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goobdiddy's review against another edition
4.0
Grim. So very grim. The stories are all very well written and imaginative, but they are such a bleak depiction of future humanity. The author must be great fun at parties.
badseedgirl's review against another edition
5.0
Stunning, distressing, sublime, depressing. All these words fail to describe the impact of the debut collection from Paolo Bacigalupi, Pump Six and Other Stories had on me. Each of the eleven stories in the collection could stand proud on its own, but together they make a hell of a collection.
Normally I would be taking this time to tell everyone the standout in the book, but all of these stories were equally wonderful, with this one caveat. Although an interesting and well written story, "Softer" just felt out of place in this collection.
Normally I would be taking this time to tell everyone the standout in the book, but all of these stories were equally wonderful, with this one caveat. Although an interesting and well written story, "Softer" just felt out of place in this collection.
jena_t's review
4.0
Each story ranked:
1 - the people of sand and slag
This exploration of pets really spoke to me, as someone who finds them pointless 🤣
2 - the fluted girl
The ending felt a little predictable but very original and interesting piece
3 - pump six
In a post-covid world, this notion of people getting more and more stupid has never been more interesting
4 - pop squad
This felt very shocking to read, but in a purposeful way, not just for shock value
5 - pocketful of dharma
What would you do if you had the dalai lama on a usb?!
6 - yellow card man
Sci fi for us, reality for refugees
7 - calorie man
This was interesting enough and I liked the ending
8 - small offerings
A little too short, would have liked a little more
9 - softer
This one stood out from the rest of the book, it didn't really feel like the same style at all. I remember it well though unlike some of the others, but I'm not sure why it's in a sci fi anthology
10 - the tamarisk hunter
A little dull, not much happened of any interest
11 - the pasho
This was a little confusing for me. Many of the stories include words that are made up and things that don't exist, and you just kind of gather the meaning from the context. This had a little too many of those abd I couldn't really keep up with who was who. Good ending though!
1 - the people of sand and slag
This exploration of pets really spoke to me, as someone who finds them pointless 🤣
2 - the fluted girl
The ending felt a little predictable but very original and interesting piece
3 - pump six
In a post-covid world, this notion of people getting more and more stupid has never been more interesting
4 - pop squad
This felt very shocking to read, but in a purposeful way, not just for shock value
5 - pocketful of dharma
What would you do if you had the dalai lama on a usb?!
6 - yellow card man
Sci fi for us, reality for refugees
7 - calorie man
This was interesting enough and I liked the ending
8 - small offerings
A little too short, would have liked a little more
9 - softer
This one stood out from the rest of the book, it didn't really feel like the same style at all. I remember it well though unlike some of the others, but I'm not sure why it's in a sci fi anthology
10 - the tamarisk hunter
A little dull, not much happened of any interest
11 - the pasho
This was a little confusing for me. Many of the stories include words that are made up and things that don't exist, and you just kind of gather the meaning from the context. This had a little too many of those abd I couldn't really keep up with who was who. Good ending though!
upstartcrow9803's review against another edition
4.0
Each individual short story brings something new . Worth reading .
kitsuneheart's review against another edition
There's this certain idea bemoaned by the "intelligentsia" that educated people wait to have children and only have one or two while the uneducated people have kids early and often. Which is a really, really screwed up thing to say, but "Pump Six" takes that idea and makes it true.
Set in a near future, this story features a society almost entirely populated by "trogs," humans who are one step removed from being beasts. They rut in the street, can barely talk (if they can at all), and there are more every day. One man working in the water sanitation facility finds that one of their machines has broken down, and he must find someone in the city who is still capable of understanding and fixing things, before everything breaks and the city's water is contaminated beyond recovery.
It's crude, but with purpose. Without the crudities, the society Bacigalupi has constructed wouldn't seem to be in nearly such dire straits. By the time you get to the end, you'll maybe be reconsidering your own reproductive options. Or maybe you'll just switch back to bottled water.
Set in a near future, this story features a society almost entirely populated by "trogs," humans who are one step removed from being beasts. They rut in the street, can barely talk (if they can at all), and there are more every day. One man working in the water sanitation facility finds that one of their machines has broken down, and he must find someone in the city who is still capable of understanding and fixing things, before everything breaks and the city's water is contaminated beyond recovery.
It's crude, but with purpose. Without the crudities, the society Bacigalupi has constructed wouldn't seem to be in nearly such dire straits. By the time you get to the end, you'll maybe be reconsidering your own reproductive options. Or maybe you'll just switch back to bottled water.
spikeanderson1's review against another edition
5.0
Excellent, all A or A+ stories, with only two B's. What great range and depth Bacigalupi has- he has become one of my favorites. I will eagerly await anything that he publishes.
natidelgadov's review against another edition
3.0
Al leer este libro me encontré con relatos súper buenos y otros que me aburrieron, pero creo que la intención que tenÃa era el autor se cumplió en cada uno de ellos, esta consistÃa en hacernos reflexionar acerca de las consecuencias a las que podÃamos llegar si no cuidamos nuestro planeta y si no cambiamos la forma de ver el mundo.
casualperson196's review against another edition
3.0
The stories are a bit too hit or miss for me to give my full recommendation, but the ones that were a hit are well worth the read for anybody looking for a bleak, dystopian tale. Although, I had to skip "pop squad" because of the subject being too graphic for it's own good.