My Sister the Moon by Sue Harrison

My Sister the Moon is the second book in the Ivory Carver Trilogy by Sue Harrison.  It picks up several years after the first book and follows the same tribe that was formed with Chagak, although the book doesn't focus on her this time.

This time it focuses on Kiin, who is only named part of the way into the book because she is so despised by her father.  Instead of being left for dead as an infant, the leader of the tribe decided to betroth his son to her and thus force her father to let her live.  Because she was not a son, he did everything in his power to make it rough for her.  Add in a brother who is jealous and Kiin had a rough childhood.  And it didn't stop there, shortly after marrying the leader's son, her brother kidnaps her and sells her, just when she's learned she's pregnant.

Kiin is another strong woman, just like in the previous book.  She has a lot of hardships thrown at her and the world is especially cruel to her, but she perseveres anyway.  And she also has a lot of talent, which helps her try to rise in the world.  Although she is still at the mercy of the men around her for the most part.  Which is discouraging, but relevant to the time period.  Again, the bad guys in this are bad with no redeeming qualities and while you can understand their motives, they still don't seem quite real because they are so bad.

There were so many twists and turns in this book.  Just when you think good is going to prevail something else happens to screw it up.  The theme for this book was very heavily weighted towards power.  Everyone wants power and control and don't really care if it hurts others in the process.  Because of this the book is pretty dark with topics covering rape, incest and lots of violence.  I would strongly suggest not reading it if any of these topics are too hard for you.  But it is very real because of that.  The world is not always a very nice place and this book illustrates that perfectly. 

And because this book ended on a cliff-hanger, I of course have to finish the trilogy and find out what happens.  But I'm looking forward to it!

My Sister the Moon
Copyright 1992
449 pages

Mother Earth, Father Sky by Sue Harrison

From the Gears, to Auel, there is a lot of historical fiction out there.  But it's an enjoyable genre.  So much so that I was compelled to start reading this trilogy, the Iron Carver Trilogy by Sue Harrison.  This is the first book in the series, Mother Earth, Father Sky, and it is followed by My Sister the Moon and Brother Wind.

Chagak is living a pretty normal life for her people.  As an adult, she will soon be married and is eagerly awaiting the prospect of a family of her own.  But one day, returning to her village, she finds it being destroyed by warriors from another tribe.  The lone survivor aside from her baby brother, she sets off for a different island with him in tow and manages to find an island inhabited only by a lone Shaman who allows her to stay.  But she's not the only one who finds the island and she has to learn to deal with the prospect of becoming a wife to the man who killed her family.

Chagak is a very strong character.  So strong sometimes that she doesn't' seem real.  But it was a different life and just because I can't fathom a reality like that, doesn't mean it couldn't happen.  And she has so many trouble that you really empathize with her and want the best for her.  I also liked the Shaman, he was very fatherly and helpful and just made you feel good about humanity.  That being said, he had his own troubles and could only do so much for Chagak.  Of course the bad guys were bad with few redeeming qualities and I thought that was a little bit of flat writing.  I like my antagonists with a little depth to them, but it's not an easy thing to do.

The plot was fairly simple.  Girl's village gets destroyed, girl goes out on her own, girl has to overcome overwhelming obstacles in a land where women aren't considered equals.  The history of humanity in the region.  But it's written cleverly enough that you get enveloped into the story and want to know what happens to Chagak.  If she can overcome all the odds and survive.  And if that survival will be happy.  There are a lot of tough scenes in it too, from rape to murder to other things.  Like most prehistoric fiction, it isn't for the squeamish.

An interesting start to the series.  It made me want to read the next one, that's for sure!

Mother Earth, Father Sky
Copyright 1990
313 pages

The Ultimate Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy by Douglas Adams

The Ultimate Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy has all five stories in one (plus an extra short).  Starting with the classic "Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy", then moving on to "The Restaurant At The End of the Universe", then to "Life, the Universe and Everything", "So Long and Thanks for all the Fish", the short "Young Zaphod Plays It Safe", and finally "Mostly Harmless."  I enjoyed all of these books to varying degrees, but there is definitely enough humour in here to entertain anyone.

My favorite is the original, ,"The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy".  Fast moving, it follows Arthur Dent, a human who is trying to get his house to not be knocked down, only to discover that the Earth is going to be destroyed so the house really doesn't matter.  With his friend, they escape narrowly in time and start traveling the Galaxy, leaping from one wild adventure to another.  From Zaphod, the President who is more renegade than public leader, Ford Prefect, a writer for the Hitchhiker's Guide, and Trillian, another human caught up in the space adventure, there are plenty of beings to keep the book moving.

For the rest of the books within this gigantic compilation, Arthur goes on many more adventures, as does his companions.  I can't say I cared for the adventures quite as much, although they certainly had gems of humor in them and weren't terrible to read by any stretch of the imagination. You just tend to lose connection with some of the characters at times (except for Marvin, he is always consistent).  I will say that I enjoyed So Long, and Thanks for All the Fish quite a bit as well.  I liked Arthur's girlfriend and their discoveries while on Earth and with each other.  I was sad that that particular part of the story was so short.

Overall the books followed a great theme.  Traversing space with a book and a trusty towel and trying to survive.  There were antagonists, sure, but they weren't the main focus of the book(s).  The book was more about the journey.  The style of writing is pretty clear, although very detailed.  It definitely has some satire and there are other types of humor hidden all over.  I can't say that I understood every joke, but that may be because a lot were in reference to politics in other countries.  I did understand enough to be amused though.

A very interesting series of books.  You don't have to be a science fiction lover to appreciate these works by Douglas Adams.

The Ultimate Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy
Copyright 1992
815 pages