Author: Shannon Turlington
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My Review of Worlds of Exile and Illusion by Ursula K Le Guin on SF Mistressworks
Worlds of Exile and Illusion, Ursula K Le Guin (1996) Review by Shannon Turlington How can you tell the legend from the fact on these worlds that lie so many years away? – planets without names, called by their people simply The World, planets without history, where the past is a matter of myth, and…
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My Review of Beggars in Spain by Nancy Kress on SF Mistressworks
Beggars in Spain, Nancy Kress (1991) Review by Shannon Turlington “A man’s worth to society and to himself doesn’t rest on what he thinks other people should do or be or feel, but on himself. On what he can actually do, and do well. People trade what they do well, and everyone benefits. The basic…
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Books by women: A reading list
In a recent post, I discussed trying to read books written by women. This led me to consider which women authors I would recommend, and I came up with a list of books by women that I think are entertaining and enlightening reads. Of course, I am not the only person to have come up…
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How to consciously read books written by women…
Before I started journaling my reading, in 2001, I just read whatever caught my eye at the bookstore without any sort of plan whatsoever. Over the decade since I started journaling, I’ve gradually become more purposeful in my reading, and if I look back over my journals (now on LibraryThing), I can see a steady…
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My Review of The Snow Queen by Joan D Vinge on SF Mistressworks
The Snow Queen, Joan D Vinge (1980) Review by Shannon Turlington The Snow Queen is an epic story set on a distant planet, about the fall of one queen and the rise of another. The novel is based on the fairy tale by Hans Christian Anderson and tackles such weighty themes as immortality and the…
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Book List: Big Books for Summer
Settle into your summer reading with one of these epic novels. Summer is the perfect time to wade into a really big book. You know the books I mean, the kind that can double as a door stopper for a recalcitrant screen door or a small table to hold your drink on the beach. Most…
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So simple a child can understand…
Today my 6-year-old son asked me at the breakfast table: Who was the first human to be born? Then he said that he thought he knew and basically described a very simplified version of the theory of evolution to me. I can’t tell you how proud that made me as a parent.
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Hitchcock’s Marnie…
I watched Marnie last night for the first time. I thought it was a good movie, although probably not destined to become one of my favorites. The acting was impeccable, Sean Connery was incredibly easy on the eyes, and I enjoyed the self-conscious artificiality of the world Hitchcock created, especially his use of color. I have…
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Mansplaining, “not all men,” “yes all women”…
Language, memes, all the ways we attempt to tell our own stories–these things fascinate me. Recently, I’ve been reading a lot about feminism and social justice issues, and engaging in discussions about them. The language that is used is often a heated aspect of the discussion. Here is some reading I’ve been doing on memes…
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My Review of Lilith’s Brood by Octavia E Butler on SF Mistressworks
Lilith’s Brood (Dawn, Adulthood Rites and Imago), Octavia E Butler (1989) Review by Shannon Turlington Octavia Butler’s Xenogenesis novels were first compiled into one volume in 1989, but that compilation is now out of print. As with Seed to Harvest, Grand Central Publishing has reissued the compilation in an attractive trade paperback to capture new…
Shannon Turlington 