San Francisco Edition (May Reading)

[ase]

Feminism is Queer: the Intimate Connection Between Queer and Feminist Theory (Mimi Marinucci) (2010): Gender theory and I do best in small doses, so I like to check in every few years to see if my strong feelings on the importance of activism and the incestuous tedium of theory have abated. (Short answer: no.) I'd hoped for a survey of the current

Comments

[hedda62]

And have you made the pilgrimage to the inspiration for Barbary Lane? We did that a few years ago - of course, I was all "very nice, ow, Russian Hill, my knee hurts" but it is, still, very nice.

Agree about Cryoburn, alas, though I haven't done the reread yet. "Not the book I wanted" isn't "not a good book" but after that astonishing multi-novel sweep of wow, it's disappointing.

[ase]

And have you made the pilgrimage to the inspiration for Barbary Lane?

Not yet! I should fix that.

I should probably be happy that LMB is in a place where she can write lighter or "experiment" novels. She did such a fantastic job tuning into What Readers Want with several books, though, that I am less happy she's past that phase of her career.

[charlie_ego]

(italic tag missing)

Yeah, Cryoburn wasn't the novel I wanted, but I think it was the one she had to write, and so it got a humongous pass from me. (As opposed to Sharing Knife, which was neither the series I wanted nor the one that I thought she should have written, if that makes any sense. I think Bujold and I fundamentally disagree over whether she should be writing romance: I say no.)

I like your comment that it should have happened after Komarr. That's... a very good point that hadn't occurred to me. Of course it couldn't have happened that way, because Aral needed to be alive for Miles' wedding, but it kind of should have. Cherryh would have done it that way :) (At least, I get the distinct sensation that Cherryh is far more ruthless with her characters.)

[ase]

(Fixed! Thanks for the heads-up.)

I think Bujold and I fundamentally disagree over whether she should be writing romance: I say no.

If it makes her happy, and pays the bills, I think she should, but I also think I want neon flashing warnings so I can reset my expectations. The romance genre and I do not get on.

The Komarr thought came to me while I was typing this, honestly. I started asking what sort of book I wanted, then looked at my bookcase. It would be the sort of wretched timing appropriate for a Cherryh novel. (But I'm glad LMB is less inexorable than Cherryh, and that Aral got to see his grandkids.) Cherryh is... I don't even know if ruthless is the adjective. She seems to have empathy but not compassion for her protagonists.

Cherryh versus Bujold

[lightning58]

First off, love the quote from Sanger; truer words were never written.

Having read a lot more Cherryh than Bujold I'm a bit reluctant to stick my oar in here. However, much of the tone difference may come from Cherryh's background as a classicist, where there is no warfare more cutthroat than family warfare.

I also think the word you're looking for is sentimental; Cherryh is if nothing else a Stoic.

On the other hand, I would also relate that Bujold's epilog of the casualty recovery team in "Shards of Honor" is one of the saddest things I've ever read in genre fiction; you'd never get that from Cherryh.

Re: Cherryh versus Bujold

[ase]

Taken one chapter at a time, most of the bio is mostly readable, but there's some spots that substitute laundry list name-dropping for engaging writing.

However, much of the tone difference may come from Cherryh's background as a classicist, where there is no warfare more cutthroat than family warfare.

Ha. Family squabbles + positions of authority = bad news in any era.

What particularly makes you think of Cherryh as a Stoic? I'm not familiar with the philosophical school, so feel free to throw in related background info.

And re: the epilogue: yes. Cherryh writes shock, confusion and anxiety very well; Bujold works with a wider emotional palette. It's interesting: two women science fiction / fantasy authors, midwesterners, within a few years of 60, who have both used tight third PoV - but to very different affect.

At some point in my teens, Downbelow Station and rereading the Shards of Honor / Barrayar omnibus overlapped. Bouncing those books off each other was an interesting paired read.

Re: Cherryh versus Bujold

[lightning58]

Why do I apply the label of being a stoic to Cherryh as applied to Bujold? Mostly just the general vibe Cherryh she throws off. Her characters suck it up and play the hand they're dealt; Bujold's characters are more likely to try and deal themselves a new hand. Having read about three novels by Bujold and about two-dozen by Cherryh this might not be the most balanced take.

At least I never get the sense from Bujold that the universe might not be comprehensible, whereas Cherryh always holds back from her readers; be it due to point of view, cultural clashes, or the limits of human comprehension in the face of reality. Cherryh's universe is much more dangerous than Bujold's.

Re: Cherryh versus Bujold

[ase]

Re: sucking it up versus dealing a new hand: three versus more, but that sounds like it's in the ballpark.

Interestingly, when LMB created the Vorkosigan universe, she deliberately decided there would be no aliens; for Cherryh, almost everyone is alien (human or not). Speaking of comprehensibility.

[jai_dit]

At least some of the light-plottiness of the Tales series comes from its origin as a serialized column in the Chronicle (and the Examiner for book 4). This is also why each chapter is about a page or two. Once you get past those, they do get a bit meatier, I found.

[ase]

Serials parse very differently; when I read them as a serial they work much better.