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117th out of 758 books
—
659 voters
Mission Child
Mission Child is an expansion of Maureen McHugh's "The Cost to Be Wise," a fascinating novella from the original anthology Starlight 1.
Janna's world was colonized long ago by Earth and then left on its own for centuries. When "offworlders" return, their superior technology upsets the balance of a developing civilization.
Mission Child follows the journeys of Janna after sh...more
Janna's world was colonized long ago by Earth and then left on its own for centuries. When "offworlders" return, their superior technology upsets the balance of a developing civilization.
Mission Child follows the journeys of Janna after sh...more
Mass Market Paperback, 370 pages
Published
November 4th 1999
by Eos
(first published 1998)
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this is the second or third time for me to read this book... each time i read it, it seems a little different to me.
the first time i read it, i was terribly frustrated by the apparent aimlessness of the protagonist, how she seemed rather spineless, unable to take her own fate into her hands.
this time... this time the book seems more like life.
sometimes i wonder if we of the west are not ruined by fiction. most fiction (especially since the odious notion of the perfection of the Hero's Tale struc...more
the first time i read it, i was terribly frustrated by the apparent aimlessness of the protagonist, how she seemed rather spineless, unable to take her own fate into her hands.
this time... this time the book seems more like life.
sometimes i wonder if we of the west are not ruined by fiction. most fiction (especially since the odious notion of the perfection of the Hero's Tale struc...more
I had completely forgotten that the short-story collection "Mothers and Other Monsters," which I'd read this summer, was by the same author. So it was a surprise to begin reading this and think..."Hey, this seems awfully familiar." Apparently, this book had its start in one of the short stories--though I forget the title--with only a few slight differences that I could see. It was nice, to see where this character I'd met, briefly, months ago, would go and what she would become. Though I can see...more
I was slightly disappointed by this novel-length version of a tale hinted at in the excellent 1992 short story "The Missionary's Child" and the 1996 novella "The Cost to be Wise".
The chapters here based on those earlier stories have been changed substantially. The lead character, Jan, has been implanted with technologies that help her to survive the various calamities that befall her family and friends, but whereas they seem quite significant in the original story (and at the beginning of the bo...more
The chapters here based on those earlier stories have been changed substantially. The lead character, Jan, has been implanted with technologies that help her to survive the various calamities that befall her family and friends, but whereas they seem quite significant in the original story (and at the beginning of the bo...more
First of all: This book is not scifi. Any elements about the future, science, etc. don't influence the story _at all_. You could put the same story in medieval england, nothing would change.
Second: This book is not about a spiritual odyssee. It's rather about a lost person who's not too smart and doesn't know what to do with his/her life. Nothing spiritual about that.
Third: This book is not about a stirring adventure. The main character never shows any initiative, it's like watching a ball in th...more
Second: This book is not about a spiritual odyssee. It's rather about a lost person who's not too smart and doesn't know what to do with his/her life. Nothing spiritual about that.
Third: This book is not about a stirring adventure. The main character never shows any initiative, it's like watching a ball in th...more
Developing an already powerful short story from "Mothers ..." this novel made me feel some of the disorientation and lostness of refugees and indigenous people who have suffered huge trauma. The gender re-orientations (familiar from McHugh) serve as a second major plot thread to the refugee survival theme.
McHugh's focus on social justice stories, the lived experience of her diverse characters, and gender plus her perceptiveness and clear writing seem to me to make her a welcome addition to Ursu...more
McHugh's focus on social justice stories, the lived experience of her diverse characters, and gender plus her perceptiveness and clear writing seem to me to make her a welcome addition to Ursu...more
I just spent the day reading this, and while it's not tightly plotted, there was obviously something about it that compelled me to keep reading. McHugh's worlds feel real, as do the people in them, and the characters in Mission Child are no exception. The world is like the opposite of a Planet of Hats, in that McHugh remembers that even characters from similar cultural backgrounds might not speak the same language, and Jan/Janna passes through a number of other locations that are as alien to her...more
McHugh's writing in Mission Child reminds me so much of Ursula LeGuin (which is high praise from me). Like much of LeGuin's writing, this novel is about social science - that it is set on a different planet is not the most important thing. What is important are the ways people interact with each other and how social norms and pressures inform those interactions. It is also a sensitive and intelligent portrayal of a transgendered character. If any of this interests you, I recommend Mission Child...more
I bought this book as it was one of the novels nominated for the 2000 Nebula awards.
Essentially, this is the story of a woman's journey from roughly teen age to late adulthood, exploring the definitions of self and home.
Unfortunately, this isn't the kind of story that gets me interested. Disaster after disaster strikes the main character, and then, right at the end, she has a bit of personal growth. Bah. Not my cup of tea.
Essentially, this is the story of a woman's journey from roughly teen age to late adulthood, exploring the definitions of self and home.
