Rating: 
Summary: Book 3 of a Great Saga
Review: Currently, there are six books in Brin's Uplift saga. It's kind of hard to categorize these books as elements of a series, though. The first three books in the saga, "Sundiver," "Startide Rising," and "The Uplift War," are not really a trilogy or a series in the normal sense. Instead, "Sundiver" relates to the rest of the saga as Tolkien's "The Hobbit" relates to his "Lord of the Rings:" it sets the stage for all the rest of the books in the saga. "Startide Rising" and "The Uplift War" describe completely different plotlines originating from the same event far distant, time wise and space wise, from "Sundiver". In a pinch, you could read these books in any order and not really miss anything. They describe different points in time and space of the same Universe. Of course, the best order is the one listed, above.
Unlike the first three books in the saga, the second three books DO form a series. The first of this trilogy, "Brightness Reef," picks up with yet another totally independent plotline and brand new characters. However, it does contain a central character who ties the first three books into this set. Unfortunately, Brin doesn't say, specifically, who that character is until the very end of the book. Even worse, the last time the character was used was so far back in the saga that it's hard to remember anything about him. The remaining two books, "Infinity's Shore" and "Heaven's Reach," continue sequentially from the first and form a tightly knit trilogy with no breaks in time.
None of these books is "happy" or "light reading." For the most part, they're all intense, heavily detailed and fully characterized books. "Sundiver" is the least "heavy" and most lacking in the realistic feel of the rest of the books. But, for the most part, if you like "Sundiver," you'll definitely want to continue with the rest of the saga. Even if you don't like "Sundiver," I highly recommend you read at least "Startide Rising:" it has an entirely different feel to it and might be more to your liking. This saga is just too important to miss out on. As a whole, it's one of the great works of science fiction and one of the few pieces of science fiction that belong in the class of true literature.
The following are some comments on the individual books:
Sundiver: Somewhat different from the other books in the saga in that it's more of a science fiction mystery than a science fiction drama. This book sets the stage for the rest of the saga as it chronicles events that happen several hundred years before what happens in the other books. About the only thing negative I can come up with is that I wish Brin had written several prequels to it so we could read about the earlier adventures of Jacob Demwa that are referenced in this book.
Startide Rising: This book focuses on the group that starts all the other events noted in the remaining books of the saga. Though the main characters start off in a very bad way, Brin does a good job of moving them forward, and upward, throughout the book.
The Uplift War: The events in this book start from the same event that kicks off "Startide Rising." But, other than that, the two books are totally independent. Like "Startide Rising," Brin produced a gripping plot, great character development, and a good progression towards a positive goal.
Brightness Reef: This is definitely not a happy book. It starts out with many non-pleasant activities and fights its way forward from there. The biggest problem I have with it is that it's very hard to see how anything good or positive is going to happen to the main characters, no matter how much they try.
Infinity's Shore: First, the negative: once this book starts, it's very apparent that a whole lot of relevant stuff has been happening elsewhere that we missed. Essentially, there's at least one entire book that sounds extremely interesting that's missing from the saga. Brin fills in most of this back-story during this book and "Heaven's Reach." But, I'd sure like to have read that missing book. On the positive side, this book re-introduces us to old friends and subtly changes the focus to them. Everything's still happening in the same place with mostly the same characters, but the attitude changes and becomes more can-do.
Heaven's Reach: One difficulty with this book is due to how it continues from the previous book. It's merely a change of venue instead of a new set of adventures. A quote from one of the main characters near the end of this book sort of sums up my feelings about it: "...what will one more worry matter? I've long passed the point where I stopped counting them." Essentially, by the time this book and saga starts winding down (and even at the point of that quotation, it really hasn't started that yet), the reader is totally fatigued by never-ending problems. I really like these works, but the lack of a tie-up between "Infinity's Shore" and this book is grinding.
Rating: 
Summary: Re-think man's origins
Review: David Brin offers a new explanation for the pyramids and
mankinds' development. With a plot that ties in with "Startide Rising" and his new trilogy, there are subtle
undertones that there is more than meets the eye...
