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A review by tsipi
Dreamsnake by Vonda N. McIntyre
4.0
I really get a kick out of reading women's sci-fi from earlier eras, in terms of both the genre and feminism. Sometimes it's jarring, because our discourses are so different today, but it's also rewarding, to understand how well our "ancestors" already understood so much of what we often think we invent or newly discover.
This one is not the most illuminating in this regard, but it has its pleasures, such as the casual and implicitly obvious caring about sex education, sexuality, and consent. I was jarred by the inclusion of 12 year olds in that, but I think there is a valid discussion to be had about emerging sexualities and how they exist outside of patriarchy (in other words -- not old men molesting children, but adolescents making informed decisions. Like I said -- jarring. But important.)
It also made me curious why this book swept the SFF awards: It's good, but I don't know if it's that outstanding. I want to know what else was happening in SFF in the late seventies.
The main character, Snake, is awesome. I like the world building. I'm not sure about the pacing.
This one is not the most illuminating in this regard, but it has its pleasures, such as the casual and implicitly obvious caring about sex education, sexuality, and consent. I was jarred by the inclusion of 12 year olds in that, but I think there is a valid discussion to be had about emerging sexualities and how they exist outside of patriarchy (in other words -- not old men molesting children, but adolescents making informed decisions. Like I said -- jarring. But important.)
It also made me curious why this book swept the SFF awards: It's good, but I don't know if it's that outstanding. I want to know what else was happening in SFF in the late seventies.
The main character, Snake, is awesome. I like the world building. I'm not sure about the pacing.