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3.6 AVERAGE
3.6 AVERAGE
Recommended. Nine speculative tales about life in the very near future. Slice-of-life, not particularly cheery, but always very interesting. My favorites were the stories where folks took action to positively change their trajectory and those around them.
The short story: the scourge of mankind. I bought After The Apocalypse because it showed up on best of 2011 lists. And some of it is amazing, but some of the stories let the side down. It's probably not coincidental that the stories that don't sit as well as the others are those with typos or words that simply have no place in otherwise complete sentences.
Looking at the listing of nine stories, approximately five of them qualify as "very good", two as "kind of pointless" and two as "nearly there". Perhaps it was a mistake front loading the book with three of the best; who can say.
McHugh's conceit for these unrelated short stories (sold by their intriguing and blatantly nostalgia-baiting cover) is a series of scenarios in which something about the world is slightly dystopian, if not wholly and overtly so.
The first story is about a future after the zombie problem has been contained, with zombies kept alive in preserves and prisoners sent there to be eaten. The sense of place and the delicate balance of sympathy and sociopathy is grand; this take on zombies is relatively refreshing in an arguably saturated market.
Not all of the rest of the stories are so overtly fantastic; the superlative "Useless Things" is merely about an extreme economic downturn and the means which one woman employs to keep herself solvent.
Despite the breadth of topics covered, it can't help but feel like McHugh is treading water when she talks about a brand of wandering amnesia, and the piece about sentient AI slouches into gross caricature masquerading as brand recognition.
As with many short story collections, some click and some simply don't. So I'd like to give this collection four, but I can't quite stretch myself that far. Maybe if there hadn't been a cat called Scott Pilgrim between its pages I might be more generous, but McHugh knows what she did.
Looking at the listing of nine stories, approximately five of them qualify as "very good", two as "kind of pointless" and two as "nearly there". Perhaps it was a mistake front loading the book with three of the best; who can say.
McHugh's conceit for these unrelated short stories (sold by their intriguing and blatantly nostalgia-baiting cover) is a series of scenarios in which something about the world is slightly dystopian, if not wholly and overtly so.
The first story is about a future after the zombie problem has been contained, with zombies kept alive in preserves and prisoners sent there to be eaten. The sense of place and the delicate balance of sympathy and sociopathy is grand; this take on zombies is relatively refreshing in an arguably saturated market.
Not all of the rest of the stories are so overtly fantastic; the superlative "Useless Things" is merely about an extreme economic downturn and the means which one woman employs to keep herself solvent.
Despite the breadth of topics covered, it can't help but feel like McHugh is treading water when she talks about a brand of wandering amnesia, and the piece about sentient AI slouches into gross caricature masquerading as brand recognition.
As with many short story collections, some click and some simply don't. So I'd like to give this collection four, but I can't quite stretch myself that far. Maybe if there hadn't been a cat called Scott Pilgrim between its pages I might be more generous, but McHugh knows what she did.
A fun and various read. Some stories were better than others, but most stuck in my head.
Nine short stories that are all set in a post-apocalyptic world. How have we coped? Who survived? What does every day life look like?
A few of these stories had a blockbuster action movie kind of vibe. For instance, "The Naturalist" takes place in city ruins now inhabited by the remaining zombies and the prisoners who are dropped there for their sentence. The story is told from the point of view of a prisoner who is trying to survive. Cinematic.
Nice variety of male and female characters of different ages and backgrounds. All trying to get by.
Other favorites: "After the Apocalypse" - Jane is an awful mother!
"The Effect of Centrifugal Force" - The reaction to a bird flu pandemic is reminiscent of the 80's fear of AIDS.
"Useless Things" - the vision of a Mad Max future featuring Every Man.
A few of these stories had a blockbuster action movie kind of vibe. For instance, "The Naturalist" takes place in city ruins now inhabited by the remaining zombies and the prisoners who are dropped there for their sentence. The story is told from the point of view of a prisoner who is trying to survive. Cinematic.
Nice variety of male and female characters of different ages and backgrounds. All trying to get by.
Other favorites: "After the Apocalypse" - Jane is an awful mother!
"The Effect of Centrifugal Force" - The reaction to a bird flu pandemic is reminiscent of the 80's fear of AIDS.
"Useless Things" - the vision of a Mad Max future featuring Every Man.
dark
tense
fast-paced
McHugh's focus is on small scale, often on the individual level, near future science fiction. Her works are often understated and usually strive for realism. Some would probably say that they're intended to be literary. China Mountain Zhang (1992), her novel, is much the same way. Many of her stories casually include various contemporary pop culture references. Most of the stories are like a short dip into the lives of the characters, similar to a "a day in the life" sort of documentary.
The Naturalist (2010)
Criminals are sent to a zombie preserve. These are the slow and dumb sort of zombies. The pro-zombie protagonist likes to experiment with them. There are air raids from time to time. So, it's basically a free-range prison gang story plus zombies.
