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The Drone Outside
Watching the end of the world through the cracks. Small windows on massive events – on a doomed civilization drawing its last breaths. A sense of universal decay and collapse conveyed in the smallest of canvasses.
This collection by Kristine Ong Muslim, an author from the Philippines, gathers nine delicate miniatures that pack a strong emotional punch. Stylistically they are rooted in apocalyptic sci-fi and supernatural horror but they are told with a post-modern and surreal touch – like macro photographs of the world's end.
This collection by Kristine Ong Muslim, an author from the Philippines, gathers nine delicate miniatures that pack a strong emotional punch. Stylistically they are rooted in apocalyptic sci-fi and supernatural horror but they are told with a post-modern and surreal touch – like macro photographs of the world's end.
50 pages, Paperback
First published December 1, 2017
About the author
Kristine Ong Muslim
109 books179 followersKristine Ong Muslim is the author of The Drone Outside (Eibonvale Press, 2017), Black Arcadia (University of the Philippines Press, 2017), Meditations of a Beast (Cornerstone Press, 2016), Butterfly Dream (Snuggly Books, 2016), Age of Blight (Unnamed Press, 2016), and several other books of fiction and poetry. She co-edited numerous anthologies of fiction, including Destination: SEA 2050 A.D. (Penguin Random House SEA, 2022), Ulirát: Best Contemporary Stories in Translation from the Philippines (Gaudy Boy, 2021), and the British Fantasy Award-winning People of Colo(u)r Destroy Science Fiction! (2016). Her translation of Amado Anthony G. Mendoza III’s novel, Book of the Damned, won a 2023 PEN/Heim grant. She is also the translator of nine books by Filipino authors Mesándel Virtusio Arguelles, Rogelio Braga, and Marlon Hacla. Widely anthologized, Muslim’s short stories were published in Conjunctions, Dazed, and World Literature Today and translated into Bulgarian, Czech, German, Japanese, Polish, and Serbian. She lives in a small farmhouse in Sitio Magutay, a remote rural highland area in Maguindanao, Philippines.
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Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews
May 8, 2018
Eibonvale Chapbook Line #1
Kristine Ong Muslim is a new experience in reading for me. And with “The Drone Outside” she has made one heck of a powerful impact. This collection of stories presents immersion in worlds of Science Fiction, The Horrible, The end of life as we know it. The stories should be characterized as snippets or flash fiction with an extreme amount of depth and insight.
Kristine Ong Muslim is beyond a doubt a poet, although this collection is not poetry per say.
Her use of language and descriptions of events has the ability to take one’s breath away, making this a lovely and important book from a powerful author.
Eibenvale has presented this, the first in their chapbook line not only beautifully produced book from an amazing author, but an important statement from this creative and important publisher.
I can not say enough good things about the author. The book needs to be sought out, read, and re-read.
Contents:
07. "Kilroy Was Here"
10. "The Outsiders"
12. "Anno Domini"
17. "Eventide"
21. "Demolition Day"
27. "The Early Signs of Blight"
37. "The Neighbors"
40. "Rhe Longest Night"
44. "Bolzmann Brain"
Kristine Ong Muslim is a new experience in reading for me. And with “The Drone Outside” she has made one heck of a powerful impact. This collection of stories presents immersion in worlds of Science Fiction, The Horrible, The end of life as we know it. The stories should be characterized as snippets or flash fiction with an extreme amount of depth and insight.
Kristine Ong Muslim is beyond a doubt a poet, although this collection is not poetry per say.
Her use of language and descriptions of events has the ability to take one’s breath away, making this a lovely and important book from a powerful author.
Eibenvale has presented this, the first in their chapbook line not only beautifully produced book from an amazing author, but an important statement from this creative and important publisher.
I can not say enough good things about the author. The book needs to be sought out, read, and re-read.
Contents:
07. "Kilroy Was Here"
10. "The Outsiders"
12. "Anno Domini"
17. "Eventide"
21. "Demolition Day"
27. "The Early Signs of Blight"
37. "The Neighbors"
40. "Rhe Longest Night"
44. "Bolzmann Brain"
May 9, 2018
Bleak eco-weird fictions set in a deteriorating world of machine gods and a dying earth. A larger tale told in strange vignettes of the bleak final days of man and the dawn of whatever comes next.
October 22, 2018
Originally published at Risingshadow.
Kristine Ong Muslim's The Drone Outside is the first chapbook in the Eibonvale Chapbook Line. It's a memorable and insightful exploration of the bleak future of mankind and the deterioration of the world.
My first introduction to Kristine Ong Muslim's stories was her chapbook Butterfly Dream, which was published a couple of years ago. When I began to read it, I immediately found myself captivated by the stories and was taken by the author's way of exploring the human condition, life and death (ever since then I've been a fan of her fiction). I'm happy to say that this new chapbook is every bit as good and fascinating as Butterfly Dream.
I consider Kristine Ong Muslim to be one of the finest authors of modern speculative fiction, because she has a unique and insightful literary voice. This impressive mini-collection showcases her imagination and writing skills in the best possible way, because each of the stories is something different and deeply mesmerising.
The Drone Outside contains the following stories:
- Kilroy Was Here
- The Outsiders
- Anno Domini
- Eventide
- Demolition Day
- The Early Signs of Blight
- The Neighbors
- The Longest Night
- Boltzmann Brain
These stories offer readers a memorable reading experience, because they form a stunning vision about how the age of man ends. They reveal the final moments of the modern world before the inevitable end. The author distinctly evokes a sense of decay, collapse and the end of the world in her stories. She explores the fatal consequences of climate change and how humanity has been affected by what has happened in the world in a bold and gripping way.
All of these stories are firmly rooted in science fiction, horror fiction, modern weird fiction and literary strange fiction. There's a thrillingly haunting and surreal feel to them that will captivate readers. When you begin to read these stories, you'll notice how atmospheric they are and how effectively the author writes about the events.
Here's more information about the stories and my thoughts about them:
Kilroy Was Here:
- In this opening story, a group of people storms a tower to unplug the machine and unhook the wires that tether the machine to them and to their lives.
- This is a strong story that will haunt readers with its imagery.
The Outsiders:
- In this story, the characters think about their current situation and existence in an intriguing way.
Anno Domini:
- A story about a museum in the desert.
- This story is almost impossible to forget once you've read it, because the author combines science fiction and modern weird fiction in a thrilling way.
Eventide:
- In this story, people have been seeing dreams about black mold.
- There's something about this story that slightly reminds me of cosmic weird fiction.
- Reading about the black mold fascinated me, because I've always been interested in reading about strange happenings and how people are affected by new and strange experiences.
Demolition Day:
- This story consists of letters addressed to people asking where they were when the tower, which was mentioned in the first story, was stormed.
- The individual letters are striking in their honesty, insightfulness and tender brutality.
- The tiny elements of black humour in the first letter are brilliant.
The Early Signs of Blight:
- In this story, ten-year-old Ben is visited by a bad man during the nights.
- An unsettling, fascinating and well written story that will linger on the readers' minds.
- I loved the ending of this story, because it was excellent.
The Neighbors:
- A story about Suarez who lives in a bunker.
- A haunting and effective story that will not be easily forgotten.
The Longest Night:
- In this story, the Machins have prepared themselves for spending the nineteen-month long night together in the dark.
- A brilliant and thought-provoking story with an excellent and surprisingly harrowing ending.
Boltzmann Brain:
- This story tells about broadcasts coming from the Svalbard Global Seed Vault.
- The broadcasts reveal unsettling things about what has happened to the world and how the climate has changed.
- A pitch-perfect and fitting final story to this chapbook.
The stories in this chapbook slightly remind me of stories written by Berit Ellingsen, Nina Allan, Quentin S. Crisp, Justin Isis, Aliya Whiteley and Brendan Connell, but they're different from them due to the author's way of exploring themes of collapse, decay and change. If you're familiar with stories written by these authors, you should take a look at this mini-collection, because you'll love it.
The author writes excellent prose. Her nearly poetic prose is one of the reasons why this chapbook is amazing and worth reading. Her literary way of writing about the events and the characters is breathtakingly beautiful and harrowing. I can guarantee that when you begin to read this chapbook, you'll be instantly drawn into the stories and will find yourself totally enthralled by them and their atmosphere.
