Rating: 
Summary: Still Good
Review: If you enjoy Arthur C. Clarke's style of writng, then this is another interesting book. But compared against contemporary sci-fi, it is slow and lean.
Rating: 
Summary: An old friend, and still a great read
Review: In my youth, when I started reading SF, I was never a major devotee of Arthur C. Clarke; I was mostly into Heinlein and Asimov. But I read this one when it was first published (1973) and I liked it so well I kept the hardback for years and years.I'm not sure what finally happened to it, but at any rate I've just recently gotten around to replacing it. And the story is still as great a read as it was when it was new. I can't claim to have read everything Clarke ever wrote, but this is certainly the best of his works that I _have_ read. Other reviewers have pointed out, entirely correctly, that this isn't a book to read for character development. That's true of Clarke's books in general, I think, but it's especially apt here, where the 'star' of the book is an artifact of an alien civilization. In fact, even the 'star' doesn't get a lot of development, since in the end it remains deeply mysterious. (I don't know what happens in the sequels; I haven't read them and I haven't heard good things about them. I'm treating this as a standalone work.) But man, if you want to read a gripping, haunting story about the first human exploration of a space probe (or something) from an extraterrestrial civilization -- and if you want to watch the exploration process unfold and feel as though you're participating in the discovery yourself -- then this is a book for you. This is what Clarke does best: when you read a story through his eyes, you're looking outward at the objects of scientific investigation, and helping yourself to a chunk of the intellectual wonder and joy that goes with such investigation. The excitement here is the excitement of hard science, not of character development. If that's what you want, you'll probably love this book.
Rating: 
Summary: That don't impress me much...
Review: In the immortal words of Shania Twain- "that don't impress me much". I first read Clarke's "2001" when I was maybe 12 years old and it just blew me away. I read that book many times. However, I never was motivated to read any other Clarke books. Recently I stumbled upon an Amazon "end of the world" book list and saw "Childhood's End" (CE) on the list (along with classics like "Earth Abides", "Alas, Babylon", etc.). Anyhoo, I read CE and was quite moved. It was pretty awesome- the scope and the ideas. So then I moved on to "Rendezvous with Rama". All I can say about this one is that I felt none of the emotions that I experienced with CE. This is just a nuts and bolts story. There's really not anything in here that awes/terrifies/humbles me.
If you like this kind of stuff, I suggest you read Frank Tipler's "The Physics of Immortality". That book has some ideas that will REALLY boggle your mind.
Rating:
Summary: Exceptional hard science fiction
Review: It has been a while since I read Rama, but I am writing this review as I prepare to reread the series that gripped me so intensely the first time around. This is a style that is not for everyone. If you are looking for romance or character driven fiction you are looking in the wrong place. If what fascinates you is how far we have come as a civilization and what our technology is capable of discovering, of how curious we are, of how far we will go into the void to get answers to our questions, then this IS FOR YOU!! This series describes a world within our grasp, of technology in our future... the alien technology is pure visionary... if we were ever to come face to face with even the remnants of an advanced civilization, would we ever even begin to realize how archaic we might be to them?
Humankind has reached a certain stage of intelligence... but there are many more tiers we have yet to reach. What of those much older than us who have had much longer to develop? What kind of artifacts would they leave behind? What could we learn from them, if anything at all? This is an exploration of contact with remnants of a more advanced race... I couldn't put it down. I recomend you pick it up.
Rating: 
Summary: very enjoyable book
Review: Rating System:
1 star = abysmal; some books deserve to be forgotten
2 star = poor; a total waste of time
3 star = good; worth the effort
4 star = very good; what writing should be
5 star = fantastic; must own it and share it with others STORY: It is huge, it weighs more than ten trillion tons and it is hurtling through the solar system at inconceivable speed. That is when man discovers it is an alien craft. Now begins the story of mans first contact with alien intelligence. MY FEEDBACK: This is a story of discovery, not character development or a bad guy to vanquish. This is an adventure that takes you through a wonderful and strange world. If you can go into it with that mindset you'll love this book. Like many "classic" sci-fi books this leaves you thinking about it afterwards. It is hard to say much about this book without giving anything away. Suffice it to say, this is about a team of brave individuals who dare the unknown.
