A review by brandysith
Whedonistas: A Celebration of the Worlds of Joss Whedon by the Women Who Love Them by Jackie Kessler, Laurel Brown, Jeanne C. Stein, Catherynne M. Valente, Heather Shaw, Elizabeth Bear, Kelly Hale, Mariah Huehner, Racheline Maltese, Nancy Holder, Jody Wurl, NancyKay Shapiro, Sharon Shinn, Seanan McGuire, Jaala Robinson, Priscilla Spencer, Jamie Craig, Sigrid Ellis, Lyda Morehouse, Dae S. Low, Deborah Stanish, Sarah Monette, Maria Lima, Caroline Symcox, Lynne M. Thomas, Teresa Jusino, Emma Bull, Meredith McGrath, Jenn Reese
4.0
I had to wait for this book at work for a long time because of some sort of cataloging/record issue, but at long last after almost a year on order and then sitting in processing, Whedonistas! made its way to my library and into my hands.
I've been trapped in the Whedon-verse since I was twelve (fifteen years now) when my mother introduced me to Buffy because she thought it would help me get over my fear of vampires. How right she was. Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Angel shaped who I was as a teenager. How I wrote, what I wrote, what I enjoyed watching or not watching. Like all of the writers in the collection, I don't know how my life would have turned out without the influence of Whedon and his characters.
As I read through essay after essay, I began constructing my own narrative of how Joss and his shows changed my life and what a great influence Buffy herself had been. I wanted to know where I could sign up to contribute to a Whedonistas! sequel, since we can now add The Avengers and (soon) Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D to his line up.
Like any anthology (fiction or non) some pieces spoke to me more than others. The ones that touched me deeply were "The Browncoat Connection", "How an Atheist and his Demons Created a Shepherd", "Why Joss is More Important Than His 'Verse", "Something to Sing About", and "Malcolm Reynolds, the Myth of the West, and Me." Though the piece that spoke to me the most was "Shelve Under Television, Young Adult." I work in a library, with the YA collection (though I'm not a youth services librarian...yet), and it really spoke to me in terms of my profession and my love with the Whedon-verse.
This is an outstanding collection of essays that every Whedon fan should read; not just the ladies, I encourage men to come and join along as well.
I've been trapped in the Whedon-verse since I was twelve (fifteen years now) when my mother introduced me to Buffy because she thought it would help me get over my fear of vampires. How right she was. Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Angel shaped who I was as a teenager. How I wrote, what I wrote, what I enjoyed watching or not watching. Like all of the writers in the collection, I don't know how my life would have turned out without the influence of Whedon and his characters.
As I read through essay after essay, I began constructing my own narrative of how Joss and his shows changed my life and what a great influence Buffy herself had been. I wanted to know where I could sign up to contribute to a Whedonistas! sequel, since we can now add The Avengers and (soon) Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D to his line up.
Like any anthology (fiction or non) some pieces spoke to me more than others. The ones that touched me deeply were "The Browncoat Connection", "How an Atheist and his Demons Created a Shepherd", "Why Joss is More Important Than His 'Verse", "Something to Sing About", and "Malcolm Reynolds, the Myth of the West, and Me." Though the piece that spoke to me the most was "Shelve Under Television, Young Adult." I work in a library, with the YA collection (though I'm not a youth services librarian...yet), and it really spoke to me in terms of my profession and my love with the Whedon-verse.
This is an outstanding collection of essays that every Whedon fan should read; not just the ladies, I encourage men to come and join along as well.