books

<p>A refreshing change from the depressing dystopian science fiction which seems to be de rigeur these days. And ironically, that makes it more like actual science fiction than the “realistic” SF that just brings me down.</p><p>Framed as a series of oral history interviews of survivors of the end of capitalism by the authors about the emergence of a post-capitalist society, or cooperating societies, it’s a surprisingly hopeful read, even though there are elements that may seem rather alien to the modern reader. Particularly straight older readers like me!</p><p>But the idea of a world of communes without money or wages, where people feed and care for each other simply because they’re human beings, is incredibly refreshing. It makes me want to read more.</p><p>There are a couple of points that did strike me as odd, though. One was the almost total lack of any mention of New England. The oral histories focus on New York, but the near-total lack of any sort of role for New England seemed a bit odd to this New Englander. It’s as if the whole region had been scraped off the map! Other areas were mentioned, such as New Jersey and New Orleans. But not one word about anywhere in New England except Maine, and that was very limited. I couldn’t help but wonder why.</p><p>Another odd point was the near-universality of trans-hood (if that’s the right word for it). Virtually everyone interviewed was trans to one degree or another, and I can’t recall a single cis person. In fact it was specified that the incidence of transsexualism had been constantly rising since the initial crisis point and failure of capitalism.</p><p>This was explicitly tied into huge technological advances in the field, including the option for any gender to gestate offspring. Although initially done via surgical alterations, it was specified later that gene therapy could also accomplish complete regendering - a process which was apparently a relatively casual choice.</p><p>This is the point where I’m guessing many readers of this review will find me hopelessly old-fashioned and sexist and contemptible, I suspect. I don’t find the notion of gender change particularly disgusting; Robert A. Heinlein was writing about that sort of thing in the &#x27;80s, as I recall - albeit in a frequently creepy way. The oft-neglected Justin F. Leiber (son of the great SF author Fritz Leiber) covered the same subject far more professionally in Beyond Rejection (1980). I just find it strains my suspension of disbelief to buy the notion that the majority of the human race would effectively abandon the whole notion of gender within a period of 50 to 80 years.</p><p>Maybe I’m wrong. We’ll see. That said, I would gladly adjust to any number of changes in order to live in a world where we survive the end of capitalism and fascism. And “Everything For Everyone” presents a vision of such a world in a way that gives me hope.</p><p>I’ll definitely read it again.</p>

<p>I’m writing an 18+ superhero story. My main character is a young man/woman (I don’t know their gender yet). They are a stripper and get powers from overdosing on a street drug that gives you superpowers. After that, their 31-year-old boyfriend dies (he’s older than my main character). My character decides to find his killer and originally plans to kill them but chooses justice over revenge and hands them over to the police, and then they decide to become a superhero vigilante.</p><p>Really this origin story is about love and justice VS revenge. It’s a young man or woman in love with a slightly older man or woman with baggage, and when they are murdered, my main character with their superpowers has to decide how they move forward. They know they are taking the law into their own hands, but will he/she choose revenge or justice? Will they let their hate and grief control them to murder the killer, or do the right thing and honor the boyfriend/girlfriend and bring their killer to justice?</p><p>It’s about how these people murdered this innocent man/woman that my main character loved. The pain you gave was unprovoked, but despite all this, they know the boyfriend/girlfriend wouldn’t want them to become a murderer and get revenge, so they decide to send them to prison. They choose justice despite in their hearts wanting to kill them.</p><p>What could make the tragedy even heavier is if, before the person is killed, they cheat on their partner with an ex. They get into a heated argument with that ex, yell, and then immediately regret it. Feeling awful about what happened, they confess everything to their partner and genuinely beg for forgiveness. But the partner leaves. Heartbroken and jealous, knowing the person truly loved their partner more, the ex kills them. This adds to the survivor’s guilt—if they had stayed, they might’ve saved them. It also brings a more mature layer to the relationship, showing how people can make a terrible mistake, feel genuine remorse, and still seek forgiveness.</p><p>How old do you think my character is?</p>