English language
Published Sept. 23, 2022 by Springer International Publishing AG.
NB! This is not Ancilliary Justice, but a crititical companion.
This book argues that Ann Leckie’s novel Ancillary Justice offers a devastating rebuke to the political, social, cultural, and economic injustices of American imperialism in the post 9/11 era. Following an introductory overview, the study offers four chapters that examine key themes central to the novel: gender, imperial economics, race, and revolutionary agency. Ancillary Justice’s exploration of these four themes, and the way it reveals how these issues are all fundamentally entangled with the problem of contemporary imperial power, warrants its status as a canonical work of science fiction for the twenty-first century. The book concludes with a brief interview with Leckie herself touching on each of the topics examined during the preceding chapters.
I only made it half-way. I had no idea what was going on and I didn't care enough to find out.
I only made it half-way. I had no idea what was going on and I didn't care enough to find out.
Given that many of my closest friendships were forged in the fires of shared literary interests, actually, I have very little overlap in tastes with my real life friends. So despite the fact that my best friend and I both obsessively read science fiction and fantasy, her recommending this to me was not particularly encouraging. She convinced me to read it by pitching the agender society and neurodiversity of the main character, but reading it I found the things that I would have used to pitch it to her in abundance: a deeply created society, such that every utterance of a character was pregnant with meaning, songs and poems that had built up layers of nuance over generations and elaborate rituals. Unlike the sorts of books she typically reads, most of this was implied so that Leckie developed the feel of an intricate created society without the burden of pages …
Given that many of my closest friendships were forged in the fires of shared literary interests, actually, I have very little overlap in tastes with my real life friends. So despite the fact that my best friend and I both obsessively read science fiction and fantasy, her recommending this to me was not particularly encouraging. She convinced me to read it by pitching the agender society and neurodiversity of the main character, but reading it I found the things that I would have used to pitch it to her in abundance: a deeply created society, such that every utterance of a character was pregnant with meaning, songs and poems that had built up layers of nuance over generations and elaborate rituals. Unlike the sorts of books she typically reads, most of this was implied so that Leckie developed the feel of an intricate created society without the burden of pages and pages of exposition. So I, who hate slow books actually quite enjoyed it.
I liked the exploration of how do very diverse societies clock gender, what does it mean to be an entity (is continuity of consciousness real?) and how do societies change over time
One of the more painful things i have read, and that includes much that hurt. very well worth it. Gains strength on the re-read, too.
One of the more painful things i have read, and that includes much that hurt. very well worth it. Gains strength on the re-read, too.
Finished all 3 books in the Imperial Radch trilogy: Ancillary Justice, Ancillary Sword, and Ancillary Mercy.
Possible spoilers, but not really.
It took me 20% of the book and over 3 weeks (I had to re-new my library loan) to get into Ancillary Justice. A big reason I did was because a friend looked up stuff about the book and gave me just enough spoilers that I could keep going without all the spoilers.
I understood what was going on from the outset and the many/one perspective as not an issue, but I missed the length of the time-jump, or at least could not retain the length. I know people get irritated when key points are reiterated throughout a book, but that one needed to be. I also did not like the narrator until probably 80% of the way into the book. The authors goal is that you never forget …
Finished all 3 books in the Imperial Radch trilogy: Ancillary Justice, Ancillary Sword, and Ancillary Mercy.
Possible spoilers, but not really.
It took me 20% of the book and over 3 weeks (I had to re-new my library loan) to get into Ancillary Justice. A big reason I did was because a friend looked up stuff about the book and gave me just enough spoilers that I could keep going without all the spoilers.
I understood what was going on from the outset and the many/one perspective as not an issue, but I missed the length of the time-jump, or at least could not retain the length. I know people get irritated when key points are reiterated throughout a book, but that one needed to be. I also did not like the narrator until probably 80% of the way into the book. The authors goal is that you never forget what the narrator is, but I was disgusted by the way these ancillaries were made. It is at least discussed, if not addressed to resolution, that the ancillaries themselves are not responsible for how they are made.
Bit of a slow starter for me but was absolutely into it by the end! Really dig the narration & the treatment of gender from a gender neutral perspective!
A science fiction book that did something new, successfully. It's space opera, it uses a lot of standard science fiction tropes, but nonetheless something quite original emerges. Strong characterization, characters you care about, and some quite alien modes of existing and thinking.
A science fiction book that did something new, successfully. It's space opera, it uses a lot of standard science fiction tropes, but nonetheless something quite original emerges. Strong characterization, characters you care about, and some quite alien modes of existing and thinking.
Ancilary Justice è prima di tutto una riflessione sul potere e sulle sue contraddizioni, poi una riflessione sul concetto di identità e, infine il ritratto di un bellissimo personaggio: Breq, un frammento della coscienza di una grande astronave millenaria, la Justice di Toren, intrappolato in un unico corpo, dopo la distruzione del vascello in cui risiedeva il centro della sua mente (lascio al lettore il piacere di scoprire cosa siano questi corpi e cosa questi comportino). Chi ha causato la distruzione di Justice di Toren? Cosa sta succedendo veramente nel Grande impero Raadchai? Una vicenda ricca tanto di colpi di scena quanto di spunti di riflessione come solo un grande romanzo di fantascienza riesce ad essere.
Took me a while to get into this book (it was a gift) since I am not an experienced scifi reader, but it is really quite awesome! Read the second part immediately after this one.
Wow. This is the first real world-building scifi I've read in a while that wasn't a continuation of an existing world, so the first few chapters were a bit of a wade as it set the scene. Then the book took off and I couldn't put it down.
