This dystopian novella is a finalist for the 2021 Hugo Award. It was published by Tor.com in February of 2020 and runs 171 pages. Gailey is a Campbell and Hugo Award winner and makes regular appearances in the list of Hugo nominees. This review contains spoilers.
Esther’s domineering father has killed her female lover and means to make her marry the man of his choice, so she has run away to join the traveling Librarians instead. These women bring materials to small towns to loan to residents which have been officially prepared and approved by the Media Review Committee, the Board of Materials Approval or the Textbook Approval and Research Council. Bet and Leda are angry to find Esther stowed away in one of their wagons, but they accept her into their group where she is attracted by the non-binary Cye. The group picks up three people who have asked for an escort to Utah, and suddenly they are battling for their lives against local sheriffs and their posses. Esther goes into a town for supplies and finds that Amity, one of the three, is an assassin for the rebels fighting against the State. Can they make it to Utah safely?
The word “Librarians” seems to have taken on broader connotations just lately, possibly because of the TNT films and TV franchise. It now seems to suggest protectors of knowledge and possibly antiquities and action against evil. In this case, the Librarians are, while ostensibly doing the State’s business, actually operatives of a rebel organization who distribute subversive literature along with the state approved media. This story also makes use of the name “Galahad”, which in the TNT series was the immortal leader of the organization.
The world building here suggests a major disaster of some kind has struck the US, and the current organization is four quadrants separated by a military corridor. The story references an industrialized Northeast that builds weaponry for war, but the local setting for the story is a very repressive, unpopulated Southwestern desert where towns are only about eight or ten buildings and protected by guard checkpoints. The theme seems to be freedom for LGBTQ women and people who fail to meet the cisgender requirements of the society. Esther is fairly well developed as a character and her attraction to Cye is well handled. The story starts with a strong emotional impact as Esther recalls the death of her lover and ends with a warm feeling of inclusion.
On the less positive side, a lot of this seems impossible. Horses appear and disappear as if by magic, and what must be long distances between towns seem to take just a short time to cross. There are no indications of farms or ranches or where water, ammo and food supplies come from. It’s also hard to reconcile a technological, developed Northeast with the barren conditions here. What happened to the ~330M population of the US? Although Esther and Cye are clear as characters, there’s very little to bring any of the others into focus. And why doesn’t the blond Esther totally burn up in the sun? She doesn’t even seem to have a hat.
Regarding the theme: There seems to be a mixture of messages here. The main one, of course, is freedom for LGBTQ women and non-binary people to pursue their lives and loves without interference. After her lover is killed, Esther flees and joins the subversives carrying out a revolution. That’s all okay, but the source of the repression is unclear. This feels something like the Scarlet Letter days, where the patriarchy ruled, but how did these people get from the fairly free society we have now to that condition? Next, all the sheriffs and their posses are men, so are they agents of the repressive state? Is this anti-patriarchy? And last, supposedly the State has wasted all the country’s resources on wars, leaving everyone poor, so is this anti-government? Actually, this political setting sounds like the results of the current “revolution” where anarchists are pushing to remove capitalism, small business and government, leaving people to fend for themselves. It doesn’t quite make sense.
Three and a half stars.
Lela E. Buis
Jun 01, 2021 @ 12:19:14
Comments are now open. Thanks for the heads up, Phantom! For those in the US, hope you had a great holiday weekend!
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The Phantom
Jun 01, 2021 @ 17:10:45
Holiday weekend yay! (Sadly, we are still under lockdown here in the Demented Dominion, every day is a day off. 😦 )
I love your comment that Esther doesn’t even have a hat in the desert. Also the magic horses that are always around when you want one and never need to be fed is a great one. Having lived in the Southwest, I can tell you that she’d last half a day with no hat. The sun is absolutely brutal, even in the winter.
This type of story is 100% on specification for Hugo nomination. All message, no substance, no attention to detail, dreary and dystopian. It’s nice that the girl gets her girl, but the rest of it? Eh.
You noticed that your Noble Revolutionary theme is back?
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Lela E. Buis
Jun 01, 2021 @ 17:51:04
Something I didn’t mention that I’m wondering about it the generous borrowing from the Librarians franchise. The borrowing from the Supers idea and the Invincibles was fairly loose, but this seems specific, as it’s used the name “Galadad.” Wouldn’t that border on copyright violation?
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The Phantom
Jun 02, 2021 @ 00:35:09
The Librarians with Noah Wyle and Rebecka Romjin in it? The Hugos nominated a Librarians fan-fic? ~:D That’s too funny!
