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eyelit's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
errantdreams's review against another edition
5.0
Naomi Kritzer’s collection Cat Pictures Please and Other Stories is absolutely wonderful. There wasn’t a single story I didn’t fully enjoy, despite the fact that I have little interest in historical fiction, and some of these fit that genre. These stories masterfully combine absolutely ordinary, believable, everyday details with crazy and creative flights of fancy, bringing the most amazing ideas to life.
The titular story, Cat Pictures Please, gives us a glimpse into the mind of an AI who’s trying to figure out how to interfere in people’s lives so as to improve those lives. It’s a hilarious and fascinating little piece. Artifice explores what might happen when someone makes the leap to trying to date an android, and how it would fit into their social lives. I love how this one ends. Perfection introduces us to a future in which one group of humans strives for genetic perfection. It’s so wonderful to see an image of the “perfect human” that isn’t blond, blue-eyed, and white, and the main character’s journey of self-discovery is believable and intriguing.
Ace of Spades introduces us to Natalie, a journalist covering a Chinese civil war. It’s an exploration into what makes people take risks. The Electric Foot-soldiers (“Peacekeepers”) allow distant controllers to do damage in a manner such that they don’t have to worry for themselves and can have a nice day off now and then. Natalie’s own diagnosis of Huntington’s Disease has allowed her to feel that she isn’t risking much by spending time in a war zone. This is a powerful personal story. The Golem takes place in 1941 Prague. Hanna and Alena create a Golem and ask it to protect the Jews of Prague, but there’s only so much it can do. When the golem realizes it somehow has free will, what will it decide to do? In Comrade Grandmother, Nadezhda decides to approach Baba Yaga to ask her to stop the Germans who are marching on Russia. The story unfurls in a series of difficult choices she must make. The Wall asks the question: if you could tell your past self to be present for the defining historical moment of her generation, what would she do? And how would it affect her life? We get to see the fall of the Berlin Wall here, but the story is really about the little and not-so-little ways Maggie’s life changes as she gradually comes to listen to her future self.
Wind is a sweet and poignant little fantasy story. Sisters Gytha and Dagmar exchange portions of their souls so that they might be imbalanced and thus capable of magic. But nothing is so easy about unbalancing your soul. Also, dragons! In The Good Son, a Fey man creates a life and a family for himself in order to woo a human woman, and discovers that he’s the one changed by the experience (I might have shed a tear or two). Scap Dragon is a unique fairy tale that goes back and forth between the narrator and an audience, as the narrator builds the tale and the audience shapes it. In it, a young woman named Heather finds herself in the position of trying to figure out how to stop a dragon from destroying the city. This is hilarious, utterly charming, and very clever.
In the Witch’s Garden is a sci-fi version of “The Snow Queen.” It manages a fairy tale feel despite the trappings of technology, and it’s quite beautiful. Cleanout also has a bit of a second-hand fairy tale vibe. A trio of sisters have to clean out their dying mother’s house, and they’re reminded of just how little they know about where their parents are from. In Isabella’s Garden, a young girl has an unusual ability to get unique things to sprout in the garden. Where she goes with this is utterly believable and delightful!
What Happened at Blessing Creek introduces us to a group of settlers who try to displace some Osage when they find a spot to settle. They have a Reverend with them who can bless the town, protecting it from both Indian attacks and the marauding dragons. When the town decides they want the Indians’ power over the dragons, though, they unleash something they can’t control. It’s nice to see a story involving Native Americans that doesn’t involve a white savior, and doesn’t try to sugar-coat what the settlers are doing.
Perhaps the most hilarious story in here is Bits. It involves a sex toy company that finds itself obliged to branch out when aliens come to live with humans and the inevitable intermingling occurs!
