The Guardian is running a series on the 1000 novels that everyone must read. Ha! However, they do have an SF&F list, they have got some competent people to assemble it, and the end result if actually quite interesting. The books range all the way from Rabelais to Rushdie and a number of Hugo winners. Top current proponents such as China Mieville, Gwyneth Jones, Al Reynolds and Ken MacLeod all get a nod.

The article starts here, but you need to look for further links in the sidebar to the right to see the actual lists.

Please note, the whole point of such lists is that people should disagree with them. My personal beef is the absence of Ian McDonald.

The release of Regenesis has prompted me to fill in a significant gap in my reading. As someone who is interested in women’s science fiction, I really should be familiar with the works of Carolyn Janice Cherryh, especially as both Downbelow Station and Cyteen won Hugos. So I set myself a new year task to read all three books in sequence, and I have now made a start.

What interested me most about Downbelow Station was that, aside from being set in outer space, the science took a back seat to character and plot. It is a book about people and politics. In setting up her inter-stellar conflict, Cherryh asks us whether it is best to support your own side, to look out for your own self-interest, or to be concerned with the welfare of all living beings (including sentient and peaceful aliens). There is some subtlety in there too. I don’t think it was by accident that the two sides in the conflict were called “Company” and “Union”, even though this is a battle over resources and territory, not a labor dispute.

Cherryh’s sharp too. When the Company military imposes martial law on the space station she writes:

But the troops asked questions and checked ID’s [sic] when they were roused — kept the areas open to their raids, kept the populace terrorized and suspicious of each other, and that served Mazian’s purpose.

That’s from a book published 20 years before 9/11.

(By the way, it desperately needed a good copy editor. As well as apostrophe use I noticed character names muddled up and a glaring spelling mistake in the back page blurb. But that’s not Cherryh’s fault. My copy is the 1983 Methuen UK paperback)

I enjoyed the book. The language is a bit stilted in places, but the plot races along commendably. Some readers will doubtless be upset that the glorious military victory they were expecting to resolve the plot doesn’t happen, but that’s a good thing too. I’m looking forward to Cyteen.

As you might have guessed, I did not manage to finish Anathem before leaving California. Nor was it remotely gripping enough for me to want to lug the darn thing with me to the UK. Indeed, I had been practicing avoidance through much of the holidays, and only got back into reading it because I tried reading Judith Butler. Those of you who have also tried reading Butler will understand.

There are actually lots of interesting things in Anathem. It is also quite funny in parts. But I have come to the conclusion (with apologies to Hugo Gernsback) than a science fiction novel is not a good tool for teaching philosophy and science. I also feel compelled to note that if a fantasy writer tells you that Cromagnon the Barbarian carries a th’wak’a and rides a g’nag rather then simply saying that he carries a sword and rides a horse, then everyone says that said author is guilty of crap world building and should stop making up silly words. The same rules ought to apply to Neal Stephenson, no matter how clever his wordplay occasionally is.

I don’t want to say too much more about the book when I’ve still got another 250-300 pages to read. I’m sure I will get back to it at some point, because I am sure that there are more interesting things to be found. But you only keep plowing through a novel if the plot is gripping and you want to find out what happens next. If you have the sinking feeling that what happens next will be another pointless diversion, or another philosophy lecture, or another rant about aspects of the modern world of which the author does not approve, then it won’t matter if the book has to wait a while.

On the Guardian Book Blog Sam Jordison’s exploration of past Hugo winners has reached Stranger in a Strange Land. Sam does not succumb to ick, but neither does he become a convert to any church.

OMG! (And believe me that’s the first time I have ever used that particular phrase.) I appear to have accidentally inspired a Neil Gaiman story.

Glad you found the link useful, Neil dear. I’m very much looking forward to future Odd books. I knew that Vikings were far-traveled, but I must admit that Afghanistan surprised me too. Now I’m wondering whether there’s a snow leopard in the story.

The Guardian has a round-up of interesting new books due in 2009, and from that I discover that Toby Litt has written a generation ship novel. I’ll certainly be looking out for that (despite the truly awful title).

In my email today was a newsletter from Andrew Hook informing the world that Elastic Press is to cease business. The good news is that there is no financial crisis. The company is solvent and payments to authors will continue. However, Andrew has found that running a small press is not fun anymore, and he is wisely deciding to quit while he’s ahead.

Elastic didn’t produce many books that were to my taste: for example they did a lot of collections of little-known authors. However, what I did read was very interesting, and the company always looked like it knew what it was doing. They will be missed.

In the meantime, of course, look out for some bargains as they run down their stock.

I have finally got around to finishing a review of Queer Universes. You can read it here. I’m afraid it turned into a bit of an extended rant about gender issues towards the end, but that shouldn’t take away from the fact that the bulk of the book is very useful if you happen to be interested in gender/sexuality issues in science fiction.

My copy of the special edition of Shriek: An Afterword arrived yesterday, and very splendid it is too. No sign of the Church CD yet – apparently that is coming separately. Kevin and I have noticed a suspicious amount of mushroom growth around the estate this winter. It will be interesting to see what effect the book has on this. Personally I’m hoping that war breaks our between the mushrooms and the ants, and that we get left in peace.

I started out trying to write something brief about Daniel Abraham’s An Autumn War, and it soon became clear that it was going to turn into something more like a review. You can find it here.

That’s one for my Hugo and WFA nominations – no question.

At the Washington Post, Michael Dirda recommends that you get your fantasy from small press publishers. There are plenty of familiar names recommended.

In today’s Guardian. Mike also has a few things to say about Houellebecq.

This week’s Economist reminds us that The Tale of Genji, the first novel ever written (as opposed to song cycles, sagas and the like) is 1,000 years old today. Congratulations are due to Murasaki Shikibu for her wonderful innovation.

Also purchased from Borderlands yesterday:

• Blood of Elves – Andrzej Sapkowski
• The Engine’s Child – Holly Phillips
• Trouble on Triton – Samuel R. Delany
• Tender Morsels – Margo Lanagan