The First Day of A Long Way

Somehow March 2020 is already upon us, bringing with it the annual dual push to celebrate women all over the world (International Women’s Day, 8th March) and get young people in the UK excited for Science (British Science Week, 6th-15th March 2020) - a perfect combination!

To celebrate - and to make up for taking such a long break from the blog - I’m going to attempt to share one short post sharing something exciting to look up every day this month - starting today!

The Best Sci-Fi I’ve Ever Read

I have to admit, I’m one of those people who is much better at recommending things than at taking on board recommendations (and it’s definitely me that misses out here!). However, when multiple friends from different circles start recommending the same thing, some mental algorithm is triggered and I finally start to take notice - which, at the end of last year, lead me to Becky Chambers.

I read the first in her Wayfarer’s series of novels, ‘A Long Way to a Small Angry Planet’ and thought - this is the best Sci-Fi I’ve ever read. I then spent almost the entirety of new year’s day (sorry, family) reading the second in the series, ‘A Closed and Common Orbit’ - this put be in a bit of a conundrum as I now couldn’t decide it that was the best sci-fi I’d ever read. The third, ‘Record of a Spaceborn Few’ did not help matters...all I could say with any certainty was that one of these 3 novels was the best sci-fi I’d ever read, and probably would be until she wrote any more...

Why? Not only are they beautifully written - which they are - but they are also incredibly thoughtful. Not just in terms of how much ‘science’ she puts back into sci-fi - there’s no doubt she has done her research, reminiscent of Mary Shelley’s ‘Frankenstein’ or anything by Jules Verne or H. G. Wells, which, as an ex-scientist, I absolutely loved - but also in terms of the characters and how they behave and react to things. They are the most relatable characters I’ve read in a long time - humans and aliens alike.

A few examples (potential spoilers): at one stage the crew of the Wayfarer is held up at gunpoint, something that is a known to happen our in the galaxy but not a common occurrence for them (as it is not for many of us) - and instead of bravado-ing it out then moving on like nothing happened, they respond to it as people respond to trauma, not only in the moment but afterwards - one character, for example, is unable to sleep for ‘tendays’ after the event. A real reaction, that keeps things in perspective. 

There are also many examples of events building to a point where, in most sci-fis (or indeed most novels or films), the characters would create an ultimatum and it would be used to turn the plot dramatically - whereas in Chambers’ books, FINALLY, the characters sit down and talk about things or take the sensible rather than the melodramatic option. (As my friends and family know, I spend a lot of time baffled at plot points that hinge on people starting wars, going on rampages or declaring ‘the end of everything’ when it could probably all be sorted out with a chat over a cup of tea...) There are no obvious ‘baddies’ and ‘goodies’, no simplified binary ‘us and them’ view of the universe she’s created - which may make it much easier to know who to root for and invest in and who to not feel bad about if they die a horrible death, but also completely separates us from the story, as real life just isn’t like that. What’s more, somehow Chambers manages to do this without losing pace - it turns out it doesn’t take the impending doom of the universe to make a page-turner, just fantastic writing about a brilliant cast of characters getting on with their lives as best they can.

I could say so much more - about her approach to language and non-earth-sun-based time references and humans not being top of the pile for once - but I said I would write regular but short posts.

So if you do one thing this month to combine celebrating amazing women and getting excited by science - pick up one of these books - whichever one it is, it has a very high chance of being the best sci-fi you’ve ever read.

More from Becky Chambers: https://www.otherscribbles.com/

Buy her books at Hive (and support your local bookshops!)

My Becky Chambers Collection - including the novella ‘To Be Taught, If Fortunate’ which is also amazing, along with her short story ‘A Good Heretic’ and the digital serial co-written with others ‘The Vela’ (it may take me a while to pick up a recommendation, but when I do, I really go for it!)

Thanks to Varan and Michaela for persevering with the recommending :)