The book is very easy to read and I finished it in a day and a half. I've heard that it isn't worth going on to the other books in the series, but to read only this one and enjoy it for what it is. I have to say, that the book is good to the very last line. Very nice ending in my opinion.
Rating:
Summary: A wonderful reading
Review: Recently I read this book again (after three years) and I felt as fascinated as the first time. When you read a Clark's book you always find a nice plot, a complete story merging people and facts in a credible "possible situation".
What would happen if suddenly our solar system (not the human race) is "visited" by some kind of alien ship (an enormous one) for the first time?.
In this book you won't find an advanced human technology with Universal translators and unthinkable space ships, but you will be introduced in a story where a group of space men (just a few decades more advanced than us) have to deal with the answer of one of the most ancient questions: Are we alone?. Of course that this answer has a deep implications in our lives and that's the main theme explored in the book: What we would think?, and, What we would do?
Again you will find supositions and explanations according to actual scientific knowledge without exaggerations about aliens languages, comunications, intentions, etc. A few examples:
* How could this enormous space ship travel so far and so fast (maybe since eons before we were born) without visible propulsion system? well, you'll enjoy a very nice discussion about space drives, newton's laws (action-reaction), gravity pulls and propulsion generated by an enormous sea inside the ship, etc. For me this is more interesting than some incredible warp drives and man-made wornholes (it's another theme).
* If the ship rotate a very high speed, how could be the gravity along all the ship. You will find seriuos explanations and suppositions about that.
* Mr. Clark takes you by the hand to explain the way that you would perceive the world inside a cylinder with a several kilometers radius.
* etc. This book is plenty of wonderful situations, discussion and facts with people like us, without super powers, without superior weapons, only a limited but growing knowledge that push them to the limits in a hypothetical situation in which the Earth is not the main interest for our visitors. You must read it. Definitely!
Rating:
Summary: imaginative and thoughtful
Review: Rendezvous With Rama by Arthur Clarke is one of the greatest pieces of creative fiction I've had the privilege to read in the last couple of years. I see why it is considered a classic. The story begins with the discovery that an interstellar object is approaching Earth at a great rate of speed. The rest of the book is centered on the exploration of this object; which is given the name Rama. Clarke demonstrates why he earned the reputation of being a grandmaster of science-fiction storytelling as he uses both suspense and *gasp* thoughtfulness to unfold this tale of discovery and exploration. I found the book to be very compellingly structured and told. Clarke's imaginative powers are in full force here. The Raman environment is spellbindingly fascinating. The background of Clarke's humans is equally intriguing. There are only hints of a dystopian human civilization that has apparently colonized other parts of the solar system while retaining adolescent political (the council on Rama, the inhabitants of Mercury) and sexual (The captain of the exploration team) views. One last thing before I give this book the recommendation it so richly deserves... I found the Raman "sea" to be one of the greatest ideas I have ever encountered in a science fiction book. And, as promised above--I give this book a ringing recommendation. Get a copy today.
Rating:
Summary: Spirit of Adventure
Review: Rendezvous with Rama is a wonderful book about an exploration into the unknown and the possibilities it brings. It's not so big on closure as it is the experience of the quest. But that does hamper the story a bit. Hopefully this is one that won't get the film treatment, because it probably wouldn't translate well.
