Rating: 
Summary: Highly Imaginative and Engrossing
Review: A terrific novel even for people who do not usually read science fiction. It develops intriguing characters and places them in a unique world. You will care about them and be tempted to read more in the sequel - Children of God. The sequel does not measure up, but do treat yourself to this one - it's a classic.
Rating: 
Summary: A science fiction novel written by da Vinci
Review: The most impressive aspect of this novel is its learned nature. The reader gets the impression the author knows EVERYTHING about all subjects, from Jesuit theology to evolutionary biology. Unfortunately the plot is handled in a too-facile manner. I was ready to make this my favorite book in the world until the last handful of chapters.I sincerely hope Ms Russell writes more, and I look forward to a five-star book.
Rating: 
Summary: The Sparrow Does Not Soar
Review: After a promising beginning, this novel became more than deeply disappointing, I was angered that I wasted my time reading it. Set in the future, the story centers about a failed Jesuit mission to a newly discovered, inhabited planet. If the author's intent was to thoroghly gross out her readers by sketchy discriptions of the abominable acts that occur there, she succeeded. If it was to provide intellectual, thought-provoking material, she failed dismally. I do not recommend this book to anyone.
Rating:
Summary: An Imaginative and Beautiful Journey with 3D characters...
Review: I found this book to be a bit slow in the beginning, but with the prodding of the person who recommended it, I did not give up. The author spent a good deal of time and energy building up what turned out to be the most detailed, and three dimensional characters I've absorbed through words in a very long time. I could half imagine myself sitting down for a game of poker with them. They are distinct, and real, as if she modeled the people from her own family and friends (if so, I envy her). The story is creative, amazingly intricate, believable and if I haven't said this before (which I have).. beautiful. I did not walk away from the book want for anything -- except for it not to stop. I'm no great fan of preachy religious stories, but I found the religious facet of the book unimposing, and well developed. Being half Puerto Rican, I can also appreciate the author's touches with the principal character Emilio Sandoz. Of course, the characters of Anne and George were probably my favourite, and will probably become yours -- making me wish, at least that I had family like THAT. It is an EXCELLENT book. And ENTIRELY worth the short expanse of time it took to wait for the story to 'pick up'. I give it my highest recommendation for sci-fi occasionals and sci-fi buffs alike. A+
Rating:
Summary: Sci-fi that reads like normal fiction
Review: It's not the norm for a sci-fi novel to have this much characterization but it's a trend I would like to see followed by other authors. The only problem was that all the characterization left little room for the story. If you're looking for a space opera or even for hard sci-fi I would say this is not the place to look. It took a long time for the characters to get to the planet and when they did, they didn't really do much exploring and had only minimal contact with one of the more interesting races of aliens. Here's my biggest problem with the novel. From the beginning you know that everyone dies except for Emilo (no problem) and then for 300+ pages Mrs. Russell builds up the characters, supposably so when they die it will strongly affect the reader. THEN she tells of their deaths in this non-detailed second-hand account that totally loses all the feeling. I expected to be crying while reading about these people dying but instead it was more like a minor detail. It could have been the MOST dramatic scene in the entire book but instead it was only an aside. It was still a great book, but it could have been unforgettable...
Rating:
Summary: A STUDY IN BLACK
Review: First book of Mary Doria Russell, THE SPARROW is a very interesting first novel. It's not a book destined solely to science-fiction aficionados, the near-future presented being a future that a reader of the year 2000 is able to accept without an intense intellectual effort. The characters of THE SPARROW are well developed and one cares about the fears, the hopes and the disillusions of the passengers of the STELLA MARIS. The structure of the book is also to be praised ; THE SPARROW is a long confession of a jesuit priest to his superior, the reader waiting impatiently that Emilio Sandoz regains enough forces to explain what has happened during his interstellar trip. One can also appreciate this book for its political study of an extraterrestrial society or for the subtle analysis of the moral crisis of a mystic priest. In fact, THE SPARROW is so dense (for a science-fiction book, I mean) that each one of us will find in it pages that are going to ravish him. That's the best compliment that I can pay to this novel.
