Startide Rising by David Brin

Hello, Stranger.

Let's talk about David Brin's Startide Rising.

The Short of It

Plot: Things quickly get out of hand when a ship crewed by humans, dolphins, and a chimp stumble upon a massive armada of abandoned spaceships, escalating to galactic-level drama.

Page Count: 498

Award: 1984 Hugo, 1984 Nebula, 1984 Locus SF 

Worth a read: All aboard the hype train! Toot toot!
Primary Driver: (Plot, World, or Character)
Bechdel Test: Pass
Technobabble: Moderate.
Review: Sweet kittens and milk is this thing excellent. It's not a perfect book - characters can be hard to keep track of, relationships can be forced, some parts drag, and the machina has a whole bunch of deus. But there are so many good ideas in here. Uplift is brought to the fore: that a species needs another to bring it to the galactic scene. But what does that mean? How do we recreate other species in our own image? What debts do we owe each other? What if attempts to help a species fail? It's pure delightful science fiction - a masterpiece of speculation and technology and species and politics.

The Medium of It

Spoiler Free!

A truly overwhelming amount of stuff goes on in this book. Just a whole lot. All the time. I don't know how much more I can say about plot without ruining anything. There are a lot of twists and turns; some are good surprises, some are telegraphed a bit too clearly, and some are resolved too easily.

Let's start with the basics. This is leaps and bounds better than Sundiver, the first book in the trilogy. The writing quality is not exceptional but certainly quite good. This translates to much better characters. Admittedly, there are a few too many, and we jump between perspectives enough that only a few have time to develop any depth. But none of them are just a bundle of protagonist clichés, which puts us miles past its predecessor.

The main reason to read this is for the universe. Uplift is, as a concept, just so cool. Humankind took on chimpanzees and dolphins as client races, working to bring them onto the galactic scene as full members. But they adapt the dolphins - giving them thumbs, among other things - and the chimpanzees as well, all as "improvements" to make them ready. Sometimes this changes help, sometimes they hinder characters. It's fun and it's thought provoking. How would we make us, but better?

Give it a read, you won't regret it.

If you'd like to read this, consider using the link below! I'll get a few cents at no extra cost to you!

This is the link in question!

The Long of It

Spoilers Ahead!

One of the subplots involves a number of modified dolphins who have other DNA mixed in. They're experiments, and not all of them work quite right. My favorite scene is one when snaps and begins attacking the others. 

“You are a calamity!” Keepiru spluttered, prevented by the breather from using other words more to the point. 

K’tha-Jon drifted a few meters closer, causing Keepiru to back away involuntarily. The giant stopped again; a satisfied clicking emanated from his brow. 

“Am I, Pilot? Can you, a simple fish-eater, understand your betters? Are you worthy to judge one whose forebears were at the top-p of the ocean food-chain? And dealt as judges of the sssea with all your kind?” 

Keepiru was hardly listening, uncomfortably aware of the vanishing distance between himself and the monster. 

“You arrogate’t-too much. You have only a few gene splices from…” 

“I am ORCA!” K’tha-Jon screamed. The cry echoed like a high paean of bugles. “The superficial body is nothing! It is the brain and blood that matter. Listen to me, and dare deny what I am!”

First, let's address the whale in the room: -10000000 points for irritating names. Moving on. This scene captures what makes this book so good. We have intervention in the very DNA of one species by another; a failed experiment. We have both feral and civilized takes by those within the same species. It's a good action scene. And this is all without humans involved. It is dolphin-centric conflict. It's rare that one finds major characters who have their own motivations, all outside of humanity.

This all captures some of the style of the book. It's dramatic, perhaps too much so. And K'tha-Jon being evil or creepy is telegraphed from very early on. But... I would have never guessed the orca twist.

Brin stumbles a bit at the very end. Pretty much every character needs to have a conclusion, leaving a long, rambling finale. All that said, this whole thing is a joy to read.

Absolutely recommend, either with its sequel or as a standalone.

Don't put thumbs on animals that don't need thumbs, Stranger.

And don't forget to read a book!