Rating: 
Summary: Great SF
Review: Certainly not five stars; for that the human characters are too flat. But the description of the dog-like aliens that can only develop intelligence as a pack (in which a "thought" is acoustically established between the members) is unbelievably well worked out. One of the best descriptions of an alien race ever. For days, I thought about the various implications of such a "lifestyle" while playing with my dog... :-)Also, the idea of a galaxy in which the functioning of computers and other automation and the strength of mental power are dependent on the distance from the center of the galaxy is quite unique, intrinsically logically developed, but somewhat hard to swallow for the reader because no attempt is made to provide a (pseudo-) scientific justification for this phenomenon. All in all, this book provides for a few hours of entertaining and thought-provoking reading.
Rating: 
Summary: The book doesn't live up to hype (for me at least)
Review: This is no page turner for me. I put it down easily several times. A marginal read.
Rating: 
Summary: One of the most epic novels ever.
Review: I read A Fire Upon the Deep right after completing Donaldson's Gap novels which was promoted as a huge epic story. Although the Gap series left me drained and exhausted, A Fire Upon the Deep had me craving for more. The story also reminded me of David Brin's Uplift novels, although I enjoy Vinge's characters more. They both have an epic feel which encompases an ensemble of characters from a variety of races, who must solve major problems against all odds. I highly recommend this novel to anyone who enjoys science fiction.
Rating:
Summary: ties with Dune as the best SciFi *ever*
Review: I rarely reread books. This book was so good, I had to reread it. Funny thing is, when I put it down, years ago, I knew I would read it again. However, because I wanted to savor the story, I knew it would be years before I read it again. It was just as fun the second time. This book has more good ideas on *one page* than most books have between the covers. He has taken things we all know about and extrapolated them in very interesting ways. He added some very original stuff, too. I've been using the "internet" since it was called the arpanet, back in the 80's. I could tell very quickly that Vinge had used it, too, because of the usenet-like messages interspersed with the main story. Some of you will know what I mean. The characterization of different types of messages was dead on and well done. A couple of times I couldn't hold the book I was laughing so hard. The "messages" on pages 225 and 226 (of the paperback edition) are good examples. If Vinge's universe existed, I could see just those messages being written in just that way. Buy this book! It is likely you will not regret it.
Rating:
Summary: One Of The Most Original Alien Societies in SF
Review: It's been a while since i've read this book, but I still remember enjoying it thoroughly and still consider it one of my favorite pieces of science fiction literature. The alien society created by Mr. Vinge is one of the most original i've encountered in science fiction. Vinge presents the concept of the pack mentality of the aliens with clarity--no small feat. I am eager to read the recently released prequel "A Deepness in the Sky."
Rating:
Summary: Quite memorable!
Review: I read this book about a year ago. I read alot of books and don't remember many of them. I remember this book vividly because it was so different from the other sci fi I've read. It's set into the far, far distant future and was so different, it was a bit hard to comprehend at first. The nonhuman races were unique and very believable. It was interesting to see humans viewed as "dumb animals" by a wolf-like race of beings but it wasn't a Plant of the Apes kind of thing. The characters were very interesting and very diverse. As some reviewers noted, this book doesn't really focus on the technology as it's all "old hat" for the characters that use it. For something different, give this a try!
Rating:
Summary: Interesting concepts, uninteresting characters.
Review: Kudos to Vinge on his development of some amazing new concepts such as "zones of thought."This entails the universe being divided into four "zones"--Unthinking, Slow, Beyond and Transcendent. Each has it's own level of technology and thought, but when traveling from one zone to another, concepts/ideas/thoughts may not translate well and mechanical/technological items may not function correctly. The beauty in which this concept and its permutations are woven into the novel is, unfortunately, not enough to counter-balance the literal childishness of the main characters. I fully concede that this is an issue of personal preference, but I don't like reading sci-fi centering around (or from the viewpoint of) children. The only exception I have found is Orson Scott Card's _Ender's Game_ and that is because the child behaves unlike any child I know, displaying a Mensa-like intelligence. Bottom line: a good read for the inovative concepts, but be prepared to grit your teeth and gut out the kiddie stuff.
Rating:
Summary: Very interesting
Review: Most of the sci-fi I've read happens in a world quite close to ours: a few high-tech gadgets are introduced but the world stays mostly the same. Alien races seem to be more like humans in costumes. Vinge's universe is so wonderfully different: the ideas of an intelligent pack race, the Skroderiders and the segmentation of the galaxy into zones where technology works at different speeds are something I haven't seen before. All ideas are well thought out, and there are no loose threads that I noticed. The first part of the book might be hard to read, since the terms of the universe are not explained beforehand. I don't find this a disadvantage at all but rather the opposite: I like being presented with a situation with many unknowns, putting the book down for a while and theorizing about what is really going on. Most amusing are the news groups -- the interstellar group communication works just like today's Usenet! What Vernon failed to predict in 1992 is that it won't even take a hundred years before they're all filled with spam. MAKE.TRANSCENDENSE.FAST! :)
Rating:
Summary: Brilliant book
Review: Ignore the complainers, those readers who need everything handed to them. As an editor and a published author of literary work (search under my name if y'need to) this is a great piece of SF; one of the best books I've read since early Gibson. Buy this book. Don't look back. This man deserves your support.
Rating:
Summary: A must-read for any science fiction fan
Review: I learned of this book through a friend's recommendation, and as a science fiction fan I am eternally grateful (I was recently able to return the favor by sending my friend a copy of Vinge's new book in the same universe, A Deepness In The Sky). The book is of epic scale, and combines an extremely original concept for an alien race with an extremely original concept for a universe and (careful not to give anything away!) probably the best conclusion I've ever seen to a book. I've given away more copies of this book than of any other science fiction book, and had to buy an extra one myself because the copy I lent out wasn't returned.
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