The Children of Hamlin (Star Trek The Next Generation, No 3)

by Carmen Carter

Book Overview

The Hamlin Massacre -- every Starfleet officer knows the tale. The tiny Federation outpost of hamlin was destroyed, its entire adult population ruthlessly slaughtered, before the first defense shield... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0671735551
• Release Date: December 1990
• Publisher: Star Trek
• Length: 252 Pages
• Weight: 0.25 lbs.
• Dimensions: 7.0" x 0.8" x 4.3"

Customer Reviews

A clash of cultures that simply do not understand each other, unfortunately the clash is very deadly

Several decades ago a Federation outpost was raided, all the adults brutally killed and the children abducted. The name of the outpost was Hamlin and it is Federation policy to do everything possible to get the children back. The perpetrators were a species called the Choraii, they travel the galaxy in ships constructed of fluid-filled spheres and those ships are very powerful. Their technology is such that in any battle, even the fully functional Enterprise is at great risk. Ambassador Deelor and his assistant Ruthe are rescued from a ship under attack by the Choraii and the Enterprise is the ship that beats off the Choraii ship. The Choraii ship is one of the smaller ones in their fleet and the Enterprise was only barely able to fend it off. To his extreme displeasure, Captain Picard is ordered by Star Fleet command to turn overall command of a mission to negotiate with the Choraii to Deelor. The Ambassador is also an officer of Federation security, so he is an arrogant and reluctant releaser of information. The Enterprise has also taken on board a group of agricultural colonist that is being transported from one location to another. An advance team from the group is already on the ground at their new home called New Oregon. The presence of the colonists creates a recurring subplot to the story that could have been left out without loss. The real story here is how humans of the Federation react to and interact with the members of an alien culture. For the Choraii are not evil in any way, their society is based on singing and they consider adult humans to be untamed and incorrigible. However, human children easily adapt to the Choraii lifestyle of living in an oxygen rich fluid and constantly singing. In other words, it is an existence very similar to that of the whales living in Earth's ocean. Adults who grew up in a Choraii ship have been recovered, but they have all lived a short and extremely unhappy life when back with their own kind. The Federation orders are quite specific, so the officers and crew of the Enterprise find themselves in a deep moral dilemma when they "rescue" a child and an adult from a Choraii ship. They find themselves able to aid the child, but even though Troi, Crusher and the others do everything they can, the adult wills himself to suicide. Fortunately, this being the Enterprise, a potential long-term solution is found and it may be possible that a state of peace between the Choraii and the Federation can eventually be negotiated. I have always had a tendency to enjoy the Star Trek stories that involve alien cultures more than the others, which is why this one was of such interest. The Choraii are a species that brutally kills humans, not out of malice, but out of misunderstanding. They simply cannot understand the human personality and Choraii captivity is a pleasant experience for humans. Therefore, this story would have been much better if the entire focus would have been on the Choraii culture and how the

Just like a first season episode...

The Children of Hamlin is just as the title describes. It's about the decedents of a massacre where the children were thought to be taken away or slaughtered by ruthless aliens that outmatched the Federation.Fifty years after the dreaded event, it turns out many of the children thought to be long dead are alive among a people called the "Choraii." Picard negotiates with these ruthless aliens to get Hamlin survivors and decedents back home ... only some of them developed a life there and don't want to go back.It could have been a proposed script for the TV show and it has of all cast members Tasha Yar as head of security. This is classic season one material. The characters have a lot of unknowns that were later filled in by later episodes. In this novel the characters seem so a little fresher and more impulsive. In one scene Picard loses his temper with the a negotiator. He starts banging his fist his desk and demanding a straight answer from him.

STNG #3 The Children of Hamlin - Thought provoking!

"The Children of Hamlin" is but the first of only three great Star Trek The Next Generation novels that this fine author brought to fruition. While not being her best STNG novel, which in my opinion is "The Devil's Heart, it is a well written and thought provoking early Star Trek The Next Generation story. What is amazing is that it took the author two years to write her previous Star Trek The Original Series novel, "Dreams of the Raven," but after being given only three months for this novel, she wrote it so well!The premise:Everybody in Starfleet and the Federation knows the tale of the small Federation colony of Hamlin where aliens called the Choraii came and destroyed the colony, killed all of the adults and abducted the children and disappeared into the blackness of space. It is now fifty years later and the Choraii have returned, but this time they will have to deal with the USS Enterprise NCC-1701-D, her stalwart commanding officer, Captain Jean Luc Picard and her crew.I would definitely recommend this early Star Trek The Next Generation novel for it's author is among one of the best of the early trek authors and it is a well written, thought provoking tale, raising the question of children who were kidnapped and later, as adults, are given the opportunity to return to their own kind but wish to stay where they are. {ssintrepid}

Suprisingly good, if a bit slow-moving.

This story is good for the interesting ideas it addresses in a science-fiction format, not as an action-adventure story. Ideas such as: if someone is the victim of a kidnapping, and has remained in the custody of their kidnappers for many years before an opportunity comes to free them, is it more appropriate to free them or not to free them if they have been brainwashed by their captors to the point where they do not desire freedom, and wish to remain where they are? Clearly, they are incapable of making an informed decision, but then, isn't freeing them against their will rather a contradiction in terms? Fascinating concept, and one that never is definitively answered in this story, for the obvious reason that there is no definitive answer. Still, it is addressed evenhandedly and in a very interesting manner. Further, the characters are handled well, the established characters ring true and the new characters are interesting (if in some cases not very pleasant). All in all, a well-written story, and worth reading.

Interesting,but...

This was a good book.I love books where children are kiddennapped,then raised by their captors(Indians,Pirates,Aliens).The Choraii seem trully alien,but...you never see them!The author seems intent on avoiding showing them(alien measles?).Overall,though,this is a great book.It is a little slow,though,so don't expect a rousing adventure,or you'll be disappointed.