A different first contact story

There has been a pletora of first contact stories trough the years, this one is special because in this case we are the other life, the book describes the perplexity of a culture based in the search of knowledge and the absolute love for life and hate for death when confronted with the reality of our inner contradictions as a culture, and the awe and horror of the good and the bad that we are capable of.
An special mention to Mr Cannata who gives a moving perfomance he gives voice and personality to all the characters i sincerily hope this is not his last performance

6 people found this helpful

not for every homo sapien

if you like a bit of fun while being criticised (ala "year zero" by reid), then perhaps "travelling in space" is the book for you, jeff did a bang up job with the narration however the magic was the view point presented from the visitors.

i did feel leiva backed off on some topics, and straight out whimped out on others, however hit the nail on the head on most (for me).

well worth a listen.

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Great story Incredible narration

The story was insightful. Jeff Canatta's narration was stellar. I wished this audio book would never end. I can't believe that was a single voice actor!

3 people found this helpful

Amazing story and narration

The voice work by Jeff Cannata was great and the story was interesting and fun. Definitely recommend this book. Worth the credit.

2 people found this helpful

A book all We Have Concerns fans should read

I chose this book based on Jeff Canata as the narrator.I was impressed by himself performing over 60 different voices throughout the book

I struggled with parts of the novel as I'm a Christian.But Steven Paul Leiva wrote a compelling story that points out very valid questions what a visiting alien species would ask if they wished to contact us.

There were some difficult parts to get through when the main characters witness and describe genocide by "other life" in Africa towards the middle of the story.

Steven wrote a great ending.And perhaps some day we as a species might learn to not erase hate with death.But to erase the hatred we have within ourselves through learning and adapting.

2 people found this helpful

Interesting story with a great performance!

This was an interesting story that Jeff did a great job performing!

My only complaint would be with the volume levels at times. I'd sometimes have to turn up the volume to hear a quieter voice, only to be deafened by a louder voice that quickly followed. Jeff's different voices were fantastic and varied, I just wish on the technical side the voice volumes had been leveled out a bit.

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A fantastic journey

The alien point of view of us "other life" provides a perfect framing device for this story. Leiva's ability to examine humanity from without beautifully defines the potential and pitfalls of humanity.

The personal story of Lief also demonstrates very human notions of discovery of one's own self. Indeed, the tale is ultimately a very unique coming of age story.

Jeff Cannata's performance is astounding. The unique characterizations allow for wonderful relationships to develop between the various characters. From laugh out loud hilarious to deeply contemplative, it was a joy to listen to.

2 people found this helpful

Great Commentary on Human Society (good & bad)

If you could sum up Traveling in Space in three words, what would they be?

Curiosity is good.

What other book might you compare Traveling in Space to and why?

Rendezvous with Rama, but with people.

Have you listened to any of Jeff Cannata’s other performances before? How does this one compare?

Jeff does a super job of conveying the characters in the book - and there are a lot of them!

Did you have an extreme reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?

Laugh - the rational observance of everyday human institutions and attitudes from the perspective of the "other" is a refreshing take on the self commentary that so much SF is focused on. The good, the bad and the ugly. But mostly it is funny and shows that even the supremely rational may want to leave room for some humanistic values.

Any additional comments?

Do yourself a favour, give it a listen and treat your smile muscles to a workout.

2 people found this helpful

Layers!

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

This is the kind of book you recommend if you want people interested in audio books. A large group of characters given not just their own vocal tone but own personality through the performance of Jeff Cannata. When I saw this was his only audio book performance I was a bit bummed, hope he does more!

What did you like best about this story?

The point of view. A First contact story as told by aliens is an interesting hook enough but the fact that all the aliens have different views and perspectives made it even more fascinating. The discussion of Genocide was quite brilliant.

What does Jeff Cannata bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

See my recommendation. I've never heard an audio book done by a full cast that was in actuality one guy. The energy he brings to each characters performance is fantastic.

If you were to make a film of this book, what would the tag line be?

Sci Fi comedy starring Jennifer Lawrence and Channing Tatum.

I know what your thinking, that isn't a catchy Tag line but that's what I think would fill seats and I would really like people to see this if it was a movie.

Any additional comments?

A very good sit.

1 person found this helpful

Read if you like Life, Universe, and Everything

Disclaimer: I have an affinity to subjects regarding the examination of human culture, society and what we call the human condition!

Short Plot Summary: Traveling in space is about a group of aliens that discover that the third planet from a particular star are inhabited by smart living beings, not unlike the aliens themselves. As curious sentient beings they investigate and study what humanity is like.

As the story is told from the perspective of aliens, the way the speak and think is different from what us normal human beings are used to reading and thinking ourselves, so for some people it might some getting use to. They speak with logic and semantics that are almost overdone at times but you'll get use by 1/3 way through the book. For me, the way their logic conversations works and distinct way they talk is how I normally talk at work to avoid confusion (I'm an engineer, need to make sure no vagueness, only fact! factually speaking).

The aliens investigate all manner of human culture from the superficial and tangible "Hollywood" and "government" to the ethereal "love" to "hate" concepts and does it pretty good job explaining it to aliens that do not have these concepts. The story gives a decent plot line to combine all the reason to examine humanity with close scrutiny and humor. I recommend it to everyone who likes to examine the human culture with a fine tooth comb and a sense of humor.

Jeff Cannata gives a superb performance in narrating the main characters thoughts and emotions as well as distinct voice and personality to each characters. The writing probably helped with each characterization.

1 person found this helpful