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djotaku's review against another edition
4.0
A nice balanced collection. My favorite was Cold Comfort. Below are my per story reviews and/or thoughts.
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A Vastness: A very interesting story of what we do when we're so driven, we are willing to risk everything. And a great ending that was very unexpected. It felt a bit shorter than these usually are, so it was extra neat to have it work so well.
Not Now: A story about how messed up the media can be and how uncaring about those they're covering. It focuses specially on how it can tear families apart.
Fleeing Oslyge: a war narrative about the psychology of attackers and victims by making the attackers aliens. Pretty harrowing and really makes me think even more about the consequences of war.
Farewell, Doraemon: A pretty deep story about growing up in the middle of nowhere, consequences of actions, and relationships. It takes place in China so the details are different, but it definitely has a lot of similar themes to American stories of going from the sticks to the big city and back. The SF elements are somewhat tangential to most of the story. So if you read it without wondering when it's going to get SF, you'll get more out of it.
Cold comfort: A story about a scientist willing to do what it takes to get their anti-climate change research to work. Had a surprisingly neat ending.
In panic town, on the backward moon: an alternate universe detective story on Mars. Fun prose and style.
Metallic mayhem in the movies: a history of Mecha in film and tv
Spies, radios, and the afterlife: The conversation goes a number is interesting places: what it's like to be a bilingual author and have your work translated by someone else, the odd situation in the 1917 Russian revolution, and the afterlife.
Another word: Chinese Science fiction going abroad: a survey of the history of the translation of Chinese Science fiction. What I thought was interesting considering the size of China was how long it took Chinese SF to be translated and published outside of China. And after that it's crazy how long it took to snowball in popularity.
Editor's desk: a look at how Neil is working to increase the author pool for clarkesworld to be more diverse across national boundaries and other dimensions.
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A Vastness: A very interesting story of what we do when we're so driven, we are willing to risk everything. And a great ending that was very unexpected. It felt a bit shorter than these usually are, so it was extra neat to have it work so well.
Not Now: A story about how messed up the media can be and how uncaring about those they're covering. It focuses specially on how it can tear families apart.
Fleeing Oslyge: a war narrative about the psychology of attackers and victims by making the attackers aliens. Pretty harrowing and really makes me think even more about the consequences of war.
Farewell, Doraemon: A pretty deep story about growing up in the middle of nowhere, consequences of actions, and relationships. It takes place in China so the details are different, but it definitely has a lot of similar themes to American stories of going from the sticks to the big city and back. The SF elements are somewhat tangential to most of the story. So if you read it without wondering when it's going to get SF, you'll get more out of it.
Cold comfort: A story about a scientist willing to do what it takes to get their anti-climate change research to work. Had a surprisingly neat ending.
In panic town, on the backward moon: an alternate universe detective story on Mars. Fun prose and style.
Metallic mayhem in the movies: a history of Mecha in film and tv
Spies, radios, and the afterlife: The conversation goes a number is interesting places: what it's like to be a bilingual author and have your work translated by someone else, the odd situation in the 1917 Russian revolution, and the afterlife.
Another word: Chinese Science fiction going abroad: a survey of the history of the translation of Chinese Science fiction. What I thought was interesting considering the size of China was how long it took Chinese SF to be translated and published outside of China. And after that it's crazy how long it took to snowball in popularity.
Editor's desk: a look at how Neil is working to increase the author pool for clarkesworld to be more diverse across national boundaries and other dimensions.
thesffreader's review
4.0
Originally published on The Curious SFF Reader
A Vastness by Bo Balder ★★
A Vastness follows a scientist obsessed with a group of alien creatures. It is about searching for the meaning of your life and what you do when you finally realize what it is.
The premise was interesting but I had trouble engaging with the story. I don’t know if it was because of the writing or the characters, but something was off for me. Also I found the ending was a bit anti-climatic.
Not Now by Chelsea Muzar ★★★
A pro-robot family living in a city where most people are afraid of them find themself in an accident involving one. Indeed, one day they found their house crushed by a giant mechanical arm. Not Now follows the repercussion of this accident on the family and particularly how their daughter is affected. It is about loss, discrimination and growing up.
I liked the themes but the characters felt a bit too flat. The daughter was only anger and frustation and the parents were the definition of indifference. I understand how an accident could affect them but I don’t understand why they were made to be so one-dimensional.
Flying Oslige by Sally Gwylan ★★★★★
Set in alternative world where people are at war with either a) modified humans or b) humanoid aliens, Flying Oslige follows a woman who is just trying to survive the conflict. She is escaping her city with a small group of soldiers and we follow her journey as she tries to reach a safer place. But where can this be when you can trust no one?
This story was terrific, I never wanted it to end and I hope Gwylan is going to expand this universe with a novel, a short story collection or both! I highly recommend this one.
Farewell, Doraemon by A Que ★★★★★
Another very good one.
Farewell, Doraemon is about a man returning to his village after quiting his job as an illustrator in Beijing. However, it’s also about his childhood and his love for an anime, Doraemon, that changed his life when he was little. It’s also about friendship, love and the consequences of small actions.
This story is quite melancholic and full of nostalgia but I was completely immersed in it. I found the whole thing fantastic: the characters, the ideas, the pacing, the ending, everything felt right.
I believe I read something else by A Que in a previous issue of Clarkesworld and I remember really liking it as well so I should definitely check out other works by this author!
Reprints
Cold Comfort by Pat Murphy & Paul Doherty ★★★★
Cold Comfort follows a very pragmatic scientist who is not afraid to commit a bioterrorist attack in order to show the world how dangerous global warming is. I really, really enjoyed two things in this story. First of all, I loved the main character and how sure she was of her action and I also loved how the authors imagined the future and how humanity will adapt. It still managed to feel optimistic (it reminded me a bit of New York 2140!) I won’t say much more but I want to read more stories set in this world!
In Panic Town, On The Backward Moon by Michael Flynn ★
This is without a doubt my least favorte story of the issue. It follows a theft/murder investigation on a planet (Mars maybe? I don’t remember well which shows how much I cared!…).
It felt very dated and I just couldn’t connect with anything. It wasn’t the worst story ever but I forgot it immediatly after turning the page and that’s definitely not a good thing. I wouldn’t recommend this to anyone.
A Vastness by Bo Balder ★★
A Vastness follows a scientist obsessed with a group of alien creatures. It is about searching for the meaning of your life and what you do when you finally realize what it is.
The premise was interesting but I had trouble engaging with the story. I don’t know if it was because of the writing or the characters, but something was off for me. Also I found the ending was a bit anti-climatic.
Not Now by Chelsea Muzar ★★★
A pro-robot family living in a city where most people are afraid of them find themself in an accident involving one. Indeed, one day they found their house crushed by a giant mechanical arm. Not Now follows the repercussion of this accident on the family and particularly how their daughter is affected. It is about loss, discrimination and growing up.
I liked the themes but the characters felt a bit too flat. The daughter was only anger and frustation and the parents were the definition of indifference. I understand how an accident could affect them but I don’t understand why they were made to be so one-dimensional.
Flying Oslige by Sally Gwylan ★★★★★
Set in alternative world where people are at war with either a) modified humans or b) humanoid aliens, Flying Oslige follows a woman who is just trying to survive the conflict. She is escaping her city with a small group of soldiers and we follow her journey as she tries to reach a safer place. But where can this be when you can trust no one?
This story was terrific, I never wanted it to end and I hope Gwylan is going to expand this universe with a novel, a short story collection or both! I highly recommend this one.
Farewell, Doraemon by A Que ★★★★★
Another very good one.
Farewell, Doraemon is about a man returning to his village after quiting his job as an illustrator in Beijing. However, it’s also about his childhood and his love for an anime, Doraemon, that changed his life when he was little. It’s also about friendship, love and the consequences of small actions.
This story is quite melancholic and full of nostalgia but I was completely immersed in it. I found the whole thing fantastic: the characters, the ideas, the pacing, the ending, everything felt right.
I believe I read something else by A Que in a previous issue of Clarkesworld and I remember really liking it as well so I should definitely check out other works by this author!
Reprints
Cold Comfort by Pat Murphy & Paul Doherty ★★★★
Cold Comfort follows a very pragmatic scientist who is not afraid to commit a bioterrorist attack in order to show the world how dangerous global warming is. I really, really enjoyed two things in this story. First of all, I loved the main character and how sure she was of her action and I also loved how the authors imagined the future and how humanity will adapt. It still managed to feel optimistic (it reminded me a bit of New York 2140!) I won’t say much more but I want to read more stories set in this world!
In Panic Town, On The Backward Moon by Michael Flynn ★
This is without a doubt my least favorte story of the issue. It follows a theft/murder investigation on a planet (Mars maybe? I don’t remember well which shows how much I cared!…).
