Customer Reviews

Worlds

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

 

 

I can't say enough good things about this book (and the whole World's triolgy). Like most people I got hooked on Haldeman via the Forever War and I just picked this one at random to be my next book. Well I was up reading this all weekend; I just couldn't put it down! I spent the next three days tracking down the sequel and read it within the week. The third book (Worlds Enough In Time) wasn't quite as great as the first two but still a very enjoyable read (though still very good, I think the thing I didn't like was that it was written many years later and somehow the style doesn't quite fit with the first two).

This is easily one of the best sci-fi sagas I've ever read. It easily stands with classics such as Asimov's Foundation books and David Brin's Uplift Series. I highly recommend it.

I picked this book up because I like to read a little sci-fi now and then and someone told me this author is from my home state, Florida. Well good enough for me so I started out with the "Worlds" series. Now this was years ago so I've forgotten a lot of details, but I liked it enough to track it down on ... and buy a new copy to read again.

The story centers around a woman who is born and raised on a man-made satellite orbiting Earth. In her early twenties she comes to Earth for the first time to go to school. The first part of the book deals with the culture clash, and her meeting a guy she fall for. The last part (again I am reaching back) deals with their separation and a war on Earth (I'm trying not to spoil anything). It was written 20 years ago or so but the story rings very true in this post 9/11 era.

I also really like the next two books, Worlds Apart and Worlds Enough In Time.

This book is what got me started on Haldeman. I was always looking for someone with the talent of Asimov or Heinlein but no one ever seemed to match up. Then someone handed me a copy of "Worlds" and that was it. I read "Worlds Apart" within days of finish "Worlds" and moved on to ready pretty much everything Haldeman wrote.

Frankly I find him a little uneven with about 90% of his books being some of the greatest sci-fi ever written and 10% leaving me wondering if I had picked up the wrong author. Well I can assure you this is a great novel worthy of the author of "The Forever War", "Mindbridge" and "The Hemmingway Hoax".

If you've read Haldeman you know what I mean. If you are new this is a great place to start.

Worlds was one of the first science fiction novels I ever read and it is still one of the best. When I started this book I got through the first 50 pages or so. For various reasons I didn't pick the book up until about six months later. When I finally got back to it, I was able to remember everything I had read before. Haldeman was definitely on top of his game with this one. He took a great premise and turned it into a great story with engaging characters and a fast-paced plot. The detail and imagery in his depictions of this future Earth and life in the Worlds makes you feel like you are standing right there next to the characters, literally immersed within the novel. If there was anything lacking, I certainly do not remember it.

Since there's no information here about this book, here's what the back cover of my copy says: "In the year 2084, nearly a half million humans have escaped pollution and overcrowding to live in the hollowed-out asteroids miles above the Earth. For Maryanne O'Hara--born and raised on New New York, one of several orbiting Worlds--the prospect of attending college on the home planet is both frightening and exhilirating. But things are very different down below. Violence, unrest, and political fanatacism run rampant. And mixing with the wrong crowd can have serious, sinister, and Worlds-shattering consequences."

As for my own thoughts...I love this book. I've recently read Haldeman's Forever Peace, Forever Free, and The Coming, and none of them were as effective as Worlds. This novel tells the story of Mary O'Hara, a nineteen year old girl who has lived her whole life in space. She earns a scholarship of sorts to study at NYU, so she gets to actually set foot on Earth, something the vast majority of Worlds citizens never get the chance to do. Much of the story is told in the form of letters and diary entries, so the writing style is simple and moving. Deceptively simple, because there's a great story here with rich detail about what life is like on Earth in the future. I don't want to give any plot details away, but I will say that it's a great coming-of-age story that really makes you care about the main character. And the ending is really heart-wrenching. Worlds was first published in 1980. I think it's every bit as good as his acclaimed The Forever War, and a close runner-up behind All My Sins Remembered. Luckily for me (and you) this is the first book in a trilogy. I can't wait to settle back into one of Haldeman's Worlds again soon.

I'm not much of a sci fi fan, I'm too old really. However my daughter loved this series so much I had to try it. Well it's pretty good. I'm kind of a picky guy but I liked it. It's led me to read some of his other books and I have been pleased. Good stuff.

Set late in the 21st century, Worlds tells the story of a young woman, Marianne, who grew up in one of the orbital habitats (called Worlds hence the title) that surround the Earth. She journeys to Earth for the first time as part of a year long educational and sightseeing tour. She gets involved with groups and events that give the reader information, in a subtle way, about the tense political situation that exists between the Worlds and Earth. Not only is there tension between the Worlds and Earth there is additional friction between the territories and nation states of the Earth. The USA has fragmented into several republics and dominions that have widely varying socio-economic situations. This adds confusion to the geo-political landscape and sets the stage for the momentous events of the book.

As the plot starts to build to the exciting and dynamic conclusion, the tidbits the reader had been given in earlier chapters become more coherent. By the end of the book the pacing has completely changed and it ends at a blistering level leaving the reader wondering, what next? What next is Worlds Apart.

Worlds and Worlds Apart are two books that demand to be read together. The buildup in Worlds is only fully concluded in Worlds Apart. Buy Worlds separately and you will regret it for certain. Worlds and Worlds Apart together comprise an intensely compelling story that I found to be the best of Haldeman, even better than the Forever War.

I read the second book first...So that colors my judgement... The beginning of this book introduced you to the main character O'hara, and was pretty boring. Some of the author's weirdness is to much for me, usually sexually related, making me want to throw the book in the trash. but the last fourth of the book pulled through and made it worth reading.

I loved the whole Worlds series, but the first one is easily my favorite. I highly reccomend the whole triology.

This guy writes solid sci-fi, but what is with all the sex scenes? Everybody in his novels is a slut. You have to wonder if it's some secret wish of Haldeman's that he could live in a future world of his imagination where everybody jumps into bed with everybody at the drop of a hat (or their pants).