MobileRead May 2016 Special Run-Off Vote

[WT Sharpe]

May 2016 Mobile Read Book Club Special Run-Off Vote

Since this month's vote resulted in a tie, we are having a Special Run-Off Vote between the leading candidates. I will not vote in this poll unless my vote is needed to break a tie. This poll will be open for 3 days, and all MobileRead members are invited to participate. Since there are more than two options, this is a visible, multiple-choice poll.

We will start the discussion thread for this book on May 20th. Please select from the following three Choices:

• The Steerswoman by Rosemary Kirstein
Goodreads | Amazon Ca / Amazon UK / Amazon US / Kobo US
Print Length: 288 pages

Spoiler:

From Amazon:

Freedom of Information
If you ask, she must answer. A steerswoman's knowledge is shared with any who request it; no steerswoman may refuse a question, and no steerswoman may answer with anything but the truth.

And if she asks, you must answer. It is the other side of tradition's contract -- and if you refuse the question, or lie, no steerswoman will ever again answer even your most casual question.

And so, the steerswomen — always seeking, always investigating — have gathered more and more knowledge about the world they traveled, and they share that knowledge freely.

Until the day that the steerswoman Rowan begins asking innocent questions about one small, lovely, inexplicable object…

Her discoveries grow stranger and deeper, and more dangerous, until suddenly she finds she must flee or fight for her life. Or worse -- lie.

Because one kind of knowledge has always been denied the the steerswomen:
Magic.

Reviewers comments:

“If you haven’t read Kirstein’s Steerswoman books I envy you the chance to read them now for the first time.... I think they have a very good claim to be my favorite thing still being written. […] If you like science, and if you like watching someone work out mysteries, and if you like detailed weird alien worlds and human cultures, if really good prose appeals... you’re really in luck.” — Jo Walton, Hugo and Nebula Awards winner, author of Among Others and Farthing.

"[Kirstein] walks the tightrope between fantasy and science fiction with precision and grace... [her] compassion for even minor characters is evident on every page, and her prose is measured and alluring without being overworked." -- Damien Broderick & Paul Di Filippo, in Science Fiction: The 101 Best Novels 1985-2010

• The Door Into Summer by Robert A Heinlein
Goodreads | Amazon US
Print Length: 304 pages

Spoiler:

When Dan Davis is crossed in love and stabbed in the back by his business associates, the immediate future doesn't look too bright for him and Pete, his independent-minded tomcat. Suddenly, the lure of suspended animation, the Long Sleep, becomes irresistible and Dan wakes up 30 years later in the 21st century, a time very much to his liking.
The discovery that the robot household appliances he invented have been mass produced is no surprise, but the realization that, far from having been stolen from him, they have, mysteriously, been patented in his name is. There's only one thing for it. Dan somehow has to travel back in time to investigate.
He may even find Pete ...

• Brave New World by Aldous Huxley
Goodreads | Amazon US
Print Length: 158 pages

Spoiler:

From Amazon:

Aldous Huxley's tour de force, Brave New World is a darkly satiric vision of a "utopian" future—where humans are genetically bred and pharmaceutically anesthetized to passively serve a ruling order. A powerful work of speculative fiction that has enthralled and terrified readers for generations, it remains remarkably relevant to this day as both a warning to be heeded as we head into tomorrow and as thought-provoking, satisfying entertainment.

[fantasyfan]

I've stuck with my nomination. Though it is an interesting novel, I'm not keen to read Brave New World once again, as I have read it several times already. Personally, I think that TDIS is one of Heinlein's best works, a standalone and a genuine classic by a Golden Age science fiction author. The Steerswoman gets some good reviews too {though some reviewers complain about unnecessary brutality}but it is the first of a series and such works tend to end with inconclusive or unresolved events.

[CRussel]

Well, even though I nominated The Steerswoman, and would really like it to win, I can also vote for The Door Into Summer. Both are good books that we will enjoy reading, IMO.

The Steerswoman has the virtue of being lesser known, and with strong female protagonists, making it rather different than classic SF. Plus the idea of the steerswomen (who do include some steersmen) is interesting and unique.

The Door into Summer is classic Heinlein, classic time travel paradoxes, and has Pixel, the cat. All good things. And while it is somewhat more expensive, it's not outside my limit, and it does have an audio edition, a plus for those who prefer to read that way.

As for BNW, I've made my views clear. I'll not be reading it, regardless.

[JSWolf]

I've read Brave New World and it wasn't worth reading.

[fantasyfan]

Things are looking up for The Steerswoman. I've downloaded it as it is one I'll certainly read at some point even if it doesn't win.

[CRussel]

FYI, that's Steerswoman, not Steerwoman, but otherwise, I agree, it's looking hopeful. Still early, though.

[fantasyfan]

Originally Posted by CRussel

FYI, that's Steerswoman, not Steerwoman.

Right!

[CRussel]

Question for the group -- If The Steerswoman wins, which is seeming likely right now, would folks like me to invite Ms. Kirstein to join us for the discussion? I know it's not typical, and I have no idea if she is either willing or able, but she might be, and it might be interesting. OTOH, if folks don't like the idea, I won't even pose it to her. (She is not, so far as I'm aware, a current MR member.)

[din155]

Originally Posted by CRussel

Question for the group -- If The Steerswoman wins, which is seeming likely right now, would folks like me to invite Ms. Kirstein to join us for the discussion? I know it's not typical, and I have no idea if she is either willing or able, but she might be, and it might be interesting. OTOH, if folks don't like the idea, I won't even pose it to her. (She is not, so far as I'm aware, a current MR member.)

As long as she doesn't use magic against us in case we have any bad things to say about the book . I think it's a very good suggestion.

[WT Sharpe]

I have no problem with that.

[CRussel]

Then I'll ask. Meanwhile, I've started my re-read of the book, and it's sucking me in, demanding I find time to read.

[WT Sharpe]

Time to buy The Steerswoman.

[issybird]

I read it when I thought it was going to lose!

[CRussel]

Welcome back, issybird. You didn't read it in vain, then, since it won, much to my surprise. I started reading it last night in the hotel, read it during dinner, then at breakfast and finally finished it as my flight was touching down in Toronto.

[treadlightly]

I'm starting today! Luckily I had bought it some time ago on sale or with a good kobo coupon, I can't remember.


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk