Rendezvous with Rama is the work which brought author Arthur C. Clarke back fully into the spotlight of science fiction writing after several years of relative inactivity. Indeed, the novel brought the legendary writer back with a bang as it won every single major SF genre award. This includes the Nebula Award for Best Novel, Hugo Award for Best Novel, Jupiter Award for Best Novel, and the Locus Award for Best Novel. This dominance of the best novel awards has since they were awarded come under scrutiny as perhaps being related as much to the fact that the book was a cause for celebration for the return of a legend as much as for its singular literary quality.
Whether that is true or not, there is no denying that the book was met with instant critical success. Much of that critical appreciation has been focused upon the novel as not just the return of Clarke, but a return to form with a book that dives deep into many of the themes and concepts which had gained him fame in the first place. Much like the relatively recent—at the time—success of 2001: A Space Odyssey, the novel is concerned with the discovery of a powerful alien object by earthbound humans who cannot possibly hope to fully understand its meaning. Like the monoliths in 2001, the titular spaceship is more than it seems. It quickly becomes apparent to the earthlings that it is far more than just a vessel of transport. Its mammoth size, impenetrable secrets, and enigmatic existential implications transforms Rama into something capable of stirring both fear and curiosity.
In fact, it is the spaceship itself which has become the most lasting element of the novel. Far larger than anything imagined by humans, Rama becomes a metaphorical embodiment of a world within itself. The ship is clearly the most important character in the novel and this decision is precisely the reason for negative critical attention. Clarke’s ambition to write a story in which a spaceship becomes something like a living organism comes at the cost of character development of the actual human beings sent to explore Rama to learn about its multitude of mysteries. Whereas the monolith in 2001 represent man’s evolutionary advancement, the ultimate lack of the humans to grasp any authentic understanding of Rama is often viewed as the flip side of this equation. The book is thus commentary on man’s inability to comprehend that for which their minds have no experiential concept.
So successful was Clarke in this ambition that despite seemingly being intended as a single standalone story, it would be followed by multiple sequels co-authored by Clarke and Gentry Lee. The novel has lived a long life outside the confines of its literary origin ever since. Several video games, primitive by modern standards, appeared throughout the 1990s. In 2009, the book was adapted into a two-part radio series broadcast by the BBC. As for Hollywood, Rendezvous with Rama is one of those literary works which has foundered in “development hell” as various attempts to produce a film adaptation have come and gone with significant names in the industry attached at one time or another, including Morgan Freeman and David Fincher. As of spring 2024, there was still no significant advancement in the attempt to bring the novel to the screen.
