Séries
Obras por Si Clarke
The Left Hand of Dog: An extremely silly tale of alien abduction (Starship Teapot Book 1) (2021) 26 exemplares
Jurassic Dark (Starship Teapot, #2.5) 3 exemplares
Bright Future: An Anthology 2 exemplares
Past Imperfect (White Hart #1.5) 2 exemplares
Etiquetado
Conhecimento Comum
- Sexo
- female
- Nacionalidade
- Canada
- País (no mapa)
- United Kingdom
- Locais de residência
- London, England, UK
Membros
Críticas
Bright Future: An Anthology por Si Clarke
Not going to rate this one as I have a story in it. But I’m so excited for people to read this amazing collection.
I got a review copy of this from BookSirens and didn't realize I hadn't read Judgement Dave, so ... quick side trip, all caught up and off we go. Consider Pegasus is still fun, and at the same time darker. Ms. Clarke's band of lovable misfits... well, family of misfits ... find themselves facing harsh realities of an unsociety of self-proclaimed purity that imposes its"standards" on minorities that are different, telling those affected that they don't know better than the "standard" whole. Familiar? Of course. It's happening all over the wrongwing in the US, and in Ms. Clarke's adopted home of G.B. Vague? Also, of course, because I rarely summarize plots out of respect to the author and the reader. If you aren't seething at points in this book, I know if I can help you understand. As to the subject, in her Acknowledgements, Ms. Clarke says,
And when a character explains the exclusion experienced on her world... ‘I’m sorry – this must all seem wildly backwards to someone from an enlightened world.’, Clarke nails it with Lem's (earthling) thought: "I wanted to reply – to explain I was from a planet where evidence and propaganda are presented with equal merit, where the side that makes the most emotive case is deemed to be the winner. Where facts are irrelevant if the majority opinion goes against them."
I'll thank Ms. Clarke as well for a play on something in her Galactic Union, "...those dreadful people at POX news." I am SO borrowing that!
A good story addressing difficult issues well. And, I think, sadly optimistic for reality, but there's hope.… (mais)
Towards the end of 2020, I decided I just … couldn’t. I couldn’t face another serious novel about serious people dealing with serious problems. [...] Oops, I did it again. This book is every bit as dark as the second.I think she's done that. Because in her own words (yes, she's the author, of course they are, ... these are coming through a character Lem to friend Bexley): "I took a deep breath and tried again. ‘Right, so I’m going to try to explain it in my words. Hopefully, it will translate into something useful. I don’t really have a gender. But when I was born, they said I was male. I’m definitely not a man. At all. But I’m not a woman either. I feel more comfortable with she and her pronouns. And I present in ways that humans code as femme. Well, mostly. Sort of. But… Ugh. I’m really making a hash of this.’"
I worked hard to get the balance right: the darkness of the themes and the lightness of the tone. My aim is always to address real issues but to do so in a way that has warmth and heart – that respects the sanctity of life and the rights of people. I want to write stories that are diverse and inclusive at their very core.
And when a character explains the exclusion experienced on her world... ‘I’m sorry – this must all seem wildly backwards to someone from an enlightened world.’, Clarke nails it with Lem's (earthling) thought: "I wanted to reply – to explain I was from a planet where evidence and propaganda are presented with equal merit, where the side that makes the most emotive case is deemed to be the winner. Where facts are irrelevant if the majority opinion goes against them."
I'll thank Ms. Clarke as well for a play on something in her Galactic Union, "...those dreadful people at POX news." I am SO borrowing that!
A good story addressing difficult issues well. And, I think, sadly optimistic for reality, but there's hope.… (mais)
I got a review copy of Consider Pegasus and didn't realize that I'd missed this one, #2. So... slight detour to correct that and get caught up.
I'd had this to say about The Left Hand of Dog last year:
A kidnapped earthling, a talkative horse(ish), snarky organic robot who can't swear (programming), a free-floating, full-torso, vaporous apparition (okay, a little referential liberty on my part), a feathered expert in a non-spoiled arena, and a dog named Spock on a space time adventure...what's not to like? Plus there's a much needed particular positivity that I also won't spoil.
Well, no longer kidnapped, Lem is there by choice. And no, no change on my "I rarely summarize fiction plots" position, but ... the much needed positivity gets a shot of steroids to overcome a sadly too prevalent in our time prejudice. Some people wrongly think they are superior to others, and in acting so, show that they aren't. And like the human counterparts who think that way, these are not nice ... "people". (The quotes are not a pronouncement on other beings... I use them for earthlings who are similarly backward.) The story is still fun, and there are still the many not too subtle ref drops, um, homages. But, it gets more serious than the first, and you'll be properly outraged with one thread. And if you aren't, I kind of hope you find yourself left behind on a Dave.… (mais)
I'd had this to say about The Left Hand of Dog last year:
A kidnapped earthling, a talkative horse(ish), snarky organic robot who can't swear (programming), a free-floating, full-torso, vaporous apparition (okay, a little referential liberty on my part), a feathered expert in a non-spoiled arena, and a dog named Spock on a space time adventure...what's not to like? Plus there's a much needed particular positivity that I also won't spoil.
Well, no longer kidnapped, Lem is there by choice. And no, no change on my "I rarely summarize fiction plots" position, but ... the much needed positivity gets a shot of steroids to overcome a sadly too prevalent in our time prejudice. Some people wrongly think they are superior to others, and in acting so, show that they aren't. And like the human counterparts who think that way, these are not nice ... "people". (The quotes are not a pronouncement on other beings... I use them for earthlings who are similarly backward.) The story is still fun, and there are still the many not too subtle ref drops, um, homages. But, it gets more serious than the first, and you'll be properly outraged with one thread. And if you aren't, I kind of hope you find yourself left behind on a Dave.… (mais)
Ignore the cheesy cover and dig in. I agree with other reviewers that if you miss Terry Pratchett you may enjoy Si Clarke's silly tale of alien abduction.
While it may be helpful to be a SciFi nerd to catch all the PopLit references, I don't think it necessary nor does it detract from the enjoyment level even if you aren't a dedicated fan of SFF minutia.
This book stands well on its own silly merits for general SFF readers who are looking for a light-hearted bit of fun.
We could use more of this type of amusing and distracting read during the pandemic (or any time really!).
Thank you, Si, for the grins. I'd look for more from this author.… (mais)
While it may be helpful to be a SciFi nerd to catch all the PopLit references, I don't think it necessary nor does it detract from the enjoyment level even if you aren't a dedicated fan of SFF minutia.
This book stands well on its own silly merits for general SFF readers who are looking for a light-hearted bit of fun.
We could use more of this type of amusing and distracting read during the pandemic (or any time really!).
Thank you, Si, for the grins. I'd look for more from this author.… (mais)
Estatísticas
- Obras
- 10
- Membros
- 60
- Popularidade
- #277,520
- Avaliação
- 4.0
- Críticas
- 7
- ISBN
- 10