I go to a lot of science fiction conventions, and at all of these conventions, there are numerous panel discussions of topics that are hopefully interesting to fans of the genre. One of the more common is, “Is Science Fiction Literature?” To science fiction fans, and hopefully the writers as well, the obvious answer is “Yes,” but since the topic is so commonly discussed and debated, I suspect there is a fair amount of insecurity among those who write science fiction for a living and those who read it for enjoyment.

Personally, I have a rather jaded view of the whole question. As an English major at an Ivy League school, I was required to read a lot of great books. The classroom discussions tended to focus more on how the book illuminated both the author’s mind and the times in which the book was written–a combination of psychoanalysis and sociology–than on the book itself. Though a lowly undergraduate, I nevertheless held to the conviction that it should have been the other way around.

Later in life, I became good friends with the Vice-Chairman of the English Department at the University where I worked. I once remarked to her that one of the things that turned me off about so many of my classes was the fact that never, in any class that I attended, did one of my professors ever discuss what made a book “good.” She seemed surprised by my statement, and then said that she herself would never dream of discussing such a thing. My decision, made so long ago, to not bother seeking an advanced degree in the Humanities was thereby confirmed.

So what does make a book “good?” The basics of good writing are the same no matter the genre: plot, theme, characterization, style. Many writers often considered great were lacking in style. Theodore Dreiser comes immediately to mind. And one can argue whether or not Finnegan’s Wake, for instance, had any plot at all, but it is rare for a “good” book to be seriously lacking in any of these characteristics.

Genre writing: science fiction, fantasy, mysteries, romance, westerns, thrillers, are all regarded by the commentariat as somehow inferior to what is often referred to as “mainstream,” or literary fiction. So far as I am concerned, this is no more nor less than intellectual snobbery–a distinction without a difference. If it has an engrossing plot, characters that come alive, themes and ideas that resonate with the reader and reflect real issues, and if the style at least provides clarity and does not distract from all the rest of it, then it’s worth reading. A good book is a good book.

I graduated from Columbia with a degree in English in 1974. While I was there, I read an essay on J. R. R. Tolkien and the Lord of the Rings by a professor in the English Department. The last words of the essay were, “The Lord of the Rings lives, but on borrowed time.” The professor did not think much of the Lord of the Rings. Her problems with the book were the standard: lack of realism, characterizations that were hardly subtle, good and evil depicted in black and white, the minor role that women played in the narrative. It’s now over forty years later, however, and The Lord of the Rings is still being read, more popular than ever.

When I was in 12th Grade, I remember one young woman stating that the books we were reading lacked relevance. She wanted to read Soul on Ice instead of Shakespeare. It’s now more than forty years later, and Soul on Ice is little more than an historical curiosity, a relic of the 1960’s. If literature is news that stays news, Soul on Ice has not made the grade.

Some years ago, I read on essay by Gore Vidal on Tarzan of the Apes. Vidal grudgingly stated that, “In action, Tarzan is excellent.” Aside from that, he had little good to say about the book. And yet, Tarzan was published in 1914. I doubt that it ever occurred to Gore Vidal that Edgar Rice Burroughs was and is a much more important, much more influential writer than himself. Very little that Gore Vidal wrote is still being read, not by a very wide audience, at least, but generations have read and loved the exploits of Tarzan and John Carter.

Again, if literature is news that stays news, sometimes we don’t know until many years later exactly what books and stories are going to achieve that status. So I say, don’t worry about it. Read what you enjoy. It’s a question that only our grandchildren will be able to answer.