Hello, and welcome to the first round of discussion questions for our Sci-Fi Month Read Along of The Galaxy, and the Ground Within by Becky Chambers.
Please note that these questions may be spoilery if you haven’t read the book yet.
Let’s discuss…
For those readers who are returning to this universe, or who have at least read The Long Way to a Small Angry Planet: Are you enjoying the chance to get to know Captain Tem better?
For those of you new to the series: What do you make of these central characters/alien races? Was it easy to engage with them, or do you feel like any context/continuity clues are missing?
Is there a character in particular that you find especially interesting?
Do you have any thoughts on what the “appointment” is that has Roveg so anxious to leave in time?
And, because it’s been brought up by aliens: How do YOU feel about cheese? (And about that scene?)
That’s it for the opening round! I look forward to checking out your posts/hearing your thoughts. And the comments below are always open if you’re more into casual participation. If you need a reminder, the complete schedule for the Readalong can be found here.
Next week we’ll have a round of questions on the second segment from Mayri at Bookforager! Until then, happy reading!
3 comments On Sci-Fi Month Read Along: Discussion Questions, Week 1
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Hello! I’ve read this book before so I’ll avoid any spoilers for the later sections (though I can’t remember what Roveg’s appointment is so I’m not sure how spoilery it could be anyway 🙂 )
Pei was immediately the most engaging character for me – partly this is because I’d met her before and partly because of the tensions that Chambers implies sit at the heart of her character. I really liked the exchange when Roveg asks her naively about conflict.
Unfortunately this section of the novel showcases my least favourite thing about it – the portrayal of Tupo. I was already frustrated in Record of a Spaceborn Few that Chambers seems to assume that the experience and treatment, and hence the behaviour, of human adolescents would remain exactly the same in an entirely different cultural context. This is even worse, because she implies that adolescence itself is exactly the same across alien species, while playing into some pretty negative stereotypes of teenagers. She’s so good at deconstructing gender and sexuality, so I don’t know why age is such a blind spot. Argh.
The cheese scene – a bit heavy handed for me but I liked the idea!
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