{"id":35118,"date":"2018-03-05T06:30:05","date_gmt":"2018-03-04T17:30:05","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/helenlowe.info\/blog\/?p=35118"},"modified":"2018-03-02T00:23:29","modified_gmt":"2018-03-01T11:23:29","slug":"fab-spaceships-of-sff","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/helenlowe.info\/blog\/2018\/03\/05\/fab-spaceships-of-sff\/","title":{"rendered":"Fab Spaceships Of SFF"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>One of the excellent folk I follow on Twitter is UK SFF author, <a href=\"http:\/\/www.garethlpowell.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Gareth L Powell<\/a>, who last week wrote a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.theguardian.com\/books\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">The Guardian<\/a> article featuring his Top 10 Spacehips In Fiction.<\/p>\n<p>If you want to check it out, it&#8217;s right here:<\/p>\n<h3><a href=\"https:\/\/www.theguardian.com\/books\/2018\/feb\/28\/top-10-spaceships-in-fiction-jules-verne-iain-m-banks?CMP=twt_a-culture_b-gdnculture\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Gareth L Powell &#8212; Top 10 Spaceships In Fiction<\/a><\/h3>\n<p>However, as is often the way, it immediately got me thinking of Spaceships I Have Loved, mostly in SFF over the years &#8212; and I really do like spaceships A Lot! \ud83d\ude09<\/p>\n<div id=\"attachment_35122\" style=\"width: 269px\" class=\"wp-caption alignright\"><a href=\"https:\/\/helenlowe.info\/blog\/?attachment_id=35122\" rel=\"attachment wp-att-35122\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-35122\" class=\"wp-image-35122 size-full\" src=\"https:\/\/helenlowe.info\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/03\/Eagles_Space-1999.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"259\" height=\"194\" srcset=\"https:\/\/helenlowe.info\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/03\/Eagles_Space-1999.jpg 259w, https:\/\/helenlowe.info\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/03\/Eagles_Space-1999-150x112.jpg 150w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 259px) 100vw, 259px\" \/><\/a><p id=\"caption-attachment-35122\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Eagles in Space 1999<\/p><\/div>\n<p>Many of them are in TV and film, for example:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>the Eagles in <strong>Space 1999<\/strong><em>;<\/em><\/li>\n<li>just about all the spaceships in <strong>Babylon 5<\/strong>, although the White Stars and the Vorlons&#8217; sentient ships are &#8220;probably&#8221; my favourites;<\/li>\n<li>I think <strong>Dr. Who&#8217;<\/strong>s <em>Tardis<\/em> has to count right as a spaceship, right? (Right!)<\/li>\n<li>The <em>Millenium Falcon<\/em> (<strong>Star Wars<\/strong>, of course!)<\/li>\n<li><em>Serenity<\/em>! (<strong>Firefly<\/strong>)<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Plus a raft of others &#8212; some, like the <em>USS Enterprise<\/em> and the <em>Discovery One<\/em> in (the film) <strong>2001 A Space<\/strong> <strong>Odyssey<\/strong> are almost too famous to mention, while other films such as <strong>Alien<\/strong> (plus sequels), <strong>Deep Impact<\/strong>, <strong>Interstellar<\/strong>, <strong>The Martian<\/strong> (again to name only a few) have a wonderful supporting cast of spaceships.<\/p>\n<p>But as with Gareth&#8217;s post, the spaceships I encountered in literature are my first love, possibly because in books you feel as though you&#8217;re really inside the ship. And although I did a big high five to the ships included in his Top 10, here are another few I thought of straight away that will always be on mine:<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/helenlowe.info\/blog\/?attachment_id=35123\" rel=\"attachment wp-att-35123\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignleft size-thumbnail wp-image-35123\" src=\"https:\/\/helenlowe.info\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/03\/Ship-Who-Sang-89x150.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"89\" height=\"150\" srcset=\"https:\/\/helenlowe.info\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/03\/Ship-Who-Sang-89x150.jpg 89w, https:\/\/helenlowe.info\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/03\/Ship-Who-Sang-179x300.jpg 179w, https:\/\/helenlowe.info\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/03\/Ship-Who-Sang.jpg 283w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 89px) 100vw, 89px\" \/><\/a>1. <strong><em>Helva<\/em><\/strong> in <strong>Anne McCaffrey&#8217;s<\/strong> classic <strong>The Ship Who Sang<\/strong>: I loved the idea of human brains in ship&#8217;s bodies (the Shadow ships in Babylon 5 are a darker version of this idea) but mostly I loved the character of Helva and her interactions with others, particularly her human crewmember. It&#8217;s certainly one of the few books, too, where the ship is <em>the<\/em> or <em>a<\/em> protagonist &#8212; Ann Leckie&#8217;s <strong>Ancillary Justice<\/strong> and Iain M Banks <strong>Consider Phlebus<\/strong> (and Culture novels generally), both of which are mentioned in the Guardian feature, are among the others.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/helenlowe.info\/blog\/downbelowstation20thanncover-2\/\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignright size-thumbnail wp-image-27932\" src=\"https:\/\/helenlowe.info\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/01\/DownbelowStation20thAnnCover-93x150.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"93\" height=\"150\" srcset=\"https:\/\/helenlowe.info\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/01\/DownbelowStation20thAnnCover-93x150.jpg 93w, https:\/\/helenlowe.info\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/01\/DownbelowStation20thAnnCover.jpg 175w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 93px) 100vw, 93px\" \/><\/a>2. I was really torn when it came to <strong>CJ Cherryh<\/strong> because she has so many spaceships-of-awesome, in a list of so many great SFF books that NASA named an asteroid after her ( 77185 Cherryh). I can&#8217;t list them all but here are a few of my favourites:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>The <strong><em>Pride of Chanur<\/em> <\/strong>in the book (and subsequent series) of the same name. First contact and swashbuckling space opera at its best<\/li>\n<li>The spaceships of <strong>Downbelow Station<\/strong>, chiefly the warship <em><strong>Norway<\/strong><\/em> (<em>Norway&#8230;Norway&#8230;Norway&#8230;<\/em>) and its captain, the indomitable Signy Mallory; the merchanter, <em><strong>Finity&#8217;s End;<\/strong><\/em> and the ghost ship, <em><strong>Estelle<\/strong><\/em>.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>3. <a href=\"https:\/\/helenlowe.info\/blog\/?attachment_id=35125\" rel=\"attachment wp-att-35125\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignleft size-thumbnail wp-image-35125\" src=\"https:\/\/helenlowe.info\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/03\/Time-Traders-100x150.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"100\" height=\"150\" srcset=\"https:\/\/helenlowe.info\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/03\/Time-Traders-100x150.jpg 100w, https:\/\/helenlowe.info\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/03\/Time-Traders-200x300.jpg 200w, https:\/\/helenlowe.info\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/03\/Time-Traders.jpg 267w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 100px) 100vw, 100px\" \/><\/a>I&#8217;ll always have a place in my heart, too, for the <em><strong>Solar Queen<\/strong><\/em> of <strong>Andre Norton&#8217;s<\/strong> series called <strong>Time Traders<\/strong> . Early SFF but seminal, especially for YA and younger readers.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/helenlowe.info\/blog\/2011\/09\/18\/just-arrived-the-language-of-flowers-by-vanessa-diffenbaugh-the-quantum-thief-by-hannu-rajaniemi\/quantum-thief\/\" rel=\"attachment wp-att-8205\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignright size-thumbnail wp-image-8205\" src=\"https:\/\/helenlowe.info\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/09\/Quantum-Thief-98x150.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"98\" height=\"150\" srcset=\"https:\/\/helenlowe.info\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/09\/Quantum-Thief-98x150.jpg 98w, https:\/\/helenlowe.info\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/09\/Quantum-Thief.jpg 146w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 98px) 100vw, 98px\" \/><\/a>4. More recently, I particularly enjoyed my encounter with the spaceship <strong><em>Perhonen<\/em><\/strong> in <strong>Hannu Rajaniemi&#8217;s<\/strong> debut <strong>The Quantum Thief<\/strong> (and Jean Le Flambeur series.) <em>Perhonen<\/em> is another sentient ship, with a complex and intriguing relationship, chiefly with her pilot, Mieli, but also with the thief, Jean Le Flambeur.<\/p>\n<p>Other space ships of note include the luxury yacht, <em><strong>Sweet Delight<\/strong><\/em>, in <strong>Elizabeth Moon<\/strong>&#8216;s novel <strong>Hunting Party<\/strong>, also <strong><em>Big Yellow<\/em><\/strong> in the <strong>Valor<\/strong> series by Tanya Huff, and <strong><em>Lady Macbeth<\/em><\/strong> in the <strong>Night&#8217;s Dawn<\/strong> trilogy by Peter F Hamilton.<a href=\"https:\/\/helenlowe.info\/blog\/?attachment_id=35129\" rel=\"attachment wp-att-35129\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignright size-thumbnail wp-image-35129\" src=\"https:\/\/helenlowe.info\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/03\/Reality-Dysfunction-93x150.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"93\" height=\"150\" srcset=\"https:\/\/helenlowe.info\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/03\/Reality-Dysfunction-93x150.jpg 93w, https:\/\/helenlowe.info\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/03\/Reality-Dysfunction-187x300.jpg 187w, https:\/\/helenlowe.info\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/03\/Reality-Dysfunction.jpg 296w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 93px) 100vw, 93px\" \/><\/a><a href=\"https:\/\/helenlowe.info\/blog\/?attachment_id=35128\" rel=\"attachment wp-att-35128\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-thumbnail wp-image-35128 alignleft\" src=\"https:\/\/helenlowe.info\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/03\/Tanya-Huff_Heart-of-Valor-93x150.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"93\" height=\"150\" srcset=\"https:\/\/helenlowe.info\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/03\/Tanya-Huff_Heart-of-Valor-93x150.jpg 93w, https:\/\/helenlowe.info\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/03\/Tanya-Huff_Heart-of-Valor-186x300.jpg 186w, https:\/\/helenlowe.info\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/03\/Tanya-Huff_Heart-of-Valor.jpg 310w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 93px) 100vw, 93px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p>I&#8217;m sure you have many more suggestions to share, so please do! \ud83d\ude42<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>One of the excellent folk I follow on Twitter is UK SFF author, Gareth L Powell, who last week wrote a The Guardian article featuring his Top 10 Spacehips In Fiction. If you want to check it out, it&#8217;s right here: Gareth L Powell &#8212; Top 10 Spaceships In Fiction However, as is often the [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[19,10,18],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-35118","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-funstuff","category-general","category-space-stuff"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/helenlowe.info\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/35118","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/helenlowe.info\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/helenlowe.info\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/helenlowe.info\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/helenlowe.info\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=35118"}],"version-history":[{"count":11,"href":"https:\/\/helenlowe.info\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/35118\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":35134,"href":"https:\/\/helenlowe.info\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/35118\/revisions\/35134"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/helenlowe.info\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=35118"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/helenlowe.info\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=35118"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/helenlowe.info\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=35118"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}