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New Blog Feature: Rhonda Reads Reviews
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Rhondak101
Posted 2015-04-16 8:50 PM (#10157)
Subject: New Blog Feature: Rhonda Reads Reviews



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This is the forum for featured reviews. Check out the description on the blog on the main page and come back here to chat about the content of the reviews if you wish. 

Rhonda

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Rhondak101
Posted 2015-04-16 9:35 PM (#10159 - in reply to #10157)
Subject: Re: New Blog Feature: Rhonda Reads Reviews



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And thanks to Dave for all the help.

Edited by Rhondak101 2015-04-16 9:37 PM
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dustydigger
Posted 2015-04-18 10:02 AM (#10169 - in reply to #10159)
Subject: Re: New Blog Feature: Rhonda Reads Reviews



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Hmm... I hope you get some response,Rhonda! I had made it a requirement for my Pick and Mix challenge that everyone was supposed to either post a review or even just a comment on their reads,and could generate some conversation. But you know WWEnders,with very few exceptions,they hide away and never even whisper! lol. There are a lot of Lurkers,as we called non-paticipants over on shelfari. I know there are,because amazingly I have had over 1300 viewers of my Pick and Mix thread,which I am very grateful for. Ah well,lets hope your blog wakes us all up!.
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Rhondak101
Posted 2015-04-18 10:20 AM (#10170 - in reply to #10157)
Subject: Re: New Blog Feature: Rhonda Reads Reviews



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Thanks, Dusty. I tend to fade in and out of conversations according to my free time. But when I want a conversation, would like to have one. This idea came to me for two reasons. First, I finished reading Ancillary Justice a couple of weeks ago and I didn't really understand why people think this book is so great. I read many of the reviews on the WWEnd page and saw people who agreed with me and those who thought it was super. I wanted to have a conversation rather than just read other people's thoughts. However, posting a thread "Why do people like this book?" seemed so antagonistic and not my style. Then I read Barry's excellent review of The Handmaid's Tale and thought that more people need to read this, so I came up with the idea of the blog so that maybe can generate some discussion about the reviews that come up.
You know, I am an English professor, so I like to talk about books!
Barry's review is set to publish in either 11 mins or one hour and eleven minutes--still learning the ins and outs or Word Press-so be looking for it.
Rhonda
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bazhsw
Posted 2015-04-18 2:59 PM (#10171 - in reply to #10170)
Subject: Re: New Blog Feature: Rhonda Reads Reviews



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Thank you for your kind comments Rhonda. I'm quite flattered to feature on the blog. I must admit, I've missed the reviews on the blog and I think since they've gone I've visited the site less (really only coming to leave a review for any SF I read). Hopefully, more reviews on the blog will encourage more to be written and provoke some interest.

My review of the book is in many ways a response to some commentary I've read that Atwood's world is unrealistic, in that women could not be subjugated in such a short space of time. In the space of about five minutes I came up with many examples from around the world from different cultures that match anything the men of Gilead thought up. I don't think I really followed through on the idea of power either - the book's focus is primarily on gender relationships and that is what it is known for. However, most of the men in the book are oppressed, just in different ways. At it's heart, this is a novel about control.
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Rhondak101
Posted 2015-04-18 5:42 PM (#10173 - in reply to #10157)
Subject: Re: New Blog Feature: Rhonda Reads Reviews



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Barry, I appreciated the real connections that you have made. The Handmaid's Tale had been on my mind recently. I'm slowly reading John Joseph Adams's anthology of dystopian fiction, Brave New Worlds. Two stories, M. Rickert's "Evidence of Love in a Case of Abandonment" (2008) and Kate Wilhelm's "The Funeral" (1972) both reminded me of The Handmaid's Tale.
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Bormgans
Posted 2015-04-19 2:26 AM (#10184 - in reply to #10157)
Subject: RE: New Blog Feature: Rhonda Reads Reviews



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I think this is a good idea, but ultimately, comments on the reviews themselves would be the way to go to stimulate more instant discussion. Forum talk is a bit quiet everywhere it seems, I have the feeling most discussion has shifted from forums to comments on blogs, and behind the walls of FB, Twitter and the likes.

On a side note, why don't all blog posts get a short mention on the main page, only some? I was under the impression the blog wasn't updated a lot because of that.

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bazhsw
Posted 2015-04-19 2:54 AM (#10185 - in reply to #10157)
Subject: Re: New Blog Feature: Rhonda Reads Reviews



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I really like the look of the anthology, I've read a few reviews and it looks like something I'd enjoy.
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Rhondak101
Posted 2015-04-19 7:28 AM (#10190 - in reply to #10157)
Subject: Re: New Blog Feature: Rhonda Reads Reviews