Unfortunately, this isn't the kind of story that gets me interested. Disaster after disaster strikes the main character, and then, right at the end, she has a bit of personal growth. Bah. Not my cup of tea.
A quick read and worthwhile. Janna survives war, the loss of a child and husband. Will she find peace and solace again? Her wanderings teach her new things about herself and the world she lives in. Naturally as a woman alone, she dresses as a man and then comes to find she likes herself that way. While the (happy?) ending was a bit subtle for me the richness of the main character and the world makes up for any lack.
The book included some standard elements of good sci-fi: future worlds, plague, sustainable technologies, off-world medicine. Also gender anormativity. But some things were a little too easy - the main character gets a chip implanted in her ear that allows her to hibernate and be extra strong. Very convenient. China Mtn. Zhang is much more clever.
Felt like a The Clan of the Cave Bear-wannabe. Weaker main character than Ayla, though. I could not relate to her nor sympathize with her decisions.
This isn't McHugh's best book, but it's still head-and-shoulders above everything, and ought to be taught in high school. McHugh is so amazing, even on her off days, she's scribing classics of literature.
This one was a big disappointment for me. It just felt so...disjointed and unfinished. I felt like she was reaching for something throughout the whole book but never quite getting there.
All the reviews I read raved about this book. I really like McHugh, but not so much this book.
Kind of epic, but maybe kind of rambling tale of a woman's life. Born as a child (on another planet) in an experimental community run by aliens (earthlings) and ends up as a gun toting mercenary man on the other side of the same planet. I really liked this but it did feel like a series of vignettes, maybe no climax or what not. Belongs in the anthropological humanist SciFi realm, and I touches on a lot of subjects, alien-ness, gender, colonization, class, displacement and war.
Most science fiction doesn't really deal with the messiness, power dynamics, and personal loss as well as excitement that are likely to happen when one culture interacts with another one (depite the many examples we have of that happening in real life). This book does, with quietly powerful prose. It's like escapism grew up, majored in anthropology, and wrote a plaintative tell-all memoir.
It has some intersting world building, but ultimately was let down by that the author seemed to think that she both could write decent characters and she has substantial understanding of Chinese language, culture and what it's like to be a new comer. she knew none of that. it shows.
it's a proof that I can finish any books if I were sick enough and bored enough. Never again.
it's a proof that I can finish any books if I were sick enough and bored enough. Never again.
I gave up on this one after about 100 pages. It isn't terrible, but it wasn't holding my interest at all. The writing is very plain, which I know is probably a deliberate attempt to set a certain atmosphere, but it didn't help.
A disappointment, because I very much enjoyed McHugh's novel China Mountain Zhang.
A disappointment, because I very much enjoyed McHugh's novel China Mountain Zhang.
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Jul 28, 2011
Alexandra
marked it as abandoned
Could not connect to or care about the characters. The action was too slow to make up for this, and the world was not an especially interesting one either. I flicked to the end and can see that McHugh was doing interesting things, especially with notions of gender, but the story just didn't work for me.
The book does some interesting things, but that's not to say it does all of them well, or that they're all exciting things. At nearly 400 pages, the book feels much too long and a little too episodic, even by Maureen McHugh's standards. (I'm a big fan, but this was easily my least favorite of her novels.)
I really like this novel set on a world long ago settled by Earth, then left on its own. It explores issues of gender and culture identity without providing any easy answers or being in any way pedantic.
This was really good for most of the book, and then it was just really long. I think I'd have given it another star if it had just ended sooner.
I continue to like her short stories much more than her novels. This one was ok, but kind of went nowhere and didn't have much point.
This author is really good at imagining complex and detailed worlds. Some of her plots are pretty aimless though, like this one.
An interesting story of colonialism, mixed with cultural and gender identity.
May 07, 2013
Eugene
marked it as to-read
May 03, 2013
Chriskolak
marked it as to-read
May 02, 2013
J.
marked it as wish-list
May 02, 2013
Jolie Mck
marked it as to-read
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Maureen F. McHugh (born 1959) is a science fiction and fantasy writer.
Her first published story appeared in Isaac Asimov's Science Fiction Magazine in 1989. Since then, she has written four novels and over twenty short stories. Her first novel, China Mountain Zhang (1992), was nominated for both the Hugo and the Nebula Award, and won the James Tiptree, Jr. Award. In 1996 she won a Hugo Award for h...more
More about Maureen F. McHugh...
Her first published story appeared in Isaac Asimov's Science Fiction Magazine in 1989. Since then, she has written four novels and over twenty short stories. Her first novel, China Mountain Zhang (1992), was nominated for both the Hugo and the Nebula Award, and won the James Tiptree, Jr. Award. In 1996 she won a Hugo Award for h...more
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