Kristine Ong Muslim's The Drone Outside is a literary gem that beckons readers to explore its horrors and wonders. I highly recommend it to readers who are intrigued by beautiful, atmospheric and thought-provoking speculative fiction, because it's something different and unique (if you love well written speculative fiction, you won't regret reading this chapbook).
Highly recommended!
Kristine Ong Muslim's The Drone Outside is the first chapbook in the Eibonvale Chapbook Line. It's a memorable and insightful exploration of the bleak future of mankind and the deterioration of the world.
My first introduction to Kristine Ong Muslim's stories was her chapbook Butterfly Dream, which was published a couple of years ago. When I began to read it, I immediately found myself captivated by the stories and was taken by the author's way of exploring the human condition, life and death (ever since then I've been a fan of her fiction). I'm happy to say that this new chapbook is every bit as good and fascinating as Butterfly Dream.
I consider Kristine Ong Muslim to be one of the finest authors of modern speculative fiction, because she has a unique and insightful literary voice. This impressive mini-collection showcases her imagination and writing skills in the best possible way, because each of the stories is something different and deeply mesmerising.
The Drone Outside contains the following stories:
- Kilroy Was Here
- The Outsiders
- Anno Domini
- Eventide
- Demolition Day
- The Early Signs of Blight
- The Neighbors
- The Longest Night
- Boltzmann Brain
These stories offer readers a memorable reading experience, because they form a stunning vision about how the age of man ends. They reveal the final moments of the modern world before the inevitable end. The author distinctly evokes a sense of decay, collapse and the end of the world in her stories. She explores the fatal consequences of climate change and how humanity has been affected by what has happened in the world in a bold and gripping way.
All of these stories are firmly rooted in science fiction, horror fiction, modern weird fiction and literary strange fiction. There's a thrillingly haunting and surreal feel to them that will captivate readers. When you begin to read these stories, you'll notice how atmospheric they are and how effectively the author writes about the events.
Here's more information about the stories and my thoughts about them:
Kilroy Was Here:
- In this opening story, a group of people storms a tower to unplug the machine and unhook the wires that tether the machine to them and to their lives.
- This is a strong story that will haunt readers with its imagery.
The Outsiders:
- In this story, the characters think about their current situation and existence in an intriguing way.
Anno Domini:
- A story about a museum in the desert.
- This story is almost impossible to forget once you've read it, because the author combines science fiction and modern weird fiction in a thrilling way.
Eventide:
- In this story, people have been seeing dreams about black mold.
- There's something about this story that slightly reminds me of cosmic weird fiction.
- Reading about the black mold fascinated me, because I've always been interested in reading about strange happenings and how people are affected by new and strange experiences.
Demolition Day:
- This story consists of letters addressed to people asking where they were when the tower, which was mentioned in the first story, was stormed.
- The individual letters are striking in their honesty, insightfulness and tender brutality.
- The tiny elements of black humour in the first letter are brilliant.
The Early Signs of Blight:
- In this story, ten-year-old Ben is visited by a bad man during the nights.
- An unsettling, fascinating and well written story that will linger on the readers' minds.
- I loved the ending of this story, because it was excellent.
The Neighbors:
- A story about Suarez who lives in a bunker.
- A haunting and effective story that will not be easily forgotten.
The Longest Night:
- In this story, the Machins have prepared themselves for spending the nineteen-month long night together in the dark.
- A brilliant and thought-provoking story with an excellent and surprisingly harrowing ending.
Boltzmann Brain:
- This story tells about broadcasts coming from the Svalbard Global Seed Vault.
- The broadcasts reveal unsettling things about what has happened to the world and how the climate has changed.
- A pitch-perfect and fitting final story to this chapbook.
The stories in this chapbook slightly remind me of stories written by Berit Ellingsen, Nina Allan, Quentin S. Crisp, Justin Isis, Aliya Whiteley and Brendan Connell, but they're different from them due to the author's way of exploring themes of collapse, decay and change. If you're familiar with stories written by these authors, you should take a look at this mini-collection, because you'll love it.
