Rating: 
Summary: Imaginative but read Neutron Star first
Review: This book was my first introduction to Larry Niven's Known Spac series. While I conceed that Ringworld is incredibly imaginative, the book does lack characterization and forward plot movement. It was not a fast read and I didn't understand enough of the geography of the setting. I often found myself wishing Ringworld was a visual experience rather than literary. I would have given up on Known Space if I didn't happen to pick up Neutron Star at a used bookstore. I don't think Ringworld is a proper introduction to Known Space - its too confusing. I give it four stars because while weak on its own, it nicely complements the other novels in the Known Space series which is the most imaginative, well-contructed and original universe in science-fiction. I love Known Space, its utterly fascinating! Too bad the number of Known Space books got so large that the framework became too unwieldly for Niven to work with. I also wanted to comment on the several references to Frank Herbert on this forum. While I love Dune, I think any Frank Herbert comparisons are unfair. After, all Niven's a hard science-fiction writer, he doesn't even belong to the same school as Herbert. His books have their own vitality. Also, I didn't find the sexual content to be gratuitous - there are no graphic descriptions. The sex is strictly PG-13.
Rating:
Summary: A Classic - Larry Niven at his best
Review: A mysterious (and mad) stranger offers a rich prize to an apparently mismatched crew, if they will undertake a dangerous mission to a strange land - the Ringworld.Far from a typical adventure yarn, Ringworld is a landmark science fiction story. The worlds and cultures, the future human history, and the technology conceived for this book (and for other related Known Space stories) are a major achievement of imagination. Larry Niven has a gift for making them all fit and work together into a cohesive and enjoyable whole. The exploration of the Ringworld, a massive artifact of mysterious origins, forms the backdrop for a further exploration of the history and the cultures in Larry Niven's Known Space series. Ringworld provides insights and intriguing clues about the two principal alien species of the novel, the Kzin and the Puppeteers, and the history of their interactions with the human race. The creation of alien viewpoints and personalities is exceptionally well handled here. Nessus and Speaker-to-Animals are credible characters with unique viewpoints. I was particularly pleased with the handling of the warrior culture of the Kzin. Speaker-to-Animals is aggressive and proud, but also intelligent, articulate and judicious. Contrast this with the one dimensional, noble but simple minded Klingons of Star Trek NG. Ringworld has my recommendation. Other Larry Niven books worth reading include Neutron Star and Protector. I don't recommend Ringworld Engineers, the sequel to this book.
Rating: 
Summary: Good, but not too good
Review: Larry Niven's Ringworld is a generally enjoyable but somewhat odd novel. I wish I could say it was odd in a good way, but I thought some of the ideas were just bizarre, but lacking any useful insight. The basic story is that two humans and two other creatures of other alien species go off to investigate a strange ring shaped construction surrounding a distant star. It turns out, of course, to be a ring world, sort of like a partially completed Dyson sphere. It spins around for gravity, and is made to resemble the surface of a planet on its inner surface. Then the travelers hit spots of bad luck, and things happen, then more bad luck, and more things happen, and so forth. Ah, but what is bad luck? This is where Ringworld gets a bit strange, since there are extensive discussions on whether there is a luck gene, and how it would manifest itself both for the holder and the holder's companions. Needless to say, one of the characters is supposed to have the luck gene (it's not a surprise, since it is revealed early, but it's not worth mentioning who it is now). Suffice to say, the structure of the story depends on deciphering just how this pesky gene is acting. Frankly, I found this novelty a bit silly. There are good strange ideas in science fiction and there are bad strange ideas. I can't put the luck breeding idea into the good category. Perhaps later books in the series present it in greater detail, or perhaps they ignore all further work on the topic. I can't honestly say I care, though I would not be averse to reading more of the books. Ringworld itself was basically entertaining, and with enough hard science fiction to keep purists happy. Beyond that, though, there's nothing special here to make Ringworld stand out as more than a pleasing casual read.