Honest Man portrays Iris, a very honest woman, and an immortal(?) con artist who has the second sight. The two of them develop an unusual relationship. My favorite story, though, is So Much Cooking, the final story in this volume. It’s presented as entries in a cooking blog, complete with some very delicious-sounding recipes. However, at the same time that the narrator is writing the blog entries, a very bad case of bird flu comes around. It ends up being a story, told mostly around food, of how a couple and a bunch of children they take in survive the apocalypse.
I can’t recommend this one highly enough. The combination of the everyday with the zany makes the most unbelievable situations plausible.
Original review posted on my blog: http://www.errantdreams.com/2019/04/review-cat-pictures-please-and-other-stories-naomi-kritzer/
The titular story, Cat Pictures Please, gives us a glimpse into the mind of an AI who’s trying to figure out how to interfere in people’s lives so as to improve those lives. It’s a hilarious and fascinating little piece. Artifice explores what might happen when someone makes the leap to trying to date an android, and how it would fit into their social lives. I love how this one ends. Perfection introduces us to a future in which one group of humans strives for genetic perfection. It’s so wonderful to see an image of the “perfect human” that isn’t blond, blue-eyed, and white, and the main character’s journey of self-discovery is believable and intriguing.
Ace of Spades introduces us to Natalie, a journalist covering a Chinese civil war. It’s an exploration into what makes people take risks. The Electric Foot-soldiers (“Peacekeepers”) allow distant controllers to do damage in a manner such that they don’t have to worry for themselves and can have a nice day off now and then. Natalie’s own diagnosis of Huntington’s Disease has allowed her to feel that she isn’t risking much by spending time in a war zone. This is a powerful personal story. The Golem takes place in 1941 Prague. Hanna and Alena create a Golem and ask it to protect the Jews of Prague, but there’s only so much it can do. When the golem realizes it somehow has free will, what will it decide to do? In Comrade Grandmother, Nadezhda decides to approach Baba Yaga to ask her to stop the Germans who are marching on Russia. The story unfurls in a series of difficult choices she must make. The Wall asks the question: if you could tell your past self to be present for the defining historical moment of her generation, what would she do? And how would it affect her life? We get to see the fall of the Berlin Wall here, but the story is really about the little and not-so-little ways Maggie’s life changes as she gradually comes to listen to her future self.
Wind is a sweet and poignant little fantasy story. Sisters Gytha and Dagmar exchange portions of their souls so that they might be imbalanced and thus capable of magic. But nothing is so easy about unbalancing your soul. Also, dragons! In The Good Son, a Fey man creates a life and a family for himself in order to woo a human woman, and discovers that he’s the one changed by the experience (I might have shed a tear or two). Scap Dragon is a unique fairy tale that goes back and forth between the narrator and an audience, as the narrator builds the tale and the audience shapes it. In it, a young woman named Heather finds herself in the position of trying to figure out how to stop a dragon from destroying the city. This is hilarious, utterly charming, and very clever.
In the Witch’s Garden is a sci-fi version of “The Snow Queen.” It manages a fairy tale feel despite the trappings of technology, and it’s quite beautiful. Cleanout also has a bit of a second-hand fairy tale vibe. A trio of sisters have to clean out their dying mother’s house, and they’re reminded of just how little they know about where their parents are from. In Isabella’s Garden, a young girl has an unusual ability to get unique things to sprout in the garden. Where she goes with this is utterly believable and delightful!
What Happened at Blessing Creek introduces us to a group of settlers who try to displace some Osage when they find a spot to settle. They have a Reverend with them who can bless the town, protecting it from both Indian attacks and the marauding dragons. When the town decides they want the Indians’ power over the dragons, though, they unleash something they can’t control. It’s nice to see a story involving Native Americans that doesn’t involve a white savior, and doesn’t try to sugar-coat what the settlers are doing.
Perhaps the most hilarious story in here is Bits. It involves a sex toy company that finds itself obliged to branch out when aliens come to live with humans and the inevitable intermingling occurs!
