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Calculating God cover art

Calculating God

Written by: Robert J. Sawyer
Narrated by: Jonathan Davis, Robert J. Sawyer
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Publisher's Summary

In this Hugo-nominated novel, an alien walks into a museum and asks if he can see a paleontologist. But the arachnid ET hasn't come aboard a rowboat with the Pope and Stephen Hawking (although His Holiness does request an audience later). Landing at the Royal Ontario Museum in Toronto, the spacefarer, Hollus, asks to compare notes on mass extinctions with resident dino-scientist Thomas Jericho. A shocked Jericho finds that not only does life exist on other planets, but that every civilization in the galaxy has experienced extinction events at precisely the same time. Armed with that disconcerting information (and a little help from a grand unifying theory), the alien informs Jericho, almost dismissively, that the primary goal of modern science is to discover why God has behaved as he has and to determine his methods.

BONUS AUDIO: Author Robert J. Sawyer explains how the creationism vs. evolution debate informed the writing of Calculating God.

©2000 by Robert J. Sawyer (P)2008 Audible, Inc.

What the critics say

"Is Sawyer Canada's answer to Michael Crichton? Very possibly yes." ( Montreal Gazette)
"Jonathan Davis...is one of our very best narrators and this is a fine performance. I was rapt the entire time, and even near tears at one moment in the book." (sffaudio.com; named an SFFaudio Essential)
"Jonathan Davis portrays a thoughtful and quietly introspective Jericho....As the conversation with Hollus continues, Davis keeps a steady pace and reflects the intellectual engagement of both characters. He presents the alien's speech as lightly studied, a fitting style for a non-English speaker who coordinates his speech between two mouths." ( AudioFile)

What listeners say about Calculating God

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  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars

Enjoyable but...

I really enjoyed this book. Good story line and character development. I liked the narrator as well. However, I was very disappointed with the ending. I found it a poor conclusion to the story and just unexpected but not in a good way. Not a well thought out ending in my opinion. Otherwise, a great book.

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2 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars

Great book

At times this is a dry, cerebral book. It's generally more of a discussion of mortality and the nature of God dressed up as a SciFi story than a true Science Fiction tale. It is an extremely effective plot device to discuss philosophical and really weighty issues: Mortality, Religion, Intelligent Design vs Strict Atheism.
Tom sounds like a cross between my Paleontology professor in University and the TA we had for Comparative Anatomy. Hollis, the alien, sounds like a reasoned and very intelligent pastor. This is NOT a debate, however, but a story with a plot and everything (and a pretty good one, though not perfectly executed - at points it gets silly and clichee'd)
Jonathan Davis does a pretty good job reading some stretches of fairly bland writing. His choice of light accent for Hollis is like an Oxford-educated maharaja from Colonial India. At times it sounds like he's reading an instruction manual of some kind. A little monotone for my tastes.

Notwithstanding, a decent reading of a great "Makes ya think, don't it?" novel. Easily 9 out of 10 stars.

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2 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars

Better than I expected

I can see why many people will find this story offensive, but as a staunch atheist, I found it thought provoking. It starts out strong, but the last 25% it seems to lose its way.

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1 person found this helpful

  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
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    2 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars

Good, Canadian accents aside

Another great book by Robert Sawyer, who takes efforts to ensure scientific accuracy, however, misses ensuring the pronunciations and accents match the environs (Canadian in this case) in this audiobook. Unfortunate for a Canadian author.

If the narrator mashed scientific terms you’d cry foul.

If the intelligent aliens showed up from outer space with a moronic hillbilly drawl instead of an elegant British lilt you might cry foul. 🤔

Well, that goes for Canadian accents and pronunciations also. Our bible thumping hicks don’t hail from the Deep South so they don’t speak as such, but have their own inbred Ontario twang.

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  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    4 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars

You forgot the kitchen sink.

This story covers all the bases: Hard science mixes with religious fanaticism, earnest discussions of ethics alternate with family drama, politics interferes with scientific endeavors. A threat to life on earth is met by literal Deus-ex-machina.

I think there's a Star Child thrown in at the end.

It's quite a ride.

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  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars
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    3 out of 5 stars

Interesting premise patchily realized

While there are many very interesting ideas explored in this novel, I feel that I would have enjoyed it more and been able to suspend my disbelief longer had some basic plot holes been thought out with more care.

Without giving too much away, I found myself distracted by how casually the arrival of aliens had apparently been received by the world, as well as "little" things like how minimal the museum security was considering that there were aliens on site, and the inconsistent application of the rules of physics.

There is also a distracting subplot that could have been removed with no other effect than making the novel a solider read.

The narrator does a great job, and I have really enjoyed other novels by Sawyer which I believe have been better executed.

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Great book

Love the story, love the debate creation vs evolution. I would recommend this book to all.

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Absolutely Brilliant!

I adore the way Robert J. Sawyer uses his imagination to entertain and give an alternative approach to his subject. He has to be one of the most intelligent authors on the planet. He never tries to lose you by proving his intellect. His dialogue is real and he always provides a potent theory then pulls you along for the ride.

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars

Mindblowing

Can't just start another book right away after finished this one! Mind needs processing time...

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  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars

Well done, strangely less ludicrous than the blurb

The blurb really makes it seem like this would be weird and strange, probably gonzo. But I must admit it was an interesting way to insert multiple perspectives into a discussion around creationism and evolution. Literalization alien viewpoints is mostly pulled off. There’s an attempt at a sub plot because it’s mostly dialogue that is fine? Probably didn’t need it since it begins halfway in. But I enjoyed the book regardless.

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