Rating: 
Summary: A lot to admire about this book
Review: It's obvious from the first pages of this novel that Mary Doria Russell has a very strong command of English. The writing is simply beautiful and a pleasure to read. The themactic concerns of the novel are also very strong and well played out. It certainly gave this reader some haunting things to think about, both during the read and even after finishing. Bravo, Ms. Russell! I think the weakness of the novel centers around two areas. First, the scientific foundations for an interstellar mission and then the remarkable similarities of this planet to "Anytown USA" are distracting to the point of almost making this reader want to close the novel. Elegant prose kept me going. Granted, this "new world" she created for her Jesuit explorers was no easy task of fiction writing and she even goes so far to say in her comments at the back of the book that if she could have found a way to make her point without going off-world, she would have. Still, I think this novel should be considered soft Science-Fiction as I expect any true Sci-Fi buff would be disappointed. The second issue is that the novel is written in an almost journalistic fashion. That is, the reader never has the pleasure of traveling to this strange planet with the author. There is a consistent, albeit intentional, distance between the reader and the storyline that makes it a less enjoyable read than it might have otherwise been. For example, instead of having the reader experience the death of several of the characters, their demise is narrated by another character in a postmortem type of discussion. This reader was far too conscious that he was reading rather than feeling the heart-pounding event as if swallowed by the story. This writing style, combined with the dual timeline nature of the narrative that allows the reader to know the novel's ending from the beginning, made it a little too easy for me to leave the book on the coffee table and go to bed at the normal hour. Still, a very good first novel and I suspect that Ms. Russell may have more and better tales to tell us.
Rating:
Summary: Riveting, intellectual, spiritual, thought provoking....
Review: Reading this book was a enriching, rewarding experience for me. As with most books, it isn't for everyone. I was looking for a little lighter read, since I've been reviewing books on death and dying and the Holocaust. Silly me - but I am so glad I made the mistake of thinking this would be an escape from the ultra serious! This is definitely not a light read and in fact, it hits on many of the issues I've been exploring - the existence and function of God, the meaning of life, the use of suffering and healing, the delicacy and necessity of human relationships. The story switches between the year 2019 - the US has lost its primary position as a world leader to Japan, marketers search the streets looking for ghetto kids with intellectual skills to groom and sell as indentured servants - and the year 2060, when a Jesuit priest is under examination for sins he is assumed to have committed while on a mission to a New World - Rakhat a planet far away from here. We see Father Emilio Sandoz before the journey (2019) as he initiates this venture, traveling with characters so well written, I started to believe they were real. Dr. Anne and her husband, George; the recently freed indentured planner, Sofia; the young man who discovered the existence of the other world, Jimmy Quinn; D.W., their grumpy Jesuit leader. Two other characters are less developed, but make nice backdrop for this riveting story. The book was a little difficult to get into at the start, not because of the writing, but because of the promise of horrors to come. How could this priest, so filled with life in 2019, be so horribly disfigured (did I really want to read the gruesome details?) And how could he have ended up a prostitute, and then murdered a child? Note: These are not spoilers -- this is information freely given at the start of the story, a hook that pulls the reader in. To find out, the reader follows Sandoz' slow recovery, sees his bitterness and anger in his interaction with the community who is interrogating him in the year 2060, after he has been rescued and returned from Rakhat. Sandoz questions the intimate, passionate connection he'd had with God - and the reader is led to question some assumptions about God, quite similar to those raised by the Holocaust. (Isn't God supposed to deliver us from evil if we do all the right stuff?) A science fiction tale, a mystery, a spiritual quest, a sociological and anthropology exploration, this book would be an excellent choice for a group to read and discuss. It is also great for the inquisitive mind of the solo reader. As for me, I hated to put it down. I read it as often as I could, and almost wept when it was done (sort of Harry Potter for this grown-up!) After writing this review, I'm off to order the sequel, Children of God.
Rating:
Summary: Science and ethics mixed
Review: A beautiful combination of good science and moral dilemmas. The characters were so believable, they became my friends. I cared what happened to them. A suspenseful tale! Science-fiction lovers must read it.
Rating:
Summary: The Sparrow
Review: I reluctantly started this book only because it was the choice made by our book club member. After quickly becoming engrossed, I realized this was a book like no other I had read. The characters were vivid and the story endlessly imaginative. Nearly every day, an idea from the book somehow enters conversations I am in, or thoughts in which I engage. Our club read it nearly a year ago, and it is mentioned in every meeting. It has stayed with us all, and the ripples it has had by each one of us recommending it have spread far. The sequel is even better, as it does explain some of the loose ends in The Sparrow.
| 
