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The Integral Trees
Del Rey / Ballantine, 1984. Hardcover with dustjacket, "First March 1984" stated on the copyright page with a complete number "10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1". Novel set in a a gas torus, a ring of air around a neutron star. There is a sequel, "The Smoke Ring" (1987). Nominated for the Nebula and Hugo Awards for Best Novel.
240 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 2013
About the author
Larry Niven
691 books3,390 followersLaurence van Cott Niven's best known work is Ringworld (Ringworld, #1) (1970), which received the Hugo, Locus, Ditmar, and Nebula awards. His work is primarily hard science fiction, using big science concepts and theoretical physics. The creation of thoroughly worked-out alien species, which are very different from humans both physically and mentally, is recognized as one of Niven's main strengths.
Niven also often includes elements of detective fiction and adventure stories. His fantasy includes The Magic Goes Away series, which utilizes an exhaustible resource, called Mana, to make the magic a non-renewable resource.
Niven created an alien species, the Kzin, which were featured in a series of twelve collection books, the Man-Kzin Wars. He co-authored a number of novels with Jerry Pournelle. In fact, much of his writing since the 1970s has been in collaboration, particularly with Pournelle, Steven Barnes, Brenda Cooper, or Edward M. Lerner.
He briefly attended the California Institute of Technology and graduated with a Bachelor of Arts in mathematics (with a minor in psychology) from Washburn University, Topeka, Kansas, in 1962. He did a year of graduate work in mathematics at the University of California at Los Angeles. He has since lived in Los Angeles suburbs, including Chatsworth and Tarzana, as a full-time writer. He married Marilyn Joyce "Fuzzy Pink" Wisowaty, herself a well-known science fiction and Regency literature fan, on September 6, 1969.
Niven won the Hugo Award for Best Short Story for Neutron Star in 1967. In 1972, for Inconstant Moon, and in 1975 for The Hole Man. In 1976, he won the Hugo Award for Best Novelette for The Borderland of Sol.
Niven has written scripts for various science fiction television shows, including the original Land of the Lost series and Star Trek: The Animated Series, for which he adapted his early Kzin story The Soft Weapon. He adapted his story Inconstant Moon for an episode of the television series The Outer Limits in 1996.
He has also written for the DC Comics character Green Lantern including in his stories hard science fiction concepts such as universal entropy and the redshift effect, which are unusual in comic books.
http://us.macmillan.com/author/larryn...
Niven also often includes elements of detective fiction and adventure stories. His fantasy includes The Magic Goes Away series, which utilizes an exhaustible resource, called Mana, to make the magic a non-renewable resource.
Niven created an alien species, the Kzin, which were featured in a series of twelve collection books, the Man-Kzin Wars. He co-authored a number of novels with Jerry Pournelle. In fact, much of his writing since the 1970s has been in collaboration, particularly with Pournelle, Steven Barnes, Brenda Cooper, or Edward M. Lerner.
He briefly attended the California Institute of Technology and graduated with a Bachelor of Arts in mathematics (with a minor in psychology) from Washburn University, Topeka, Kansas, in 1962. He did a year of graduate work in mathematics at the University of California at Los Angeles. He has since lived in Los Angeles suburbs, including Chatsworth and Tarzana, as a full-time writer. He married Marilyn Joyce "Fuzzy Pink" Wisowaty, herself a well-known science fiction and Regency literature fan, on September 6, 1969.
Niven won the Hugo Award for Best Short Story for Neutron Star in 1967. In 1972, for Inconstant Moon, and in 1975 for The Hole Man. In 1976, he won the Hugo Award for Best Novelette for The Borderland of Sol.
Niven has written scripts for various science fiction television shows, including the original Land of the Lost series and Star Trek: The Animated Series, for which he adapted his early Kzin story The Soft Weapon. He adapted his story Inconstant Moon for an episode of the television series The Outer Limits in 1996.
He has also written for the DC Comics character Green Lantern including in his stories hard science fiction concepts such as universal entropy and the redshift effect, which are unusual in comic books.
http://us.macmillan.com/author/larryn...
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Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews
May 23, 2025
Considering I loved this writer's short fiction, I was dismayed to discover that I had wasted my money on this boring trial of a book.
I won't go into detail except to say, unless you are suffering from insomnia, don't bother with this.
I won't go into detail except to say, unless you are suffering from insomnia, don't bother with this.
January 18, 2026
The edition I read was the "Omnibus" version, including the "Smoke Ring" and a concluding short story right after that.
A truly outside-the-box bit of world building: how about a zero-G atmosphere without a planet under one's feet, living in open-air orbital "trees"? Re-imagine your entire ecosystem without gravity. I found the idea very engaging. The story-telling was also quite first-rate. Marked down one star because I think the book could have benefited from being longer, with more character-building. I felt like I was skimming over the surface of the cast of characters, getting to know all of them a little, none of them very well. While not a home run, this book was very memorable.