The author writes excellent prose. Her nearly poetic prose is one of the reasons why this chapbook is amazing and worth reading. Her literary way of writing about the events and the characters is breathtakingly beautiful and harrowing. I can guarantee that when you begin to read this chapbook, you'll be instantly drawn into the stories and will find yourself totally enthralled by them and their atmosphere.
Kristine Ong Muslim's The Drone Outside is a literary gem that beckons readers to explore its horrors and wonders. I highly recommend it to readers who are intrigued by beautiful, atmospheric and thought-provoking speculative fiction, because it's something different and unique (if you love well written speculative fiction, you won't regret reading this chapbook).
Highly recommended!
September 22, 2023
Chapbooks sind schon der Form halber ein Kurzformat. Das überträgt sich dieses mal in noch krasserer Form auf den Inhalt. Auf den nicht einmal 50 Seiten versammeln sich ganze 10 Geschichten, die sich zum Teil sogar als Briefsammlungen entpuppen. Von Kurzgeschichten zu sprechen, wäre also eine Untertreibung.
Die erfahrene Lyrikerin Kristine Ong Muslim ist eine Meisterin dieses Formats. Sie nutzt den knappen Raum für multiperspektivische Schlaglichter auf eine Welt nach dem Untergang. In gewisser Weise ist das Format so fragmentiert wie die Welt(en), die sie beschreibt. Nur angedeutete Katastrophen haben die Welt (sind wir überhaupt auf unserer Welt?) unbewohnbar gemacht. Kurze Andeutungen verweisen auf politische und Umweltkatastrophen - “wo warst du am sechsten Tag des Juni, als die Bomben über dem 108 Tower in der Elone Street 9 abgeworfen wurden?” und selbst die Träume verlieren Ihre Farbe und sind von einem Schwarzschimmel befallen. Wie hängt das zusammen? Hängt es zusammen?
Der Verfall ist universell und dringt bis in die letzte Pore ein. Doch die Stärke der Kürzestgeschichten liegt im Detail. Nicht was alle betrifft, sondern wie es jede und jeden Einzelne*n betrifft, ist das was im Mittelpunkt steht. Es sind die Einzelbeobachtungen, die individuellen Schicksale und Über“leben“sweisen die erschüttern. Den Erzählungen gelingt es wie wenig anderen zu schmerzen. Nicht weil das Brutalitätslevel oder irgend ein „Shock-Value“ in die Höhe getrieben würde, sondern weil die Katastrophe so nah wirkt. Die Isolation, die Verzweiflung, die lebensfeindliche Welt. All das scheint zu nah, als dass es uns kalt lassen könnte. Dass das Ganze dann auch noch von Christian Veit Eschenfelder bruchlos übersetzt wurde, tut sein Übriges.
So bleibt nach der zugegebenermaßen kurzen Lektüre ein ungutes Gefühl. Eine Mahnung, den Karren aus dem Dreck zu ziehen, bevor das Drohnenwetter über uns hereinbricht. Denn so beeindruckend die Lektüre auch ist, so wenig möchte man diese Fiktion in die Realität diffundieren lassen. Ob das gelingen kann? Nun, um es mit dem vorletzten Satz des Buches zu sagen: “Hoffnung, Hoffnung ist eine gute Sache.”
Fazit:
Drohnenwetter ist ein schnell zu lesendes Buch mit Sogwirkung. Wir werden gezwungen, die Fäden zwischen den Geschichten selber zu ziehen und die unzähligen Leerstellen zu füllen. Sicher nicht die einfachste Leseerfahrung, aber eine, die bei mir ihre volle Wirkung entfalten konnte. Beeindruckt hat mich vor allem, wie es dadurch gelingt, mit diesen kurzen Blitzlichtern eine bedrückende Atmosphäre von trauriger Relevanz zu erzeugen. Es ist ein großes Verdienst, dass ein kleiner Verlag wie Whitetrain dieses Erlebnis in deutscher Sprache ermöglicht und damit einen wichtigen Beitrag zur aktuellen Weird Fiction auf dem deutschsprachigen Markt leistet. Eine drängende Lektüre!
