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Venus Plus X Audiobook
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(3.00) - 670 listener ratings
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Publisher Description
From Hugo and Nebula winner Theodore Sturgeon comes a seeming utopia: a world with only one gender and no poverty, pollution, or war—but at what cost?
Charlie Johns has been snatched from his home on Earth and delivered to the strange future world of Ledom. Technology has triumphed over hunger, overpopulation, pollution, and even time and space. But there is a change Charlie finds even more shocking: Gender is a thing of the past. Gone are the tensions between male and female. Gone is the human preoccupation with sex.
As Charlie explores Ledom and its people, he finds his engrained human precepts are profane in this new world. But then why are his hosts so eager for his approval? Something isn't right about Ledom's ideal existence. And when cracks begin to appear in its flawless façade, Charlie must unearth the city's terrible secrets . . . before it's too late.
Theodore Sturgeon's visionary tale is literary science fiction at its most brazen and inventive. A scathing critique of American puritanism that unabashedly explores questions of sexuality and gender, it remains as relevant, insightful, provocative, and troubling as when it first appeared in print.
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"more of a treatise on the sexes, (preceding the sexual revolution), and definitely of its time. but a quite enjoyable read, and a showcase for the author's vast imagination."
— Devowasright (4 out of 5 stars)
Venus Plus X Listener Reviews
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" So far this is my least favorite Sturgeon book. I don't like the way it alternates every chapter, between the main story and what is, I guess you could say, an illustration of the point the author was trying to make. Moralizing was a bit in my face, which I prefer to be more subtle. "
— Ryan, 10/31/2013 -
" Read it again on 10 Apr 2001 "
— Darryl, 10/13/2013 -
" I think I read this quickly during the winter break from school. The description makes it sound very interesting--a genderless utopia/a utopia because genderless? Like much of Sturgeon's writing, it's about gender, love, sex and the good society. Unfortunately, I have clear recollection of it. "
— Erik, 9/25/2013 -
" Better as a thought exercise than as a novel. The exploration of ideas related to gender identity, gender roles and enculturation was interesting but... well, it was published in 1960 and you can kind of tell in the dialog, unspoken biases, etc. "
— Jessica, 7/12/2013 -
" There's not much of a story here. It's more like an extended thought experiment. "
— Simon, 9/4/2012 -
" brilliant book in it's day. probably a bit dated now. "
— Sffgeek, 5/1/2012 -
" I felt the central premises of the narrative were on the ridiculous side, but enjoyed the questions raised and the story itself. "
— Zeo, 1/30/2012 -
" Dated, but a nice twist at the end. Message regarding melding of the sexes perceptive for the sixties. "
— Richard, 6/22/2011 -
" Very 1960. Reasonable exploration of gender and duality, especially for the time period. Not up to the snuff I expect from Sturgeon. Paled in comparison to Left Hand of Darkness, but then so does most gender-related SF. "
— Alex, 4/7/2011 -
" Interesting book...but I saw the "surprise" ending coming from a mile away. I think I must agree with the main character (Charlie Johns) take on the Ledom at the end of the book when...OK I won't spoil it "
— Scott, 11/30/2010 -
" A man gets accidentally frozen and awakens in a utopia in which humanity has evolved beyond gender, but is everything what it appears to be? "
— Keith, 9/25/2010 -
" Interesting book...but I saw the "surprise" ending coming from a mile away. I think I must agree with the main character (Charlie Johns) take on the Ledom at the end of the book when...OK I won't spoil it "
— Scott, 9/2/2008 -
" <em>Very</em> 1960. Reasonable exploration of gender and duality, especially for the time period. Not up to the snuff I expect from Sturgeon. Paled in comparison to Left Hand of Darkness, but then so does most gender-related SF. "
— Alex, 5/22/2008 -
" Read it again on 10 Apr 2001 "
— Darryl, 4/18/2008 -
" My least favorite Sturgeon novel. <br/> <br/>Not much to recommend beyond the solid prose. "
— D_Davis, 3/27/2008
About Theodore Sturgeon
Theodore Sturgeon (1918–1985) is one of the great figures of the golden age of science fiction. He wrote over two hundred stories, several novels, scripts for film and television (including two of the most famous episodes of the original Star Trek), plays, and dozens of nonfiction reviews and essays. His many literary awards include the Hugo, the Nebula, and the International Fantasy Award. His most famous novel, More Than Human, won serious academic recognition as literature, a rarity amongst science fiction works of the 1950s.