Ray
There are so many fascinating characters in Homer that are delightfully drawn albeit that their roles are peripheral, walk on walk off roles to drive the main plot lines or to illustrate it's backdrop. Many deserve more. Penelope is one such. Her story, and through it the story of women, deserves to be more than a plot device, a final task for Odysseus to complete. Margret Atwood shines her formidable intellect on to the text of this final act. The words form shadows creating a palimpsest, revealing another less “heroic” aspect to Odysseus character but one which nevertheless gives him more complexity, a man of twists and turns doomed perhaps not just by Poseidon but also his flaws. But this is Penelope's story, just what would make her put up with an absent husband and defy a patriarchal society that sought to use her in his absence. But not just her. Her household is a matriarchal society under siege. How do the other women cope and survive? What is their fate?
The Penelopiad is an important addition to the Homeric cannon as is Pat Barkers “The Silence of the Girls”.
This is GATTY'S TALE Why cant American Publishers just leave a book alone. Oh yes course they ALWAYS know better than the rest of us or the Author.
Reading this for me was time traveling. A collection published in 1999 of revisits to worlds originally imagined from 1966 to 1998. The original worlds, where I did visit them, where around the year of publication, so everyone was fresh to me at the time and my reaction was time bound or time reflective. I am not now who I was then. Having said that I found my responses to these re-visits to old landscapes interesting.
Le Guin's “Ecumen” is like visiting a different part of a continent, through a tale from an out of the way region that adds some illumination to the whole.
Haldeman “Forever war” read this serialized in Analog before its publication in 1974. Not the same I think as the final print version, which causes me to think worth a re-read particularly as I enjoyed this side story with its happy ever after ending, which I suspect suggesting the sequels are worth a read worth a read.
Orsen Scot Card “Ender” Again read Enders Game as a short story in Analog 1977. Fun space opera, nice moralizing twist. Read the book when published years later and each sequel as published. [Enders Game 1985, Speaker for the dead 1986, Xenocide 1991, Children of the Mind 1996. Why I kept with the series was the development of Ender as a character and the plot development and the fact that Card is a good writer. Have to add I oppose just about everything he stands for in real life so that I like is writing is a surprise to me. The universe is huge with parallel stories of Bean and others [Shadow series which I've also read]. This short story fits in the chronology nicely, simple sweet plot, but Jane does appear like magic which is a bit flimsy.
David Brin “Uplift Universe” The 80's was the Brin decade for me. Read everything I could get my hands on. Uplift series was stellar! I'm still waiting for more and this the last published story was supposed to herald another novel and 1 suspect there are enough plot ideas for a trilogy.
Robert Silverberg “Roma Eterna”. Never read any of this series although Silverberg is an undoubted SF master. An alternative history. This novella reads Ok, pleasant enough and intriguing
if one knows enough history to make links. But not enough to compel me to want to read anymore.
Why as editor he added this is a mystery to me, suspect he had it hanging around as opposed to writing it specifically for this compilation.
Dan Simmons “Hyperion”. Started this but truth to tell I don't remember finishing it. Enjoyed the novella here, in and of itself. Nothing to tempt me back to the series. Some authors just don't work for me theme-wise. possibly its the underlying potential for horror his writing has but is absent here.
Nancy Kress “Sleepless” Read “Beggers in Spain” as a novella in a “Best of” Hugo or Nebula Awards. Enjoyed was Ok, interesting ideas but I never followed up. The synopsis before “sleeping Dogs” interests me and I may make a point of going back to read. Otherwise this again was just an Ok story.
Frederik Pohl “Heechee” Read as they were published. First two excellent but tailed off “Boy” a return to the writing strength of Gateway.
Gregory Benford “Galactic Center” Like Brin an essential 80's read. This novella adds to the understanding of the “Mantis” as a key plot character and allows for some speculation on what it means to be human.
Anne McCaffrey “The Ship” A YA author at best and she often is. Never read this series other than the original short story in an anthology I think. Nice story.
Greg Bear “Way” I like Bear but he often leaves me behind trying to understand the background plot. Remember struggling through Eon and Eternity and only retain a basic memory of the story. Playing with time will do that to one. This novella may draw me back to a re-read.
Overall an essential anthology for me and perhaps a gateway for those new to the genre to pick up a taste for some of the great SF of the recent past.
Previously published as “Best New SF 7 “ by Robinson Publishing 1993
And
“The Years Best Science Fiction, Tenth Annual Collection”, Gardner Dozois 1993
One I will have to re-read and assess after sometime has passed. Brin never fails to engage the mind.Ideas flow thick and fast.Characters playing out their lives in plausible future environments and events. However perhaps too many,too quick. For some reason I keep thinking of an interactive video game rather than a novel. This may be unfair because I cant articulate why. I didnt make much of an emotional connection with any of the characters.As I reached the end I didnt care about what happened to anybody although I did about what would happen to our species. Brin made me care about chatterbox individual dolphins in the past [so much so i wish he'd get back to them] so probably my expectations arent that high. He's clearly doing a “Brunner” and I applaud him for that as its a style worth keeping alive. Earth was a book of ideas and the characters plus the ideas and events drove the plot.
But I need to re read maybe the ideas just overpowered the story and second time around I'll find it a more enjoying read.
Enjoyable read but...
But what... Hard to put a finger on what. Possibly theres more than one book here with a central theme ie Stepping, a collection of themed novellas. Theses the extension out into Long Mars of the title.To a lesser degree theres the further exploration of Long Earth . Then theres the Homo Superior theme, seeds of which were planted in earlier books plus the question of evolved other alternatives to life generally.
Plot driven; the central characters just perform to drive the plot. Example - the inventor of the potato driven stepper machine turns up but aside from some antipathy between him and his daughter, which reveals little about either character, hes undrawn. Suggestions of post singularity themes in two characters who again just turn up to help move the plot from A to B.
Not that the plots all that bad kept the pages turning and did link with the plots of the earlier books, so felt like some things were being resolved.
So... too many players all behaving like puppets to the plot which ultimately left it a book I'm not likely to re read other than to clarify a plot thread when reading the next... which I will with some diluted enthusiasm.
Plot didn't flow as others in this series. Heavy going at times. Dickson is a better writer than this. Would be better edited right down as a “novella” sized short story. Liked the way Dickson attempted to put limits on the use of magic and just let peoples actions and personalities develop the plot.
One for those of us who feel ‘obligated” to a series. First real disappointment I've had with the series.
because this collection extends from his earliest to latest works the content varies. Always imaginative, the quality of the writing and the humour improves as Sir Terry masters his Art sculpting narrativium like a great master. An entertaining insight into one of the worlds most popular authors who i believe the future will accord a status equivalent to that of Lewis Carroll or Dickens
full review
https://smallestroomreviews.wordpress.com/2014/07/24/creatures-of-light-and-darkness-roger-zelazny/
well presented book
authoritative
all the major classics included
examples of illustrations small out of necessity but excellent examples
interesting annotations
Translations important Theres the 1920's transaltion by Tolkein and Rieu Then the later translation into modern english late in Tolkeins life.
A new translation by Armitage has made some impact