L. Neil Smith Resident Scholar Profiles TOP SCHOLAR: Christie Robnett SCHOLARS:
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Review Summaries
"In the near future, American politicians sell out and go Communist. A century later, in a desperate effort to save the ASSR from total economic collapse, the commissars send two ancient space shuttles to a promising asteroid. The American Soviets aren't the first to get there: the place is already home to many races of aliens, all of whom are capitalist anarchs. Each American must, in his or her turn, decide to be free or choose to remain a slave of the world communist state."
Brian R. Hughes, Resident L. Neil Smith Scholar
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Overall Review
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Plot
Composition of Book Descript. of chases or violence - 10% planning/preparing, gather info, debate puzzles/motives - 50% Feelings, relationships, character bio/development - 10% Descript. of society, phenomena (tech), places - 30%
Tone of book
- very upbeat
FANTASY or SCIENCE FICTION?
- science fiction story
Explore/1st contact/ enviro story
Yes
Plotlets:
- generally friendly contact with alien(s)
Political power play
Yes
Political plotlets
- preventing/managing clash/war between govts/kingdoms
Is this an adult or child's book?
- Adult or Young Adult Book
Cultural problems, alien culture
Yes
Culture clash-
- one culture tries to impose its culture on another group
Main Character
Identity:
- Male
Profession/status:
- champion of justice
Age:
- long lived adults
How sensitive is this character?
- sensitive to others' feelings
Sense of humor
- Mostly serious with occasional humor
Intelligence
- Average intelligence
Physique
- very athletic
Main Adversary
Identity:
- Male
Age:
- 60's-90's
Profession/status:
- mastermind
Eccentric:
Yes
- obsessed
- mentally ill
- emotionally unstable
- wild
How much of work is main antagonist actually present in:
- an average amount
How sensitive is this character?
- mean, arrogant
Sense of humor
- Mostly serious with occasional humor
Intelligence
- Average intelligence
Physique
- very athletic
Setting
Terrain
- Forests
- Space, need spacesuit
- Asteroid
Spaceship setting:
- primative (present, near future) human spaceship
- alien spaceship
A substantial portion of this book takes place on a non-Earth planetary body:
- inhabited by friendly aliens
- very controlled society
Planet outside solar system?
Yes
Takes place in spaceship?
Yes
Style
Person?
- mostly 3rd
Accounts of torture and death?
- very explicit references to deaths and torture
scientific jargon? (SF only)
- a moderate amount of scientific explanation
Sex in book?
Yes
What kind of sex:
- descript of kissing
- descript of touching personal anatomy
- licking
- use of artificial tools
- actual description of sex
- description of breasts
- descript. of private male anat.
- descript. of non-breast female anat.
- rape/molest (yeech!)
How much dialogue?
- significantly more descript than dialog
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