In the year 2132, members of the Anthropologist’s Guild land on the planet Henderson’s IV, or L’Lal’lor as it is known to the native population, to study the Culture and to eventually initiate First Contact. Skilled in the nonintrusive study of alien cultures, the Anthropologists discover a society containing no love or laughter. The alien society centers around death—a world of aristocratic and common folk in which grieving is an art and the cornerstone of life.
As Goodreads notes: “But this alien civilization stands on the brink of astonishing change triggered by the discovery of Linni (aka, Gray Wanderer), a young woman from the countryside whose arrival has been foretold for centuries. And for Anthropologist First Class Aaron Spenser, L’Lal’lor is a place of destructive temptations, seducing him with its mysterious, sad beauty, and leading him into an unthinkable criminal act.”
My main quibble about Cards of Grief centers around Jane Yolen’s decision to tell her story in the form of “transcripts” from recordings the Anthropologists make. And Yolen doesn’t provide any surprises, either. GRADE: B-
My first thought is, if there’s no joy or laughter on this planet, how would they know or experience them if they ever arrived? Like the old philosophical question, can you experience something for which your culture has no word? I know there are SF stories that explore these concepts, perhaps better than Yolen (who, iirc from my days working in elementary & junior high libraries, generally writes children’s and Y/A books). I do like the covers though—they have a Tarot feel to them.
Deb, you’re right about Yolen writing mostly for Young Adults. CARDS OF GRIEF seemed like a notch above to me although the key characters are in their late teens and early 20s. Yolen’s story of a planetary society that concentrates on Grief produces some strange situations. Like you, I’m impressed by the Tarot-like book covers!
She writes and has written considerable amounts adult fiction and retelling folklore collections, too. Though she is a force of nature in young readers’ work.
Todd, I’ve read some of Jane Yolen’s adult SF over the years. Her YA books…not so much.
I’ve heard of Yolen but never read anything by her. I gotta say, though, that this sounds pretty boring.
Michael, Yolen’s written more than a hundred books. She tends to tackle unlikely themes like Grief.
I don’t mind a book or story written in letters or diaries or even transcripts, if done well. I don’t think I’ve ever read anything by Yolen.
Jeff, Yolen’s written prolifically. But most of her work focuses on the Young Adult market. I’m not a fan of reading transcripts of recordings. Yolen wants us to understand that the Anthropologists from Earth are taping many of the key aliens. Patrick would be upset about the violation of Privacy on this planet!
The first Yolen text I recall reading was an adult audience fantasy story and a good one, which inspired a very elegant cover on the 11/78 issue of F&SF:
http://www.isfdb.org/wiki/images/5/5c/FSFNOV78.jpg
TM
http://socialistjazz.blogspot.com/2021/06/fridays-forgotten-books-and-more-links.html
Todd, Jane Yolen has been around for decades!
She is only a bit younger than my parents were (born in 1939), and didn’t get off to a late start in her career, is my impression…
The first Yolen text I recall reading was an adult audience fantasy story and a good one, which inspired a very elegant cover on the 11/78 issue of F&SF:
http://www.isfdb.org/wiki/images/5/5c/FSFNOV78.jpg
You want grief, come live with me!
Bob, I thought you were Living the Dream! I try to live in a grief-free zone.
ANALOG, perhaps amusingly, over the years has been the magazine most likely to feature fiction told in the form of official reports, business correspondence and the like…the engineer-minded reader’s favorite form of deviation from the plain tale plainly told! I haven’t read this one…pretty clearly a parable in its format variation…but I vaguely remember seeing it when it came out. Transpositions of fairy tale tropes to actual human (and human-induced) catastrophes is one the avenues she’s explored in her writing more than once…
Todd, you’re right about ANALOG running stories in the form of official reports, etc.