Exploring the Continents

[John]

Welcome to our new dicussion thread, where the aim is to help us enjoy authors from cultures other than our own, by reading authors from across the continents. The pace is more sedate than our monthly challenges, and its a shared discussion rather than a competitive challenge. Read at whatever pace you choose, and space opera, fantasy, and SF books are all acceptable.

No 'record of achievements' will be maintained but we'd love to hear what you are reading, and your opinion of it, so please join in the thread and share your thoughts.

[Teresa, Plan B is in Effect]

I’ve been playing with Google and a search string such as “Mexican science fiction authors” (or other country) gives me a list. I’ve spotted some names of authors that I’ve read before. I’m trying to decide whether to go for the recognized authors or look for someone new. I’ll likely end up with a mix.

[John]

That's an excellent approach Teresa, and I'm looking at something similar, and also trying to include at least a couple that I already have in my TBR pile. I've drawn up a short list...but sticking to it will be a different matter.

[Teresa, Plan B is in Effect]

Okay are we supposed to post here when starting a book, or just when finishing it? I give up on books easily.

[John]

Comment as much or as little as you are comfortable with, Teresa.

Personally, I'll almost certainly comment when I start, comment as I read, and comment when either I finish or give up. I'll say whether or not I liked the book - and the reasons.

For me, this thread is about widening my horizons - its not uncommon for SF readers to stick to genres/authors from our own cultures, and whose books we are "comfortable" with. Its why some authors can be successful with long series of books - Craig Alanson with a 20 book Expeditionary Force series over 10 years? And all too often when I start a series and the first one or two are half-way good, I plough through the rest of the series - which rarely justify the effort - then get annoyed with myself at the end.

So on this challenge - no matter how good the author - I will not read more than one of their books, as I will move on to either the next continent or a different author and genre on the same continent.

But this one is deliberately "loose" to let each of us approach it as we prefer - as Fleetwood Mac sung - "Go Your Own Way"...and I've just depressed myself by realising that was 49 years ago!

[Teresa, Plan B is in Effect]

It’s going to be tough to decide which continent some authors are. For example, Joelle Presby grew up in west Africa but lives in Ohio. Nit picking I know, but it’s annoying me.

[John]

Teresa wrote: "It’s going to be tough to decide which continent some authors are. For example, Joelle Presby grew up in west Africa but lives in Ohio. Nit picking I know, but it’s annoying me."

She has apparently also lived in Cameroon, France and Japan - but I'd definitely class her as American, Teresa. Giving the number of Americans serving overseas, there must be a high number of their children who have grown up outside the States, but are quite clearly American. (I've no idea if this applies to Presby, but America had a large presence in West Africa at one point).

[Teresa, Plan B is in Effect]

Heh my dad was in the USAF. I’ve lived in both France and the Philippines, although I wouldn’t claim to have grown up there. We moved a LOT.

[John]

France and the Philippines must have been quite a contrast.

There seem to be a fair number of SF authors who are ex-US military, writing military SF understandably enough.

[John]

My "African" choice is planned as American War by Omar El Akkad. Coincidentally, I've just collected from the library this morning a book I ordered several months ago - One Day, Everyone Will Have Always Been Against This, by the same author - which I hadn't realised. This is a non-fiction book about Israel's genocide in Palestine so I hadn't made the connection - it will be interesting to see how two such totally different books compare.

[John]

Omar El Akkad is also an example of the point you raised Teresa. His name came up when I googled African SF authors. He is an author and journalist who was born in Egypt, grew up in Qatar, moved to Canada as a teenager and now lives in the United States.

[John]

I also collected from the library this morning The Best of World SF, Volume 2 - surely I'll be able to get some ideas on authors from its 649 pages?

[John]

My first book is going to be Woman on the Edge of Time by Marge Piercy. The author is American, and the book is described as a feminist, dystopian novel - so not my normal comfort zone. I have it on order from the library, and hope to start reading it in September.

[John]

Woman on the Edge of Time is taking too long to come from the library, so my first book is going to be Spring Festival, a collection of short stories by Chinese SF and Fantasy author Xia Jia.

[John]

Finished reading Spring Festival by Xia Jia. It was a lot shorter than I had realised, but the only problem with that is that its so well-written that you really don't want it to end. After a couple of SF books recently that were disappointing (and thats being kind), it was wonderful to read this one. I'll be reading more from this author before the year's out.

[Teresa, Plan B is in Effect]

52 pages is short indeed. Available on KU, so I’ve added it to my TBR for the next time I buy a month if KU.

[John]

I hope you enjoy it when you get a copy Teresa.

She seems to have written only short stories so far; she has another collection available. On Amazon UK its £6 on kindle, or £31 for a second-hand paperback.

[Caitlin]

Wow, from the description this looks so interesting! I’ve added it to my TBR, hopefully I can get to it before year’s end when I’m in the mood for some short fiction.

[John]

For this thread I'm planning to read the SF novel Little Eyes by Argentinian author Samanta Schweblin, but this is another one that is taking its time in arriving.

So I've just re-read the wonderful novella Fever Dream by the same author (not SF, but impossible to put down once you've started). And I'm currently reading her collection of short stories Seven Empty Houses (also not SF, but with writing this good and this original the genre becomes almost irrelevant.)

[John]

I completed Seven Empty Houses last night and just in time, as the library now has the copy of her SF novel Little Eyes. I'm looking forward to reading this next week.