Chaos Reading discussion

I just came across the most recent tor.com newsletter nd saw the introduction to their upcoming series on "Post-Binary Gender in SciFi". I thought people might be interested:
http://www.tor.com/blogs/2014/01/post...

It'll be interesting to see where the series goes, beyond The Left Hand of Darkness

I thought China Meilville pretty much turned gender on it's head with Perdido St Station

and if we're talking sci fi authorship then Margaret Attwood has made her sci fi something quite unique and uncomfortable

but then i may be missing the point, not enough coffee today and too many meetings

Sandyboy wrote: "I thought China Meilville pretty much turned gender on it's head with Perdido St Station

and if we're talking sci fi authorship then Margaret Attwood has made her sci fi something quite unique and..."

I don't remember Perdido Street Station having anything but male/female genders, but I seem to recall that Embassytown may have. It has been a long time though, and my memory aint that great.

The only book that springs to my mind when thinking about complex gender roles is the one that I read for the Rolling Challenge: Floating Worlds by Cecelia Holland. I wouldn't go so far as to call it post-binary though. It does challenge the prevailing views on gender roles (it was written in the 70s), and explores how an alien society's might be different, but there are still very clear male/female gendered characters.

I always think of Samuel Delaney as the groundbreaker when it comes to fluid gender roles in SF. All his books have gay or bisexual characters, and Trouble on Triton: An Ambiguous Heterotopia especially has a gamut of changeable sexualities.

The story that I think never gets enough credit is Theodore Sturgeon's "The World Well Lost". An amazingly touching portrait of homosexuality that seems to have snuck by on stealth in 1953. Here's a link for interested parties: http://freetexthost.com/fzvwibovva

Whitney wrote: "I always think of Samuel Delaney as the groundbreaker when it comes to fluid gender roles in SF. All his books have gay or bisexual characters, and [book:Trouble on Triton: An Ambiguous Heterotopia..."

The Sturgeon story sounds great. Thanks for the link.