The Female Man by Joanna Russ

The Female Man (Bluestreak, #11) (S.F. Masterworks)

by Joanna Russ

The Female Man is a suspenseful, surprising and darkly witty chronicle of what happens when Jeannine, Janet, Joanna and Jael - four alternative selves from drastically different realities - meet. Joanna's world is like our own, Jeannine's world is even poorer & grungier, a place where neither World War II nor its resulting developments of technology have happened. Janet - the explorer - comes from 'Whileaway' where men have died off, leaving a world without the 'poisonous binary' of gender. Finally we meet Jael, warrior and assassin, who takes the other three to where the final war between men and women is being waged. The Female Man, Joanna Russ' innovative science fiction novel, caused a furore when first published in the 1970s - it has a power that has stayed fresh, witty and WEIRD. A welcome new edition of a book that now looks as good as it reads.

Reviewed by celinenyx on

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This book is written in blood.
Is it written entirely in blood?
No, some of it is written in tears.
Are the blood and tears all mine?
Yes, they have been in the past.

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Reading updates

  • Started reading
  • 20 January, 2020: Finished reading
  • 20 January, 2020: Reviewed