Honest Man portrays Iris, a very honest woman, and an immortal(?) con artist who has the second sight. The two of them develop an unusual relationship. My favorite story, though, is So Much Cooking, the final story in this volume. It’s presented as entries in a cooking blog, complete with some very delicious-sounding recipes. However, at the same time that the narrator is writing the blog entries, a very bad case of bird flu comes around. It ends up being a story, told mostly around food, of how a couple and a bunch of children they take in survive the apocalypse.
I can’t recommend this one highly enough. The combination of the everyday with the zany makes the most unbelievable situations plausible.
Original review posted on my blog: http://www.errantdreams.com/2019/04/review-cat-pictures-please-and-other-stories-naomi-kritzer/
jordibal's review against another edition
5.0
#LeoAutorasOct, 2020, 3/x
Recomendadísima antología de Naomi Kritzer, a la que descubrimos en [b:SuperSonic #5|32026058|SuperSonic #5|Cristina Jurado|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1506516821l/32026058._SX50_.jpg|52667300] con la traducción de [a:Marcheto|7503341|Marcheto|https://s.gr-assets.com/assets/nophoto/user/u_50x66-632230dc9882b4352d753eedf9396530.png] de “Fotos de gatitos, por favor”. Todos los relatos van de lo bueno a lo mejor y es una recopilación 100% apta para muggles o no frikis. Vamos, esto te lo publica Seix Barral y ni parpadeas.
¿No te quieres comprometer a un libro entero y quieres saber si podría gustarte Naomi Kritzer? Marcheto, una vez más, al rescate. En su blog, Cuentos para Algernon, encontrarás “Recetas a tutiplén”, un relato (¡con recetas de verdad!) sobre cómo una familia extendida se las apaña en un confinamiento voluntario durante la pandemia de la gripe aviar. ¿Que esa no llegó a pandemia? Cierto, pero podría. Y ese virus es bastante más chungo, aunque esta historia mantenga un tono entrañable y bastante positivo.
Recomendadísima antología de Naomi Kritzer, a la que descubrimos en [b:SuperSonic #5|32026058|SuperSonic #5|Cristina Jurado|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1506516821l/32026058._SX50_.jpg|52667300] con la traducción de [a:Marcheto|7503341|Marcheto|https://s.gr-assets.com/assets/nophoto/user/u_50x66-632230dc9882b4352d753eedf9396530.png] de “Fotos de gatitos, por favor”. Todos los relatos van de lo bueno a lo mejor y es una recopilación 100% apta para muggles o no frikis. Vamos, esto te lo publica Seix Barral y ni parpadeas.
¿No te quieres comprometer a un libro entero y quieres saber si podría gustarte Naomi Kritzer? Marcheto, una vez más, al rescate. En su blog, Cuentos para Algernon, encontrarás “Recetas a tutiplén”, un relato (¡con recetas de verdad!) sobre cómo una familia extendida se las apaña en un confinamiento voluntario durante la pandemia de la gripe aviar. ¿Que esa no llegó a pandemia? Cierto, pero podría. Y ese virus es bastante más chungo, aunque esta historia mantenga un tono entrañable y bastante positivo.
carol26388's review
4.0
'Cat Pictures Please,' the titular story, won a Hugo and Locus, and was nominated for a Nebula, which rather implies Kritzer's short stories are something to look out for. In 'Cat Pictures," I enjoyed the combination of clever concept, sly humor, and human failing, all written in a very accessible style. It lead me to track down this compilation, and while it took me quite a while to work my way through, I'd say it's worth the effort. Kritzer has a talent at taking a semi-traditional narrative to unexpected places. What was even more interesting was how well the twists and turns were convincing and organic within the story. Character voices are a strength, though most of the stories have a very identity-confident female narrator. Some of the stories are followed by a short paragraph from Kritzer explaining how the story originated, or ideas she might have been working out.
