A review by kiramke
At the Mouth of the River of Bees: Stories by Kij Johnson

2.0

I liked a handful of these stories, although maybe not enough that I'll refer back to them for years; and I really didn't like quite a few. I can't quite articulate why, sometimes I just wasn't interested in the point being made, or I felt exhausted picking up so much world building for one short story that didn't wow me. And a few times I felt like the story was eating up the references, like there wasn't a point to taking over that tradition, the story didn't need it and was just using it. I don't love the taking of folklore, and I also didn't love those stories, they didn't feel true or important. One or two longer stories felt fleshed-out and worthwhile.