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48th out of 51 books
—
3 voters
Wanderground: Stories of the Hill Women
Back in print, this is the fantastic story of a group of women who have designed a world of peace and preserved a rich heritage of memory that ultimately changes the world they live in.
Paperback, 196 pages
Published
April 1st 2002
by Spinsters Ink Books
(first published 1978)
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"There are no words more obscene than 'I can't live without you.' Count them the deepest affront to the person." This idea is presented in the opening chapter of Sally Miller Gearhart's The Wanderground and, based on this, among other elements of that first chapter, I thought I might like this book. This does turn out to be an important idea in the book, but ultimately I could not get into The Wanderground. There are a couple of reasons for this.
The first is that The Wanderground, well, it kind...more
The first is that The Wanderground, well, it kind...more
A lesbian separatist utopia.
Many women have left the Cities and live in the wilderness in harmony with nature through their psychic powers. They can communicate telepathically, monitor the borders at a distance, heal, fly, levitate objects, and reproduce without men.
Men cannot enter the women's land without dying, and cannot even leave the cities without becoming impotent. Also machines and guns won't work outside of the cities. There are some women still in the cites but they are brutally opp...more
Many women have left the Cities and live in the wilderness in harmony with nature through their psychic powers. They can communicate telepathically, monitor the borders at a distance, heal, fly, levitate objects, and reproduce without men.
Men cannot enter the women's land without dying, and cannot even leave the cities without becoming impotent. Also machines and guns won't work outside of the cities. There are some women still in the cites but they are brutally opp...more
This book is more fun to talk and think about in a historical context than it is to actually read. I chose to read it because I wanted to see how the author, the founder of the first women's studies department in the united states, used her imagination outside of academic discourse.
The lesbian utopia Gearhart has imagined is a series of snapshots into the lives of many hill women. This book was hard to follow in the traditional sense of how a novel is normally expected to be put together. I saw...more
The lesbian utopia Gearhart has imagined is a series of snapshots into the lives of many hill women. This book was hard to follow in the traditional sense of how a novel is normally expected to be put together. I saw...more
It's always unfortunate when feminism turns into anti-man sexism. It was a good book, but thematically bleh. Do radical feminists actually think that all men want to rape them (unless they're gay, of course, in which case they're mildly more acceptable). The anti-man thing was never really challenged in the book, so I have to assume that this is what the author actually believes to be a good thing.
Worth reading, but primarily because it is revered by the Fem Sci Fi folk. I did not enjoy this one as much because it's lighter than the average and a little bit fluffy. Okay, so I like my Fem Sci Fi man-hating. Still, if one wants to get a full rounded look at this genre, this title is a must.
Recommended reading from: http://www.feministsf.org/bibs/recomm....
Recommended reading from: http://www.feministsf.org/bibs/recomm....
Feb 11, 2013
Wolverina
rated it
5 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
bought-second-hand,
sf-women-s-press
The most enjoyable of the women's press sf label books that I have read so far. Fluffy and wandering in many ways, and the anti-science, 70s/80s mysticism is a little bit too much for me at some points, but otherwise really interesting exploration of the idea of lesbian separatist Utopias.
Jul 19, 2007
Colelea
rated it
5 of 5 stars
Recommends it for:
fans of femninst utopia/dystopia novels
This is a fabulous feminist science fiction novel. Visionary. It is a compelling mixture of Utopian/Dystopian fiction. I really loved this book. It is harrowing and hopeful, sad and joyful. The basis of the story is that the Earth is revolting against partiarchy and industrialism and one day all the machines stop working... men become impotent (or infertile I forget which) and women are enslaved with the ruling men in the cities. Radical womyn begin escaping into the country and start beautiful...more
Probably quite influential in the 70s, but today it's very dated and imo way too essentialist and anti-science for my liking.
Gimme a break. It was college. I was a women's studies minor. What choice did I have?
view all 3 comments
An interesting take on a possible future world where women hold dominance.
I'm still wrapping my head around this book...
Read in the 70s.
Underwhelmed.
Reviewed on SF Mistressworks: http://sfmistressworks.wordpress.com/...
Jun 10, 2007
Elle
rated it
3 of 5 stars
Recommends it for:
Utopian/Dystopian Lovers
Shelves:
fiction,
utopia-dystopia
No men equals women realizing their supernatural powers...??? I read this and used it in my thesis...it is rather interesting.
Interesting utopia/dystopia story.
May 08, 2013
None
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Apr 28, 2013
Ching-In
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May 02, 2013
Red Harvey
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Apr 18, 2013
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Apr 16, 2013
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Apr 12, 2013
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Apr 04, 2013
Lavinia
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