Children of Time

Author: Adrian Tchaikovsky 

One-sentence summary: With Earth no longer inhabitable, the human survivors sail through space on a life-sustaining ship searching for a liveable planet and the only one they find is occupied with a species crafted and mutated by previous humans. 

B.A.D. Girls Book Rating: 7 

Our favorite thing about it: There were so many fascinating ideas and concepts in this book. 

Our least favorite thing about it: The book was dry at times and long. 

Main Topics of Discussion: Science, Hubris, Humanity, Gender Dynamics, Concept of Time, Technology vs. Human Brain, Human Mistakes, Communication and Languages 

Our favorite quote: “If there had been some tiny bead present in the brain of all humans, that had told each other, They are like you; that had drawn some thin silk thread of empathy, person to person, in a planet-wide net – what might then have happened? Would there have been the same wars, massacres, persecutions and crusades?” 

Notes: Lots of discussion on this book just because it was so long and because it brought up SO many concepts and ideas. First of all, this book is straight up Sci-Fi! We thought it was really well-written and mostly enjoyed the story and reading experience. Where we got hung up was getting into the story – we found that a little hard. And also, we did not identify with the spider parts (half the book) as much, so those were harder to read. Those that read the audiobook said that the narrator really brought the story to life, so they probably didn’t get as bogged down as those who just read. Here are some things we discussed: 

1. The concept of the “virus” and how it created the sentient spiders. 

2. The reverse gender dynamics of the spiders allowed for a lot of social commentary, which was interesting. 

3. The theme of time was BIG in this book. The sleep chambers, not dreaming, uploading brains to computers – all of it was interesting. 

4. The idea that humans repeat the same mistakes no matter their circumstances was well laid out in the book and also interesting. 

5. Communication was another big theme. Human to spider, spider to spider, human to earlier human. Lots of cool things to think about here. 

6. The ending was satisfying and really well thought out. We were all impressed by it. We did not know how the battle for the planet would end or who we wanted to win. So, well done, Tchaikovsky, as we assume that was his goal. 

Memorable Meeting Moments: We met at Stephanie’s house and got to celebrate Lindsay’s birthday. 

What We Ate: Quesadillas, Salmon and black bean tostadas, street corn, tortilla soup, and sopapilla cheesecake for dessert.