STARDANCE (Star Dance)

Come prepared for this book with a large box of tissues; those who find they don't need them while reading this book aren't really human. Spider and his wife Jeanne have created something here that is quite rare in the realms of science fiction, a true mating of music and dance with a story that could only be told within the non-confines of this field. Charlie Armstead, former premier dancer who now makes his living as an audio-visual man for dance companies, meets Sharon Drummond, a young lady who has dedicated her life to being the best dancer possible. But Sharon, though incredibly excellent at her craft, can't get accepted by any dance company because she is physically too big. Charlie, seeing her dance, and knowing the problem she faces, tries to help by going independent with her, helping her define her own type of dance and properly filming it, but nothing works. Here in this early section of the book, however, we are treated to the impossible: a description in words of music and dance that actually makes you see and hear the dance. This may be one of the most difficult feats of writing that I have ever read, to translate art forms from the totally different realm of the audio-visual into such a readable, coherent, mental painting that puts you right in the dance studio. And along the way, the Robinson's characters come to life, to where you can feel the triumphs and disappointments, the sweat and exhaustion, the exhilaration and despair of this pair. Up to here, the story could have been told as normal fiction, but now comes the first of the elements that transform this from the world of everyday to the world of the future, as Sharon conceives the idea of doing her unique form of dance in free-fall at an orbiting space station. We watch as she adapts to the new environment, and modifies her dance to take advantage of its properties, and slowly we begin to see her creations as message, as a unique channel of communication. This channel of communication forms one of the lynch-pins of the plot, and the Robinsons do an excellent job of melding their characters with both this item and the very plausible impediments that Sharon and Charlie must overcome. The conclusion to the first section of this book will shatter you; most of your tissue box will be depleted here. But there's much more, a logical yet surprising continuation that allows for a good exposition of the book's theme of the community of not just man, but a community of mind. Excellent in almost every aspect, the first section of this book deservedly won both the 1977 Nebula and 1978 Hugo Novella awards. In this expansion to full book length it lost none of its power, and allowed for both greater character development and a vision of the future of mankind that speaks to the reader in an impossible to ignore voice. Keep your last tissue for the last line; you'll need it.

It shouldn't be suprising, really--when you put together a fine science fiction writer with a talented choreographer/dancer, both of whom happen to be both empathic and married to each other, how could you not come up with excellent work? Still, it's astonishing just HOW good this work is, as well as how well it's stood up to the two decades + since it was written. I first read this book as a young teenager; recently re-reading it after earning a dance degree. I'm glad to report that the story has an added depth now, not just in terms of dance, but in terms of the role of the arts in our culture. Pre-NEA meltdown, pre-digital media, Spider and Jeanne identified both the problems that come when the human aesthetic expands itself and many potential solutions. Did I mention it's a rollicking good read? Intrigue, suspense, incredible choreography mixed with the vastness of space (hell, just being able to pull those off in a verbal medium is enough to deserve the awards this book has earned), it's all there. Yeah, it's out of print for now--but that won't last, as the present catches up with this particular future. So grab it now, so they can continue the good fight!

I bought the novella version in bookform because I heard the author's career was on the skids. Sounds strange, but I've found that many of the authors I like aren't well appreciated. Anyway this was pretty good, if somewhat more artsy than I usually like. In fact few male authors write artsy so it was interesting. It is good at being optimistic without being cloying. It isn't the best thing I've ever read, but it is better than a lot of the stuff that's popular. In some ways it reminded me of "A Rose for Ecclesiastes" by Roger Zelazny, but I think Zelazny's story is probably a bit better. This is pretty good nevertheless, & although I rarely say this if there were a market for artsy science fiction movies I could see this being adapted. It has some nice imagery and I'd like to see who'd play whom. Well enjoy it.

I was fortunate enough to find a copy of this book when I was recently in Stuttgart, Germany. I had read all of Mr Robinson's "Callahan" books and wanted more, even though I did not hold out much hope for what I thought would be a poor substitute for another "Callahan" novel, which is what I actually wanted. Three hours and 2 hankies later, I was thrilled to admit that I was wrong! This book, the story of several people who overcome great handicaps in order to live out their dreams and fulfill their destinies, to become STARDANCERS, will make you laugh, it will make you cry, and it will make you... DANCE!

Spider Robinson is perhaps one of the best writers working in Science Fiction, period. In my estimation he compares favorably with the true masters and in Stardance he truly shines. A masterwork in the most real sense, this book shows us characters that are handed the worst life has to offer and consistently give it back their best. And that is what drives this peice. It's not the setting (a future Toronto and an orbital dance studio), it's not the ideas (free fall dance) and it's not the plot (Struggling and succeding to make art in the face of a world that refuses to listen) it's the characters. Charlie, Shara, Nora, all of them are truly real people that you expect to drop by someday for lunch. That you WISH would stop by for lunch. People you can love and a few people you can hate, but no one that you'll soon forget. It's rare for writing to leave you feeling really good about humanity, especially in today's morass of pessimstic views of the past, present and future. This is what mak