The Future is Female! Volume Two: The 1970s
Ed. by Lisa Yaszek
This book is a follow-up to a previous anthology published by the prestigious Library of America that showcased classic science fiction stories by women from SF’s pulp era through the golden age. You can now get both volumes together as an attractive boxed set, though they’re also great as standalones.
Chronologically, we pick up here where the first book left off, with some names like Ursula K. Le Guin and James Tiptree, Jr. (Alice Sheldon) carrying over. But much in the literary landscape has changed. In the first book SF was in the process of being fashioned into its modern form and the writers were pioneers breaking new genre ground. In this collection we’re deeper into SF’s New Wave and the stories have become more overtly political, drawing on the politics and cultural energy of second-wave feminism in its heyday.
In general, the longer pieces tend to be the best because they allow for more ambiguity in the messaging, while the shorter ones involve more obvious sloganeering. Overall, however, editor Lisa Yaszek has come up with a great mix and, as is the case with most such historical anthologies, the real treat is in discovering some terrific but less well-known works by authors now largely forgotten.
Alex on SF 
I do like the sound of these.
LikeLiked by 1 person
They make for an interesting sort of object lesson on the evolution of feminism in the culture in the 20th century. The first book was more “stories by women” while in this one you feel more of the political edge. But they’re good stories too. Or most of them are.
LikeLiked by 2 people
Is she very big or is her spaseship very small?
LikeLike
Both. And she has big spaceballs too.
LikeLiked by 2 people
But are they brass?
LikeLiked by 1 person
They’re a special space alloy. Stronger than brass.
LikeLiked by 1 person
70s messaging was almost as bad as the stuff spewed out today. I doubt I could get past it.
I tend to go from the 50s and early 60s to the very late 70s n 80s, in general.
LikeLiked by 1 person
One of the more remarkable things I experienced reading these stories was seeing that even at its most political ’70s messaging wasn’t as crude and reductive as the stuff we get today. It’s weird how things have gotten better in terms of social justice in the last fifty years but the rhetoric has become more apocalyptic and angry.
LikeLiked by 2 people