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msmori's review
challenging
hopeful
inspiring
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
3.75
laurareads87's review
4.0
The short fiction anthology Multispecies Cities begins with a question: “What if stories could plant the seeds of hopeful futures?” This solarpunk collection is a series of affirmative answers: stories that provide some sense of hopefulness amidst ecological devastation and extinction.
In the introduction co-written by editors Christoph Rupprecht, Deborah Cleland, Norie Tamura, and Rajat Chaudhuri, the collection is presented as focusing, in particular, on interspecies relationships and the possibilities of relating to one another in better ways, forming allegiances. They note that “the multispecies concept argues that we can only truly understand the world if we look at the many ways humans and other life forms are entangled, in a way that cannot be easily separated.”
This collection feels really inclusive, which I appreciate. The book centers contributions by authors from the Asia-Pacific region and features stories set there; the editors note that they “would love to see more alliances” – including works in more languages than English and which foster collaboration across professions – but that in this collection, which they see as “a first step in a rich journey of discovery and imagination,” they have aimed to disrupt exclusions in publishing by commissioning diverse writers. A number of stories are inclusive of LGBTQ+ representation. The anthologists have also helpfully included their pronouns with their bio statements at the back of the book.
There are 24 stories included here. I will admit I did not finish two of them – they just didn’t work for me style-wise; they may be favourites for a different reader. Of the 22 I did read, I gave each a rating of 1-5 (with half-points allowed) and I ended up with an average of 3.7. I’ve happily rounded up to 4 because I did rate quite a few stories 4 or 5 stars. “Iron Fox in the Marble City” by Vlad-Andrei Cucu, “The Streams are Paved with Fish Traps” by Octavia Cade (the only author in the whole collection I’d read before), “Untamed” by Timothy Yam, and “The Birdsong Fossil” by D.K. Mok were all stand-outs for me. Each story includes a brief author biography at the end, which I really appreciate as it is easier than having to flip back and forth between a bios section at the back of the book and the stories themselves; I’ve discovered a number of authors I’d love to read more from. I will also say that overall, while a few stories weren’t my cup of tea, that I think this is a strong collection, well edited, and reasonably cohesive given that it’s an anthology.
Thank you very much to World Weaver Press and NetGalley for providing me with an ARC in exchange for my review.
In the introduction co-written by editors Christoph Rupprecht, Deborah Cleland, Norie Tamura, and Rajat Chaudhuri, the collection is presented as focusing, in particular, on interspecies relationships and the possibilities of relating to one another in better ways, forming allegiances. They note that “the multispecies concept argues that we can only truly understand the world if we look at the many ways humans and other life forms are entangled, in a way that cannot be easily separated.”
This collection feels really inclusive, which I appreciate. The book centers contributions by authors from the Asia-Pacific region and features stories set there; the editors note that they “would love to see more alliances” – including works in more languages than English and which foster collaboration across professions – but that in this collection, which they see as “a first step in a rich journey of discovery and imagination,” they have aimed to disrupt exclusions in publishing by commissioning diverse writers. A number of stories are inclusive of LGBTQ+ representation. The anthologists have also helpfully included their pronouns with their bio statements at the back of the book.
There are 24 stories included here. I will admit I did not finish two of them – they just didn’t work for me style-wise; they may be favourites for a different reader. Of the 22 I did read, I gave each a rating of 1-5 (with half-points allowed) and I ended up with an average of 3.7. I’ve happily rounded up to 4 because I did rate quite a few stories 4 or 5 stars. “Iron Fox in the Marble City” by Vlad-Andrei Cucu, “The Streams are Paved with Fish Traps” by Octavia Cade (the only author in the whole collection I’d read before), “Untamed” by Timothy Yam, and “The Birdsong Fossil” by D.K. Mok were all stand-outs for me. Each story includes a brief author biography at the end, which I really appreciate as it is easier than having to flip back and forth between a bios section at the back of the book and the stories themselves; I’ve discovered a number of authors I’d love to read more from. I will also say that overall, while a few stories weren’t my cup of tea, that I think this is a strong collection, well edited, and reasonably cohesive given that it’s an anthology.
Thank you very much to World Weaver Press and NetGalley for providing me with an ARC in exchange for my review.
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