Rating:
Summary: Bizarre, but worth reading
Review: Having just finished reading Ringworld, I'm still trying to sort out how I feel about it. There's one thing that I can say for certain: it's totally different from any other science fiction novel that I've read recently. If I tried to describe the premise of this book, it would sound absurd. However, Ringworld is not an attempt at comedy. At the same time, it isn't really a typical work of hard science fiction. It's set in the far future, and takes place mostly among civilizations run by aliens who possess amazing technology. However, there's not much attempt to explain how the technology works. For instance, we learn that the aliens can move entire planets, but we never find out how they do it. The story concerns a team of two humans and two aliens who crash-land on a gigantic ring in a distant star system. The ring is millions of times larger than the Earth, and was clearly built by some very advanced society. Most of the novel concerns their exploration of the ring itself. However, very little time is spent on action or fighting scenes. Instead, there is a great deal of description. The creativity that Niven uses in creating the Ringworld is probably the novel's biggest strength. Another concept that makes this work an original is the explanation of the relationships between humans and different alien species. This isn't a stereotypical us vs them adventure story, but it isn't a feel good, everybody works together scenario like Star Trek either. As I said, the ideas would sound silly if I listed them here, but Niven takes them seriously and works them into the story quite well. Ringworld is an easy read, and at 350 pages, it's shorter and flows better than many SF novels. Other have complained that the character development is poor, but characters aren't supposed to be the main focus of Ringworld. Finally, let me just add that you don't need to have read any of Niven's previous works to enjoy this one. I'd never even heard of him until I picked this book up.
Rating:
Summary: A possible solution for overpopulation...and a fun narrative
Review: Even fans of Larry Niven will be awed by the stirring vision he presents in Ringworld. A band of six hundred million miles in length and a million miles wide is set in orbit around the sun. Although obviously manufactured by an advanced alien civilization, it is discovered by an exploration team to be utterly devoid of intelligent life. Headed by the swashbuckling Louis Wu, the crew sets out on a laborious trek to expose the mystery of the immense ring's existence. When their journey finally brings them face to face with an entirely primitive humanoid race living in the ruins of a highly-developed metropolis, Wu senses that the solution is all but imminent. Yet little does he know what unapparent mighty forces are secretly at work on the Ringworld. Despite the book's surrealistic appearance, its idea is based on a distinct scientific possibility. But even though merging a discernible amount of fact with the fiction, Niven ensures a primarily entertaining read with his playful characters and settings.
Rating: 
Summary: A complete waste of time...
Review: This book is a fine example of the kind of scifi I don't like. It's completely nonsensical(is that a word?) and incoherent. It's like the author wrote out what he had dreamt or something exactly as he dreamed it. I suppose if you like science fantasy like hitchhikers guide to the galaxy then you would probably like this,, but fans of military sci fi or 'honest' sci fi I think wouldn't like it. I don't understand why it's considered some kind of great classic myself, it was awful. No offense Larry.
Rating:
Summary: Things that make you go hmm....
Review: Some sci-fi stories make psychological and social exploration their dominant them, others focus on scientific/technological themes. "Ringworld" has both elements, but it is unquestionably the scientific/technological that gives this story its strength. The heart this work is the presentation of the "Ringworld" itself, a manufactured world millions of times bigger than Earth, a technological accomplishment truly mind-boggling in its sheer size and audacity. A huge part of any sci-fi stories' strength is what I call the "what if?" factor, the introduction of a new, or freshly presented, idea that really gives you food for thought. Niven's development of Ringworld itself and his idea of luck as a sort of psychic power has succeeded in this respect. I give "Ringworld" 4 stars: it's good, but not THAT good---it's the concept of the Ringworld itself that gives the story its real strength. I think the character development, though adequate for the book's purpose, could have been stronger. I was also a little non-plussed with the powerful sphere of influence finally attributed to "luck."
Rating: 
Summary: Good, but I wanted more.
Review: I liked this book a lot. Niven's aliens are some of the most creative I have ever encountered in s.f., particularly Nessus. However the story should have been much longer and more fleshed out. I hope I'm not over "Tolkienized", but I like background and explanations. Also, the author needed to make me care more about the characters. Still, it was a lot of fun and I plan to read Ringworld Engineers.
Rating:
Summary: A great classic
Review: Ringworld is a marvellously inventive story - two humans and two Aliens, a cariverous, Cat-like kzin and a herbiverous puppeteer - set out to explore a vast world built in a ring around a sun, with a surface area of billions of square miles on which all kinds of societies can flourish. Niven is a trained mathematician, and it makes the story more satisfying that the maths are worked out plausibly. It deserves its many awards for sheer non-stop inventiveness and action. The characters are plausible and fascinating, too. There is a website "Known space", devoted to Niven's works, if anybody doesn't know, and a brilliant new book of the wars of humans and Kzin, The Wunder War, set in the same universe, published recently. There have been two sequels to "Ringworld" published and another due out soon.
Rating:
Summary: Greatest Work of all time.
Review: Ringworld is by far the best book I have ever read, that along with its sequel are my absolute favorite works from any author, throughout all time. Insane? Maybe, Exadurate? I dare not. This book is simply THAT good. I read it for the first time when I was twelve and was simply blown away, now years later, I picked it up again over a weekend and could NOT stop reading it untill I was finished. Niven is a god amungst men.
All hail!
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