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Loading... Rendezvous with Rama (original 1973; edition 1973)by Arthur C Clarke (Author)2   Eyejaybee | Sep 14, 2021 |   There is not much in this book in terms of character development or even plot. But, what this book is full of is the most sincere sense of awe. Clarke is great at that, awe and wonder permeate the entire book. It is rare to see those emotions translated into the text as believably as here. I have to say, for a novel that asks so many questions and gives few answers, it is surprisingly satisfying. (  ) ZeljanaMaricFerli | Mar 4, 2024 |  ) yates9 | Feb 28, 2024 | Really interesting slow moving story about an artifact from a distant world. Fascinating yet frustrating because Clarke gives the reader no more answers than the scientists can get in their brief rendezvous. I need to know more! ( ) hmonkeyreads | Jan 25, 2024 | [Audiobook note: I described to someone the narration as reminding of the Vulcan character Tuvok from Star Trek: Voyager, but having less emotion. Ganim gives the weirdest rhythm to this reading. And slow! I had to run the reader at 150% just to make it sound normal. (I typically listen to stuff at about 120% speed.) Obviously, the narration wasn't so bad as to make me abandon the book. But I will definitely think twice before buying anything Ganim narrates.] (  ) Treebeard_404 | Jan 23, 2024 | I may not read another Clarke novel. ( ) MXMLLN | Jan 12, 2024 | samba7 | Jan 1, 2024 | ) postsign | Dec 28, 2023 | ) Mrpaulyman | Dec 17, 2023 | ) Moon_Cthulhu | Nov 9, 2023 | ) LynnMPK | Oct 26, 2023 | I won't spoil anything here, but suffice it to say that nothing is as expected, and - while the book is marvellous as a kind of literary meditation on cultural differences, and timeless qualities of humanity - it most definitely leaves you wanting more. Surprisingly, Clarke hadn't really envisioned a sequel when he wrote it. Unsurprisingly, three would come to pass. Each of these would be a lesser novel than the one that came before, but they comprise a definite trilogy so I'd recommend either stopping after this book, or reading the whole series. ( ) therebelprince | Oct 24, 2023 | ) A.Godhelm | Oct 20, 2023 | This time, instead of actual aliens coming to Earth and a prophecy of how humanity will eventually evolve, in Rendezvous With Rama we have a large alien vessel entering the solar system on a path that will take it inside the orbit of Mercury, around the Sun, and then, is anyone's guess. Will it adjust it's trajectory, pull a breaking manouvre and find a stable orbit in the solar system, or will it use the Sun and sling shot elsewhere? Where did it come from, who sent it, who or what is inside, what is it's purpose? Set in a time when humans have colonised several planets and moons in the solar system and space flight is quite normal, we have one space ship -- the Endeavour, captained by a big fan of James Cook -- that is able to get some fuel and rendezvous with this vessel and investigate it. However, once the vessel has passed inside the orbit of Mercury, the Mercurians decide to take matters into their own hands and ignore what the rest of humanity has to say on the matter. As i say, this is a proper old school sci-fi first contact story at its best and well deserving of its place as a "SF Masterworks". ( ) 5t4n5 | Aug 9, 2023 | Not a ton of character development, or complex themes, just an amazing plot and an incredibly engrossing world and premise. The exploration of the ship named "Rama" was simply incredible, and full of mysteries. It was honestly mindblowing at times, and incredibly immersive. I never thought I was a huge fan of sci-fi, but Clarke is changing my tune on that. ( ) Andjhostet | Jul 4, 2023 | I won't try to give a synopsis - there are plenty out there - but will say that this "first contact" science fiction was unlike any other I have read. ( ) leslie.98 | Jun 27, 2023 | ) endolith | Mar 1, 2023 | So, why didn't it get five stars?. I'm growing more demanding, I suppose. I want everything. Not only do I want new concepts, but also a nice story and some interesting characters, while here the characters were absolutely flat and interchangeable. I want the same book, but written with twice the amount of pages and with some characters that seem human. ( ) NachoSeco | Oct 10, 2022 | Inkább tetszett, mint nem. Clarke mesterien adagolja az információkat és tartja vissza őket az idegenekről, és nagyon szórakoztató az is, ahogy beúsztatja a cselekménybe, hogy a regény idejére (2130 után járhatunk) miképp változott meg földi civilizáció (bigámia, telepesek a Merkúron, miegymás**). A technikai részleteket viszont gyakorlatlan sci-fi-élvezőként néha untam, és vért izzadtam, amíg felfogtam az ominózus gigászi űrhajó belső terének geográfiáját. Nem tudom, ha szűz szemmel néztem volna, ha nem láttam volna már kismillió jóval ingergazdagabb tudományos-fantasztikus filmet, talán még jobban szerettem volna. * Vajon hogy döntik el ilyenkor a szerzők, hogy a Föld melyik pontját pusztítsák el? Megpörgetik a földgömböt, és belevágnak három lépésről egy dartsot? ** Mondjuk azon erőst csodálkoztam, hogy ezek a hipiszupi űrhajósok a bitang nagy (úgy 50 kilométeres) űrhajóbelsőben mindenhová gyalog járnak… ha meg akarnak nézni valamit, hát elkutyagolnak megnézni, még egy drónjuk sincs, amit odaküldhetnének, hogy egyáltalán érdemes-e koptatni a lábat. ( ) Kuszma | Jul 2, 2022 | The best parts of RwR are all those