganó el BSFA y casi el Hugo. Tiempos más simples que se recuerdan con una sonrisa.
Bob Shaw, un autor para tener en el radar de la historia cf.
June 18, 2016
http://nwhyte.livejournal.com/2671780.html
This is one of Shaw's best known books, second only to Orbitsville. I don't think it has aged particularly well. Shaw's protagonist, Toller Maraquine, is chief engineer of a culture under pressure from its human(ish) neighbours on the planet of Land and also facing extinction at the hands of the non-human Ptertha. Toller's rulers therefore order a mass emigration through space to the neighbouring twin planet of Overland, conveniently linked with Land by a common atmosphere. I thought that the book's attitude to women (never a strong point of Shaw's) was pretty appalling. The female characters are either invisible or two-dimensional, and there is some nasty sexual violence as a defining moment for the most important woman character. It doesn't even do a terribly good job as engineering fiction; because the Land/Overland universe is very different from ours (we learn at one stage that π=3 exactly) we can't really thrill to the solution of engineering problems which are designed to pad out the thin plot. That leaves us with Toller Maraquine's inner journey, and he's just not a very interesting chap. Where I love Shaw's work, it's when he takes people in a contemporary or near-contemporary setting to unexpected settings - A Wreath of Stars, Other Days, Other Eyes. His more space-y books haven't usually worked for me.
This is one of Shaw's best known books, second only to Orbitsville. I don't think it has aged particularly well. Shaw's protagonist, Toller Maraquine, is chief engineer of a culture under pressure from its human(ish) neighbours on the planet of Land and also facing extinction at the hands of the non-human Ptertha. Toller's rulers therefore order a mass emigration through space to the neighbouring twin planet of Overland, conveniently linked with Land by a common atmosphere. I thought that the book's attitude to women (never a strong point of Shaw's) was pretty appalling. The female characters are either invisible or two-dimensional, and there is some nasty sexual violence as a defining moment for the most important woman character. It doesn't even do a terribly good job as engineering fiction; because the Land/Overland universe is very different from ours (we learn at one stage that π=3 exactly) we can't really thrill to the solution of engineering problems which are designed to pad out the thin plot. That leaves us with Toller Maraquine's inner journey, and he's just not a very interesting chap. Where I love Shaw's work, it's when he takes people in a contemporary or near-contemporary setting to unexpected settings - A Wreath of Stars, Other Days, Other Eyes. His more space-y books haven't usually worked for me.
March 14, 2025
To deal with the good things first, this book has an original and imaginative scenario that seems plausible and well thought out. The descriptive passages are quite well written by sf standards. Writers often spoil a book with a poor ending, but here the ending is both conclusive and upbeat.
What bothers me are the characterization and the plot, both of which I find unconvincing to the point of being unprofessional. I don’t really believe in these characters, they’re pawns of the author and fail to become real people to me; and I dislike many little details of the story.
Overall, I wouldn’t recommend it to anyone except Bob Shaw completists and collectors of diverse sf scenarios. I doubt that I’ll read it again.
I liked The Ceres Solution better; if you want to read Bob Shaw, I can mildly recommend that one.
I probably bought this book in the 20th century, but I don’t know whether I read it then; it didn’t strike me as even slightly familiar when I read it in 2014.
What bothers me are the characterization and the plot, both of which I find unconvincing to the point of being unprofessional. I don’t really believe in these characters, they’re pawns of the author and fail to become real people to me; and I dislike many little details of the story.
Overall, I wouldn’t recommend it to anyone except Bob Shaw completists and collectors of diverse sf scenarios. I doubt that I’ll read it again.
I liked The Ceres Solution better; if you want to read Bob Shaw, I can mildly recommend that one.
I probably bought this book in the 20th century, but I don’t know whether I read it then; it didn’t strike me as even slightly familiar when I read it in 2014.
January 31, 2016
A nice interesting fantasy story with some SiFi aspects. How does a non tech society do space travel to it's moon. Recommended
November 18, 2025
Magnifica historia de superación de un pueblo condenado a la extinción. Los científicos y su propuesta rechazada por los sacerdotes, el rey magnánimo y el príncipe cruel, un viaje a otro mundo...
Ciencia y cuento clásico todo en uno.
Maravilloso.
