A review by eb00kie
A Thousand Beginnings and Endings by Elsie Chapman, Ellen Oh
5.0
At the beginning, if you'd said "YA anthology", you'd have found me escaping out the nearest window (try me, fuckers, I rock the Rapunzel game in a bob).
My book club flagged that newer versions (2020 and after) have an extra 16th story, that doesn’t appear in the earlier ones. It’s Ellen Oh’s “Carp, Calculus and the Leap of Faith”, it’s good — try to get newer editions that have it, as well.
Ultimately, while they average 3/7, the value of this book for me is to discover new stories, rather than as a sum of it's parts, an in that, it's a 4/5, for reasons described below.
So, no jumping out the window and YA anthologies win some goodwill.
As follows:
Each story is somehow tied to an a folklore story, which is more or less vaguely summarised at the end of each author's story. That's pretty cool. I say 'vaguely' because some stories are not giving information that appears on Wikipedia. That's not cool. Sometimes the source story is better than the new story and I want to have all the info.
Stories grouped below by order of rating.
Rules: I'm going to tag that as source story to make it easier to look up in the review below. I'll be working off of the given summaries in the book, so if stuff is missing that's clearly stated in the original work, I will not have looked it up for the purpose of this review. If the summary given in the book looks familiar to something I've seen before, I'll write a bit about that and how it's similar and how they differ.
Disclaimer: I'm trying not to swear in 2023, so bear with me. If I'm still feeling strongly about it later, I'll retcon this next year.
Here's a summary:
— >1/5, didn’t like it, not good, why write it?
Story XI Code of Honor by [a:Melissa de la Cruz|21911|Melissa de la Cruz|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1521600969p2/21911.jpg] (Filipino) - The source story is a vague reference to aswang witches. If I were to give it the best possible interpretation, I'd say it's about culture being more than genetics, and that vampiredom is a metaphor for shared values and belonging with people who are not of the same nationality. Melissa de la Cruz is an atrociously bad writer (even when you’re a teenager), but you can’t doubt her willingness to use anything and everything to plug her atrociously badly written Blue Blood books.
— >2/5 ok, nothing special or good ideas/bad execution
Story I Forbidden Fruit by [a:Roshani Chokshi|13695109|Roshani Chokshi|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1544538355p2/13695109.jpg] - It’s not set in modern times: boy meets girl, they get along, the world is cruel, the boy is faithful but she doesn’t know it and thinks he betrayed her. Stories like this are a dime a dozen. There is no source story, so much as a mythos around a mountain goddess one shouldn’t steal from, very vague. Similar to fairy/leprechaun mythos, Spirited Away and Beauty and the Beast in the tealing/eating from another realm.
Story IV Still Star-Crossed - Boring Edward Cullen approach to dating story. What's really interesting is that the murder of a lover the family doesn't like is a motif that appears twice. Since the story is apparently set in our day - that's one thing that sets it apart from the mainstream world. Now the source story is apparently a Punjabi tale of Mirza and Sahiba - similar to the Biblical tale of Samson and Delilah. Being me, I'm really into figuring out Sahiba's thought process, more than I care about why this airhead is floating through an awkward situation.
Story IX Nothing into All by [a:Renée Ahdieh|4600197|Renée Ahdieh|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1487663209p2/4600197.jpg] (Korean) - This is one of the few stories which doesn't take place in modern times and tells the tale of a family over-correcting and indulging a younger child, also espousing traditional values of humbleness and modesty. It was written in an older style, as in, if I found this inside the Grimm Fairy Tales or Perrault's tales, it wouldn't sound out of place. The source story is similar, with two boys, only vaguely referenced at the end of the main story.
Story XIV The Crimson Cloak by [a:Cindy Pon|2471183|Cindy Pon|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1259643400p2/2471183.jpg] (Chinese) - happy ending version of Story I above, with the source story being [b:The Cowherd and the Girl Weaver|36142280|The Cowherd and the Girl Weaver|Chu Yi|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1503973400l/36142280._SX50_.jpg|57744274]. In this retelling, the girl played an active role and they lived HEA. Meh as all that. Similar to the stories of shapeshifter women, selkies, swans, etc. where the guys sneaks up to one of them and hides her clothes so she has to marry him. They're everywhere, it's a classic. Long live feminism, for now a woman doesn't have to marry a guy who's "seen her naked" or "gave her the big ol' Zeus Swan Hug" (as may have been written in children's mythology books). In some countries, at least.
