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arealcloud's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
funny
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.25
The author’s note is as enjoyable as the rest of the book, which is rare.
meganmagicmusings's review against another edition
funny
lighthearted
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Loveable characters? Yes
4.75
walrusgroon's review against another edition
challenging
funny
mysterious
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.25
vascogdm's review against another edition
5.0
One of those rare moments where I loved every single of the stories. Obviously some more than others, and a few made me go
anpu325's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
funny
lighthearted
mysterious
medium-paced
5.0
bmorrkind's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
4.0
cottia's review against another edition
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
dufremde's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? N/A
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? N/A
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.5
loose collection of stories set in a super intriguing setting: Beanstalk, the titular tower which functions as a sovereign state, is ripe for all sorts of cultural, anthropological, and sociopolitical explorations and satirization, and a couple of stories really leaned into that—"Elevator Maneuver Exercise and "Fully Compliant" chief among them. I think I'm not the best reader for allegorical SFF, but I still had a good time for the most part, even as I struggled to fully plug in to all of the chapter POVs. loved the detail of the dog actor showing up in every single story though.
hrstarzec's review against another edition
3.0
It's alright. As a collection of interconnected short stories, some of the stories are great, some are not at all, and the sum of those parts is not incredibly satisfying. I was a lot more interested in the sci-fi absurdism of some chapters than the (fairly on the nose and unexceptional) political satire of others. It feels like the book leans more and more into the latter as it continues, which means the appeal with me waned over time. I loved the first three stories, with my favorite likely being "In Praise of Nature," which is about a writer living in the tower who pilots a robot from afar. There's a poignant strangeness to it, the fact that there's no real reason for this robot's existence except to offer the writer a view of the world outside the tower. The first story, "Three Wise Recruits," is pleasingly absurd, and the third story, Taklamakan Misdelivery, is surprisingly affecting for a relatively simple tale about the internet's power. The final three stories, though, struggled to keep my interest, though there were some interesting ideas throughout and the general tone isn't dropped completely.