The Integral Trees [Paperback]

Larry Niven (Author)

Product Details

• Paperback
• Publisher: Futura; paperback / softback edition (1985)
• ISBN-10: 0708881548
• ISBN-13: 978-0708881545
• ASIN: B002JJ4JK2
• Average Customer Review: 3.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (36 customer reviews)

More About the Author

LARRY NIVEN is the multiple Hugo and Nebula Award-winning author of the Ringworld series, along with many other science fiction masterpieces. He lives in Chatsworth, California. JERRY POURNELLE is an essayist, journalist, and science fiction author. He has advanced degrees in psychology, statistics, engineering, and political science. Together Niven and Pournelle are the authors of many New York Times bestsellers including Inferno, The Mote in God's Eye, Footfall, and Lucifer's Hammer.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

13 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Another excellent concept book from the sci-fi master, August 23, 1996

By A Customer

This review is from: The Integral Trees (Mass Market Paperback)

I don't think anyone who has read Niven would argue that
he is the master of what I like to call the "concept"
novel. He invents a fantastic concept, throroughly
develops the idea, then writes a story around it. The
shortcoming of the method is that characters, and in
particular the flow of the stories from beginning to end
is compromised. The Integral Trees is no exception to
this rule, though characters are developed marginally better
than in many Niven novels. The concept is based around
a society of people descended from a single space ship
which was stranded near a neutron star. The neutron star
sustains a unique ecosystem in the "smoke ring" of
breathable gasses in orbit around it. The integral trees
are giant trees, shaped like the calculus symbol for an
integral. The people inhabit the trees, and this is where
the story begins. This novel is a very quick read, and
as I mentioned, the concept is fabulous. I recommend it.

12 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent- moves in a new direction, July 24, 1997

By A Customer

This review is from: The Integral Trees (Mass Market Paperback)

Having read many Sci-Fi books in my life, I can honestly say that none can come close in originality and concept to the books 'Integral Trees' and the sequel, 'The Smoke Ring' by Larry Niven. You will instantly love this book where technology takes a second-hand place to the dynamics of human development and interactivity, and the remnants of human advancements exist as strange, unknown objects, myths, and faded social traditions.

The book takes us into a free-fall environment, the remains of a gaseous planet orbiting a star in a binary system. Life has evolved there, free of the constrains of gravity. Ponds drift about as spheres of water, and multi-kilometer long trees are like small worlds containing lifeforms of numerous bizzare types. Humankind has reverted to tribal structures, the technology that brought them long forgotten. The old ways of Earth have all but dissapeared, existing only as ghosts in the speech patterns of the characters.

Niven has repeatedly written books that encourage us to think differently--to think big. If you liked the awesome strangeness of 'Ringworld,' then you will have an instant favorite in 'Integral Trees.'

16 of 18 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Interesting World Building, August 30, 2003

By 

C. Baker "cbaker" (Washington, DC) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: The Integral Trees and The Smoke Ring (Paperback)

First let me say that this edition I'm reviewing is a two for one. You get both the Integral Trees and The Smoke Ring in one volume, which certainly makes it worth the price.

Secondly, The Smoke Ring was published four years after The Integral Trees. But reading The Smoke Ring, immediately after the Integral Trees, makes it a much more enjoyable and stronger book. I doubt I would have enjoyed it quite as much had I read it four years after reading The Integral Trees.

Both of these novels are concept novels in the hard science fiction genre., which is both a strength and a weakness. Niven sets up the world he creates in The Integral Trees, and there is character development but it is a bit thin. I found the novel hard to slog through at times and frankly had a hard time conceptualizing the environment Niven creates. The Smoke Ring is a lot more fun on two accounts. First, Niven goes about exploring a lot more of the world he created. And the characters a bit more developed.

Overall, both are worth reading. If you get through The Integral Trees and really liked it, I think you'd love The Smoke Ring. If you get through the Integral Trees and liked it, but just barely, The Smoke Ring is better. If you really hated The Integral Trees and didn't get it at all, skip The Smoke Ring.