This one really felt like the first book again in a way I can't quite capture. Possibly the constricted nature of the space and the deep investment in the question of what does it mean to not merely tolerate, but celebrate diversity. What does that look like? What does accommodation, in both its limited and expansive sense, mean? What does meaningful disagreement look like? Who is left out?
And also what do aliens like to eat? Why are teenagers? How do you write licensing laws for species that reach maturity at different ages?
Anyway, Chambers' Wayfarers universe continues to delight and I am going to miss it.