Description
In a slender, epic novel, six astronauts and cosmonauts—drawn from America, Russia, Italy, Britain, and Japan—share one extraordinary day aboard a last-of-its-kind space station mission before the program is dismantled. As Earth turns beneath them at blistering speed, their routines, brief transmissions home, and small personal objects reveal the intimate lives they’ve temporarily left behind. Through vivid, quietly observant snapshots, the book explores solitude and connection, the body’s fragility in weightlessness, and the strange tenderness of human bonds forged in extreme distance. With Samantha Harvey’s lyrical, precise style and Booker-winning sweep, the story turns the vastness of space into a deeply personal lens on what we carry, what we fear, and what we choose to witness together.
Available Editions
paperback
Grove/Atlantic, Incorporated
Published Jan 1, 2023
ISBN: 9780802161543
Reviews
2 ratings
Community Reviews(1)
4.5 stars. This book was really beautiful. <br/><br/>It sometimes felt harder to get stuck into because it is written so poetically and philosophically. You almost feel you have to live through each chapter like it was a passage in a spiritual text, and experience it through each day and find its musings within your soul. <br/><br/>It touches so beautifully on a feeling of love and heartache for our planet. It covers themes of existential dread, climate change, and grief, in a way that feels so spectacular and unique. <br/><br/>I’d recommend this to most readers, but to be prepared for a slower than usual read.
Details
First Published
2024
Language
eng
Featured in a Challenge
Content Warnings
Content and trigger warnings for Orbital by Samantha Harvey.