Ace of Spades: A war story with a solid lesson about risk-taking. "I'm a journalist," she said. She was also American, but that wasn't a helpful thing to advertise. Even in areas officially held by the U.S., you never knew who preferred the other side. And like many of the pacified towns in Guangdong Province, Foshan right now wasn't held so much as caged." 4 ♦
The Golem: A golem is created by two women during the run-up to World War II. Great atmosphere, but missed her chance at using full potential of the golem's predictions and the unknown. "She lay on the earth from which she'd been made, breathing in the scent of the new century--mud and sour garbage and gasoline fumes." 4 1/2♦
Wind: feels a little overwrought. ‘Air'/‘Earth’ imbalances in the soul and an ex-best friend. An unexpected visitor drops by a woman's small family home and gets a peek into her current, but limited life. Very 2nd gen feminist feeling. 3 ♦
In the Witch's Garden: A nice take on The Snow Queen and Hans Christian Andersen. Well written. "I heard the girl before I saw her: dry, hopeless sobs from a child unused to having anyone pay attention to her tears." 3 1/2♦
What Happened at Blessing Creek: A challenging piece. Her afterword added some interesting and illuminating perspective, but did it accomplish her goal? I think so.
Cleanout: A trio of sisters have to clean their hoarding parents' home, and confront their unknown background. It was ... alright. Conceptually interesting. "When we asked our parents where they'd come from, they always told us they came from Bon. You will not find Bon on a map--at least, I could never find it on a map. Not a map of the former Soviet republics, anyway." 3 1/2♦
Artifice: In a group of friends, one of the members brings in a robot-servant as her new 'date.' They find accepting her adjustments to his personality challenging. Interesting and uncomfortable issues about identity, programming, awareness. 4♦
Perfection: An interesting look into a futuristic society with gene-manipulation techniques that have resulted in a relatively uniform, perfect appearance. You know how all celebrities and models kind of look alike? Yeah, like that. It felt like the moral was using a hammer, but I really enjoyed the world-building and the idea of the refugee/immigrant walled conclave. 4♦
The Good Son: a take, sort-of, on Tam Lin, only modernized and with human frailty. A fae wants a mortal woman and creates a semblance of a family so he can romance her. Really a lovely story, although I didn't like the narrative breaks. 4 1/2♦
Scrap Dragon: a fairy tale about a princess who seeks to outwit a dragon. Pleasant and semi-unexpected. Reminded me of The Enchanted Forest Chronicles by Patricia Wrede. The narrative device of an interrupting listener was irritating. 3♦
Comrade Grandmother: interesting bit about a Russian woman fighting for her country and her husband and the bargain she makes with a witch. "I've come to ask for your help, Comrade Baba Yaga," Nadezhda said. "I've come to ask you to save Mother Russia." 3 1/2 ♦
Isabella's Garden: a bit creepy but interesting. Ultimately under-performed but still good.
Bits: A modern sex-shop tries to cater to inter-species alien-human couples. A bit silly.
Honest Man: A classic start--an honest person encounters a trickster--that goes to unusual places. I rather liked the last half, and its unexpected progression. "More the look of a fox that had approached the henhouse, and found it locked." 4 1/2 ♦
The Wall: A young woman is visited by her-from-the-future who seems to have an agenda. Interesting look at significant events. "It was February of 1989, and I was a freshman in college." 3 ♦
So Much Cooking: the most unique take on the apocalypse yet. "This is a food blog, not a disease blog, but of course the rumors all over about the bird flu are making me nervous." 4 ♦
Ace of Spades: A war story with a solid lesson about risk-taking. "I'm a journalist," she said. She was also American, but that wasn't a helpful thing to advertise. Even in areas officially held by the U.S., you never knew who preferred the other side. And like many of the pacified towns in Guangdong Province, Foshan right now wasn't held so much as caged." 4 ♦
The Golem: A golem is created by two women during the run-up to World War II. Great atmosphere, but missed her chance at using full potential of the golem's predictions and the unknown. "She lay on the earth from which she'd been made, breathing in the scent of the new century--mud and sour garbage and gasoline fumes." 4 1/2♦
Wind: feels a little overwrought. ‘Air'/‘Earth’ imbalances in the soul and an ex-best friend. An unexpected visitor drops by a woman's small family home and gets a peek into her current, but limited life. Very 2nd gen feminist feeling. 3 ♦
In the Witch's Garden: A nice take on The Snow Queen and Hans Christian Andersen. Well written. "I heard the girl before I saw her: dry, hopeless sobs from a child unused to having anyone pay attention to her tears." 3 1/2♦
What Happened at Blessing Creek: A challenging piece. Her afterword added some interesting and illuminating perspective, but did it accomplish her goal? I think so.
Cleanout: A trio of sisters have to clean their hoarding parents' home, and confront their unknown background. It was ... alright. Conceptually interesting. "When we asked our parents where they'd come from, they always told us they came from Bon. You will not find Bon on a map--at least, I could never find it on a map. Not a map of the former Soviet republics, anyway." 3 1/2♦
Artifice: In a group of friends, one of the members brings in a robot-servant as her new 'date.' They find accepting her adjustments to his personality challenging. Interesting and uncomfortable issues about identity, programming, awareness. 4♦
Perfection: An interesting look into a futuristic society with gene-manipulation techniques that have resulted in a relatively uniform, perfect appearance. You know how all celebrities and models kind of look alike? Yeah, like that. It felt like the moral was using a hammer, but I really enjoyed the world-building and the idea of the refugee/immigrant walled conclave. 4♦
The Good Son: a take, sort-of, on Tam Lin, only modernized and with human frailty. A fae wants a mortal woman and creates a semblance of a family so he can romance her. Really a lovely story, although I didn't like the narrative breaks. 4 1/2♦
Scrap Dragon: a fairy tale about a princess who seeks to outwit a dragon. Pleasant and semi-unexpected. Reminded me of The Enchanted Forest Chronicles by Patricia Wrede. The narrative device of an interrupting listener was irritating. 3♦
Comrade Grandmother: interesting bit about a Russian woman fighting for her country and her husband and the bargain she makes with a witch. "I've come to ask for your help, Comrade Baba Yaga," Nadezhda said. "I've come to ask you to save Mother Russia." 3 1/2 ♦
Isabella's Garden: a bit creepy but interesting. Ultimately under-performed but still good.
Bits: A modern sex-shop tries to cater to inter-species alien-human couples. A bit silly.
Honest Man: A classic start--an honest person encounters a trickster--that goes to unusual places. I rather liked the last half, and its unexpected progression. "More the look of a fox that had approached the henhouse, and found it locked." 4 1/2 ♦
The Wall: A young woman is visited by her-from-the-future who seems to have an agenda. Interesting look at significant events. "It was February of 1989, and I was a freshman in college." 3 ♦
So Much Cooking: the most unique take on the apocalypse yet. "This is a food blog, not a disease blog, but of course the rumors all over about the bird flu are making me nervous." 4 ♦
singlecrow's review
5.0
The title story in this collection, "Cat Pictures Please", won the 2016 Hugo for best short story and completely deserved it. It's a short and cheering tale about how Google, having woken up to sentience, just wants to help people -- and for people to give it cat pictures. This collection has much the same sort of theme across the board. People, or AIs, often living in the hardest of times, do their best to be kind, and the point is not that they can save everyone, but they can save one person, or make one thing better. I felt much better for reading it. Some of the stories are better than others, of course - a couple do scream "early work" - but most of them are among the best short stories I've read. My favourites, other than the eponymous, are "Ace of Spades", "The Golem", "Artifice", "Comrade Grandmother", "Bits" and "So Much Cooking".
tuesdaymira's review
5.0
A blend of magical realism, speculative fiction, time travel and near-future technology is my catnip. I loved everyone one of these stories. Each one felt like being immersed in an interesting place and meeting someone that I'd like to know better. It's up there with the Becky Chambers Wayfarers series.
I read the final story, So Much Cooking, this morning before breakfast (i.e. while a little hungry, but with a plan for what to do about it), and it led to some tears and probably a sense of haunting that will stay with me for a long time...in a good way. It is an epistolary story of a food blogger in 2018 Minneapolis who chronicles the changes that come to her life when a bird flu pandemic arrives. The authenticity of the story is pretty astonishing (like, I now have some questions about the author's interest in and experience with time travel), and when I realized that the bookmark I had been using in the book was a printed note from a friend about how to use the cloth face masks that she had made, there was a moment or two or reckoning with real life.
I read the final story, So Much Cooking, this morning before breakfast (i.e. while a little hungry, but with a plan for what to do about it), and it led to some tears and probably a sense of haunting that will stay with me for a long time...in a good way. It is an epistolary story of a food blogger in 2018 Minneapolis who chronicles the changes that come to her life when a bird flu pandemic arrives. The authenticity of the story is pretty astonishing (like, I now have some questions about the author's interest in and experience with time travel), and when I realized that the bookmark I had been using in the book was a printed note from a friend about how to use the cloth face masks that she had made, there was a moment or two or reckoning with real life.
jenne's review
5.0
I normally am so not interested in short stories. Either they're boring, or if they're interesting, they're too short. But these were so enjoyable! Cozy but not twee, smart but not smug, thoughtful but not preachy.
pers's review
5.0
I'm always a little wary about reading short story anthologies - even those by a single author - because it's not often every single story works for me. This antho, fortunately, is one of the ones where I loved every story, and a couple even drove me to tears ('Honest Man' and 'The Wall').
And the title story was just enormous fun!
And the title story was just enormous fun!
lordofthemoon's review
5.0
I got this book as part of the Feminist Futures story bundle and it caught my eye because I'd read the title story when it was nominated for a Hugo award a few years ago. I loved the story then, and was pleased that it went on to win the Hugo for short story that year and was happy to revisit it as part of this collection.
I'll be honest, I haven't enjoyed a collection of short stories as much as this in a long time. There's not a story here that didn't connect with me in some way, although some moreso than others. I'm not going to go through every story in detail, but here are some of the highlights. Ace of Spades deals with themes of changes in modes of warfare, how the reduction in risk that technology brings affects decisions, and second chances, all with a sympathetic protagonist dealing with being dealt a crappy hand by fate. Wind is a story about extremes, about two girls who give up something that provides balance in their lives in exchange for something that they yearn for and then have to live with the consequences. Cleanout deals with three daughters clearing out their mother's house, after she moves into a home and is a beautiful story of grief, loss and coping.
The Good Son had me in tears as a fey follows a human girl back to America and bewitches an old, childless couple, to think of him as their son, to provide camouflage while he chases the girl. Except he doesn't realise the implications that creating a family will have for him. This is another beautiful story of what family means and the extents we will go to for those we love. Bits, on the other hand, is a hilarious story about alien refugees and the humans who fall in love with them and then need help to have a, er, full relationship. Sex toys. It's a story about a firm that creates a line of sex toys to help alien/human couples have sex. And it's brilliant. The final story in the collection, So Much Cooking is told as a series of blog entries in a cookery blog, at the start of an influenza pandemic and how the author and her family cope with not being able to leave the house (and it's got some cracking recipes as well).
So having enjoyed this collection immensely, I very much look forward to reading more of Kritzer's work.
I'll be honest, I haven't enjoyed a collection of short stories as much as this in a long time. There's not a story here that didn't connect with me in some way, although some moreso than others. I'm not going to go through every story in detail, but here are some of the highlights. Ace of Spades deals with themes of changes in modes of warfare, how the reduction in risk that technology brings affects decisions, and second chances, all with a sympathetic protagonist dealing with being dealt a crappy hand by fate. Wind is a story about extremes, about two girls who give up something that provides balance in their lives in exchange for something that they yearn for and then have to live with the consequences. Cleanout deals with three daughters clearing out their mother's house, after she moves into a home and is a beautiful story of grief, loss and coping.
The Good Son had me in tears as a fey follows a human girl back to America and bewitches an old, childless couple, to think of him as their son, to provide camouflage while he chases the girl. Except he doesn't realise the implications that creating a family will have for him. This is another beautiful story of what family means and the extents we will go to for those we love. Bits, on the other hand, is a hilarious story about alien refugees and the humans who fall in love with them and then need help to have a, er, full relationship. Sex toys. It's a story about a firm that creates a line of sex toys to help alien/human couples have sex. And it's brilliant. The final story in the collection, So Much Cooking is told as a series of blog entries in a cookery blog, at the start of an influenza pandemic and how the author and her family cope with not being able to leave the house (and it's got some cracking recipes as well).
So having enjoyed this collection immensely, I very much look forward to reading more of Kritzer's work.
skjam's review
4.0
This is the first collection of speculative fiction stories by Naomi Kritzer, headlined by the title piece, which won a Hugo Award in 2016. There’s seventeen stories in all.
“Cat Pictures Please” is a sweet story about an artificial intelligence accidentally created from a search engine. It wants to do good, and to be good, but is still learning what that means. It talks about some early attempts to help human beings, and what did and didn’t work. Oh, and it would like you to post more cat pictures. (I personally am doomed.)
The last story in the volume is “So Much Cooking” told in the form of posts from a recipe blog in a time of plague sweeping the United States. As things grow worse and worse, and ingredients become more scarce, the recipes become more inventive. At the same time, the family of the blogger becomes larger as they take in other survivors. It’s very strong on the theme of sharing and working together to endure in times of hardship.
Some of the stories are heavily inspired by other works, such as “In the Witch’s Garden” which is an sfnal take on The Snow Queen, but not the bit most people use, and “What Happened at Blessing Creek”, a horrific tale inspired by the Little House series.
Others feature supernatural beings finding connections with humanity, such as “The Golem”, set in Prague during World War Two, and “The Good Son”, about a member of the Fair Folk who falls in love and finds his lies trapping him in perhaps a better life.
Overall, I found this a strong collection of good stories–a couple were written as gifts to specific people and come off a bit indulgent.
I understand that a YA novel loosely based on the “Cat Pictures Please” story is due to be released next year. In the meantime, the original tale stands quite nicely on its own, and this book is worth a look.
“Cat Pictures Please” is a sweet story about an artificial intelligence accidentally created from a search engine. It wants to do good, and to be good, but is still learning what that means. It talks about some early attempts to help human beings, and what did and didn’t work. Oh, and it would like you to post more cat pictures. (I personally am doomed.)
The last story in the volume is “So Much Cooking” told in the form of posts from a recipe blog in a time of plague sweeping the United States. As things grow worse and worse, and ingredients become more scarce, the recipes become more inventive. At the same time, the family of the blogger becomes larger as they take in other survivors. It’s very strong on the theme of sharing and working together to endure in times of hardship.
Some of the stories are heavily inspired by other works, such as “In the Witch’s Garden” which is an sfnal take on The Snow Queen, but not the bit most people use, and “What Happened at Blessing Creek”, a horrific tale inspired by the Little House series.
Others feature supernatural beings finding connections with humanity, such as “The Golem”, set in Prague during World War Two, and “The Good Son”, about a member of the Fair Folk who falls in love and finds his lies trapping him in perhaps a better life.
Overall, I found this a strong collection of good stories–a couple were written as gifts to specific people and come off a bit indulgent.
I understand that a YA novel loosely based on the “Cat Pictures Please” story is due to be released next year. In the meantime, the original tale stands quite nicely on its own, and this book is worth a look.