Rating: 
Summary: the best sci fi concept ever!
Review: OK , let me give it to you plain and simple.
This is the best science fiction concept EVER!!! But wait, there's more! This book trancends the label of " science fiction". It is also part biography , part history novel, part adventure, part damn good read!
Critics of the book mainly get all caught up in the fact that the writing is perhaps not as brilliant in a literary way as the great authors. But you need to give Farmer a bit of leeway here.The great authors could never have come up with a concept like this, and sustain the excitement throughout the novel. It is also very well researched and he brings characters like Sir Richard Francis Burton and Alice Hargreaves back to life. The concept is also so incredibly grand and breathtaking, that it would really take 20 books to do it justice, so Farmer is doing the best he can in one short book, and the trade off is that the pace just keeps you on the edge of your seat.
Do yourself a favour and read this book!!!
Rating: 
Summary: Hype, Plot, and Nothing Else to It!
Review: To be honest, the writing style of this book is enough to make any seasoned reader wince with frustration. Simply put: it is pitiful. The characters are so cardboard that they are not even two-dimensional characters; they are one-dimensional. They are clearly acting out of the author's motives, and have no motives of their own. One can literally see the clunky mechanics behind them, it is quite sad. They have sudden bursts of wisdom and understanding that they could not possibly have, and there is so much data-dumping that often one gets the feel of reading an encyclopedia entry. They also see to be speaking with the same voice: that would be the author's voice. Another thing was the way he handled descriptions. He simply gave off exact details in absolutely no order. One of the most importiant things in description is putting the details in an order (e.g. up to down, left to right, near to far) that is accessible to the reader. Farmer ignored this primary rule, and as a result it came out as unsortable. It is alright to break the rules, but one has to know how to break them. In his inept hands, the writing of the book is garbage, and he only embarrases himself and falls flat upon his face in mud. He was also far to exact to leave any room whatsoever to the imagination of the reader. Do I really care that the guy's nose was exactly three and half centimetres long or that the objects were spaced five and a quartet inches apart? I often had the impression that the characters carried measuring sticks about with them. Another thing was that he switched from the Metric System to the American Measuring System. That is called inconsistency. There is also rampant sexism. When Burton said that he did not care much for woman's brains, I nearly threw the book across the room, but lucky for the book it did not belong to me. Besides, in a society where there was no pregnancy, the whole male-domination thing would not have happened. For some reason, Farmer seems to think that women were only there for one function and I will leave it at that. Anyone with any sence would be appaled by this [...junk] just as I was. It is due to people like him with attitudes like that, that women had to endure thousands of years of riddicue and suffering. It was simply unacceptable to find views such of his in a book in this modern, civilized age. The only things that kept me reading to the end was that it was quite short for a novel, and the plot was original enough that I just wanted to see what it developed to in the end. And in the end there was no reward for my time enduring his ill-wrought pose, and I do not feel like investing more time to read another volume. Trust me, you do not want to repeat my mistake and waste your time on this book too. Had I the option, this would have received negative stars. This was hands-down the single worst book that I have read, and the worst book that could ever be produced, ever. And one last question: How in the name of goodness did this ever manage to get published? It is so maddening that this can be published, when there are far better authors out there slaving away who do not receive any recognition. Where were the editors? Asleep? Hypnotized? It is sad that such a book ever won any awards- but hey, if this is the cream of the crop, I hate to even imagine how bad the terrible books are.
Rating:
Summary: Summary: Book 1 = Good. Series = Bad. VERY Bad.
Review: You already know the premise: Humanity reincarnated on the shores of a river 20 million miles long. Unique spin on life-after-death, and the first book (To Your Scattered Bodies Go) is good enough to make you want to read more. The snippets of 'something bigger' looms large throughout the series and much of the good writing and story telling carries through into the second book (The Fabulous Riverboat). There is, of course, a requisite amount of 'cheese' that you must eat, but not so much that you get a stomachache. If you make it through book 2, STOP THERE! If you continue on this little 'adventure' you are destined for a profound disappointment, as the story is seemingly more compelling, but descends into an ever-increasing series of convenient coincidences, plot shortcuts, and a finale that is ultimately such a hack job that I wish I could slap the author (Philip Jose Farmer) and sue him for false advertising. Book 3 and 4 ('The Dark Design' and 'The Magic Labyrinth' respectively) are an abomination! Never mind the gratuitous follow-up 'The Gods of Riverworld', which convinced me that, at some point in the writing of this series, Farmer decided to start smoking crack. I can only say that he completely destroyed the compelling fantasy that he began as surely as if he'd thrown it into a blender and hit 'puree'. Save your time and money...please.
