A review by kandicez
The Heroine's Journey: For Writers, Readers, and Fans of Pop Culture by Gail Carriger
5.0
This will hold a place of honor on my shelf next to [a:Stephen King|3389|Stephen King|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1362814142p2/3389.jpg]'s [b:On Writing: A Memoir of the Craft|10569|On Writing A Memoir of the Craft|Stephen King|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1436735207l/10569._SY75_.jpg|150292]. Never mind that it must be a mental shelf since I only have an ebook of this title, but this may be one of the most helpful, illuminating and enlightening books about writing I have ever read.
Carriger explains what I search for in books in a way that makes me question myself for not seeing this before. Of course women can be on a hero's journey. Of course men can be on a heroine's journey! It's the qualities of the journey itself that label it, not the sex of the person on the journey. The fact that Carriger also, quite easily, erases gender and sex from the classification made me feel vindicated in my opinions. I've felt this! I always thought I must be mistaken, but Carriger shows me I was not. A hero's journey is isolating and ends with a personal boon, while a heroine's journey requires a team and a boon to benefit so many more than just the heroine herself.
While [b:On Writing: A Memoir of the Craft|10569|On Writing A Memoir of the Craft|Stephen King|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1436735207l/10569._SY75_.jpg|150292] is about the actual craft of getting down to doing the thing, this book helps the reader identify what they are looking for and reading. This book helps a reader to make informed decisions regarding their entertainment and to recognize what they are hungry for. Carriger does not attempt to prove either the Hero or Heroine's journey as better than the other, but instead to show us there is a place for both. It's just best, that we as readers/watchers, know what it is that we are reading/watching, so we can more easily find what we want.
Carriger explains what I search for in books in a way that makes me question myself for not seeing this before. Of course women can be on a hero's journey. Of course men can be on a heroine's journey! It's the qualities of the journey itself that label it, not the sex of the person on the journey. The fact that Carriger also, quite easily, erases gender and sex from the classification made me feel vindicated in my opinions. I've felt this! I always thought I must be mistaken, but Carriger shows me I was not. A hero's journey is isolating and ends with a personal boon, while a heroine's journey requires a team and a boon to benefit so many more than just the heroine herself.
While [b:On Writing: A Memoir of the Craft|10569|On Writing A Memoir of the Craft|Stephen King|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1436735207l/10569._SY75_.jpg|150292] is about the actual craft of getting down to doing the thing, this book helps the reader identify what they are looking for and reading. This book helps a reader to make informed decisions regarding their entertainment and to recognize what they are hungry for. Carriger does not attempt to prove either the Hero or Heroine's journey as better than the other, but instead to show us there is a place for both. It's just best, that we as readers/watchers, know what it is that we are reading/watching, so we can more easily find what we want.