Part C - Report
Sources Used
To create my blog, I used the following sources:
Novelist;
MagillonLiterature Plus;
Fiction Connection;
City of Sydney Library Network OPAC;
State Library of NSW OPAC;
Amazon.
Search Strategies
Novelist:
kw = utopia* AND fiction
= 268 returns
Limited results by Audience = Adults; Fiction/Nonfiction = Fiction
= 214 returns
I selected some of these returns for annotation (eg The Dispossed, Berave New World), and further narrowed returns by selecting a variety of different genres (eg "Science fiction", "Interdimensional travel"). This usually brought me back to results that already existed in the second filtered search, ie utopia AND fiction filtered by Audience = Adults. Therefore, the majority of my citations came from this search.
I also further browsed the returns and selected numerous other genres and subjects, for instance Genre = science fiction (in combination with Subject = Dystopia this returned Fahrenheit 451, for instance), or Subject = Totalitarianism.
Magillon Literature Plus:
kw = Utopias
= 257 returns
Limited results by Source types = All results; Subject = Utopias AND Other Worlds
= 49 returns
Selected citations (eg Herland; Stranger in a Strange Land)
I also used Magillon Literature as a means of finding work analyses and reviews on works previously selected from other databases (eg Thomas More's Utopia), to write up my annotations.
Fiction Connection:
kw = dystopias;
= 241 returns
Refined results by Genre = Fiction
= 221 returns
Refined results by Topic = Totalitarianism
= 19 results
Selected annotation (eg 1984)
Another search strategy I used in Fiction Connection was:
Genre = dystopia
= 190 returns
Refined results by Topic = Post-apocalyptic society
= 17 returns
Selected annotation (The Beach)
City of Sydney Library Network OPAC:
kw = dystopias
= 63 returns
Browsed returns and selected the following LCSH's:
Dystopias -- Comic books, strips, etc. (2 returns - selected one citation: Ball Peen Hammer).
and
Totalitarianism -- Fiction. (9 returns - selected one citation: Animal Farm).
State Library of NSW OPAC:
kw - utopia = 525 returns
Browsed returns and selected relevant LCSH: Utopias -- Fiction. (16 returns; selected one citation: Looking backward : 2000 - 1887).
Amazon
I used the reviews on Amazon to gain an overall understanding of the plot and appeal elements of the works selected, as well as to obtain images of the books themselves. This was done using a simple title search.
Library Thing
I used LibraryThing in the same way as I used Amazon, ie to read reviews of works already selected, the contents of which informed my annotations.
Usefullness of bibliography
This bibliography will provide a short-hand reference point for readers interested in the themes extolled in utopian/dystopian fiction, and all of the major genres this literature encompasses (eg science fiction, fantasy and political fiction).
As the annotations are relatively brief, it will be a short introduction to some of the works existing in this field, and give potential readers an idea of whether or not the books listed are 'up their alley' or not.
The target audience are adults/older teenagers (ie 'mature' readers), and many of the items included are of relevance to them as they have something of a 'philosophical' bent to them, eg Brave New World, Utopia and 1984.
At the same time, there are also a few less heavy-going reads on the list, such as Soul City and Paradise, while The Road and Ball Peen Hammer have cross-audience appeal, from 'serious' readers, to modern cinema-goers and consumers of graphic-novels.
The blog's promotional aspects include the branding of the City of Sydney Library Network on its banner, making it instantly recognisable and 'familiar' to the target-audience (ie City of Sydney Library members and locals), while the sharp graphics used give it some credibility, and their darkness hint at the subject-matter covered. The tags mark out easy-to-follow themes, enabling readers to select works by themes of interest to their individual taste.
Item Excluded
Heinlein, Robert A. A stranger in a strange land, New York : Ace Books, 1987.
Annotation: When an expedition to Mars finds Mike, a child born aboard a previous expedition and later adopted as a fully-fledged Martian native, it takes its human bounty back to earth, where he becomes a prized attraction for scientists wishing to examine and prod their new possession. Mike is rescued by a group of supporters more interested in restoring him to justice and self-determination, but quickly comes into conflict with a religious cult that covets his supernatural mind-powers. The stage is set for a battle of the metaphysical minds, as Mike is called upon to use his extra-terrestrial powers to best religious extremism and human fallability.
Reason for excluding item:
On the immediate surface, this novel seems somewhat far-fetched, however, this in itself is not reason enough for its exclusion. Instead, I excluded it simply because it traverses territory already covered in other titles, especially Brave New World, where Huxley successfully uses the 'savage' as a device to expose the failings of supposedly superior humanity. It also deals heavily with gender relations and sex and sexuality, which I believe have already been given an airing in various other items selected in the bibliography, including Ball-Peen Hammer, Paradise, A Country Called Home and Herland.
