Mirabile [Hardcover]

Janet Kagan (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: October 1991

On the distant planet of Mirabile, a settlement of human colonists from Earth is jeopardized by genetic mutants of Earth plants and animals, and it is up to ecological troubleshooter Mama Jason to destroy the menacing mutants. Reprint.

--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 278 pages
• Publisher: Tor Books; 1st edition (October 1991)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0312852207
• ISBN-13: 978-0312852207
• Product Dimensions: 8.5 x 5.8 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (15 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,052,327 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

22 of 22 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Mirabile!, August 25, 2002

By 

"kangarex" (Keokuk, IA United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Mirabile (Mass Market Paperback)

What can I say about Janet Kagan? She's written three books, and all three of them could have been justly called Mirabile (Wonderful in Latin). The other two, Hellspark and Uhura's Song are also favorites, but Mirabile is a delight, and just pure fun. Kangaroo rexes! Odders! Tulip bats! Oh the wonderful and surprising things that can happen to the wildlife when someone's been mucking around in their genepool. Annie Jason Masmajean is our heroine, I guess you would call her profession field genetics. It's her job to provide the colonists of Mirabile with the critters and plants they need to survive, and ensure that the strange beasties that keep cropping up (The scientists back on earth got cute with genetic redundancy), don't harm the colonists or the vital species that they need. It's a very light-hearted read, but not lacking one iota of depth. Between this book and her other two Janet Kagan has me itching for more. Anything she produces, I will buy, and there are very few authors I can say that about.

12 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A very funny and intelligient book., July 24, 2000

By 

Kate Savage - See all my reviews

This review is from: Mirabile (Hardcover)

Mirabile is one of the best books I have read in a long time. As much I liked Hellspark, Mirabile was even better. I LOVED it in because in addition to being intelligent, Kagan has a wonderful sense of humor. I laughed so often reading Mirabile and found myself decidedly attached to the characters. One of the neat things about it is that it is a collection of short stories, but the collection is more cohesive than some novels I have read. I tried not to read the whole book too quickly, but .... well, like a box of good chocolates it was over too soon. This book is packed with great characters, action, adventure, and (best of all) weird critters. My only complaint is that this book is out of print. My one good copy is not something I want to lend out. Others I have found on the web start at some pretty hefty prices. I would love to buy a bunch of books to give as gifts and to lend out. The folks who reprinted Hellspark can be contacted at [e-mail] and do take suggestions for books to reprint. Perhaps they could be persuaded to do us all a favor and reprint Mirabile.

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The all-time high -Accurate, well written, funny, scary!, June 18, 1997

By A Customer

This review is from: Mirabile (Mass Market Paperback)

Mirabile is the best linked short-story collection of sci-fi I have ever read--it is really more like a single book with very well defined chapters. The stories stick in your mind, making you want to read it over and over again, and every time you do--you will find something new! It is suitable for all ages and interests, exceptionally good at pointing out the ecological niches of organisms known and unkown and how they might relate on a new planet... From cows to bats, firestarting plants to fuzzywillies, Kagan has a handle on just how things might be made to work. The best of the sci-fi market, Janet Kagan has only one fault in my mind -- I can't wait for more