Customer Reviews

Through Alien Eyes (Ace Science Fiction)

5 star:		(4)
4 star:		(6)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(4)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

This sequel to "The Color of Distance" was certainly a book that lived up to the high standard set by the first book. It portrayed a human reaction to aliens among us, complete with the fears and the terra-centric views we all hope we'd not have as a species, but know are all too likely. Another book I was unable to put down. I await a sequel to this with baited breath.

A good follow-up to 'The Color of Distance', although not as strong. There were more noticeable plot elements that were hard to buy. One thing I found particularly unbelievable was the character of Bruce. In the first book, he is portrayed as a caring, understanding and giving person who doesn't judge the Tendu on human values. In this book his character does a complete 180. He's a selfish, close-minded, bigoted jerk. This Jekyll and Hyde personality was distracting and has hard for me to swallow. I felt like smacking the character on the head. I guess this change was required for plot.

The implications of Tendus' ability to heal and extend lifetime on human society was touched on by the author, however, I think the impact of the Tendu was downplayed much more than would be the case. Overall, this book makes a good follow-up and worthy of a read. Several plot lines remain open for a possible continuation.

This seemed like a very realistic story about the views and politics that would occur if aliens with a lower technology level were to visit us. It also dealt with the general public attitudes that might prevail. All in all a good story, but the ending seemed more like a finished chapter than a book ending, almost as though the author had meant for the book to be a little longer. It seems like there will be a 3rd book. I look forward to it.

  You can read the other reviews to get a synopsis but the feeling I was left with was that the author has concentrated on the feelings of the various characters. I mean there's action and plot but the reader sees the motivation behind the action.   I've been reading science fiction for a long time and I was comparing this story to the days of Heinlen and Clarke where the biggest ray-gun won the day. Here, the conflicts are on a personal level and they get solved, not with some bigger, better, faster, stronger invention, but with people trying to reach an understanding.   It reminded me a little bit of Cordwainer Smith. He's an early sci-fi writer that used biological solutions when all of the other writers were using whiz-bang, high-tech hardware to save the day.   Thomson doesn't go into medical detail about how the Tendu achieve 'allu-a' (sort of a mind-meld), for example, but she does explore some of the aspects of a joining/sharing and how it would affect those involved.   All in all, I liked the story. This is the second book in the series and I read it before the first (I hate it when that happens). Now I have to find a copy of "The Color of Distance"

This sequel is almost as good as the first book. It remains exciting, fast paced and innovative throughout. Not just are new ideas presented but also the ramifications of such are touched on, often from a number of perspectives. Though there is speculation to the contrary, perhaps the tendu are just too good to be true.Perhaps an alien culture would be, though one can't help wondering if this is as much to reflect human frailities. I would recommend this book and its predecessor to anyone wanting an exciting but also thought provoking science fiction story

This sequel to The Color of Distance was very well written. The characters' motivations were all explained (unlike the assertions of other reviewers), and the world was highly consistent with the Earth suggested in The Color of Distance.

The human lead had many choices that could have been made on a personal or political basis: The fact that she chose to make them on a personal basis supports the underlying theme of the book rather than making her (in another reviewer's words) "act like a teenager".

Even the main adversaries had motivations that made sense in the world that Ms. Thompson describes, and though the themes she addresses have been raised in other novels, her treatment of them is hardly cliché.

The reviews I read here kept me away from the book for quite a while. However, if you read The Color of Distance and liked it, you will not be disappointed by this book.

Since this book was given to me, and doesn't indicate anywhere on it that it is the sequal to "The Color of Distance" I started right in, and by the time I realized it had to be a sequel, I was hooked. It has interesting aliens (as usual, humanoid), and is set on a fascinating future earth with group families, earth colonies in satellites and on other planets, and features a strong woman central character. It definitely stood okay alone, although I wish I'd read the first one first. I look forward to reading many other books by this author, including the prequel to this one. Definitely reminiscent of John Varley, one of my favorite SF authors.