Rating:
Summary: Promises much, but never delivers
Review: To be honest, the writing style of this book is enough to make a seasoned reader frustrated. Simply put, it is pitiful. The characters are so carbord that they are not even two-dimensional characters; they are one-dimensional. They are clearly acting out of the author's motives, and have no motives of their own. One can literally see the clunkly machanics behind them, it is quite sad. They have sudden bursts of wisdom and understanding that they could not possibly have, and there is so much data-dumping that often one gets the feel of reading an encyclopedia entry. They also see to be speaking with the same voice: that was the author's voice. Not to mention the rampant sexism. When Burton said that he did not care much for woman's brains, I nearly threw the book accross the room, but lucky for the book, it did not belong to me. Besides, in a society where there was no pregnany, the whole male-domination thing would not have happened. It was disgusting. The only things that kept me reading to the end was that it was short, and the plot was intresting enough that I just wanted to see what it developed to in the end. And the payoff for my hard hours of enduring his baddly-wroght prose? None! There are more questions than answers, and I do not feel like investing more time to read another volume. Trust me, you do not want to waste your time and hard-earned money on this book.
Rating: 
Summary: Great idea, okay execution
Review: Farmer's Riverworld saga takes place on a planet where all of humankind has been resurrected simultaneously. Everyone is in the prime of life, no one can reproduce, and people who die are resurrected on some random place on the planet. The planet is divided into sections by a planet-long (and -wide) river and impassable cliffs. Each subdivisions is populated with a large percentage of people from a given geographical area and historical era (e.g., a group from Nazi Germany, a group of ancient Sumerians, a tribe of Seneca Indians). The main character in this installment is Richard Burton, a real-life explorer and adventurer. He sets out to travel the river and try to find its source, where he hopes to find out who or what has caused the resurrection and why. Along the way, he meets up with a number of people from different eras and cultures, most notably Hermann Goering, Reichsmarshall of the Nazi Luftwaffe. The underlying theme of the book is a great idea - the possibility to write about any person in history. The clash of cultures, political ideals, etc. could be endlessly investigated. Unfortunately, in this first book, the pace is breathtaking - Burton travels through and past literally hundreds of little enclaves, with barely a passing glance. I was left feeling a little frustrated that the book refused to slow down and consider any details about the various societies he encounters. So, while I enjoyed the setup, the payoff was lacking. It's entirely possible that the author purposefully wrote the book with a broad, undetailed stroke of the pen. Perhaps the other books in the series are meant to linger and consider the details of this world. Unfortunately, this book does not make me wish to rush out and immediately purchase the subsequent books in the series. I'm intrigued, but not hooked.
Rating: 
Summary: After-life; still a mystery
Review: To Your Scattered Bodies Go was a very riveting and mysterious novel to read. The novel examines the aspects of being resurrected after life on Earth has expired. The story is based around Sir Richard Burton, a 19th century English explorer. Burton is awakened, from his last breath of life on Earth, to be surrounded by swirling bodies floating upon rods which are capable of being broken. After free falling from the rod, Burton is disturbed when he awakes upon a planet which is occupied by people from every time era that have ever lived on Earth. The people of the planet are given all of life's neccesities, however the reason for their being is still uncertain. Burton befriends a prehuman, an alien, another American and several others who set out on an endless journey along the million mile long river to find the answer to that question. Burton, himself, becomes frusterated when he is given chance after chance to redeem his life, yet does not know how to do that. The novel shows that during each resurrection, people are given the chance to correct the mistakes they had made in their past lives and it allows them to judge themselves before they are eternally judged in the after-life. Burton had trouble realizing his past mistakes and became prematurely judged. I thought the novel was very descriptive, and easy to read. Philip Jose Farmer did an excellent job of keeping the reader entertained. From reading the novel I am now interested in reading the other novels in his series to find out what happens after the end of To Your Scattered Bodies Go.
Rating:
Summary: weird, very weird
Review: This book to me so far is a little strange considering the events that take place. At first the character is spinning on a rod around a whole bunch of naked dead people and he is trying to grab another rod. Once he does, it gets even weirder. All of a sudden he is in a seperate place. Kind of like another world, but it is part of the after life. He then meets a tall scary alien like guy who talks to him and things start getting a little more understandable. Once it picks up with the dialogue between these two, the book becomes easier to comprehend and I kind of like the book. Once I finish it I am sure that I will have a better understanding for what the author was aiming for with this novel. I think that Farmer did a great job with making the reader think when they read it by making up things that are a little odd from normal everyday life. I like it
Rating: 
Summary: Nice for an afternoon read
Review: Let us be realistic. This is an entertaining book and is a good science-fiction book. Reading this book is like reading a magazine. It is good in the car, in a waiting room, or in the bathroom. It is not a great book. It is very creative, but written in a juvenille manner. I would highly recommend this book to kids or to anyone who wants a nice, entertaining, easy read.
Rating:
Summary: Good Book
Review: Although this isn't the best book I've ever read it is still good. It kept me interested the whole time and although I COULD put it down I would still pick it back up a little later. In conclusion, Burton's journey down the river is worthy of five stars.
Rating:
Summary: The most original sci-fi book I have ever read.
Review: I'm not sure what I was expecting when I picked up this book, but I was completely unprepared for how entertaining it was. Almost every page brought completely unexpected turns of events. Very enthralling. I highly recommend this book.
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