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@bleebs, there's been a problem with the blog roll not working on the main page for a while. I think the admins are looking into it. The Twitter feed to the side usually lists the new blogs that the admins put up. (that's usually how I know that there's a new one). Since I don't want to bother them when I add something to the blog, we decided that I could announce through forum posts. Also, the blog comment threads seem to freeze after a while and the forum does not, so, it seems to me, that people can jump in and out more easily this way. I do a agree with you on most sites the blog comments are the way to go, but here on WWEnd the forum does seem to get a lot of traffic, even if many are readers not writers (sounds better than lurkers). Any suggestions that you have about increasing discussion is welcomed.
@bazhsw I am liking the anthology, so far. It is a good mixture of "classics" and stories I don't know. The classics are Jackson's "The Lottery," Le Guin's "Omelas," Ellison's "Ticktockman." I'm using it as a course book in the Fall semester. The connection that I saw between The Handmaid's Tale and the two stories that I mentioned made me think about an assignment pairing some stories with a book that the student has to read outside of class. The student will then have to do a class report on the comparisons. I have a small class, so this should be a workable project. So... later on, I might be asking the group here for suggestions of dystopian novels (or not dystopian) that share similar themes or ideas with certain short stories. That could be a fun group think!
Rhonda
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Administrator
Posted 2015-04-19 12:02 PM (#10194 - in reply to #10184)
Subject: RE: New Blog Feature: Rhonda Reads Reviews



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bleebs - 2015-04-19 2:26 AM

I think this is a good idea, but ultimately, comments on the reviews themselves would be the way to go to stimulate more instant discussion. Forum talk is a bit quiet everywhere it seems, I have the feeling most discussion has shifted from forums to comments on blogs, and behind the walls of FB, Twitter and the likes.

On a side note, why don't all blog posts get a short mention on the main page, only some? I was under the impression the blog wasn't updated a lot because of that.

I agree with comments on the reviews would be best.  It's on our list but we have a number of hurdles to get over first as well as a long list of other upgrades.  Basically the plan is to make every review it's own forum thread but accessible from the novel page and integrated into the blog so we can feature the best ones on the blog.  Rhonda will be able to "flip a switch" to have it display on the blog with the comments already started etc.

The blog list on the home page, footer and sidebar is broken.  My company (where we host WWEnd) made some security changes to our servers that broke it.  We're looking for a solution/replacement but as with everything on WWEnd we just don't have the kind of time we need to address everything we need/want to do.  Not a great situation but we'll get it fixed.... eventually.

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dustydigger
Posted 2015-04-19 12:11 PM (#10195 - in reply to #10190)
Subject: Re: New Blog Feature: Rhonda Reads Reviews



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Excellent review,Baz! I just rechecked my own review of the book,and I still have all the same reservations about the book.,but it was an absorbing read. Has anyone read more of her works? I am wondering if she gained some knowledge of SF as she went along,or was she still only using SF as a convenient set of props for her own agenda? Nothing wrong with that,of course,SF has been used that way by many authors,but I tend to want to read books that are definitely classifiable as SF,and not just issue driven mainstream hiding out as SF
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bazhsw
Posted 2015-04-19 12:56 PM (#10197 - in reply to #10157)
Subject: RE: New Blog Feature: Rhonda Reads Reviews



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I have read 'The Blind Assassin' and it's excellent. Well worthy of the Booker Prize win (I read all the shortlist that year so for once feel confident saying it!).

Funnily enough it's another of her works in the database - not bad for a non-SF writer. I believe she's softened her stance in recent years and I can understand not wanting to be marketed as a SF author but I always think readers are sophisticated enough to identify SF themes without thinking it's all 'men on Mars'.

In my book group there used to be a little animosity to SF (largely gone now) despite us reading it more often than others thought (Blind Assassin being an example)
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Rhondak101
Posted 2015-04-19 7:06 PM (#10198 - in reply to #10157)
Subject: Re: New Blog Feature: Rhonda Reads Reviews



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I have read the first book in the MaddAddam series--Oryx and Crake--very much science fiction--no matter what she says. I plan to read the other two. I just have not gotten around to them yet.
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pizzakarin
Posted 2015-04-20 9:49 AM (#10205 - in reply to #10157)
Subject: Re: New Blog Feature: Rhonda Reads Reviews



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Great review! and I love this as a blog feature series.

Ever since we got to talking about building community in the Hugo Drama thread, I've thought about how much I love writing a really good review but how I rarely sit down and put time into my reviews. When Book Riot did an open call for contributor applications, I wasn't really tempted to apply, but I thought about how cool it would be to do my own feature here. Something like "Karin Reads The Weird Stuff". But then I over-thought it. We'll see how this baby thing shakes out over the next few weeks and maybe I'll read a "weird stuff" book, actually write a decent review of it, and self submit for the Rhonda Reads for a test run before asking for (and committing to) my own feature (not that I think it would necessarily get approved).
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Rhondak101
Posted 2015-04-20 1:14 PM (#10206 - in reply to #10157)
Subject: Re: New Blog Feature: Rhonda Reads Reviews



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Karin, Great Idea! I'll be happy to see you review some "weird stuff." A few years ago I started a series called "The Old Weird," but at that time, I was in competition with all of the RYO reviews that Dave was adding (back when we voted each month). There was too much traffic on the blog back then. Perhaps we can dust it off and share it (and update it to include the New Weird if that is what you are reading). If you are really interested, let me know and I'll dig up the blog links.
Rhonda
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pizzakarin
Posted 2015-04-20 2:00 PM (#10207 - in reply to #10206)
Subject: Re: New Blog Feature: Rhonda Reads Reviews



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This is where I got into overthinking "weird". I would want to do a mix of weird fiction (as a self-defined genre), transgressive, surrealist, experimental, and obscure genre fiction (and maybe even stuff where the premise makes me cock my head like a confused puppy whether or not the book itself turns out to be weird). I haven't really dedicated myself to reading in that direction yet (I do get a little here and there), but it seems like something that would be fun.

