Mike Resnick has never shied away from asking a lot from the authors who grace his collections. In the past, his anthologies have covered all manner of alternate realities, pasts, and futures, male authors have been asked to write as female, and female writers as male. Now he asks them to take a real leap of the imagination, in I, Alien. A whopping twenty-seven stories take a look at things from an alien perspective, looking at a wide variety of topics in the process. There’s a wide range of tones to be found here, allowing for comedy (Laura Resnick’s “Diary of a Galactic Émigré,” in which an alien finds out the hard way that his chosen disguise is not that of the Earth’s dominant species) and drama (Kristine Kathryn Rusch’s “The Injustice Collector” is the story of an interspecies trial brought about by radical misunderstandings, and multiple interpretations of the same basic concepts.)
For the down to Earth, there’s Paul E. Marten’s “Creature For Hire,” which shows that even an alien can fall upon hard times in the fickle eyes of the public. Michael Burstein’s “Pedagogy” examines the differences in education and discipline between an alien species and Earthlings, leading to the sort of resolution we’ve all wished upon obnoxious people at one point or another. Janis Ian’s “Correspondence With A Breeder” is a hilarious piece about time travel, would-be-writers, a famous editor, and some major miscommunications.
Just to show that anthropology is alive and well on other planets, we have Barbara Delaplace’s “Resident Alien.” Proving that aliens come in all sizes, including the mindbogglingly small, there’s “Aortic Insubordination,” by Batya Swift Yasgur and Barry N. Malzberg. Josepha Sherman’s “What Must Be” is a thoughtful, tragic story about coming-of-age rituals, and the consequences that arise when traditions and customs are violated, even unwillingly.
Communication is essential when negotiating contracts and business deals between races. Just look at the narrator of Linda J. Dunn’s “First Contract,” who discovers the hard way why his species has had such trouble in the past dealing with humans. Is it madness, however, to expand one’s worldview? Tobias S. Buckell looks at a strange semi-symbiotic/slave relationship between humans and a native species in “Anakoinosis.” Who’s benefiting more: the humans who get slave labor out of the aliens, or the aliens who learn through their dealings with us?
Adrienne Gormley also looks at rites of passage, in “Nobodies.” To prove one’s worth to the tribe, they first have to survive a period of testing. But have the worthiest been surviving all these years, or just the most dangerous? John DeChancie’s “The Loaves and the Fishes” postulates that the concept of a Witness Protection Program may exist on other planets, with interesting results for the alien who hides here on Earth. Mike Resnick himself explains the truth behind our origins; it’s less spectacular than one might imagine.
These are just some of the stories to be found in I, Alien. Tales by Robert Sawyer, Nina Kiriki Hoffman, Terry McGarry, Harry Turtledove, and Stephen Leigh also help to flesh out a collection that’s consistently entertaining, occasionally thought-provoking, and well-worth picking up. I thoroughly enjoyed this anthology.
Archive for August, 2009
Just when you thought it was safe to turn off the television and open a book, reality TV and game shows have invaded your favorite anthology. Well, maybe not quite, but in You Bet Your Planet, eleven authors tackle the task of translating reality television, games shows, and contests to a science fiction setting, producing a fascinatingly mixed bag of results.
Esther Friesner’s “Cook’s Turing” is one of her typically humorous pieces, about a woman accidentally tapped to represent Earth in an interstellar cookoff that will determine whether we’re accepted as equals, or as slaves, by a powerful alien race. It’s Iron Chef as you’ve never seen it, with some truly laugh-out-loud moments. Susan Sizemore’s “Dish of the Day” is another story about a cooking contest, where the prize is a much-needed planet for humans to colonize, and the main dish may just have some objections to being turned into a centerpiece.
“Heart’s Desire,” by Mickey Zucker Reichart, is a worthy successor to Stephen King’s own take on reality game shows, “The Running Man.” In a future where everyone has everything they need, one man discovers that he wants nothing more than an honest job, and he’s willing to go on a deadly game show to earn it. But is he ready for what they’ll force him to do? Another game show with high stakes and deadly consequences for failure can be found in Josepha Sherman’s “You’d Better Win!” in which a man stranded on an unfriendly planet can only get home if he survives the natives’ most popular show.
