James White (author) - Critical Appraisal

Critical Appraisal

Paul Kincaid described White as a second-rank writer who occasionally produced first-rank works, and attracted a devoted but not wide audience. Kincaid noted that his plots were often formulaic and his writing employed a predictable set of techniques and mannerisms, along with a "studied quietness." On the other hand John Clute wrote that "in the depiction of goodness may lie the real genius of James White," Mike Resnick described the Sector General series' characters as "the most memorable crew of aliens ever created," and Graham Andrews wrote that White's aliens are really alien, not just human minds with exotic biologies. Michael Ashley commented that the setting of the television series Star Trek: Deep Space Nine is reminiscent of Sector General, and Mark Leeper noted similarities between Sector General's setting and that of television's Babylon 5. Chris Aylott wrote that White's plot construction and writing, including occasionally clumsy exposition, are typical of the Golden Age of science fiction in the 1930s, '40s, and '50s.

Algis Budrys concluded his review of The Watch Below with "... this is very nice writing when considered simply as prose and as an attempt to involve the reader's emotions." However when reviewing All Judgment Fled he wrote, "I suspect that he generates so much tension within himself while writing a book that he literally cannot bear to come to grips with crucial scenes."

White said of his approach to producing stories, "Of course, the plot idea must come first – but the characters soon take over," and compared it to using a compass rather than a map. He explained that he was drawn to medical themes by two factors: they offered opportunities for dramatic tension without war; and he had wanted to become a doctor, but had to go to work instead. His avoidance of violent themes is as strong in his non-medical stories as in the Sector General series.

None of White's works won Hugo or Nebula Awards, although four were short-listed. However, he won a Europa Prize in 1979, an Analog Analytical Laboratory Award in 1988 and a Science Fiction Chronicle Reader Award in 1996. In 1998, White received the NESFA (New England Science Fiction Association) Skylark Award for contributions to science fiction, named after a story by one of his inspirations, E. E. "Doc" Smith, and appreciated this so much that he donated his complete collection of Slant to NESFA. The following year he was inducted into the European Science Fiction Society's Hall of Fame. White was Guest-of-Honour at many conventions including: the 1971 and 1985 Novacons in the United Kingdom; three Beneluxcons (Belgium, Netherlands and Luxembourg); the 1998 Octocon (Éire); a Nicon (Northern Ireland); and the 1996 Worldcon.

Since 2000 the James White Award has been presented for the best short story by a non-professional writer. The judges are professional authors and editors, and have included Mike Resnick, Orson Scott Card, Lois McMaster Bujold, Peter F. Hamilton, Christopher Priest and Robert Sheckley.