I'll send you a direct message if/when I get there. I'd like to have one or two under my belt to offer as writing samples before I put it officially up for consideration.
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bazhsw
Posted 2015-04-20 2:06 PM (#10208 - in reply to #10207)
Subject: Re: New Blog Feature: Rhonda Reads Reviews



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That would be great to see Karin and thanks for your feedback.

Reviews on the blog have definitely expanded my 'to read' list. I wouldn't really know where to start with 'weird' fiction so it'd be something I'd be interested in following.
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illegible_scribble
Posted 2015-04-21 8:21 PM (#10245 - in reply to #10170)
Subject: Re: New Blog Feature: Rhonda Reads Reviews



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Rhondak101 - 2015-04-19 3:20 AM

First, I finished reading Ancillary Justice a couple of weeks ago and I didn't really understand why people think this book is so great. I read many of the reviews on the WWEnd page and saw people who agreed with me and those who thought it was super. I wanted to have a conversation rather than just read other people's thoughts.

There has been so much fuss made, everywhere, of the fact that the book uses almost exclusively female pronouns -- to the extent that a lot of people think that this is what the Ancillary books are all about. Someone elsewhere captured this perfectly:

That is only part of the setup, not the point of the book (in much the way that a novel about the Kennedy Assassination focussing on the specific capabilities and engineering history of a particular model of bolt-action sniper rifle could fairly be thought to be missing the point of the story).

This is what I told someone else:

One of my reasons for really loving the Ancillary books is the resonance it strikes with me. Breq supposedly has no personality, no feelings -- no identity. She is just muddling through the best she can, in a world that seems mostly alien, with people all around her she is trying to understand, based on verbal, non-verbal, and physical clues that she is struggling to parse.

And yet what the reader gradually comes to realize is that this "unfeeling", "soulless" character is in fact far more human than all the real humans around her; that she is setting a shining standard for them in terms of caring and compassion which most of them -- and indeed she herself -- do not even recognize.

As someone who was severely bullied as a child, who struggled mightily to parse the world and all the people who seemed to be so different from me (and who, to some extent, still struggles with that), these books really have a resonance for me.

Furthermore, they include some fantastic worldbuilding, some excellent character development, some enticing mystery subplots, and a bit of space opera (my favorite). To me, they include all the things that I like most in my SFF. 

This why I want so much for people to be able to get past all the hype about the female-pronouns and read the books in the hope that they might feel that resonance, too.
 

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Rhondak101
Posted 2015-04-22 10:55 AM (#10272 - in reply to #10245)
Subject: Re: New Blog Feature: Rhonda Reads Reviews



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illegible_scribble - 2015-04-21 9:21 PM

One of my reasons for really loving the Ancillary books is the resonance it strikes with me. Breq supposedly has no personality, no feelings -- no identity. She is just muddling through the best she can, in a world that seems mostly alien, with people all around her she is trying to understand, based on verbal, non-verbal, and physical clues that she is struggling to parse.

 

Illegible_scribble, my brain understands exactly what you are saying but my "heart" just was not in it. I knew what Leckie was trying to accomplish with the 1st-person narration. But, as a reader, it all seemed too flat and almost like she was trying too hard. I found all of the sentences in which Breq talks about how and why she is calculating a facial expression and all of the descriptions of 3 second pauses really annoying after a while.

As a reader, I like gaps and I like having to figure things out. However, I just felt like this world needed more context to "work." And having Breq as the sole narrator because she is an AI, there was no good way to offer context. 

I think this is just one of those "not my cup of tea" moments. I don't think it is a bad book, but I've read somel of the books that it was up against for awards and I thought they were better. I've also read books from that year that were not nominated for anything that I thought were better than most of the nominated books. 

Isn't it nice that we can have this conversation without calling each other's politics and reading lists into question?

Rhonda

 

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Rhondak101
Posted 2015-05-01 4:38 PM (#10398 - in reply to #10157)
Subject: Re: New Blog Feature: Rhonda Reads Reviews



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New Review of The Goblin Emperor is up over in the blog.
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bazhsw
Posted 2015-05-02 1:51 PM (#10418 - in reply to #10157)
Subject: Re: New Blog Feature: Rhonda Reads Reviews



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I really like what you've done with the review Rhonda by having illegible scribble's review and then the counterpoint by Noclichehere. Adds balance and perspective and after reading both reviews and hearing of it's legitimate place in the Hugo's am looking forward to picking this up at some time. Of course thanks should go to the reviewers who inform the choosing of books to read and enrich our perspective of those we've already read.
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