The Left Hand of Darkness | 
pickOne of the best world-building I read in a long time; the intricate detailing of Le Guin does not suffocate; it is as fresh as Winter itself. Same goes for character building. The use of stark contrasting - between countries, between landscapes, between characters - was done so smoothly that I both felt like I was going back and forth yet within the given world of Gethen still - nothing felt detached.
“How does one hate a country, or love one? I know people…I know how the sun at subse tin autumn falls on the side of a certain plowland in the hills; but what is the sense of giving a boundary to all that, of giving it a name and ceasing to love where ghe name ceases to apply? What is love of one‘s country; is it that of one‘s uncountry?…that sort of love does not have boundary-line of hate.”
A biologically androgynous society (p 93-94): “Room is made for sex, plenty of room; but a room, as it were, apart…Anyone can turn his hand to anything. This sounds very simple but its psychological effects are incalculable. The fact that everyone between [17] and [35] or so is liable to be…”tied down to childbearing” implies that no one is quite so thoroughly “tied down” here as women, elsewhere, are likely to be - psychologically or physically.”
“The unknown…that is what life is based on. Ignorance is the ground of thought. Unproof is the ground of action… Tell me, Genry, what is known…the one certain thing you know concerning your future, and mine?” “That we shall die.” “Yes. There‘s really only one question that can be answered Genry, and we already know the answer… the only thing that makes life possible is permanent, intolerable uncertainty: not knowing what comes next.”
so-soEver since Kim de L'Horizon mentioned this in their book I wanted to read this. I also thought that I really should have read at least one book by Ursula K. Le Guin.
While reading I often had to remember the date this book was originally published, it feels so “modern“. The philosophical and ethical parts were interesting and thought-provoking. The story itself couldn't really caputre me.
#BookishMonopoly @AkashaVampie
Phew, I almost hit jail time! But instead I landed on my Trello Wishlist, and decided to remove the book that has been there for the longest from that list. It's The Left Hand Of Darkness by Ursula K. LeGuin, which I have listed about a year ago. My library hold already came in, so I can start tonight.
#BookishMonopoly @AkashaVampie
Mrs. Claus made me do it. 🤶🏾
I didn‘t realize the tagged novel was written in 1969; it‘s high time I read it.
Funny, I am shopping exactly a year in advance for #Europacollective (Belle Greene). I wanted to support an Indie - Red Balloon Bookshop in St. Paul.
pickThanks to the #authoramonth challenge,I finally pulled this powerful book from my shelves. The cover was a puzzle to me,but I soon discovered the significance of the planet Winter and the mountain like glacier. Science fiction is not my usual choice, but the storytelling soon captured me.The Gethanians can become male or female during each mating cycle. The book is studied in LBGTQ + college courses.Simple, elegant language.Politics and morality.
repost for @Soubhiville:
Happy June! Time to pull out our Ursula K Le Guin books for #AuthorAMonth. What are you planning to read?
#AuthorAMonth is a no-pressure, no-commitment Litsy challenge. The goal is to celebrate the works of a particular author each month. Authors were chosen through polls by Litsy participants. Read as many as you like, skip months when needed, it's entirely up to you!
#Movie2BookRecs @klou
Movie: Tootsie
If you enjoy gender bending books you will probably enjoy The Left Hand of Darkness. In this book an alien culture has people who spend most of their lives without a gender. I found it to be very philosophical.
pickI wish there was a rating between pick and so-so since that‘s how I really feel about this novel. It‘s good, but I also didn‘t feel as though it‘s the “classic” it‘s touted as. It is however, an interesting thought experiment in how an alien race with neutral gender identities except when in “kemmer” (a monthly mating season when they assume either male or female) shapes a society and how a normal human (male) visitor attempts to comprehend it.
pickThe Left Hand of Darkness is a sci-fi classic for a reason. Le Guin nails her exploration about how so much hinges on our ability to understand and engage with the cultures we are surrounded by. This feeling of cultural disconnect is so reocgnisable, and her observations about the impact it has remain spot on. Glad to finally have read this.
Starting the year with one I‘ve been meaning to read for a while
📚Little Women by Louisa May Alcott (and tagged)
✒️ Ursula K. LeGuin
🎞 Lawrence of Arabia
🎤 John Lennon, Lizzo
🎼 “Little Green,” by Joni Mitchell, “Love of My Life,” by Queen, “Life During Wartime,” by Talking Heads, “Lost in the Supermarket,” by The Clash
#manicmonday #letterL @CBee
“Science fiction is not predictive; it is descriptive.
Predictions are uttered by prophets (free of charge), by clairvoyants (who usually charge a fee, and are therefore more honoured in their day than prophets), and by futurologists (salaried). Prediction is the business of prophets, clairvoyants, and futurologists. It is not the business of novelists. A novelist‘s business is lying.”
pickI adored reading this book. It's the kind of story that I know will be sticking around in my mind for a while yet.
I discovered Le Guin after hearing that she was an inspiration of Becky Chambers, and I can 100% see that in the details of the differences between the worlds' species, e.g. kemmer.
pickThis is such an interesting look at gender & culture. It is amazing that it was written in 1969 considering how relevant the themes still are. I did have to Google some words so be aware that is a thing in the writing. Overall I'm glad I read this & will read more by her. I saw an article where she did say she would have used neutral gender pronouns instead of he/him as the default if she had written it more recently. I highly recommend.
"A man wants his virility regarded, a woman wants her femininity appreciated, however indirect and subtle the indications of regard and appreciation. On Winter they will not exist. One is respected and judged only as a human being. It is an appalling experience." Note: this sounds great to me. Definitely not appalling!
pickThis was beautiful, one of the best sci-fi novels I've read in recent years. The world building is almost like a fantasy novel. There is a mythology and a rich history, all explained poetically by Le Guin. The writing of the relationship between the lead characters of Genly Ai and Estraven is extraordinary. This is the fourth book in the Hainish Cycle and, though you don't need to read them in order, I do plan to go back and read more Le Guin.
pickHappy #NationalBeerDay‼️
I love #BooksandBrewsClub sponsored by my Library and held at local Brewery. Glad will be discussing this Classic Sci Fi book because it's a lot to take in. Hearing other members thoughts to helps me to process. 📖📚🍻
It's been a p exhausting week (a mix of great and not so fun) but I am HERE with my #BFC22 March review!
In March I read 3 books and started a 4th/5th, took the month off for the most part with yoga/Blogilates to allow my body to recover properly from Covid but got going again in the last week or so there & I've really enjoyed the Mindful March calendar😊
For April, my goal is to keep listening to my body and going with what it needs!😊
Enjoying a cozy day of reading with my new buddy 😊🐈⬛
#myfavouritebreedisrescued
I'm taking a little break from Black & British to read this little gem - I'm not sure what to expect from this one but it looks great!
(Really enjoying Black & British so far - it's just very long & dense so decided to break reading it up a bit with other books)😁
❄ Tagged
❄ Not really, unless I can stay inside and read.
❄ The Snow Queen by Joan D. Vinge
#sundayfunday @ozma.of.oz
pickThe plot felt a little plodding to me at first (being very new to sci-fi, I guess I was expecting star-ship races and lasers going “pew-pew”). But then it snowballed into something different, a rich story that seemed to incorporate a lot of Le Guin‘s anthropological background: how a man encounters an alien world where gender does not exist. The book (always gently) prods you to shuck off any notion that “mankind” appears as one fixed thing.
Fantastic new prize! Ursula LeGuin prize upcoming!
https://www.theguardian.com/books/2021/oct/21/realists-of-a-larger-reality-wante...
so-so🎧 📖 OMG how did this book get better than a 4 star rating? Are we talking about the same book? 🤨
OK it was well written. Very well written! The narration wasn‘t hideous.
At times it was ... Boring. Weird. Dated. I might listen to this one again ... Just to torture myself ... J/K ... maybe I needed to be in a mood? This 1 just didn‘t do it for me today. Snoozeville. Sorry. Classic snoozeville. I‘m seriously slating it for a re-read!
⭐️⭐️⭐️
Another one from my book order. I've not read any of her stuff yet but I've heard good things. #tbrpile
pickFinished my #doublespin! Tried to post this earlier, but Litsy wasn‘t working with me. While I did really like this book, there were some parts I didn‘t like, so it only gets ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ #bookspinbingo
Weekend plans: edit some YouTube videos, go for a run, go for a long bike ride, snuggle the puppy, finish this book!
Current read... 50 pages in and I'm a little confused but trusting Le Guin to take me on this journey.
My list for March‘s #bookspinbingo - a good mix of genres to look forward to as well as the next chunk of Bleak House for #whatthedickens @TheAromaofBooks
pickI adore the vivid imaginings of Ursula Le Guin, and this is just another beautiful example.
The alien-ness and the humanity of the different peoples, the weirdness of the world, the depth of the characters and the weaving plot all blew my mind as I was transported to the world of Winter.
I'm so glad I finally took the time to read it.
pickWhat imagination +a remarkable bk.written in 1969 it references issues still relevant today.At the centre is an androgynous people visited by an envoy from another planet, politics leads to the kings minister escape to a neighbouring state as the envoy follows, is then sent in prison trains to a camp, & escapes across ice with estrahaven. Sexuality, climate & more
#booked2021 @4thhouseontheleft @BarbaraTheBibliophage @Cinfhen SFwrittenbyawoman
pickThe Left Hand of Darkness may be a bit cold at first, both in temperature—it takes place on a planet called Winter—and in tone—it starts with diplomatic missteps and political intrigue, but somewhere in the middle of the northern Gobrin ice sheet, I found myself feeling an immense warmth toward humanity. Gender, sex, I and Thou relationships, Taoism...there are as many reasons this book is a beloved classic as there are Gethenian words for snow.❄️
so-soI had high hopes for this book but it left me with mixed feelings. Fairly interesting story though slow going at times. Mainly I was put off by the fixation on the gender binary-- ironic for a book exploring a mostly genderless alien species. Very heteronormative, a bit sexist, and states a sexual drive is necessary to be human. Whew. Would've been much more interesting if the mc had those beliefs challenged or changed by the end, but alas.
A winter-themed light blue book that is overdue for a reread. #12ColoursofDecember #wintergames2020 #merryreaders, @Clwojick
+20 +1 points
pickOhhhh, book hangover! Another re-read (from a few years ago). I remembered the world and characters but little of the plot. Of course it's about gender (how could it not be?) but it's also about helpless miscommunication despite good intentions. At heart it's a story of trust and betrayal. UKLeG gives much to think about but she touches the heart too: how on earth did I forget that ending when it's taken me two days, this time, to post a review?
"The only thing that makes life possible is permanent, intolerable uncertainty: not knowing what comes next."
2020: year of a whole new level of possibility! ?
pickThis is a struggle between a pick and so-so. It's short, only 215 pages, but so densely packed and paced, with long stretches of no dialogue just descriptions of snow and ice. It also didn't help that there was alternating POV both in first person that confused me who was speaking at times.
3 🌨🌨🌨
4th book for #votedearly (25:41:11) @howjessreads
1st book for #crushtherush (11:23:06) @Kelly_the_Bookish_Sidekick
I'll make my report as if I told a story, for I was taught as a child on my homeworld that Truth is a matter of the imagination.
#FirstLineFridays @ShyBookOwl
A rare book haul 📚 I made a trip into the city so,of course, had to pop in to Kinokuniya! These are both books which have been on my TBR for a long time
