Startide Rising

The Uplift Saga, Book 2

By: David Brin

Narrated by: George K. Wilson

When Streaker - the first starship designed and crewed by dolphins - discovers a derelict ancient armada with evidence of the first sentient species ever, she sets off a war between dozens of galactic races eager to use the information for their own advancement.

New York Times best-selling author David Brin's novels stretch the imagination while providing action and thrills galore. Packed with exotic aliens and ancient mysteries, Startide Rising delivers breath-taking adventure in the grandest tradition of space opera.

©1983 David Brin (P)2003 Recorded Books

Critic reviews

• Hugo Award, Best Novel, 1984
• Nebula Award, Best Novel, 1983

"This is one of the outstanding SF novels of recent years." (Publishers Weekly)
"As the plot thickens and the relationships between the characters become more complex, Wilson's narration is a calm and steady beacon." (AudioFile)

David Brin At His Best

Look up David Brin. At one time, he was a giant of the SF genre. "The Postman" Kevin Kostner movie was from one of his novels. My favorite was always his Uplift stories, of humans feeling their way into a 2 billion year old society of star faring races.

Both of his uplift trilogies are available. Buy the first one and the other two books are included. This one won both the Hugo and Nebula. One credit for the whole trilogy. Yes, it's great, but very complex. I think I'll listen to it again before I move on to the next one. The narration is aces.

Remember the 80's

Dolphins in space, ESP, at the hipness of Japanese culture at the height of the Japan bubble. Pretty dated now. I was disappointed. Two factions argue over a plan that is withheld from the reader, presumably so as to not to ruin all suspense, but then we can't really get inside the heads of those on either side. They never argue face to face. The plan is either crazy or the best we got but without any discussion it lacks in motivation and believability. Instead we get lots of haiku

The narrator needs to turn off the recorder when he sips water and swallows. The gurgling glurping sounds get annoying and more frequent by the end of the book.

I really wanted to like this one....

Would you recommend this book to a friend? Why or why not?

No, not really. Mostly because it does not resolve central question.

How would you have changed the story to make it more enjoyable?

A bigger bone thrown to this old dog concerning the central mystery would have been nice. I am trying not to spoil anything and I know that the journey is half the enjoyment in addition to the destination but we never get to the destination of knowing who the mysterious race is.

Good book well read

This is an old favorite book to begin with. But it's a delight read. My only issue is with the stuttering dolphins. It's written into the text but I think it could have been handled better.

Trying to survive in a tough neighborhood

Startide Rising is David Brin's 2nd installment in his Uplift Trilogy. This tale takes place several centuries after Sundiver (book 1). On a routine mission to evaluate a dolphin crew for 'dolphinning' a space ship, they make a discovery of an ancient, abandoned fleet. Although not appreciating the significance, they are pursued once word get out with other alien races after their find believing evidence of the progenitors (the original sentient race, long gone) has been found. The Earth ship crash lands on a planet and struggles to survive as a space battle rages overhead. On the planet, the small band of humans, along wit their dolphin crew and a single science officer chimp, explore their surrounding and gerry-rig an escape. The planet itself has a strange history with a bizarre lifeform as well as a pre-sentient species. The dolphin crew experiences a mutiny, but eventually, they manage to trick their pursuers and narrowly leave the area without giving up their treasure.

While multiple perspectives are offered, the galactic view provides additional insight to the galactic order. There is a heavy emphasis on propriety and protocol, while everyone still seems to bend the rules. Humans are viewed suspiciously as the notion that they could have uplifted themselves is never entertained by the rest of the universe, At the same time, their work with uplifting dolphins and chimps is viewed as premature and in opposition to normal galactic protocol even though had no idea about the way the rest of the universe operated. Fortunately, the planet is mainly water, giving the dolphins plenty of maneuvering room.

The narration is quite well done with a good range of voices. Pacing is a bit on the slow side, but well aligned with the pace of the story.