Ciencia y cuento clásico todo en uno.
Maravilloso.
Read
August 16, 2020nah 49 Seiten abgebrochen
Leider ist diese Sci Fi Reihe nicht wirklich gut gealter, sowohl von der Übersetzung her, also auch von den wirklich seeehr klitschee basierten Charakteren
Schade, da mir die Reihe von meinem Vater vermacht wurde da er sie als Junger erwachsender las und sehr gemocht hatte
Leider ist diese Sci Fi Reihe nicht wirklich gut gealter, sowohl von der Übersetzung her, also auch von den wirklich seeehr klitschee basierten Charakteren
Schade, da mir die Reihe von meinem Vater vermacht wurde da er sie als Junger erwachsender las und sehr gemocht hatte
February 29, 2024
Solid, original, rollicking.
November 29, 2017
A solid, above average story, which is a pleasant surprise given how Shaw's "Orbitsville" left a bad taste in my mouth. Here the sfnal concepts are interesting and central to the plot, although one detail stuck out at me as extraneous (the value of a certain mathematical constant as proof that this isn't our own cosmos).
Character-wise, there actually were some this time, and while the main female lead actually had some potential, her motivation ends up deflating all of it back to cookie cutter stereotypes :/
Overall I think Shaw stretched himself a bit too thin over the characters and subplots: leaving out a few POV chapters from secondary characters (and condensing the plot to avoid a couple awkward timeskips) would have allowed him to develop Toller, Gesalla, and Leddravohr in a more satisfying way.
So, 3 stars if you're a more whiz-bang sf reader, 2.5 if you expect a bit more out of the characters.
Character-wise, there actually were some this time, and while the main female lead actually had some potential, her motivation ends up deflating all of it back to cookie cutter stereotypes :/
Overall I think Shaw stretched himself a bit too thin over the characters and subplots: leaving out a few POV chapters from secondary characters (and condensing the plot to avoid a couple awkward timeskips) would have allowed him to develop Toller, Gesalla, and Leddravohr in a more satisfying way.
So, 3 stars if you're a more whiz-bang sf reader, 2.5 if you expect a bit more out of the characters.
January 7, 2019
Brilliant, Originial and Captivating story!!
This book is well composed and is exciting to read. It's originality is overwhelming. The book was very enthralling to read and the drama played out well. The story was very absorbing. The story flowed so interestingly that the reader is drawn into the book. This is a good example of innovative sci-fi.This is my 2nd reading of " Ragged Astronauts" , after also having read "The Wooden Spaceships" but not "The Fugitive Worlds". Now I am reading the Land and Overland trilogy all in one sitting after having read 1st 2 books.
This book is well composed and is exciting to read. It's originality is overwhelming. The book was very enthralling to read and the drama played out well. The story was very absorbing. The story flowed so interestingly that the reader is drawn into the book. This is a good example of innovative sci-fi.This is my 2nd reading of " Ragged Astronauts" , after also having read "The Wooden Spaceships" but not "The Fugitive Worlds". Now I am reading the Land and Overland trilogy all in one sitting after having read 1st 2 books.
February 19, 2021
I really rather enjoyed this. I think I'd have turned my nose up more at it's implausability but for the single page upon which the characters discussed and proved that pi is exactly equal to 3. "perhaps there are even strange universes where Pi is some irrational number, baffling the mathematicians of their worlds". Alright Mr Shaw, you can make science do whatever you want it to do if you can alter the fundamental constants.. I'm listening.
Bordering on steampunk, this is an interesting book about astronomy, adventure, political infighting, and hot air balloons.
Bordering on steampunk, this is an interesting book about astronomy, adventure, political infighting, and hot air balloons.
August 10, 2014
This was steampunk before there was steampunk. But beyond the bizarre premise, this book does not have much to offer.
March 14, 2018
The novel is set in an alternate universe where two planets orbit each other in close proximity, with a common atmosphere. The civilization on one of the planets is shown to be similar to the western civilization around the 16th century (they are on the verge of discovering the concepts of calculus, starting with limits…). The mathematicians, statisticians, astronomers, chemists, and academicians of similar fields – collectively called “Philosophers” – start raising concerns about energy shortages within a few decades, which finally leads to a mass migration using jet-powered balloons to the twin planet (poetically called “Overland”). Some of the details are very nicely done, though most of the novel is not mathematical in nature.
There is one mathematical curiosity: the geometry around the planets is conical in nature, with the value of pi set to equal exactly 3 (one of the mathematicians uses a rolling wooden disk to demonstrate to his brother that its circumference is exactly 3 diameters in length. He muses, “Even when we go to the limits of measurement, the ratio is exactly three. Does that not strike you as astonishing? That and things like the fact that we have twelve fingers make whole areas of calculation absurdly easy. It’s almost like an unwarranted gift from nature”). This is also reminiscent of the comical effort by Indiana legislature to decree the value of pi to be 3.2... (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Indiana...)
There is a strong hint that the worlds might be “designed” but that angle is left dangling…a shame, for it is a nicely written novel which would have twisted very well if there were to be some denouement about the particular geometry.
There is one mathematical curiosity: the geometry around the planets is conical in nature, with the value of pi set to equal exactly 3 (one of the mathematicians uses a rolling wooden disk to demonstrate to his brother that its circumference is exactly 3 diameters in length. He muses, “Even when we go to the limits of measurement, the ratio is exactly three. Does that not strike you as astonishing? That and things like the fact that we have twelve fingers make whole areas of calculation absurdly easy. It’s almost like an unwarranted gift from nature”). This is also reminiscent of the comical effort by Indiana legislature to decree the value of pi to be 3.2... (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Indiana...)
There is a strong hint that the worlds might be “designed” but that angle is left dangling…a shame, for it is a nicely written novel which would have twisted very well if there were to be some denouement about the particular geometry.
September 1, 2025
Land is a planet in decline, plagued by overpopulation. Faced with this crisis, a radical solution emerges: migrate to Overland, its twin planet suspended in the sky and sharing the same atmosphere. But in this low-tech world, interplanetary travel doesn’t happen by spaceship… it happens by hot-air balloon.
At first, I was leaning toward a 4-star rating. But the more I read, the more I felt it wasn’t all that convincing. I dropped it to 3.5 stars by Part Two, and finally settled on 3 stars by Part Three.
The book’s main flaw is that it’s essentially a fantasy story. The plot could just as easily take place in a medieval-fantasy setting, with two kingdoms divided by a wall. The science-fiction backdrop doesn’t really impact the structure of the narrative. The core may be sci-fi, but the form is pure fantasy.
At first, I was leaning toward a 4-star rating. But the more I read, the more I felt it wasn’t all that convincing. I dropped it to 3.5 stars by Part Two, and finally settled on 3 stars by Part Three.
The book’s main flaw is that it’s essentially a fantasy story. The plot could just as easily take place in a medieval-fantasy setting, with two kingdoms divided by a wall. The science-fiction backdrop doesn’t really impact the structure of the narrative. The core may be sci-fi, but the form is pure fantasy.
April 5, 2023
Rounding up.
For my reading, I can't quite say I liked it, but there were a lot of interesting ideas at play, even if some of them only seemed to be in the story to impress the reader with how creative and odd the author could be (I'm looking at you pi = exactly three, or maybe that was to help the reader buy into an alternate universe with different laws where two planets could be inside the Roche limit and share an atmosphere that was breathable and survivable for humans even at the midpoint).
The plot seemed to skip ahead at some points so the author could keep the pace speedy, but the big problem for me was that most of the characters fell flat with either no growth or unearned growth (at least in the text that made it to print).
As always, your mileage may vary.
For my reading, I can't quite say I liked it, but there were a lot of interesting ideas at play, even if some of them only seemed to be in the story to impress the reader with how creative and odd the author could be (I'm looking at you pi = exactly three, or maybe that was to help the reader buy into an alternate universe with different laws where two planets could be inside the Roche limit and share an atmosphere that was breathable and survivable for humans even at the midpoint).
The plot seemed to skip ahead at some points so the author could keep the pace speedy, but the big problem for me was that most of the characters fell flat with either no growth or unearned growth (at least in the text that made it to print).
As always, your mileage may vary.
