Customer Reviews

Raft

5 star:		(5)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I first heard of Raft in an SF encyclopedia about extensive time lines in science fiction series. Raft is the first book in a series of 5 that span the life of the universe, from the big bang all the way to the end. The series is called "The Xeelee Sequence" and was written by Stephen Baxter, a British science fiction author whose earlier work like Raft is fairly scarce in the U.S. The books that make up the Xeelee Sequence, Raft, Timelike Infinity, Flux, Ring and Vacuum Diagrams, were written and published in this order (with the exception of Vacuum Diagrams which is a collection of short stories with some that were written and published before the appearance of Raft) but take place at different times on the time line. Ex.: Raft which was written a published before the others takes place over a million years after it's sequel, Timelike Infinity. This pattern continues with the rest of the Xeelee Sequence. Raft Takes place in an alternate universe where the force of gravity is one billion time stronger than in this one. Humans have accidentally, it appears, stumbled into this universe and somehow managed to survive. The main character, Rees, is a mine rat who lives in the belt which orbits around a collapsed star where they extract the iron ore. The story is of the Rees' search for the reasons humans are in this universe and not in one where it's easier to survive. On his journey Rees stumbles across many horrific and and amazing discoveries. Raft is one of the most imaginative books I've ever read. Baxter's universe is filled with nebulae where the breathable air is so tightly packed towards their cores that there are miles of space where a person could safely float around without a spacesuit. There is also native life in these nebulas, some of which is hunted by the Boneys; the most frightful class of survivors in the entire nebula. Baxter is, in my mind, the most under appreciated SF author in the U.S., but I don't know about his success in his native Britain. I encourage you to read his other books if you are a SF fan.

I found review of Dec, 2003 interesting for its explaining the critic's contentions over the inaccuracies of the science, but I think the point of the book was missed. This book is a great read. It is unfortunately, one of very few of Baxter's books which have characters you can actually sympathize with. The story is moving and interesting but most of all it will set you up to read and appreciate the rest of the Xeelee sequence like Timelike Infinity and Ring (which are both amazing). Think of this book like The Hobbit is to the Lord of the Rings.

The idea behind this novel (a cosmos where the gravitational constant is one billion times that of ours), is extremely interesting. Baxter should definitely be applauded for coming up with something like this and fleshing it out somewhat. Unfortunately, his writing skills are lacking. First, the overall flavor of the novel is somewhat juvenile. Characters are flat but also inconsistent (similar to what one reviewer here said, the main character is a genius leader one minute but an idiot child the next). Second, the plot basically is held together through miraculous happenings.

But, worst of all, since Baxter is a physicist, is that Baxter's physics are inconsistent (i.e., wrong in some places). For instance, the Belt is a linked set of facilities in orbit around a "star" (which is, itself, in orbit around the center of the cosmos, the Core). There's a microgravity field from the Belt's own mass pulling things from above and below. Yet, somehow, the miners drop a chair down to the "star" by cable. Orbits don't work that way. Assuming they could get the chair away from the belt (and a simple push would probaby be enough), all it would do is go into an elliptical orbit crossing the Belt's orbit. To get to the surface of the "star," they'd need some kind of thrust (and I won't even go into how the cable would end up wrapping around the "star" as the chair changed orbits).

Another example from the Belt is when they're trying to deliver a very heavy food machine. The thing is floating above the Belt. That means it's co-orbital with it. The ropes holding the machine break and the thing falls past the Belt, past the star, and down to the Core. Sorry. But since it's co-orbital, the darn thing would just float around there. Baxter uses that co-orbital floating trick later in the book when a couple of the characters float around "above" the Belt until rescued.

There are similar physics problems at the Raft. First, and very obviously, there is a "star" which is "falling" towards the Raft. It stays there for most of the book. But, since the Raft is orbiting the Core, there's no way something falling toward the Core from a higher orbit would stay fixed above the Raft. Since the gravitational constant is so huge in this cosmos, orbiting bodies move VERY quickly. That "star" would be spiralling all over the heavens on its way down.

In another Raft case, some bad people are trying to make some others "walk the plank" off the edge of the Raft. So what? Again, this thing's in orbit. Walk off the edge, and aside from local gravitational effects, you'd just hang there. This is very similar to a point near the end when the people break a big chunk of the Raft off. It goes plummeting "down" and people fall though the hole to their death. Once again, orbits don't work this way.