Rating:
Summary: Same ingredients as CHILDHOOD'S END, but better result
Review: RENDEZVOUS WITH RAMA showcases a lot of things that must fascinate Arthur C. Clarke, or at least a lot of concepts that he likes revisiting in his fiction. Once again, we have mankind's first contact with extraterrestrials, human colonies on the moon and on other solar planets, academic and political in-fighting, and, of course, a healthy dose of science. But the ingredients do well together here. This is, as you surely already know, one of the so-called classic science fiction novels, yet I only just got around to reading it recently. I'm happy to say that it matched my expectations, both compared to other Clarke novels and to its own lofty reputation. An unknown object has entered Earth's solar system in the year 2130, and a rocket ship is dispatched to study this alien artifact (dubbed Rama) and report back on its findings. That sentence is a summary of almost the entire plot. But RENDEZVOUS WITH RAMA is not a story that is wholly concerned with plot. It's more a series of set pieces: the decision to explore, the examination of the immediate inside, the voyage across the interior's sea, etc. Each one is interesting on its own, but not all of them contribute much to the overall story. The purpose these set pieces serve is to invoke a sense of wonder at this unknowable alien object. I'm reminded of Jules Verne's voyage-type stories, where his protagonist(s) would become engaged in a multitude of individual adventures. But instead of exploring (and inventing) Earth's wonders, Clarke is showing us a completely fictional environment. It's quite fun. Clarke put most of his effort into creating this landscape, and it becomes the focus and centerpiece of the whole novel. This entire endeavor would flop completely if Clarke had been unable to sustain the suspense for the full length of the novel. But he does it. Character development is not one of this book's priorities. Too much time is spent developing the setting to provide us with people of any great depth. Clarke gets away with it here (while other science fiction novels have crashed and burned on this point) because he has set the book up as a mystery, with the setting as its question. Squandering time on the human characters would merely be a distraction, when all the reader is really interested in is Rama itself. RENDEZVOUS WITH RAMA is now over thirty years old, but this science fiction novel isn't showing its age (although some of the aside mentions of polygamous relationships are attempting to sound modern and forward-thinking, yet instead end up seeming rather quaint). I've heard mixed things about the sequels which follow on from the end of this book. Given how much I enjoyed the first in the series, I think I'll probably at least try one or two of them. Maybe I won't like them as much as I did RENDEZVOUS, but that's a high standard to reach.
Rating:
Summary: Same ingredients as CHILDHOOD'S END, but better result
Review: RENDEZVOUS WITH RAMA showcases a lot of things that must fascinate Arthur C. Clarke, or at least a lot of concepts that he likes revisiting in his fiction. Once again, we have mankind's first contact with extraterrestrials, human colonies on the moon and on other solar planets, academic and political in-fighting, and, of course, a healthy dose of science. But the ingredients do well together here. This is, as you surely already know, one of the so-called classic science fiction novels, yet I only just got around to reading it recently. I'm happy to say that it matched my expectations, both compared to other Clarke novels and to its own lofty reputation. An unknown object has entered Earth's solar system in the year 2130, and a rocket ship is dispatched to study this alien artifact (dubbed Rama) and report back on its findings. That sentence is a summary of almost the entire plot. But RENDEZVOUS WITH RAMA is not a story that is wholly concerned with plot. It's more a series of set pieces: the decision to explore, the examination of the immediate inside, the voyage across the interior's sea, etc. Each one is interesting on its own, but not all of them contribute much to the overall story. The purpose these set pieces serve is to invoke a sense of wonder at this unknowable alien object. I'm reminded of Jules Verne's voyage-type stories, where his protagonist(s) would become engaged in a multitude of individual adventures. But instead of exploring (and inventing) Earth's wonders, Clarke is showing us a completely fictional environment. It's quite fun. Clarke put most of his effort into creating this landscape, and it becomes the focus and centerpiece of the whole novel. This entire endeavor would flop completely if Clarke had been unable to sustain the suspense for the full length of the novel. But he does it. Character development is not one of this book's priorities. Too much time is spent developing the setting to provide us with people of any great depth. Clarke gets away with it here (while other science fiction novels have crashed and burned on this point) because he has set the book up as a mystery, with the setting as its question. Squandering time on the human characters would merely be a distraction, when all the reader is really interested in is Rama itself. RENDEZVOUS WITH RAMA is now over thirty years old, but this science fiction novel isn't showing its age (although some of the aside mentions of polygamous relationships are attempting to sound modern and forward-thinking, yet instead end up seeming rather quaint). I've heard mixed things about the sequels which follow on from the end of this book. Given how much I enjoyed the first in the series, I think I'll probably at least try one or two of them. Maybe I won't like them as much as I did RENDEZVOUS, but that's a high standard to reach.
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