It felt very dated and I just couldn’t connect with anything. It wasn’t the worst story ever but I forgot it immediatly after turning the page and that’s definitely not a good thing. I wouldn’t recommend this to anyone.
mikewhiteman's review
3.0
A Vastness - Bo Balder **
Some nice bits of writing in this story of an obsessed scientist chasing after the wormhole-creating, universe-hopping creatures of her studies but the plot felt rushed and forced. It didn't flow, inconsistently barreling towards its conclusion.
Not Now - Chelsea Muzar **
Focuses on a young girl whose room is destroyed by a robot arm falling from the sky, as her family become the centre of a media storm. Reflects the victim blaming mentality of a mob and the empty gestures at assistance. There is a numbness to the story, replicating the blank reactions of the girl's parents, a general sense that discriminating against robots/people who want them is bad but no idea of what that means, or what it means to support them.
Fleeing Oslyge - Sally Gwylan ****
Fearful tone to this one, as a woman searches for safety with a small group of soldiers trying to escape alien invaders. The aliens are able to conjure illusions and there are many collaborators promised safety, and the feeling that no one can be trusted pervades. The fact that the aliens are never actually seen and the betrayals and violence come from all sides floods the story and it main character with doubt. Interesting take on the nature of rebellion and war.
Farewell, Doraemon - A Que, trans. Emily Lin & Ken Liu *****
Loved this slow burning novella, following the childhood of Hu Zhou and his return to his village as a more jaded adult. The contrast between the two time periods is especially affecting: the innocence of childhood, watching cartoons, with hope for the future; then returning with the hindsight to see how things really were and the power to influence, but too late to help. Highlights how simple actions or omissions at certain times can have far-reaching effects and how we have to make the choice to actively help. So many lovely small moments and a deeply emotional journey.
Cold Comfort - Pat Murphy & Paul Doherty ***
Some great scientific and environmental details and ideas of environmental preservation in the Arctic throughout, but reads like a tour of those ideas for most of its length, with scattered moments of character and plot. That uneven tone holds it back but its a good read and ends up somewhere interesting by the conclusion.
In Panic Town, On The Backward Moon - Michael F Flynn ***
Old school sort of feel to this whodunnit tale of miners on Mars and Phobos. Fits in enough misdirection and clues to the mystery in its short length but does feel a bit rushed. Plenty of character and a distinctive tone but definitely feels older than it actually is.
Some nice bits of writing in this story of an obsessed scientist chasing after the wormhole-creating, universe-hopping creatures of her studies but the plot felt rushed and forced. It didn't flow, inconsistently barreling towards its conclusion.
Not Now - Chelsea Muzar **
Focuses on a young girl whose room is destroyed by a robot arm falling from the sky, as her family become the centre of a media storm. Reflects the victim blaming mentality of a mob and the empty gestures at assistance. There is a numbness to the story, replicating the blank reactions of the girl's parents, a general sense that discriminating against robots/people who want them is bad but no idea of what that means, or what it means to support them.
Fleeing Oslyge - Sally Gwylan ****
Fearful tone to this one, as a woman searches for safety with a small group of soldiers trying to escape alien invaders. The aliens are able to conjure illusions and there are many collaborators promised safety, and the feeling that no one can be trusted pervades. The fact that the aliens are never actually seen and the betrayals and violence come from all sides floods the story and it main character with doubt. Interesting take on the nature of rebellion and war.
Farewell, Doraemon - A Que, trans. Emily Lin & Ken Liu *****
Loved this slow burning novella, following the childhood of Hu Zhou and his return to his village as a more jaded adult. The contrast between the two time periods is especially affecting: the innocence of childhood, watching cartoons, with hope for the future; then returning with the hindsight to see how things really were and the power to influence, but too late to help. Highlights how simple actions or omissions at certain times can have far-reaching effects and how we have to make the choice to actively help. So many lovely small moments and a deeply emotional journey.
Cold Comfort - Pat Murphy & Paul Doherty ***
Some great scientific and environmental details and ideas of environmental preservation in the Arctic throughout, but reads like a tour of those ideas for most of its length, with scattered moments of character and plot. That uneven tone holds it back but its a good read and ends up somewhere interesting by the conclusion.
In Panic Town, On The Backward Moon - Michael F Flynn ***
Old school sort of feel to this whodunnit tale of miners on Mars and Phobos. Fits in enough misdirection and clues to the mystery in its short length but does feel a bit rushed. Plenty of character and a distinctive tone but definitely feels older than it actually is.
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