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Fun with Epistolary Novels and Short Fiction at Chicon 8
I was fortunate to be selected for a panel at Chicon 8 on epistolary novels in speculative fiction. We (author and moderator Meg Elison, author Caroline Stevermer, publisher and editor Sarah T. Guan of Erewhon Books, Professor Leigha McReynolds, and myself) had a wonderful and spirited discussion of many facets of epistolary writing and some […]
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Octavia Butler: A Black History Month post
Octavia E. Butler was a great science fiction (mostly) writer, who unfortunately died way too young (2006, at age 58). She was African-American, or Black, and she might be my favorite African-American SF writer, and she is one of my favorite SF writers. The only reason I say “might” is that I don’t want to […]
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The Best of Elizabeth Bear
The Short: I really enjoyed “The Best of Elizabeth Bear” (2020 Subterranean). Rated 3.67/5, or “Very Good”. Recommended. The Full Story: I’ve been a fan of Elizabeth Bear for a while. The first novel I read by her was “Dust” (2008 Bantam Spectra), a very good generation ship story. Since then, I’ve read more than […]
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“The Fifth Head of Cerberus” by Gene Wolfe
So far, I have not really written reviews of any novels on my blog. Thinking about it, I am not sure that I have enough to say about most novels that would make a post worthwhile. That could change. I’m driven to write about “The Fifth Head of Cerberus” by Gene Wolfe, a 1972 “novel” […]
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The Collected Stories of Greg Bear, Tor 2002
Summary: After Greg Bear’s death in November, I decided to honor his memory by (re-) reading “The Collected Stories of Greg Bear“, Tor 2002. My overall rating for the stories here is 3.67/5, or “Very good”. The great fiction included and the essays and story introductions make this a worthwhile retrospective of Bear’s short fiction. […]
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The Rosetta Archive: Notable Speculative Short Fiction in Translation
The Short: I was very excited to see an anthology of recent, translated speculative fiction. I am very interested in these different voices and perspectives in good speculative fiction. I enjoyed reading “The Rosetta Archive: Notable Speculative Short Fiction in Translation“, Alex Shvartsman and Tarryn Thomas editors, 2022 UFO Publishing. My overall rating was 3.69/5, […]
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Ascendancies: The Best of Bruce Sterling
The Short: I really liked the 2007 collection by Bruce Sterling, “Ascendancies: The Best of Bruce Sterling“, Subterranean. He is a major speculative fiction author and certainly deserves a “Best of” Collection. My overall rating was 3.77/5, or “Very good”, just below “Great”. I’m very glad I read it. I do recommend it, but with […]
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The World Turned Upside Down
Summary: I recently read the Jim Baen/David Drake/Eric Flint anthology, “The World Turned Upside Down” (Baen 2005). Quoting the editors in the Preface, the anthology wanted to “…select those stories which had the most impact on us as teenagers and got us interested in science fiction in the first place.” Overall, I really liked this […]
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“Tomorrow, the Stars” 70 Years Later
Summary: I read the 1952 Doubleday anthology “Tomorrow, The Stars” primarily because a) this is the only anthology Robert A. Heinlein was an editor for, and b) I read several great stories that were first reprinted here when reading for the 1946 Project for Chicon 8. My average rating for the stories was 3.74/5, or […]
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“The Future Is Female! More Classic Science Fiction Stories by Women, Volume Two: The 1970s” by Lisa Yaszek
Summary: I just finished reading Lisa Yaszek’s “The Future Is Female! More Classic Science Fiction Stories by Women, Volume Two: The 1970s” (9/2022, The Library of America). Strongly recommended, with an overall rating of 3.9/5, or “Great”. The Story: I am a big fan of science fiction stories, whether short fiction or novels. I have […]
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A Deep Look by Dave Hook 