books -- in need of recommendations!
So I somehow got roped into the WiSE (Women in Science and Engineering) planning committee, and now I'm in charge of leading a women in science fiction book club... which means I need books to read! Ideally, the books should...
- have feminist leanings, or at least address gender issues in an intelligent way
- contain elements of badass, extra-sciency science fiction
- be written by women authors, preferably (though not strictly necessary)
- be accessible/comprehensible to sci-fi newbies and not tediously long
Any suggestions?
Also, I've somehow gotten behind again with the book reviews, so here's books sixteen through twenty one:
Dresden Files: Storm Front and Dead Beat by Jim Butcher
The protag/narrator has a thoroughly enjoyable voice and really keeps the pages turning. As a bonus, any book in the series can stand on its own, so you can pick and choose which ones sound most interesting to you. (Which is good, 'cause I found Fool Moon to be a bit yawn-worthy and didn't bother finishing it.) However, this series not recommended for Chicago residents, unless you enjoy sneering at all the details Butcher gets wrong.
Through Alien Eyes by Amy Thomson
A comfortable, easy to slip into sequel to The Color of Distance, but I didn't find it as wondrous or as intellectually challenging as its predecessor. Only recommended if you didn't get enough of the characters the first time around.
And now, the usual YA extravaganza...
Vampire Academy by Richelle Mead
I was surprised (and delighted) to discover a YA vampire novel that is thematically deep and subtle. The protag feels very raw and real, and while Mead pulls a major narrative trick on the reader, she manages to make it work. My fantasy-brain didn't engage with the mythology, though.
Wicked Lovely by Melissa Marr
Entirely the opposite problem: interesting mythology, but characters that fell flat. The only character who interested me was a minor one without much screen time. Also, why is everything ever described as "blue-black"? Seriously -- white people don't have blue-black hair without the aid of a carton of hair dye. I'm just sayin'.
City of Glass by Cassandra Clare
Aahhh... just right! Laugh-out-loud humor, compelling characters, mythology that digs deep into my hindbrain and makes a nest there. Clare gets the climax perfect -- humanizing the villain just in time for the protag to have to defeat him. Beautiful!
- have feminist leanings, or at least address gender issues in an intelligent way
- contain elements of badass, extra-sciency science fiction
- be written by women authors, preferably (though not strictly necessary)
- be accessible/comprehensible to sci-fi newbies and not tediously long
Any suggestions?
Also, I've somehow gotten behind again with the book reviews, so here's books sixteen through twenty one:
Dresden Files: Storm Front and Dead Beat by Jim Butcher
The protag/narrator has a thoroughly enjoyable voice and really keeps the pages turning. As a bonus, any book in the series can stand on its own, so you can pick and choose which ones sound most interesting to you. (Which is good, 'cause I found Fool Moon to be a bit yawn-worthy and didn't bother finishing it.) However, this series not recommended for Chicago residents, unless you enjoy sneering at all the details Butcher gets wrong.
Through Alien Eyes by Amy Thomson
A comfortable, easy to slip into sequel to The Color of Distance, but I didn't find it as wondrous or as intellectually challenging as its predecessor. Only recommended if you didn't get enough of the characters the first time around.
And now, the usual YA extravaganza...
Vampire Academy by Richelle Mead
I was surprised (and delighted) to discover a YA vampire novel that is thematically deep and subtle. The protag feels very raw and real, and while Mead pulls a major narrative trick on the reader, she manages to make it work. My fantasy-brain didn't engage with the mythology, though.
Wicked Lovely by Melissa Marr
Entirely the opposite problem: interesting mythology, but characters that fell flat. The only character who interested me was a minor one without much screen time. Also, why is everything ever described as "blue-black"? Seriously -- white people don't have blue-black hair without the aid of a carton of hair dye. I'm just sayin'.
City of Glass by Cassandra Clare
Aahhh... just right! Laugh-out-loud humor, compelling characters, mythology that digs deep into my hindbrain and makes a nest there. Clare gets the climax perfect -- humanizing the villain just in time for the protag to have to defeat him. Beautiful!