Have you heard? The f/sf field now has a feminist award! It's called The Galactic Suburbia Award for activism and/or communication that advances the feminist conversation in the field of speculative fiction in 2011. The women of Galactic Suburbia, Tansy, Alex, and Alisa, have just announced the first year's winner and Honours List.
Honours List"
Carrie Goldman ad her daughter Katie, for sharing their story about how Katie was bullied at school for liking Star Wars, and opening up a massive worldwide conversation about gender binaries and gender-related bullying among very young children http://www.chicagonow.com/portrait-of-an-adoption/2010/11/anti-bullying-starts-in-first-grade/
Cheryl Morgan for "Female Invisibility Bingo" ( http://www.cheryl-morgan.com/?p=10805 ), associated blogging and podcasting, and basically fighting the good fight
Helen Merrick, for the "Feminism" article on the SF Encyclopedia: http://sf-encyclopedia.com/entry/feminism (i think its a rewrite not new)
Jim C Hines for “Jane C Hines” and associated blogging, raising awareness of feminist issues in the SF/Fantasy publishing field. - http://www.jimchines.com/2011/09/jane-c-hines/
Julia Rios, Kirstyn McDermott and Ian Mond for episode 11 of the Outer Alliance podcast (The Writer and the Critic special episode)
http://blog.outeralliance.org/archives/875
L. Timmel Duchamp - for continuing to raise issues of importance on the Ambling Down the Aqueduct blog [I'm sure they mean Ambling Along the Aqueduct--td] and various Aqueduct Press projects
http://aqueductpress.blogspot.com/
Michelle Lee for the blog post “A 7-year-old girl responds to DC Comics’ sexed-up reboot of Starfire” http://io9.com/5844355/a-7+year+old-girl-responds-to-dc-comics-sexed+up-reboot-of-starfire
Winner
Nicola Griffith - for the Russ Pledge, and associated blogging http://asknicola.blogspot.com/2011/06/taking-russ-pledge.html
The winner will receive a Deepings Doll (www.deepingsdolls.com) hand-painted figurine of a suffragette with a Galactic Suburbia placard.
Congratulations, Nicola!
If you have ideas for the Honours list for 2012, please email Tansy, Alex, and Alisa at galacticsuburbia@gmail.com or tweet @galacticsuburbs
Showing posts with label Helen Merrick. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Helen Merrick. Show all posts
Friday, January 27, 2012
Tuesday, October 11, 2011
The Cascadia Subduction Zone, Vol. 1, No. 4
- Essays
- Gender, Science, and Narrative Inversion by Ann Hibner Koblitz
- Women in Science and Science Fiction: A Mutual Relationship? by Helen Merrick
- Bad Science: The Flawed Research into Gender Differences in the Brain by Nancy Jane Moore
- Where the Juice Is: An Interview with Julie Czerneda by Nisi Shawl
- Grandmother Magma
- Symbiotic Planet by Lynn Margulis reviewed by Andrea Hairston
- Reviews
- Tesseracts Fifteen edited by Julie Czerneda & Susan MacGregor reviewed by Nic Clarke
- Frankenstein's Monster by Susan Heyboer O'Keefe reviewed by Siobhan Carroll
- The Highest Frontier by Joan Slonczewski reviewed by Karen Burnham
- Revolution World by Katy Stauber reviewed by Tom Foster
- Featured Artist
- Jennifer Mondfrans
Sunday, March 20, 2011
2010 James Tiptree Jr. Award
he 2010 James Tiptree Jr. Award has been announced:
The James Tiptree, Jr. Literary Award Council is pleased to announce that the 2010 Tiptree Award is being given to Baba Yaga Laid an Egg, by Dubravka Ugresic (Canongate, 2010).
Baba Yaga Laid an Egg impressed with its power and its grace. Tiptree juror Jessa Crispin explains that the beginning of the book “does not scream science fiction or fantasy. It starts quietly, with a meditation on the author’s aging mother, and the invisibility of the older woman…. But things shift wholly in the second act, with a surreal little tale of three old ladies, newly moneyed, who check into an Eastern European health spa. There’s another revolution in the third act, where what looks like a scholarly examination of the Russian fairy tale hag erupts into a rallying cry for mistreated and invisible women everywhere.”
Crispin notes that the fairy tale figure Baba Yaga is the witch, the hag, the inappropriate wild woman, the marginalized and the despised. She represents inappropriateness, wilderness, and confusion. “She’s appropriate material for Ugresic, who was forced into exile from Croatia for her political beliefs. The jurors feel Baba Yaga Laid an Egg is a splendid representation of this type of woman, so cut out of today’s culture.”
The Bone Palace by Amanda Downum (Orbit 2010) — noted for a deliciously complicated plot that challenges 21st century Earth attitudes toward transfolk. One juror noted that this book came closest among the honor list to meeting her Tiptree ideal by including a character that not only embodies a challenge to prescribed roles, but also creates a crack in or addition to the structure that carries forward to future generations.
The Hundred Thousand Kingdoms by N.K. Jemisin (Orbit 2010) — set in a matriarchal society where the privilege and expectations between the sexes are reversed, while the gender roles are different but recognizable (and believable).
“Diana Comet and the Disappearing Lover” by Sandra McDonald (published as “Diana Comet,” Strange Horizons, March 2 & March 9, 2009) — a (true) love story, in which the author does something simple but radical with the identity issues at play.
“Drag Queen Astronaut” by Sandra McDonald (Crossed Genres issue 24, November 2010) — a wonderful exploration (and ultimately an affirmation) of a gender presentation that tends to be ignored or ridiculed.
The Secret Feminist Cabal by Helen Merrick (Aqueduct Press 2009) — an academic look at the history of early feminism in science fiction, science fiction criticism, and fandom that provides a valuable documentation of our beginnings
Who Fears Death by Nnedi Okorafor (DAW 2010) —A strong female lead character breaks out of restrictive gender roles to change her life, perhaps changing history as a result. A well-written perspective on prejudice and discrimination and the lessons needed to overcome their bonds on our identities and imaginations.
Living with Ghosts by Kari Sperring (DAW 2009) — an unusual perspective in a main character —a feminized man who makes much of his living as an escort/high-class sex worker who sees ghosts when he is not expecting — or expected — to be able to do so. An excellent read.
The Colony by Jillian Weise (Soft Skull Press 2010) — Takes on the idea that pervades our culture that women have to be perfect in order to have sex with men. One juror notes: “I’ve never read a book that made a woman with one leg so sexually normal.” Smart and well written with subtle gender politics.
In addition to the honor list, this year’s jury also compiled the following long list of other works they found worthy of attention:
* Beth Bernobich, Passion Play (Tor 2010)
* Stevie Carroll, “The Monitors” (Echoes of Possibilities, edited by Aleksandr Volnov, Noble Romance Publishing 2010)
* Roxane Gay, “Things I Know About Fairy Tales” (Necessary Fiction, May 13, 2009)
* Frances Hardinge, Gullstruck Island (MacMillan 2009)
* Julia Holmes, Meeks (Small Beer Press 2010)
* Malinda Lo, Ash (Little, Brown 2009)
* Alissa Nutting, Unclean Jobs for Women and Girls (Starcherone Books 2010)
* Helen Oyeyemi, White Is for Witching (Doubleday 2009)
* Rachel Swirsky, “Eros, Philia, Agape” (Tor.com, March 3, 2009)
This year’s jurors were Penny Hill (chair), Euan Bear, Jessa Crispin, Alice Sola Kim, and Lawrence Schimel.
The James Tiptree, Jr. Literary Award Council is pleased to announce that the 2010 Tiptree Award is being given to Baba Yaga Laid an Egg, by Dubravka Ugresic (Canongate, 2010).
Baba Yaga Laid an Egg impressed with its power and its grace. Tiptree juror Jessa Crispin explains that the beginning of the book “does not scream science fiction or fantasy. It starts quietly, with a meditation on the author’s aging mother, and the invisibility of the older woman…. But things shift wholly in the second act, with a surreal little tale of three old ladies, newly moneyed, who check into an Eastern European health spa. There’s another revolution in the third act, where what looks like a scholarly examination of the Russian fairy tale hag erupts into a rallying cry for mistreated and invisible women everywhere.”
Crispin notes that the fairy tale figure Baba Yaga is the witch, the hag, the inappropriate wild woman, the marginalized and the despised. She represents inappropriateness, wilderness, and confusion. “She’s appropriate material for Ugresic, who was forced into exile from Croatia for her political beliefs. The jurors feel Baba Yaga Laid an Egg is a splendid representation of this type of woman, so cut out of today’s culture.”
HONOR LIST
The Honor List is a strong part of the award’s identity and is used by many readers as a recommended reading list for the rest of the year. This year’s Honor List is:The Bone Palace by Amanda Downum (Orbit 2010) — noted for a deliciously complicated plot that challenges 21st century Earth attitudes toward transfolk. One juror noted that this book came closest among the honor list to meeting her Tiptree ideal by including a character that not only embodies a challenge to prescribed roles, but also creates a crack in or addition to the structure that carries forward to future generations.
The Hundred Thousand Kingdoms by N.K. Jemisin (Orbit 2010) — set in a matriarchal society where the privilege and expectations between the sexes are reversed, while the gender roles are different but recognizable (and believable).
“Diana Comet and the Disappearing Lover” by Sandra McDonald (published as “Diana Comet,” Strange Horizons, March 2 & March 9, 2009) — a (true) love story, in which the author does something simple but radical with the identity issues at play.
“Drag Queen Astronaut” by Sandra McDonald (Crossed Genres issue 24, November 2010) — a wonderful exploration (and ultimately an affirmation) of a gender presentation that tends to be ignored or ridiculed.
The Secret Feminist Cabal by Helen Merrick (Aqueduct Press 2009) — an academic look at the history of early feminism in science fiction, science fiction criticism, and fandom that provides a valuable documentation of our beginnings
Who Fears Death by Nnedi Okorafor (DAW 2010) —A strong female lead character breaks out of restrictive gender roles to change her life, perhaps changing history as a result. A well-written perspective on prejudice and discrimination and the lessons needed to overcome their bonds on our identities and imaginations.
Living with Ghosts by Kari Sperring (DAW 2009) — an unusual perspective in a main character —a feminized man who makes much of his living as an escort/high-class sex worker who sees ghosts when he is not expecting — or expected — to be able to do so. An excellent read.
The Colony by Jillian Weise (Soft Skull Press 2010) — Takes on the idea that pervades our culture that women have to be perfect in order to have sex with men. One juror notes: “I’ve never read a book that made a woman with one leg so sexually normal.” Smart and well written with subtle gender politics.
In addition to the honor list, this year’s jury also compiled the following long list of other works they found worthy of attention:
* Beth Bernobich, Passion Play (Tor 2010)
* Stevie Carroll, “The Monitors” (Echoes of Possibilities, edited by Aleksandr Volnov, Noble Romance Publishing 2010)
* Roxane Gay, “Things I Know About Fairy Tales” (Necessary Fiction, May 13, 2009)
* Frances Hardinge, Gullstruck Island (MacMillan 2009)
* Julia Holmes, Meeks (Small Beer Press 2010)
* Malinda Lo, Ash (Little, Brown 2009)
* Alissa Nutting, Unclean Jobs for Women and Girls (Starcherone Books 2010)
* Helen Oyeyemi, White Is for Witching (Doubleday 2009)
* Rachel Swirsky, “Eros, Philia, Agape” (Tor.com, March 3, 2009)
This year’s jurors were Penny Hill (chair), Euan Bear, Jessa Crispin, Alice Sola Kim, and Lawrence Schimel.
Monday, September 27, 2010
Links for a Monday evening
--It's Banned Books Week in the US and the UK. Today's Guardian has an article about it that notes some of the usual targets of book-banning as well as some new ones. I was most interested by the one designated "the eighth most challenged book in the US last year":
--Strange Horizons has posted a review by Claire Brialey of The Secret Feminist Cabal.
--io9 reports that the UN has appointed Malaysian astrophysicist Mazlan Othman Earth's ambadassor in the case that an extraterrestrial species visit Earth (link courtesy of Liz Henry).
--Censorship isn't exactly book-banning, but the principle is similar. These days, censorship tends to be on "security" grounds, exercised by intelligence agencies. I'm sure everyone will be relieved to hear that some of those many US tax dollars at work in the Pentagon are being used to purchase 10,000 copies of a book written by Lt. Col. Anthony Shaffer-- a book vetted in advance, of course, by the author's military superiors-- in order to destroy virtually all of the initial print run. St. Martin's Press, the publisher, is producing a second version, with words, names, and even entire paragraphs blacked out throughout the book's 299 pages. I wonder. Who does St. Martin think will want to subject themselves to such a stymied reading experience? Is it possible they're hoping that non-serious readers will buy the book out of a certain kind of curiosity? It boggles the mind. Here is a portion of CNN's report by Chris Lawrence and Padma Rama:
Carolyn Mackler, whose novel The Earth, My Butt, and Other Big, Round Things was the eighth most challenged book in the US last year for reasons including its "offensive" language and sexually explicit scenes, sent a statement to be read at the event. "While I'm honoured to be in the company of such amazingly talented authors, I'm certainly not honoured to be on the list," said Mackler. "And while I'm no stranger to book challenges, for some reason I'm always surprised."--Meanwhile, Aqueductista Sue Lange has posted Confessions of a Serial Book Banner.
She has received "hundreds of letters and emails from teenage girls" who have been inspired by the novel, she said. The book tells the story of Virginia, "a curvy 15-year-old girl who has been made to feel terrible about herself by her not-so-curvy family [but who] ultimately learns to feel good about herself, even to celebrate herself, as she is, without losing weight, without hurting her body."
"I write about teenagers as they are, and my characters sometimes curse, and they hook up, and they confront their parents when they feel they are being wronged. This, I suppose, is upsetting to people who don't want their child exposed to these things. While I sincerely doubt that my book will be someone's only exposure to such content, I respect a parent's wishes for their children. Their children, I emphasise. Not everyone else's," she said. "I am a parent. I closely follow the books that my son reads. If a book is scaring him, we talk about it. If a book doesn't seem appropriate for him, I tuck it away and suggest he wait a few years. I have a good sense of what he's ready for, what he's wondering about. But do I know what is right for his friend or classmate? No way. Please, all of us, let's keep standing up against book banning."
--Strange Horizons has posted a review by Claire Brialey of The Secret Feminist Cabal.
--io9 reports that the UN has appointed Malaysian astrophysicist Mazlan Othman Earth's ambadassor in the case that an extraterrestrial species visit Earth (link courtesy of Liz Henry).
--Censorship isn't exactly book-banning, but the principle is similar. These days, censorship tends to be on "security" grounds, exercised by intelligence agencies. I'm sure everyone will be relieved to hear that some of those many US tax dollars at work in the Pentagon are being used to purchase 10,000 copies of a book written by Lt. Col. Anthony Shaffer-- a book vetted in advance, of course, by the author's military superiors-- in order to destroy virtually all of the initial print run. St. Martin's Press, the publisher, is producing a second version, with words, names, and even entire paragraphs blacked out throughout the book's 299 pages. I wonder. Who does St. Martin think will want to subject themselves to such a stymied reading experience? Is it possible they're hoping that non-serious readers will buy the book out of a certain kind of curiosity? It boggles the mind. Here is a portion of CNN's report by Chris Lawrence and Padma Rama:
The Pentagon contacted St. Martin's Press in early August to convey its concerns over the release of the book. According to the publisher, at that time the first printings were just about to be shipped from its warehouse. Shaffer said he and the publisher worked hard "to make sure nothing in the book would be detrimental to national security."Which just goes to show that while book-banning and censorship work on similar principles, for authors, the difference is enormous.
"When you look at what they took out (in the 2nd edition), it's lunacy," Shaffer said.
The Pentagon says Shaffer should have sought wider clearance for the memoir.
"He did clear it with Army Reserve but not with the larger Army and with Department of Defense," Department of Defense spokesman Col. David Lapan said earlier this month. "So he did not meet the requirements under Department of Defense regulations for security review."
One of the book's first lines reads, "Here I was in Afghanistan (redaction) My job: to run the Defense Intelligence Agency's operations out of (redaction) the hub for U.S. operations in country."
In chapter 15, titled "Tipping Point," 21 lines within the first two pages are blacked out.
In the memoir, Shaffer recalls his time in Afghanistan leading a black-ops team during the Bush administration. The Bronze Star medal recipient told CNN he believes the Bush administration's biggest mistake during that time was misunderstanding the culture there.
Defense officials said they are in the process of reimbursing the publisher for the cost of the first printing and have not purchased copies of the redacted version.
At least one seller on the online auction site eBay claiming to have a first-edition printing is selling it for an asking price of nearly $2,000. The listed retail price for the second printing is $25.99.
Friday, September 3, 2010
The Ditmar Awards
Last night in Melbourne at the Ditmar Awards ceremony, it was announced that Helen Merrick has won the William Atheling Jr. Award for The Secret Feminist Cabal. Congratulations, Helen! That's fabulous news!
Here are all the awards announced last night:
* Best Novel: Slights, Kaaron Warren (Angry Robot Books)
* Best Novella or Novelette: “Wives” Paul Haines (X6/Couer de Lion)
* Best Short Story: “Seventeen” Cat Sparks (Masques, CSFG)
* Best Collected Work: Slice Of Life, Paul Haines, edited by Geoffrey Maloney (The Mayne Press)
* Best Artwork: Cover art, Andromeda Spaceways Inflight Magazine #42, Lewis Morley
* Best Fan Writer: Robert Hood for Undead Backbrain (roberthood.net/blog)
* Best Fan Artist: Dick Jenssen for body of work
* Best Fan Publication in Any Medium: Steam Engine Time, edited by Bruce Gillespie and Janine Stinson
* Best Achievement: Gillian Polack et al for the Southern Gothic banquet at Conflux
* Best New Talent: Peter M. Ball
* A. Bertram Chandler Award: Damien Broderick
* Norma K. Hemming: Maria Quinn, The Gene Thieves (HarperCollins)
* Peter McNamara Award: Janine Webb
* William Atheling Jr Award: Helen Merrick, The Secret Feminist Cabal: a cultural history of science fiction feminisms (Aqueduct Press)
* Best Fannish Cat: Peri Peri Canavan
Here are all the awards announced last night:
* Best Novel: Slights, Kaaron Warren (Angry Robot Books)
* Best Novella or Novelette: “Wives” Paul Haines (X6/Couer de Lion)
* Best Short Story: “Seventeen” Cat Sparks (Masques, CSFG)
* Best Collected Work: Slice Of Life, Paul Haines, edited by Geoffrey Maloney (The Mayne Press)
* Best Artwork: Cover art, Andromeda Spaceways Inflight Magazine #42, Lewis Morley
* Best Fan Writer: Robert Hood for Undead Backbrain (roberthood.net/blog)
* Best Fan Artist: Dick Jenssen for body of work
* Best Fan Publication in Any Medium: Steam Engine Time, edited by Bruce Gillespie and Janine Stinson
* Best Achievement: Gillian Polack et al for the Southern Gothic banquet at Conflux
* Best New Talent: Peter M. Ball
* A. Bertram Chandler Award: Damien Broderick
* Norma K. Hemming: Maria Quinn, The Gene Thieves (HarperCollins)
* Peter McNamara Award: Janine Webb
* William Atheling Jr Award: Helen Merrick, The Secret Feminist Cabal: a cultural history of science fiction feminisms (Aqueduct Press)
* Best Fannish Cat: Peri Peri Canavan
Thursday, July 8, 2010
Intersections
I've been mostly offline for the last ten days, with a stiff neck that made work at the computer excruciating. And the reviews of Aqueduct books to report on have been piling up.
Nancy Jane Moore, writing for the Broadsheet, reviews Helen Merrick's The Secret Feminist Cabal and Gwyneth Jones's Imagination/Space in a thoughtful and provocative essay titled Aqueduct Press Educates and Delights in Two Nonfiction Books on Feminist SF. Here's a bit of what she says:
Another review of The Secret Feminist Cabal, this one by Adrienne Martini, was published originally in Locus Magazine a couple of months back, but is now available through Locus Online here. Rereading it just now, it resonated with Nancy's review:
about the centrality of feminism to the essays in both books. His conclusion is one that most readers of this blog would likely agree wholeheartedly with:
And finally, the July issue of Locus Magazine has a lengthy review by Russell Letson of Eleanor Arnason's Tomb of the Fathers. Here's a taste:
And finally, just today, at Blog of the Fallen, Larry reviews Rachel Swirsky's Through the Drowsy Dark. Here's a taste:
ETA:Oops-- I forgot one!
Lambda Lterary posted Meredith Schwartz's review of Centuries Ago and Very Fast earlier this week. She picks up on the aspect of the book that I personally found most fascinating: "It is Vel’s relationship with the generations of his mortal family that is Ore’s most original and charming departure."
Nancy Jane Moore, writing for the Broadsheet, reviews Helen Merrick's The Secret Feminist Cabal and Gwyneth Jones's Imagination/Space in a thoughtful and provocative essay titled Aqueduct Press Educates and Delights in Two Nonfiction Books on Feminist SF. Here's a bit of what she says:
Be sure to go read the whole piece.Perhaps the most intriguing point about the two books — and the reason why I wanted to consider the two of them in one review — is the intersection between Merrick’s last chapter, Beyond Gender (pp. 262-292), and the ideas on gender found throughout Jones’s book. It should not come as a surprise that Merrick discusses Jones’s work — particularly her novel Life, also published by Aqueduct, in which genetic change is likely to push us in to a society that lacks the Great Divide — in that chapter on taking feminism “beyond or outside the terms of the sex/gender system.” (p. 286)
Following on a discussion of criteria for the Tiptree Award, Merrick observes, “From my own perspective, Life was a more radical book by far, both in terms of its feminism and what it did with gender, than either of the two books awarded the Tiptree that year [2004].” (p. 286) She then goes on to explain Jones’s ideas on the Great Divide.
