When asked to write an introduction for a collection
of lengthy electronic fiction, I grinned at the irony. Truthfully, I
haven’t enjoyed the electronic books I’ve read. I’ve written diatribes
against the form. My reasons are many, but especially on the writing
newsgroups, I find that the most effective work often comes from authors who
understand their medium and write accordingly, i.e., short and sweet.
Then there’s Oosh.
I don’t remember what finally convinced me to read Pavlova’s Bitches—some
combination of her powerful short prose, word-of-mouth about the novel and the
readers choice award it earned—but I went hesitantly.
Immediately, I was glad I did. Pavlova’s Bitches is not
a short novel either, 360 pages-plus, but I was hooked from the first
chapters. Here I found a writer of wit and subtlety, with a polished
style and yet a voice so fresh, whose talents enable her to offer a rare novel
so enjoyable that you don’t even realize it’s good for you, and it is.
At Usenet, Oosh occupies a unique
place as a challenging writer of great technique, who also enjoys wide
popularity; after a decade of Usenet reading, I can think of few others who
compare. I envy you, the reader, who happens upon Pavlova’s Bitches
for the first time. Mark my words, that you will not only enjoy a
memorable novel, but then you will move on to Oosh’s other fiction, the same way I and
so many others have.
To open an
eBook in MSReader you can click either on the thumbnail or the title and it
will load automatically. If you want to download the file, right-click on the
title, and choose Save Target As…
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Pavlova’s Bitches brims with empathy and questioning. Like great novelists do, Oosh renders a detailed, nuanced world in which we submerse ourselves. Her characters are fleshy and true—we come to know them and share their discovery. Their story is an unfolding flight from an ignorance grounded in perniciousness and close-mindedness, yet their journey is a joyful one, and we join them in their triumphs and excitement. |
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Pavlova’s Bitches can also be downloaded in Adobe Reader pdf format. The reader can be downloaded from the Adobe download page. |
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All the stories can be downloaded in their original format from oosh’s website: http://www.asstr.org/~oosh/