[Book Review] This Alien Shore

This Alien Shore / C. S. Friedman

So this made it onto the Virtual Speculation reading list based on curiosity and recommendations of this novel as a key piece of SF literature.  I expected a Space Opera with some of the normal dissection/discussions of society that one often finds in rich speculative fiction.  What I did not expect was to find a book that respectfully not only included non-neurotypical characters, but actively embraced neurodiversity.  Overall an excellent piece of speculative fiction.

Discussion Fodder:
  • In this story, what is alien?  What makes it alien?
  • How do the different societies embrace or reject neurodiversity?  What do you think of the handling of neurodiversity by the author?  What is done right/wrong?
  • How do the Hausman societies contrast with that of Earth, be it Earth of today or the Earth of the novel?
  • What points does the story make about hacking and security?  How do they hold up as the book has aged?  How does malware differ (or not differ) in this advanced society?  What about advertising?
  • What symbolism do we get from the virus they battle in the story?
  • Brain implants are a universal in this society.  What are some of the flaws or problems attendant?
  • "How much power a single pronoun could have, she thought.  Just one word.  Not even a long one.  And yet it frightened her, and she didn't understand why."  What roles do pronouns and identity come to play in the narrative?  How are they shaped and labeled?

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

[Book Review] Battle of the Linguist Mages

Image
Battle of the Linguist Mages   / Scotto Moore The description of this book caught my attention immediately , and a cover blurb from one of my favorite authors?  Sign me up! The book isn't quite what is promised, and that's not necessarily a bad thing, it's just that it has so much potential.  It's like how Ready Player One  reads a lot different in a post Gamer Gate environment.  (Also, to be fair, the description I first read when looking through review copies is different than what is up  now.) Now, don't get me wrong, the premise is phenomenal.  I love a good SF that takes seeds of the here and now and goes "what if?"  It looks at where VR gaming is now, where streaming and MMOs are now, the balance between real life skills and game controls, and launches into a believable continuation.  Then we get a little seasoning of magic and more.  It made me laugh and has some neat ideas that it develops. But writing and tone wise, it feels a lot like Ready Playe
Read more

[Book Review] When Sorrows Come

Image
When Sorrows Come (October Daye #15)  / Seanan McGuire Previously reviewed: Rosemary and Rue Once Broken Faith The Brightest Fell Night and Silence The Unkindest Tide A Killing Frost After... we'll kindly say many books of dodging the inevitable, Toby's finally getting married.  In her defense, at the start of the book even she did not know the date chosen for the event.  There's a little too much significance in this marriage to allow for a simple document signing in front of the local Justice of the Peace.  A marriage between a member of the Divided Courts and a King of Cats, and of course Toby has been anything but "just" a changeling for some time now.  A hero of the realm, daughter of a First Born, king-breaker, kingdom maker, finder of lost things, and, most importantly, one of the few members of Fairie that understands crime scene investigation and procedure. This is  October Daye, of course something is going to go Horribly Wrong, likely involving blood, w
Read more

[Book Review] The Olympian Affair

Image
The Olympian Affair (Cinder Spires #2)  / Jim Butcher  Previously Reviewed: The Aeronaut's Windlass It's been a long haul waiting for book two, and one that I didn't think was going to end.  In 2016, I described book one as an "air-ship filled rollicking adventure that brings to mind a mash-up of Shakespeare and The Princess Bride.  We have heroics, tempers, swashbuckling, dastardly villains, battles of wits, revenge, and maybe a little true love on the side.  This tome drops you into the story from page one and seems much shorter than its 750 pages." So where are we in 2023? Before reading this, I strongly advise you reread book one.  The cast is large,  the book thick, and the two main warring governments are Spire Albion and Spire Aurora , so if you're like me and names blend together, remind yourself of who everyone is and the stage that has been set. The Olympian Affair  is a story of the maneuvering and politics after the war has started but before it ha
Read more