Meh
Special Economics (2008)
A Chinese teenager is a wannabe rapper, but that doesn't pay the bills. So, she ends up with an exploitative company that entraps its workers with debt. If this story was written today, it'd probably be about the relationship between Xianjing and US corporations.
Ok
Useless Things (2009)
A woman who is barely getting by and lives alone has been designated on a website as a safe location for hobos/economic migrants to visit on their travels, which makes her feel vulnerable, which leads to fear. She makes dolls that look like newborn infants which she calls reborns and sells them online. Strangely, she's had a repeat customer for exactly the same doll for three years in a row. Also, she makes dildos. Kind of me makes me think of it like the life of someone who sells on Etsy.
Ok
The Lost Boy: A Reporter At Large (2007)
This is written in the style of a human interest article as would appear in a newspaper or magazine. It focuses on the life of a teenager who may or may not have lost his memory and who years ago was affected by a terrorist attack, as were many others.
Meh
The Kingdom of the Blind (2008)
Their computer systems are all named after Voodoo terms, because they don't really have any idea how the black box AI works. When mysterious events begin happening, they discuss various thought experiments with each other. Maybe the AI has become conscious, or maybe it hasn't, either way it isn't our concern.
Meh
Going to France (2008)
A brief existential crisis following a meeting with a trio who can fly. Maybe soon many will fly.
Blah
Honeymoon (2011)
A woman who is in economic precarity does medical studies to make a bit of extra cash. If anything goes wrong, it's best not to dwell on it. Nothing can be done anyway. Escapism is all we have.
Meh
The Effect of Centrifugal Forces (2011)
A teenage girl's mother is dying and the girl can't cope, so she seethes at her family, because all she knows is angst. It reminded me of my father's teenage years, including the ending.
Blah
After the Apocalypse (2011)
Not all women are maternal, let alone nurturing, and sometimes having a child is a mistake.
Meh
The Naturalist (2010)
Criminals are sent to a zombie preserve. These are the slow and dumb sort of zombies. The pro-zombie protagonist likes to experiment with them. There are air raids from time to time. So, it's basically a free-range prison gang story plus zombies.
Meh
Special Economics (2008)
A Chinese teenager is a wannabe rapper, but that doesn't pay the bills. So, she ends up with an exploitative company that entraps its workers with debt. If this story was written today, it'd probably be about the relationship between Xianjing and US corporations.
Ok
Useless Things (2009)
A woman who is barely getting by and lives alone has been designated on a website as a safe location for hobos/economic migrants to visit on their travels, which makes her feel vulnerable, which leads to fear. She makes dolls that look like newborn infants which she calls reborns and sells them online. Strangely, she's had a repeat customer for exactly the same doll for three years in a row. Also, she makes dildos. Kind of me makes me think of it like the life of someone who sells on Etsy.
Ok
The Lost Boy: A Reporter At Large (2007)
This is written in the style of a human interest article as would appear in a newspaper or magazine. It focuses on the life of a teenager who may or may not have lost his memory and who years ago was affected by a terrorist attack, as were many others.
Meh
The Kingdom of the Blind (2008)
Their computer systems are all named after Voodoo terms, because they don't really have any idea how the black box AI works. When mysterious events begin happening, they discuss various thought experiments with each other. Maybe the AI has become conscious, or maybe it hasn't, either way it isn't our concern.
Meh
Going to France (2008)
A brief existential crisis following a meeting with a trio who can fly. Maybe soon many will fly.
Blah
Honeymoon (2011)
A woman who is in economic precarity does medical studies to make a bit of extra cash. If anything goes wrong, it's best not to dwell on it. Nothing can be done anyway. Escapism is all we have.
Meh
The Effect of Centrifugal Forces (2011)
A teenage girl's mother is dying and the girl can't cope, so she seethes at her family, because all she knows is angst. It reminded me of my father's teenage years, including the ending.
Blah
After the Apocalypse (2011)
Not all women are maternal, let alone nurturing, and sometimes having a child is a mistake.
Meh
Brevity is the soul of wit... and the Achille's heel of most writers.
I don't read many short stories because I have found few authors who are able to write satisfying ones. This collection was a pleasant surprise. McHugh can successfully create a full world in 20 pages or less through character interaction, reaction, and attitudes - not the dreaded expository info drop. She tells tales set in very real (and omnious) potential futures.
I don't read many short stories because I have found few authors who are able to write satisfying ones. This collection was a pleasant surprise. McHugh can successfully create a full world in 20 pages or less through character interaction, reaction, and attitudes - not the dreaded expository info drop. She tells tales set in very real (and omnious) potential futures.
Appropriate for our time, the stories in this collection depict worlds where one key thing has changed (not for the best) - but the story lines spiral out in unexpected ways. Very different characters, yet each of them feels authentic. Looking forward to reading her other work.
Some really good stories in this collection. These are not sweeping tales of mass destruction, but they are all about survival. Tiny slice-of-life in the world 'after'. The apocalypse isn't always obvious in these tales, often it's a mundane backdrop. People go on how they always have. That felt very real to me. The titular story was probably my favorite, and it absolutely gutted me.