"I think what we fear most about finding a mind equal to our own, but of another species, is that they will truly see us - and find us lacking, and turn away from us in disgust. That contact with another mind will puncture our species’ self-satisfied feeling of worth. We will have to confront, finally, what we truly are, and the damage we have done to our home. But that confrontation, perhaps, is the only thing that will save us. The only thing that will allow us to look our short-sightedness, our brutality, and our stupidity in the face, and change."

- Ray Nayler from The Mountain in the Sea

Great read btw. Just finished it.

#theMountainInTheSea

Eager to begin reading this. I like Nayler's short fiction and I find any "first contact among Earthlings" premise interesting. #books #toberead #tobereadpile #themountaininthesea

"In the dream, Ha never saw the cuttlefish as they were in their prime - bright and luminous, streaked with kaleidoscopic color change, arranging their arms in semaphores of threat or curiosity. No. In the dream she descended, caged in the white noise of her respirator. Down into water clouded calcitic-gray. Down to a silt bottom strewn with stones."
The Mountain In The Sea - Ray Nayler
#quotes #bookstodon #books #reading #novels #RayNayler #ScienceFiction #TheMountainInTheSea

I've known about this book for a while but decided to read it after it was nominated for a Nebula award. So far I'm loving it. I also love the cover art. It's timely because there's a lot of AI incorporated into the story. @bookstodon #AmReadung #Bookstodon #SFF #SciFi #TheMountainInTheSea

I'll probably give the book a go - and this is certainly true, isn't it?

"The great and terrible thing about humankind is simply this: we will always do what we are capable of."

https://www.theguardian.com/books/2023/feb/18/the-mountain-in-the-sea-by-ray-nayler-how-to-speak-octopus

#TheMountainInTheSea
#RayNayler
#Octopus
#Aliens

All this AI talk lately really makes me want to revisit #TheMountainInTheSea. @bookstodon

MT VOID #2258: Film reviews of #MarryMe #Bros #BulletTrain, letter of comment on #TheIliad #Homer, book comments on #TheMountainInTheSea #RayNayler #ThePurchaseOfTheNorthPole #JulesVerne #TheHillsOfHomicide #LouisLAmour at http://leepers.us/mtvoid/VOID0113.htm from @eleeper and #MarkRLeeper