Status
Available
Call number
Collection
Publication
Pocket (1982), Edition: 1st
Description
In 2198 man lives precariously on hastily-established colony worlds and in seven giant starships. Mia Haveros ship tests its children by casting them out to live or die in a month of Trial in the hostile wilds of a colony world. Her trial is fast approaching and she must learn not only the skills that will keep her alive but the deeper courage to face herself and her world.
User reviews
LibraryThing member raq929
I read this book many times as a young girl and have just finished rereading it. As the title suggests, it is a coming of age story. The narrator is 13 and the language and simplicity of the narration reflects her age. Despite its simplicity of style, this book deals with some of the great issues
Personally, I have always felt a very strong connection with Mia, the narrator of the book. I feel like this book is an excellent choice for young readers of the genre, and older readers who don't mind a more simplistic narrative style. I loved rereading it now that I'm older, and I highly recommend it.
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of science fiction: what constitutes a person, what is ethical conduct, how should people in power treat people who have none, etc. Personally, I have always felt a very strong connection with Mia, the narrator of the book. I feel like this book is an excellent choice for young readers of the genre, and older readers who don't mind a more simplistic narrative style. I loved rereading it now that I'm older, and I highly recommend it.
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LibraryThing member PaulWW
Evocative and thought provoking. If you like Space-Opera type shoot-em-ups this isn't your book. If you're looking for a book with deep meaning, by all means, pick up this book!
LibraryThing member igor.kh
First and foremost, this is a story of growing up. As such, it works very well. Mia, a quick witted and tempered teenage girl, learns how to deal with friends, adults, adventure, danger, prejudice and moral dilemmas. Although, sometimes it feels like a by-the-numbers effort, where each of name
On the other hand, the book also describes a futuristic society inhabiting a large generational starship. Its mores and moral values are compared and contrasted with, much more negatively portrayed, colonists, who live on planets instead. The colonists are quite obviously a caricature of our own world of today (or of the original publication year, 1968). On this level, I think Panshin does a much poorer job. He offers criticisms and provides solutions (through parallels between the different societies), without presenting a convincing case to support either. At such times, I would have a jarring feeling that the author's voice intruded on the voice of the narrator.
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themes is treated one by one, with Mia basically explicitly acknowledging the lesson learned at the end of each episode. Fortunately, this stylistic choice does not distract from the sincerity of the first person narrator.On the other hand, the book also describes a futuristic society inhabiting a large generational starship. Its mores and moral values are compared and contrasted with, much more negatively portrayed, colonists, who live on planets instead. The colonists are quite obviously a caricature of our own world of today (or of the original publication year, 1968). On this level, I think Panshin does a much poorer job. He offers criticisms and provides solutions (through parallels between the different societies), without presenting a convincing case to support either. At such times, I would have a jarring feeling that the author's voice intruded on the voice of the narrator.
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LibraryThing member Saberware
Not bad actually...has a little storie and entertaining too.
LibraryThing member brianclegg
I loved this book as a teenager, and just re-read to discover it's a touch turgid - but it's SF being used to explore society and ethics, so slightly forgiven.
LibraryThing member annbury
Nebula-winning coming-of-age novel where a young woman has the central role. Detailed and convincing presentation of the world in which it exists, compelling characterization and a deeply sympathetic central character, and an elegant style.
LibraryThing member RBeffa
This is an impressive science fiction novel from 1968. I had read praise about this novel many years ago, but only happened upon a paperback of the original "Ace Special" fairly recently. This is a different sort of coming of age story, especially considering when it was written. I found the
The story begins with a young girl, Mia, living in a colony spaceship, a generation ship, one of a number that fled the destruction of earth in about our time and we find them something like 200 years after the event. The girl is about 12 when we begin, and the story is seen, told and unfolds from her perspective until about age 14. This is why the story appears to be written in a relatively simple way, because we experience life, adventures and events from her view. There is a sort of sweetness to much of this story. The story "grows up" as does our young girl, but the events in the story appear to be told from a time a few years after it all.
All children when they reach the age of 14 must go through the "Trial". It is a rite of passage for the people of the ship. They must survive on a relatively primitive planet for a month in order to earn the right to be an adult on the colony ship. It is a means of population control and natural selection, among other things - in a way part of this is also akin to a "Hunger Games".
I am really glad I read this. Comparisons to some of Robert Heinlein's better "juvenile" novels would be appropriate. The book is a little slow moving until the last third or so. However I was unhappy with the end. If there was a lesson to be learned at the end it was not clear to me, although it does reinforce the good society doing evil things message. For me, the endgame should have been better here. Not quite a four star book.
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narrative remarkably undated - rather simple prose without a plethora of jargon and expressions and attitudes that clearly date so many novels. This does read much like a young adult novel, but it approaches and addresses ethics issues that cross ages. To simplify, seemingly good people can do great evil in the name of good. As relevant today as it was in 1968.The story begins with a young girl, Mia, living in a colony spaceship, a generation ship, one of a number that fled the destruction of earth in about our time and we find them something like 200 years after the event. The girl is about 12 when we begin, and the story is seen, told and unfolds from her perspective until about age 14. This is why the story appears to be written in a relatively simple way, because we experience life, adventures and events from her view. There is a sort of sweetness to much of this story. The story "grows up" as does our young girl, but the events in the story appear to be told from a time a few years after it all.
All children when they reach the age of 14 must go through the "Trial". It is a rite of passage for the people of the ship. They must survive on a relatively primitive planet for a month in order to earn the right to be an adult on the colony ship. It is a means of population control and natural selection, among other things - in a way part of this is also akin to a "Hunger Games".
I am really glad I read this. Comparisons to some of Robert Heinlein's better "juvenile" novels would be appropriate. The book is a little slow moving until the last third or so. However I was unhappy with the end. If there was a lesson to be learned at the end it was not clear to me, although it does reinforce the good society doing evil things message. For me, the endgame should have been better here. Not quite a four star book.
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LibraryThing member jennorthcoast
This is a wonderfully presented story of a young girl coming of age -- but out in space, not here and now, so there are unique situations of character growth, of joy and tragedy that the author handles well.
LibraryThing member Traveller1
If memory serves I first read this as it was in my Eng lit class at high school. Not a half bad story. Not this edition, cannot in fact recall the edition I read.
LibraryThing member ravenword
One of my favorite works of character-driven science fiction. The narrator of this tale is a precocious twelve-year-old girl, living in a massive spaceship with her family and friends. The novel follows their exciting childhood adventures as well as their preparation for a dangerous planetside
The author, Alexei Panshin, is perhaps best known for being first a great fan and then a strong critic of Robert Heinlein. Bully for him, I say -- Panshin's sensitive portrayal of his little girl / young woman, while not perfect, is preferable to Heinlein's heavy-handed sexist wish-fulfillment. But I digress...
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coming-of-age excursion. After this event, the novel, like the characters, become more "adult," focusing on political tension between the ship-dwellers and the planet-dwellers, the sharing of resources between the two, and the difficulty of holding a minority opinion. The author, Alexei Panshin, is perhaps best known for being first a great fan and then a strong critic of Robert Heinlein. Bully for him, I say -- Panshin's sensitive portrayal of his little girl / young woman, while not perfect, is preferable to Heinlein's heavy-handed sexist wish-fulfillment. But I digress...
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LibraryThing member AltheaAnn
This brings me up to 89% done with Reading The Nebula Award Winners.
I'm really sorry I somehow missed reading this book when I was a kid. I would have loved it when I was a pre-teen. As it was, I liked it, but it's very definitely a coming of age story with an Introduction to Ethics woven in.
I'm really sorry I somehow missed reading this book when I was a kid. I would have loved it when I was a pre-teen. As it was, I liked it, but it's very definitely a coming of age story with an Introduction to Ethics woven in.
LibraryThing member Cheryl_in_CC_NV
Excellent story. I loved the girl's insights as she matured - for example that every hero has at his back a 'spear carrier' (that's red shirt" for Star Trek fans) but that nonetheless those people are not 'diposable' to their families & their dreams. Short but very rich - lots of ideas, complex
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characters & world, even the plot was really more than just a 'coming-of-age.' Thank you so much to the bookcrossing member who shared it with me." Show Less
LibraryThing member antao
How old SF can be as crappy as new SF: "Rite of Passage" by Alexei Panshin
Book published in 1968.
After finishing “After the Apocalypse” by Maureen F. McHugh, I wanted something from the good old days. With some serendipity involved, I read “Rite of Passage” by Alexei Panshin, which I read
So much junk published is called SF (“Hunger Games” by Suzanne Collins, “His Dark Materials” by Philip Pullman, etc) and it’s very difficult to find decent reading stuff. I wanted to know whether my memory was playing tricks on me after 30 years (it wasn’t).
To start at the end, I still don’t like it.
The rest of this review can be found on my blog..
Book published in 1968.
After finishing “After the Apocalypse” by Maureen F. McHugh, I wanted something from the good old days. With some serendipity involved, I read “Rite of Passage” by Alexei Panshin, which I read
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in my teens. My memory of it was at best very hazy. The only thing I remembered was that I didn’t like it at all at the time.So much junk published is called SF (“Hunger Games” by Suzanne Collins, “His Dark Materials” by Philip Pullman, etc) and it’s very difficult to find decent reading stuff. I wanted to know whether my memory was playing tricks on me after 30 years (it wasn’t).
