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A review by mdstepp1998
Wastelands: Stories of the Apocalypse by John Joseph Adams
3.0
I've never been much of a short story reader for no other reason than I've always read from novel to novel without breaking to peruse the shorter pieces written by my favorite authors (which would assuredly have led to reading other authors short stories, creating a snowball effect...lame on my part, I know).
Recently, I have taken this 'break' between novels to dig deeper into the literary creativity of my favorite writers. This 'Post-End of the World' collection of short stories was on many 'Best-of' lists, so seems like a great and interesting place to start.
1. The End of the Whole Mess by Stephen King - (5 Stars) - Imagine being one of the last people (an assumption here) on Earth alive, let alone the only person left who knows what caused the annihilation of man kind? This dark character piece is about those final hours of such a person hurriedly writing down a summary of how the 'mess' that was man kind finally ended. The story is eerily relevant today as it seems there are no solutions to the apparent evil and violence that permeates society. Interestingly, I took away a sign of hope that even in ones final moments when man kind is finished, love (for others, family) is still apparent, strong, and seemingly everlasting. An amazing and prescient story.
2. Salvage by Orson Scott Card - (5 Stars) - This story follows a group of children living in a post apocalyptic Utah where the surviving humans have found stability and organization in the Mormon religion as a means of government. The main character works in the salvage business, but is undertaking his plan to reach the rumored gold trapped in the partially submerged Mormon Temple. I take a more direct approach to the stories underlying meaning in that it is a study of how to move forward after a cataclysmic event (possibly think of 9/11?). Do you mourn and yearn for the days of old or do you actively move forward and set a new path? The final paragraphs were particularly powerful to me. Excellent.
3. The People of Sand and Slag - (5 Stars) - by Paolo Bacigalupi - I'll never read the story again. I can take heart breaking, but not when it comes to animals. Bacigalupi (after reading his first novel Windup Girl) once again creates an immersible and morally awkward alternate universe that is difficult to stop reading. It is a story about completely forgetting about, not just past events, but the pasts teachings and cultural norms. Imagine if the current younger generations take cell phone use to the extreme and only communicate with text messaging compared to voice or in person. What would the effect be on companionship or friendship? In the case of the story, imagine if the human emotion of companionship was completely forgotten. What would such a World look like?
4. Bread and Bombs - (3 Stars) - by M. Rickert - This story holds very true to the hyper reactiveness (and lack of patience and common sense?) human being present in times of crisis. In B&B, the story presents a current event case - how would a small town react to a severe bout of global terrorism (poison candy and snow for example)? What if the terrorists were Muslim? How would Muslims, in general, be treated? The story is generic in the sense that other TV shows (24, in my opinion) and movies present the same argument that humans will rashly act out against an entire people if it feels threatened. The story becomes shocking, though, in how society solves its own irrational prejudices. There are no grand speeches of morality here.
5. How We Got In Town and Out Again - (2 Stars) - by Jonathan Lethem - I just couldn't get into it. The premise was interesting - a traveling carnival, of sorts, that places people in a virtual reality environment where they must outlast the other competitors. The problem was the execution. The competition was based solely on who lasted the longest without collapsing from exhaustion, but not by interaction with the others. Also, the virtual reality encountered by the main characters were...well...boring. In its defense, this boredom is a plot point, but should it be boring to the reader?
6. Dark, Dark Were the Tunnels - (2 Stars) - by George R.R. Martin - A too short story from a very talented writer. I liked the overarching purpose - the humans who survived the collapse of Planet Earth by fleeing the planet, return to see what survived. Within it, they encounter an underground evolved 'human'. The conclusion, though, came very quickly, so there was no exploration of either the evolved human race or the escaped survivors. I yearned for more, though I don't doubt what happens when the two races first interact.
7. Waiting for the Zephyr - (1 Stars) - by Tobias S. Buckell - The weakest story of the collection, thus far, because it just ends. Main character wants to flee home - for example, small town girl wants to leave to explore the World - and is hindered by her family. Ok, fair introduction. Small town girl finally breaks free (on the Zephyr, of course) and...end of story. It's not that I yearned for more like other stories, it's that I wasn't given enough in the first place to want more.
