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Computer engineer Lou Christopher's life falls apart when the World Government decrees that the project he is working on is too dangerous to continue. Thus, he and thousands of other scientists and their families are sentenced to permanent exile from Earth on a space station. But Lou and several others decide to escape--by converting the space station into a starship.Tags
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Member Reviews
Reviewers refer to this Bova series as juvenile but it is as close to being adult fiction as you can get and still be considered juvenile. The themes are adult and the stories are serious. The main thing that makes these books juvenile is the lack of sex. As stories I quite like them.
I consider the first book to be the best and most adult. The third book the weakest and most juvenile.
Are they deep thought stories? No.
Do they present original ideas that no other writer has offered? No.
Is the original premise a bit silly? Yes.
Are they interesting stories? Yes they are.
I have read very little of Bova was pleasantly surprised.
I consider the first book to be the best and most adult. The third book the weakest and most juvenile.
Are they deep thought stories? No.
Do they present original ideas that no other writer has offered? No.
Is the original premise a bit silly? Yes.
Are they interesting stories? Yes they are.
I have read very little of Bova was pleasantly surprised.
This book reminded me of why I liked Science Fiction when growing up during the 60s and 70s. Although the science may be a little dated, there is still plenty of adventure, rockets, space travel and new worlds. The 3 stories although connected by theme are quite different in that the time and the characters are totally different. The third story has an almost post-apocalyptic feel to it. I've read a few Ben Bova stories before and this is certainly one of his better ones.
I found the premise of this book fascinating -- it is a variant on the theme of sending out a group of colonists into space. In this case the colonists are a group of scientists that have, to borrow a phrase, come to 'know too much' for the comfort level of the world government on Earth. As an option for lifelong imprisonment, this group is allowed to take an orbiting space station and retrofit that as an interstellar ship (and hence gets this group out of the hair of the government for good). The story is told in three parts, making up the beginning, middle, and end of the story. Since this is a multi-generational trip each part is separated from the others by quite a bit of time.
When I read this when I was younger I enjoyed the book show more quite a bit. On re-reading this more recently I have to say it didn't read quite as well for me. The characters and how they act felt more two-dimensional to me on the second pass through. The scientific part felt more strained to me than it did years ago as well... which is perhaps to be expected. show less
When I read this when I was younger I enjoyed the book show more quite a bit. On re-reading this more recently I have to say it didn't read quite as well for me. The characters and how they act felt more two-dimensional to me on the second pass through. The scientific part felt more strained to me than it did years ago as well... which is perhaps to be expected. show less
Scientists are exiled from a dystopian Earth to an orbital station. They transform the station into a starship, seeking a new home, and deal with generations of struggle, survival, and the discovery of a new, distant world.
I didn't enjoy this as much as I enjoyed his later works. It's worth reading if you're a big Bova fan (like me) or if you like a lightweight sci-fi thriller.
Exiled From Earth, Flights of the Exiles, End of Exile
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467+ Works 34,151 Members
Ben Bova, Ben Bova was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. He began writing fiction in the late 1940's and continued to pursue his careers in journalism, aerospace, education and publishing. Bova received a bachelor's degree in journalism from Temple University, 1954, a master of arts degree in communications from the State University of New York, show more 1987, and a doctorate in education from California Coast University, 1996. Dr. Bova worked as a newspaper reporter for several years and then joined Project Vanguard, the first American satellite program, as a technical editor. He was manager of marketing for Avco Everett Research Laboratory and worked with scientists in the fields of high-power lasers, artificial hearts and advanced electrical power generators. Dr. Bova has taught science fiction at Harvard University and at the Hayden Planetarium in New York City, where he also directed film courses. He has written scripts for teaching films with the Physical Sciences Study Committee in association with Nobel Laureates from many universities. Dr. Bova has served on the advisory board of Post College and the Editorial Boards of the World Future Society. He is President Emeritus of the National Space Society and a Fellow of the British Interplanetary Society. He is also a charter member of the Planetary Society and a member of the American Association for the Advancement of Science, the Nature Conservancy, the New York Academy of Sciences and the National Space Club. He is a former President and a charter member of Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America. He was honored by Temple University as a Distinguished Alumnus in 1981 and in 1982 was made an Alumni Fellow. In 1994, his short story "Inspiration" was nominated for the Nebula Award. "The Beauty of Light" was voted one of the best science books of the year in 1988 by the American Librarians' Association and they hailed "Moonrise" as best science fiction novel in 1996. Other titles include "Moonwar," "Mars," and "Brothers," which all combine romance and adventure with the scientific aspect of exploring the future of technology and its effect on individuals and society. "Immortality" and "Assured Survival" deal with technology being used to solve economic, social and political problems. "Immortality" goes further in examining biomedical breakthroughs that could extend a person's life by hundreds of years while being able to always remain physically young. His works include The Aftermath, Mars Life, and Leviathans of Jupiter. Ben Bova was a prolific science fiction author. He wrote over a hundred books and short stories. He also was an editor who worked on some of science fiction's best-known publications. He died on November 29, 2020 at the age of 88. (Bowker Author Biography) show less
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Common Knowledge
- Canonical title
- The Exiles Trilogy
- Original publication date
- 1980 (omnibus) (omnibus); 1971 (Exiled from Earth) (Exiled from Earth); 1972 (Flight of Exiles) (Flight of Exiles); 1975 (End of Exile) (End of Exile)
- Dedication
- In alphabetical order: To Gordon R. Dickson and Harlan Ellison with thanks and caritas (Exiled from Earth)
To the Pratt family, with thanks for fine times (Flight of Exiles)
To Regina, with love and hope for a better to... (show all)morrow (End of Exile) - First words
- The General Chairman paced across the soft carpeting of his office, hands clasped behind his slightly stooped back. — Exiled from Earth
- "Fire . . . it's on fire! — Flight of th... (show all)e Exiles
- The glass was cold. — End of Exile
- The General Chairman paced across the soft carpeting of his office, hands clasped behind his slightly stooped back. — Exiled from Earth
- Last words
- (Click to show. Warning: May contain spoilers.)Nothing, Lou thought. Except the universe — Exiled from Earth
(Click to show. Warning: May contain spoilers.)They smiled together and walked off down the corridor, arm in arm. — Flight of the Exiles
(Click to show. Warning: May contain spoilers.)She nodded and smiled at Line as the melodious song of a bird filled the morning air. — End of Exile - Original language
- English
- Disambiguation notice
- Beware! This work is strangely catalogued. It has the ISBN and description of a work of the same name by Michael J. Arlen, but has been given the author name ... (show all)of Ben Bova. Best left on its own.
It is also not the same as Exiles, which is an anthology of works by other authors that was edited by Ben Bova.
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