Rating: 
Summary: enjoyed it a lot less than i expected
Review: first a wee bit of background- I am a big fan of big sci-fi series', epic galaxies. this is sort of a review of the series, though the issues I have with it as a whole are the same as with this book. I am also a student of ecology amd biology, and sci-fi that deals with those topics often interest me.I love the information in this book and this trilogy, the premise, the ideas and plentiful data about different Galactic traditions and species. But I really didn't enjoy the book all that much, and was very disapointed in that fact. To me, it feels that not enough happens in the book, a lot of words and dialogue, but not much actual plot. Or, maybe it's simply Brin's writing style- the first Uplift Trilogy are the only books of Brin's I've read so far, though I had planned on reading Kiln People at some point, I doubt I will now. I am debating whether or not to read the next book, perhaps the second trilogy will be more to my liking, but then again, it may just be more of a waste of time. Don't get me wrong, these aren't bad books. I had some high hopes, though hopes justified by the reviews and opinions I've read and heard from other folks. I tried very hard to like Sundiver, Startide Rising and The Uplift War, but I just couldn't make it happen. Don't let this review scare you off- a lot of people love Brin's work, especially the Uplift books... But there are some of us who it doesn't rub right, unfortunately.
Rating:
Summary: Tyger Tyger in the Night
Review: Have any of you read the poem by Willium Blake, 'Tyger Tyger'? If you haven't after reading this book please read it and laugh like you never laughed before as I did. I wondered if Brin saw the genius of this poem and wrote it specifically for this. This book showed me a scale that I couldn't even encompas with my mind, it was like a bomb going off in my head. I absolutly loved it, the whole double trilogy (although the sixth book was anti- climatic). I loved the part where 'gurilla warfare' was made so that galactics could be outsmarted, and the ecoloical message that is given in the aftermath of destruction of a planetary ecosystem. I don't think that I'll ever look at another monkey the same way ever again.
Rating:
Summary: "Talking monkeys"
Review: I decided to finish the original Uplift series, because so little happened in the first two books I was sure the third would be full of interesting study of the admittedly interesting Brin has invented. In book 3 we swap talking dolphins for talking monkeys. Perhaps a little more believable. One of the senior races has decided to attack and control a human outpost as a punishment of sorts for the issue with the Progenitors (see book 2). The invaders, big ... intelligent birds, are tricked into making more of an investment than planned and also clearly underestimate the human's primate cousins. Unfortunately, nothing happens, we never get off the annoying planet and nothing is resolved. I can see now why he had to write 3 (or 4 or whatever) more books in the series. Just keep repeating: "I will not read book 4, I will not read book 4..."
Rating:
Summary: My first ¿Uplift¿ novel, but not my last.
Review: I just finished David Brin's "The Uplift War" (the second novel I have read from this author) and have to admit that I was impressed. My first Brin novel, "The Postman", had its strengths but I was disappointed in his lack of real character development. Happily, the characters in this novel are fleshed-out and surprisingly believable, especially when you consider how difficult it would be to try and breath life into chimpanzees (uplifted or not) or, of all things, big birds! I was relieved to find out that one doesn't have to start with the first novel in this series (I have since learned that "The Uplift War" is actually the third book). As I read this novel, I could see that there was at least one novel that preceeded it, but this had no adverse effects on this story. "The Uplift War" stands on its own. Admittedly, this type of novel may not be everyones' cup-of-tea, and I had problems at first with the Gubru aliens (big birds). But it was Brin's characters and eloquent descriptive narration that drew me in. One could really see these birds posturing as they debated. I went from thinking I was reading a fantasy novel to knowing I was reading a good science fiction novel, and one that required solid research. So, if I liked it that much, why didn't I give it 5 stars? Unless a novel is absolutely unforgettable, and emotionally moves me (in any and all directions), it won't receive 5 stars. Very few novels (of any genre) deserve 5 stars. On a scale of 1 to 10, "The Uplift War" gets a solid 7 from me, which indicates that it is a very good novel, indeed. The idea behind this series is imaginative and far reaching, and if "The Uplift War" is typical of what to expect in this series, I will soon be purchasing more of David Brin's work. And what better recommendation can I give than that?
Rating:
Summary: A huge difference between his previous works.
Review: I must admit there is no reason for me to hate this book. Honestly, I hated Sundiver and Startide Rising, which by the way, I felt were a waste of time. In this book at least David Brin was very consistant and true to the story at hand. He didn't throw all these extra elements that had nothing to do with the book like in his previous novels. The four major players in this books were Robert Oneagle, a captian of a militia special forces and son of a planetary coordinator. Athaclena a Tymbrimi who's a shapeshifter with physic abilities. Fiben & Gailet both chims (a chimpanzee race that was uplifted by humans.) In this book it was interesting to see that humans were "NOT" majors players and the whole Galatic counsel were aliens races. Athaclena a daughter of a Galatic diplomat discovers that humans were illegally uplifting gorillas added an element of surprise. Most of the Galatics feels the human race is infantile but they had uplifted chimps and dolphins before alien contact. So, there is a mystery on who uplifted the humans if the humans has uplifted thier clients and who is the humans' patrons. Which I could care less about on who uplifted the humans. The history on this planet was unique due to the supposedily extincted race called the Garthling. I would have to say that David Brin did a better job in this book.
Rating:
Summary: Thought-provoking
Review: I read the Uplift Trilogy in a mixed-up order. I started with Startide Rising (2), then went to Uplift War (3), then finished with Sundiver (1). It's not a big deal to read them out of order, although I would read them in order had I known. In any case, this is a good one. The trilogy's imaginative concept of species "uplifting" one another is a fascinating one that is front and center in this book. Quite a lot of Galactic civilization is discussed, satisfying a thirst from Startide. I did deduct a star due to its length, however. Read this one last. You'll love it if you like the universe Brin has created.
Rating:
Summary: Had me until the last 50 pages
Review: I was a little disappointed with this one. I liked the other two books in the series and I enjoy his universe. I really enjoyed about ¾ of this book. I found the plight of the Tymbrini female and the human male quite compelling and vivid. Making the chimpanzee's key to the telling of this book left me cold, primarily because they appeared too human to me. There was little to differentiate between the human thought process and the chimpanzee thought process. I think Brin overstepped his imagination boundaries in trying to imagine what chimpanzees would be like if we could communicate with them. His imagination simply did not stretch far enough to allow him to create a familiar animal activities in the alien world. The alien species he created however were fascinating. I think he should stick to aliens and humans. I did like the chimpanzee characters in his first two books, however they were supporting characters, not main characters such as in this one. The ending also left a little to be desired. By the time I read the last pages, I wasn't sure if I was reading an adult novel or a novel for children. Not his best work but I still like the author a lot.
Rating: 
Summary: interesting ideas, clunky prose
Review: I would never recommend The Uplift War to my friends who are skeptical about science fiction. It has too many conventions peculiar to the genre. There are aliens of many races, psychic powers, galactic empires, robots, ray guns and spaceships that travel faster than light. It's all a bit much in a single book if you've never read science fiction before. Furthermore, this is not an easy read. The pages are peppered with made-up alien words like lurrunanu and tu'fluk. There's also a sprinkling of obscure English words, such as covinous and antelucan, which revealed the inadequacy of my dictionary. As much as I enjoyed expanding my vocabulary, these terms seem awkward and gratuitous here. In fact, I found Brin's prose style to be quite difficult, but not particularly beautiful or rewarding. Some passages are absolutely painful, such as when the author describes a wall as "the barrier that undulated complacently over the countryside like a net settled firmly over their lives." If that doesn't bother you, and if you're already a fan of the science fiction genre, then you might enjoy this book. The tone is light and at times humorous. The alien psychologies are compelling and are probably the best thing here. And of course there's the concept of Uplift itself -- the idea that one species can raise another to sentience. This is a huge idea, and I can readily understand how Brin has milked so many novels out of it. Brin is a scientist, and there are a number of thought-provoking speculations here. Unfortunately they are spread a bit thin over 600+ pages. The emphasis is definitely on action and fun. A note of warning to would-be readers: The Uplift War stands on its own, but early on you will encounter some intriguing references to a spaceship piloted by dolphins that has made a mysterious discovery of galactic significance. Don't expect to find this mystery revealed in The Uplift War. You'll have to read Startide Rising if you really want to know.
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