Connie Willis

Theodora Baumgarten has just been selected as an IASA space cadet, and therein lies the problem. She didn't apply for the ultra-coveted posting, and doesn't relish spending years aboard the ship to which she's been assigned. But the plucky young heroine, in true Heinlein fashion, has no plans to go along with the program. Aided by her hacker best friend Kimkim, in a screwball comedy that has become Connie Wills' hallmark, Theodora will stop at nothing to uncover the conspiracy that has her shanghaied.

D.A.

Sarah Sammis

My first Connie Willis novel was To Say Nothing of the Dog back in 2005 before I had started book blogging in earnest. Recently I noticed that my library has a nice collection of her novels. As I was in the middle of reading for the Cybils I chose the shortest book I could find, D.A.

D.A. is an 80 page novella what was first published in a collection and then separately. It's by far the silliest Connie Willis story I've read to date. While she can write very serious novels (Doomsday Book for instance) she really shines when he embraces her off the wall sense of humor.

The novel follows Theodora Baumgarten who wants nothing more than to get into UCLA. While everyone else is gaga to go into space as an IASA cadet she wants nothing to do with space. Imagine her surprise when she's chosen to be the cadet from her school that year! Especially when she didn't apply.

Can Theodora and her hacker friend back on Earth set things to right? I loved the quick pace of this novella and the way that Willis was able to create a believable and charming teenage voice for her protagonist.

Sarah Escorsa

I have to say that this book was quite a disappointment to me. It's a fairly enjoyable read but it lacks the usual Connie Willis cleverness and wit. I was really excited when I bought this since I'd been waiting for a new Connie Willis book for a *long* time and what disappointed me most here is that this is not a novel but a short story (and a very short one too, it took me about an hour to read it!). I later found out that this book was actually targeted at 12-15 year olds?! I really don't know what to think about this... Is the publisher desperate? Can't Connie Willis write a full book anymore? Her next book, The Winds of Marble Arch, is coming out in September but it's (again) a collection of short stories, some of which have already been published in other collections... I'm not a huge fan of short stories but I'm a Connie Willis one so I'll probably give this next book a try, despite my low expectations...

D.A.

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