October 1, 2025
Land and Overland are twin planets so closely locked that they share an atmosphere. Toller Maraquine is a volatile young man whose brother Lain is a philosopher who with the ageing drunken Lord Glo have theorised that balloons might be able to make the trip from land to Overland. A fanciful theory until evacuating Land becomes necessary after an increase in the deadly ptertha - a floating globular spore system - which will eventually wipe out humanity. The crown prince Leddravohr has developed a deadly dislike for the injudicious Toller and when his brother Lain's wife Gesalla is taken by Leddravohr to sleep with, the feeling becomes mutual. Things come to a head on the evacuation from Land to Overland. Nicely paced, plotted and a genuinely novel idea by Bob Shaw!
December 11, 2025
Quite a nice hard sci-fi story. The narrative gives the impression of a book from the thirties, with rather crude strokes used to depict years of events. It feels as if we are seeing the world from the perspective of their decent but not exceptionally talented journalist-descendant, who decided to novelize childhood stories.
The characters are pointedly good or evil, but each carries about ten percent of moral gray, just enough to keep them from feeling completely brakkish.
The worldbuilding rests on two or three interesting ideas, executed well without going overboard.
The story carries a moral about not overexploiting the planet, which I fully agree with, though I don’t find it particularly novel.
The characters are pointedly good or evil, but each carries about ten percent of moral gray, just enough to keep them from feeling completely brakkish.
The worldbuilding rests on two or three interesting ideas, executed well without going overboard.
The story carries a moral about not overexploiting the planet, which I fully agree with, though I don’t find it particularly novel.
June 28, 2018
No me dio. Lo abandoné a la mitad.
Me desagradó mucho la sociedad descrita. Está bien construida y es consistente pero es molesta. Si hubiera sabido que esto era algo parecido al steampunk me lo salto desde el comienzo.
Las mujeres tratadas como accesorios y dispuestas para los deseos sexuales y sádicos de los gobernantes me superó. Protagonistas prácticamente sin carácter y los que lo tienen apenas lo usan y se quedan pegados en sus historias sin finalizar. No hay sensación de conflicto, sólo una sucesión de historias sin conexión aparente repartidas en más de 150 páginas y aún no pasa nada...
Decepcionante.
Me desagradó mucho la sociedad descrita. Está bien construida y es consistente pero es molesta. Si hubiera sabido que esto era algo parecido al steampunk me lo salto desde el comienzo.
Las mujeres tratadas como accesorios y dispuestas para los deseos sexuales y sádicos de los gobernantes me superó. Protagonistas prácticamente sin carácter y los que lo tienen apenas lo usan y se quedan pegados en sus historias sin finalizar. No hay sensación de conflicto, sólo una sucesión de historias sin conexión aparente repartidas en más de 150 páginas y aún no pasa nada...
Decepcionante.
October 14, 2025
I picked this up on the back of its nomination for the Arthur C Clarke award at the time of it's release. Before this Bob Shaw was an unknown name to me and it seems he's faded from the public consciousness. Which, on the back of finishing this book is a shame because if this work is anything to go by, his writing is vivid and world building intricate.
There are some slight reservations. His depiction of women is by modern standards, uncomfortable. His character's motivations are sometimes forced and defy logic.
Despite this "the ragged astronauts" is a novel of adventure and pioneer spirit twisted around political machinations and a classic vindictive bastard of a villain.
There are some slight reservations. His depiction of women is by modern standards, uncomfortable. His character's motivations are sometimes forced and defy logic.
Despite this "the ragged astronauts" is a novel of adventure and pioneer spirit twisted around political machinations and a classic vindictive bastard of a villain.
October 19, 2018
This was very much an Old World fantasy adventure, with heavy reliance on a combination of a class-based society and a peculiar established etiquette among ranked officials for furthering several of its major plots points. That being said, the main story focused mostly on man's attempt to escape its own demise by the hand of natural evolution. I found it enjoyable and I would gladly read the other two books in the series if I came across them.
January 7, 2022
Luin tämän aikanaan ja Bob Shawlla on todella hämmentävä taito loihtia uskottavia vaihtoehtoisia maailmoja lukijan silmien eteen, niiden asukkaat tosin eivät ole kauhean yksityiskohtaisesti kuvattuja. Ihmiset ja heidän elämänsä ovat ikään kuin sivuroolissa suurille ideoille hänen tarinoissaan.
November 25, 2017
Review TBC
August 7, 2021
between 3 & 4. interesting idea
Read
April 12, 2024(alte Wertung: ganz nett 2)
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