8. Never Despair - (3 Stars) - by Jack McDevitt - I admit, I've read an alternate history story or one where historical characters play a role, so this was a first. In general, it was good, if kind of bland. The historical intrusion of Winston Churchill was interesting, but was very underwhelming. In fact, the connection to Churchill is so weak, the main character could have been interacting with anyone. The reason to read the story, though, is for its message of never losing sight of progress. Not just progress for selfish gain, but for the sake of all. It is a message, that I feel current society has lost to a point and one that the story really describes well.
9. When Sysadmins Ruled the Earth - (5 Stars) - by Cory Doctorow - Awesome story. I look forward to reading more Doctorow (adding yet another author to the long list!). The apocalypse hits Earth, most likely by terrorism, and the only left are system admins who keep the internet running. Crazy right? In description, it seems like a stretch, but the story is well thought out. The plot follows a Sysadmin who has lost everything, but recognizes the opportunity to rebuild the World in a better form instead of just giving up. Out of all the stories thus far, this one is the most positive and may be the most realistic in the sense that after the initial shock the "End of the World" (who knows how long that shock would last though), someone, somewhere, will find the hope and energy to start over. Though frightening and sad, the ending is heart warming.
10. The Last of the O-Forms by James Van Pelt -
11. Still Life with Apocalypse by Richard Kadrey -
12. Artie's Angels by Catherine Wells -
13. Judgment Passed by Jerry Oltion -
14. Mute by Gene Wolf -
15. Inertia by Nancy Kress -
16. And the Deep Blue Sea by Elizabeth Bear -
17. Speech Sounds by Octavia E. Butler -
18. Killers by Carol Emshwiller -
19. Ginny Sweethip's Flying Circus by Neal Barret Jr. -
20. The End of the Word as We Know It by Dale Bailey -
21. A Song Before Sunset by David Grigg -
22. Episode Seven: The Last Stand Against the Pack in the Kingdom of the Purple Flowers by John Langan -
Recently, I have taken this 'break' between novels to dig deeper into the literary creativity of my favorite writers. This 'Post-End of the World' collection of short stories was on many 'Best-of' lists, so seems like a great and interesting place to start.
1. The End of the Whole Mess by Stephen King - (5 Stars) - Imagine being one of the last people (an assumption here) on Earth alive, let alone the only person left who knows what caused the annihilation of man kind? This dark character piece is about those final hours of such a person hurriedly writing down a summary of how the 'mess' that was man kind finally ended. The story is eerily relevant today as it seems there are no solutions to the apparent evil and violence that permeates society. Interestingly, I took away a sign of hope that even in ones final moments when man kind is finished, love (for others, family) is still apparent, strong, and seemingly everlasting. An amazing and prescient story.
2. Salvage by Orson Scott Card - (5 Stars) - This story follows a group of children living in a post apocalyptic Utah where the surviving humans have found stability and organization in the Mormon religion as a means of government. The main character works in the salvage business, but is undertaking his plan to reach the rumored gold trapped in the partially submerged Mormon Temple. I take a more direct approach to the stories underlying meaning in that it is a study of how to move forward after a cataclysmic event (possibly think of 9/11?). Do you mourn and yearn for the days of old or do you actively move forward and set a new path? The final paragraphs were particularly powerful to me. Excellent.
3. The People of Sand and Slag - (5 Stars) - by Paolo Bacigalupi - I'll never read the story again. I can take heart breaking, but not when it comes to animals. Bacigalupi (after reading his first novel Windup Girl) once again creates an immersible and morally awkward alternate universe that is difficult to stop reading. It is a story about completely forgetting about, not just past events, but the pasts teachings and cultural norms. Imagine if the current younger generations take cell phone use to the extreme and only communicate with text messaging compared to voice or in person. What would the effect be on companionship or friendship? In the case of the story, imagine if the human emotion of companionship was completely forgotten. What would such a World look like?
