This book was recommended to me by my brother after I had read 1984 and Brave New World. In the study guide at the end, it called this one an ambiguous utopia which I found particularly fitting. There is much idealism in the Anarres, community and working together for the common good are much admired although there are no laws or government. Unfortunately, there are still common humanoid failings despite the strive to utopia. Shevak runs up against those as he tries to do purely theoretical research in the realm of physics and his theory of simultaneity. When he ends up going to the mother planet of Urras, he finds much more than he thought.
The story is told in a circular fashion which is in keeping with the main themes of the story. You see Shevak's story from present forward and then from his childhood to the present in alternating chapters. It takes a bit of getting used to but before long, it makes so much sense you can't really imagine the story being told in another way.
I found it a fascinating look at human behavior and at our own perceptions and I highly recommend it.
Page count: 400p/23,113p ytd
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