that involve Rama itself and its investigation; fortunately, these occupy most of the text. As the crew of the Endeavour experience each step into Rama, and every new object and circumstance associated with it, the reader shares them vicariously; also, the brief window of opportunity allowed by the shared orbit prevents Clarke and the story from wallowing in unnecessary side-plots (a trait I wish more current authors would adopt). Best of all is the indifference the human explorers meet: Rama's own story lies elsewhere. However, sticking points in RwR are Clarke's shibboleths written large. His characters are thin, yes. What's much more galling and artificial is that once again Clarke shows that _who_ his characters are was always less important to him than _what_ they are. Clarke finds it necessary to identify the doctor as "Surgeon Commander" throughout the book instead of "Dr. Ernst" or even "Laura." Likewise, we have "Commander Norton," every other officer or sergeant by rank, and the litter of Honourable Mr Ambassadors, Professor Doctors, and Sirs that make up odious advisory committees. Clarke loved ranks, he loved titles, and he could not perceive a world in which use of such titles was not compulsory. Sorry, but people don't really _talk_ that way. A final bone to pick concerns a minor thread in RwR, one Clarke may have been encouraged to include by the publisher for length and texture, but one that presents such an ethical violation that I doubt it would see print today. It seems the Space Survey has genetically engineered a slave population of sterile primates for use as menial labor aboard ships. They have no rights, cannot speak, are fully expendable (conditions for euthanising them is clearly discussed), and are somehow more cost-efficient than bots or drones. Actually, the crew have NO bots, drones, or RC tools or toys of any kind: why is that? Even Jacques Cousteau used RC cameras. Maybe GMO slaves made it all more science-fictiony? Shame on you, Clarke. Altogether, this still rates a solid 3.5 because what female characters there are are pretty cool and capable, because Jimmy Pak is a fun character, and Rama remains among the Most Bodacious BDOs in the SF canon. (  ) MLShaw | Mar 25, 2022 | Spoilers below! A interesting book, written for the seventies, but with a message about sustainability! Enjoyable, but with many plot lines that didn't seem to go anywhere or get explanation. Simps for example - quite a lot of background for a group of characters that never really feature, but are just window dressing. The 'Ramans' never pitch up, just their domestic 'eco' robots.So we have an alien encounter...without the aliens! Quite a masterful plot device. All in all an enjoyable excursion. By today's standards quite a basic story. Lots of description, but not a lot of story.lots of loose ends, but I see there are 3 'sequels'. Worth reading, but a little frustrating. ( ) Sandman-1961 | Mar 6, 2022 | ) ragwaine | Mar 4, 2022 | Space explorers and planet-bound scientists alike prepare for mankind's first encounter with alien intelligence. It will kindle their wildest dreams...and fan their darkest fears. For no one knows who the Ramans are or why they have come. And now the moment of rendezvous awaits - just behind a Raman airlock door. (  ) Gmomaj | Feb 5, 2022 | It is certainly the best one that I have read, and its impact remains undiminished after several re-readings. Arthur C Clarke's supremacy as a writer of science fiction lies, to my mind, in his ability to describe fantastic events, scenarios and phenomena in clear, accessible prose that enables even the scientific layman (such as myself) to appreciate the marvels he describes. Clarke also had a gift for mingling the magical with the almost mundane, which always lends that extra verisimilitude to his books. Rendezvous with Rama is set in 2130, and opens with the discovery of what appears to be a new asteroid trundling through the outer reaches of the solar system. This is, in itself, of little moment until astronomers notice that it appears to be perfectly symmetrical, and moving abnormally quickly. As every available resource is directed to studying this celestial visitor it becomes apparent that it is not a natural object at all but a huge cylinder, fifty kilometres long and thirty kilometres across. The human race finally has to come to terms with the fact that it is, at long last, about to encounter another civilisation. The manned solar survey vessel Endeavour, under Commander Bill Norton, is sent to study Rama, as it is the only ship close enough to do so during the brief period that Rama will spend in our solar system. Endeavour manages to rendezvous with Rama one month after the spaceship first comes to Earth's attention, by which time the alien ship is already within the orbit of Venus. Norton and his crew find it surprisingly easy to gain entry to Rama through one of a series of triple airlocks. Indeed, they soon come to realise that everything in Rama is done in threes. Once inside, they are faced with a vast internal landscape laid out across the internal surface of the cylinder, including a band around the centre of the craft which they soon recognise as ice. This is dubbed the Cylindrical Sea. One bonus is that the atmosphere within Rama is breathable, which facilitates wider exploration. Their time in Rama is limited as there is no way that the Endeavour could survive going too close to the sun, and will have to depart within about a month of landing there. The nature and purpose of Rama, and the identity and home of its creators remain enigmatic throughout the book. The astronauts discover several features, including "cities" (odd blocky shapes that look like buildings, and streets with shallow trenches in them, looking like trolley car tracks) that actually served as factories and seven massive cones at the southern end of Rama – believed to form part of the propulsion system. Clarke maintains the reader's sense of awe throughout the book, partially because it is matched by that of the characters themselves as they continually discover new aspects of the wonders of Rama. Clarke also investigates the political and religious impact of this sudden manifestation of other civilised life elsewhere in the universe, with the colonies on Mercury, the Moon and Mars all having different responses to the presence of Rama. He even manages to throw in a fair amount of humour, and captures it all in just two hundred and fifty pages. An excellent novel, that was as compelling now as when I first read it mor than forty years ago. ( )2 Eyejaybee | Sep 14, 2021 | It starts off quickly, only a few chapters before you're on the ship. From there, you have situation after situation, describing how interesting the world that Clarke has built is and how the explorers react to it. The lack of a more specific antagonist becomes more of a problem towards then end, in that the book just sort of ends. There are various problems throughout the book, but no sense of building. I'm still not entirely sure how much I like this style. Overall though, I think it's a cool world and I want to know more. Given that the sequels were written many years later and co-written by an author with a somewhat different style (based on the forward in Rama II), it will be interesting to see how different they are. ( ) jpv0 | Jul 21, 2021 | It is the first in a four-book series, but it could also be thought of as the first half of a story. I felt somewhat incomplete with the way it ended, although it is as likely an ending as any. ( ) adamfortuna | May 28, 2021 | |
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It is certainly the best one that I have read, and its impact remains undiminished after several re-readings. Arthur C Clarke's supremacy as a writer of science fiction lies, to my mind, in his ability to describe fantastic events, scenarios and phenomena in clear, accessible prose that enables even the scientific layman (such as myself) to appreciate the marvels he describes.
Clarke also had a gift for mingling the magical with the almost mundane, which always lends that extra verisimilitude to his books. Rendezvous with Rama is set in 2130, and opens with the discovery of what appears to be a new asteroid trundling through the outer reaches of the solar system. This is, in itself, of little moment until astronomers notice that it appears to be perfectly symmetrical, and moving abnormally quickly. As every available resource is directed to studying this celestial visitor it becomes apparent that it is not a natural object at all but a huge cylinder, fifty kilometres long and thirty kilometres across. The human race finally has to come to terms with the fact that it is, at long last, about to encounter another civilisation.
The manned solar survey vessel Endeavour, under Commander Bill Norton, is sent to study Rama, as it is the only ship close enough to do so during the brief period that Rama will spend in our solar system. Endeavour manages to rendezvous with Rama one month after the spaceship first comes to Earth's attention, by which time the alien ship is already within the orbit of Venus. Norton and his crew find it surprisingly easy to gain entry to Rama through one of a series of triple airlocks. Indeed, they soon come to realise that everything in Rama is done in threes.
Once inside, they are faced with a vast internal landscape laid out across the internal surface of the cylinder, including a band around the centre of the craft which they soon recognise as ice. This is dubbed the Cylindrical Sea. One bonus is that the atmosphere within Rama is breathable, which facilitates wider exploration. Their time in Rama is limited as there is no way that the Endeavour could survive going too close to the sun, and will have to depart within about a month of landing there.
The nature and purpose of Rama, and the identity and home of its creators remain enigmatic throughout the book. The astronauts discover several features, including "cities" (odd blocky shapes that look like buildings, and streets with shallow trenches in them, looking like trolley car tracks) that actually served as factories and seven massive cones at the southern end of Rama – believed to form part of the propulsion system.
Clarke maintains the reader's sense of awe throughout the book, partially because it is matched by that of the characters themselves as they continually discover new aspects of the wonders of Rama. Clarke also investigates the political and religious impact of this sudden manifestation of other civilised life elsewhere in the universe, with the colonies on Mercury, the Moon and Mars all having different responses to the presence of Rama. He even manages to throw in a fair amount of humour, and captures it all in just two hundred and fifty pages. An excellent novel, that was as compelling now as when I first read it mor than forty years ago. (