A lot's been made of the way Leckie handles gender, and it is an interesting detail. Personally, I also really appreciated a related part of this world: that languages are hard. So much scifi waves away all language problems with some kind of magic translator, but in this book it's repeatedly made clear that characters have to invest time and effort into learning each others' languages, those who haven't put in the effort simply can't communicate, and those who have routinetly find some things easier to say in some languages than others. It's one of those details that helped make a world …
Wow. This is the first real world-building scifi I've read in a while that wasn't a continuation of an existing world, so the first few chapters were a bit of a wade as it set the scene. Then the book took off and I couldn't put it down.
A lot's been made of the way Leckie handles gender, and it is an interesting detail. Personally, I also really appreciated a related part of this world: that languages are hard. So much scifi waves away all language problems with some kind of magic translator, but in this book it's repeatedly made clear that characters have to invest time and effort into learning each others' languages, those who haven't put in the effort simply can't communicate, and those who have routinetly find some things easier to say in some languages than others. It's one of those details that helped make a world in which there's a lot of almost-invincible tech and so on feel that much more real.
2nd time reading this one. Wish I had written a review the first time
I prefer the smug Ships of the Culture to these brooding ones. The book throws a flood of esoteric concepts, proper names, and entities at you from the outset (an "Ancillary" is one of thousands of zombie cyborg avatars of a sentient troop-transport starship, a "Justice," and that doesn't even get into the ten different types of Ancillaries and the crazy-ass larger human society they inhabit). It seemed very clear to me that the far-future human society being depicted was some Imperial mishmash of East Asian traditions, but then I went and read the author interview in the back, where she claimed her inspiration was the Roman Empire! No. Way.
I prefer the smug Ships of the Culture to these brooding ones. The book throws a flood of esoteric concepts, proper names, and entities at you from the outset (an "Ancillary" is one of thousands of zombie cyborg avatars of a sentient troop-transport starship, a "Justice," and that doesn't even get into the ten different types of Ancillaries and the crazy-ass larger human society they inhabit). It seemed very clear to me that the far-future human society being depicted was some Imperial mishmash of East Asian traditions, but then I went and read the author interview in the back, where she claimed her inspiration was the Roman Empire! No. Way.
The ship that sings as a revenant bent on revenge. Filled with great ideas, characters and settings. Deserves all the praise it got.
Few books have the power to transform the way you think about reading. Ancillary Justice raises deep questions about the nature of personality and of social roles; questions that may remain with you long after you've finished reading and may affect how you think about language. (Note: the reading itself may be tough going at times. Stick with it). I can't say much more without spoiling your experience, and this is one voyage you need to take your time on.
Clumsy in places: some plot elements involving superstition, religion, military command structure, and family intrigues were hard to swallow, and IMO detracted slightly from the story, but they're forgivable. Worth taking off one star but the rest of the book is so damn good (6-7 stars) that it balances out to 5.
Few books have the power to transform the way you think about reading. Ancillary Justice raises deep questions about the nature of personality and of social roles; questions that may remain with you long after you've finished reading and may affect how you think about language. (Note: the reading itself may be tough going at times. Stick with it). I can't say much more without spoiling your experience, and this is one voyage you need to take your time on.
Clumsy in places: some plot elements involving superstition, religion, military command structure, and family intrigues were hard to swallow, and IMO detracted slightly from the story, but they're forgivable. Worth taking off one star but the rest of the book is so damn good (6-7 stars) that it balances out to 5.
Totally unique characters and world. Some of the political convolutions of the plot were slightly hard to follow. Really really interesting read though.
3.5/5
I think the book suffered from its own hype. Going into the novel with all the awards and accolades it's received my expectations were pretty high. As always, it's easier to criticize than praise, but the bar was set pretty high for this first trilogy piece.
Firstly, the book is very slow until the final act. It was not a quick hook. On a similar note, the final act is very hurried. The last chapter has a flurry of action that would have been better spaced out.
Partly because of the condensed ending and the difficulty of determining characters, the ending is confusing. I already tagged the review as spoilered, so I'll go ahead and say: the plot twist with anaander mianaai is very cool and interesting as a plot development point, but almost incomprehensible from the narrative. It's never quiet clear which anaander is speaking or which breq …
3.5/5
I think the book suffered from its own hype. Going into the novel with all the awards and accolades it's received my expectations were pretty high. As always, it's easier to criticize than praise, but the bar was set pretty high for this first trilogy piece.
Firstly, the book is very slow until the final act. It was not a quick hook. On a similar note, the final act is very hurried. The last chapter has a flurry of action that would have been better spaced out.
Partly because of the condensed ending and the difficulty of determining characters, the ending is confusing. I already tagged the review as spoilered, so I'll go ahead and say: the plot twist with anaander mianaai is very cool and interesting as a plot development point, but almost incomprehensible from the narrative. It's never quiet clear which anaander is speaking or which breq is supporting. I believe this confusion is intentional, but I don't think it's helpful.
Much has been made about the gender play in the book, using only female pronouns. I actually thought this was pretty interesting, but could have been better executed. It seemed a little on the nose, and many of Breq's encounters on the first planet seemingly existed to remark on her gender differences. The end result was that I felt Leckie hammering this point where simply committing to Breq's perspective and enforcing the pronouns throughout would have been stronger.
Difficulties in pacing and experimentation aside, I really enjoyed the retro feel of the novel. It definitely has echoes of old style space opera, and the ancillary system was very cool to think about (and pretty well implemented in the multiple characters speaking). If anything, I think it might have erred a bit too much on explanation, hardly a rare sin in the genre, but it often felt that Breq was explaining herself to me rather than always existing in her world.
Good, but not as amazing as I'd hoped.
