Rating: 
Summary: Gentle science fiction from 1969
Review: Humans are forbidden to have contact with other intelligent races in space. That edict comes as a result of the fact that human contact with the Swiannese race resulted in their mass suicide. This rule is tested when a race of human colonists finds that they are not alone on their uninhabited planet.The writing in the book is spare and often elegant. While elements of the plot show its age, it demonstrates McCaffrey's consummate skill as a science fiction/fantasy author.
Rating: 
Summary: Easy to read with lots of suspense and a massive surprise.
Review: I bought this book originally in its second or third printing. It was the first science fiction book I ever bought, and I freely admit I bought it because it had a giant cat on the cover. In the over 25 years since I bought it, I have read and re-read it more times than I can remember. The spirit of the colonists (both races) who wanted nothing more than to escape their stagnating worlds; the Hrrubans' sense of humor when they realized the humans thought they were savages; the release for Todd to discover there was indeed still a world where children can play and make the noises of childhood; all of these things are portrayed as fully as the bureaucracies that had me grinding my teeth in sympathetic frustration for both the Terrans and the Hrrubans. I later discovered Pern and Ms. McCaffrey's other worlds but Doona has always been my first love. The sequels to the original came many years after but they are no less dogeared, at least in my library. And In MY library, Ms. McCaffrey's worlds take up more than one shelf. I have everything she ever wrote except for one mainstream romance and can recommend her books to anyone (and have, many times).
Rating:
Summary: The first science fiction book I ever bought.
Review: I bought this book originally in its second or third printing. It was the first science fiction book I ever bought, and I freely admit I bought it because it had a giant cat on the cover. In the over 25 years since I bought it, I have read and re-read it more times than I can remember. The spirit of the colonists (both races) who wanted nothing more than to escape their stagnating worlds; the Hrrubans' sense of humor when they realized the humans thought they were savages; the release for Todd to discover there was indeed still a world where children can play and make the noises of childhood; all of these things are portrayed as fully as the bureaucracies that had me grinding my teeth in sympathetic frustration for both the Terrans and the Hrrubans. I later discovered Pern and Ms. McCaffrey's other worlds but Doona has always been my first love. The sequels to the original came many years after but they are no less dogeared, at least in my library. And In MY library, Ms. McCaffrey's worlds take up more than one shelf. I have everything she ever wrote except for one mainstream romance and can recommend her books to anyone (and have, many times).
Rating:
Summary: Wonderful plot about co-existing races.
Review: I enjoyed this book a lot. The writing style was not flowery or poetic, just easy to follow and understand. Ken, Hrrestan, and the other main characters are interesting and fun to read about, and we sympathize for the human colonists as they try to understand a new alien race, and face the possibility of having to leave this paradise of a colony world to return to an overpopulated and excessively structured Earth. Don't miss it.
Rating:
Summary: So what if it's 30 years old?
Review: I enjoyed this book a lot. The writing style was not flowery or poetic, just easy to follow and understand. Ken, Hrrestan, and the other main characters are interesting and fun to read about, and we sympathize for the human colonists as they try to understand a new alien race, and face the possibility of having to leave this paradise of a colony world to return to an overpopulated and excessively structured Earth. Don't miss it.
Rating: 
Summary: Disappointingly limited.
Review: I enjoyed this book as a child, but re-reading it as an adult was disappointing. It's hard to believe I didn't notice at the time how absolutely pathetic the female characters are. Though set in the future, women cook and look after children - that's it! The protagonist's wife is the only woman who gets to say more than a sentence or two and she spends most of her time in tears. Except when cooking. The author was able to create female characters who weren't idiots in the Pern books, so it's surprising that she made no such attempt here. Even thirty years ago, this should have seemed oldfashioned, and it certainly isn't necessary to the plot. Perhaps the sequels were more believable in this area, but I am reluctant to try them now.
Rating:
Summary: A brilliant story
Review: I hate to say I've been around this long, but I still have my April '69 copy. I have the whole series...as I do all of her works. This is a really great premise of 2 extremely different clutures which are remarkably alike. From the common people to the way their worlds are run...and how they can work together when they work at it. This is one of my favorite series period...and I recommend it highly to all of "the next generation"!
Rating:
Summary: The beginning of another great series by Ms. McCaffrey
Review: I hate to say I've been around this long, but I still have my April '69 copy. I have the whole series...as I do all of her works. This is a really great premise of 2 extremely different clutures which are remarkably alike. From the common people to the way their worlds are run...and how they can work together when they work at it. This is one of my favorite series period...and I recommend it highly to all of "the next generation"!
Rating:
Summary: Wonderful plot about co-existing races.
Review: I was so tired of sci-fi books dealing with Humans going out to murder another race. This book gave a welcome change, two completely different species working together to create a new world for themselves. I've never read the sequels, but having just read this book alone was wonderful.
Rating:
Summary: A brilliant story
Review: I've read many books by Anne McCaffrey, and I wouldn't be able to choose a favourite out of them all, but Descision at Doona is definitely in the Top 10. A thought-provoking tale about the tentative meeting of two species with dubious pasts in a friendship that will surpass barriers of fear and domination for the first time in both of their histories. I can read it over and over again.
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