The Dazzle of Day

August 20, 2019 2:26 PM - by Molly Gloss

Leaving a dilapidated Earth behind, Quakers across the globe pool funds and resources as they select colonists to send to a newly discovered planet to start life anew in this “miraculous fusion of…science fiction with unsparing realism and keen psychology” (Ursula K. Le Guin).
posted by kalimac (4 comments total)

I am still not 100% sure how I feel about this book. I liked the first half while I was reading it, got very bogged down in the second half, was glad to be done with it, and now I've circled around to liking it again, or at least thinking about it a lot. (Funny enough -- it provided the seed for a leading I gave at a recent Meeting. So there may be a soft space in my heart for it because of that.)
There was a real dearth of even somewhat likable characters, which I think also didn't help. On the other hand, that was a very honest portrayal of how Meetings and Meetings for Business often go, which I sincerely loved.

(ALSO I chatted about this a tiny bit on Twitter with Jessamyn, where I am wildaesc, it feels strange to not mention that since two different usernames and all)
posted by kalimac at 2:32 PM on August 20, 2019

Oooh I'm glad I saw this post because it reminds me that this book is on my to-read list!
posted by beandip at 3:23 PM on August 20, 2019

Never heard of this. Adding it to the list. Thanks!
posted by selfnoise at 8:12 PM on August 20, 2019

I fell in love with one Molly Gloss short story a decade ago ("Lambing Season"), but never managed to track down anything else by her. Adding this to my to-read list!

She also has another new short story collection out - (Unforseen), and I think Wild Life was put back into print earlier this year (it's also on my to-read list).
posted by dinty_moore at 6:56 AM on August 21, 2019 [1 favorite]