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Lela E. Buis
Jun 02, 2021 @ 08:46:22
I’m not really familiar with the show, but yeah, maybe. The short story “Burn,” nominated for both the Nebula and the Hugo, uses a lot of the ideas from The Incredibles, too. Borrowing ideas is something of a tribute, but this one seems a bit close to the original.
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The Phantom
Jun 02, 2021 @ 09:51:16
Can’t really ding her for borrowing, I borrow ideas all the time. Brunhilde is a Bolo, right? Who can resist gun output measured in megatons per second? ~:D
But at least I give attribution. She’s a Bolo because George McIntyre is a Laumer fanboy. Everybody borrows, good manners require that you at least mention the originator.
I think it might be a bit much to borrow characters though, unless you’re writing a bona fide fanfic.
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Lela E. Buis
Jun 02, 2021 @ 09:55:58
Same here. Borrowing characters is most likely a copyright violation, but all this did was use the Librarians concept and mention Galahad, so maybe it’s not quite fanfic. Plus, it was published by Tor.com, which ought to be on top of copyright law.
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The Phantom
Jun 02, 2021 @ 11:09:15
Yeah, maybe not quite but certainly getting into the really dark grey part of the grey zone. Kind of like running away to join the Royal Manticoran Navy and casually mentioning Admiral Harrington.
I’m actually surprised by this. Published by Tor? Really? How the hell?
Is Sarah Gailey a super-special member of some super-special victim group? That would explain it.
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Lela E. Buis
Jun 02, 2021 @ 11:58:51
Billed as queer, nonbinary and disabled. It’s hard to tell these days if any of that is really true, as a ton of people in general seem to be advertising that in order to increase their employment/publication chances. The Academy Awards actually published requirements last year that said a company had to employ a certain percentage of minority types in ordered to be considered for the awards. I’m sure there are unpublished standards, as well.
Gailey is fairly well established as an imaginative writer. The last entry from her in the awards cycle that I recall was River of Teeth (2017), a western fantasy with hippopotami instead of horses.
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The Phantom
Jun 02, 2021 @ 15:46:25
“Billed as queer, nonbinary and disabled.” There you go. Bolstering your (and my) suspicion that the nominators don’t read this stuff, they go by their “Progressive Stack” decoder rings.
I wonder what trumps queer, nonbinary and disabled? Maybe I can get a nomination for Unfair Advantage if I put change my nom-de-plum’s bio.
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The Phantom
Jun 04, 2021 @ 23:07:49
By the way, it seems WorldCon apologized to Jon Del Arroz today and paid him money.
https://phantomsoapbox.blogspot.com/2021/06/worldcon-finds-pre-crime-doesnt-pay.html
First time I’ve seen a witch fight back after being burned at the stake.
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Lela E. Buis
Jun 05, 2021 @ 09:13:30
Huh. Settled his lawsuit out of court? Something like filing a lawsuit is a pain, but more people seem to be doing it to prove their point.
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The Phantom
Jun 05, 2021 @ 11:21:23
WorldCon offered the settlement, he accepted. Lots of people at the usual outlets trying to make this look good for WorldCon, but they folded. No upside for them taking it to trial, as the facts of the matter are not at issue. Funny how when you finally nail these people down to the facts, they fold like a cheap suit.
By “sheer coincidence” Del Arroz is banned on Farcebook and Twitler this week for “breaching community standards”. Which doesn’t seem suspicious in any way, right? Perfectly reasonable, nothing to see here, loosen that tinfoil hat there big guy.
Particularly given Microsoft removing Bing search results for Tank Man yesterday, one of the most blatant acts of censorship stupidity yet. Last night they were apologizing and calling it “human error.”
Sure.
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Lela E. Buis
Jun 05, 2021 @ 12:29:06
Yeah, right. The censorship is getting pretty obvious. Del Arroz was pushing for an opportunity, and could possibly be a horses’ patooty, but I’m glad he won one against cancel culture. Poor treatment turns some people into nasty trolls when acceptance of their different viewpoints would mean no problem.
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The Phantom
Jun 05, 2021 @ 14:45:07
Tell you what, all the cheering for Noah Ward at Sasquan pretty much finished me on playing nice with the Smof set. Gloves are on the ice now, and staying there.
Del Arroz, IMHO, is very much a wave-rider and energetic self-promoter. He’s in it for the clicks as far as I can see. Pretty good result for him, he’s getting some clicks right now despite Big Tech cancelling him.
But you know, that’s not a bad reason. Pure mercenary interest is not the worst thing in the world. Taking down political bullies for money, it’s a public service. ~:D
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Congratulations to the 2021 Hugo Winners! | Lela E. Buis
Feb 02, 2022 @ 23:00:24