http://www.townx.org/blog/elliot/kate_wilhelm Comments for "Kate Wilhelm" en http://www.townx.org/blog/elliot/kate_wilhelm <p>Just finished a thought-provoking book of short stories (<em>Somerset Dreams</em>) by Kate Wilhelm, who is not really science fiction through and through, more &quot;speculative fiction&quot; (as it says on the cover). Her work is very emotionally charged, and one interesting feature of it is how she manifests conflicts between or within characters (often caused by stultifying marriages) as supernatural entities: for example, in &quot;The Hounds&quot;, two dogs represent the anxieties of the main female character, literally &quot;hounding&quot; her until she confronts her husband with her frustrations, at which point the threat disappears. In &quot;State of Grace&quot;, a woman sees tiny creatures in a tree in her garden which no one is able to dislodge or capture. She uses their elusiveness to distract her husband, who is pressuring her into being a drudge, and by the end of the story the creatures are dictating her and her husband's sex lives. Very skilfully written, and good characterisation. Well worth a look.</p> http://www.townx.org/blog/elliot/kate_wilhelm#comments Mon, 30 May 2005 16:12:00 -0500 elliot 120 at http://www.townx.org