Both Merrick and Jones provide challenging feminist thought fordemanding readers of science fiction. But be forewarned: Once you start considering the ideas in these two books, you may find yourself spoiled for “feel-good science fiction,” even with women in the starring roles.
The truth is, despite all the talk about post feminism and retiring feminist science fiction “to the agenda farm,” feminist ideas in both theory and fiction have grown into something far more complex than equal pay for equal work or even reproductive freedom. And they are no longer important only to women; as we begin moving beyond gender, society will change.
Another review of The Secret Feminist Cabal, this one by Adrienne Martini, was published originally in Locus Magazine a couple of months back, but is now available through Locus Online here. Rereading it just now, it resonated with Nancy's review:
While Merrick does an amazing job of tracking the rise and fall and rise again of feminism in the genre and its attendant fan communities, what strikes me most as a reader is that her analysis could also be applied to feminism in society as a whole; that is, genre plays out as a microcosm of greater political thought. Which isn’t really a surprise, since SF is made up of people who interact with the larger world – but it hammers home again that these sorts of analyses are not only a history of a community but of a larger movement as well.Last week, Strange Horizons posted a review by Paul Kincaid of both Imagination/Space and Ursula K. Le Guin's Cheek by Jowl (which was nice timing, really, given that the latter had just won the Locus Award). Kincaid talks in detail
about the centrality of feminism to the essays in both books. His conclusion is one that most readers of this blog would likely agree wholeheartedly with:But what is most interesting about both these books is the centrality of fantasy and science fiction, not just in their careers but in their political (primarily feminist) consciousness. Or, at least, that is one partial reading of the books.
And finally, the July issue of Locus Magazine has a lengthy review by Russell Letson of Eleanor Arnason's Tomb of the Fathers. Here's a taste:
Letson characterizes Tomb, by the way, as a "yummy appetizer that leaves you hungry for more."As with A Woman of the Iron People, I kept thinking of Larry Niven at least as much as, say, Ursula K. Le Guin. Not for the specifics of gender politics, certainly, but for the plot-framework of the semi-involuntary exploration of exotic environments coupled with considerations of species biology and social/cultural dynamics. (I suppose this reaches to the roots of modern SF, through Stanley Weinbaum right back to Stapledon and Wells. It's a sturdy and inexhaustible branch of the tradition.) In fact, Arnason seems to be looking for ways out of the various traps and the dead ends that biological determinism offers when thinking about gender relationships-- or any other important area of human (or intelligent alien) activity, for that matter.
And finally, just today, at Blog of the Fallen, Larry reviews Rachel Swirsky's Through the Drowsy Dark. Here's a taste:
He discusses a couple of other Aqueduct Press books too.Swirsky's characters feel so "real," with their frailties and insecurities bleeding through, that often there is a heartbreaking quality to several of these fictions. Swirsky is a damn fine writer and considering how she has already been nominated for several awards and had some of her fiction chosen for anthologies such as Best American Fantasy 2, she will almost certainly continue to be an outstanding writer, whether she continues with short fiction or if she branches off and writes novels as well.
ETA:Oops-- I forgot one!
Lambda Lterary posted Meredith Schwartz's review of Centuries Ago and Very Fast earlier this week. She picks up on the aspect of the book that I personally found most fascinating: "It is Vel’s relationship with the generations of his mortal family that is Ore’s most original and charming departure."
Thursday, June 3, 2010
A unique place in the Hugo Awards
I hadn't realized, until I read Honour for WA writer, an article by Ian Nichols in the June 2 issue of the West Australian, that Helen Merrick is the first Australian woman to be nominated for the Hugo [though see below: because she's not!]:
But there was also this in the piece:
Speaking of The Secret Feminist Cabal, let me apologize now to anyone who was misled by my suggestion that the panel "The Interrelationship Between Feminist SF and Feminist Science" would have anything to do with Ch. 7 of The Secret Feminist Cabal, and then attended the panel under that mistaken impression. When I encouraged people interested in Helen's work on feminist sf and feminist science studies, I was going on the assumption that the description for the panel that Nancy Jane Moore proposed would have something to do with the panel itself. But WisCon Programming did not see fit to allow the panel's proposer to participate in the actual panel, and apparently the original idea behind the panel got dropped, even though the description was retained. I did not attend the panel myself, but someone who did told me that the panelists all admitted they hadn't read Helen's book, which explains why the panel had nothing to do with the panel description. Worse my informant seemed to think that the panelists were only interested in feminist sf written twenty or more years ago-- and certainly not in any way interested in anything that Helen talks about in Ch.7 of her book. Maybe next time...
On another note-- I arrived home last night after a grueling day of Delta Airlines Travel Hell. (Yeah, it wasn't enough that they stranded me in Madison and refused to pay for my additional overnight stay. [Bless the Concourse, though, for extending the WisCon rate!] One of my planes yesterday had "maintenance issues." And given what I've been hearing about management practices at Delta, it's an easy guess why. Be advised, unless you absolutely have to, avoid Delta like the plague. They'll gouge you every chance they get (though they're still not charging for using the restroom: but watch this space!), charge you extra for services they'll then screw up, and then tell you tough shit when they do. If they have a motto, it's probably "The customer is never right" or "never, ever apologize for anything," or "get hold of the customer's charge card as often as possible.")
Perhaps it's because I'm so worn out from Travel Hell, but I'm sort of appalled at the state of my two email inboxes-- and fighting the urge, this morning, to run away from home to escape it. If I owe you an email, please be patient. I'm just a little overwhelmed at the moment. Once I get myself organized and a list of what to do in what order made up, I'm sure I'll be fine.
[The Secret Feminist Cabal] is a fascinating book which gives a glimpse into the equally fascinating world of science-fiction fans. More importantly, it speaks for that very same feminist cabal that has, over the past 40 years, been part of revolutionising the genre.Actually, I'm surprised. (Though maybe I shouldn't be?) [ETA: and it's not true! As Helen points out in her comment, Justine Larbalestier's Battle of the Sexes in Science Fiction was nominated in the same category, and Margo Lanagan.]
Merrick occupies a unique place in the Hugo Awards: she is the only Australian woman ever nominated for one. Very few Australians have been nominated for a Hugo, and only three of those have won. This book gives Helen Merrick more than a fighting chance to be the fourth.
But there was also this in the piece:
"Although I did win a twentieth of one [i.e., a Hugo] for my chapter in The Cambridge Companion to Science Fiction," she says. "It was a medal on a little blue ribbon but my daughter cut it up with a pair of scissors."In case you don't own a copy of the book, or haven't checked it out from your library, Aqueduct has made two chapters of it available for download from its website, here.
Speaking of The Secret Feminist Cabal, let me apologize now to anyone who was misled by my suggestion that the panel "The Interrelationship Between Feminist SF and Feminist Science" would have anything to do with Ch. 7 of The Secret Feminist Cabal, and then attended the panel under that mistaken impression. When I encouraged people interested in Helen's work on feminist sf and feminist science studies, I was going on the assumption that the description for the panel that Nancy Jane Moore proposed would have something to do with the panel itself. But WisCon Programming did not see fit to allow the panel's proposer to participate in the actual panel, and apparently the original idea behind the panel got dropped, even though the description was retained. I did not attend the panel myself, but someone who did told me that the panelists all admitted they hadn't read Helen's book, which explains why the panel had nothing to do with the panel description. Worse my informant seemed to think that the panelists were only interested in feminist sf written twenty or more years ago-- and certainly not in any way interested in anything that Helen talks about in Ch.7 of her book. Maybe next time...
On another note-- I arrived home last night after a grueling day of Delta Airlines Travel Hell. (Yeah, it wasn't enough that they stranded me in Madison and refused to pay for my additional overnight stay. [Bless the Concourse, though, for extending the WisCon rate!] One of my planes yesterday had "maintenance issues." And given what I've been hearing about management practices at Delta, it's an easy guess why. Be advised, unless you absolutely have to, avoid Delta like the plague. They'll gouge you every chance they get (though they're still not charging for using the restroom: but watch this space!), charge you extra for services they'll then screw up, and then tell you tough shit when they do. If they have a motto, it's probably "The customer is never right" or "never, ever apologize for anything," or "get hold of the customer's charge card as often as possible.")
Perhaps it's because I'm so worn out from Travel Hell, but I'm sort of appalled at the state of my two email inboxes-- and fighting the urge, this morning, to run away from home to escape it. If I owe you an email, please be patient. I'm just a little overwhelmed at the moment. Once I get myself organized and a list of what to do in what order made up, I'm sure I'll be fine.
Tuesday, May 18, 2010
The Aqueduct Gazette: the Spring 2010 issue
The online edition of the Spring 2010 Aqueduct Gazette is now available as a PDF download here. In this issue,
*Nisi Shawl, in "Written on the Water," considers how differently she now reads the books that were a big influence on her life. She notes
*Paige Clifton-Steele, in "Henrietta's Afterlife: Octavia Butler and the HeLa Cell Culture," reads Octavia Butler's Xenogenesis Cycle by way of the case of Henrietta Lacks, an African American woman from whose cervical cancer cells originated the first immortal cell tissue line, HeLa:
*Nisi Shawl, in "Written on the Water," considers how differently she now reads the books that were a big influence on her life. She notes
Rereading is always, to me, rewriting. As I reread the texts I love, those that are dear to me, their words spill away from me into new meanings, filling up the fresh impressions I have left on the world by making my way through it. The hollow places and questions and emptinesses I have come upon in my continuing explorations open to receive thoughts that were always waiting to occur.*Issue editor Paige Clifton-Steele interviews Helen Merrick, asking her questions such as "In the beginning of your book [The Secret Feminist Cabal], you immediately identify yourself as a fan among fans. Do you think it's important that works like this should be written by people who claim that title?" and "Donna Haraway cautions against viewing the cyborg as a product of technophilia, specifically, 'for example, those who relegate the cyborg to an odd, attenuated kind of technophilic euphoria.' But I think a lot of people come to sf in childhood, and embrace it prior to any understanding, out of something that looks a lot like a technophilic ("gee-whiz!") impulse. Is there some contradiction buried here? Can that impulse be trusted to serve greater purposes sometimes?" She also asks Helen to talk about her experience as a Tiptree juror.
*Paige Clifton-Steele, in "Henrietta's Afterlife: Octavia Butler and the HeLa Cell Culture," reads Octavia Butler's Xenogenesis Cycle by way of the case of Henrietta Lacks, an African American woman from whose cervical cancer cells originated the first immortal cell tissue line, HeLa:
Long after her death, her extracted cancer cells continued to divide. They are still dividing in hundreds of labs all over the world. Henrietta Lacks became, in death, "the first immortal human cells ever grown in a laboratory."*And of course the issue offers plenty of news about Aqueduct Press books, current and forthcoming.
Those cells, in turn, were reproduced on a massive scale during the search for a polio vaccine, and have since figured in the development of treatments for countless diseases and the answers to other scientific questions. However, white doctors took the cells from Lacks without her knowledge, and her children have had no say in how they were used....
....Lacks' son consented to an autopsy based on the suggestion that any results might medically benefit her descendants. Since then the world over has seen the benefit of HeLa; she has a wealth of spiritual descendants. It's her real descendants for whom the benefits have been scarce. Most of them live without health insurance. None of them have ever been included in the profits that are made off of HeLa cells....
Monday, May 10, 2010
That mighty f-word, missing
I've just opened the May issue of Locus-- and discovered that in its half-page spread announcing the 2009 Hugo Awards Nominations, they excised Helen Merrick's The Secret Feminist Cabal from the list of Best Related Book nominees.
Now that's sad.
Now that's sad.
Sunday, May 2, 2010
"New connections and avenues of discussion"
Over at A Room of One's Own, Gretchen reviews Helen Merrick's The Secret Feminist Cabal. Here's the opening of her review--
This book is a refreshingly community-centric look at sites of feminist struggle in SF fandom, as opposed to a feminist literary criticism approach which has been more popular, and which has been the focus of most of the work I've read on feminist science fiction. Merrick's cultural approach opens up new connections and avenues of discussion of the place and contributions of women to science fiction over several decades. This book is resonating for me a great deal, and if you are at all interested in feminist SF fandom, you really should read it. It gives so much provocative history, analysis, and recovering of feminist voice.and here's the conclusion--
Merrick strikes a balance between giving an account of the history of women and different feminisms in SF fandom and offering an analysis of that history. She centers a great deal of her attention on fanzines and the letter columns of SF magazines and conventions reports, which is a brilliant move, as these are sites that have not gotten enough critical attention.
I'm grateful for this book. It gives me a connection to communities I identify myself as being part of, a history that I knew existed before, but had less opportunity to really explore. I love her exploration of the inception of the Tiptree Award in Chapter 8, and how its meanings have evolved as fandom's feminisms have changed. I am proud to be in fandom now, today, at a time when we're seeing some much-needed shifts in discussions of inclusion, particularly for people of color and, I believe, people with disabilities in fandom, both as fans and within SF texts. It's exciting! I want to be a part of it. And I'm glad I get to see, through this book, some of where fandom has been and how far it's come before now.Gretchen also notes "[Merrick] charts different and contested meanings for what "feminist science fiction" meant in particular historical moments and spaces. She emphasizes that this is not a monolithic history of "Feminist Science Fiction", but instead discusses the many variations and justifications on particular, historically situated definitions of that and related terms." And I'd have to say, for me, that may be what excites me most about Helen's book.
Go read the whole review here.
Sunday, April 4, 2010
2010 Hugo Nominations
The Hugo ballot was just announced at Eastercon (and was reported live by Cheryl Morgan via Convention Reporter, which is my source for what follows)-- and looks to be a much more inclusive selection of nominations than in recent years. I was especially pleased to see some Aqueductistas' names on the ballot-- congratulations to Nicola Griffith, Rachel Swirsky, and Helen Merrick! And as you might imagine, I'm particularly tickled to see that Aqueduct's The Secret Feminist Cabal has been nominated for Best Related Work. Also in that category, by the way, is the excellent On Joanna Russ, ed. by Farah Mendlesohn. Imagine that, two strong feminist works of nonfiction on the same ballot!
