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3.31 AVERAGE
3.31 AVERAGE
Love this one. Most likely my second favourite. Interesting concept and characters.
Title: A take on picking your own children's life path
Warning: possible small spoilers ahead, but not high major.
I have enjoyed listening to this in audiobook format. The topic is quite important and morally challenging: if you had the power to choose what your child's life becomes, would you choose and what?
What I disliked a bit was the last part of the story, after the visit to the clinic. Apart from the theory shared by one of the guests at the bar, I did not fully understand the point nor what happened in the very ending. I wish that was a bit clearer.
I recommend this short read to those who enjoy moral dilemmas presented through new tech in science fiction.
I gave this book a 3/5 stars rating, because it resonated with me the least from all the stories from the Forward Collection, however it was just as well written as the rest.
Warning: possible small spoilers ahead, but not high major.
I have enjoyed listening to this in audiobook format. The topic is quite important and morally challenging: if you had the power to choose what your child's life becomes, would you choose and what?
What I disliked a bit was the last part of the story, after the visit to the clinic. Apart from the theory shared by one of the guests at the bar, I did not fully understand the point nor what happened in the very ending. I wish that was a bit clearer.
I recommend this short read to those who enjoy moral dilemmas presented through new tech in science fiction.
I gave this book a 3/5 stars rating, because it resonated with me the least from all the stories from the Forward Collection, however it was just as well written as the rest.
reflective
medium-paced
It was solidly okay. If you like black mirror type stuff and watching a guy throw his life away while maybe uncovering a conspiracy this is it.
At a fertility clinic, a man is shown 3 scenarios of what his child may look like in the future based on different personality traits.
Very intriguing premises, asks great questions about society and what "success" looks like. I'm definitely still thinking about this story a week later.
Very intriguing premises, asks great questions about society and what "success" looks like. I'm definitely still thinking about this story a week later.
This is my fifth read from the 'Forward' collection, and whilst it was a solid thought-provoker, I didn't connect with it in the way I have with some of the other stories (such as [b:Ark|49680556|Ark|Veronica Roth|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1563469282l/49680556._SX50_SY75_.jpg|72182859] and [b:Emergency Skin|49669410|Emergency Skin|N.K. Jemisin|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1563468452l/49669410._SX50_SY75_.jpg|72182694]).
Towles' effort discusses the responsibility of parents in a world where its possible not only to choose the gender and specific physical characteristics of their children, but also have a greater degree of influence over their personalities and their lives as a whole - all before they are born. I personally found this to be a terrifying thought, but Towles' assessment of the issue at hand makes it clear that this is something that we already experience as parents due to the way we raise our children. It's quite a sobering thought, and whilst he has expanded and exaggerated the idea somewhat for the sake of this story, this awareness is an ever-present undercurrent throughout.
It's a big topic and Towles does a respectable job of tackling it, particularly in terms of the moral implications for the parents. How much interference is too much interference? Do we impress our own, personal hopes and dreams onto our children in a way that greatly affects how their own lives turn out? What's right and what's wrong in this regard? Lots of great questions to mull over in response to this story. But; I don't feel it had the depth it needed in the format of a short story and it would have benefitted from being given time to develop further.
Overall, I enjoyed it. It made me question myself as a parent (which was unexpected, as I knew very little about the story going into it), though I suppose that wasn't entirely comfortable. A good addition to the collection nonetheless.
Towles' effort discusses the responsibility of parents in a world where its possible not only to choose the gender and specific physical characteristics of their children, but also have a greater degree of influence over their personalities and their lives as a whole - all before they are born. I personally found this to be a terrifying thought, but Towles' assessment of the issue at hand makes it clear that this is something that we already experience as parents due to the way we raise our children. It's quite a sobering thought, and whilst he has expanded and exaggerated the idea somewhat for the sake of this story, this awareness is an ever-present undercurrent throughout.
It's a big topic and Towles does a respectable job of tackling it, particularly in terms of the moral implications for the parents. How much interference is too much interference? Do we impress our own, personal hopes and dreams onto our children in a way that greatly affects how their own lives turn out? What's right and what's wrong in this regard? Lots of great questions to mull over in response to this story. But; I don't feel it had the depth it needed in the format of a short story and it would have benefitted from being given time to develop further.
Overall, I enjoyed it. It made me question myself as a parent (which was unexpected, as I knew very little about the story going into it), though I suppose that wasn't entirely comfortable. A good addition to the collection nonetheless.
Worth the short read for its well-developed concept, but flounders around the halfway mark. After the main character views the life "projections" of three possible offspring, discovers that they will each experience significant "second act setbacks", and is told that he has overcome his own setback and has progressed to his third act, so what?
The story fails to land, either as a narrative or as social commentary. We leave the story without understanding how the main character's life is affected by its events. It's unclear how literally we're intended to take the projections, and although the tone is one of foreboding, the story failed to convince me that the ability to select a child's disposition merits this alarm.
Spoiler
he goes to a bar, gets drunk, and decides he's not interested in fertility treatment after all...The story fails to land, either as a narrative or as social commentary. We leave the story without understanding how the main character's life is affected by its events. It's unclear how literally we're intended to take the projections, and although the tone is one of foreboding, the story failed to convince me that the ability to select a child's disposition merits this alarm.
