Book meme

[friend_of_tofu]

Ooh, a nice meme stolen from queenortart here. I've been lax with books lately, so I'll try and give this a go (although loss of phone means it may not happen every day).

Day 01 - A book series you wish had gone on longer OR a book series you wish would just freaking end already (or both!)Day 02 - A book or series you wish more people were reading and

Comments

[whisperkit]

I did not know about Anne McAffrey's homophobia. I was teeny enough to miss out on all the cues in the books, I guess.

[friend_of_tofu]

Hm. It's probably not fair to call her 'homophobic' in a general way, since she's always been quite pro-gay and had some gay characters in her writing relatively early on (like her short story about 'Wendy's - women who have kids for gay men), though she was somewhat cagey early on. But it's creepy; possibly the best description of her is a classic fag hag. Gay men are lovely, fluffy, effeminate best-girlfriends-with-balls, but only as long as they stay within those definitions.

She spelt this out in more detail about 10 years ago, in a boggling document which basically says that when dragons Impress (form a psychic bond with) people upon hatching, they sniff their hormones to make sure they are the right gender and sexual orientation first!. She was infamously quoted around the internet on the subject on the Tent Peg Theory; in her opinion, a single anal sexual experience will make a man gay.

For the feminist implications of her work, 'Perturbed On Pern is a very good post

[whisperkit]

The power level of the dragon that chooses you is based upon sexuality, with the most powerful only choosing straight men/women alone, and the least powerful *only* choosing femme gay men?

I'm prepared to call that homophobia. That plus the Tent Peg Theory pretty much cements her as such in my mind.

[friend_of_tofu]

I don't dispute that part. I just think that she thinks she's a great big ally of gays everywhere (gays=men, obv). She was probably very upset about being called 'homophobic', because in her mind, she thinks she's promoting tolerance.

:-/

[queenortart]

I missed it too. I lost the will to live very quickly reading them and gave up!

[friend_of_tofu]

They did have their moments, but gah, the tweeness and the Sue-isms are too much. My best mate use to describe the books as "Biggles A-Dragonback".

[whisperkit]

Hahaha, that's awesome.

I used to love them as a t(w)een.

[friend_of_tofu]

Yep, I think I read 'Dragonquest' at 9 (loan from my aunt) and enjoyed them quite a bit for a fair few years. That and 'The White Dragon' still stand up, if you ask me, because the books aren't all plain sailing for the White Hats. But she finds it ever so hard not to reward her beloved characters and punish the wicked ones all the time, doesn't she?