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February 24, 2005
Beggars in Spain
I'm a big fan of the science fiction genre. There are some authors that I can relate to more than others, though. That's why I tend to look for science fiction works by female authors whenever possible. I say 'whenever possible' because in sci-fi, female authors are few and far between. That's why it's such a treat when I find one that I really enjoy reading. Nancy Kress is a sci-fi author who fits into that category. I really enjoyed Beggars in Spain.
The premise of this story exists to answer the question of how humans can be more productive if they do not need to sleep. Our heroine, Leisha Camden is genetically different from her twin sister, Alice. Leisha belongs to the 'Sleepless', a group of genetically altered individuals who require no sleep to function normally. As a 'side effect' of sleeplessness, Leisha and other 'Sleepless' are academically more brilliant than normal people, since they are highly productive.
As the 'Sleepless' begin to multiply in numbers, though, there's a lot of resentment from the normal people. Those normal people are thinking, "Why should the Sleepless be allowed to dominate the world?". There's an additional unforseen effect of being Sleepless, though, which I will not disclose in this review. But read the book, and you'll see why this effect opens yet another can of worms for the Sleepless. This book explores issues of genetic engineering, and the social implications that exist with it. Beggars in Spain is the first book of a trilogy, and I will definitely be putting in an order to purchase the other two books. I'm hoping the latter two books will be as spectacular as this one was.
Posted by Kathy at February 24, 2005 11:39 PM