To Be Taught, If Fortunate: A Believable Novella

To Be Taught, If Fortunate is a new novella out by one of my favorite authors, Becky Chambers. Her niche is sci-fi about humanity. So while all of her books are set in a heavily sci-fi world, that is rarely the focus. Instead, she is focusing on the human experience (whether it be actual humans or aliens). This novella proved to be in the same vein as her other three, and I enjoyed it just as much.

In her new novella, Sunday Times best-selling author Becky Chambers imagines a future in which, instead of terraforming planets to sustain human life, explorers of the solar system instead transform themselves.

Ariadne is one such explorer. As an astronaut on an extrasolar research vessel, she and her fellow crewmates sleep between worlds and wake up each time with different features. Her experience is one of fluid body and stable mind and of a unique perspective on the passage of time. Back on Earth, society changes dramatically from decade to decade, as it always does.

Ariadne may awaken to find that support for space exploration back home has waned, or that her country of birth no longer exists, or that a cult has arisen around their cosmic findings, only to dissolve once more by the next waking. But the moods of Earth have little bearing on their mission: to explore, to study, and to send their learnings home.

Carrying all the trademarks of her other beloved works, including brilliant writing, fantastic world-building and exceptional, diverse characters, Becky's first audiobook outside of the Wayfarers series is sure to capture the imagination of listeners all over the world.

What you should know about TO BE TAUGHT, IF FORTUNATE:

1. It follows 4 astronauts who are searching for life on other planets. These life forms aren’t like the stereotypical aliens found in the stories. These guys are believable.
2. Which leads me to my next point: believability. I don’t know what it is about Chambers, but she manages to make her sci-fi stories SO DANG BELIEVABLE. This story is told by one of the character’s as a first-hand account of their mission. From the description of their nails to their daily tasks, at times I felt I was reading non-fiction
3. Chambers makes me care SO MUCH about space (when I don’t care one lick about it nor could you pay me enough money to actually travel there). I finished that book and reconsidered my life: is it too late to change careers and become an astronaut? Not because she makes it sound cool. She makes it seem like it’s the most IMPORTANT job in the universe.
4. If you want sci-fi action, Chambers’ novels aren’t for you. If you want to read about the day-to-day life onboard a spacecraft and the minutiae of the characters, then yes, you want this book (…guys, you want this book). This book is slow-paced, but you have to treat it like a symphony (I can’t believe I’m using this analogy but it’s the best I can come up with): it is slow to get to its end, but it’s building up, and when it finally ends HOLY SHIT.
5. The ending of this book had me in a puddle. It’s ending is just so… ugh… worth it. You should know that this is all of her books. Chambers’ has a plan with her novels, and if you stick with them, YOUR SOUL WILL BE CRUSHED (in the best way).

The bottom line: This is a great novella. I think that The Small Way to a Long, Angry Planet is a great Chambers’ starter novel, but if you want a shorter commitment, give this one a try. 

A.S. Thornton

A.S. Thornton has evolved from book blogger to author with a particular fondness for writing forbidden love in ancient deserts. When not writing, she’s caring for dogs and cats as a veterinarian. You’ll never find animals at the center of her writing, though, because those fictional worlds don’t have veterinarians and her literal brain can’t accept that the poor critters would be without parasite prevention. Thornton’s debut, DAUGHTER OF THE SALT KING is available wherever books are sold.