I read the review in the Locus Magazine and just bought the book without thinking. As I have spent a considerable time writing reviews about (mostly) sf prose during the past four years, diving into the professional essays and reviews of Maureen just seemed about right.
I guess Maureen would have been the go-to-person for me to learn about the British and American SF Fandom in a broader scope (I am from Germany), and as she is described by her friends, she might even have answered my email. Too bad she's gone!
I feel like I am now grieving a woman I didn't even know about during her lifetime.
Nevertheless, I read her reviews and bought a few books during my reading. Especially her interest in phantastic prose from indigen people and Afro-SF are very interesting in retrospect. Nowadays, Afro SF is much more in our heads as it might have been in 2014, when Maureen already had an expertise in this subgenre. It's cool to read her anthology reviews and stumble upon now famous-even-in-Germany names like Lauren Beukes and Tade Thompson.I knew much less about science fiction / phantastic prose from indegene people and will have to learn more. I also enjoyed her essay about indigen stereotypes in science fiction, with Lafferty as a good example for not falling for stereotypes. There is also some pop culture like Star Wars or The Hobbit. Or an analysis of Chiang's Story Story of your life and the movie The Arrival. I enjoyed that a lot, as I also know the books and the movies.
Her Paper Knife Blog is still online to read for us. It's too bad she's not around to lose words about the newest novels. Would she still be around, writing about prose, I would now follow her on every channel.
Great book!
Sidenote: Obviously, Nina Allan has published some stories in Germany!
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