In Other Worlds by Margaret Atwood

 

In this interesting volume, Margaret Atwood talks about her relationship with science fiction and fantasy.  She started as a child with her brother as they explored the fantasies of childhood and made up their own.  Atwood created a race of superhuman flying rabbits and gave them many adventures.  As she grew, she continued to read in this genre and while at university studied its relationship to literature.  

The part I found most interesting is her evaluation of other authors' works and their relationship to the genre.  She talks about Marge Piercy, H. Rider Haggard, Ursula K. Le Guin, Bill McKibben, George Orwell, H.G. Wells, Kazuo Ishiguro, Bryher, Aldous Huxley and Jonathan Swift and explores their work and how it contributed to the genre.

In the last section, she discusses her own work.  There is an excerpt from The Blind Assassin, she talks about cryogenics and other science fiction memes.  At the end there is a letter from her to the Judson School District which banned her book The Handmaid's Tale defending the work and the sexual aspect which show the attempt to control women's sexuality through the ages.  There is also a section about the gorgeous art covers that have often adorned works in fantasy and science fiction.

Margaret Atwood is a treasure.  She has written eighteen novels, eleven books of nonfiction, eighteen books of poetry and nine anthologies.  She is a Canadian author and a defining force in the genre.  Her book, The Handmaid's Tale has been made into a successful television series and several of her novels have been made into movies.  In this work, the reader gets to see beyond the pages at what Atwood was trying to accomplish with various works.  She sees sexuality as a normal part of childhood interest as they slowly become aware of it, and she also sees that women's sexuality has been controlled throughout the ages by whatever mechanism is available at the time.  This book is recommended for science fiction readers and those interested in authors' lives and thoughts about their work.