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toc's review against another edition
5.0
Oh, [a:Charlie Jane Anders|4918514|Charlie Jane Anders|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1532450668p2/4918514.jpg]. Can you do no wrong?
Even more brilliance from a woman who is rapidly rising on my list of favorite authors. So many different aspects of life and the universe in this collection. I'm tempted to say it has it all. Pirates! Time Travel! Happy post-apocalypse! An-amazing-collection-of-thoughts-and-prayers-that-sure-to-please-one-and-all! Cats! (well, at least one cat in particular whose fate has remained a mystery for far too long)
If you like short stories then you owe it to yourself and your brain to get and read this collection.
Even more brilliance from a woman who is rapidly rising on my list of favorite authors. So many different aspects of life and the universe in this collection. I'm tempted to say it has it all. Pirates! Time Travel! Happy post-apocalypse! An-amazing-collection-of-thoughts-and-prayers-that-sure-to-please-one-and-all! Cats! (well, at least one cat in particular whose fate has remained a mystery for far too long)
If you like short stories then you owe it to yourself and your brain to get and read this collection.
sneebus's review
3.0
Half of the stories were incredible, but I found the other half to be kind of a slog to get through
lesserjoke's review against another edition
3.0
This short story collection feels less uneven than many of its ilk, but unfortunately, that's because I've tended to respond to each entry with the same disappointed half-sigh. Most of them show an interesting spark, either of character, premise, or background worldbuilding! I especially love the ones that use the toolkit of sci-fi / fantasy to illuminate protagonists haunted by their past or their future, like the clairvoyant couple in "Six Months, Three Days" who fall passionately in love despite knowing how and when the relationship will end, or the woman in "Ghost Champagne" who's been able to see the lurking apparition of her dead older self for her whole life, or the college sweethearts in "Power Couple" who agree to each take a turn being cryogenically frozen while their partner concentrates on pursuing graduate school. But these and the rest inevitably end abruptly as more of a sketch than a fully-realized vision, as though representing merely a proof-of-concept for some nonexistent larger tale. (Two of them literally are spinoffs of author Charlie Jane Anders's published novels, and she introduces several others as having originally been intended as pieces of a greater whole as well.)
The most effective item is probably "Don’t Press Charges and I Won’t Sue," in which the trans writer imagines a truly disturbing variety of dystopian conversion therapy, but even this seems ultimately truncated and incomplete as presented here. I suppose the lack of traditional resolution is an artistic choice, but it's just not a style of short fiction that works well for me, and it's regrettably on display throughout this text. While I value the creativity and commitment to queer representation across the stories, I'm simply lukewarm on the book overall.
[Content warning for body horror, gore, gun violence, and domestic abuse, and transphobia.]
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The most effective item is probably "Don’t Press Charges and I Won’t Sue," in which the trans writer imagines a truly disturbing variety of dystopian conversion therapy, but even this seems ultimately truncated and incomplete as presented here. I suppose the lack of traditional resolution is an artistic choice, but it's just not a style of short fiction that works well for me, and it's regrettably on display throughout this text. While I value the creativity and commitment to queer representation across the stories, I'm simply lukewarm on the book overall.
[Content warning for body horror, gore, gun violence, and domestic abuse, and transphobia.]
Like this review?
--Throw me a quick one-time donation here!
https://ko-fi.com/lesserjoke
--Subscribe here to support my writing and weigh in on what I read next!
https://patreon.com/lesserjoke
--Follow along on Goodreads here!
https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/6288479-joe-kessler
--Or click here to browse through all my previous reviews!
https://lesserjoke.home.blog
b00kh0arder's review against another edition
4.0
Round up to 4 1/2 stars.
A great collection of short stories, each with its own mini-introduction from Anders (as well as a main introduction to the collection), all of which - even if they didn't always add anything to the story itself - were interesting. Two things I particualrly took away from it: that it's always a good thing/important to work out what your story is actually about and that it's possible to tell and still show.
My particular favourites were:
As Good as New
Rat Catcher's Yellows (I LOVE the idea of The Divine Right of Cats!)
Love Might be Too Strong a Word
Fairy Werewolf vs Vampire Zombie (I mean, how can you NOT love something with that title?)
My Breath is a Rudder
Power Couple (A great take on how toxic modern work/life expectations are)
Clover (Cats! And the line "WTF I'm a cat?!" genuinely made me have to restrain myself from laughing out loud XD)
A Temporary Embarassment in Spacetime (I would happily read more of Sharon, Kango and Jara!)
Don't Press Charges and I Won't Sue (Whether you're part of the Trans community or not the conceit of this story should terrify you)
The Bookstore at the End of America (Who doesn't love stories about bookshops?)
A great collection of short stories, each with its own mini-introduction from Anders (as well as a main introduction to the collection), all of which - even if they didn't always add anything to the story itself - were interesting. Two things I particualrly took away from it: that it's always a good thing/important to work out what your story is actually about and that it's possible to tell and still show.
My particular favourites were:
As Good as New
Rat Catcher's Yellows (I LOVE the idea of The Divine Right of Cats!)
Love Might be Too Strong a Word
Fairy Werewolf vs Vampire Zombie (I mean, how can you NOT love something with that title?)
My Breath is a Rudder
Power Couple (A great take on how toxic modern work/life expectations are)
Clover (Cats! And the line "WTF I'm a cat?!" genuinely made me have to restrain myself from laughing out loud XD)
A Temporary Embarassment in Spacetime (I would happily read more of Sharon, Kango and Jara!)
Don't Press Charges and I Won't Sue (Whether you're part of the Trans community or not the conceit of this story should terrify you)
The Bookstore at the End of America (Who doesn't love stories about bookshops?)
james_reynolds's review against another edition
dark
emotional
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
Charlie Jane Anders is described in the blurb as "this generation's LeGuin". Probably an unfair comparison, as she has neither the philosophical or psychological depths of LeGuin, but few writers do. Nevertheless, still a good read. As this is a set of short stories this is a bit of a mixed bag: most good but a few poor stories in there, including one I couldn't finish. One small gripe: please don't put content warnings in your introductions, this is science fiction and we expect to be challenged.
pam2375's review against another edition
3.0
This is a book of short stories by a very talented and unusual author.
Many thanks to Netgalley and Tor Books for this advanced readers copy. This book released November 16, 2021.
Many thanks to Netgalley and Tor Books for this advanced readers copy. This book released November 16, 2021.
kleonard's review against another edition
4.0
This is a terrific collection of Anders's stories. Some readers may be a bit lost in the pieces that follow up on the author's novels, but the standalone stories are entertaining and thought-provoking. Readers get a board range of genres and approaches; there's something for just about everyone.
valjeanval's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
I've been 50/50 on CJA's novels, but I really think she excels at the short story. The range demonstrated in this one collection stretches from whimsically cheerful to violent absurdist to scathing speculation and dark realities. "Captain Roger in Heaven" and "Power Couple" are probably the standouts that were new to me in this collection. I think the only one I really didn't care for was "Fairy Werewolf vs. Zombie Vampire" which just tipped my whimsy scale over the edge. The only other slightly disappointing factor was that I already owned other collections featuring these stories, but it was still a nice excuse to reread them. I think I could read "As Good as New" any number of times and still appreciate it.
The book jacket to this edition calls her "This generation's LeGuin," but I think that's not entirely fair. Yes there's a heavy dose of social commentary and speculation, but CJA's style is distinctively her own and is deeply rooted in this generation here and now
The book jacket to this edition calls her "This generation's LeGuin," but I think that's not entirely fair. Yes there's a heavy dose of social commentary and speculation, but CJA's style is distinctively her own and is deeply rooted in this generation here and now
Content Warnings
Moderate: Child abuse, Chronic illness, Confinement, Cursing, Gun violence, Homophobia, Mental illness, Torture, Transphobia, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Xenophobia, Grief, Medical trauma, and Murder