---
product_id: 111035545
title: "Children of Time"
price: "€ 29.05"
currency: EUR
in_stock: true
reviews_count: 8
url: https://www.desertcart.fr/products/111035545-children-of-time
store_origin: FR
region: France
---

# Children of Time

**Price:** € 29.05
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- **What is this?** Children of Time
- **How much does it cost?** € 29.05 with free shipping
- **Is it available?** Yes, in stock and ready to ship
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## Description

desertcart.com: Children of Time: 9780316452502: Tchaikovsky, Adrian: Books

Review: This is a smart story, but it's also got a heart. - This book totally captivated me, and oddly enough, has lessened my dislike of spiders. In that way it's operated somewhat like the nanovirus responsible for uplifting the spiders at the centre of this story, as it had me rooting for these creepy alien, yet pragmatic, creatures throughout the book. They're no cuddly monkeys, but the speculations about how spiders might evolve intelligence and build a society are fascinating. The book is also a nice antidote for anyone, like me, who might sometimes view humanity as just not worth saving as we see global injustices and violence that humans appear so fond of inflicting on each other in the name of power. Also enjoyable for me are the well-developed female characters so often absent in epic science fiction stories. All in all it was a tremendously satisfying read. The exploration of different forms of intelligence: spider, human, ant & AI constitutes the background for this story, and all see changes over the course of the book, which should appeal to folks interested in cognition. There aren't tons of answers here, but a lot of fodder for thought experiments to help those work through various issues in an attempt to arrive a deeper understanding of intelligence. The smart interesting content unfolds within a unique and interesting narrative structure as well, which does much to enrich the story overall. Narratively speaking, there is a satisfying isomorphism between the unfolding of the tale of the spiders' evolution and the humans' journey. We see millennia unfold through the eyes of "key crew" or the same humans, who are awakened at ever widening intervals to help in times of crisis. Alongside this, the story is told from the POV of nearly the same set of spiders, but individual iterations described at different points in time are descendants of earlier spider characters. Obviously members of later generations aren't identical to their ancestors, but there are enough common threads spun across generations to provide a sense of character development. My lessened dislike of spiders is an interesting side-effect (although it's unclear the effect will be a lasting one). In fact, I saw one in the bathroom the other day, and stilled my immediate urge to just kill the little creepy crawly. At least it's not a nasty smart little hunting spider like the Portias Tchaikovsky writes about. While reading the book I looked up Portias and actually became a little obsessed with the wee creatures, who, when viewed from a particular angle, are actually kind of cute with their big giant eyes and furry little bodies. They're relatively harmless to humans, which probably didn't hurt insofar developing a certain fondness for these things. The real Portias are true to Tchaikovsky's descriptions of the ancestors of the beings I found myself rooting for while reading. They are smart, they exhibit object permanence and are stealthy patient hunters. So there's some good base material to work with while imagining how their intelligence might evolve.
Review: Planet of No Apes: The Evolutionary Advantages of Remembering History - Forgetting or ignoring the lessons of one’s history brings about the setbacks of repeating it. It’s not a new idea: most have experienced or heard of it one way or another. And yet the failure to gain wisdom from the successes and failures of the past is still one of our species’ greatest follies. “Children of Time” imagines the possibility of total recall of past understandings – the advantages of having it and the ultimate handicap of its absence. The result is an impressive work of science fiction – thoughtful, entertaining, challenging, hopeful, educational, and quite enjoyable, in a way that hearkens back to the standards of Arthur C. Clarke and Isaac Asimov, distinctive in drawing on the background of zoology, rather than the more sci-fi “appropriate” physics, astronomy, mathematics, or chemistry. The plotting is reminiscent of the Foundation trilogy, in that its narratives move from one “crisis” to another, but that is the extent of my drawing parallels.I found the story largely original and well-plotted. The characters are well-drawn, and engaging. While the “lessons of history” appears to be the main overarching idea, there is much more to drive the story and provide plentiful food for thought. The action is entertaining and I thought the ultimate outcome was well-disguised, left unclear until almost the very end, and yet it did not feel contrived or unfounded. I feel pretty confident recommending this to any fan of classic sci-fi or anyone who appreciates entertaining, intelligent, substantive fiction. The only reason I do not give it 5 stars is that its own status as a timeless classic is yet to be confirmed.

## Technical Specifications

| Specification | Value |
|---------------|-------|
| Best Sellers Rank | #3,379 in Books ( See Top 100 in Books ) #2 in First Contact Science Fiction (Books) #14 in Hard Science Fiction (Books) #58 in Space Operas |
| Customer Reviews | 4.5 out of 5 stars 48,571 Reviews |

## Images

![Children of Time - Image 1](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/81Xb8fFEkwL.jpg)

## Customer Reviews

### ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ This is a smart story, but it's also got a heart.
*by M***A on November 16, 2017*

