June Book Discussion: The Wounded Sky by Diane Duane
Lamb Chopped
Shipmate
in Heaven
James T. Kirk and the crew of the U.S.S. Enterprise are chosen to test a new intergalactic drive that will take them far from Federation space. Unknown to them, the drive causes tears in reality, which have surprising effects on the crew’s psychology and physiology, increasing the further they go. In the end they come to face to face with something that appears to be a g/God, and how they deal with this encounter will affect the safety and welfare of two universes—including their own.
(My apologies for the delay--we're dealing with a funeral, a birthday, and travel all at once.)
(My apologies for the delay--we're dealing with a funeral, a birthday, and travel all at once.)
Comments
Finished re-reading it yesterday, and now happily working my way through her Star Trek 'Romulan' books. Last night I got to my favourite speech in The Wounded Sky, the one about games (you'll know it when you reach it).
Must pass the book over to @Sandemaniac to read!
We’re doing okay—Mr Lamb is pulling weeds out here in California while apparently another tornado is tearing through St Louis, or so says my phone alert. Hope our people and our house will be okay.
I wasn't a big fan so never read any of the books, but my parents' best friends were fans so I remember watching the TV show at their place sometimes. I don't consciously remember much, except that Spock was my favourite character, but my subconscious must have absorbed some information as the universe is fairly familiar to me.
I have just got to the part where the crew have started to have odd psychological experiences and think I must have watched the episode related to the book as it seems really familiar. Unless they had a similar event in Red Dwarf, which I did watch a lot of in the 1990s and early 2000s.
I'm envious. I was CONVINCED this book was in our house, but we did re-organize shelves recently and my husband put all the Star Trek books on the same shelf and it's NOT THERE. Will try to obtain it otherwise, but I still can't believe we don't have it.
Yes, I can get it as an ebook from Kobo and will probably buy it as soon as I get over the "But surely it's somewhere on these shelves!" reaction.
Thinking of you and your family, @Lamb Chopped.
I haven't listened to the entire conversation the podcasters have at the end of the book, but was interested to find out that Diane Duane was also a C.S. Lewis fan and had read his science fiction/fantasy trilogy that I mentioned in our Orbital discussion.
Here is the link https://www.youtube.com/@letsescape7743
1. The entire crew appears to be the “hero” of this book. Why do you think the author set it up this way, instead of focusing on the usual Kirk/Spock/McCoy trio as in other Star Trek stories?
2. Why are the Klingons introduced to the story—first as a danger, and later as future possible members of the Federation? Would the story have been better or worse without them?
3. Kirk has an experience in which he knows the Enterprise as a sentient being with relationships to the people who serve in her. What do you think of this kind of animism—just a hallucination? Is it something that reflects reality on any level—and if so, how?
4. What do you think of Harb’s theory that life is in fact a game? If you agree with it at all, with which bits? And what would you say the goal of your own real-life “game” is? (See Kirk’s “a game with what object?” in chapter eight.
5. Is it appropriate for K’t’lk to pay the price she does for the effects of the inversion drive, in your opinion? Why or why not?
6. Was there anything else in the book that fascinated you, bothered you, or you'd like to otherwise comment on?
Can't work out if Next Gen had come out by the time this book was first released (it had by the time the UK edition was published, but AFAIK the UK editions of the Star Trek books came out in a different order and timing to the US ones...). So, maybe a little foreshadowing to Next Gen if Next Gen was already released. Also, it makes the point that this new technology is wanted by others even though not yet fully tested, and that people are willing to kill to get it. Without the Klingons in there, there wouldn't be a reason for them to end up at the wrong star after the first jump without being suspicious that something strange was happening already.
Well, some of us name cars
As I mentioned up-thread, this is my favourite speech in the book
I've always been of the opinion that life is too important to be taken completely seriously, so reading that just clicked nicely for me when I first read the book. As for the goal of my own real-life 'game', well, possibly just to see what I can do... doing it well is a bonus, but doing and enjoying the doing (and the results) is the first point.
I think it is appropriate from my point of view. She thought of and implemented the drive. It caused pain and death, she was willing to offer her own life up in order to repair the injuries that she had caused via the drive. It was appropriate because she was using her life to repair things - dying merely as a penalty would not have been right, as that does not do anything to fix stuff.
I did rather enjoy the little moment at the end when K't'lk reappears. Total surprise the first time I read it!
Re K't'lk--I found myself wondering if it were "fair" for her to pay the price she did, given her intentions were good. Which is a perennial problem...
1. The entire crew appears to be the “hero” of this book. Why do you think the author set it up this way, instead of focusing on the usual Kirk/Spock/McCoy trio as in other Star Trek stories?