A truly outside-the-box bit of world building: how about a zero-G atmosphere without a planet under one's feet, living in open-air orbital "trees"? Re-imagine your entire ecosystem without gravity. I found the idea very engaging. The story-telling was also quite first-rate. Marked down one star because I think the book could have benefited from being longer, with more character-building. I felt like I was skimming over the surface of the cast of characters, getting to know all of them a little, none of them very well. While not a home run, this book was very memorable.
July 27, 2026
Interesting scifi book. I appreciated discovering a the universe the author has created. I needed a book to read for light enjoyment and it provided exactly that. However, I did not find anything exceptional about this book. I found there could be more depth to the characters. Their motivations were very basic, reminiscing of a children's book. The themes are also very basic: survival, romance, war and a little bit about community. I found the descriptions and dialogues hard to follow because of how the text is structured.
What I appreciated the most was my evolving understanding of the physics of this specific universe.
What I appreciated the most was my evolving understanding of the physics of this specific universe.
March 25, 2024
Ringworld meets Hothouse
This is another incredibly imaginative world created by Larry Niven. The people in it are fairly primitive and barely surviving. Like Hothouse, someone dies in the first scene. The genre is basically a traveling adventure.
The build-up is fairly slow, but the pay-off is very good. I /think/ Niven is trying to juxtapose "free" or "classless" societies vs "structured" or "classed" societies, but you can make up your own mind.
I found it a pretty good page-turner - read it in 2 days - and mostly upbeat, despite the constant threat of death.
This is another incredibly imaginative world created by Larry Niven. The people in it are fairly primitive and barely surviving. Like Hothouse, someone dies in the first scene. The genre is basically a traveling adventure.
The build-up is fairly slow, but the pay-off is very good. I /think/ Niven is trying to juxtapose "free" or "classless" societies vs "structured" or "classed" societies, but you can make up your own mind.
I found it a pretty good page-turner - read it in 2 days - and mostly upbeat, despite the constant threat of death.
April 18, 2021
Excellent reading
I enjoy the way the author tells the story makes it a very enjoyable.
I also enjoyed the way she tells it.
I enjoy the way the author tells the story makes it a very enjoyable.
I also enjoyed the way she tells it.
April 11, 2018
A charming story with a very touching ending. He is a slightly shallow character but I really liked her personality. It's not so much about the plot as the dialogue, which works very well.
October 23, 2014
Senza infamia e senza lode, uno storico romantico perfetto per un paio d'ore di lettura leggera ;D Gran parte della storia era facilmente intuibile, compreso il motivo per cui Sophie fosse tanto "gelida" in campo amoroso (che poi con Richard ovviamente la cosa dura poco XD). La matrigna di Sophie mi ha ricordato un po' la signora Bennett, a volte diventava francamente irritante e se fossi stata al posto di Sophie non avrei mai avuto tanta pazienza (ma in effetti anche la madre di Richard è portata al melodramma e avrebbe molto da farsi perdonare invece!) XD Ho avuto l'impressione che il libro facesse parte di una serie e ovviamente dai vari accenni colti qua e la se avessi letto prima il precedente sarebbe stato meglio...anche perchè sembrava più interessante la coppia protagonista XD
December 31, 2013
Ήταν ενα βικτοριανό ρομαντζο. Είχε όλα τα χαρακτηριστικα. Αριστοκρατες και αστους, γενναία δόση ηθικολογίας και πρωτοκολου και μπόλικο καθωσπρεπισμό. Ως εκεί, κακως το πήρα αλλά εμπιστεύτηκα τη συγραφεα, λογω προηγουμενων βιβλίων της. Κακη ιδεα. Αντί να δωσει το δικό της τόνο στην ιστορια, μπηκε η ίδια στο καλούπι της. Γιατί το εκανε αυτο?
Ενιωθα ότι παρακολουθούσα ένα συνδυασμό παρτίδας σκακιού (με έπαθλο τον πιο κοινωνικα αποδεκτό γαμο) με ενα στρατηγικό σχεδιο ωστε καταπιεσμενοι ανθρωποι να μπορεσουν να πραγματοποιησουν τις αληθινες τους επιθυμιες χωρίς να γίνουν βορα των κουτσομπόληδων. Ξενερωτο.
Ενιωθα ότι παρακολουθούσα ένα συνδυασμό παρτίδας σκακιού (με έπαθλο τον πιο κοινωνικα αποδεκτό γαμο) με ενα στρατηγικό σχεδιο ωστε καταπιεσμενοι ανθρωποι να μπορεσουν να πραγματοποιησουν τις αληθινες τους επιθυμιες χωρίς να γίνουν βορα των κουτσομπόληδων. Ξενερωτο.
March 29, 2013
1.5 stars
Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews