Scan barcode
bsolarz's review
3.0
While I think Hurley did a really good job of not alienating non-geek culture readers, I generally felt that the individual essays were a bit all over the place. She would start with one point but then go on two to three tangents before coming back to her point with one concluding sentence, leaving me a bit confused. Fair warning though, this book is not wholly about feminism in geek culture, as it was advertised as, but has feminism as a central theme that stems from her own personal problems with it - that is to say it is more of a personal recollection of events that have happened to her, with a feminist viewpoint.
However, as mentioned, she did a good job of introducing sexist and racist problems within geek-culture without making it boring for someone not interested in geek culture, and even linking it to programs/movies that I knew!
However, as mentioned, she did a good job of introducing sexist and racist problems within geek-culture without making it boring for someone not interested in geek culture, and even linking it to programs/movies that I knew!
noranne's review against another edition
4.0
This was sort of in between 3 and 4 stars for me. I went with 4 because, ultimately, she is a good writer and made me think. I certainly don't agree with everything she wrote, and I find her tendency to state her opinions as Self Evident Truths grating, but reading things I don't agree with is not a bad thing. It give me a chance to think about my own opinions, perhaps re-calibrate, perhaps re-confirm. I am a fan of Ms. Hurley's, and I follow her on Twitter, so there was nothing too surprising in here. I had already read a couple of the essays.
flintsloveofbooks's review against another edition
5.0
One of the best books I will ever read, destined to become of my constant rereads.
katiedalton's review against another edition
challenging
informative
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
This book has taken me an eon to read, something about kindle books - I just don’t reach for very frequently.
I loved the mix of sci-fi, fantasy, nerd with feminism. Seeing how the world is shaped by the stories we tell and the stories we share with each other.
I would recommend the book even if I have no idea to how rate it. So many quotes, good points, and just “ahhh” feminism!” - not sure how else to describe that feeling of I hate that that is the way life is
I loved the mix of sci-fi, fantasy, nerd with feminism. Seeing how the world is shaped by the stories we tell and the stories we share with each other.
I would recommend the book even if I have no idea to how rate it. So many quotes, good points, and just “ahhh” feminism!” - not sure how else to describe that feeling of I hate that that is the way life is
mgouker's review
4.0
Really good essays from a pov that I thoroughly appreciate, especially after sampling the author's contributions to the sff realm. Hurley is inspirational and not just for her feminism. She speaks to me as a writer. Although we come to this from different perspectives, I can thoroughly relate to her frustration. This text should be part of a creative writing college curriculum.
missbookiverse's review against another edition
3.0
More like 2.5.
I agree with most things Kameron Hurley believes in but I do not enjoy the way she talks about a lot of these issues. She is just so angry. I understand and I don't want to tell her not to be but in an essay collection I find it exhausting when almost every piece is cynical and pessimistic. I need more essays like the ones at the very end that are uplifting and empowering, that motivate me to fight. Less frustration and more "this is how we're gonna change things".
Apart from that this felt a lot like random blog posts (which they originally were). There was a lot of repetition between the different essays and very little clear structure. Also, I expected this to be more general but it was very personal and sometimes read more like a memoir - which is fine but not what I expected and wanted from this collection.
I agree with most things Kameron Hurley believes in but I do not enjoy the way she talks about a lot of these issues. She is just so angry. I understand and I don't want to tell her not to be but in an essay collection I find it exhausting when almost every piece is cynical and pessimistic. I need more essays like the ones at the very end that are uplifting and empowering, that motivate me to fight. Less frustration and more "this is how we're gonna change things".
Apart from that this felt a lot like random blog posts (which they originally were). There was a lot of repetition between the different essays and very little clear structure. Also, I expected this to be more general but it was very personal and sometimes read more like a memoir - which is fine but not what I expected and wanted from this collection.
shadowmaster13's review
hopeful
informative
medium-paced
4.0
It's quite good although unfortunately some of the essays should have been left on the blog and even one written for the book suffers from not just being written in an era but in a specific moment.
Gamergate and the Sad Puppies saga were big moments but 2015 was too soon to write about them in a past tense. The worst was yet to come with Sad Puppies as well as the voting changes to reduce the impact of bloc voting. Which even had it been written in 2018 might have aged poorly now with the organisation behaving badly recently.I'm referring to the controversy around the 2023 Hugo censorship which also included removing votes in an unsanctioned way due to concerns about slating by Chinese fans so maybe I'll also seem dated soon.
Gamergate and the Sad Puppies saga were big moments but 2015 was too soon to write about them in a past tense. The worst was yet to come with Sad Puppies as well as the voting changes to reduce the impact of bloc voting. Which even had it been written in 2018 might have aged poorly now with the organisation behaving badly recently.
_ash0_'s review against another edition
4.0
This book changed the way I looked at women in science fiction. I always wondered why women did not write hard sci-fi or why there weren't many sci-fi women writers. Now I have the answers to all these questions.
Some parts were really good, some parts I didn't quite agree with and some parts were not that interesting. But she kept repeating few statements again and again and it got repetitive in places because of that. Overall, a great read and I highly recommend this book to everyone.
Some parts were really good, some parts I didn't quite agree with and some parts were not that interesting. But she kept repeating few statements again and again and it got repetitive in places because of that. Overall, a great read and I highly recommend this book to everyone.