— >3/5 mostly good - the stories in this section are ordered in the order of personal preference.
Story III - The android tale is BASIC with the plus that the character dynamic is wholesome and well-written. Good rapport takes skill to write (this is a PSA for all cookie cutter romance writers out there), so credit where credit's due - good job, and sweet well-earned ending.
As for the rest? I'm not going to spoil it, but if you take away the SF trappings, it's a story that could be written in the 80's. The main conflict is between the squares/traditionalist teachings of early 20th century of rearing children at arm's end without a lot of contact versus the new generation rebelling and arguing that emotions are genuine and human. Which makes this an old take on a boring old story. The battle lines have shifted. No one finds this innovative anymore. Don't be boring. The source story is "Yer and the Tiger" (Hmong), similar to [b:Little Red Riding Hood|9453611|Little Red Riding Hood|Jacob Grimm|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1347357583l/9453611._SX50_.jpg|27039426], with the difference being that the 'beast' fools other members of the family while pretending to be human. That was a bit more sinister (very good!).
Story XIII Daughter of the Sun by [a:Shveta Thakrar|5097748|Shveta Thakrar|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1543548224p2/5097748.jpg] (South Asian) - Modern-day retelling of two South Asian stories. There's a plot device that's not explained, where a girl is born with a heart glowing golden and has to wear all-black. Because wearing a good bra is a no-no. Because black-out curtains are pure fantasy. Nooo, it's not like women already cover their chests with layers of material - let her wear black. Instead of, you know, a thicker wraparound sports bra made of non-transparent material. Anyway she's magic and it's never explained and she finds her one true love and they live happily ever after except his glowing heart (silver) has a meaning and she saves him. The source stories are from the [b:Mahabharata|118252|Mahabharata|Anonymous|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1553101923l/118252._SY75_.jpg|113831], one of Princess Savitri and Prince Satyavan and another that of goddess Ganga and King Shantanua. In short, one of a woman bargaining with Death and another of a woman drowning her babies because they are cursed god incarnations and by drowning their mortal forms, she uses a loophole in the curse to set their godly entities free while her mortal husband - who promised not to ask, poor fool - watches in horror. These two remind me of Greek mythos, Demetra roasting her child or ward over fire to give him godly powers and Alcestis offering to die instead of her husband, but will need to read the original for more info. The bargaining with Death is a common theme in many cultures, particularly for the life of a loved one. What irks me is that the lady murdering 7 babies (8?) is effectively using and abusing her husband. Sure, 'don't ask' was in the marriage contract, but watching your newborns be repeatedly drowned is deeply emotionally scarring. How come he didn't divorce her? Get a mistress? Stop having sex with her? But hey-ho, for the author, this has feminist value and I only wish to know whether the husband got himself a good therapist.
Story XV Eyes like Candlelight by [a:Julie Kagawa|2995873|Julie Kagawa|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1257816454p2/2995873.jpg] (Japanese) - Similar to Story I it also deals with taking gifts from a mountain supernatural entity. Simiar to Story I it follows similar plot beats. The reason it's a 3 not a 2 out of 5 is because the backstory is built better and because the supernatural entity goes to get her story straight, then goes on a rampage. Rampages show agency, agency shows efforts at characterisation. Rampages are rewarded with a good rating. The source story relates to the kitsune of Japanese folklore and how they may appear as either protectors or antagonists, which I like. I can't think off the top of my head of another supernatural entity that may be either one or another - in traditional works, before stereotyping was frowned on, etc. etc.