Die erfahrene Lyrikerin Kristine Ong Muslim ist eine Meisterin dieses Formats. Sie nutzt den knappen Raum für multiperspektivische Schlaglichter auf eine Welt nach dem Untergang. In gewisser Weise ist das Format so fragmentiert wie die Welt(en), die sie beschreibt. Nur angedeutete Katastrophen haben die Welt (sind wir überhaupt auf unserer Welt?) unbewohnbar gemacht. Kurze Andeutungen verweisen auf politische und Umweltkatastrophen - “wo warst du am sechsten Tag des Juni, als die Bomben über dem 108 Tower in der Elone Street 9 abgeworfen wurden?” und selbst die Träume verlieren Ihre Farbe und sind von einem Schwarzschimmel befallen. Wie hängt das zusammen? Hängt es zusammen?
Der Verfall ist universell und dringt bis in die letzte Pore ein. Doch die Stärke der Kürzestgeschichten liegt im Detail. Nicht was alle betrifft, sondern wie es jede und jeden Einzelne*n betrifft, ist das was im Mittelpunkt steht. Es sind die Einzelbeobachtungen, die individuellen Schicksale und Über“leben“sweisen die erschüttern. Den Erzählungen gelingt es wie wenig anderen zu schmerzen. Nicht weil das Brutalitätslevel oder irgend ein „Shock-Value“ in die Höhe getrieben würde, sondern weil die Katastrophe so nah wirkt. Die Isolation, die Verzweiflung, die lebensfeindliche Welt. All das scheint zu nah, als dass es uns kalt lassen könnte. Dass das Ganze dann auch noch von Christian Veit Eschenfelder bruchlos übersetzt wurde, tut sein Übriges.
So bleibt nach der zugegebenermaßen kurzen Lektüre ein ungutes Gefühl. Eine Mahnung, den Karren aus dem Dreck zu ziehen, bevor das Drohnenwetter über uns hereinbricht. Denn so beeindruckend die Lektüre auch ist, so wenig möchte man diese Fiktion in die Realität diffundieren lassen. Ob das gelingen kann? Nun, um es mit dem vorletzten Satz des Buches zu sagen: “Hoffnung, Hoffnung ist eine gute Sache.”
Fazit:
Drohnenwetter ist ein schnell zu lesendes Buch mit Sogwirkung. Wir werden gezwungen, die Fäden zwischen den Geschichten selber zu ziehen und die unzähligen Leerstellen zu füllen. Sicher nicht die einfachste Leseerfahrung, aber eine, die bei mir ihre volle Wirkung entfalten konnte. Beeindruckt hat mich vor allem, wie es dadurch gelingt, mit diesen kurzen Blitzlichtern eine bedrückende Atmosphäre von trauriger Relevanz zu erzeugen. Es ist ein großes Verdienst, dass ein kleiner Verlag wie Whitetrain dieses Erlebnis in deutscher Sprache ermöglicht und damit einen wichtigen Beitrag zur aktuellen Weird Fiction auf dem deutschsprachigen Markt leistet. Eine drängende Lektüre!
January 26, 2021
THE LONGEST NIGHT
“Like other middle-class families, the Machins conserved energy and only resorted to their meager light sources when necessary.”
Not only the Machine, but now the Machins stop… or inevitably they default that way eventually. Empathising with their five year old daughter, we vividly experience our earth’s increasing darkness and perhaps also the implications of using ‘vividly’ at all in that context. Mourning Becomes Electra.
The detailed review of this book posted elsewhere under my name is too long or impractical to post here.
Above is one of my observations at the time of the review.
“Like other middle-class families, the Machins conserved energy and only resorted to their meager light sources when necessary.”
Not only the Machine, but now the Machins stop… or inevitably they default that way eventually. Empathising with their five year old daughter, we vividly experience our earth’s increasing darkness and perhaps also the implications of using ‘vividly’ at all in that context. Mourning Becomes Electra.
The detailed review of this book posted elsewhere under my name is too long or impractical to post here.
Above is one of my observations at the time of the review.
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews