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Posting a reply to: Re: 2016 LGBTQ Speculative Fiction Reading Challenge

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[QUOTE]Sable Aradia - 2016-05-13  12:13 PM

I do reviews for all the books I read so if you want a summary of what I thought of each book.  I chose two of the classics -- Orlando and The Picture of Dorian Gray -- and of course I thought they were amazing.  I love how Woolf is so keenly aware of how much of gendered behaviour is due to societal expectations, and how much is assumed merely because of societal expectations.  Many of the books I chose were also suited to other challenges, and that's where I found A Companion to Wolves and A Handmaid's Tale.  Of course, Handmaid's story of the subjugation of women, especially feminist and lesbian women, is well on its way to being a classic already.  I liked Wolves but it's clearly not for everyone; it's got a lot of explicit sex and as other reviewers have pointed out, it's got some serious consent issues.

I'm only including stuff from the SF Masterworks list if it happens to synchronize with the SF Masterworks Challenge, in which we're reading one of the books per month in order of publication.  So nothing on the recommended list made it this year, though there will be some that will synchronize next year.  However, I included Gateway by Frederik Pohl for this challenge because the protagonist is bisexual, something he's struggling with in therapy along with severe PTSD and survivor's guilt.  The book is problematic in that it's full of a lot of dated theories grounded in prejudice (the therapist treats his sexuality like a character flaw, makes comments about his relationship with his mother, and all the old garbage that used to be part of the psychiatric profession's rhetoric on the subject.)  I included it anyway because it's important, I think, not to forget that this was what the professionals used to think and it is still a part of common belief for many people today.

I ordered Gentleman Jole and the Red Queen from the library when I heard of its imminent release because I'm a huge Vorkosigan Saga fan!  I loved it but it's definitely more of Bujold's planetary romances than space opera.  It centered around a three-person relationship between Cordelia and Aral Vorkosigan, and Oscar Jole.  I love how blindsided some people seem to be that Aral was bisexual, considering that Bujold made that clear in the very first book.  Only goes to show that people see what they want to see and don't see what they don't want to see.  And I'm glad that Bujold gave him a healthy, if unconventional, same-sex relationship, to go with the disastrous same-sex affair that has always been part of his back story.

Most of the rest of the stuff in my queue is stuff I have had sitting on the bookshelf for a while but not gotten around to reading yet, so this gives me a good opportunity.  I requested All the Birds in the Sky from the library because it's award-worthy and suits both this and the Apocalypse Now challenge (I am given to understand) but I may not get it before the end of the year, since I am #20 in the queue to read it![/QUOTE]

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Sable Aradia

Posted 2016-05-13 12:13 PM (#13562 - in reply to #12247)
Subject: Re: 2016 LGBTQ Speculative Fiction Reading Challenge

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Yeah, this has been pretty fun so far! I might pick up Carmilla; I've been meaning to read that since my adolescent vampire obsession. Which reminds me, the Vampire Chronicles would fit this challenge, especially the four originals, if anyone's looking for ideas.

I do reviews for all the books I read so if you want a summary of what I thought of each book. I chose two of the classics -- Orlando and The Picture of Dorian Gray -- and of course I thought they were amazing. I love how Woolf is so keenly aware of how much of gendered behaviour is due to societal expectations, and how much is assumed merely because of societal expectations. Many of the books I chose were also suited to other challenges, and that's where I found A Companion to Wolves and A Handmaid's Tale. Of course, Handmaid's story of the subjugation of women, especially feminist and lesbian women, is well on its way to being a classic already. I liked Wolves but it's clearly not for everyone; it's got a lot of explicit sex and as other reviewers have pointed out, it's got some serious consent issues.

I'm only including stuff from the SF Masterworks list if it happens to synchronize with the SF Masterworks Challenge, in which we're reading one of the books per month in order of publication. So nothing on the recommended list made it this year, though there will be some that will synchronize next year. However, I included Gateway by Frederik Pohl for this challenge because the protagonist is bisexual, something he's struggling with in therapy along with severe PTSD and survivor's guilt. The book is problematic in that it's full of a lot of dated theories grounded in prejudice (the therapist treats his sexuality like a character flaw, makes comments about his relationship with his mother, and all the old garbage that used to be part of the psychiatric profession's rhetoric on the subject.) I included it anyway because it's important, I think, not to forget that this was what the professionals used to think and it is still a part of common belief for many people today.

I ordered Gentleman Jole and the Red Queen from the library when I heard of its imminent release because I'm a huge Vorkosigan Saga fan! I loved it but it's definitely more of Bujold's planetary romances than space opera. It centered around a three-person relationship between Cordelia and Aral Vorkosigan, and Oscar Jole. I love how blindsided some people seem to be that Aral was bisexual, considering that Bujold made that clear in the very first book. Only goes to show that people see what they want to see and don't see what they don't want to see. And I'm glad that Bujold gave him a healthy, if unconventional, same-sex relationship, to go with the disastrous same-sex affair that has always been part of his back story.

Most of the rest of the stuff in my queue is stuff I have had sitting on the bookshelf for a while but not gotten around to reading yet, so this gives me a good opportunity. I requested All the Birds in the Sky from the library because it's award-worthy and suits both this and the Apocalypse Now challenge (I am given to understand) but I may not get it before the end of the year, since I am #20 in the queue to read it!

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