Sci-Fi and gender

[Guest Kendra K]

I've a fan of Sci-Fi, because of the way gender is talked about. Unlike other book types such as mysteries, romance, etc sci-fi seems to be great for transgender because it will talk about body swapping, taking up a different gender, and such.

What have others read?

Books I've loved (links are to the Wikipedia articles - may contain spoilers):

• Triton (also titled as Trouble on Triton) by Samuel Delaney: Wonderful book that deals with gender and LGBT issues.
  
• Mission Child by Maureen F. McHugh: A female ends up changing her appearance to be male
  
• Camouflage by Joe Haldemann: Not a human, but deals with aliens chaning gender
  
• The Identity Matrix by Jack Chalker: Aliens have the ability to body swap by touching someone.
  

I have on my to-read list:

• A Civil Campaign by Lois McMaster Bujold
  
• The World Wreckers by Marion Zimmer Bradley
  
• Steel Beach by John Varley
  
• Commitment Hour by James Alan Gardner
  
• Virgin Planet by Paol Anderson
  
• The Ophiuchi Hotline by John Varley
  
• Turnabout by Thorne Smith
  

[Carolyn Marie]

Great list, Kendra, and I agree with you that gender identity issues come up fairly frequently in the genre.

Robert Heinlein had a great novel called "I Will Fear No Evil," in which the main character has his brain (and soul) switched with his beautiful colleague. I couldn't get enough of that book when I read it in my teens.

The original Star Trek Series had an episode called "Turnabout Intruder," in which a bitter female rival of Kirk's switches her mind with his. it is far from the best episode, and has some very chauvinistic lines in it, but at least the concept got an airing out.

HUGS

Carolyn Marie

[Guest Kendra K]

Yes! I have that Heinlein book somewhere on my to-read list as well. Wasn't sure if it would be good or not; I've enjoyed some of Heinlein's stuff so far.

I'll have to keep an eye out for that Star Trek episode.

[JJ]

Those are books I'll have to read. Hadn't thought about it but there are a lot of sci-fi themes that deal with switching bodies in some way and I always related to them without thinking why. Mc Caffrey has that whole series about people with ship bodies. Better than it sounds I think.

That Star Trek episode was one of my least favorite because I thought it demeaned women in approach. Star Trek was a reflection of it's times and even liberal for it's time but that episode wasn't as far as I was concerned.

Johnny

[Guest Robin Winter]

The Gaea Trilogy by John Varley is an interesting one. There is a species of centaur-like people that all have both a penis and vagina on the horse body and breasts on the human torso. The only thing that distinguishes male from female is a third set of genitalia at the base of the human torso, either penis or vagina.

I've only managed to read the second book, "Wizard", and really enjoyed it. I haven't managed to track down the other two yet.

[Guest Kendra K]

Hmmm. I had the first Gaea book, Titan, on my to-read list but didn't know that about it. Knowing that puts it among of the books that I want to read soon. I suppose it makes sense; Varley's Trouble on Triton talked sex and gender pretty much the whole book so it makes sense his other books may be about it as well.

[Guest Roux]

The Left Hand of Darkness by Ursula K. Le Guin -- I'm surprised no one's mentioned it yet. The people native to Gethen (the planet the human ambassador travels to) are sexless/genderless, and only develop sexual characteristics during their breeding cycles. So if someone goes into heat and becomes female, the people who spend a lot of time with that person are likely to become male. The human ambassador really struggles with the lack of gender in that society.

Of Love and Other Monsters by Vandana Singh -- the synopsis covers it. Awesome novella.

Bloodchild by Octavia E. Butler -- not transgender, exactly, but it messes with the idea of how offspring are conceived, and by whom. I adore it all over the place. I don't really go out of my way to read sci fi (I read all of these for various classes), but this one I reread regularly.

[Carolyn Marie]

Thanks for the reminder about Le Guin's novel, Roux. It's been so long since i read it that I had forgotten that plot line. I really liked the book, too.

HUGS

Carolyn Marie

[Guest Kendra K]

Yep, Left Hand of Darkness is great. For me it has the same problems that I've encountered with Ursula K. LeGuin's other works; I enjoy the read but end up getting confused by her non-linear style and possibly her wording. Still, it's well worth the read.

[Guest Kendra K]

Steel Beach (Wikipedia link) by John Varley was fantastic! People change genders all the time. The main character ends up switching from male to female. When the main character Hildy Johnson is male, he's only interested in females. Then when he becomes female, she's only interested in males.

Steel Beach is part of Varley's Eight Worlds series. Reading the books descriptions briefly, seems gender switching is a part in them. Since I loved Steel Beach I really need to keep reading the Eight Worlds series (I already have The Ophiuchi Hotline ready to read).

