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A review by vyegrizwald
Out There: Into the Queer New Yonder by Saundra Mitchell
challenging
dark
funny
hopeful
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
I received this copy of Out There on Netgalley as an ARC in exchange for an honest review. This is build as a young adult science fiction and fantasy anthology and is the third in a series. The full disclosure I have not read the first two, but because this is a serial anthology, it can be read as a standalone and will be judged on its own merit. Because it is an anthology I won't be judging each story individually but will be judging them all together.
The first story in this anthology was really a powerhouse for me, but I would say that the quality definitely varied amongst the stories. I would not say that any of them were weak, but just because there is such a wide breadth of authors and stories in this anthology that maybe they just weren't to my taste and that somebody else might read those same stories and love them even more than I did. I felt that the flow between stories could be a little still to that times because there isn't really like a theme per se. But if you judge each story on their own merit, it's definitely worth reading. There is a lot of quality representation in this book. Everything from a romantic to a sexual characters, trans, sapphic, Achillean, non-binary characters you name it. There's also if we were amount of different cultural representation in this book.
If I could only give one criticism, it might be that the arrangement of the stories the order could be tweaked a little bit to have a better literary flow, but I feel like that's a mild criticism. I would give this a solid four stars. It's a great wreck and I would definitely recommend it for anyone. I'm not really sure what qualifies as young adult. I feel like some of the themes and depictions of violence or sex may not be graphic or direct, but it might still be a bit much for a younger teen, so just keep that in mind while reading. I would say that most of these stories have what I would deem as positive or satisfying endings, but due to the subject matter, this can be a heavier read and may not be like a sunny day read. I would definitely recommend this for any fans of qualitative diversity, young adult science fiction, or people that just want to spruce up their collections. I will definitely be looking for more from these authors individually as well
The first story in this anthology was really a powerhouse for me, but I would say that the quality definitely varied amongst the stories. I would not say that any of them were weak, but just because there is such a wide breadth of authors and stories in this anthology that maybe they just weren't to my taste and that somebody else might read those same stories and love them even more than I did. I felt that the flow between stories could be a little still to that times because there isn't really like a theme per se. But if you judge each story on their own merit, it's definitely worth reading. There is a lot of quality representation in this book. Everything from a romantic to a sexual characters, trans, sapphic, Achillean, non-binary characters you name it. There's also if we were amount of different cultural representation in this book.
If I could only give one criticism, it might be that the arrangement of the stories the order could be tweaked a little bit to have a better literary flow, but I feel like that's a mild criticism. I would give this a solid four stars. It's a great wreck and I would definitely recommend it for anyone. I'm not really sure what qualifies as young adult. I feel like some of the themes and depictions of violence or sex may not be graphic or direct, but it might still be a bit much for a younger teen, so just keep that in mind while reading. I would say that most of these stories have what I would deem as positive or satisfying endings, but due to the subject matter, this can be a heavier read and may not be like a sunny day read. I would definitely recommend this for any fans of qualitative diversity, young adult science fiction, or people that just want to spruce up their collections. I will definitely be looking for more from these authors individually as well