Story VII The Smile by [a:Aisha Saeed|8106586|Aisha Saeed|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1396461507p2/8106586.jpg] (South Asian) - the story is a bit vague and it took me a lot of processing to put the events in a coherent "A so B therefore C". Here is my understanding:. It would have benefitted from stronger writing. The source story about two star-crossed lovers where one ends up buried alive by someone else is similar to [a:Verdi|54564|Giuseppe Verdi|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1218143879p2/54564.jpg]'s opera [b:Aida|34730574|Verdi's AIDA OPERA STUDY GUIDE AND LIBRETTO Opera Classics Library Series|Burton D. Fisher|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1490816418l/34730574._SX50_.jpg|55913983], there's Fiona and other princesses in a tower pending their accepting a proposition and there's the Romanian Manole legend, where a woman is walled inside the wall of a church as a sacrifice to keep it standing.
Story VI The Land of the Morning Calm by [a:E. C. Myers|22957093|E. C. Myers|https://s.gr-assets.com/assets/nophoto/user/u_50x66-632230dc9882b4352d753eedf9396530.png] (Korean) - Interesting retelling of a ghost in a modern era; I liked the ethical / psychological implications of although they weren't really addressed. That was quite pitiful. The Korean source story was more about the fox mythology, which is indeed a powerful element in folklore and it made me curious to read more. On a surface level, it's a bit similar to Japanese kitsune.
— >4/5 - this made me feel something
Story II Olivia's Table by [a:Olivia Wong|18915855|Olivia WONG|https://s.gr-assets.com/assets/nophoto/user/u_50x66-632230dc9882b4352d753eedf9396530.png] - I really liked this bittersweet story. The main character's life is so focused on what makes her different, her the whole world appears insubstantial through her eyes and she appears equally closed-off. It's a good, well-written perspective, to the point that when she opens up, it creates a strong feeling of catharsis. I kept expecting a twist, similar to Story III below, but it was a straightforward story, with a bittersweet message of what it means to serve people and how everyone is essentially alone and how the only times you actually have with someone are the times you have with that person, and how people should pay attention. It's not spelled out. There is no source story, more a discussion of Chinese traditions, which was interesting to read.
Story VIII Girls Who Twirl and Other Dangers by [a:Preeti Chhibber|15600901|Preeti Chhibber|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1496408704p2/15600901.jpg] (Gujarati) - This was a fun story about three girls uniting to stop a boy, interspersed with the source story of the goddess Durga and the Navratri festival. It was really cool, the mythological aspect combined with the light-heartedness of the girls seeking justice, it created a cool narrative about why stories resonate and why old tales are relevant in modern times
Story XII Bullet, Butterfly by [a:Elsie Chapman|5441417|Elsie Chapman|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1351817206p2/5441417.jpg] (Chinese) - This is a modern retelling in a more modern warfare context of source story [b:The Butterfly Lovers|7958322|The Butterfly Lovers The Legend of Liang Shanbo and Zhu Yingtai Four Versions with Related Texts|Wilt L. Idema|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1405624518l/7958322._SY75_.jpg|9313413], one of China's most famous love stories. It's often been compared to [b:Romeo and Juliet|18135|Romeo and Juliet|William Shakespeare|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1629680008l/18135._SY75_.jpg|3349450], but the retelling does away with the more objectionable things in Shakespeare's version, so there's that. Wish the retelling would have given the characters more agency, because the duty element is still all-powerful, rendering every interpersonal relation (friends, maternal) transitory and impersonal. The whole story is pretty bleak, except at the last moment. Not a fan of bleak, but well-written nonetheless.
Story X Spear Carrier by [a:Rahul Kanakia|4114729|Rahul Kanakia|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1578970946p2/4114729.jpg] (South Asian) - is a whimsical ode to the side-character in every great tale about a great war. Literally someone saying "I am aware I have a culture, there's my cosmic struggle, but I don't wantany part of it, I'm out." Mainly, the source story is the [b:Mahabharata|118252|Mahabharata|Anonymous|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1553101923l/118252._SY75_.jpg|113831]. I've read part of it (the [b:The Bhagavad Gita|99944|The Bhagavad Gita|Krishna-Dwaipayana Vyasa|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1631634958l/99944._SX50_.jpg|1492580]) and it's a riot. Would recommend.
