Rating: 
Summary: Ad Maiorem Dei Gloriam
Review: In describing this book to friends, I found it extremely hard to classify. To describe it as a "Jesuits in Space" novel is as insulting as it is inadequate. Technically, it's sci-fi, which I don't tend to read very often, but it also covers anthropology, SETI, social commentary, commentary on the Catholic priesthood & monasticism, the inner workings of sacerdotal celibacy, and on Columbus and the subsequent ugliness that seems to be an inherent part of First Contact situations. Ultimately, though, I'd have to say it's a book about faith, done in such a way and to such a degree that it's not easily ignored. In fact, that's what I eventually had to tell my friends -- "You'll just have to trust me that it's worth reading."THE SPARROW had my interest within the first 20 pages, and by page 100, it had climbed to my Top 100 List. I thought the dual timeline helpful and interesting. I thought the characters were brilliantly done. Russell does a great job at showing the very intimate motivations of several characters, who manage somehow to be both deep and clever. In fact, very clever. The repartee between the characters is one of my favorite parts of the book. The only thing I can mention as a detraction was that so many characters die "off camera". I was not put off by it, but many readers might be. As for random observations: 1) The sequel, CHILDREN OF GOD, should be considered the second half of the same book. Definitely read it, and right after the first one. It's a question of symmetry. 2) This is a very disturbing book, but our lives are richer for having them disturbed in this way. 3) Any priest who quotes YOUNG FRANKENSTEIN at his own hearing is ok in my book.
Rating:
Summary: Amazing
Review: What a truly amazing book! I think it must be close to the best book I've ever read. Although it's classed as science fiction, it's better described as a book that examines the soul of man and the nature of faith, and I've never seen it done better. There will be people who don't "get" this book and will consider her writing juvenille in places but then again there are people who consider Picasso unskilled. Buy this book and enjoy.
Rating: 
Summary: Disgusting
Review: Yuck! What a revolting ending. Wish that I had not read the book at all. Trash. Mind in the gutter thinking. I will never read another book by this author. Wardrobe malfunction at superbowl was nothing compared to this book.
Rating:
Summary: Thought Provoking
Review: The Sparrow is an interesting and thought provoking book that sparks many questions and provides no easy answers. In addition, the characters are, for the most part, carefully and deeply written, and so intriguing that, while I read, I felt that they were alive and making decisions. Each person provided a part of the argument I have made to God at some point when I have questioned injustice, or God's guidance, or any number of spiritual, cosmic questions addressed by this book. The style of alternating the mission scenes with the scenes of attempting to deal with the fall out on Earth was effective in keeping the reader alert and attuned to the narrative and to the events as they unfolded and also, in a strange way, allowed the reader to experience some of Emilio's disjointed memories of his traumatic journey. All in all, a very powerful spiritual journey that lingers in the mind long after the book is closed.
Rating: 
Summary: Sparrow is clumsy and unbelievable
Review: I very much agree with the last review that said this is NOT a great book. I give it 3 stars because the author put some thought into some of the ideas. I found much of the dialogue to be pointless and mundane. When the dialogue attempts to be instructive to the reader, I found it both irritatingly simplistic and condescending at once. The story, although it explores some possibly interesting ideas, is completely unbelievable - although this is fine for science fiction writing, the author attempts to give it credibility via character development but it just falls flat.
The only suspense is wading through muddy moment after moment to find out what we already knew from the very beginning.
Rating:
Summary: Couldn't put it down.
Review: This book grabs you and throws you into the world of M.D.R's imagination. My wife read it after I was done with it and had to put it down because she became so attached to the characters and anticipated something terrible was going to happen! The Sparrow is the perfect combination of theory and imagination. You can tell M.D.R is very meticulous, focused and I longed to be a guest of Anne & George Edwards sitting alongside the entertaining & intellectual giants of tomorrow.
Rating:
Summary: Like nothing I've ever read before!
Review: Both THE SPARROW and its sequel (better explained as a companion novel) CHILDREN OF GOD are two of the most though-provoking books I've ever read. The plot centers on a team, led by a Jesuit priest, who go to another world after radio transmissions on Earth hear beautiful music coming from across the galaxy. In the second book, we learn more about what happened both on the new planet and on earth, from the points of view of various characters - including the alien civilization. The books are shocking and bold -- with shades of theology, philosophy, science and fiction blended into the books.