4. Bread and Bombs - (3 Stars) - by M. Rickert - This story holds very true to the hyper reactiveness (and lack of patience and common sense?) human being present in times of crisis. In B&B, the story presents a current event case - how would a small town react to a severe bout of global terrorism (poison candy and snow for example)? What if the terrorists were Muslim? How would Muslims, in general, be treated? The story is generic in the sense that other TV shows (24, in my opinion) and movies present the same argument that humans will rashly act out against an entire people if it feels threatened. The story becomes shocking, though, in how society solves its own irrational prejudices. There are no grand speeches of morality here.
5. How We Got In Town and Out Again - (2 Stars) - by Jonathan Lethem - I just couldn't get into it. The premise was interesting - a traveling carnival, of sorts, that places people in a virtual reality environment where they must outlast the other competitors. The problem was the execution. The competition was based solely on who lasted the longest without collapsing from exhaustion, but not by interaction with the others. Also, the virtual reality encountered by the main characters were...well...boring. In its defense, this boredom is a plot point, but should it be boring to the reader?
6. Dark, Dark Were the Tunnels - (2 Stars) - by George R.R. Martin - A too short story from a very talented writer. I liked the overarching purpose - the humans who survived the collapse of Planet Earth by fleeing the planet, return to see what survived. Within it, they encounter an underground evolved 'human'. The conclusion, though, came very quickly, so there was no exploration of either the evolved human race or the escaped survivors. I yearned for more, though I don't doubt what happens when the two races first interact.
7. Waiting for the Zephyr - (1 Stars) - by Tobias S. Buckell - The weakest story of the collection, thus far, because it just ends. Main character wants to flee home - for example, small town girl wants to leave to explore the World - and is hindered by her family. Ok, fair introduction. Small town girl finally breaks free (on the Zephyr, of course) and...end of story. It's not that I yearned for more like other stories, it's that I wasn't given enough in the first place to want more.
8. Never Despair - (3 Stars) - by Jack McDevitt - I admit, I've read an alternate history story or one where historical characters play a role, so this was a first. In general, it was good, if kind of bland. The historical intrusion of Winston Churchill was interesting, but was very underwhelming. In fact, the connection to Churchill is so weak, the main character could have been interacting with anyone. The reason to read the story, though, is for its message of never losing sight of progress. Not just progress for selfish gain, but for the sake of all. It is a message, that I feel current society has lost to a point and one that the story really describes well.
9. When Sysadmins Ruled the Earth - (5 Stars) - by Cory Doctorow - Awesome story. I look forward to reading more Doctorow (adding yet another author to the long list!). The apocalypse hits Earth, most likely by terrorism, and the only left are system admins who keep the internet running. Crazy right? In description, it seems like a stretch, but the story is well thought out. The plot follows a Sysadmin who has lost everything, but recognizes the opportunity to rebuild the World in a better form instead of just giving up. Out of all the stories thus far, this one is the most positive and may be the most realistic in the sense that after the initial shock the "End of the World" (who knows how long that shock would last though), someone, somewhere, will find the hope and energy to start over. Though frightening and sad, the ending is heart warming.
10. The Last of the O-Forms by James Van Pelt -
11. Still Life with Apocalypse by Richard Kadrey -
12. Artie's Angels by Catherine Wells -
13. Judgment Passed by Jerry Oltion -
14. Mute by Gene Wolf -
15. Inertia by Nancy Kress -
16. And the Deep Blue Sea by Elizabeth Bear -
17. Speech Sounds by Octavia E. Butler -
18. Killers by Carol Emshwiller -
19. Ginny Sweethip's Flying Circus by Neal Barret Jr. -
20. The End of the Word as We Know It by Dale Bailey -
21. A Song Before Sunset by David Grigg -
22. Episode Seven: The Last Stand Against the Pack in the Kingdom of the Purple Flowers by John Langan -