Susan Shwartz looks as a failed reality show contestant in “Mind Games,” following her as she ends up playing a far stranger game with highly personal stakes. Ed Gorman’s “Stop Or I’ll Shoot” comes darned close to outright horror; of all the stories in this volume, it evoked the strongest negative reaction from me. Basically, a man is forced to compete on a game show where death isn’t just a possibility, it’s practically a guaranteed outcome, and things are rigged against him. Full of unpleasant, ugly characters, this story is really something of a sour note, or a splash of cold water to the face.
Jane Lindskold’s “Here to There” follows her recurring character, spaceship captain Ah Lee, as Lee is drawn into investigating a plot which threatens the peace between several races. As an undercover contestant on a game of stamina, skill, and survival, Lee will be stretched to her limits as she looks for a saboteur. Also going undercover to foil a dastardly plot is the hero of Elizabeth Ann Scarborough’s “Name That Planet!” which requires a secret agent to use her brain like never before.
Robert Sheckley’s “Scenes From The Contest” is another show where things are rigged, and this time, even the hero is in on the fix, though he doesn’t know it consciously. All he knows is that he’ll have to survive numerous challenges, and do it all for the sake of someone who may never have a chance to appreciate it. Russell Davis’ “The Hollywood Dilemma” is a return to that much-beloved chestnut, the deal with the Devil, in which a game show host finds that in order to escape one contract, he may have to sign an even more infernal one. In Bruce Holland Rogers’ “Entertaining Folly,” a rag-tag group of humans are selected to appear on the alien version of a reality show, and for one, it’s the trip of a lifetime.
All in all, You Bet Your Planet has some very good stories and some entertaining stories, and I was quite pleased with the contests for the most part. I’m not much of a reality show fan (save for the odd episode of Survivor and those Iron Chef reruns), but I greatly enjoyed what this collection had to offer.
Harry Turtledove has done a great job so far with his “Best … of the 20th Century” anthologies so far, so I knew going in that this reprint collection of time travel stories was bound to be of interest. Here we have eighteen of the very best stories told about time travel, some which are quite well-known, and some which are a bit more obscure. Naturally, Ray Bradbury’s classic “A Sound of Thunder,” is present. That’s one of those stories I always think of as soon as anyone brings up the perils of traveling through time, and in many ways, it’s one of the sub-genre’s flagships.
Also present are stories like R.A. Lafferty’s “Rainbird,” Arthur C.Clarke’s “Time’s Arrow,” Connie Willis’ “Fire Watch,” Theodore Sturgeon’s “Yesterday was Monday,” Joe Haldeman’s “Anniversary Project,” and “A Gun For Dinosaur” by L. Sprague de Camp. Many of these I’d heard of, but hadn’t actually read before, so it was a genuine treat getting to see them for the first time. If you like time travel, this collection is definitely worth looking for. As far as reprint anthologies go, this one succeeds admirably in delivering a good, solid mix and giving the reader plenty of story for his money. Turtledove is on a roll with this series; I hope he’ll find some more themes to mine for future volumes.
Based on the role-playing game Arcana Unearthed, created by Monte Cook, this is a collection of stories told in the land of the Diamond Throne. The quick rundown: numerous fantastical races inhabit various parts of the land of the Diamond Throne, including the reptilian mojh, giants, humans, sprytes, and the leonine litorians. Every so often, someone will be granted amazing powers, as represented by a mysterious runic tattoo which identifies them to one another and the world. What these so-called runechildren do with their powers varies tremendously from being to being. Some are good, some bad. Some warriors, some mystics. All are unique in their own way.
The thirteen stories contained in this volume explore the many possible paths the runechildren can take, from thief to healer, con man to warrior, martyr to villain. Authors represented include role-playing game fiction mainstays Lucien Soulban, Ed Greenwood, Jeff Grubb, Richard Lee Byers, and Monte Cook himself.
