Rupetta

2013 novel by Nike A. Sulway

9781905784509

Rupetta (2013) is a science fiction novel by Australian writer Nike Sulway, who has previously published work under the pseudonym Nicole Bourke.^[1] The novel won the 2013 James Tiptree, Jr. Award.^[2]

Plot summary

The novel follows the story of Rupetta, a mechanical woman built in rural France in 1619 and endowed with sentience and immortality. In order for Rupetta to function properly, she must be "wound" like a clock. The responsibility for this "wynding" falls on the female descendants of Rupetta's creator Eloise. The novel explores the interactions over the generations between Rupetta and her "wynders".

Reviews

George Williams in The Australian found: "The book is notable not just for its original story but its form. It is written in an unusual, lilting style that somehow manages to capture the emotional resonance of the scene, whether it be happy, melancholy, earnest or reflective. The style brings to mind a children's fairytale...Rupetta is a rich, complex work wrapped in an engaging style. It is not a book that can be pigeonholed. It has elements of fantasy, romance and even gothic horror in the mould of Mary Shelley's Frankenstein. At the same time, it contains lengthy discussions on questions such as the meaning of knowledge."^[3]

The James Tiptree, Jr. Award jury noted that the novel was: "A deft blend of fantasy, science fiction, romance, and even gothic horror, this beautifully written story challenges the reader’s expectations about gender and of a gendering society. It examines power and what makes an object of power, relationships and love, sexuality and identity, and how culture is shaped and history is made."^[2]

Awards and nominations

2013 shortlisted Aurealis Award for best science fiction novel
2013 winner International Awards – James Tiptree, Jr. Award First Australian work to win the James Tiptree, Jr Award.
2014 winner Norma K. Hemming Award^[1]
2014 runner-up (shortlisted) IAFA William L. Crawford Fantasy Award

References

^ ^a ^b Austlit - Ruptta by Nike Sulway
^ ^a ^b 2013 James Tiptree, Jr. Award winners
^ "Lessons of an age-old heart" by George Williams, The Australian, 8 July 2013

Otherwise Award/James Tiptree Jr. Award Winners

Retrospective
winners

Motherlines and Walk to the End of the World by Suzy McKee Charnas
The Left Hand of Darkness by Ursula K. Le Guin
The Female Man and "When It Changed" by Joanna Russ

1991–2000

A Woman of the Iron People by Eleanor Arnason (1991, tie)
White Queen by Gwyneth Jones (1991, tie)
China Mountain Zhang by Maureen F. McHugh (1992)
Ammonite by Nicola Griffith (1993)
"The Matter of Seggri" by Ursula K. Le Guin (1994, tie)
Larque on the Wing by Nancy Springer (1994, tie)
Waking the Moon by Elizabeth Hand (1995, tie)
The Memoirs Of Elizabeth Frankenstein by Theodore Roszak (1995, tie)
"Mountain Ways" by Ursula K. Le Guin (1996, tie)
The Sparrow by Mary Doria Russell (1996, tie)
Black Wine by Candas Jane Dorsey (1997, tie)
"Travels With The Snow Queen" by Kelly Link (1997, tie)
"Congenital Agenesis of Gender Ideation" by Raphael Carter (1998)
The Conqueror's Child by Suzy McKee Charnas (1999)
Wild Life by Molly Gloss (2000)

2001–2010

The Kappa Child by Hiromi Goto (2001)
Light by M. John Harrison (2002, tie)
"Stories for Men" by John Kessel (2002, tie)
Set This House in Order: A Romance of Souls by Matt Ruff (2003)
Camouflage by Joe Haldeman (2004, tie)
Not Before Sundown by Johanna Sinisalo (2004, tie)
Air by Geoff Ryman (2005)
The Orphan's Tales: In the Night Garden by Catherynne M. Valente (2006, tie)
Half Life by Shelley Jackson (2006, tie)
James Tiptree Jr.: The Double Life of Alice B. Sheldon by Julie Phillips (2006, special recognition)
The Carhullan Army by Sarah Hall (2007)
The Knife of Never Letting Go by Patrick Ness (2008, tie)
Filter House by Nisi Shawl (2008, tie)
Cloud and Ashes: Three Winter’s Tales by Greer Gilman (2009, tie)
Ōoku: The Inner Chambers by Fumi Yoshinaga (2009, tie)
Baba Yaga Laid an Egg by Dubravka Ugrešić (2010)