Silverberg's Starborne

Does living in a perfect world destroy all that makes us human? ***

Fifty men and women, living prefect lives, decide to give it all up to embark on the adventure of a lifetime. ***

Equipped with enough genetic material to populate a new planet, these fifty set out to travel to the farthest reaches of the galaxy, with their only link to home a fragile telepathic bond between a blind crew member and her sister back home. ***

Starborne is a thoughtful, introspective look by one of the Grand Masters of science fiction at what it means to be human and to live a life of meaning.