It’s always hard presenting a collection of work based on a game setting: you have to walk a delicate balance between staying original, and staying true to the game, telling stories without making it feel like a game session transcribed. Too often, characters that succeed on the gaming table fail when forced to carry a real story. Furthermore, the story runs the risk of trying to convey too much of the setting information. Too much, and it’s overwhelming. Too little, and it’s generic fantasy. Luckily, Children of the Rune manages to walk the middle ground more often than not, telling some fascinating fantasy stories without succumbing to the many pitfalls available to such an endeavor. Were I more of a fantasy gamer, I’d be a lot more tempted to check out Monte Cook’s Arcana Unearthed, based on the potential tapped in Children of the Rune. As a stand-alone collection, furthermore, it holds up fairly well, even if the setting introduction feels like a lot to take in all at once. Fans of Forgotten Realms and Dragonlance might want to check this out.
Just a few months ago, I lavished praise upon the most recent volume of Dozois’ Year’s Best Science Fiction. Now we have Best of the Best, an impressive paperback tome which draws upon the first twenty volumes in the series to offer up a fascinating retrospective. As Dozois acknowledges, it’s a purely subjective effort; his choices were influenced by mood, timing, space constraints, and the need to balance out better-known works with lesser-known ones. If compiled a month later or a week earlier, the lineup could have been quite different. And, of course, it’s one man’s opinion. That said, what we have here is still pretty darned incredible: three dozen stories, taken from twenty years worth of the Year’s Best collections, representing the many facets and the vast potential of the science fiction genre.
This volume is chock-full of excellent stories and fan-favorite authors, many of them award winners in one capacity or another. In here, you’ll find Greg Bear, Nancy Kress, Bruce Sterling, Robert Silverberg, Mike Resnick, Joe Haldeman, Connie Willis, Michael Swanwick, Ursula K. LeGuin, Ted Chiang, and many more. To detail the stories themselves, I’d need a lot more space. Suffice it to say that if you’re a fan of science fiction, and you like short stories, it would be a gross oversight not to check this book out for yourself. Normally, I’d say that a title like Best of the Best is like waving a red flag at a bull, but the truth is, Dozois makes a persuasive case with his choices. I’d happily hand this collection to someone who wanted to see what science fiction is capable of, or who wanted a general introduction to the field.
Originally published in 1992, and released last year just in time for Christmas, it’s obvious what the unifying theme of this anthology is: Christmas as re-envisioned in science fiction and fantasy. There’s plenty of interesting stories to choose from here, looking at the holiday and its most notable icons in all sorts of different lights. Of note are stories like Connie Willis’ charming “Miracle,” James Powell’s whimsically twisted “The Plot Against Santa Claus,” Edward Wellen’s dystopian “Sanity Clause,” and Ben Bova’s introspective “Silent Night.” Other authors to be found here include Spider Robinson, Gene Wolfe, Anne McCaffrey, Ray Bradbury, John Ford, Arthur C. Clarke, and William Gibson.
While every year brings us at least one, if not two or three, Christmas-themed anthologies, Christmas Stars still stands above the rest, like the angel on the tree, by virtue of an all-star lineup and some classic reprints that deserve to stay available for new generations to read. It was good to see this collection on the shelves again after a length absence, and even though by the time this sees print, it’ll be well into spring, it might be worth looking for Christmas Stars. Christmas in July, anyone?
While the Transformers franchise has been in existence steadily since it first hit America back in the early ‘80s, it still seems to primarily carry that ‘80s atmosphere, no matter how it’s updated or changed every few years. Whether the ever-popular giant robots transform into cars, airplanes, gorillas, spaceships, or two-headed flying tigers, they still manage to hang onto the essential elements. Ask anyone who’s even remotely familiar with the Transformers mythos, and they’ll be able to tell you about Optimus Prime and Megatron, even if they’re fuzzy on the other thousand or so characters which have sprung up across four or five different and distinct generations. However, though there have been plenty of cartoon series, several different comic books, and uncounted toys to flesh out the brand, the fiction aspect of Transformers has mostly been left alone, until now.
Transformers Legends is the first (to my knowledge) anthology to collect stories about the various aspects of the Transformers universe, from Generation 1 to Armada, from Beast Wars to Robots in Disguise. No stone is left unturned in the process, and the thirteen stories within certainly manage to offer something to please any fan of the franchise, no matter what era they most identify with. Fan favorite Simon Furman, long credited with telling some of the most dynamic comic stories of the original Transformers, is featured with his story, “A Meeting of Minds,” which looks at a pivotal moment in the Beast Wars/Machines era, when one Megatron met another, to devastating effect.
Another standout story is Alexander Potter’s “Redemption Center,” in which the quintessentially treacherous Decepticon known as Starscream is granted a second chance at trust, companionship, and a sense of belonging. In a true question of nature versus nurture, he has to decide between factions and loyalties while struggling with the dictates of his programming.
Other stories look at the Minicons (John J. Miller’s “Something Robotic This Way Comes”), the popular robot known as Bumblebee (Jennifer A. Ruth’s “Joyride”), the many incarnations of Optimus Prime (Sean Fodora’s Prime Spark”), and the strange history of the Armada universe (John Helfer’s “Fire in the Dark”). All in all, this is an excellent anthology for fans of the Transformers universe, touching upon enough facets of the concept to please just about any fan. However, this is definitely a collection for fans; newcomers might be lost amidst the unfamiliar names and references scattered throughout.
Offered as a followup to Cosmic Tales: Adventures in Sol System, this collection of stories pushes the limits, taking its various protagonists to distant stars and farflung settings. Like the title suggests, the stories are weighted towards adventure tales and space opera, with plenty of action to go around. There’s only six stories, plus an accompanying nonfiction essay, to fill out the volume, which means most of the stories are novella length or even longer.
By far, my favorite of the six is Debra Doyle and James MacDonald’s return to their Mageworlds setting, in “On Suivi Point.” In it, we’re treated to a glimpse of Beka Rosselin-Metadi’s early adventures as a spacer, before she was recalled home by the events detailed in Price of the Stars. While on leave on Suivi Point, she and a companion are targeted as part of a shadowy conspiracy, but it soon turns out that Beka’s inadvertent enemies are the ones in trouble. It never pays to underestimate some people.
Also of interest is “Genie Out of the Bottle” by Dave Freer and Eric Flint, which looks at the setting introduced in Rats, Bats and Vats. Who ever thought combining the military and genetic engineering would be so unusual? A privileged young man joins the army to get out of a bad jam that’s not his fault, and ends up working with the dregs of an army created from genetically-altered elephant-shrews (commonly called “rats”). His unorthodox way of working with them turns out to have unexpected consequences. Fascinating, fun, and worth checking out, this story’s inspired me to go find the books it ties into.
Other stories in this collection are from James P. Hogan, Mark L. Van Name, Paul Chafe, and Gregory Benford. In general, I was pleased with Cosmic Tales, and I hope we’ll continue to see more releases in this series, as so far, it’s been quite entertaining.
Contrary to popular belief as embodied by Yours Truly, the Science Fiction Book Club occasionally commissions collections of original short fiction, a fact which came as something of a surprise when I received this book in the mail. The six stories collected in The Fair Folk are loosely unified, revolving around the general theme of fairies and their interactions with the mortal world. All six are of novella length or longer, thus giving the authors room to spread out and tell the complex stories that call to them.
“UOUS,” by Tanith Lee, is a brilliant twist on the three wishes concept which is so often found in traditional fairy tales. Lois, a Cinderella-like girl whose home life is downright unbearable, makes an unknowing, foolish pact with a lord of the Fae, and is thus pressed into his service, compelled to grant -him- three wishes, as repayment for all those centuries the Fae served humans. The results are horrifying and disturbing, but fitting nonetheless. Lee manages to infuse the unsettling magic of the Fae with a certain cheap, tawdry feeling brought in from the mortal world, making this as close to a reverse fairy tale as ever I’ve seen. There are happy endings, but not as so we’d normally predict. The desperation and shame of the main character as she undergoes her trials is excellently conveyed, so that we really feel her being cast down even as she succeeds in improving her life. Lee’s managed to say something new, here, and it shows.
Megan Lindholm’s “Grace Notes” is the story of an everyday guy who ends up with a brownie in his home. She cooks, she cleans, she redecorates, she watches Martha Stewart, and she does it all invisibly and impeccably. Unfortunately, this brownie’s tastes don’t necessarily coincide with her human roommates’s sense of style, and the more she does, the more it grates on his nerves. And what’ll happen when the source of the brownie’s wealth comes to light? An upset host is nothing compared to an offended brownie. It’ll take some special help to set things right now. This is another one of those “why didn’t I think of that first?” stories.
