Lisa Tuttle's top 10 mould-breaking fantasy novels

[littlerdog.livejournal.com]

But there have always been fantasy novels that break the mould, and it's these more distinctive, individual explorations of the fantastic that are my favourites. So, if you think you don't like fantasy – or even if you do – check these out. They don't have dragons or sexy vampires, but they're filled with real magic.

The Land of Laughs by Jonathan Carroll;
Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell by Susanna Clarke;
Ægypt by John Crowley;
The Magus by John Fowles;
Mortal Love by Elizabeth Hand;
The Course of the Heart by M John Harrison;
The Haunting of Hill House by Shirley Jackson;
The Silent Land by Graham Joyce;
The City & the City by China Miéville;
A Traveller in Time by Allison Uttley.

I've read Jonathan Strange and, er, possibly the Hill House book. I have a vague memory of reading that recently. Damn, I miss my GR account.

9 Women Who Shaped Science Fiction -- Buzzfeed

[littlerdog.livejournal.com]

Everyone knows about the fathers of science fiction, but what about the mothers?

Lois McMaster Bujold;
Ursula K. Le Guin;
Judith Merril;
Charlotte Perkins Gilman;
Rokeya Sakhawat Hussain;
Jane C. Webb Loudon;
Margaret Cavendish, Duchess of Newcastle;
Virginia Woolf;
Mary Shelley.

I'm told that the entry about Woolf is almost entirely spurious. There is no connection between her and Odle. The article-writer was hoaxed, and I didn't actually read that far....