The Only Harmless Great Thing

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The Only Harmless Great Thing
AuthorBrooke Bolander
LanguageEnglish
GenreAlternate history
PublisherTom Doherty Associates
Publication date
January 23, 2018
Publication placeUnited States
Media typePrint (paperback), ebook
Pages95 pp
AwardNebula—Novelette (2018)
Locus—Novelette (2019)
ISBN9781250169488
(1st ed. paperback)
9781250169471
(ebook)
OCLC986960168
LC ClassPS3602.O6515 O55 2018

The Only Harmless Great Thing is a 2018 alternate history story by Brooke Bolander, exploring the conjunction of Topsy the Elephant and the Radium Girls scandal. It was published by Tor.com.

The title is taken from John Donne's 1612 poem The Progress of the Soul, and is his description of an elephant.[1]

Synopsis

In a world where sign language communication with elephants became possible in the 1880s, but they were still considered animals for several decades more, US Radium has purchased several (including Topsy) to replace their litigious human employees, because elephants can tolerate higher doses of radiation. Decades in the future, a scientist tries to persuade the elephant community to allow themselves to become long-term nuclear waste warning messages.

Origins

Bolander has described the story as the result of having read a Twitter poll in which Helena Bell asked which of several options she should write about next; two of the options were "elephants" and "radium poisoning".[2]

Release

The story, which is approximately 90 to 100 pages, was first released in the US as first edition by Tom Doherty Associates as a Tor.com Book. A paperback and ebook were published in Jan 2018, and it was edited by Marco Paliermi. Will Staehle provided cover design work to these.

Reception

Kirkus Reviews found it to be "rich (and) poetic", and observed that its "commentary around workers' rights, animal rights, and women’s rights" produces "a work grounded in injustice and outrage" which "never feels preachy", but also noted that Bolander's "gorgeous and vigorous" prose can hinder readability, as can the "frequent scene shifts".[3] Publishers Weekly considered it to be "disjointed" and "hard to follow", with little "plot or (...) emotional hook", but nonetheless stated that Bolander's "lyrical writing is pleasant".[4]

Awards

Year Award Category Result Ref
2018 Nebula Award Novelette Won [5]
2019 Hugo Award Novelette Shortlisted [6]
Locus Award Novelette Won [7]
Shirley Jackson Award Novella Shortlisted [8]
Theodore Sturgeon Award — Shortlisted [9]
World Fantasy Award Novella Shortlisted [10]

References

  1. ^ Elephants, and Remembering the Worst of History in The Only Harmless Great Thing, by Alisdair Stuart, at Barnes & Noble; published January 24, 2018; retrieved July 5, 2019
  2. ^ The Big Idea: Brooke Bolander, by Brooke Bolander, at Whatever.Scalzi.com; published January 25, 2018; retrieved July 5, 2019
  3. ^ THE ONLY HARMLESS GREAT THING, reviewed at Kirkus Reviews; published November 15, 2017; retrieved July 5, 2019
  4. ^ The Only Harmless Great Thing, reviewed at Publishers Weekly, published December 11, 2017; retrieved July 5, 2019
  5. ^ “The Only Harmless Great Thing”, at Science Fiction Writers of America; retrieved July 5, 2019
  6. ^ 2019 Hugo Award & 1944 Retro Hugo Award Finalists, by Cheryl Morgan, at TheHugoAwards.org; published April 2, 2019; retrieved July 5, 2019
  7. ^ Announcing the 2019 Locus Award Winners, at Tor.com; published June 29, 2019; retrieved July 5, 2019
  8. ^ "Gunn Center for the Study of Science Fiction News and Events". Gunn Center for the Study of Science Fiction. Archived from the original on 2012-06-15. Retrieved 2019-05-15.
  9. ^ Theodore Sturgeon Memorial Award: Finalists, at the Gunn Center for the Study of Science Fiction; retrieved July 5, 2019
  10. ^ "World Fantasy Awards 2019 | World Fantasy Convention". Retrieved 2019-07-25.


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