On a planet that is being unsuccessfully terraformed, a fisherman and agricultural technician consider a different approach to establishing life. This reminded me a bit of Kim Stanley Robinson’s “Aurora”: an optimistic…
Tag: short story
“Vicky” by A. A. de Levine
A survivor of alien abductions tasks her neighbor with transferring her soul to one of her dogs upon her death. Though it’s published in the Taco Bell Quarterly, which has a shtick…
“Speech Sounds” by Octavia Butler
After a strange affliction spreads that robs people of their ability to speak, read, and understand language (to varying degrees), a woman tries to find relatives and encounters tragedies. This story offers…
“Invaders” by John Kessel
Told in parallel until they intersect: conquistadors hold the Inca emperor for ransom, aliens arrive on Earth and begin buying up art and cocaine, and a science fiction writer muses about the…
“Chippoke Na Gomi” by Misha Nogha
A konologist (one who studies dust) is delayed at a train station while returning home with samples from Nagasaki that may still hold evidence of that city’s devastation, and encounters a strange…
“The Heat Death of the Universe” by Pamela Zoline
A housewife has a breakdown in the midst of her chaotic home, paralleling the increasing entropy inherent in a closed system. By turns hilarious and horrifying, poignant and satirical; the battle against…
“The Morning After the Big Fire” by Maeve Bennan
When the big garage at the end of their street burns down, a young girl basks in the glory of being the one who can deliver the news to the rest of…
“Those That I Fight I Do Not Hate” by Danielle McLaughlin
A man feels uncomfortable at a children’s party because of his affair with the hostess, some unfortunate events related to his drinking, and the hostess’ husband’s collection of war memorabilia. There is…
“Antarctica” by Claire Keegan
A married woman goes into the city for Christmas shopping and to have a brief affair; she finds a man who is not at all what she bargained for. This is a…
“The Language of the Mud” by Betty Rocksteady
A teen’s father, then neighbor, then aunt, disappear in a blink of the eye in a muddy spot in the backyard; when they return they’re not quite the same. This is a…