I don't know enough about Star Trek or the author to provide more than a guess, however for me it made the book enjoyable. I never really liked Kirk in the T.V. episodes and don't remember much of McCoy at all. I liked Spock because he was different than a normal earth human and his rational demeanour always made me feel the characters (or at least the main ones) would survive. As an anxious child I liked characters like Spock who made me fell safe, if that makes sense.
I liked seeing all the various aliens in the book - like Eigon I especially liked Ensign d'Hennish and his ability to only live and think in the present tense. K't'lk, as the central guest character, was also interesting. Perhaps like me, Duane wanted to explore more about the various aliens and there ways of being and interacting with the world (universe?).
2. Why are the Klingons introduced to the story—first as a danger, and later as future possible members of the Federation? Would the story have been better or worse without them?
It fits in with the series that the Klingons would attempt to steal the inversion drive in order to prevent their enemies having a major advantage in the war between them. By the 1980s when the novel was written there was some hope in the air that the Cold War might end and we may be closer to peace between countries. That we may be able to create more equality. I know there were many barriers to this happening and some things got worse in the 1980s, but I remember that hope being there, more than today (from a child's point of view). Perhaps the hint of the Klingons being possible members of the Federation reflected this.
3. Kirk has an experience in which he knows the Enterprise as a sentient being with relationships to the people who serve in her. What do you think of this kind of animism—just a hallucination? Is it something that reflects reality on any level—and if so, how?
I think it was more than a hallucination, but less than a reality. Perhaps it helped Kirk recognise his connections with and reliance on the Enterprise, but I think it was still a ship to him once he returned to normal life.
4. What do you think of Harb’s theory that life is in fact a game? If you agree with it at all, with which bits? And what would you say the goal of your own real-life “game” is? (See Kirk’s “a game with what object?” in chapter eight.
My views on Harb's theory vary with my mindset. When life is enjoyable, or using gamification makes work or challenges more engaging or enjoyable, I can see truth in his theory. But when I focus on the big problems or humanity such as war, disease, abuse and poverty and see the terrible things some people go through, it is hard not to take life more seriously and sometimes gloomily.
5. Is it appropriate for K’t’lk to pay the price she does for the effects of the inversion drive, in your opinion? Why or why not?
I think it was appropriate in that it was K't'lk's choice, rather than a punishment imposed by the crew. She saw it as a natural part of breaking the laws of the universe. Plus it seems part of her species' culture to have one or other partner dying as part of creating children or something new. Previously her life-partner had died creating the egg that became their child and to me it seemed Scotty was kind of her partner when she healed the universe/s, but this time she gave up her life. I wasn't sure if they were supposed to have had a sort of romantic relationship and was worried at one point that K't'lk would expect Scotty to sacrifice himself and wondered how that would end!
The podcast I listened to said K't'lk's child (or is she a rebirth of K't'lk?) adds an S to her name to honour Scotty and was named something like Ks't'lk. I found K't'lk's funeral very moving and was surprised and happy when she returned through her child, as I hadn't twigged that she gave Kirk her egg earlier in the book.
6. Was there anything else in the book that fascinated you, bothered you, or you'd like to otherwise comment on?
I really enjoyed the descriptions of the different planets and times they 'visited' during the times they were using the inversion drive. The new god/s were also portrayed in a thought provoking way and there is probably a detailed discussion to be had about that, but I'm not sure where to start.
I think it was key to foreshadowing the ending. I am not sure you could have set up the usual trilogy given the plot Duane was weaving.
2. Why are the Klingons introduced to the story—first as a danger, and later as future possible members of the Federation? Would the story have been better or worse without them?
Probably could have survived the story without them. There presence did allow for Sulu’s piloting prowess to be shown off. The crew seemed a little blasé about the resulting destruction of stars.
3. Kirk has an experience in which he knows the Enterprise as a sentient being with relationships to the people who serve in her. What do you think of this kind of animism—just a hallucination? Is it something that reflects reality on any level—and if so, how?
Kirk very much identified with the ship. I think it was a hallucination. That said, science fiction often confounds are current categories of consciousness.
4. What do you think of Harb’s theory that life is in fact a game? If you agree with it at all, with which bits? And what would you say the goal of your own real-life “game” is? (See Kirk’s “a game with what object?” in chapter eight.
The one who dies with the most books wins.
5. Is it appropriate for K’t’lk to pay the price she does for the effects of the inversion drive, in your opinion? Why or why not?
It has some parallels with redemption. She seemed to paying the price for her hubris.
6. Was there anything else in the book that fascinated you, bothered you, or you'd like to otherwise comment on?
Trivial as it may seem. I was surprised that the author kept referring to the captain as “Jim”. Ms. C has a very large collection of Star Trek books. She has complained about the quality of many of the most recent ones. This book reminds me that there are many well-written Star Trek novels especially from the early days when there were not multiple franchises.