Without further ado, here's the ballot:
Best Novel:
Boneshaker by Cherie Priest (Tor)
The City & The City by China Miéville (Del Rey; Macmillan UK)
Julian Comstock: A Story of 22nd-Century America by Robert Charles Wilson (Tor)
Palimpsest by Catherynne M. Valente (Bantam Spectra)
Wake by Robert J. Sawyer (Ace; Penguin; Gollancz; Analog)
The Windup Girl by Paolo Bacigalupi (Night Shade)
Best Novella:
"Act One" by Nancy Kress (Asimov's 3/09)
The God Engines by John Scalzi (Subterranean)
"Palimpsest" by Charles Stross (Wireless)
Shambling Towards Hiroshima by James Morrow (Tachyon)
"Vishnu at the Cat Circus" by Ian McDonald (Cyberabad Days)
The Women of Nell Gwynne's by Kage Baker (Subterranean)
Best novelette:
"Eros, Philia, Agape" by Rachel Swirsky (Tor.com 3/09)
"The Island" by Peter Watts (The New Space Opera 2)
"It Takes Two" by Nicola Griffith (Eclipse Three)
"One of our Bastards is Missing" by Paul Cornell (The Solaris Book of New Science Fiction: Volume Three)
“Overtime” by Charles Stross (Tor.com 12/09)
"Sinner, Baker, Fabulist, Priest; Red Mask, Black Mask, Gentleman, Beast" Eugie Foster (Interzone 2/09)
Best Short Story:
"The Bride of Frankenstein" by Mike Resnick (Asimov's 12/09)
"Bridesicle" by Will McIntosh (Asimov’s 1/09)
"The Moment" by Lawrence M. Schoen (Footprints)
"Non-Zero Probabilities" by N.K. Jemisin (Clarkesworld 9/09)
"Spar" by Kij Johnson (Clarkesworld 10/09)
Best Related Work:
Canary Fever: Reviews by John Clute (Beccon)
Hope-In-The-Mist: The Extraordinary Career and Mysterious Life of Hope Mirrlees by Michael Swanwick (Temporary Culture)
The Inter-Galactic Playground: A Critical Study of Children's and Teens' Science Fiction by Farah Mendlesohn (McFarland)
On Joanna Russ edited by Farah Mendlesohn (Wesleyan)
The Secret Feminist Cabal: A Cultural History of SF Feminisms by Helen Merrick (Aqueduct)
This is Me, Jack Vance! (Or, More Properly, This is "I") by Jack Vance (Subterranean)
Best Graphic Story:
Batman: Whatever Happened to the Caped Crusader? Written by Neil Gaiman; Pencilled by Andy Kubert; Inked by Scott Williams (DC Comics)
Captain Britain and MI13. Volume 3: Vampire State Written by Paul Cornell; Pencilled by Leonard Kirk with Mike Collins, Adrian Alphona and Ardian Syaf (Marvel Comics)
Fables Vol 12: The Dark Ages Written by Bill Willingham; Pencilled by Mark Buckingham; Art by Peter Gross & Andrew Pepoy, Michael Allred, David Hahn; Colour by Lee Loughridge & Laura Allred; Letters by Todd Klein (Vertigo Comics)
Girl Genius, Volume 9: Agatha Heterodyne and the Heirs of the Storm Written by Kaja and Phil Foglio; Art by Phil Foglio; Colours by Cheyenne Wright
Schlock Mercenary: The Longshoreman of the Apocalypse
Written and Illustrated by Howard Tayler
Best Dramatic Presentation Long Form:
Avatar Screenplay and Directed by James Cameron (Twentieth Century Fox)
District 9 Screenplay by Neill Blomkamp & Terri Tatchell; Directed by Neill Blomkamp (TriStar Pictures)
Moon Screenplay by Nathan Parker; Story & Directed by Duncan Jones (Liberty Films)
Star Trek Screenplay by Robert Orci & Alex Kurtzman; Directed by J.J. Abrams (Paramount)
Up Story by Bob Peterson, Pete Docter & Thomas McCarthy; Screenplay and Co-Directed by Bob Peterson & Pete Docter (Disney/Pixar)
Best Dramatic Presentation Short Form:
Doctor Who: “The Next Doctor” Written by Russell T Davies; Directed by Andy Goddard (BBC Wales)
Doctor Who: “Planet of the Dead” Written by Russell T Davies & Gareth Roberts; Directed by James Strong (BBC Wales)
Doctor Who: “The Waters of Mars” Written by Russell T Davies & Phil Ford; Directed by Graeme Harper (BBC Wales)
Dollhouse: “Epitaph 1” Story by Joss Whedon; Written by Maurissa Tancharoen & Jed Whedon; Directed by David Solomon (Mutant Enemy)
FlashForward: “No More Good Days” Written by Brannon Braga & David S. Goyer; Directed by David S. Goyer; (ABC)
Best Editor Short Form:
Ellen Datlow
Stanley Schmidt
Jonathan Strahan
Gordon Van Gelder
Sheila Williams
Best Editor Long Form:
Lou Anders
Ginjer Buchanan
Liz Gorinsky
Patrick Nielsen Hayden
Juliet Ulman
Best Professional Artist:
Daniel Dos Santos
Bob Eggleton
Stephan Martinière
John Picacio
Shaun Tan
Semiprozine:
Ansible edited by David Langford
Clarkesworld edited by Neil Clarke, Sean Wallace & Cheryl Morgan
Interzone edited by Andy Cox
Locus edited by Charles N. Brown, Kirsten Gong-Wong, & Liza Groen Trombi
Weird Tales edited by Ann VanderMeer & Stephen H. Segal
Fanzine:
Argentus edited by Steven H Silver
Banana Wings edited by Claire Brialey and Mark Plummer
CHALLENGER edited by Guy H. Lillian III
Drink Tank edited by Christopher J Garcia, with guest editor James Bacon
File 770 edited by Mike Glyer
StarShipSofa edited by Tony C. Smith
Best Fan Writer:
Claire Brialey
Christopher J Garcia
James Nicoll
Lloyd Penney
Frederik Pohl
Best Fan Artist:
Brad W. Foster
Dave Howell
Sue Mason
Steve Stiles
Taral Wayne
The John W Campbell Award for Best New Writer:
Saladin Ahmed
Gail Carriger
Felix Gilman
Seanan McGuire
Lezli Robyn
Without further ado, here's the ballot:
Best Novel:
Boneshaker by Cherie Priest (Tor)
The City & The City by China Miéville (Del Rey; Macmillan UK)
Julian Comstock: A Story of 22nd-Century America by Robert Charles Wilson (Tor)
Palimpsest by Catherynne M. Valente (Bantam Spectra)
Wake by Robert J. Sawyer (Ace; Penguin; Gollancz; Analog)
The Windup Girl by Paolo Bacigalupi (Night Shade)
Best Novella:
"Act One" by Nancy Kress (Asimov's 3/09)
The God Engines by John Scalzi (Subterranean)
"Palimpsest" by Charles Stross (Wireless)
Shambling Towards Hiroshima by James Morrow (Tachyon)
"Vishnu at the Cat Circus" by Ian McDonald (Cyberabad Days)
The Women of Nell Gwynne's by Kage Baker (Subterranean)
Best novelette:
"Eros, Philia, Agape" by Rachel Swirsky (Tor.com 3/09)
"The Island" by Peter Watts (The New Space Opera 2)
"It Takes Two" by Nicola Griffith (Eclipse Three)
"One of our Bastards is Missing" by Paul Cornell (The Solaris Book of New Science Fiction: Volume Three)
“Overtime” by Charles Stross (Tor.com 12/09)
"Sinner, Baker, Fabulist, Priest; Red Mask, Black Mask, Gentleman, Beast" Eugie Foster (Interzone 2/09)
Best Short Story:
"The Bride of Frankenstein" by Mike Resnick (Asimov's 12/09)
"Bridesicle" by Will McIntosh (Asimov’s 1/09)
"The Moment" by Lawrence M. Schoen (Footprints)
"Non-Zero Probabilities" by N.K. Jemisin (Clarkesworld 9/09)
"Spar" by Kij Johnson (Clarkesworld 10/09)
Best Related Work:
Canary Fever: Reviews by John Clute (Beccon)
Hope-In-The-Mist: The Extraordinary Career and Mysterious Life of Hope Mirrlees by Michael Swanwick (Temporary Culture)
The Inter-Galactic Playground: A Critical Study of Children's and Teens' Science Fiction by Farah Mendlesohn (McFarland)
On Joanna Russ edited by Farah Mendlesohn (Wesleyan)
The Secret Feminist Cabal: A Cultural History of SF Feminisms by Helen Merrick (Aqueduct)
This is Me, Jack Vance! (Or, More Properly, This is "I") by Jack Vance (Subterranean)
Best Graphic Story:
