- Paperback: 276 pages
- Publisher: Mariner Books; Reprint edition (Oct 3 1991)
- Language: English
- ISBN-10: 0156278065
- ISBN-13: 978-0156278065
- Product Dimensions: 22.2 x 13.4 x 1.9 cm
- Shipping Weight: 318 g
- Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars See all reviews (15 customer reviews)
- Amazon Bestsellers Rank: #446,928 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
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Product Details |
Product Description
From Publishers Weekly
After crash-landing on an alien planet known as Eden, the crew of a spaceship begins to explore--and hopelessly misinterpret--the strange surroundings. In this ``stylistic departure from his usual satirical, antic approach. . . . Lem creates an intricately detailed exotic environment in a thoughtful, often exciting story,'' said PW.
Copyright 1991 Cahners Business Information, Inc.
From Library Journal
When their space ship crash lands on the planet Eden, six men confront their disturbing new environment and its unfathomable life forms. The author of One Hu man Minute (LJ 2/15/86) skillfully portrays an all-too-real encounter with a truly alien intelligence. This stark space parable by Poland's leading sf writer belongs in comprehensive sf collections.
Copyright 1989 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
Copyright 1989 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
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Customer Reviews
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Most helpful customer reviews
5.0 out of 5 stars
A Trojan horse sci fi horrorshow,
By
This review is from: Eden (Paperback)
This is not just a standard sci fi book about crash landing on a strange planet, though a ten year old can (and has) read it on that level and enjoyed it on that level. It's also not just an examination of a "truely" alien society though it works on that level as well, and it may be more comfortable for some older readers who may prefer not to look much deeper.Most of the U.S. reviewers of this book don't really get it, the only review I read here which seemed to understand the point Lem makes was the reviewer from Germany. One have to understand Lem to understand his work. Most of his books were written from behind the iron curtain. Almost everything Lem wrote (when he was still writing novels) is both political and socially relevant, usually very bitingly so. One of the things which make him an especially interesting writer is that, in addition to being a brilliant futurologist and social critic, he was forced to write with great subtelty to escape the notice of censors and poltical watchdogs. He does not beat you over the head with the message in Eden, thats for sure. You have to read between the lines a little bit. But there is a scathing social message in Eden.... think about automated manufacturing plants which mindlessly produce worthless junk to the detriment of individual beings ... think about it the next time you are walking around a mall, maybe, or passing by a landfill. The beginning of the book, with it's odd, intermittently fleshed out characterization, is really a subtle parody of US science fiction of the time, socially and poltically "colorblind" science fiction. The naive good intentions of the "central casting" Astronauts is a chilling contrast to the creepy reality of the ironically named planet....
3.0 out of 5 stars
Culture shock,
By
This review is from: Eden (Paperback)
This one is sort of a forced hybrid-- a stereotyped sci-fi space crew (mostly without names, as I recall) dealing with an alien civilization based on lies and linguistic distortions. Who says that aliens have to be immediately understandable? What would have happened if some spacefaring race were to have plopped down in the middle of Nazi Germany or Stalinist Russia? That's the situation our protaganists are faced with; they don't even know what the aliens are normally like, let alone what they're like under the situation in which they find them.The story is told in a very straightforward manner, leaving the readers to draw their own moral conclusions; something that Lem does very well. Lem is also very good at drawing the details of alien worlds without telling us too much about them and destroying their mystique and fascination.
4.0 out of 5 stars
fine alien description,
By DC5 (Northwest United States) - See all my reviews
This review is from: Eden (Hardcover)
This is only the second Stan Lem book I've read (Solaris being the first), and here, once again, Lem captures the utter strangeness of an alien world and its utterly strange inhabitants. As others have mentioned, Lem chooses to identify the crew members by profession rather than by name, with one exception. I'm not sure of his reason for this, but my guess is that he was trying to show the tendency of humans to comparmentalize, and, subsequently, to show how this could present a barrier to understanding alien beings. Here, Lem presents a well-thought-out alien atmosphere, with "doublers" living in a society that we can barely imagine. The most interesting parts of the story were the various planetary explorations performed by the men, both on foot and by ground vehicle. It is rare, at least in my experience, to encounter an author who can describe such strange places in such fine and honest detail. I also enjoyed Lem's take on the human contamination of such worlds. Recommended for those who enjoy exploratory, adventure-type science fiction with a philosophical twist.
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