Fiction and Essays (view Full Listing)

• 15 • Introduction (What Makes This Book So Great) • essay by Jo Walton
• 17 • Why I Re-Read • (2008) • essay by Jo Walton
• 21 • A Deepness in the Sky, the Tragical History of Pham Nuwen • (2008) • essay by Jo Walton
• 24 • The Singularity Proble and Non-Problem • (2008) • essay by Jo Walton
• 27 • Random Acts of Senseless Violence: Why Isn't It a Classic of the Field? • (2008) • essay by Jo Walton
• 30 • From Herring to Marmalade: The Perfect Plot of Dirk Gently's Holistic Detective Agency • (2008) • essay by Jo Walton
• 33 • "That's Just Scenery": What Do We Mean by "Mainstream"? • (2008) • essay by Jo Walton
• 36 • Re-Reading Long Series • (2008) • essay by Jo Walton
• 40 • The Dystopic Earths of Heinlein's Juveniles • (2008) • essay by Jo Walton
• 43 • Happiness, Meaning and Significance: Karl Schroeder's Lady of Mazes • (2008) • essay by Jo Walton
• 45 • The Weirdest Book in the World • (2008) • essay by Jo Walton
• 48 • The Poetry of Deep Time: Arthur C. Clarke's Against the Fall of Night • (2008) • essay by Jo Walton
• 51 • Clarke Reimagined in Hot Pink: Tanith Lee's Biting the Sun • (2008) • essay by Jo Walton
• 55 • Something Rich and Strange: Candas Jane Dorsey's Black Wine • (2008) • essay by Jo Walton
• 59 • To Trace Impunity: Greg Egan's Permutation City • (2008) • essay by Jo Walton
• 61 • Black and White and Read a Million Times: Jerry Pournelle's Janissaries • (2008) • essay by Jo Walton
• 63 • College as Magic Garden: Why Pamela Dean's Tam Lin Is a Book You'll Either Love or Hate • (2008) • essay by Jo Walton
• 66 • Making the Future Work: Maureen McHugh's China Mountain Zhang • (2008) • essay by Jo Walton
• 69 • Anathem: What Does It Gain from Not Being Our World? • (2008) • essay by Jo Walton
• 71 • A Happy Ending Depends on When You Stop: Heavy Time, Hellburner and C.J. Cherryh's Alliance-Union Universe • (2008) • essay by Jo Walton
• 74 • Knights Who Say "Fuck": Swearing in Genre Fiction • (2008) • essay by Jo Walton
• 77 • "Earth Is One World": C.J. Cherryh's Downbelow Station • (2008) • essay by Jo Walton
• 80 • Space Is Wide and Good Friends Are Too Few: Cherryh's Merchanter Novels • (2008) • essay by Jo Walton
• 82 • "A Need to Deal Wounds": Rape of Men in Cherryh's Union-Alliance Novels • (2008) • essay by Jo Walton
• 85 • How to Talk to Writers • (2008) • essay by Jo Walton
• 89 • "Give Me Back the Berlin Wall": Ken MacLeod's The Sky Road • (2009) • essay by Jo Walton
• 91 • What a Pity She Couldn't Have Single-Handedly Invented Science Fiction!: George Eliot's Middlemarch • (2009) • essay by Jo Walton
• 95 • The beauty of lists: Angelica Gorodischer's Kalpa Imperial • (2009) • essay by Jo Walton
• 98 • Like Pop Rocks for the Brain: Samuel R. Delany's Stars in My Pocket Like Grains of Sand • (2009) • essay by Jo Walton
• 103 • Between Two Worlds: S. P. Somtow's Jasmine Nights • (2009) • essay by Jo Walton
• 107 • Lots of Reasons to Love These: Daniel Abraham's Long Price books • (2009) • essay by Jo Walton
• 110 • Maori Fantasy: Keri Hulme's The Bone People • (2009) • essay by Jo Walton
• 113 • Better to Have Loved and Lost? Series That Go Downhill • (2009) • essay by Jo Walton
• 117 • More Questions Than Answers: Robert A. Heinlein's The Stone Pillow • (2009) • essay by Jo Walton
• 119 • Weeping for Her Enemies: Lois McMaster Bujold's Shards of Honor • (2009) • essay by Jo Walton
• 123 • Forward Momentum: Lois McMaster Bujold's The Warrior's Apprentice • (2009) • essay by Jo Walton
• 126 • Quest for Ovaries: Lois McMaster Bujold's Ethan of Athos • (2009) • essay by Jo Walton
• 129 • Why He Must Not Fail: Lois McMaster Bujold's The Borders of Infinity • (2009) • essay by Jo Walton
• 132 • What Have You Done with Your Baby Brother?: Lois McMaster Bujold's Brothers in Arms • (2009) • essay by Jo Walton
• 135 • Hard on His Superiors: Lois McMaster Bujold's The Vor Game • (2009) • essay by Jo Walton
• 139 • One Birth, One Death, and All the Acts of Pain and Will Between: Lois Mcmaster Bujold's Barrayar • (2009) • essay by Jo Walton
• 143 • All True Wealth Is Biological: Lois McMaster Bujold's Mirror Dance • (2009) • essay by Jo Walton
• 148 • Luck Is Something You Make for Yourself: Lois McMaster Bujold's Cetaganda • (2009) • essay by Jo Walton
• 151 • This Is My Old Identity, Actually: Lois McMaster Bujold's Memory • (2009) • essay by Jo Walton
• 155 • But I'm Vor: Lois McMaster Bujold's Komarr • (2009) • essay by Jo Walton
• 158 • She's Getting Away!: Lois McMaster Bujold's A Civil Campaign • (2009) • essay by Jo Walton
• 163 • Just My Job: Lois McMaster Bujold's Diplomatic Immunity • (2009) • essay by Jo Walton
• 166 • Every Day Is a Gift: Lois McMaster Bujold's "Winterfair Gifts" • (2009) • essay by Jo Walton
• 169 • Choose Again, and Change: Lois McMaster Bujold's Vorkosigan Saga • (2009) • essay by Jo Walton
• 172 • So, What Sort of Series Do You Like? • (2009) • essay by Jo Walton
• 176 • Time Travel and Slavery: Octavia Butler's Kindred • (2009) • essay by Jo Walton
• 179 • America the Beautiful: Terry Bisson's Fire on the Mountain • (2009) • essay by Jo Walton
• 183 • Susan Palwick's Shelter • (2009) • essay by Jo Walton
• 186 • Scintillations of a Sensory Syrynx: Samuel Delany's Nova • (2009) • essay by Jo Walton
• 190 • You May Not Know It, But You Want to Read This: Francis Spufford's Backroom Boys: The Secret Return of the British Boffin • (2009) • essay by Jo Walton
• 193 • Faster Than Light at Any Speed • (2009) • essay by Jo Walton
• 196 • Gender and Glaciers: Ursula K. Le Guin's The Left Hand of Darkness • (2009) • essay by Jo Walton
• 201 • Licensed to Sell Weasels and Jade Earrings: The Short Stories of Lord Dunsany • (2009) • essay by Jo Walton
• 206 • The Net of a Million Lies: Vernor Vinge's A Fire Upon the Deep • (2009) • essay by Jo Walton
• 209 • The Worst Book I Love: Robert Heinlein's Friday • (2009) • essay by Jo Walton
• 212 • India's Superheroes: Salman Rushdie's Midnight's Children • (2009) • essay by Jo Walton
• 215 • A Funny Book with a Lot of Death in It: Iain Banks's The Crow Road • (2009) • essay by Jo Walton
• 218 • More Dimensions Than You'd Expect; Samuel Delany's Babel 17 • (2009) • essay by Jo Walton
• 221 • Bad, But Good: David Feintuch's Midshipman's Hope • (2009) • essay by Jo Walton
• 224 • Subtly Twisted History: John M. Ford's The Dragon Waiting • (2009) • essay by Jo Walton
• 227 • A Very Long Poem: Alan Garner's Red Shift • (2009) • essay by Jo Walton
• 232 • Beautiful, Poetic, and Experimental: Roger Zelazny's Doorways in the Sand • (2009) • essay by Jo Walton
• 236 • Waking the Dragon: George R. R. Martin's A Song of Ice and Fire • (2009) • essay by Jo Walton
• 239 • Who Reads Cosy Catastrophes? • (2009) • essay by Jo Walton
• 242 • Stalinism vs Champagne at the Opera: Constantine Fitzgibbon's When the Kissing Had to Stop • (2009) • essay by Jo Walton
• 246 • The Future of the Commonwealth: Nevil Shute's In the Wet • (2009) • essay by Jo Walton
• 253 • Twists of the Godgame: John Fowles's The Magus • (2009) • essay by Jo Walton
• 257 • Playing the Angles on a World: Steven Brust's Dragaera • (2009) • essay by Jo Walton
• 260 • Jhereg Feeds on Others' Kills: Steven Brust's Jhereg • (2009) • essay by Jo Walton
• 264 • Yendi Coils and Strikes Unseen: Steven Brust's Yendi • (2009) • essay by Jo Walton
• 266 • A Coachman's Tale: Steven Brust's Brokedown Palace • (2009) • essay by Jo Walton
• 268 • Frightened Teckla Hides in Grass: Steven Brust's Teckla • (2009) • essay by Jo Walton
• 271 • How Can You Tell?: Steven Brust's Taltos • (2009) • essay by Jo Walton
• 273 • Phoenix Rise from Ashes Grey: Steven Brust's Phoenix • (2009) • essay by Jo Walton
• 276 • I Have Been Asking for Nothing Else for an Hour: Steven Brust's The Phoenix Guards • (2009) • essay by Jo Walton
• 279 • Athyra Rules Minds' Interplay: Steven Brust's Athyra • (2009) • essay by Jo Walton
• 282 • What, Is There More?: Steven Brust's Five Hundred Years After • (2009) • essay by Jo Walton
• 285 • Orca Circles, Hard and Lean: Steven Brust's Orca • (2009) • essay by Jo Walton
• 287 • Haughty Dragon Yearns to Slay: Steven Brust's Dragon • (2009) • essay by Jo Walton
• 290 • Issola Strikes from Courtly Bow: Steven Brust's Issola • (2009) • essay by Jo Walton
• 293 • What Has Gone Before? • (2009) • essay by Jo Walton
• 295 • The Time About Which I Have the Honor to Write: Steven Brust's The Viscount of Adrilankha • (2009) • essay by Jo Walton
• 298 • Dzur Stalks and Blends with Night: Steven Brust's Dzur • (2009) • essay by Jo Walton
• 301 • Jhegaala Shifts As Moments Pass: Steven Brust's Jhegaala • (2009) • essay by Jo Walton
• 304 • Quiet Iorich Won't Forget: Steven Brust's Iorich • (2009) • essay by Jo Walton
• 307 • Quakers in Space: Molly Gloss's The Dazzle of Day • (2009) • essay by Jo Walton
• 309 • Locked in Our Separate Skulls: Raphael Carter's The Fortunate Fall • (2010) • essay by Jo Walton
• 313 • Saving Both Worlds: Katherine Blake (Dorothy Heydt)'s The Interior Life • (2010) • essay by Jo Walton
• 316 • Yearning for the Unattainable: James Tiptree Jr.'s Short Stories • (2010) • essay by Jo Walton
• 319 • SF Reading Protocols • (2010) • essay by Jo Walton
• 324 • Incredibly Readable: Robert A. Heinlein's The Door Into Summer • (2010) • essay by Jo Walton
• 329 • Nasty, But Brilliant: John Barnes's Kaleidoscope Century • (2010) • essay by Jo Walton
• 332 • Growing Up in a Space Dystopia: John Barnes's Orbital Resonance • (2010) • essay by Jo Walton
• 336 • The Joy of an Unfinished Series • (2010) • essay by Jo Walton
• 339 • Fantasy and the Need to Remake Our Origin Stories • (2010) • essay by Jo Walton
• 344 • The Mind, the Heart, Sex, Class, Feminism, True Love, Intrigue, Not Your Everyday Ho-Hum Detective Story: Dorothy Sayers's Gaudy Night • (2010) • essay by Jo Walton
• 349 • Three Short Hainish Novels: Ursula K. Le Guin's Rocannon's World, Planet of Exile and City of Illusions • (2010) • essay by Jo Walton
• 354 • On Reflection, Not Very Dangerous: Harlan Ellison's The Last Dangerous Visions • (2010) • essay by Jo Walton
• 358 • Why Do I Re-Read Things I Don't Like? • (2010) • essay by Jo Walton
• 361 • Yakking About Who's Civilized and Who's Not: H. Beam Piper's Space Viking • (2010) • essay by Jo Walton
• 364 • Feast or Famine? • (2010) • essay by Jo Walton
• 367 • Review: Bellona, Destroyer of Cities, Jay Scheib's Play of Samuel Delany's Dhalgren • (2010) • essay by Jo Walton
• 370 • Not Much Changes on the Street, Only the Faces: George Alec Effinger's When Gravity Fails • (2010) • essay by Jo Walton
• 373 • History Inside-Out: Howard Waldrop's Them Bones • (2010) • essay by Jo Walton
• 376 • I'd Love This Book If I Didn't Loathe the Protagonist: Harry Turtledove and Judith Tarr's Household Gods • (2010) • essay by Jo Walton
• 380 • Screwball Comedy Time Travel: John Kessel's Corrupting Dr. Nice • (2010) • essay by Jo Walton
• 383 • Academic Time Travel: Connie Willis's To Say Nothing of the Dog • (2010) • essay by Jo Walton
• 386 • The Society of Time: John Brunner's Times Without Number • (2010) • essay by Jo Walton
• 388 • Five Short Stories with Useless Time Travel • (2010) • essay by Jo Walton
• 390 • Time Control: Isaac Asimov's The End of Eternity • (2010) • essay by Jo Walton
• 393 • Texan Ghost Fantasy: Sean Stewart's Perfect Circle • (2010) • essay by Jo Walton
• 395 • The Language of Stones: Terri Windling's The Wood Wife • (2010) • essay by Jo Walton
• 399 • A Great Castle Made of Sea: Why Hasn't Susanna Clarke's Jonathan Strange & Mr. Norrell Been More Influential? • (2010) • essay by Jo Walton
• 402 • Gulp or Sip: How Do You Read? • (2010) • essay by Jo Walton
• 405 • Quincentenniel: Arthur C. Clarke's Imperial Earth • (2010) • essay by Jo Walton
• 409 • Do You Skim? • (2010) • essay by Jo Walton
• 412 • A Merrier World: J. R. R. Tolkien's The Hobbit • (2010) • essay by Jo Walton
• 417 • Monuments from the Future: Robert Charles Wilson's The Chronoliths • (2010) • essay by Jo Walton
• 420 • The Suck Fairy • (2010) • essay by Jo Walton
• 423 • Trains on the Moon: John M. Ford's Growing Up Weightless • (2010) • essay by Jo Walton
• 427 • Overloading the Senses: Samuel Delany's Nova • (2010) • essay by Jo Walton
• 431 • Aliens and Jesuits: James Blish's A Case of Conscience • (2010) • essay by Jo Walton
• 438 • Swiftly Goes the Swordplay: Poul Anderson's The Broken Sword • (2010) • essay by Jo Walton
• 441 • The Work of Disenchantment Never Ends: Kim Stanley Robinson's Icehenge • (2011) • essay by Jo Walton
• 444 • Literary Criticism Vs Talking About Books • essay by Jo Walton