Batman: Whatever Happened to the Caped Crusader? Written by Neil Gaiman; Pencilled by Andy Kubert; Inked by Scott Williams (DC Comics)
Captain Britain and MI13. Volume 3: Vampire State Written by Paul Cornell; Pencilled by Leonard Kirk with Mike Collins, Adrian Alphona and Ardian Syaf (Marvel Comics)
Fables Vol 12: The Dark Ages Written by Bill Willingham; Pencilled by Mark Buckingham; Art by Peter Gross & Andrew Pepoy, Michael Allred, David Hahn; Colour by Lee Loughridge & Laura Allred; Letters by Todd Klein (Vertigo Comics)
Girl Genius, Volume 9: Agatha Heterodyne and the Heirs of the Storm Written by Kaja and Phil Foglio; Art by Phil Foglio; Colours by Cheyenne Wright
Schlock Mercenary: The Longshoreman of the Apocalypse
Written and Illustrated by Howard Tayler
Best Dramatic Presentation Long Form:
Avatar Screenplay and Directed by James Cameron (Twentieth Century Fox)
District 9 Screenplay by Neill Blomkamp & Terri Tatchell; Directed by Neill Blomkamp (TriStar Pictures)
Moon Screenplay by Nathan Parker; Story & Directed by Duncan Jones (Liberty Films)
Star Trek Screenplay by Robert Orci & Alex Kurtzman; Directed by J.J. Abrams (Paramount)
Up Story by Bob Peterson, Pete Docter & Thomas McCarthy; Screenplay and Co-Directed by Bob Peterson & Pete Docter (Disney/Pixar)
Best Dramatic Presentation Short Form:
Doctor Who: “The Next Doctor” Written by Russell T Davies; Directed by Andy Goddard (BBC Wales)
Doctor Who: “Planet of the Dead” Written by Russell T Davies & Gareth Roberts; Directed by James Strong (BBC Wales)
Doctor Who: “The Waters of Mars” Written by Russell T Davies & Phil Ford; Directed by Graeme Harper (BBC Wales)
Dollhouse: “Epitaph 1” Story by Joss Whedon; Written by Maurissa Tancharoen & Jed Whedon; Directed by David Solomon (Mutant Enemy)
FlashForward: “No More Good Days” Written by Brannon Braga & David S. Goyer; Directed by David S. Goyer; (ABC)
Best Editor Short Form:
Ellen Datlow
Stanley Schmidt
Jonathan Strahan
Gordon Van Gelder
Sheila Williams
Best Editor Long Form:
Lou Anders
Ginjer Buchanan
Liz Gorinsky
Patrick Nielsen Hayden
Juliet Ulman
Best Professional Artist:
Daniel Dos Santos
Bob Eggleton
Stephan Martinière
John Picacio
Shaun Tan
Semiprozine:
Ansible edited by David Langford
Clarkesworld edited by Neil Clarke, Sean Wallace & Cheryl Morgan
Interzone edited by Andy Cox
Locus edited by Charles N. Brown, Kirsten Gong-Wong, & Liza Groen Trombi
Weird Tales edited by Ann VanderMeer & Stephen H. Segal
Fanzine:
Argentus edited by Steven H Silver
Banana Wings edited by Claire Brialey and Mark Plummer
CHALLENGER edited by Guy H. Lillian III
Drink Tank edited by Christopher J Garcia, with guest editor James Bacon
File 770 edited by Mike Glyer
StarShipSofa edited by Tony C. Smith
Best Fan Writer:
Claire Brialey
Christopher J Garcia
James Nicoll
Lloyd Penney
Frederik Pohl
Best Fan Artist:
Brad W. Foster
Dave Howell
Sue Mason
Steve Stiles
Taral Wayne
The John W Campbell Award for Best New Writer:
Saladin Ahmed
Gail Carriger
Felix Gilman
Seanan McGuire
Lezli Robyn
Tuesday, March 30, 2010
Because culture, not nature, is the problem
Most readers of this blog probably know that Helen Merrick is the author of the Secret Feminist Cabal and maybe even that she was the co-editor of Women of Other Worlds, a WisCon-centered anthology of mixed fiction and criticism published in the late nineties by an Australian press. But Helen is also an energetic scholar with numerous other publications to her name, and in more than one disciplinary arena. At the moment, for instance, she's working on a book about Donna Haraway's work, and that's because she's passionately into Feminist Science Studies.
I've just read a dynamite article of hers (which she actually wrote a few years ago) published in the March/April 2010 issue of Women's Studies International Forum, titled "Science stories, life stories: Engaging the sciences through feminist science fiction." In this article she argues that feminist science fiction has the potential for bridging the "two culture divide" that persists in feminist scholarship-- the divide between the sciences and the humanities. As Helen writes,
Probably the most fascinating part of the article (for me, anyway), is Helen's drawing on "neo-materialist feminist" theory:
I've just read a dynamite article of hers (which she actually wrote a few years ago) published in the March/April 2010 issue of Women's Studies International Forum, titled "Science stories, life stories: Engaging the sciences through feminist science fiction." In this article she argues that feminist science fiction has the potential for bridging the "two culture divide" that persists in feminist scholarship-- the divide between the sciences and the humanities. As Helen writes,
[F]ew [feminist scholars] have followed Haraway and Rose's lead in viewing feminist SF as a space of productive convergence between the arts and sciences. Even within the specialised field of feminist SF criticism, there exists a a similar lacunae; most studies to date are firmly grounded in literary criticism with surprisingly little attention paid to the role of the sciences in feminist SF. SF remains an underutilised resource in thinking through some of the problematics of two-culture engagements, perhaps precisely because of its hybridized positioning on the two-culture border.I find particularly interesting the parallel Helen draws between between feminist science studies and feminist sf:
In many ways feminist SF occupies the same uncomfortable discursive and cultural space as science studies itself-- an uneasy balancing between the two cultures of science and the humanities. Whilst feminist studies of science often employ humanities-based methodologies to examine and critique science, SF can draw on both literary techniques and the language and methodologies of science: creating potentially boundary-crossing "fictions of science." Like many critics in the field of feminist science studies, some SF writers are originally scientists whose feminism impels them to write different stories....And like many humanities-trained science critics, SF authors are often avid "amateur" readers and researchers of science, including [Gwyneth] Jones herself, Nancy Kress, Kathleen Ann Goonan and Nicola Griffith. Such authors share with feminist scientists and science critics a fascination for, and even love of, science....they share the impulse to "both critique and find inspiration with science's bounds."After discussing the ways in which feminist sf is able to engage with the epistemology and practice of science, Helen then focuses on Gwyneth Jones's Life as "a vital, challenging and complex example of feminist fiction that can draw on its generic positioning and history to 'boldly go' where few realist fictions can," "speaking to two related, although quite distinct, concerns in contemporary feminist engagements with the sciences: the nature of women's work in the sciences, and the integration of the biological and material into our theorisations of sex and gender."
