"Suzette Haden Elgin's
Native Tongue trilogy, a classic text of angry feminism, is also an exemplary experiment in speculative fiction, deftly and implacably pursuing both a scientific hypothesis and an ideological hypothesis through all their social, moral, and emotional implications." --
Ursula K. Le Guin, author of The Left Hand of Darkness "Less well known than the
The Handmaid's Tale but just as apocalyptic in [its] vision . . . Suzette Haden Elgin's
Native Tongue. . . records female tribulation in a world where . . . women have no public rights at all. Elgin's heroines do, however, have one set of weapons--words of their own." --
Sandra M. Gilbert and Susan Gubar, The New York Times Book Review "
Native Tongue brings to life not only the possibility of a women's language, but also the rationale for one. . . . [It is] a language that can bring to life concepts men have never needed, have never dreamed of--and thus change the world. Elgin never makes the mistake of easy utopiansim or over-optimism. Her women revel in patience." --
Voice Literary Supplement "As a nonreader of science fiction . . . I urge
Native Tongue upon you. . . . Like Margaret Atwood in
The Handmaid's Tale but more drastically and distinctly, Elgin has carried current fundamentalist views on women to their 'logical' conclusion. . . . Above all she understands that until women find the words and syntax for what they need to say, they will never say it, nor will the world hear it. . . . There isn't a phony or romantic moment here, and the story is absolutely compelling." --
Women's Review of Books "Elgin's novel will inspire those who believe that women's words can change the world. Read it!"
--
Marleen S. Barr, author of Lost in Space: Probing Feminist Science Fiction and Beyond