Debutiful

I have a lot of fun questioning distinctions, definitions, and binary thinking in my debut contemporary fantasy novel Strange Animals. What is the difference between monster and animal, science and magic, humanity and nature? What happens when such questions stop being academic and show up in the aftermath of a fatal accident to trade you an acorn for the moment of your death? Boundaries that once seemed black-and-white start to become much less trustworthy. 

My love of slippery categorization was especially clear when we discussed my novel’s defining characteristics and the word “creepy” was paired with “cozy,” and “fantasy” stood alongside “nature-writing.” I’m perfectly happy with this. Most ideas that feel true to me carry at least a hint of paradox; many of the characters I love in fantasy and sci-fi are the same.

As a lifelong nature-nerd, I can feel a tingle of kinship resting my hand on a patch of moss or watching a gray catbird flit through the branches of my neighbor’s black walnut tree. That feeling of kinship hints at a broader, unifying characteristic of life that transcends both diversity of form and our many methods of survival in this big, strange, living world we share. 

So, narrow portrayals of humanity’s essential place in the universe feel kinda superficial to me, especially in the context of Earth’s breathtaking biodiversity and the many enduring mysteries of our interconnected planet. I think that’s one reason I’ve always been drawn to speculative fiction; these are stories that can sniff out truths beyond the restrictive confines of bare fact.

Give me stories in which “human” is a fluid concept and non-human doesn’t mean lacking agency, personality, or dignity. In this vein, here are seven books that explore and complicate definitions of humanity and personhood by visiting the outer boundaries of such terms. 

Continue reading “Seven Books That Walk the Borderlands Between Human and Non-Human, Recommended by Jarod K. Anderson” →