“Except the Queen,” by Jane Yolen and Midori Snyder, is a gripping tale of two fairies exiled to the mortal world and charged with tasks involving several mysterious teenagers. Told entirely as a set of letters passed back and forth between the two sisters as they come to terms with their diminished powers and mortal vulnerabilities, the story’s mystery grows in complexity and excitement. Danger’s afoot on numerous fronts, and the secrets that come to light could change everything for the Fae. Once I started reading, I couldn’t stop until I’d found out what was in store for the unlikely grouping of heroes.
Stories by Craig Shaw Gardner, Kim Newman, and Patricia McKillip help to make The Fair Folk a truly excellent anthology, well worth checking out. If this is an example of what the SFBC can offer, I’ve been missing out all these years.
L. Sprague de Camp was a master in the science fiction and fantasy fields, known both for his adventure-packed, swashbuckling action stories and his humor-laced tales. His unique style inspired any number of today’s greatest writers, and now they’ve come together to honor de Camp with this anthology. In it, fifteen authors pay tribute to the master with stories of humorous adventure and good old-fashioned character-driven fun.
David Drake’s “A Land of Romance” follows the adventures of one minor mid-level marketing executive as he’s accidentally tapped for something far greater, and stranger. When his boss turns out to be something of a magician in need of a volunteer to travel to another dimension, who else but not-so-mild-mannered Howard Jones is ready to step up to the plate? Did we mention that there’s a girl to be won, as well? This story fits the de Camp atmosphere perfectly, serving as a great lead into the rest of the volume.
Michael T. Flynn gives us “The Ensorcelled ATM,” in which a disgruntled man attempts to take his revenge on a corporate headhunter, and ends up sucked into another world, where they have need of someone with his skills. Or rather, the skills of the man he was pretending to be. But there might be a solution which satisfies everyone, after all.
Richard Foss’ “Ripples” is an alternate history about some of history’s greatest philosophers, where one took a vastly different path in life, and the other had to try and stop him. It’s not what you’d expect. Chris Bunch turns in “Gun, Not For Dinosaur,” which is something of a sequel to a classic, well-known story. When one of the richest men in the world embarks upon a time-traveling safari back into the dawn of history, he has a truly insidious plan in mind, one which could tear the human race apart.
Esther M. Friesner’s “One For The Record” is a gently-told, tongue-in-cheek tale about a gentleman’s club and the strange events which befall it one day. It seems there’s something of a rash of people returning from the dead, in the Greek manner of things, and an old myth is about to get a new resolution. The way it all gets solved is acceptable, is somewhat gauche, and well-executed. Harry Turtledove, however, is bound to make a few people twitch with his tale of dentistry gone wrong in “The Haunted Bicuspid.” However barbaric we might find today’s practices to be, they’re nothing compared to what one man goes through in this story.
“Return to Xanadu,” by Lawrence Watt-Evans, focuses upon a simple harem girl whose encounter with the notorious Harold Shea upsets her normal life, even as it paves the way for her true destiny as one of literature’s greatest storytellers. Meanwhile, S.M. Stirling’s “The Apotheosis of Martin Padway” acts as a coda to the long and strange history of Martinus of Padua, a time-tossed man who once upon a time changed the world with his ideas from the future.
“The Deadly Mission of P. Snodgrass,” by Frederick Pohl, may be a reprint, but it’s still one of the greatest time-travel stories ever written, in its own exaggerated way. A man’s attempt to change the past may seem to alter things for the best, but ultimately, it turns out to be a drastic mistake. Laura Frankos’ “The Garden Gnome Freedom Front” is a hilarious look at those ubiquitous inhabitants of our lawns and gardens: the lawn gnome. Three young women have taken it upon themselves to liberate the poor creatures, but when magic intervenes and brings the gnomes to life, it signals a change in the way the game is played.
With other stories by Poul Anderson, Judith Tarr, Susan Schwartz, and Darrell Schweitzer to finish off the collection, this is quite an entertaining, satisfying anthology, combining the classic de Camp feel with modern sensibilities. Some of the stories served as wonderful follow-ups to his own mythos, while others merely invoked his style in a warmly familiar manner. I was very happy with the overall results.