To start at the end, I still don’t like it.
The rest of this review can be found on my blog..
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LibraryThing member DinadansFriend
A young girl faces her major trial. She is to be landed on one of the colonial worlds to survive for a while in a planetary environment. So far, she has lived on one of the seven surviving from the flight from a ruined earth. I read the original Ace book of 1968.
LibraryThing member Noeshia
The version I read had an introduction written by the author about how the story came to be. I think that that short chapter helped my liking of this book along. Not that I wouldn't have liked it anyway, but that I liked it more knowing how much the author cared about certain parts of the story.
Mia
I like the intrusions of philosophy into the story, where Mia is mulling about various social theories, and how she feels about them. I must admit that I don't know as much as Mia about philosophy, but I married a philosophy student, so I understand enough. The fact that Mia thought deeply about her schoolwork and really tried to apply it to what she was experiencing really endeared her to the part of me that is still that nerd.
All in all, I think that this would be a good story for those going through a transitional phase in their life. It would also be good for people who need a little encouragement to be a little braver socially.
Mia
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was believable to me as an early teen. She does impulsive things side-by-side with utterly reasonable decisions. If I didn't remember what it was like to be like that it might be maddening. I'm sure some people might not be able to take Mia as realistic, either because she isn't very feminine, or because she does do some unreasonably reasonable things in the story, but those folks should have met a teenaged me.I like the intrusions of philosophy into the story, where Mia is mulling about various social theories, and how she feels about them. I must admit that I don't know as much as Mia about philosophy, but I married a philosophy student, so I understand enough. The fact that Mia thought deeply about her schoolwork and really tried to apply it to what she was experiencing really endeared her to the part of me that is still that nerd.
All in all, I think that this would be a good story for those going through a transitional phase in their life. It would also be good for people who need a little encouragement to be a little braver socially.
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LibraryThing member ikeman100
Great book by Panshin. I thoroughly enjoy this SF juvenile classic. It won a HOGO and deserved it. One SF writer noted that Panshin used to complain about Robert Heinlein's success with juvenille SF books. Then Panshin wrote this charming SF book that could be easily be mistaken for a Heinlein
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novel and won awards. I agree, it does read like a Heinlein juvenile but this one is better then some of Heinlein's. Show Less
LibraryThing member superant
I remember being a fan of the book many years ago when I read it as a youngster. Now rereading it in my 50s I find it is still powerful and enjoyable to me.
Certainly the story reads as rather immature in tone and characterization. These aspects are appropriate since the main character/narrator is
Some people might find the plot development rather slow. We spend most of the book following Mia as she lives a year of her life in the massive spaceship that is her home. It is only in the last 1/4 of the book that she lands on planets and begins her rite of passage.
Another aspect that some readers will not like is the fact that Mia does not get her way. Many events around her cause Mia unhappiness. There is a major plot development in the final pages that shock Mia and leave her dissatisfied and unhappy. I think these plot points are useful because life for young people is not a series of wish fulfillments that give the young people everything they want. Adults in the world have the power to make decisions that young people disagree with and leave many young people angry and wanting change. This is the way the world is and should be in YA fiction also.
I enjoyed this book and recommend it to readers who can handle a slow pace aimed at young teens.
Certainly the story reads as rather immature in tone and characterization. These aspects are appropriate since the main character/narrator is
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13 years old in the story.Some people might find the plot development rather slow. We spend most of the book following Mia as she lives a year of her life in the massive spaceship that is her home. It is only in the last 1/4 of the book that she lands on planets and begins her rite of passage.
Another aspect that some readers will not like is the fact that Mia does not get her way. Many events around her cause Mia unhappiness. There is a major plot development in the final pages that shock Mia and leave her dissatisfied and unhappy. I think these plot points are useful because life for young people is not a series of wish fulfillments that give the young people everything they want. Adults in the world have the power to make decisions that young people disagree with and leave many young people angry and wanting change. This is the way the world is and should be in YA fiction also.
I enjoyed this book and recommend it to readers who can handle a slow pace aimed at young teens.
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LibraryThing member burritapal
This book would have been great when I was 12 years old. It helps you wrestle with moral dilemmas. But reading it at the age I am, it seemed plodding. I did enjoy the moral lesson given on Free Birthers; the author's disgust was palpable. Our own planet would have been destroyed, if there existed
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Overlords for us, as it did in the story. As it is, we take the slow suicide, yea? Show Less
Subjects
Awards
Hugo Award (Nominee — Novel — 1969)
Nebula Award (Nominee — Novel — 1968)
Locus All-Time Best (41 — 1975)
Language
Original language
English
Original publication date
1968
Physical description
6.9 inches
ISBN
0671440683 / 9780671440688