This book totally captivated me, and oddly enough, has lessened my dislike of spiders. In that way it's operated somewhat like the nanovirus responsible for uplifting the spiders at the centre of this story, as it had me rooting for these creepy alien, yet pragmatic, creatures throughout the book. They're no cuddly monkeys, but the speculations about how spiders might evolve intelligence and build a society are fascinating. The book is also a nice antidote for anyone, like me, who might sometimes view humanity as just not worth saving as we see global injustices and violence that humans appear so fond of inflicting on each other in the name of power. Also enjoyable for me are the well-developed female characters so often absent in epic science fiction stories. All in all it was a tremendously satisfying read. The exploration of different forms of intelligence: spider, human, ant & AI constitutes the background for this story, and all see changes over the course of the book, which should appeal to folks interested in cognition. There aren't tons of answers here, but a lot of fodder for thought experiments to help those work through various issues in an attempt to arrive a deeper understanding of intelligence. The smart interesting content unfolds within a unique and interesting narrative structure as well, which does much to enrich the story overall. Narratively speaking, there is a satisfying isomorphism between the unfolding of the tale of the spiders' evolution and the humans' journey. We see millennia unfold through the eyes of "key crew" or the same humans, who are awakened at ever widening intervals to help in times of crisis. Alongside this, the story is told from the POV of nearly the same set of spiders, but individual iterations described at different points in time are descendants of earlier spider characters. Obviously members of later generations aren't identical to their ancestors, but there are enough common threads spun across generations to provide a sense of character development. My lessened dislike of spiders is an interesting side-effect (although it's unclear the effect will be a lasting one). In fact, I saw one in the bathroom the other day, and stilled my immediate urge to just kill the little creepy crawly. At least it's not a nasty smart little hunting spider like the Portias Tchaikovsky writes about. While reading the book I looked up Portias and actually became a little obsessed with the wee creatures, who, when viewed from a particular angle, are actually kind of cute with their big giant eyes and furry little bodies. They're relatively harmless to humans, which probably didn't hurt insofar developing a certain fondness for these things. The real Portias are true to Tchaikovsky's descriptions of the ancestors of the beings I found myself rooting for while reading. They are smart, they exhibit object permanence and are stealthy patient hunters. So there's some good base material to work with while imagining how their intelligence might evolve.

### ⭐⭐⭐⭐ Planet of No Apes: The Evolutionary Advantages of Remembering History
*by M***F on July 17, 2017*

Forgetting or ignoring the lessons of one’s history brings about the setbacks of repeating it. It’s not a new idea: most have experienced or heard of it one way or another. And yet the failure to gain wisdom from the successes and failures of the past is still one of our species’ greatest follies. “Children of Time” imagines the possibility of total recall of past understandings – the advantages of having it and the ultimate handicap of its absence. The result is an impressive work of science fiction – thoughtful, entertaining, challenging, hopeful, educational, and quite enjoyable, in a way that hearkens back to the standards of Arthur C. Clarke and Isaac Asimov, distinctive in drawing on the background of zoology, rather than the more sci-fi “appropriate” physics, astronomy, mathematics, or chemistry. The plotting is reminiscent of the Foundation trilogy, in that its narratives move from one “crisis” to another, but that is the extent of my drawing parallels.I found the story largely original and well-plotted. The characters are well-drawn, and engaging. While the “lessons of history” appears to be the main overarching idea, there is much more to drive the story and provide plentiful food for thought. The action is entertaining and I thought the ultimate outcome was well-disguised, left unclear until almost the very end, and yet it did not feel contrived or unfounded. I feel pretty confident recommending this to any fan of classic sci-fi or anyone who appreciates entertaining, intelligent, substantive fiction. The only reason I do not give it 5 stars is that its own status as a timeless classic is yet to be confirmed.

### ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ Terrific start to this series.
*by S***E on December 19, 2024*

*Terrific* first book in a science fiction series, amazingly creative, smart, and exciting. It won the 2016 Arthur C. Clarke Award, and the series as a whole (three books) won a Hugo Award for “Best Series” in 2023. War and environmental destruction have made Earth difficult for humans to live on. A long-term project has been taking place to terraform faraway planets for the survival of the species. One such project is being directed by the monomaniacal Dr. Avrana Kern. The terraforming is complete, including Earth plants, insects, spiders, and small mammals; but Kern does not want it to be for humans. It is her intent to send a shuttle load of monkeys to the planet, where they can evolve to be a better version of humans, with her as a god-figure. The next step will be to seed the planet with a nanovirus that will infect the monkeys and create a rapid evolution of intelligence. But everything goes wrong. A rebellion on the terraforming spaceship causes the destruction of the monkey shuttle, but the nanovirus still arrives, infecting many creatures. The most successful adaptation comes from a comparatively intelligent species of jumping spider. Rapid evolution begins there. Thousands of years later, the last humans leave the Earth in colony ships, with most of the humans stored as “cargo” in suspended animation. One ship, the *Gilgamesh*, investigates Kern’s world and moves on. Eventually they will have to return, and a war between the humans and the spiders seems inevitable. We view the story through many alternating points of view, both human and spider. One fascinating aspect is that, since female spiders are bigger and stronger, with the original Earth adaptation of eating the males after mating, males are considered inferior and mostly good for minor jobs, mating, and a source of food. The males' quest for equality is a clever turnaround for the reader. The book is long and complex, but not highly technical. The cultural and biological details of the spiders’ world are clever and fascinating, based on real world biology. The writing is clear and thoughtful. The last third is especially intense.

## Frequently Bought Together

- Children of Time (Children of Time, 1)
- Children of Ruin (Children of Time, 2)
- Children of Memory (Children of Time, 3)

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*Product available on Desertcart France*
*Store origin: FR*
*Last updated: 2026-01-23*