To Be Taught, If Fortunate A Novella

I cannot describe how much I loved this book, the character are beautiful, the new worlds are stunning and imaginative. The highs of this book are heartwarming and the lows are heartbreaking. For a book about outterspace this invokes a truly familiar, human experience.

This book was a bit of a punch to the gut, and with our impending move, it almost brought on an existential crisis. 😅

Though technically a prequel (although it has no effect on the main novels), I believe it's much more powerful read after at least one of the novels. Great novella.

This book reminded me why I love sci-fi.

as a scientist this was delightfully sciencey!! becky chambers is so talented at what she does (writing low stakes sci fi that makes you think)

Closer to a 3.5. Honestly would have put a 4 if not for the ending. Shallow grandiosity out of nowhere. God it blows.

It felt like I was reading field journals. The best comparison is older Star Trek with an emphasis of exploration for the sake of exploring, or if Interstellar only focused on the planets.

This is not an adventure story but rather a quiet pondering of people tasked to do field notes on organisms on the far exoplanets while the Earth is in shambles. Makes you think about the ethical and moral responsibility of space flight and how much it matters in the grand scheme of things.

incredible novella, I can’t recommend it enough. I listened to it on audiobook and after the ending of the third act I got chills and had such intense and existential Feelings about the book that I had to just sit in quiet for a bit. it’s also funny because I wouldn’t call this a spooky book but for most of the third act I was literally tense and worried and there are some kind of horrific yet realistic elements of the novella that I think got at the inherent horror of space travel. the somaforming was such a cool take on the logistics of space travel! I think it really struck the right balance of personal and profound, while also being kind of technical with the science. I will be reading the wayfarer series in 2024!! and anyone who likes sci fi should absolutely read this!!!!!!

the only thing i didn’t like about this book is that it was a novella and i don’t get to read MORE

I didn’t fully understand the ending, lol to sciencey

Well it was an interesting introduction to Beck Chambers.

I liked the idea around the story but I didn’t connect with the characters enough to appreciate the story

With all the science in it, I can say it could have been for me but meh it wasn’t enough.

I disliked Elena and the others were forgettable.

Despite that I get why this book is loved as long as you connect with the characters. The questioning at the end of the book was interesting though.

One thing I can take from this book for sure, is this quest of telluric planets similar to ours will never replace the goods we have in our own planet. Hypothetically

sorry bente. classic case of "it's not you, it's me". i get why other people love it. i, however, was a bit bored

To be taught if fortunate is a very idea-driven novella which revolves around the setting of a bunch of people stuck in the space(exoplanet) and their journey forward. As much as the scientific details around space travel and chirality were fun to read about, the characters and their development is equally spot on and I very much loved the whole experience of reading this book. The only thing I didn't like was the length of it, I WANTED MORE!!!!

Finishing this book left me feeling quiet and peaceful, something about it forced me to slow down. I think it's going to be one of my favourite books for a while and I've fallen in love with the observations and gentle curiosity of the narrator and her friends. I'm going to keep coming back to this for the honest and refreshing ideas it out forth. Can't wait to read more of Becky Chamber's writing.

“We celebrate the tree that stretches to the sky, but it is the ground we should ultimately thank.” A beautiful book. The above quote struck me as I first read it so I wanted to save it here - I feel like it encapsulates something the author is trying to convey about human collective experience. We are a community, we interconnect and depend on each other, and no-one does anything great without dozens, hundreds, or thousands of unseen supporters holding them up. As with all great sci-fi, this book leaves you with so many questions (literally, the narrator spends the last few pages actively questioning the reader) and a lot to think about. I found it a really hopeful work, despite the bleakness of some parts. Given all that’s happening in the world, the terrible things our species is capable of, it’s nice to get a reminder of what is best about us too - our curiosity, our sense of adventure, our desire to learn. In the end, a joyful book.

What a lovely book this was. Becky Chambers just keeps getting better. I heard a podcast review of this book that was very favorable, so I bumped it up in my queue. I listened to it one evening while I was finishing up doing laundry, and then finishing up spinning a bobbin of yarn. Four astronauts are sent out on basically a mission just to explore. It's not a mission to do anything else, really. They're set to visit 4 different planets and then return home decades after they leave. And that's what they do. But partway into their mission on the second planet, they stop receiving updates from earth. The story is basically this, then: do you keep going and doing the work you set out to do, not knowing if there is anyone back home to share it with? What then would you do at the end of your mission? These days it's a bit of a challenge to find fiction with a generally hopeful turn. It genuinely cheers me that there is an author who looks at exploration and science as good in its own right, even though you do have to ask questions about why you're doing something, and what it means to persevere. About that title. (view spoiler)[Every time I read the title of this book, I thought the phrasing was awkward at best. At the very end, we find out that it came from a quotation from Kurt Waldheim that went on the golden record with the Voyager spacecraft back in 1977. The whole sentence is "We step out of our Solar System into the Universe, seeking only peace and friendship, to teach if we’re called upon, to be taught if we are fortunate." Knowing the whole context makes it a little better for me. (hide spoiler)]

I absolutely loved this! The thing I found most charming and unique about this sci-fi was that its very character driven (which I love) but it also discusses the ethics surrounding space travel. And this is what I believe really sets it apart from other sci-fi books, its not necessarily a deep space adventure driven plot with many things going wrong, instead its very wholesome and rather describes the beauty of space travel.

A cool story with some gorgeous world building but the style isn’t for me. My first science fiction book, would love to try some more! 👽👽👽

J'ai beaucoup aimé l'approche scientifique, aussi bien les concepts inventés par l'autrice que les réflexions abordées tout au long de l'histoire. Le rythme est assez lent mais pas ennuyeux. On a l'impression de vivre l'exploration avec les astronautes. Le seul reproche que je peux avoir (et encore ça n'en est pas vraiment un) : c'est trop court, j'en veux plus !

The scientific descriptions and technicalities didn't really interest me and they're quite a big part of this book. The story is overrall interesting though + this book gives the reader very interesting subjects to reflect on. Worth a read.

I love Becky Chambers' writing and her approach to sci fi. I never get bored during this science-y bits and her characters are diverse and easy to love. The world building in this one was also really good with how each planet felt different and real. I really liked the ending though I wish this was a full length novel so I could spend more time with these characters.

[Rating and review pending development of criteria rubric]