The novel “The Pride of Chanur” by C.J. Cherryh was published for the first time in 1981. It’s the first novel of the Chanur series.

Pyanfar Chanur is the captain of the space freighter “The Pride of Chanur” trading among the planets of the Compact. At Meetpoint station you can do good business but for her, her crew and generally for the hani it’s always necessary to look away from the kif and the trouble that always accompany them.

When an alien belonging to an unknown species secretely sneaks into her starship, Pyanfar Chanur must make a difficult choice that can have serious consequences. Opening new trade routes would mean a big deal for the hani and considerable prestige for the Chanur clan but the kif want the alien back at all costs.

The Chanur series belongs to the fictional universe created by C.J. Cherryh called the Universe of the Alliance-Union universe in which many stories written by the author are set. It’s set in an area of ​​space far from the planets protagonists of other stories so it can be read completely autonomously.

The protagonists of “The Pride of Chanur” are hani, a species with a look of anthropomorphic lions. They make up the crew of a space merchant ship that makes interstellar travel within the area of the Compact, a set of trade agreements among various species. The Compact provides some stability in that area of ​​space for economic reasons even though there are no political agreements but the relationships among the species are not necessarily friendly.

In “The Pride of Chanur” the kif seem particularly treacherous and ready to do anything to get what they want. The object of a dispute is an alien belonging to an unknown species who escapes the kif who had captured him and secretely sneaks into the starship “Pride of Chanur”. The consequence is that its captain, Pyanfar Chanur, is forced to handle a situation much bigger than she could imagine.

The Chanur series is usually included in the space opera subgenre because these stories are set among the stars, with a lot of interstellar travels. However, C.J. Cherryh goes far beyond what could be simple adventures creating with the Compact an intriguing community of species that have different psychological traits. From the beginning of the novel, one of the difficulties for Pyanfar Chanur is given by these differences and the language barriers.

All these difficulties are emphasized when Pyanfar Chanur must deal with Tully, the mysterious alien at the center of the contention with the kif. The reader sees him from the hani point of view of but for those familiar with a certain short story by Fredric Brown it’s not anything special.

Communicating with Tully is critical for Pyanfar Chanur because protecting him threatens not only the lives of her crew but also other hani as the kif leader who is looking for the alien is willing to take military action to recapture him. For this reason, the element of space opera of the novel is closely interconnected with the psychological one.

The characters are a crucial element of “The Pride of Chanur”, in particular Pyanfar Chanur and C.J. Cherryh explores in depth her doubts and uncertainties. She’s a veteran captain but the situation in which she finds herself is quite different from those she faced in the course of her life. Again, the element of space opera is mixed to a more personal one because Pyanfar Chanur must also handle a situation with her husband.

In creating the hani society, C.J. Cherryh operated what is superficially a reversal of gender roles. Hani males are considered unstable therefore remain at home while females travel among the stars. The author is skillful in using that basic idea then going beyond trivial stereotypes.

“The Pride of Chanur” is too short to explore in depth all the complexities of the relationships among different species and even those within the hani society. The reader is immersed from the beginning in the problems faced by Pyanfar Chanur and is helped to understand them through a lot of details but this fictional universe is too big to have an accurate picture.

In my opinion, this limit doesn’t take away from “The Pride of Chanur”, which seemed to me a very good introduction to the series. This novel has its end so you can read it and then decide if you want to look for its sequels. I recommend reading it.