Rating:
Summary: Leaves you wanting more, and you should have gotten more
Review: The premise of the book is promising and intriguing, and certainly keens your interest through at least half the book. But somewhere near the middle, after the group reaches their destination, the dissapointment begins. There is little description of the flora and fauna of the alien planet, even though the reader has been chomping at the bit now for days to learn what it all looks like. Worse yet, shortly after the first contact with alien intelligent life, you are a little annoyed that the aliens' culture, living quarters, utensils, furniture, are all too familiar. They are reminiscent of native american culture, maybe pueblos or mayan. Shouldn't an alien culture be a bit more exotic, a bit more ...alien??? The writing is good, I admit, and there are marvelous passages in the book that left me thoughtful. The writing doesn't sprint at a clip but doesn't slog, either. You have the feeling that you need to read every sentence or you may miss something. Overall the character development is flat. You simply don't care about anyone except Emilio. Sofia is too perfect and too pretty and too cold. Jimmy is two-dimensional and D.W. is too much like Ross Perot. Anne approaches being a little more real, but George is barely a shadow of a man with no personality or motivation except to be Anne's faithful husband. Unfortunately because I didn't care about most of the characters I wasn't too saddened by their untimely death. And I agree with one reviewer who was disgusted by everyone's goody-two-shoed-ness.
I enjoyed reading this book, but theologically speaking, it was no Life of Pi. The religious tone was a bit heavy-handed at times. However, I like the theme that Russell claims for the book: do your best and you may still get screwed. Oh, and don't expect God to micromanage your life. He's just an observer, not a participant. The Jesuit's (esp Emilio's) fatal flaw was that they believed God had a hand in what was happening. Thus, they felt they could do no wrong, and no wrong could be done to them. Oops.
I recommend this book as good for plot, good for premise, good writing, but bad for hard-core sci fi fans or readers looking for characters to feel deeply about.
Rating:
Summary: Couldn't even finish it
Review: I bought this book to read for a book club, and I just couldn't finish it. Lord knows I tried. I'm not a science fiction fan, really, and I couldn't get my head around what I saw to be the basic premise of the book--to colonize outer space as the Jesuits had done to the Americas. Several people in my book group really liked it, but for my taste, it was not very good.
Rating:
Summary: Mary Doria Russell Masterclass
Review: Kids! Want to write like Mary Doria Russell? Just follow these simple rules, and you too could produce an SF best-seller!
1. Characters: every good story needs good characters, so make yours as <em>good</em> as possible. They should be selfless, kind, wise, warm, bright, and devastatingly competent. (Making them convincing is optional). To humanise your characters, make them swear a lot and talk about sex. Be sure to make one of them autobiographical. Hopefully your readers won't notice that these paragons speak and behave like juveniles much of the time.
2. Religion: spread this on really thick. See how many priests you can work into the story. You should aim to suffuse your story with a pious glow, which will make your readers (particularly the religious ones) reluctant to be critical. Hopefully they won't notice that your theology is shaky.
3. Wit: everyone likes wit, and it will help carry your readers through the long, tedious parts of your book. Unfortunately, you need to be witty to write it, so you'll probably have to fake it instead. Have lots of scenes where one character says something supposedly sparklingly or earthily hilarious, and others literally collapse, breathless with laughter! Hopefully your readers won't notice that it just isn't that funny.
4. Aliens: there's no way around this, every "first contact" story needs aliens. This is a problem, because aliens are, well, <em>alien</em>. They're hard to write, and, if you do it well, their alienness distracts from your human characters. So just make them furry people with a few odd habits, and hope that your readers won't mind.
5. Science: don't worry about it. Nobody cares about that stuff!
6. Horror: no writer likes to hear that people couldn't finish their book, so you need to hold out the promise of some juicy horror to keep them slogging on until the bitter end. For extra shock value, hint at a sordid sexual element. When the truth is finally revealed, half of your readers will be revolted, while the other half will be disappointed, but at least they'll have stuck with you until the last chapter.
Finally, find yourself a pliant editor, and you're all set!
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