Dreamsnake

This is a delightful and haunting mix of excellent, gripping prose, and a totally new idea for a sci-fi/fantasy novel. The protagonist uses snakes to heal people. I happen to love snakes and have several as pets, but to those of you who do NOT like snakes, get this book and read it! You'll love being freaked out by the author's excellent descriptions of her healing reptiles. Not that the book is all about freaking out anyone: the story is that the healer's snake, Grass, gets killed by frightened villagers. This is a tragedy because all Grass ever did was help patient's feel comfortable and happy. Without Grass, she can't heal, so she goes on a quest to find another dreamsnake. A unique and interesting surprise ending reveals the origins of the snake. Part adventure, part ancient medicine, part love story, this is a haunting, lovely book.

I have never been a fan of the fantasy genre. The childish dragons, spells, castles, and elves are not my cup of tea. My friend recommended this book, in spite of my objections. It turned out to be so far removed from the fantasy I have read. I couldn't put it down. No unbelievable spells, witches, or magic swords. Exceptional writing style. Great characterization and story line. This can be read by anyone, even sci-fi haters. I put it in the same class as "A Canticle For Leibowitz". I forgot who wrote that one. Another book that is almost uncategorizable(?). I highly recommend both books for anyone looking to lose themselves in great reading.

Reading this book is like dreaming, except that it makes sense.Now that Vonda McIntyre is famous, everybody loves this book. I loved it before anybody had ever heard of her, when the book was still a short story, called Grass. (In case you don't 'get it,' that's the name of one of the heroine's snakes.) The short story eventually became the first third or so of the novel, and there's still a timeless, lyrical, almost ecstatic quality to that part of the book that gradually disappears during the rest of the story, and rightly so.The story is about a healer who uses snakes as assistants and their bite as medicine. When she loses her healing snake, she must undertake a journey to find another.Like many 'journey novels,' Dreamsnake's strength is not in the plot but in the characterization. The heroine's insights, strengths, and fears make her so real that you feel deprived when the book is over, except that she will stay with you forever after, both in your dreams and out.McIntyre has written many wonderful books now, but this one is still my favorite. It's one of my 'top six best science fiction works of all time' picks.

I picked this book up ten years ago for the silliest reason (it was next to Anne McCaffrey) and I haven't put it down since. This is one of my favorite, if not my absolute favorite, science fiction book for many reasons. The first, and most trivial, is that I love snakes, and their starring role made this an appealing book. I especially like that they are a crucial plot element, and that McIntyre gets FAR away from the traditional views of snakes as evil. Moving on, I have found myself thinking of the characters many times in other contexts and find them to be well-drawn. Whenever I read it, I wish that Arevin had a larger part, but it is Snake's book, not his. I read this when I was 13 and the sexuality in it was a revalation. Looking back on it, I realize that it was age appropriate for me then (a mature 13) and it still is now. I agree that North is a fairly thin villian, but that is more than made up for me by the intriging bad guys in the dome. I have also always wanted to know what their story was. I own two copies--my paperback, and a hardcover that I was elated to find at a used book store for $2.50! I also like the scientific emphasis of it, though it is set in such an uncivilized world.