— >5/5 - this made me feel a lot of somethings
Story V The Counting of Vermillion Beads by [a:Aliette de Bodard|2918731|Aliette de Bodard|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1645728070p2/2918731.jpg] — Was brilliant. How nice it is when someone doesn't make fun of the accountant. I liked the coming-of-age aspect and the two choices of working within the system versus fleeing the system and how both were treated with maturity and insight. The sisterly bond well-written. The source story (Vietnamese) was "Tâ’M Cám" which sounds vaguely similar to Cinderella for the animosity between the step-sisters, except it occurs more after the marriage to the emperor, there's only one step-sister and a lot more murder. Murder in folklore is how you know you found the good stuff, don't quote me on that.
Story XVI Carp, Calculus and the Leap of Faith by [a:Ellen Oh|4559822|Ellen Oh|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1659679213p2/4559822.jpg] — Caught me after therapy so I was feeling emotional, so when the main actor off-screen beat off some bullies to protect an annoying smaller kid, it got it me in the feels. A bit like Puss in Boots 2 (seriously, UK releasing it late is a travesty).
There are two source stories
- Hua clan being transformed into carps to escape from raiders. This brings to mind a lot of similar Green mythology in [b:Metamorphoses|1715|Metamorphoses|Ovid|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1622739150l/1715._SY75_.jpg|2870411], mainly Daphne running from Apollo, and she was transformed into a laurel tree. Less uplifting than the carp story, granted.
- Carps jumping up a waterfall for the hope of transforming into dragons. That one doesn't say meritocracy and hard work for me necessarily. What works for me is thinking that a person wanting to achieve a noble purpose (the gate) becomes a dragon as a result of their pursuit, á la [b:Gattaca,|6397741|Gattaca The Shooting Script|Andrew Niccol|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1572022384l/6397741._SY75_.jpg|20934450] more like - I cheated and just linked the script. Good movie. So dragon before gate, rather than the gate turning them into a dragon. Maybe the metaphor is a cultural thing. I just don't dig it the way it's written. Hey ho. Different strokes for different folks.
Back to the modern story, the protagonist beats up some bullies off-screen because they were picking on a smaller child,even if the child was annoying the protagonist. Sure, violence is never the answer bla-bla-bla. But one has to say, the kid has good values, right? It’s a the bigger should protect the vulnerable sort of thing. It resonated. And when I’m sometimes feeling like lacking a purpose, a values reset turned out to be just what the doctor ordered.
My book club flagged that newer versions (2020 and after) have an extra 16th story, that doesn’t appear in the earlier ones. It’s Ellen Oh’s “Carp, Calculus and the Leap of Faith”, it’s good — try to get newer editions that have it, as well.
Ultimately, while they average 3/7, the value of this book for me is to discover new stories, rather than as a sum of it's parts, an in that, it's a 4/5, for reasons described below.
So, no jumping out the window and YA anthologies win some goodwill.
As follows:
Each story is somehow tied to an a folklore story, which is more or less vaguely summarised at the end of each author's story. That's pretty cool. I say 'vaguely' because some stories are not giving information that appears on Wikipedia. That's not cool. Sometimes the source story is better than the new story and I want to have all the info.
Stories grouped below by order of rating.
Rules: I'm going to tag that as source story to make it easier to look up in the review below. I'll be working off of the given summaries in the book, so if stuff is missing that's clearly stated in the original work, I will not have looked it up for the purpose of this review. If the summary given in the book looks familiar to something I've seen before, I'll write a bit about that and how it's similar and how they differ.
Disclaimer: I'm trying not to swear in 2023, so bear with me. If I'm still feeling strongly about it later, I'll retcon this next year.
Here's a summary:
— >1/5, didn’t like it, not good, why write it?
Story XI Code of Honor by [a:Melissa de la Cruz|21911|Melissa de la Cruz|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1521600969p2/21911.jpg] (Filipino) - The source story is a vague reference to aswang witches. If I were to give it the best possible interpretation, I'd say it's about culture being more than genetics, and that vampiredom is a metaphor for shared values and belonging with people who are not of the same nationality. Melissa de la Cruz is an atrociously bad writer (even when you’re a teenager), but you can’t doubt her willingness to use anything and everything to plug her atrociously badly written Blue Blood books.
