The Long Earth **Spoilers**

[pip]

:lol: Pip - I was tempted to use that Pratchett quote in your signature as a signature myself.

I think it works for me quite well

[Dotsie]

Paper books won't last for millenia, unfortunately. Neither will e-books. But then a love of literature probably won't either.

[pip]

Paper books won't last for millenia, unfortunately. Neither will e-books. But then a love of literature probably won't either.

Dead sea scrolls are over two millenia old

[Sjoerd3000]

But they are written on good old parchment, not on this modern flimsy paper

[Dotsie]

Paper books won't last for millenia, unfortunately. Neither will e-books. But then a love of literature probably won't either.

Dead sea scrolls are over two millenia old

Some people will believe anything

[Sister Jennifer]

My copy of The Long Earth came today! Whooooooooooooohoooooooooooooo!

[Bouncy Castle]

Paper books won't last for millenia, unfortunately. Neither will e-books. But then a love of literature probably won't either.

Dead sea scrolls are over two millenia old

Some people will believe anything

It's the "© Harper Collins" on the bottom of each page that gives it away!

[Who's Wee Dug]

My copies of The Long Earth and the World of Poo came today toooo.

[Tonyblack]

I just finished!

A very different book I thought with a lot in it to think about. In parts it read almost as a documentary on evolution – or maybe a David Attenborough programme on wildlife. Incidentally, towards the end, I was reading Lobsang with Stephen Fry’s voice.

For the longest time in the book I wondered where the story was going and when it got there I wasn’t sure I’d got an answer. There definitely needs to be a second book if only to explain some of the first book. Did Lobsang manage to get through to First Person Singular? Who incidentally reminded me of a friendlier version of the Borg from Star Trek. And how did all the steppers who escaped from Madison get back again?

Some of the observations about human nature seemed to be spot-on for me and I wonder if this is the authors’ way of postulating how humanity might one day colonise the Galaxy. There definitely seemed to be an almost cynical view of humanity there which, oddly enough was quite amusing. And that’s another thing – there was a surprising amount of humour there to the point of making me laugh out loud on times.

I liked the idea that those people who couldn’t step became hostile to those who could. I just recently watched series four of Enterprise and was reminded of the Terra Prime group who wanted to isolate Earth and kick out all the aliens.

I think there’s some really good science in this book and much of it works as a sort of exercise in evolutionary what-ifs. It reminded me of Carl Sagan’s speculation of what alien life might be like in his Cosmos series. At times I think the science got a little in the way of the actual story, but it made for fascinating reading, so I’m not really complaining.

I shall look forward to the second book.

[Sister Jennifer]

My copies of The Long Earth and the World of Poo came today toooo.

Bonanza! Happy reading.

Thanks for the review. I'm on days off now and am going to TRY and get stuck in.

[CJDobs]

Hi,

I'm about a quarter of the way in and I like it...it's an odd journey though.

In the early chapters it struck me as a little bit Douglas Adams Hitchhikers ...a teeny bit Stephen King's Dark Tower .... a pinch of Red Dwarf and then a bit of Jules Verne thrown in...I'm also not sure where it's going but I know it's captivating.

Will certainly opine my two penn'orth when I've stepped out of the last page.....

[chris.ph]

with a bit of sliders chucked in

[ailswallace]

Not finished The Long Earth yet but there is one thing that is niggling and please excuse my ignorance if I have missed the bloody obvious but how do babies step? They can't finish their own box and they won't be able to flick the switch so how do they step?
Have I missed an explanation or just being Captain Pedantic?

Yours, in ignorance

Ails

[Tonyblack]

Hi Ails and welcome!

People can step carrying things - including organic objects. That's how some of the original steppers take cattle chickens etc. Presumably a child could be carried while an adult steps. Remember that Lobsang, while flying the airship, is stepping and carrying Joshua and Sally.

[=Tamar]

But they are written on good old parchment, not on this modern flimsy paper

I'm not sure about the Dead Sea Scrolls, but there's plenty of papyrus around from 2,000 years or so ago.
Not to mention linen scrolls that were reused as wrappings.

=Tamar