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Liked It “I really enjoyed this book. It made me think of many things that I had never thought about before. For instance, I never really sat down and thought about what it would be like to be blind. At least not to the extent that this book made me think about it. I also never really thought about...” see full review » see other reviews » |
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“I really enjoyed this book. It made me think of many things that I had never thought about before. For instance, I never really sat down and thought about what it would be like to be blind. At least not to the extent that this book made me think about it. I also never really thought about Helen Keller that much, but I am now amazed to think about what it would be like to live both deaf and blind. Another amazing thought is what it would be like to see if you had been blind your whole life. As much as I hate to admit it (especially since it is a fiction book) this book did make me tear up.
Adam T wrote this review Thursday, November 19 2009. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
Another interesting thought in this book was what it was like to see the Earth for the first time from space. This is something I never really thought about, as I grew up always knowing exactly what it looked like. I never really thought back to a time when they didn't know exactly what it looked like and how amazing it would be to see it for the first time.
The book continually changes, and I was never able to predict exactly where it was going. I won't go into detail on this, as to not spoil any surprises. At first this technique was a little frustrating, but by the end I liked it.
With all of the above being said, this book does have some oddities. It has 2 subplots that start to go somewhere, then just stop. I don't know if I missed the point or if we will hear more about them in the future books of the trilogy.
I really enjoyed it and I am looking forward to reading the books that follow it in the trilogy.”
“Narrated by Jessica Almasy, Jennifer Van Dyck, A. C. Fellner, Marc Vietor, Robert J. Sawyer
Matt wrote this review Thursday, November 5 2009. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
Audio Length: 12 hours and 13 minutes
WWW: Wake is the first in planned three book series by Robert J. Sawyer. Not the most awe inspiring title but the cover art is pretty cool. This is a pretty typical Robert J. Sawyer novel in that it attempts to fuse science with fiction in an entertaining fashion and at times educating the reader. For the most part Mr. Sawyer succeeded but the story tended to drag at points. It felt as if there was a lot filler to the story or possibly he was attempting to build the main character with the pay off coming in the later novels.
The story mainly follows young Caitlin Decter who is blind. She is a prototypical teenager who spends many hours on the internet updating her Live Journal and conversing with friends. She is also a genius in math. Her life changes when she receives a message from a research scientist in Japan asking her to participate in experiment that could give her eye sight. Dr. Kuroda plans to insert a device that will change the signal to brain by reformatting it to give her vision. The first half of the story covers Caitlin’s trip to Japan and the surgery. Well, not everything goes as planned. The device allows Caitlin to see colors which suspiciously mirrors the world wide web. Caitlin flies back to her home in Canada disappointed but then strange things begin to happen that takes her into areas that no one has ever explored.
The story also has intervening chapters that involve a biological crisis in China and the amazing adventures of a hybrid ape named Hobo. These portions of the story really seem out place with the overall plot as they do not converge or have any bearing with the main story of Caitlin. I assume that that they will make more sense in the proceeding novels as the story develops. But right now it feels like just a lot of filler.
The audio presentation of WWW: Wake is simply outstanding. There are numerous narrators that only read certain parts or certain characters making the story much more entertaining that just reading it. For example, the narrator who reads Caitlin’s parts sounds like a teenager giving the narrative an added flavor. Robert J. Sawyer also pipes in every now and then with interesting facts. But the part that really captured my attention was when one character was telling a story about the Apollo 8 space launch. Instead just reading the famous Christmas Eve speech that crew made from space; they inserted the actual audio from the astronauts. It was an neat addition and just flat out cool.
The big question is, did I enjoy this novel? For the first half, I was somewhat bored as it tended to drag a bit because the plot moved very slowly. But I found myself more and more drawn into the story as it progressed and was disappointed that it ended. The science aspects are well thought out and explained in manner that even an idiot like me understood it. So yes, I really did enjoy this novel and look forward to listening to the sequels. Now if I just figure out how Hobo the ape fits into the overall plot?”
“Classic Sawyer”
Misty wrote this review Friday, October 16 2009. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
“don't bother”
shelly n wrote this review Monday, September 14 2009. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
“15-year-old Caitlin has been blind from birth. A Japanese scientist tries an experimental procedure on her, inserting a tiny device behind one eye. A larger, external device - Caitlin dubs it an "eyepod" - is intended to decode visual signals to allow her to see, but the results are unexpected... and wonderful. I don't want to give away the plot, so I'll just recommend this book unreservedly. Sawyer has been awarded more than 40 book awards and his novels appeal to the general adult reading public, not just science fiction fans. Teens will find this a good introduction to his writing and - bonus! - it's the first in a projected trilogy.”
Lindy P wrote this review Saturday, August 15 2009. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
“Had a few loose ends, I thought, but overall I liked it. Essentially, it was about how sentience might develop in a machine intelligence.”
Gail Dayton wrote this review Friday, July 24 2009. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
“Good science fiction speculates on things that are theoretically possible given some of the conditions and advances of our current level of technology. In many cases, the advances may be years or decades away from becoming reality, but in the case of Robert J. Sawyer’s new novel, “WWW: Wake,” part of his speculated future has become a reality far too quickly.
Michael H wrote this review Wednesday, June 24 2009. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
It’s disconcerting to pick up a novel that speculates on the future and find one plot element concerning an outbreak of a new form of the flu virus. In fact, the virus that breaks out is the H1N5 in the novel, possibly some distant cousin of the current virus that is creating a global scare and a potential world-wide pandemic.
Of course, I shouldn’t be shocked that Sawyer has done has homework and is able to predict things that could happen in the near future. He’s had a long, distinguished career of doing just that and his new novels are always those I look forward to reading next.
“WWW: Wake” is no exception.
The start of a new trilogy of novels, the story follows several different threads. One is the story of teenager Catlin Decter, who has been blind since birth. A new technology could possibly open give her sight for the first time by making use of the power of the Internet. But there’s something lurking out in cyberspace, building itself up and slowly becoming more and more aware of itself.
Stir in a story about China’s dealing with an outbreak of the H1N5 virus by removing the affected areas and shutting off communication with the outside world for several days and a plot about a highly intelligent hybrid primate and you’ve got a lot of ground to cover in this first installment. And make no mistake, this is clearly a first installment. Sawyer introduces a lot of threads and a lot of fascinating ideas in the course of his story and while he does wrap-up most of the immediate plot threads in this novel, he still leaves you hanging in the end, wanting the next installment immediately, if not sooner. There’s not a character in peril type of cliffhanger here, but instead there are several intriguing points that Sawyer leaves the reader to mull over and consider as we wait for the next installment.
But while the book is full of big ideas, those ideas are grounded in identifiable characters. The main focus of the story is Catlin and her journey from lack of sight to her new ability to see. Sawyer ably puts the reader inside the mind and experience of Catlin, making us see how she works within the world while being blind and how she must learn to adapt to a world where she can see. Catlin’s story will have you feeling her joy, her frustration and her curious nature in how she relates to the world. And a revelation about her father half-way through the story is ably set up and paid off in the course of this first installment.
The only real criticism I can come up with this one is it ended too soon and left me eager for the next installment. And that next installment cannot come soon enough…”
“The premise of this trilogy(this is book one) is preposterously far-fetched, even for sci-fi standards. Sawyer's genius, makes it not only plausibly realistic(in his very down-to-earth style), but a highly evocative, page-turning thrill ride. If you don't use up a few hankies reading this one, you have no soul. I would, seriously, urge you to read it for yourself, and see if you don't agree. ”
Acur81 wrote this review Wednesday, June 10 2009. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
“I just finished reading this book. Although I am a big fan of the fantasy fiction genre, I tend to shy away from pure science fiction, finding it to be often either too heavy with technical details, or too impersonal - difficult to connect with on personal and emotional level.
Silrethis wrote this review Tuesday, May 12 2009. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
I found www:wake to be a rare exception. The ending of the book literally made me shiver. It is complex and knowledgeable and relateable, and though he brings the story to an end in a very satisfactory manner, it is also very open-ended, ambiguous. I enjoyed it immensely.”
“I was so thrilled to get an early copy of this book shipped to me by the author himself. Thanks Robert! The book didn't disappoint. Caitlin, a teenager blind from birth is a math genius and an internet whiz. She is a candidate for a special procedure being offered by a scientist in Japan that may give her a chance to see. Caitlin undergoes the procedure, which has different results than were expected. One of them being that another apparent life form is brought to a type of consciousness. As the book progresses some parts of each chapter are told in first person by the new life form. As it starts to slowly learn, what it tells becomes more complex. As an aside, a hybrid ape named Hobo has apparently picked up some independent art interpretation skills that no other ape has ever had. I don't want to give too much of the rest of the plot but two books are discussed a great deal throughout and a lot of the plot seems to paralell. One talks about the two halves of the brain being united in the first human to create self-awareness and the other is about the teaching of Helen Keller by Anne Sullivan. Not all is resolved by the end of the book and it looks like that this book will have at least one sequel. I can hardly wait for it. This series looks as good as the Hominid trilogy that Robert so masterfully presented. Thank you Mr. Sawyer for another intriguing series!
Katamaster wrote this review Thursday, March 26 2009. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
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