Probably the most fascinating part of the article (for me, anyway), is Helen's drawing on "neo-materialist feminist" theory:
Like advocates of the new materialism such as [Myra] Hird, Life reminds us that "while nature emphasises diversity, culture emphasises dichotomy," and illustrates why the use of biology 'to reify sex dimorphism' should not deter feminists from seeing the natural sciences "as a useful site for critiques of this dichotomy. At the same time, the whole novel and its title can be read as a reminder that the conception of "life" offered by the dominant narrative of molecular biology (or what Jones terms "Stupid Darwinism") is narrow and reductionist. As originary story, such concepts alone cannot explain or represent the complexity, interimplication or "complementarity" of the biological, social, and historical relations between humans and non-humans, on a variety of levels, from molecular and cellular to societal.The article is available for purchase here, but since it costs $42 (yes, for an electronic file that is eight pages long!), if you want to read it, you will probably want to look for it in hard copy in a library near you. (I'm reminded that a long time ago I was a regular subscriber to this journal-- until it was bought by a multinational corporation and the price of a subscription went up by about a factor of 10.)
Friday, February 12, 2010
Reviews of Interest
I notice that today's review at Strange Horizons, by T.S. Miller on Eclipse 3, singles out the three stories in the anthology that I thought were outstanding-- Karen Joy Fowler's "Pelican Bar," Maureen McHugh's "Useless Things," and Nicola Griffith's "It Takes Two."
Meanwhile, Jeff VanderMeer's piece on "The Best of 2009" has just been posted at Locus Online. Aqueduct Press's 2009 books fare well in his estimation. In particular, he classes among his favorite books of the year Centuries Ago and Very Fast and The Secret Feminist Cabal. Here's what he has to say about them:
Meanwhile, Jeff VanderMeer's piece on "The Best of 2009" has just been posted at Locus Online. Aqueduct Press's 2009 books fare well in his estimation. In particular, he classes among his favorite books of the year Centuries Ago and Very Fast and The Secret Feminist Cabal. Here's what he has to say about them:
and:Centuries Ago and Very Fast by Rebecca Ore (from the truly amazing Aqueduct Press) has a kinetic energy and hard-to-define originality that held me captivated from first word to last. Profane — scandalous? — the book wraps stories around stories, combines the surreal with the mundane and every-day. A story like "Acid and Stoned Reindeer" that I thought was either genius or chaos when published by Clarkesworld works much better in the context of the other stories. I'm not really sure how to describe a book that includes lines like "We'd run out of mammoths. The ponies looked nervous.", but I tend to come down on the side of finding it fascinating, although I know many readers will find this collection difficult.
The Secret Feminist Cabal provides a context for many of the recent online discussions about gender and the politics of gender. The book is brilliant in how it fills in a potentially lost history of the genre, detailing theI heartily second the recommend of combining The Secret Feminist Cabal with On Joanna Russ. Togher, these reads are not only complementary, but even synergistic.involvement of female fans in the genre community from the early days, the birth of feminist SF and criticism, and also the many arguments back and forth between male and female writers in the 1970s and 1980s. I may be unaware of similar books on this subject, but for me it was fascinating to read Merrick's documentation of discussions between writers like Joanna Russ and Michael G. Coney. Better yet, Merrick's excellent prose makes The Secret Feminist Cabal a compulsive reading experience. (For an even more complete reading experience, read the Merrick in conjunction with another excellent nonfiction book from 2009, the Farah Mendelsohn-edited On Joanna Russ; it contains a variety of perspectives on Russ and her work from, among others, Gary K. Wolfe, Samuel R. Delany, Graham Sleight, and Merrick herself.)
Sunday, December 27, 2009
Pre-release Special for The Secret Feminist Cabal
Aqueduct Press has taken delivery of Helen Merrick's The Secret Feminist Cabal: A Cultural History of Science Fiction Feminisms. For a brief time, we'll be selling it at a reduced price through our website. Here are a few descriptions of the book:
The Secret Feminist Cabal is an extended answer to the question Helen Merrick asks in her introduction: "why do I read feminist sf?" In this wide-ranging cultural history we are introduced to a multiplicity of sf feminisms as Merrick takes readers on a tour of the early days of sf fandom, tracks the upheavals of the 1950s and 1960s and the explosions of feminist sf in the 1970s, and contextualizes subsequent developments in feminist sf scholarship. Her history is expansive and inclusive: it ranges from North America to the UK to Australia; it tells us about readers, fans, and academics as well as about writers, editors, and publishers; and it examines the often uneasy intersections of feminist theory and popular culture. Merrick brings things up to date with considerations of feminist cyberfiction and feminist science and technology studies, and she concludes with an intriguing review of the Tiptree Award as it illuminates current debates in the feminist sf community. Broadly informed, theoretically astute, and often revisionary, The Secret Feminist Cabal is an indispensable social and cultural history of the girls who have been plugged into science fiction.—Veronica Hollinger, co-editor of Edging into the Future, Blood Read: the Vampire as Metaphor in Contemporary Culture, and Queer Universes
I really enjoyed this. It's a wonderfully thorough, analytical, and inclusive account, sure to become an indispensable resource. Better than that, it's a terrific read. Here you'll find everything you always wanted to know about women in fandom, women in publishing, women as writers. . . with the added value that the snippets of tasty vintage gossip are woven into a rich fabric of discourse. Helen Merrick's style is unassuming yet authoritative; she manages to be a scholar and an entertainer at the same time. Years ago, I read Women of Other Worlds, edited by Helen Merrick and Tess Williams, and was impressed. The Secret Feminist Cabal is more demanding, an ambitious project, but equally successful: this is a fine book. —Gwyneth Jones, author of White Queen and Deconstructing the Starships
An amazing book for cultural analysts of all kinds. This is a story-laden feminism, one that weaves together not only the historical contexts for women’s presences in SF and the varieties of feminisms women did and did not espouse, but tells us HOW all this happened. Merrick’s work allows us to learn how to practice this kind of story-telling ourselves, demonstrating how many knowledge worlds co-created feminist SF. She has a genius for letting us feel out what one knows and embodies when trafficking among worlds of academic critique, commercial publication, visionary futures, institutional intervention, and science studies. She teases out how dynamic networks linking stories and publications respond to new contexts, newly reattaching meanings to feminist SF itself, the body and embodiments, cyberpunk and cyborg feminisms, feminist versions of naturecultures, and sexual and racial politics. The very basis for what might count as feminist SF, for better or worse, is de-normalized and re-genred year after year, as told in cautionary stories about the James Tiptree Jr. Award, titled after pseudonymous feminist author Alice Sheldon’s pen name. Perfect for teachers, theorists, authors and critics, and for fans, The Secret Feminist Cabal is a new kind of transdisciplinary writing, a demonstration of the spaces that are continually coming into being for increasingly complex practices known as feminisms in SF. —Katie King, author of Theory in Its Feminist Travels: Conversations in U.S. Women’s Movements
A reminder: an excerpt can be found in the winter issue of the Aqueduct Gazette. You can revisit my earlier post about Rick Kleffel's review here. And to purchase The Secret Feminist Cabal now, go here.
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