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abissette's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Confinement, Death, Grief, Racial slurs, Violence, Colonisation, Genocide, Sexual violence, Xenophobia, Slavery, Drug use, Fire/Fire injury, and Rape
morenowagain's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Graphic: War, Xenophobia, Slavery, Sexual violence, Sexual assault, Colonisation, Violence, Murder, Sexism, Drug use, Rape, Racism, Gun violence, Gore, Genocide, and Death
itsnotsarah's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
3.0
Graphic: Death, Genocide, Gun violence, Colonisation, Racism, Slavery, War, and Xenophobia
Moderate: Misogyny and Sexism
Minor: Sexual violence, Sexual assault, and Rape
trailmixraisins's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Fire/Fire injury, Genocide, Murder, Colonisation, Sexual harassment, Slavery, War, Xenophobia, Violence, and Death
Moderate: Confinement, Alcohol, Blood, Drug use, Misogyny, Torture, Grief, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual violence, and Sexual assault
Minor: Gun violence, Emotional abuse, Racism, Injury/Injury detail, and Sexism
ashleyend's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
Graphic: War, Fire/Fire injury, Gun violence, Slavery, Colonisation, Death, Genocide, and Violence
Moderate: Racism, Sexual violence, Xenophobia, and Racial slurs
issyharvey's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Rape, Death, Genocide, Murder, Racial slurs, Racism, Sexual harassment, Colonisation, Gun violence, Bullying, Sexual assault, and War
Moderate: Confinement, Cursing, Gaslighting, Fire/Fire injury, and Blood
Minor: Addiction, Drug use, and Alcohol
johnpfromkc's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Moderate: Sexual violence, Death, Bullying, Colonisation, Police brutality, Murder, Xenophobia, Fire/Fire injury, Rape, Classism, Racial slurs, Violence, Addiction, Genocide, Gun violence, Racism, Sexual assault, Slavery, War, Domestic abuse, Drug use, Misogyny, Blood, and Physical abuse
lottiegasp's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
Written in the 1970s, the story is an allegory for the Vietnam War, where the Ashtheans represent the otherwise peaceful Vietnamese who, when driven to it, fought for their country's self-determination. I liked how the story depicts a range of humans (representing Americans), but that even those who mean well are still complicit in human supremacy that hurts the Ashtheans.
I think stories like this that deal with speciesism against alien species and human supremacy function both represent the racism/colonisation of the past (blatantly defining non-white people as subhuman. These days the forms of racism tend to be more subtle) and also give us food for thought when considering how we treat non-human animals- making assumptions about their intelligence, feelings and value.
I always find Le Guin's writing quite dense, such that I struggle to get excited to go back to her novels while I'm reading them. Compared to her full-length novels I've read, this one was short enough to feel like less of a slog, but also meant it did not have the same build and climax that I enjoyed for instance in The Left Hand Of Darkness. But overall I recommend the book for its pertinent political themes.
Graphic: Violence, War, and Genocide
Moderate: Rape
ldasoqi's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
For anyone that's unaware of the Hanish Cycle, this is one of Le Guin's most famous collections of stories. The Hanish Cycle stories focus on various types/species of humans (including our Terran variety) who have established unique civilizations on planets scattered around neighboring stars. In this universe, the origins of man are tied to the Hanish, an ancient species of humans who seeded these planets with life far in the past (take that, Genesis!). As these civilizations evolve, they begin to explore the stars and interact with their new-found neighbors. Each of these books is simultaneously an SF romp and a sociological/anthropological reflection of our social issues here on earth.
This Novella (and I hesitate to call this a Novella because it's right at the cusp of being a full length novel) takes us to the planet of Athshe and the Terran military logging colony of New Tahiti. Athshe is a planet of forests and oceans, home to the Athsheans, a race of short green-furred people who populate the forests and live in a fairly primitive society. Now I'm sure you're thinking to yourself: "oh, a Terran military colony and a population of "primitive" locals? I know where this is going." Yeah, this is not a happy story, the Terran colonists have nothing nice planned for the Athsheans, and almost as soon as they land they conscript the locals as slave labor.
Forest was an important read for me this year. I really didn't expect this story to hit me so strongly, but given the course of recent world events, I could not help establishing such a deep connection with the Athshean plight. As a Palestinian, the current height of the conflict in Gaza is something that's been pressing on me whether I am conscious of it or not, and the portrayal of the coke-classic form of colonialism in this book managed to tap into that angst. As I read this, the news blared loud about the man-made famine that has begun in Gaza, about Israeli protestors stopping the flow of aid trucks while chanting for the extermination of the Palestinian people. Within that context, the descriptions of the colonialist mindset, the purposeful dehumanization of the Athsheans, the ineffective intervention by outside parties, and the chapters from Davidson's (Read: Cl. Kurtz) perspective, truly disgusted me and took my personal connection with this work to the next level.
This book was originally written for a 1972 SF anthology. History buffs will no doubt note that this is around the time of peak anti-Vietnam sentiment here in the states, the year of George McGovern's campaign which promised "immediate-withdrawal from Vietnam" and a year in advance of the Paris Peace accords. This was written post Kent State shooting, post Mai Lai massacre, and the content of the book is telling of that fact. If you've read Heart of Darkness or have seen Apocalypse Now (1979) then you know exactly what kind of statement this book is trying to make.
I think an issue that crops up for modern readers of this novella is just how similar it is to many other popular stories that were published afterward. This precedes Apocalypse Now by 7 years, but the thematic overlap is startling when you consider that Heart of Darkness is not credited as an influence by Le Guin. I think the main comparison that gets thrown around is the Avatar (2009) one, and yeah, Avatar is nearly a carbon copy of this book, just with tall and blue aliens. I'd throw an accusation of plagiarism James Cameron's way, but honestly I thought he ripped off Dances with Wolves before I even read this book, so maybe there was some parallel thinking at work. There's one key difference between this and Avatar (not counting the color of the locals) and that's that as a textual work Forest is not neutered by censors and studio influence and that unfiltered edge made a huge difference on just how impactful this was to me (and likely to other readers).
All-in-all, this is a classic for a reason. If you liked Avatar, well good news: This is like Rated-R Avatar, without the CGI, or platitudes, or the bloated runtime.
Graphic: Genocide, Colonisation, and Xenophobia
Moderate: Rape
katialena's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
Graphic: Death, Xenophobia, Violence, Murder, Genocide, and Colonisation
Moderate: Fire/Fire injury, Slavery, and Rape