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I always get so little done on my free days.
*sighs*
Even today, when I got out my books before doing anything else, I still got latched onto this computer for three hours before I did anything.
My problem isn't that I need a hobby. My problem is that I need a hobby, not an obsession.
Joan D. Vinge, The Snow Queen.
If you gave me a copy of this book without the covers and title pages, and told me it was by Ursula K. LeGuin, I would believe you. Even with the covers and all the pages, it felt like LeGuin's book to me for several chapters, until I remembered that it was Vinge's. It was no surprise to me that Vinge held a degree in anthropology – LeGuin was the daughter of an anthropologist, and both she and Vinge create unfamiliar and realistic cultures in their writing.
Wait, revise that last sentence. I know LeGuin's skill in society-building is high, but I should not be so hasty to grant Vinge the same honor. To my memory, I have only read The Snow Queen among her books, and a single superb example is not sufficient to prove such a broad claim.
The Snow Queen is a superb example of world building, however. The universe includes an interstellar confederation of planets called the Hegemony, although the connections between worlds are weakened by the slow speed of travel. Furthermore, the main setting of the story, the planet Tiamat, has a native culture whose traditions have been beautifully warped by the interference of the leaders of the Hegemony.
Incidentally, one of the minor flaws of the book (and I mean minor – it doesn't affect the quality of the storytelling) lies in the fewness of the cultures. Each planet only corresponds to about a town's worth of diversity, except perhaps Tiamat. Which is two towns. Unfortunate that it is that Vinge made this near-ubiquitous error, her story hardly suffers for it.
The main element driving the plot is also the reason for the Hegemony interference on planet. That is, the "water of life", actually an extract of the blood of a special animal, the mers. It prevents aging in those people who take it, and is consequently of immense value to the leaders of the Hegemony, and of Tiamat. This forms an excellent basis for conflict, especially since there is a group on-planet that believes the mers to be sacred. And there are main characters who are on both sides.
These characters are another strength of The Snow Queen. They are all convincing and believable, and Vinge is perfectly willing to let them live. She is also perfectly willing to let them change as events unfold around them, and she is willing to let them act and cause these events.
One final important thing to note is that this story is a retelling. It is adapted from the Hans Christian Andersen fairy tale "The Snow Queen", a story I have never read. I don't know what to feel about that fact, but Vinge's novel is excellent, regardless.
Unrelated to all the above, I'm rather peeved about the situation with one of the books for my class, a book which never was assigned for reading until the very recent past. I just spoke with my mom, and she suggested to me reserving and buying the book at a local Borders. Unfortunately, I already ordered it on Amazon, and it's shipped already.
What really burns is that everything here is my fault.
*sighs*
Even today, when I got out my books before doing anything else, I still got latched onto this computer for three hours before I did anything.
My problem isn't that I need a hobby. My problem is that I need a hobby, not an obsession.
Joan D. Vinge, The Snow Queen.
If you gave me a copy of this book without the covers and title pages, and told me it was by Ursula K. LeGuin, I would believe you. Even with the covers and all the pages, it felt like LeGuin's book to me for several chapters, until I remembered that it was Vinge's. It was no surprise to me that Vinge held a degree in anthropology – LeGuin was the daughter of an anthropologist, and both she and Vinge create unfamiliar and realistic cultures in their writing.
Wait, revise that last sentence. I know LeGuin's skill in society-building is high, but I should not be so hasty to grant Vinge the same honor. To my memory, I have only read The Snow Queen among her books, and a single superb example is not sufficient to prove such a broad claim.
The Snow Queen is a superb example of world building, however. The universe includes an interstellar confederation of planets called the Hegemony, although the connections between worlds are weakened by the slow speed of travel. Furthermore, the main setting of the story, the planet Tiamat, has a native culture whose traditions have been beautifully warped by the interference of the leaders of the Hegemony.
Incidentally, one of the minor flaws of the book (and I mean minor – it doesn't affect the quality of the storytelling) lies in the fewness of the cultures. Each planet only corresponds to about a town's worth of diversity, except perhaps Tiamat. Which is two towns. Unfortunate that it is that Vinge made this near-ubiquitous error, her story hardly suffers for it.
The main element driving the plot is also the reason for the Hegemony interference on planet. That is, the "water of life", actually an extract of the blood of a special animal, the mers. It prevents aging in those people who take it, and is consequently of immense value to the leaders of the Hegemony, and of Tiamat. This forms an excellent basis for conflict, especially since there is a group on-planet that believes the mers to be sacred. And there are main characters who are on both sides.
These characters are another strength of The Snow Queen. They are all convincing and believable, and Vinge is perfectly willing to let them live. She is also perfectly willing to let them change as events unfold around them, and she is willing to let them act and cause these events.
One final important thing to note is that this story is a retelling. It is adapted from the Hans Christian Andersen fairy tale "The Snow Queen", a story I have never read. I don't know what to feel about that fact, but Vinge's novel is excellent, regardless.
Unrelated to all the above, I'm rather peeved about the situation with one of the books for my class, a book which never was assigned for reading until the very recent past. I just spoke with my mom, and she suggested to me reserving and buying the book at a local Borders. Unfortunately, I already ordered it on Amazon, and it's shipped already.
What really burns is that everything here is my fault.
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