— >2/5 ok, nothing special or good ideas/bad execution
Story I Forbidden Fruit by [a:Roshani Chokshi|13695109|Roshani Chokshi|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1544538355p2/13695109.jpg] - It’s not set in modern times: boy meets girl, they get along, the world is cruel, the boy is faithful but she doesn’t know it and thinks he betrayed her. Stories like this are a dime a dozen. There is no source story, so much as a mythos around a mountain goddess one shouldn’t steal from, very vague. Similar to fairy/leprechaun mythos, Spirited Away and Beauty and the Beast in the tealing/eating from another realm.
Story IV Still Star-Crossed - Boring Edward Cullen approach to dating story. What's really interesting is that the murder of a lover the family doesn't like is a motif that appears twice. Since the story is apparently set in our day - that's one thing that sets it apart from the mainstream world. Now the source story is apparently a Punjabi tale of Mirza and Sahiba - similar to the Biblical tale of Samson and Delilah. Being me, I'm really into figuring out Sahiba's thought process, more than I care about why this airhead is floating through an awkward situation.
Story IX Nothing into All by [a:Renée Ahdieh|4600197|Renée Ahdieh|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1487663209p2/4600197.jpg] (Korean) - This is one of the few stories which doesn't take place in modern times and tells the tale of a family over-correcting and indulging a younger child, also espousing traditional values of humbleness and modesty. It was written in an older style, as in, if I found this inside the Grimm Fairy Tales or Perrault's tales, it wouldn't sound out of place. The source story is similar, with two boys, only vaguely referenced at the end of the main story.
Story XIV The Crimson Cloak by [a:Cindy Pon|2471183|Cindy Pon|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1259643400p2/2471183.jpg] (Chinese) - happy ending version of Story I above, with the source story being [b:The Cowherd and the Girl Weaver|36142280|The Cowherd and the Girl Weaver|Chu Yi|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1503973400l/36142280._SX50_.jpg|57744274]. In this retelling, the girl played an active role and they lived HEA. Meh as all that. Similar to the stories of shapeshifter women, selkies, swans, etc. where the guys sneaks up to one of them and hides her clothes so she has to marry him. They're everywhere, it's a classic. Long live feminism, for now a woman doesn't have to marry a guy who's "seen her naked" or "gave her the big ol' Zeus Swan Hug" (as may have been written in children's mythology books). In some countries, at least.
— >3/5 mostly good - the stories in this section are ordered in the order of personal preference.
Story III - The android tale is BASIC with the plus that the character dynamic is wholesome and well-written. Good rapport takes skill to write (this is a PSA for all cookie cutter romance writers out there), so credit where credit's due - good job, and sweet well-earned ending.
As for the rest? I'm not going to spoil it, but if you take away the SF trappings, it's a story that could be written in the 80's. The main conflict is between the squares/traditionalist teachings of early 20th century of rearing children at arm's end without a lot of contact versus the new generation rebelling and arguing that emotions are genuine and human. Which makes this an old take on a boring old story. The battle lines have shifted. No one finds this innovative anymore. Don't be boring. The source story is "Yer and the Tiger" (Hmong), similar to [b:Little Red Riding Hood|9453611|Little Red Riding Hood|Jacob Grimm|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1347357583l/9453611._SX50_.jpg|27039426], with the difference being that the 'beast' fools other members of the family while pretending to be human. That was a bit more sinister (very good!).
