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Ringworld (Ringworld #1)

Larry Niven

Start date: November 1, 2019

Finish date: November 30, 2019

Discussion: Science Fiction and Fantasy

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Dec 12, 2012 Candace rated it liked it · review of another edition

Disclosure - This is my first hard science- fiction book; so while I am unable to review it against other books in this sub-genre, I'm going to review it as I would any other book. The science was a little out of my league, but it was nothing that some computer searches wouldn't clear up.

Niven is a great descriptive writer. The book was well worth reading to meet Nessus and Speaker-to-Animals, the two aliens who make up half of the team of four travelers to Ringworld. This team (also comprised Disclosure - This is my first hard science- fiction book; so while I am unable to review it against other books in this sub-genre, I'm going to review it as I would any other book. The science was a little out of my league, but it was nothing that some computer searches wouldn't clear up.

Niven is a great descriptive writer. The book was well worth reading to meet Nessus and Speaker-to-Animals, the two aliens who make up half of the team of four travelers to Ringworld. This team (also comprised of two humans, Louis and Teela) is searching outside of Known Space for the Ringworld in order to learn more information about it and any inhabitants because all of the travelers' worlds will soon (in 20,000 years!) be suffering from radiation from a chain reaction of supernovae that's occurred in the galactic core.

Some of the best and most humorous parts of the book are the interactions between these very different species with completely different emotions, motivations, desires, and even food choices. With Speaker believing his courage is his most important asset and Nessus rolling up in a ball at the slightest provocation, these completely opposite species must work toward a common goal of traveling to and from the Ringworld safely.

Niven not only gives us Nessus and Speaker, but he also describes some pretty cool gadgets such as flycycles and stepping stones.

I also enjoyed his exploration of the theme throughout the book: are we more like gods? or are we the puppets of the gods? While not an original theme, Niven played with words (one of the alien types is called Puppeteer), actions, and even a gadget called a tasp to explore this theme in a fun way.

What Niven does not describe very well are women. It became very annoying when it became clear that he could only see the women chararacters as sex objects. I deduct a full point for this.

Also, I thought the latter half of the book lost some its direction. I know the travelers were wandering around in a new world, but I felt as if Niven did not have the control, the tension, and the direction that he did in the first half of the book as he described this new world and all that happened there.

OVERALL: I recommend this book to anyone who likes this sub-genre or who would like to read a book with some cool aliens and some great humour. I rarely tell anyone to stay away from a book; but if you have strong feelings on women as sex objects and weak female characters, be wary! ...more

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Dec 02, 2024 Natalie rated it liked it

Shelves: classics, science-fiction

I found the concept very intriguing: people from neighboring planets are resettled on a manufactured giant ring that offers an enormous amount of living space. A spaceship of various beings goes in search of answers about the ringworld. Sadly, we have only scattered information about the world, as well as incomplete information about the explorers.
The group of explorers includes Louis Wu, a 200 year old human, Nessus, a Puppeteer alien, Speaker-to-Animals, a kzin alien who is catlike, and Teela, I found the concept very intriguing: people from neighboring planets are resettled on a manufactured giant ring that offers an enormous amount of living space. A spaceship of various beings goes in search of answers about the ringworld. Sadly, we have only scattered information about the world, as well as incomplete information about the explorers.
The group of explorers includes Louis Wu, a 200 year old human, Nessus, a Puppeteer alien, Speaker-to-Animals, a kzin alien who is catlike, and Teela, a young human. They crash land on the giant ring, in an effort to find out more. During their exploration, they learn that the creators of the ring are no longer around, power has been cut because of a mold, there are a few scattered groups of inhabitants who are primitive and superstitious. There is a mysterious floating castle, and a strange thin wire that is dangerous or deadly. The explorers ride flycycles to cover ground more quickly. They go around the ring, trying to learn what they can. At one point, Teela disappears and it is assumed she has died.
The group then meet a spaceship crew member who used to bring supplies to the ring. She goes by the name Prill and agrees to join them.
The book follows the group on their long journey. During this, we learn that the puppeteers used genetic modification to breed humans. We also learn about the habits of the various explorers (one is vegetarian while another eats raw meat). Louis' age and his need for sex are not well explained, but he is lovers with Teela, then later Prill. These encounters have a definite tilt towards male pleasure.
I did a bit of research and learned that two of the major difficulties with a ringworld are finding enough building materials and getting the ring to start spinning. It has to spin to create gravity on the surface and to avoid it drifting into a planet or sun. There is no information about who built the ring (other than what they looked like) and why they have disappeared. There are other books in the series, which may explain more of the science and origin. The science behind the ship and some aspects of the ring are explained, so it seems odd that so much I would find helpful is absent.
The prose is clear and the pacing a bit slow but not terrible. The idea of an inhabitable ring is fascinating. But it's unclear how this was accomplished! Without concrete information about the ring, it's just an unusual tale of exploration. ...more

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