There are a lot of other lesser things that are wrong about the physics (the atmosphere is in orbit, too -- where's the weather?), but those are the big ones. With the plot and character problems, these essentially make the book not really worth reading. It's a shame, since the idea behind the book is so clever. But, I just can't recommend the book.

For a first novel, Baxter has done a superb job of thinking about wht would happen in a scenario where gravity is one billion times greater than it is in our universe. Imagine each person having their own gravity field! I always like an SF book that is set in the future, but also hearkens back to the "days of earth" where humans originated and the ideas that come from that. As a physics teacher, I will find it interesting to have a discussion about this scenario and I hope to bring up this book in class.

Baxter needs to work on some of his descriptive abilities, on the other hand. Granted, it may be my problem, but I was unable to picture some of the things he was trying to describe in the book and I think it lacked in being able to effectively describe what something looked like.

All in all, this book has some great imaginative features, and Baxter is someone I am happy to read again.

This has been my first experience with Stephen Baxter's works, and although I do intend to continue reading his works, I found Raft to be lacking in some key areas. A wonderful and quite unique exploration of another galaxy and human adaptation, Raft excells in the science part of its genre and lacks in the fiction part. A perfect example of this lies in Baxter's primary character. One moment Baxter convinces you to see him as a genius and a leader, but the next moment he's a weakling. In addition, some of the flow of the novel seems questionable--like how in heaven's name did he know to get inside the whale and why does the whale suddenly spring back to life? Such questions are left unanwswered drasticly weakening the incredible universe of Baxter's creation. I would have suggested covering less time within the novel or perhaps breaking the story up into more in depth books. Nevetheless, Baxter's Raft deserves examination.

A fasinating and imaginative adventure of human survival inside a dense gravitational nebula. An interesting and entertaining hypothesis on the evolution of the human species trapped in an inhospitable environment. Baxter's nebula is a mind boggling tapestry of unbelievable concepts, like the human mining of a collapsed star to a planet covered with human skin, stitched together by a convincing plot. A definite must read for sci-fi fans

I love the old works of Stephen Baxter, but dislike his modern works to such a degree that I can hardly believe it is the same author; it's as if someone has stolen his identity and in the last 7 or so years has been publishing with his name. Nevertheless, RAFT is a very creative story that takes you to another universe with a different set of physics. I was in awe at times, in wonderment at others, and felt disgusted with some of the themes, but there is a story here that will fascinate.

What I do find unlikely, from a sociological point of view, is Baxter's British worldview, which places individuals in living conditions which they are either unable or unwilling to change, even when given an opportunity. The cannibal Boney people, for instance, willingly trade with Belt traders, but do not care to take over the Belt fellow's craft in order to escape the nightmare of their decaying home of human waste and dead bodies. Are the Boneys happy, or so apathetic, that they would ignore such a thing and continue to let their children grow up in a hopeless, utterly pointless existence on a little ball of dead bodies, and how long can anyone survive drinking their own...? Give me a break.. that is implausible. The nonsensical unwillingness for characters to warn others when bad things are about to happen is baffling: why would someone knowingly allow a train of events to occur, and then deal with the consequences, when one might have stopped them from happening? It's more of the same--"this is your lot in life, and there's nothing you can do about it" worldview. The social strata of the people in this alternate universe Nebula seem to have parallel to the social strata of Britain--whether as an intended social parody or not, I cannot say, but I would hope that this is intentional and not just Baxter's subconscious worldview exerting influence over his story. One might find a similar parody in H.G.Wells, if indeed a parody it is.

Raft is a sustained feat of the scientific imagination, a supreme exploration of the 'What If' questions, in this case, 'What If' the crew of a lost spaceship, trapped by tremendous gravitational forces, colonised this weird pocket in the universe and somehow survived. The book leaps from one unbelievable premise to another, but with such deft and agile balance that the story come alive. A fabulous adventure and an essentially truthful celebration of the human spirit, adaptability and will to survive against all odds.

The product was accurately described. Condition was fair. Delivery was in a timely manner.

A very weird book indeed, situated in a universe where gravity is 10 billion times greater than on Earth. Stars are born and die in months, and a ship has its own gravity.

Definitely a worhtwhile read.

Adam