t big grin at Katie

"Fable"! Thank you, Consuela, that's the word I wanted and was blanking on. Durr.

I tend to find Omelas similar -- it doesn't have a lot of subtlety. For an ethics discussion, good, but for a literature discussion, less so.

I've been coming across this question, "Why is this story good, and does being good mean a right fit?" a lot recently. Partly because, I read a lot of historical stuff that is interesting for historical reasons, but even I can admit that being historical is not always a good reason for modern people to read a thing. You know, sociology != literary analysis, or not in all cases.

BTW, a source question about a work in progress over in Great Write yesterday triggered a wonderful discussion of Roger Zelazny, which probably should have been moved over here. It did tie back into writing that's being done (taking the concept of Dayblood and running with it), so it was also appropriate for Great Write - but I thought I'd ping Roger's fans, in case they wanted to play.

I even love Always Coming Home (which many people hate) past all reason.

t looks at first edition copy -- complete with audio cassette -- and grins at Dani

Just wanted to do a sort of x-post with Great Write Way, as I completely lost track of which thread I was in per Deb's post above re: Zelazny discussion. Oops. (stepping out of guac, brushing off pants)

Am intrigued with the idea of Zelazny, as I haven't read any good SF/F in a long time... right after I finish Cruisie's Faking It, which is a riot. Thanks for the recommendation on that (yes, this time I am thanking the people in the correct thread for that... duh) - it's wonderful. Is it related to Welcome to Temptation? From the sample chapter I read, they seem to overlap...

Speaking of SF/F, I'm also intrigued by the Le Guin and McKinley discussions, and am trying to figure out from everyone's opinions a) where to start if I pick up Le Guin (like Zelazny, I always assumed I've read something by her, but have not) and b) if McKinley is worth a read - I read Outlaws of Sherwood a long time ago, and vaguely remember enjoying it.

So weird that people are talking McKinley today! I was recovering from migraine-sleep last night, and I re-read "The Hero and the Crown." The copyright is '84, and it's so bizarre for me to think that I have had that book for 20 years. I have such a nostalgic attachment to the Damar books -- I think maybe because Harry was one of the first female characters in a fantasy book that wasn't a shrieking maiden or placid sex victim.

Reading them now is interesting in the manner that I monitor my reaction to the the writing -- I think about how far I have matured (duh!) in the last twenty years as far as my ability to analyze literature. I remember being in such despair reading crit when I was a freshman in college, and thinking "HOW do people THINK like that?"

Dude, I 'm one of those people! How weird is THAT?

McKinley's genre (YA) best, I think, are The Blue Sword and The Hero and the Crown, for which she won the Hugo that year. Deerskin is an older and darker book.

I also like her The Door in the Hedge, which is retold familiar fairytales. And despite its problems with tropes, I like her Beauty.

Heh. xpost with Erin, sorta.

LeGuin... her Earthsea series is well-beloved, though I haven't read them since I was a kid so I don't know how I would react to them now. (That's A Wizard of Earthsea, The Farthest Shore, The Tombs of Atuan, Tehanu, and, crap, I think there's one more that I haven't read. A lot of people dislike Tehanu--I have to confess here I haven't read it--because they find it a little too polemically feminist; it was written partly as an attempt to redress some of what LeGuin saw as problems in the first three.)

I adore Always Coming Home, but it's a fake ethnography and, er, if that's the kind of thing you like you already know it. The Left Hand of Darkness is iconic in the field, and I like it very much. In my second shameful admission of the morning, I've never read The Dispossessed, but people certain also speak highly of it. People don't talk about Lathe of Heaven much, but I have read that--albeit in high school--and remember liking it.

If you're more a short story kind of person, I've read and enjoyed the ones collected in The Wind's Twelve Quarters and The Compass Rose.

but I thought I'd ping Roger's fans, in case they wanted to play.

Oh god, thanks.

t scurries over to GWW.

Damn, I had the Door in the HEdge when I was younger and like so many of my books, t disappeared years ago. And it's out of print; I can't find it.

I liked Deerskin, but could never get into "Sherwood."

And I love, love, love the first Beauty. I feel like I should appreciate the second one more (more mature, more insightful, blah, blah, blah) but I just love the first one so much more.