Story XIII Daughter of the Sun by [a:Shveta Thakrar|5097748|Shveta Thakrar|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1543548224p2/5097748.jpg] (South Asian) - Modern-day retelling of two South Asian stories. There's a plot device that's not explained, where a girl is born with a heart glowing golden and has to wear all-black. Because wearing a good bra is a no-no. Because black-out curtains are pure fantasy. Nooo, it's not like women already cover their chests with layers of material - let her wear black. Instead of, you know, a thicker wraparound sports bra made of non-transparent material. Anyway she's magic and it's never explained and she finds her one true love and they live happily ever after except his glowing heart (silver) has a meaning and she saves him. The source stories are from the [b:Mahabharata|118252|Mahabharata|Anonymous|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1553101923l/118252._SY75_.jpg|113831], one of Princess Savitri and Prince Satyavan and another that of goddess Ganga and King Shantanua. In short, one of a woman bargaining with Death and another of a woman drowning her babies because they are cursed god incarnations and by drowning their mortal forms, she uses a loophole in the curse to set their godly entities free while her mortal husband - who promised not to ask, poor fool - watches in horror. These two remind me of Greek mythos, Demetra roasting her child or ward over fire to give him godly powers and Alcestis offering to die instead of her husband, but will need to read the original for more info. The bargaining with Death is a common theme in many cultures, particularly for the life of a loved one. What irks me is that the lady murdering 7 babies (8?) is effectively using and abusing her husband. Sure, 'don't ask' was in the marriage contract, but watching your newborns be repeatedly drowned is deeply emotionally scarring. How come he didn't divorce her? Get a mistress? Stop having sex with her? But hey-ho, for the author, this has feminist value and I only wish to know whether the husband got himself a good therapist.
Story XV Eyes like Candlelight by [a:Julie Kagawa|2995873|Julie Kagawa|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1257816454p2/2995873.jpg] (Japanese) - Similar to Story I it also deals with taking gifts from a mountain supernatural entity. Simiar to Story I it follows similar plot beats. The reason it's a 3 not a 2 out of 5 is because the backstory is built better and because the supernatural entity goes to get her story straight, then goes on a rampage. Rampages show agency, agency shows efforts at characterisation. Rampages are rewarded with a good rating. The source story relates to the kitsune of Japanese folklore and how they may appear as either protectors or antagonists, which I like. I can't think off the top of my head of another supernatural entity that may be either one or another - in traditional works, before stereotyping was frowned on, etc. etc.
Story VII The Smile by [a:Aisha Saeed|8106586|Aisha Saeed|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1396461507p2/8106586.jpg] (South Asian) - the story is a bit vague and it took me a lot of processing to put the events in a coherent "A so B therefore C". Here is my understanding:
Spoiler
the way I read it was, the story said Kareem was really keen to sign with the merchant ASAP, so I spent the first half of the story worried Kareem would sell her off to achieve that deal. Maybe then he locked her in the tower (semantics aside) to re-assert to the Merchant that ‘sure, he might be in love, but that didn’t stop he from acting like Prince Joffrey’, so the Merchant — who possibly knew Kareem was desperate for the deal —couldn’t use his ‘affection’ for her to twist the Prince’s arm about the dealStory VI The Land of the Morning Calm by [a:E. C. Myers|22957093|E. C. Myers|https://s.gr-assets.com/assets/nophoto/user/u_50x66-632230dc9882b4352d753eedf9396530.png] (Korean) - Interesting retelling of a ghost in a modern era; I liked the ethical / psychological implications of
Spoiler
having an ex-family member alive inside a game,Spoiler
it took them so long to cotton up she was in there— >4/5 - this made me feel something
Story II Olivia's Table by [a:Olivia Wong|18915855|Olivia WONG|https://s.gr-assets.com/assets/nophoto/user/u_50x66-632230dc9882b4352d753eedf9396530.png] - I really liked this bittersweet story. The main character's life is so focused on what makes her different, her the whole world appears insubstantial through her eyes and she appears equally closed-off. It's a good, well-written perspective, to the point that when she opens up, it creates a strong feeling of catharsis. I kept expecting a twist, similar to Story III below, but it was a straightforward story, with a bittersweet message of what it means to serve people and how everyone is essentially alone and how the only times you actually have with someone are the times you have with that person, and how people should pay attention. It's not spelled out. There is no source story, more a discussion of Chinese traditions, which was interesting to read.
