Scan barcode
vulcanlibrarian's review against another edition
5.0
At first, I was a little skeptical because the first set of essays were angry in tone, and I wasn't sure about reading 285 pages of anger. However, the more I read, the more each essay began to speak to me. The Geek and Revolution sections are both very powerful, and prolific.
I would recommend this book, especially for those struggling with some of the messages in our leaders of today. This gives me a new sense of purpose and hope that things can get better for marginalized, the ignored, and the unseen. Bravo.
I would recommend this book, especially for those struggling with some of the messages in our leaders of today. This gives me a new sense of purpose and hope that things can get better for marginalized, the ignored, and the unseen. Bravo.
lesbrary's review against another edition
4.0
I was so excited by the title of this that I missed that this is an essay collection. It's definitely focused on sci fi books in particular as opposed to geeky fandom in general. Even though I had different expectations, I loved this. It makes me want to pick up her novels as well. The writing is engaging and smart, but it's also got a lot of rage bubbling underneath. I was impressed with how inclusive it is: Hurley is trans-inclusive and talks about racism as well as misogyny. This is definitely one I'd recommend.
echo7's review against another edition
challenging
informative
reflective
medium-paced
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence and Medical trauma
fwog19's review against another edition
3.0
This book was all over the place. There, I said it.
Now, I'm not saying that this book was bad. Listening to the audio version, I got to hear the frustration and annoyance and just plain anger that Kameron Hurley put into the book, which made it all the more compelling. That being said, she also went from talking about her bad relationships (more than once) to her health (again, there were several times that she mentioned being in the ICU) to the books she's written and back again. It was in these parts that the story was easy to tune out.
Don't get me wrong. She made some really good points about how things have changed and how they haven't when it comes to society. Her metaphor about the llamas was probably my favorite part of the book. Still, it seemed to me that instead of saying, "Yes, I'm a woman and look at what I've accomplished" it was her going, "My life suuuuuuuucked and I made bad choices. Look at me and don't put me down because I'm a woman! Put me down because I'm whiny!"
Okay, that wasn't really fair. Again, she made good points. It's possible that I'm feeling a bit jaded because of society right now and everything that's been going on, or that I'm just shaking my head at her because 1) I'm happily married and think that things should be done together and all that happy crap (I can do stuff on my own - I just choose not to) and 2) because I'm not one to force feminism down someone else's throat.
I haven't actually read any of her other work, but listening to how she's written her characters (which she talks about at length) does make me want to read them. I did like how she wasn't afraid to put a smarmy jackass in his place or stand up for someone she didn't even know. What I didn't like was how repetitive she was. Yes, you won an award. I know. Yes, you lived in South Africa AND Alaska. I KNOW. I understand that this was a collection of essays, but people who read your work and actually pay attention will remember that. Sheesh.
So, on some levels, it was interesting and had some good reasonings in it. For that, I give it three stars. Otherwise? The best I could say is, "Meh."
Now, I'm not saying that this book was bad. Listening to the audio version, I got to hear the frustration and annoyance and just plain anger that Kameron Hurley put into the book, which made it all the more compelling. That being said, she also went from talking about her bad relationships (more than once) to her health (again, there were several times that she mentioned being in the ICU) to the books she's written and back again. It was in these parts that the story was easy to tune out.
Don't get me wrong. She made some really good points about how things have changed and how they haven't when it comes to society. Her metaphor about the llamas was probably my favorite part of the book. Still, it seemed to me that instead of saying, "Yes, I'm a woman and look at what I've accomplished" it was her going, "My life suuuuuuuucked and I made bad choices. Look at me and don't put me down because I'm a woman! Put me down because I'm whiny!"
Okay, that wasn't really fair. Again, she made good points. It's possible that I'm feeling a bit jaded because of society right now and everything that's been going on, or that I'm just shaking my head at her because 1) I'm happily married and think that things should be done together and all that happy crap (I can do stuff on my own - I just choose not to) and 2) because I'm not one to force feminism down someone else's throat.
I haven't actually read any of her other work, but listening to how she's written her characters (which she talks about at length) does make me want to read them. I did like how she wasn't afraid to put a smarmy jackass in his place or stand up for someone she didn't even know. What I didn't like was how repetitive she was. Yes, you won an award. I know. Yes, you lived in South Africa AND Alaska. I KNOW. I understand that this was a collection of essays, but people who read your work and actually pay attention will remember that. Sheesh.
So, on some levels, it was interesting and had some good reasonings in it. For that, I give it three stars. Otherwise? The best I could say is, "Meh."
balletbookworm's review against another edition
5.0
A+ - every essay is well-written and well-constructed. Spoiler: I agree with pretty much everything she writes here and when I don't agree she's got a good argument for her opinion.
"We Have Always Fought" is *diamonds*
"We Have Always Fought" is *diamonds*
gsatori's review against another edition
3.0
If this were a single polemic, I would have given it four stars. It is a collection of blogs, and as such can get a little redundant. That being said. It is worth read. Hurley is engaging and dead on with her perceptions on gender.
rjstreet's review against another edition
3.0
I find myself agreeing with the author's points thoroughly - where I tend to object is her approach and logical construction, which tend to be contradictory (others shouldn't use violent rhetoric, but it's justified for me?). This is a difficult book to rate - on ideas, it's definitely a 4.5; consistently it challenges existing notions and does so with solid backing and a strong empathetic core. As an argument for the author's tactics though, it tends to fall short and often falls into the various sorts of attacks that she lambastes others for employing. I've split the difference at a 3, but would recommend the book regardless on the basis of it's message and importance alone.
pocketvolcano's review against another edition
5.0
I couldn't put this book down. I had very little knowledge of the sexism/racism/homophobia/etc. in Sci-Fi/Fantasy and this book enlightened me greatly. It also gave me great suggestions for different female authors to try out in these two fiction areas as well as told me little things to watch for in media in general. There's a lot of work to do but as long as there are women like Kameron Hurley who are willing to speak the truth, and men who we can ally with, progress will continue to be made. HIGHLY recommend for people interested in feminism, media, geekdom, sci-fi/fantasy.
hopesquirreled's review against another edition
3.0
For me, there was nothing new or groundbreaking in this book. I've heard these arguments before, I believe these things already. So it was good, but just a redundant read for me.