Relay-Version: version B 2.10 5/3/83; site utzoo.UUCP Posting-Version: $Revision: 1.6.2.13 $; site uiucdcs.UUCP Path: utzoo!watmath!clyde!burl!ulysses!mhuxl!ihnp4!inuxc!pur-ee!uiucdcs!friedman From: friedman@uiucdcs.UUCP Newsgroups: net.sf-lovers Subject: Re: Non-human aliens - (nf) Message-ID: <12500083@uiucdcs.UUCP> Date: Thu, 24-May-84 10:14:00 EDT Article-I.D.: uiucdcs.12500083 Posted: Thu May 24 10:14:00 1984 Date-Received: Thu, 31-May-84 19:57:25 EDT References: <162@iwpba.UUCP> Lines: 20 Nf-ID: #R:iwpba:-16200:uiucdcs:12500083:000:915 Nf-From: uiucdcs!friedman May 24 09:14:00 1984 #R:iwpba:-16200:uiucdcs:12500083:000:915 uiucdcs!friedman May 24 09:14:00 1984 > An author who has done a good job in presenting aliens from the aliens' > point of view is C. J. Cherryh. Her "Faded Sun" trilogy is quite good > in this regard. "Pride of Chanur" is another such novel that comes to > mind. I highly recommend her novels for good character development as > well as interesting plots. I heartily agree, and would add her "Hunter of Worlds" to this list. Perhaps the most serious flaw in her aliens is that they are almost always humanoid (or, occasionally, modelled after some other Earth animal--moles for one of the species in "Hunter", lions in "Pride"). Personally, I am inclined to overlook that flaw and just enjoy. Few other authors even attempt to treat things from a non-human point of view. It has been said (I don't have the reference handy) that the best aliens ever were Asimov's in the second part of "The Gods Themselves". I tend to think that's true.