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nenya_kanadka's review against another edition
4.0
Falling In Love With Hominids lives up to its title. Some stories worked better for me than others, but there were a lot of really neat characters and the general impression I got fit very much into the theme Hopkinson discusses in the prologue, of all the different ways people find hope and connection. The "Emily Breakfast" story definitely stuck out to me. Others that have stuck with me in the month or two since I read this collection were the one with ghosts in a shopping mall and the Borderlands entry ("Ours Is The Prettiest"). Also the girl with one shoe (really sad!) and the one early in the collection with the girl, the creepy tree, and terrifying the shit out of an awful dude at a party (difficult to read at some points, but a solid story with a triumphant ending). And the one with the kids that grow super super slowly. Oh, and "The Easthound," the one that opens the collection.
This book combined three major things: Afro-Carribean culture, science fiction, and queer characters. Most of the science fiction I've read has starred mostly white and mostly straight characters (with some exceptions), and most of the queer literature I've read hasn't had much of a sci-fi bent, and I haven't read nearly enough non-Anglo literature at all. So it was really cool to read something in the genre of my heart where I felt really at home with so many LGBT+ characters (written like the author is either one of us or has spent a lot of time in queer communities, too) but where many of the characters had backgrounds and cultural references that were new to me. Kind of the reverse of so much where I'm alienated by the wall-to-wall straightness and too comfortable with the vaguely US/UK settings.
I definitely clicked more with this collection than I did with the other Hopkinson I've read (Sister Mine). Much less sexual assault and incest, heh, among other things!
This book combined three major things: Afro-Carribean culture, science fiction, and queer characters. Most of the science fiction I've read has starred mostly white and mostly straight characters (with some exceptions), and most of the queer literature I've read hasn't had much of a sci-fi bent, and I haven't read nearly enough non-Anglo literature at all. So it was really cool to read something in the genre of my heart where I felt really at home with so many LGBT+ characters (written like the author is either one of us or has spent a lot of time in queer communities, too) but where many of the characters had backgrounds and cultural references that were new to me. Kind of the reverse of so much where I'm alienated by the wall-to-wall straightness and too comfortable with the vaguely US/UK settings.
I definitely clicked more with this collection than I did with the other Hopkinson I've read (Sister Mine). Much less sexual assault and incest, heh, among other things!
the_endless_void's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
lighthearted
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.5
sausome's review against another edition
2.0
The firstborn half of this collection was pretty good - the strangeness of the worlds and observations the author makes in such short stories was intriguing. But the second half felt pretty disconnected and disjointed from the rest of the collection. A strong voice for diversity and generally repressed people and views.
"We humans have spread over the face of this planet like a fungus, altering and destroying whole ecosystems and species, abusing and waging war on each other. If teenaged me thought about it too much, I was engulfed with despair."
"“Really?” she said. “Don’t you care about passing on your legacy?” “You mean my surname?” She laughed uncomfortably. “You know what I mean.” “I really don’t. I’m not a king and I’m never going to be rich. I’m not going to leave behind much wealth for someone to inherit. It’s not like I’m building an empire.” She made a face as though someone had dropped a mouse in her butter churn. “What are you going to do with your life, then?” “Well,” I chuckled, trying to make a joke of it, “I guess I’m going to go home and put a gun to my head, since I’m clearly no use to myself or anyone else.” Now she looked like she was smelling something rotten. “Oh, don’t be morbid,” she snapped. “Huh? It’s morbid to not want kids?” “No, it’s morbid to think your life has so little value that you might as well kill yourself.” “Oh, come on, Sula!” I’d raised my voice above the low-level chatter in the restaurant. The couple at the table closest to us glanced our way. I sighed and continued: “My life has tons of value. I just happen to think it consists of more than my genetic material. Don’t you?”"
"We humans have spread over the face of this planet like a fungus, altering and destroying whole ecosystems and species, abusing and waging war on each other. If teenaged me thought about it too much, I was engulfed with despair."
