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Review Summaries
"The alien Dracon and the Man face each other; crash-landed - both stranded on the barely habitable barren rock of a planet that they have fought over in space not an hour before. They decide to try to survive the planet together rather than kill each other bare-handed. They learn each other's language, rather entertainingly, and share cultures. The alien, being hermaphrodite and pregnant, gives birth and dies, leaving the unfortunate man to guess how to bring it up. Of course they are rescued - but with the war over, how will the Man and the young Drac fare? Have the two species truly learnt from each other, and is there hope for their peaceful co-existence?
Barry B. Longyear won the Nebula Best Novella, 1979, with this thought-provoking story which is anthologised in Frank Herbert's 'Nebula Winners Fifteen' and also published as a novel. A parable of the possibility of peace on earth."
Michael JR Jose, Resident Barry B. Longyear Scholar
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Overall Review
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Plot
Tone of book
- very upbeat
FANTASY or SCIENCE FICTION?
- science fiction story
Explore/1st contact/ enviro story
Yes
Plotlets:
- colonizing/homesteading another planet
- stranded on alien planet, fighting aliens to survive
- surviving natural elements on planet
Is this an adult or child's book?
- Adult or Young Adult Book
Main Character
Identity:
- Male
Profession/status:
- fighter (air/space) pilot
Age:
- 20's-30's
Is this an ordinary person caught up in events?
Yes
How sensitive is this character?
- sensitive to others' feelings
Sense of humor
- Mostly serious with occasional humor
Intelligence
- Average intelligence
Physique
- average physique
Main Adversary
Identity:
- Male Alien
Age:
- 20's-30's
Profession/status:
- infantry soldier
How much of work is main antagonist actually present in:
- an average amount
How sensitive is this character?
- hard edged
Sense of humor
- Mostly serious with occasional humor
Intelligence
- Average intelligence
Physique
- physically sick
Setting
Terrain
- Jungle
- Water
A substantial portion of this book takes place on a non-Earth planetary body:
- unfriendly aliens
Planet outside solar system?
Yes
Style
Person?
- mostly 1st
Accounts of torture and death?
- moderately detailed references to deaths
scientific jargon? (SF only)
- none/very little science jargon needed
How much dialogue?
- significantly more descript than dialog
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