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14 of 15 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
A classic, 5 Oct 2003
This is one of the absolute best science fiction novels ever written, and probably the best of Clarke's various works. It is certainly my favourite. It is also the only science fiction novel ever, so far, to take home all the major awards (it won the Campbell, the Hugo, the Jupiter, and the Nebula). It tells the story of a mysterious cylindrical object that has entered our solar system, where it is detected by Spaceguard (a detection system to give advance warning of asteroids and other near-earth objects on a potential collision course with our planet - an idea that Clarke developed further in The Hammer of God). It is soon determined that the object, christened Rama, is actually an artificial space vessel of some kind, and a United Planets spaceship (the Endeavour, captained by Commander Norton) is sent to investigate. The rest of the (fairly short) novel describes the wonders that the members of the crew of the spaceship encounter after they have managed to get inside Rama. There are also some trademark Clarke glimpses of future human society and technology (based strictly on real science, of course).
The book is written in the classical Clarke style, with very short chapters and very little in the way of "character development" (this latter is something that is always whined and complained about by people who don't understand what great writing really is). And in this case it all works tremendously well. It is always, in all of Clarke's writings, the ideas that are the main thing. In Rendezvous, nothing beats the sense of wonder and amazement you experience when the mysteries of Rama are gradually revealed, although, at the end of the book, Rama remains as much of an enigma as it was at the start. It all rings true, and it all feels realistic, although there is a slightly dated feel (since this book was written in the early 1970s), so that I sometimes got a feeling that I was reading about something that had happened in the past (especially when you take into account the sequels, of which Rama II is just as good as Rendezvous). There is also an uplifting optimism in the story, despite the fact that humanity is, as always in Clarke's stories, put squarely in its place at the conclusion of the book.
Rendezvous with Rama is highly recommended indeed, and required reading for just about everyone. You don't have to be a fan of Clarke or a fan of science fiction in general to enjoy this book. Everyone should read it.
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by Arthur C. Clarke
by Arthur C. Clarke
by Arthur C. Clarke
by Poul Anderson
by Arthur C. Clarke