"“Really?” she said. “Don’t you care about passing on your legacy?” “You mean my surname?” She laughed uncomfortably. “You know what I mean.” “I really don’t. I’m not a king and I’m never going to be rich. I’m not going to leave behind much wealth for someone to inherit. It’s not like I’m building an empire.” She made a face as though someone had dropped a mouse in her butter churn. “What are you going to do with your life, then?” “Well,” I chuckled, trying to make a joke of it, “I guess I’m going to go home and put a gun to my head, since I’m clearly no use to myself or anyone else.” Now she looked like she was smelling something rotten. “Oh, don’t be morbid,” she snapped. “Huh? It’s morbid to not want kids?” “No, it’s morbid to think your life has so little value that you might as well kill yourself.” “Oh, come on, Sula!” I’d raised my voice above the low-level chatter in the restaurant. The couple at the table closest to us glanced our way. I sighed and continued: “My life has tons of value. I just happen to think it consists of more than my genetic material. Don’t you?”"
readerette's review against another edition
emotional
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
Engaging stories with twists of magical realism and fantasy among commentary on belonging, love, identity, and grief. A little overwrought in some cases, but largely interesting and unexpected tales. I particularly liked the one with flying cats and firebreathing birds. 😉
luanndie's review against another edition
2.0
Casi me siento culpable de que esta colección no me gustara. Puedo ver el talento de Hopkinson para darle la vuelta a historias y tropes que hemos visto hasta la saciedad y sus mundos son diversos sin esfuerzo, pero en muchas de las historias me quedé con la sensación de no haber llegado a ningún sitio. Hopkinson nos pasea por universos maravillosos, capaz de darle vida a un personaje en un par de líneas, pero a veces, parece que deambulamos con ella sin rumbo. Su estilo narrativo tampoco terminó de encajar conmigo y hacía todo el proceso de lectura más pesado de lo que debería.
notesonbookmarks's review against another edition
3.0
This was a five star collection for the first half, but I'll still keep it at 4.5!
tilikon's review against another edition
dark
relaxing
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.25
readingwithhippos's review against another edition
3.0
My reactions to the stories in Falling in Love with Hominids were all over the map. Hopkinson is a Caribbean-Canadian speculative fiction writer with quite possibly the biggest imagination I’ve ever come across. Whether her stories work for you or not will depend on your ability to hang with the weirdness.
My favorite story, entitled “Emily Breakfast,” was an outwardly silly tale of a couple whose chicken goes missing one morning. Their three chickens are named Lunch, Dinner, and Emily Breakfast. (Because Emily the chicken already had a name when they got her, so they just tacked the “breakfast” part on the end. Obviously.) The distressed chicken owners are aided in the hunt for the missing chicken by their winged cat. Also, the chickens can breathe fire, and a neighbor owns what she calls a “scuttle” of messenger lizards. It’s an absolute delight from start to finish.
Other stories weren’t as big a hit with me. A couple were clearly for insiders, like the story taking place in a fictional world from a book series I haven’t read. Those I skimmed or skipped entirely, knowing I wasn’t the intended audience. Still, the good stories here are REALLY good. Hopkinson’s characters are refreshingly diverse—black, brown, straight, gay, male, female, teenaged, elderly—and they’re immediately knowable, despite whatever craziness might be happening around them. I don’t often get the feeling that an author had fun writing a book, but I just can’t imagine Hopkinson putting this stuff down on paper with anything but a playful smile on her face.
If you’ve ever seen an elephant’s skin up close and wanted to apply lotion to it, you and this book will probably get along famously.
More book recommendations by me at www.readingwithhippos.com
My favorite story, entitled “Emily Breakfast,” was an outwardly silly tale of a couple whose chicken goes missing one morning. Their three chickens are named Lunch, Dinner, and Emily Breakfast. (Because Emily the chicken already had a name when they got her, so they just tacked the “breakfast” part on the end. Obviously.) The distressed chicken owners are aided in the hunt for the missing chicken by their winged cat. Also, the chickens can breathe fire, and a neighbor owns what she calls a “scuttle” of messenger lizards. It’s an absolute delight from start to finish.
Other stories weren’t as big a hit with me. A couple were clearly for insiders, like the story taking place in a fictional world from a book series I haven’t read. Those I skimmed or skipped entirely, knowing I wasn’t the intended audience. Still, the good stories here are REALLY good. Hopkinson’s characters are refreshingly diverse—black, brown, straight, gay, male, female, teenaged, elderly—and they’re immediately knowable, despite whatever craziness might be happening around them. I don’t often get the feeling that an author had fun writing a book, but I just can’t imagine Hopkinson putting this stuff down on paper with anything but a playful smile on her face.
If you’ve ever seen an elephant’s skin up close and wanted to apply lotion to it, you and this book will probably get along famously.
More book recommendations by me at www.readingwithhippos.com