SH Comments
Reged: Feb 16 2004
Posts: 1056
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This thread is for comments about She Called Me Baby, by Vylar Kaftan
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Anonymous
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Congrats! A compelling portrait of intergenerational relations complicated by cloning and spurred by the need to keep on top of the popularity charts. It made for a rich read.
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anonymouse
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Ah, Baby feels loved! Captivating story. A must-read for clones of all economic backgrounds.
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Geraint D\'Arcy
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Compelling and accurate character constructions. This piece is believable as a science fiction story and as a contemporary work of fiction. The eternal progeny versus maternity struggle is well executed in this piece.
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C. A. Gardner
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I'm very impressed with the way the story extrapolates on current issues such as the cult of personality, the cult of physical beauty (and the ongoing fascination with the grotesque), and cloning (I was reminded of that real-life case in which a sterile couple sought permission to clone the wife). The story handles the problems of celebrity families with a wonderful (and yes, somewhat horrifying) sf twist, while providing such apropos mini-flashbacks that I completely believed in these characters. Way to go, Vy!
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Patrick Samphire
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I was very impressed by this story. A nice mix of science fiction, a closely-observed mother-daughter relationship, and a look at the nature of fame. Good stuff.
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Anonymous
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Is it Science Fiction? The characters and plot would stand well enough on their own without the science of cloning and body modifications, but I think the science did serve to carry the characters to a greater extreme.
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Patrick Samphire
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Anonymous: if you're asking "could a similar story be told which wasn't science fiction?" the answer is probably "yes". But the science fiction elements magnify the story.
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Anonymous
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Patrick,
I agree. In my opinion the genre of this story is Science Fiction but the science is peripheral to the mother-daughter conflict. I asked the question because I wondered what others thought. Some editors (Analog) use a stricter definition and believe that the science element of the story must be integral to the point that the story couldn't stand on its own without the science. That POV seemed more accepted 20-30 years ago, but the lines have blurred since then.
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Vylar Kaftan
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Thank you, everyone, for your comments! I'm glad you enjoyed the story.
As for whether it's science fiction or not... that depends on your viewpoint, like the anon said. I would call it sf. The definition the anon gives is what I would call hard sf (although I dislike categorizing stories too much.)
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