Science Fiction Writer
ROBERT J. SAWYER
Hugo and Nebula Winner

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Allen A. Debus in Dinosaurs in Fantastic Fiction: A Thematic Survey: "The most memorable interstellar dinosaurs of all were introduced in Robert J. Sawyer's Far-Seer trilogy. Collectively, Sawyer's Far-Seer, Fossil Hunter, and Foreigner are the greatest trilogy of tales ever written about intelligent, space-faring dinosaurs."

Roger MacBride Allen, New York Times bestselling Star Wars author: "Robert J. Sawyer's Far-Seer makes a lot of promises — and keeps them. A fascinating world, remarkable characters, and a problem of world-shattering proportions. What more can you ask for?"

Amazing Stories (Wisconsin): "Some books are just fun; some are interesting because of the characters; others attract you with the unusual or by looking at the world in a new way. In Far-Seer, Robert Sawyer has written a book that has all of these qualities."

Tom Easton in Analog (New York): "Afsan's world and nature feel quite real. The reader gets involved and cheers him on, and many another writer must say to Sawyer just what one saurian says to a superior: ‘I cast a shadow in your presence.’"

Cory Doctorow: "Sawyer's doing interesting things here. He's created a believable alien culture that steers clear of anthropomorphism. The trick of creating a sympathetic yet alien protagonist is tough to pull off, but Sawyer manages it. The story itself is a classic quest, full of satisfying revelations and resolutions. Highly recommended."

Books in Canada (Toronto): "Fascinating. Far-Seer entertains as a fantasy, but in its rendering of young Afsan's scientific zeal, and the price he pays for asking, ‘How do we know what we know?’, the book winks at philosophy."

Books in Canada (again): "A modern parable about the conflict between science and religious faith. Painstakingly researched, lucidly written, meticulously crafted — a vivid depiction of the scientific method and the scientific mind."

Charles de Lint in The Ottawa Citizen: "Constantly engaging. Proves Sawyer's first novel, Golden Fleece, was no fluke."

Charles de Lint (again) in The Journal of Canadian Content in Speculative Literature: "A cracking good yarn. Here's your chance to get in on the ground floor of a series that promises to deliver something truly different."

Terence M. Green, author of Shadow of Ashland: "This is the novel that Robert A. Heinlein, Arthur C. Clarke and Frederik Pohl would have written if they had pooled their skills in their prime."

Tanya Huff, author of Blood Price: "Sawyer has returned a sense of wonder to Science Fiction."

Baird Searles in Isaac Asimov's Science Fiction Magazine (New York): A "tour de force. Vastly enjoyable, beautifully realized."

KLIATT: Young Adult Paperback Book Guide (Newton, Massachusetts) (starred review "highlighting an exceptional book"): "This is a truly great piece of SF."

Michael A. Burstein: "As delightful and thought-provoking as Rob's first novel, Golden Fleece."

Tim DeForest writing in the 2012 teaching anthology Sense of Wonder: "Robert J. Sawyer builds a complex and believable dinosaur civilization in a trilogy beginning with Far-Seer. Here, dinosaurs have been mysteriously re-located onto an Earth-sized moon orbiting a gas giant, allowing them to escape extinction. The species that develops intelligence eventually builds culture that holds very rigid and dogmatic beliefs. A scientist named Afsan, who acts as a thematic parallel to Galileo, finds his life in danger when he makes discoveries that seem to threaten those beliefs. Sawyer's trilogy is full of great action and great ideas."

Midwest Book Review: "Robert Sawyer has been compared with the giants of science fiction, including the Big Three. Let me add another comparison. His tapestry of a totally alien and totally plausible culture is reminiscent of the artistry and imagination of Frank Herbert. Mr. Sawyer, I cast a shadow in your presence."

Tee Morris, author of Morevi: "There should be more stories of these kinds of heroes. I'm feeling nothing but love for this book."

New York Newsday: "Quirky; diverting — an inventive and engaging novel."

The New York Review of Science Fiction: "Refreshing and different; a genuinely unusual and appealing story — an instructive and top-notch depiction of science at work."

Garfield Reeves-Stevens, author of Dark Matter: "Far-Seer is a tale of rousing high adventure told with the heart of an old-fashioned storyteller and the keen eye of a scientist. In the tradition of Hal Clement and the other masters of hard sf, Sawyer has created an alien yet wholly believable world, elegantly realized with a grand sense of wonder that is meticulously based in real science."

Publishers Weekly (New York): "Sawyer does a fine job."

Quill & Quire: Canada's Magazine of Book News and Reviews (Toronto) (starred review "indicating a book of exceptional merit"): "Riveting; compelling; thrilling — a real treat. The science in Far-Seer is impeccable, the story-line is refreshingly original, and the world Sawyer's constructed is audacious. He's already being compared to Heinlein, Clarke, and Pohl, an illustrious company of SF masters. If he keeps up the high standard set by Far-Seer, this comparison will be well deserved."

Hugo-award winner Mike Resnick, author of Paradise: "Even better than Golden Fleece, and that's going some. Robert Sawyer's Far-Seer proves he's as good at world-building as he is at telling an exciting and satisfying story."

Science Fiction Chronicle (New York): "This is an adventure story, a commentary on the conflict between truth and established faith, and a fascinating exploration of an alien, though familiar society. Two sequels are planned, but this is complete enough in itself that you shouldn't wait."

SFRA Review: "Exciting, amusing — [but] much more than an adventure tale. Crucial to the plot is Afsan's struggles to find the truth of his own destiny and his questioning of the role of science in countering religious dogma. Sawyer has created a world exceptional in its attention to detail. Unobtrusively, he embeds everything about the language, religion, science, social customs, political intrigue, and even saurian diet."

S. M. Stirling, author of Marching Through Georgia: "A brilliant parable of the nature of scientific investigation, and its relation to art and faith."

John E. Stith, author of Redshift Rendezvous: "Robert J. Sawyer's recipe for Far-Seer: one enormous sense of wonder; one boatload of convincing and charming aliens; one planetful of accurate and fascinating science; one truly breathtaking premise. Mix well and stir. Sawyer's a hell of a chef."

The Toronto Star: "Without question, Far-Seer will be remembered as one of the year's outstanding sf books."

Under the Ozone Hole (Vancouver): "Far-Seer is a galloping good read; an adventure that quickly reaches a breathless pace."

Andrew Weiner, author of Station Gehenna: "A landmark in hard science fiction. Succeeds on many levels: as a fascinating piece of world-building; as an action-packed adventure; as a coming-of-age novel; but perhaps most of all, as a book about the scientific method and the scientific mind. An intriguing intellectual odyssey; a bravura performance."

More Good Reading

More About Far-Seer
Robert J. Sawyer's awards and honors
What's a Rob Sawyer novel like?
Review index

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