Noticed in post #6, I put Trouble on Triton as John Varley, it was Samuel Delany (I had it right in post #1).

[Guest Amanda Whyte]

EVERY series by Jack L Chalker that I read had transgender of some sort in it.

You could also try the Misfile online comic and Venous Envy online comic. Misfile do to an angle "misfiling" his record wakes up as a girl. It is actually very thought out. Venous Envy is just an online comic about a transgender girl going to high school, unfortunately the aritist stopped writing it so it ends in the middle of the story.

[Guest fireball49er]

I'm a fan of some of the classics. Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy is one of my favorite books!

[Guest Syamantaka]

Books such a grand design. 1: Ursula K. Le Guin "The Dispossed"

2: Robert A Heinlein,s "Stranger in a Strange Land" Version re-released by his

widow, lot smoother.

3: Project Guttenberg's Free E-Books, hundreds to choose from. My fav is

"SHE" in the adventure section.

READ TO DREAM

[Guest Mojave]

Even though it is not a central theme, Battle Angel Alita: Last Order has a main character who started as a female but changed genders because of his thirst for combat. His name is Sechs, which is just a terrible name when you say it out loud, and he's brash, and quick to act. The series is way out there as far as stories go, but all of the science is based in reality which is very cool because if you think it's interesting you can read up on it.

[Ravin]

Lilith's Brood (aka the Xenogenesis trilogy) by Octavia Butler, features a 3rd sex.

Someone already mentioned I Shall Fear No Evil by Heinlein

Halfway Human by Carolyn Ives Gilman features a main character who is a true neuter thanks to genetic engineering tinkering with his ancestors.

Glory Season is another one where gender is engineered into a different proposition for humans.

[Guest Kendra K]

Lilith's Brood (aka the Xenogenesis trilogy) by Octavia Butler, features a 3rd sex.

Someone already mentioned I Shall Fear No Evil by Heinlein

Halfway Human by Carolyn Ives Gilman features a main character who is a true neuter thanks to genetic engineering tinkering with his ancestors.

Glory Season is another one where gender is engineered into a different proposition for humans.

I've had Lilith's Brood on my to-read list for quite a while, hoping to get to it this year. Sounds very interesting.

Fear no evil I've had on my to-read as well, but there's lots that I want to read before that one, although I've liked some of Heinlein's other stuff.

I added those two other books to my list. Thanks for the recommendations. :

[Guest Kendra K]

I've been working my way through The John Varley Reader. It's short-stories Varley wrote and would seem to be a good intro into Varley.

It's also confirming what I've already been thinking, Varley's Eight Worlds series is wonderful in that gender swapping happens all the time.

[Guest LizMarie]

As long as Heinlein is being mentioned, I recommend Time Enough For Love. The main character is very typically male but two characters in that story resonated with me from the first time I read that book years and years ago. They are Minerva, the planetary computer who longs to be a woman, and Andy Libby, who was born male but becomes female. Both of those are small sub-plots within the overall story but weer worth the read in my opinion. I also liked Friday and The Cat Who Walks Through Walls, neither of which is transgender oriented but both of which have strong female characters.

[Guest Elizabeth K]

The Quickening Series (Fantasy) - the male hero exchanges bodies with the person he is forced to kill and most are female.

http://www.mcintoshfantasy.com/library.html#quickening

Three books

Lizzy

[Guest Elizabeth K]

Season of the Witch - Jen Stein (hard to find). There was also a movie - not the one with Nicholas Cage - much earlier. The hero is accused of murdering a woman and his sentence is to be transferred into her body where he soon adapts to being female - futuristic

Lizzy

[Guest Elizabeth K]

The Passion of New Eve - Angela Carter (Hard to find - I found it in Penguin Books) - A man is transformed into a woman as punishment for straying into the land of women.

Lizzy

[Guest Elizabeth K]

Dragonsword (one word) by Gael Baudino - the first of a trilogy. An entire army is changed into women by a wizard. The heroine - a natal woman - has to inspire them to fight as women warriors. It's just a part of the story but well done.

Lizzy

[Guest Elizabeth K]

Treason - Orson Scott Card - an early, early book of his unlike the later ones. A prince is gradually changing into a woman due to a genetic propensity that runs in the family - and has to flee for her life.

Lizzy

[Guest Elizabeth K]

Alien Flesh - Seabury Quinn (hard to find) A man accidentally kills the daughter of a sultan - who has him magically assume her body. He escapes from the harem and travels to the United States. One of my favorites.

Lizzy

[Guest Elizabeth K]

Wild Card Series - books 9, especially 10, and 11. George RR Martin editor - Tachyon is put into a woman s body and impregnated by his evil nephew. A really great series about mutant humans - but this is the transgender part.

http://www.wildcardsonline.com/

Lizzy