I enjoyed The Color of Distance but found it shallow. Unfortunately Through Alien Eyes was even worse - the reader is told, not shown, what the characters are thinking and feeling; characters discuss in (excessive) depth the meaning of honor and truth, yet a few pages later do not exhibit either characteristic; and the biological abilities of the Tendu seem inconsistent. There are positive aspects to this work - the reaction of the "general public" is well crafted; the Tendu are fully realized as characters; and the general outline of the book is well thought out. Unfortunately the execution leaves quite a bit to be desired.

Amy's writing gets even better as she moves along with this second story of Juna Saari. I actually enjoyed this second volume more in some ways than the first, although both are excellent. Amy continues to explore the differences and similaries between the Tendu and humans in a thoughtful and touching manner. For those reviewers below who felt otherwise, I say: "Hey, folks, lighten up." Everybody has differences in the types of works they enjoy reading, and I, for one, thoroughly enjoyed "Through Alien Eyes."

"Through Alien Eyes" by Amy Thomson is a solid science fiction story of an alien ecology (but not so alien psychology) encountering and adapting to our civilization.

It is the story of Ukatonen, an elder from another planet (Tiangi) who has come to visit Earth. Earlier, as told in a previous book ("The Color of Distance"), a spaceship from Earth had crashed on his world, leaving a single survivor: the anthropologist Dr. Juna Saari. Ukatonen's people, the Tendu, saved her life. Now rescued, Ukatonen and Moki (a Tendu child she adopted) accompany Juna back to Earth. The book chronicles their experiences and reactions, especially Ukatonen's.

The story is made interesting by the alien's ecology. The Tendu are an intelligent species --looking kind of like the Geico gecko-- but they hardly have any tools. Instead, they have an ability: they can change the DNA and structures of living organisms by a physical and mental link. Essentially, they "plug-in" to other organisms and manipulate them from the inside out. This has made them the dominant species on their homeworld, and it makes them of obvious interest (in medicine, and so on) on ours.

However, their ability has also given them a weakness. They only can live in harmony with their natural environment. That seemingly idyllic state of life can actually lead to stagnation. In contrast are human beings, whose ability is to manipulate the environment by tools. That seemingly idyllic way of life is also a weakness: when we are prisoners of our own drives and the tools to further them. Hence, in the story, the Humans are suffering from overpopulation and environmental destruction, and the Tendu are suffering from stagnating numbers, culture and technology. The opportunity to mutually benefit each other is there, but bridges must be built first.

And that is the role of the characters of this book. They are the first stones in a bridge that will span two civilizations and species . . . which are different but not as alien as they might at first appear. Rather, in many ways, they are complementary. As I read the book and marveled at Thomson's thoughtful projection of alien psychology, I found myself thinking that they aren't so alien . . . because of parallel evolution in similar environments . . .

. . . and because of suffering and compassion. There are two plotlines of suffering and loss in this book, one of child custody and another of injury, which I won't spoil by detailing here. (To respond to other reviewers, however, I will say this: the plotline that involves a child custody is sadly realistic in portraying how parents can sometimes be selfish and emotional.) Through these plotlines, the characters are forced to cultivate compassion in the face of suffering; and it is compassion which serves as the cement that holds the bridge together between any two persons or civilizations.

The book's ending made me want to read more, to learn what happened next. The first generation of bridge builders (Ukatonen and Juna) had firmly established their work of connecting their peoples and civilizations. But what about the children, Moki (a Tendu) and Mariam (a human), who were just growing up together when the story ended? They are the next generation of bridge builders; indeed, they *are* the bridge. I hope that Thomson writes the third part of this story to tell us what happened to them, and all of us.

So often these days, what passes for science fiction is really just fantasy: in the style of either Star Wars or Lord of the Rings.

Real science fiction --like the material produced Asimov, Bradbury, Arthur C. Clark, Heinlein, and so on -- accomplished three things. It showed what the world might really be like by developments in *science* --not fantasy. It showed us, thereby, ourselves through the choices that the characters have to make. And it reminds us that we in the present do have a choice: as to how to shape the future.

This book is *real* science fiction. It is not technical, but it is logical in its extrapolation from the present world and present science (especially environmental science). As a result, it shows a real, possible future scenario: with real characters and real choices. If you are a science fiction fan who misses the *science* -- give Thomson's "Through Alien Eyes" a try.