Naiche A. (Naiche) reviewed on 10/4/2007 + 91 more book reviews

Like much of Lem's work, it's more of a social commentary than sci-fi. Be warned, the introduction is particularly hard to get through and not necessary for the rest of the story - you may want to skip it. This is a story of an attempt at alien contact that failed, which is bitterly told by a once-hopeful mathmetician who wanted desparately to solve the mysterious code. Remarkable book in its complex view of human nature and the politics behind scientific discovery, but a very dense read and the picture it paints of human capabilities is a bleak one.

That said, I really, really liked the book and thought it was worth every minute of the time I spent on it. Most people who write science fiction don't consider the possibility of failure, or of the limitations of the human brain and psyche. Parts of it are very funny, and heartwarming. The intense emotional and intellectual connections the mathematician makes with other scientists trying to solve the puzzle are both fascinating and moving. In the end, I walked away completely awed by the strangeness of the alien message and even the bits and pieces put together were enough to overwhelm.

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