see_sadie_read's review
4.0
I came across this in a list of 'positive portrayals of Islam in sci-fi" and having read very few such portrayals, I jumped on it. (It didn't hurt that the first 3 shorts were free at the time).
I thought this was really beautifully written. I didn't like it quite as much as the first one and didn't think it stood on its own as well, but it was still lovely and emotive. Plus, I liked how it tied in with the first story. I really felt the joy, anger, confusion and fear, followed by sad acceptance of Ansible 15717. Plus, despite only being 29 pages long it felt like a complete, satisfying story. (Just don't look for any happy endings.)
I thought this was really beautifully written. I didn't like it quite as much as the first one and didn't think it stood on its own as well, but it was still lovely and emotive. Plus, I liked how it tied in with the first story. I really felt the joy, anger, confusion and fear, followed by sad acceptance of Ansible 15717. Plus, despite only being 29 pages long it felt like a complete, satisfying story. (Just don't look for any happy endings.)
alwroteabook's review
5.0
Wow! What a terrific short story. If HP Lovecraft had read Anisble 15717, he would have thought "I wish I'd written this!" Cosmic horror at it's finest.
jennaelf's review
5.0
As ever, Stant Litore's prose is a delight to read. Ansible 15717 (the character flung across space (and maybe time)), instead of being an Ansible seemingly assigned to a random world, is a woman courted by Starmind, targetted for a world they know at least something about. It's disturbing to consider that Ansible 15715 and 15716 might've been purposefully selected for the worlds to which they were sent, now that I think about it...
In that sense, it is a relief - one unsought, one I didn't even realize I might have wanted - to have a narrator with a slightly higher level of control than the first two Ansibles. She is a woman deeply tied to her botany, well equipped (as well as one can be) to become part of a plant-based species and world.
Litore finds and walks that sweet spot between science-fiction and fantasy, perhaps reminding me of one reason those two genres are situated together so often. The inhabitants of this new planet, his description of them and their world, painted lush pictures in my mind while I read. If I were any good at art, this review would be peppered with delicate drawings of humanoid-like (but not quite) plants, lush jungle settings, colorful and dangerous flora of all sorts.
This is a story that builds itself in the mind's eye and gently enfolds you in its leafy embrace.
Between flashbacks and her experiences on this new world, there is a wonderful balance of the delicate and the willful, strength and weakness, pain and love. She never becomes immune to her humanity, even while embracing her new alien life and body.
All the aspects of this particular work that might be pulled out and highlighted as progressive/inclusive/intersectional (or, if you don't enjoy that sort of thing, "PC") are melded seamlessly into the story. Is it a big deal that the narrator is, as one reviewer on Amazon summarized, an "agnostic lesbian Muslim scientist"? In ways, it is. There is a lot of meat to consider here about representation and much deeper societal issues - But in the course of telling the story, Litore makes them simply part of the story - it never comes across that he's inserted these things with an agenda, they are never over-emphasized.
The true beauty of this diversity lies in the fact that it makes the Ansible's story the story of another human being - whole and perfect, even in her flaws. Every aspect is part of the weave of the fabric, not an embellishment or an afterthought applique - they belong there from the beginning. This, for me, is an ideal way of storytelling, of integrating all the beautiful variety of humanity.
In short; Ansible 15717 is another solidly written short story and brings a new world of beauty and terror to the Ansible Stories. Stant Litore has set the bar high for himself, his work, and he's continued to deliver. If you've ever enjoyed any of his work, I highly recommend this (and all of the Ansible stories, if you haven't read any of them specifically). If you've never read anything by Stant Litore, the Ansible Stories are a great way to start.
Note: I received this as an advanced review copy from the author. (Obviously I'm way behind on that.)
In that sense, it is a relief - one unsought, one I didn't even realize I might have wanted - to have a narrator with a slightly higher level of control than the first two Ansibles. She is a woman deeply tied to her botany, well equipped (as well as one can be) to become part of a plant-based species and world.
Litore finds and walks that sweet spot between science-fiction and fantasy, perhaps reminding me of one reason those two genres are situated together so often. The inhabitants of this new planet, his description of them and their world, painted lush pictures in my mind while I read. If I were any good at art, this review would be peppered with delicate drawings of humanoid-like (but not quite) plants, lush jungle settings, colorful and dangerous flora of all sorts.
This is a story that builds itself in the mind's eye and gently enfolds you in its leafy embrace.
Between flashbacks and her experiences on this new world, there is a wonderful balance of the delicate and the willful, strength and weakness, pain and love. She never becomes immune to her humanity, even while embracing her new alien life and body.
All the aspects of this particular work that might be pulled out and highlighted as progressive/inclusive/intersectional (or, if you don't enjoy that sort of thing, "PC") are melded seamlessly into the story. Is it a big deal that the narrator is, as one reviewer on Amazon summarized, an "agnostic lesbian Muslim scientist"? In ways, it is. There is a lot of meat to consider here about representation and much deeper societal issues - But in the course of telling the story, Litore makes them simply part of the story - it never comes across that he's inserted these things with an agenda, they are never over-emphasized.
The true beauty of this diversity lies in the fact that it makes the Ansible's story the story of another human being - whole and perfect, even in her flaws. Every aspect is part of the weave of the fabric, not an embellishment or an afterthought applique - they belong there from the beginning. This, for me, is an ideal way of storytelling, of integrating all the beautiful variety of humanity.
In short; Ansible 15717 is another solidly written short story and brings a new world of beauty and terror to the Ansible Stories. Stant Litore has set the bar high for himself, his work, and he's continued to deliver. If you've ever enjoyed any of his work, I highly recommend this (and all of the Ansible stories, if you haven't read any of them specifically). If you've never read anything by Stant Litore, the Ansible Stories are a great way to start.
Note: I received this as an advanced review copy from the author. (Obviously I'm way behind on that.)
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