A long voyage through space, a character-driven book that explores relationships with not that much plot happening until near the end, where we get a classic space adventure.
This could be a description of both “The Magellanic Cloud (1955) by Stanisław Lem and “The long way to a small angry planet” (2014) by Becky Chambers (first book of the Wayfarer Series).
So after reading and loving one of these books, I was certain I would enjoy the other one as well. Somehow, I didn’t at all, and that’s what I want to discuss today (spoiler-free, of course).
So how are this stories different and why did one resonate with me in a way the other couldn’t?
Ideas about the Future
In MC, space travel is more advanced than today, but still has rather limited possibilities and knowledge concerning interstellar traveling. The portrayal of society and science includes, for a modern audience, nothing that new or special, but is presented in a way that makes it still feel fresh. Stanisław Lem´s book is a product of its time, being written in a communist environment the future presented is, of course, full of corresponding ideals. Supposedly, this was not entirely Lem´s intent but also due to censorship. Nethertheless, while I heard other readers complain that it was too on the nose, I was interested in this insights into this time period and ideology.
With Becky Chambers´ book being set further ahead in time, it not only presents the development of humanity but also includes creative alien races and detailed descriptions of some of their cultures. Space travel takes much less time than in MC and earth already has colonies and unions with other planets. It is presented not entirely but mostly peaceful and in general rather positive and diverse, taking modern views of a developed society into account. There are readers that relate the ideas of the Wayfarer Series to Social Justice Warriors, but I didnt see that at all.
Tone and Writing
MC has a mostly serious tone, with some scenes e.g. of characters having fun together being somewhat more lighthearted. TLWTASAP on the other hand presents itself always with an atmosphere of fun, including a subtle humor in every paragraph. However, if required, the tone can shift to fit tragic moments, but without too much drama and always avoiding clichés.
Themes
Yes, both books are about space travel, being on a space ship with the same people for a long time and ideas about the future, but their emphasis is very differently.
While Lem focuses mainly on the theme of isolation and therefore presents rather cold relationships and the annoyance of being stuck with the same people forever, Chambers´ main theme could be best described as family. The main characters in her book are very close to each other and discuss their view on what family is for them, in their lives or in their culture, repeatedly throughout the book.
Both themes have a lot of potential, I think, with MG´s one being more challenging and TLWTASAP´s providing more of a feel-good mood. For both of them the characters and how their relationships are presented is essential to the success, and that’s were my problems arose.
Characters and their Relationships
My main issue with Lem´s writing in general is that, to me, his characters don’t feel like actual people with personalities and feelings, but like very stale projections of people that could be in this situations. There is nothing that makes them interesting or stick out, they all just feel like your standart background characters, which makes it hard for them to carry the story, especially when they are the focus of a book without much plot. The relationships they had with each other, and also to their friends and family on earth, seemed cold or not really noteworthy, what made caring about them really hard.
This is were TLWTASAP shines: a diverse cast of characters with heartwarming and also believable relationships. Sure, for some readers they could be too vivacious or even over the top, but you cant argue that they are well defined with different backstories, personalities and world views. Even the unlikable characters act understandable and stay interesting the whole read through. It is easy to care for everyone´s well-being because of the strong bonds they form and the interesting discussions they have, which makes emotional scenes really work.
Conclusion
As you’ve probably just noticed, TLWTASAP is the book I enjoyed much better, so I thought about if it was just because it was the more modern book; that maybe a reason is that emotions and characters are more of a focus today than they are now.
I rejected the theory when I remembered some novels of the same time period and from even before MC, that I have read. I am legend by Richard Matheson, which was published one year before MC, captured the feeling of isolation very fittingly and made me care for its protagonist. The classic author Charles Dickens painted wonderful pictures of characters in his writings, like Oliver Twist and Little Dorrit. I like these novels very much, so I think with the right focus, the story could have worked for me, regardless of the time period, if it had been done in a different way.
If anyone has read one or even both of this books please let me know in the comments if you agree or disagree and what you thought of them in general. Reading is fun but it is even more fun to discuss the books you enjoyed or passionately disliked.