Story VIII Girls Who Twirl and Other Dangers by [a:Preeti Chhibber|15600901|Preeti Chhibber|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1496408704p2/15600901.jpg] (Gujarati) - This was a fun story about three girls uniting to stop a boy, interspersed with the source story of the goddess Durga and the Navratri festival. It was really cool, the mythological aspect combined with the light-heartedness of the girls seeking justice, it created a cool narrative about why stories resonate and why old tales are relevant in modern times
Story XII Bullet, Butterfly by [a:Elsie Chapman|5441417|Elsie Chapman|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1351817206p2/5441417.jpg] (Chinese) - This is a modern retelling in a more modern warfare context of source story [b:The Butterfly Lovers|7958322|The Butterfly Lovers The Legend of Liang Shanbo and Zhu Yingtai Four Versions with Related Texts|Wilt L. Idema|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1405624518l/7958322._SY75_.jpg|9313413], one of China's most famous love stories. It's often been compared to [b:Romeo and Juliet|18135|Romeo and Juliet|William Shakespeare|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1629680008l/18135._SY75_.jpg|3349450], but the retelling does away with the more objectionable things in Shakespeare's version, so there's that. Wish the retelling would have given the characters more agency, because the duty element is still all-powerful, rendering every interpersonal relation (friends, maternal) transitory and impersonal. The whole story is pretty bleak, except at the last moment. Not a fan of bleak, but well-written nonetheless.
Story X Spear Carrier by [a:Rahul Kanakia|4114729|Rahul Kanakia|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1578970946p2/4114729.jpg] (South Asian) - is a whimsical ode to the side-character in every great tale about a great war. Literally someone saying "I am aware I have a culture, there's my cosmic struggle, but I don't wantany part of it, I'm out." Mainly, the source story is the [b:Mahabharata|118252|Mahabharata|Anonymous|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1553101923l/118252._SY75_.jpg|113831]. I've read part of it (the [b:The Bhagavad Gita|99944|The Bhagavad Gita|Krishna-Dwaipayana Vyasa|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1631634958l/99944._SX50_.jpg|1492580]) and it's a riot. Would recommend.
— >5/5 - this made me feel a lot of somethings
Story V The Counting of Vermillion Beads by [a:Aliette de Bodard|2918731|Aliette de Bodard|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1645728070p2/2918731.jpg] — Was brilliant. How nice it is when someone doesn't make fun of the accountant. I liked the coming-of-age aspect and the two choices of working within the system versus fleeing the system and how both were treated with maturity and insight. The sisterly bond well-written. The source story (Vietnamese) was "Tâ’M Cám" which sounds vaguely similar to Cinderella for the animosity between the step-sisters, except it occurs more after the marriage to the emperor, there's only one step-sister and a lot more murder. Murder in folklore is how you know you found the good stuff, don't quote me on that.
Story XVI Carp, Calculus and the Leap of Faith by [a:Ellen Oh|4559822|Ellen Oh|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1659679213p2/4559822.jpg] — Caught me after therapy so I was feeling emotional, so when the main actor off-screen beat off some bullies to protect an annoying smaller kid, it got it me in the feels. A bit like Puss in Boots 2 (seriously, UK releasing it late is a travesty).
There are two source stories
- Hua clan being transformed into carps to escape from raiders. This brings to mind a lot of similar Green mythology in [b:Metamorphoses|1715|Metamorphoses|Ovid|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1622739150l/1715._SY75_.jpg|2870411], mainly Daphne running from Apollo, and she was transformed into a laurel tree. Less uplifting than the carp story, granted.
- Carps jumping up a waterfall for the hope of transforming into dragons. That one doesn't say meritocracy and hard work for me necessarily. What works for me is thinking that a person wanting to achieve a noble purpose (the gate) becomes a dragon as a result of their pursuit, á la [b:Gattaca,|6397741|Gattaca The Shooting Script|Andrew Niccol|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1572022384l/6397741._SY75_.jpg|20934450] more like - I cheated and just linked the script. Good movie. So dragon before gate, rather than the gate turning them into a dragon. Maybe the metaphor is a cultural thing. I just don't dig it the way it's written. Hey ho. Different strokes for different folks.
Back to the modern story, the protagonist beats up some bullies off-screen because they were picking on a smaller child,even if the child was annoying the protagonist. Sure, violence is never the answer bla-bla-bla. But one has to say, the kid has good values, right? It’s a the bigger should protect the vulnerable sort of thing. It resonated. And when I’m sometimes feeling like lacking a purpose, a values reset turned out to be just what the doctor ordered.