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Nicoji
1st Baen 1991 edition paperback, fine In stock shipped from our UK warehouse
- GenresScience FictionFantasy
243 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published December 1, 1990
27 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews
January 6, 2024
3.5 to 4 stars.
When the last decent wage farming jobs on Earth are replaced by 5-year contract labor, Jake and Sam choose to go to another world where they're told they can make good money netting Nicoji - a luxury food animal. Once there, they find the system is rigged and they always owe money to the company store. There's a native species referred to as The Help that assist humans catching Nicoji in exchange for getting some for themselves. The sentience of The Help is undetermined.
After a while, Jake and Sam hear about another place they may be able to reach that is supposed to have better jobs - if they can escape their current bosses. They head down the bayou on a raft with supplies and a group of Help. Much of the book takes place during this journey. Along the trip, there are a number of incidents of running into harmful lifeforms - some previously known to humans, some not. However, The Help warn Jake and Sam when they encounter these other lifeforms and the The Help keep their distance.
Just before reaching the other settlement, they experience a hurricane - during which The Help become ill. At the settlement, they find that only a group of refugees from the previous company are there - the new company has gone up to their space station and will only be coming down to dismantle the settlement before leaving permanently. With limited supplies the refugees try to provide medical care for Sam and The Help... Things look tough - the hurricane and new suffer-based life have devastated the area...
We learn from The Help that there is something different about this planet's ecosystem that humans had not known and doesn't happen to be part of Earth's ecosystem - an idea that is new to me. Meanwhile, one of the refugees has secretly been collecting data on Help sentience. Jake leaves with Help to find a safe area he's been told of, and plans to assist The Help in developing their culture. The other refugees are taken back by their old company to work off their contracts elsewhere...
The book isn't long. Nevertheless, the journey part may be longer than necessary - but does play a role in introducing us to new aspects of the planet and its life. It presents a situation of cooperation between humans and a native species at least where common interests are understood, but where the two species still have limited knowledge and experience with each other.
When the last decent wage farming jobs on Earth are replaced by 5-year contract labor, Jake and Sam choose to go to another world where they're told they can make good money netting Nicoji - a luxury food animal. Once there, they find the system is rigged and they always owe money to the company store. There's a native species referred to as The Help that assist humans catching Nicoji in exchange for getting some for themselves. The sentience of The Help is undetermined.
After a while, Jake and Sam hear about another place they may be able to reach that is supposed to have better jobs - if they can escape their current bosses. They head down the bayou on a raft with supplies and a group of Help. Much of the book takes place during this journey. Along the trip, there are a number of incidents of running into harmful lifeforms - some previously known to humans, some not. However, The Help warn Jake and Sam when they encounter these other lifeforms and the The Help keep their distance.
Just before reaching the other settlement, they experience a hurricane - during which The Help become ill. At the settlement, they find that only a group of refugees from the previous company are there - the new company has gone up to their space station and will only be coming down to dismantle the settlement before leaving permanently. With limited supplies the refugees try to provide medical care for Sam and The Help... Things look tough - the hurricane and new suffer-based life have devastated the area...
We learn from The Help that there is something different about this planet's ecosystem that humans had not known and doesn't happen to be part of Earth's ecosystem - an idea that is new to me. Meanwhile, one of the refugees has secretly been collecting data on Help sentience. Jake leaves with Help to find a safe area he's been told of, and plans to assist The Help in developing their culture. The other refugees are taken back by their old company to work off their contracts elsewhere...
The book isn't long. Nevertheless, the journey part may be longer than necessary - but does play a role in introducing us to new aspects of the planet and its life. It presents a situation of cooperation between humans and a native species at least where common interests are understood, but where the two species still have limited knowledge and experience with each other.
December 29, 2011
This was a surprise read. The Guy Jake and Sam are on a planet ran like a company town. They harvest Nicoji an eight legged critter that is sort of like a large Crawfish. They decide to take off and head to another town.
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews