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Post-Self #4
Mitzvot
“To be built to love is to be built to dissolve. It is to be built to unbecome. It is to have the sole purpose of falling apart all in the name of someone else."
Even the grandest of stories can feel small and immediate when it’s just one person’s life.
One of the most well-known names from one of the most well-known clades on the System, the avatar of political machinations and cool confidence, has been brought low. With help coming only from Ioan Bălan and the most grudging of support from her cocladists, all True Name has left to save herself is the ability to change.
Even the grandest of stories can feel small and immediate when it’s just one person’s life.
One of the most well-known names from one of the most well-known clades on the System, the avatar of political machinations and cool confidence, has been brought low. With help coming only from Ioan Bălan and the most grudging of support from her cocladists, all True Name has left to save herself is the ability to change.
460 pages, Paperback
Published January 21, 2023
4 people want to read
About the author
Madison Scott-Clary
17 books62 followersMadison Rye Progress, also writing under the name Madison Scott-Clary, is an author of fiction, non-fiction, and poetry living in the Pacific Northwest. Her interests lie in the realms of furry fiction and non-fiction, collaborative fiction, and hypertextual writing. She is a member of the Furry Writers' Guild, and editor for several projects, fiction and non-fiction. She holds an MFA from Cornell College where she studied the lyric essay and teaching creative writing in fandom- and subculture-specific spaces.
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Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
January 10, 2023
*I received an advanced reading copy in exchange for a review*
I’m struck by how my initial impression of the shape of the story was going to be a redemption arc for True Name and how that assumption changed over the course of the story. It is less a redemption arc and more so a reckoning arc. One full of consequences for herself and her cocladists for all of her meddling and the way in which she has lived her life up until the inciting incident of the book.
A notable difference in this book as compared to the first three is the absence of a split narrative structure. I think this was the right decision, especially for the type of story being told here. Splitting out so much happening so quickly over two different perspectives would quickly become a bit much I would imagine. There are still moments where a chapter or two are from a different character’s perspective, but the majority is focused squarely on Ioan, May Then My Name, and True Name. I really enjoyed the chapters we got from Debarre’s point of view since he’s such an important character from the beginning of the series with his involvement with the lost and his position on the Council of Eight. It was refreshing to see his take on some of the established characters and the tender moments with End Waking were lovely to read.
The sub-head for this book could be “Ioan’s fucking pissed” and this is me full well knowing ey had every right to feel that way. I appreciate that when presented with those situations that cause em to yell or lash out that they responded how they did. While anger is not exactly an emotion ey expresses often, it felt believable for the times it came up to me. If you had told me at the beginning of this series that Ioan would lose eir cool during a heated argument I wouldn’t have believed it, but ey’s changed enough through eir contact with the Odists and through the events of the last three books that it made sense.
And that segues well into one of the main themes of the book for me, being the concept of change. Change has been a major theme through all of the Post-Self books, but it feels incredibly apt here in Mitzvot. True Name being forced to change who she is to avoid Jonas coming after her brings about changes in the dynamics of everyone’s lives around her. Ioan and May have to contend with the disruption that her presence brings into their home, True Name has to learn how to exist without a thousand projects demanding her attention, and all of this comes to a head as they navigate what their lives will become once True Name is out of immediate danger.
It is all so incredibly domestic and while the stakes are not as high on paper, the book manages to feel more tense in those conversations. Discussions over who is crossing which boundary feel as fraught as those interviews Ioan and True Name conducted so many years ago. There are a lot of small scenes over the course of the story that add up to these big emotional moments and they’re all based in talks over morning coffee or sharing a meal around a fire. But I think that’s the beauty of it and what sets Mitzvot apart from the other three books in the series. Those little day to day conversations build up and affect who you are and as a result of that you will inevitably change. There’s a great line in the book about “love being made up of a million little nothing moments that come together to form a greater whole” and that really resonated with me.
Mitzvot drills down deeper into the lives of its characters and shows us that between the world-shattering projects that change the very understanding of the System, they’re just people trying to live their lives with love and purpose. The person I am is always changing, in response to trauma, love, loss, and all the little things that get me through my day to day. True Name is no exception and her transformation throughout the book into the person she becomes brings together all of these questions that the Post-Self series has been exploring. How much lived experience is necessary for you to become a new person? Are some emotional scars too deep to heal? And can time really heal that wound when you can no longer forget? And of course, how many skunks can you fit inside of a queer sci-fi book and still get away with it?
Before I close out the review, a few words for Selected Letters. It’s a collection of letters between the Balan clade that serve as a kind of epilogue to Mitzvot. Though the events covered in them start before the story of Mitzvot, there is plenty that fleshes out what happens after the end of the book. The letters tie up a few loose ends that weren’t able to be brought up in the main body of Mitzvot. The time between letters is often pretty long and so there’s a lot to catch the other characters up on. I noticed a few times that I had to double check the year the letter was sent and then mentally check where it fit into the overall story. This wasn’t a hindrance in reading, just caused me to take a second to re-center myself.
I really enjoyed the idea that the letters function as a way for these instances to keep in touch. It gave me a kind of “long distance relatives updating their cousins on who recently got married since they wouldn’t be there to experience those big moments with them” vibe. Through the letters, Sorina has a chance to process her existence and what that will mean for her in the future. She often talks about how to define herself now, with these new experiences and the ability to forget. I wish there was one more letter with Sorina to cement how she is doing with processing all of that but at the same time there is a value in leaving that unspoken. Her lack of a letter could point to her moving on and living her life as she wants, without feeling the need to update the rest of the clade.
I think one of the biggest themes from Selected Letters, at least for me, was the concept of looking towards the future and facing it with a bit of hope. There will always be change coming on the horizon, but as long as you’re here with me, it can’t be that bad. I will also say that the ending letter had me close to tears and that’s always going to be a point in my favor. Sentimental sap that I am.
I will miss these characters deeply, but I am glad to have had the chance to see where their collective story ended up. It’s no surprise that this series was a favorite of mine, what with the LGBTQ+ cast, furries, and the use of programming concepts in its world building. If you’re into sci-fi or just love a good fleshed out world I would recommend giving the books a try. I can’t guarantee that you’ll love them like I do, but I do feel as though you’ll be changed by the experience, even if just slightly. There is no going and there is no back, after all.
I’m struck by how my initial impression of the shape of the story was going to be a redemption arc for True Name and how that assumption changed over the course of the story. It is less a redemption arc and more so a reckoning arc. One full of consequences for herself and her cocladists for all of her meddling and the way in which she has lived her life up until the inciting incident of the book.
A notable difference in this book as compared to the first three is the absence of a split narrative structure. I think this was the right decision, especially for the type of story being told here. Splitting out so much happening so quickly over two different perspectives would quickly become a bit much I would imagine. There are still moments where a chapter or two are from a different character’s perspective, but the majority is focused squarely on Ioan, May Then My Name, and True Name. I really enjoyed the chapters we got from Debarre’s point of view since he’s such an important character from the beginning of the series with his involvement with the lost and his position on the Council of Eight. It was refreshing to see his take on some of the established characters and the tender moments with End Waking were lovely to read.
The sub-head for this book could be “Ioan’s fucking pissed” and this is me full well knowing ey had every right to feel that way. I appreciate that when presented with those situations that cause em to yell or lash out that they responded how they did. While anger is not exactly an emotion ey expresses often, it felt believable for the times it came up to me. If you had told me at the beginning of this series that Ioan would lose eir cool during a heated argument I wouldn’t have believed it, but ey’s changed enough through eir contact with the Odists and through the events of the last three books that it made sense.
And that segues well into one of the main themes of the book for me, being the concept of change. Change has been a major theme through all of the Post-Self books, but it feels incredibly apt here in Mitzvot. True Name being forced to change who she is to avoid Jonas coming after her brings about changes in the dynamics of everyone’s lives around her. Ioan and May have to contend with the disruption that her presence brings into their home, True Name has to learn how to exist without a thousand projects demanding her attention, and all of this comes to a head as they navigate what their lives will become once True Name is out of immediate danger.
It is all so incredibly domestic and while the stakes are not as high on paper, the book manages to feel more tense in those conversations. Discussions over who is crossing which boundary feel as fraught as those interviews Ioan and True Name conducted so many years ago. There are a lot of small scenes over the course of the story that add up to these big emotional moments and they’re all based in talks over morning coffee or sharing a meal around a fire. But I think that’s the beauty of it and what sets Mitzvot apart from the other three books in the series. Those little day to day conversations build up and affect who you are and as a result of that you will inevitably change. There’s a great line in the book about “love being made up of a million little nothing moments that come together to form a greater whole” and that really resonated with me.
Mitzvot drills down deeper into the lives of its characters and shows us that between the world-shattering projects that change the very understanding of the System, they’re just people trying to live their lives with love and purpose. The person I am is always changing, in response to trauma, love, loss, and all the little things that get me through my day to day. True Name is no exception and her transformation throughout the book into the person she becomes brings together all of these questions that the Post-Self series has been exploring. How much lived experience is necessary for you to become a new person? Are some emotional scars too deep to heal? And can time really heal that wound when you can no longer forget? And of course, how many skunks can you fit inside of a queer sci-fi book and still get away with it?
Before I close out the review, a few words for Selected Letters. It’s a collection of letters between the Balan clade that serve as a kind of epilogue to Mitzvot. Though the events covered in them start before the story of Mitzvot, there is plenty that fleshes out what happens after the end of the book. The letters tie up a few loose ends that weren’t able to be brought up in the main body of Mitzvot. The time between letters is often pretty long and so there’s a lot to catch the other characters up on. I noticed a few times that I had to double check the year the letter was sent and then mentally check where it fit into the overall story. This wasn’t a hindrance in reading, just caused me to take a second to re-center myself.
I really enjoyed the idea that the letters function as a way for these instances to keep in touch. It gave me a kind of “long distance relatives updating their cousins on who recently got married since they wouldn’t be there to experience those big moments with them” vibe. Through the letters, Sorina has a chance to process her existence and what that will mean for her in the future. She often talks about how to define herself now, with these new experiences and the ability to forget. I wish there was one more letter with Sorina to cement how she is doing with processing all of that but at the same time there is a value in leaving that unspoken. Her lack of a letter could point to her moving on and living her life as she wants, without feeling the need to update the rest of the clade.
I think one of the biggest themes from Selected Letters, at least for me, was the concept of looking towards the future and facing it with a bit of hope. There will always be change coming on the horizon, but as long as you’re here with me, it can’t be that bad. I will also say that the ending letter had me close to tears and that’s always going to be a point in my favor. Sentimental sap that I am.
I will miss these characters deeply, but I am glad to have had the chance to see where their collective story ended up. It’s no surprise that this series was a favorite of mine, what with the LGBTQ+ cast, furries, and the use of programming concepts in its world building. If you’re into sci-fi or just love a good fleshed out world I would recommend giving the books a try. I can’t guarantee that you’ll love them like I do, but I do feel as though you’ll be changed by the experience, even if just slightly. There is no going and there is no back, after all.
October 19, 2023
I received an advance copy of this book in exchange for my review... and then took a long time to read the book.
But I now have, and this is a fitting end to the Post-Self series. I am impressed with Scott-Clary's ability to ask and answer new questions in the same universe. Each book takes us not only deeper, but wider.
This book is a much more intimate portrait, which I appreciated. We see the characters in their lives, and get a complete sense of them as people—or skunks, as the case may be. And True Name is developed is such perfect detail.
If you've read the first three books, you need to read this one, too. It is a beautiful capstone on a wonderful series.
But I now have, and this is a fitting end to the Post-Self series. I am impressed with Scott-Clary's ability to ask and answer new questions in the same universe. Each book takes us not only deeper, but wider.
This book is a much more intimate portrait, which I appreciated. We see the characters in their lives, and get a complete sense of them as people—or skunks, as the case may be. And True Name is developed is such perfect detail.
If you've read the first three books, you need to read this one, too. It is a beautiful capstone on a wonderful series.
May 30, 2024
How can one begin to atone or the damage and pain you've caused? How can you show that you've changed and what forces that change upon people?
These, to me, are the crux of the book and what it's all about. Whereas the others in the series are more overarching discussions about the system as a whole, this is laser focused on characters in a way that lets you really examine things.
Mitzvot was a book I either read a hundred pages at a time, or I sat with a section for a while and thought through what was happening and what the characters were going through.
Just beautiful writing that's a reminder of just how much Madison has a grasp on her contemplative prose
These, to me, are the crux of the book and what it's all about. Whereas the others in the series are more overarching discussions about the system as a whole, this is laser focused on characters in a way that lets you really examine things.
Mitzvot was a book I either read a hundred pages at a time, or I sat with a section for a while and thought through what was happening and what the characters were going through.
Just beautiful writing that's a reminder of just how much Madison has a grasp on her contemplative prose
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews