Generation Loss by Elizabeth Hand

Generation Loss by Elizabeth Hand

I think it is Hand's best book so far.

Unlike her other books, which layer fantasy and the grit of real life, Generation Loss shows how easy it is to break up life into manageable pieces, and how abstract each piece looks until we can fit them back together to form the real thing, or possibly how out of focus we can be when we are missing some important piece. Fortunately, distorted does not mean irrevocably broken. It is not a coincidence that Generation Loss is classified as fiction, not science fiction.

I feel a special bond with Elizabeth Hand's books. When I read Aestival Tide way back in the early nineties, it forced me to think about why I reacted so positively to the heavy themes of the book. This was not a happy book, yet it made me feel empowered, and forced me to think about who was writing what I was reading. I began to realize that I had good experiences with female SF authors, and that sometimes I just plain couldn't see the draw of some of the male 'greats.' Gender, in all the ways it influences who we are, also influences how we write, and how we read.

I'm still a SF junkie of all kinds, but it was Elizabeth Hand that showed me how gratifying it is to read about smart, prickly women who look for or fall into the strangeness of the world. Generation Loss is no exception, creating a main character who is both lovable and highly repellent, still recognizable as seeking something more from life, although by her own means. It is a beautiful story made from ugly parts, a theme echoed in the content of the book itself.