What an amazing book. I've been lucky enough to read this prior to the release and Mary Rajotte has woven a powerful tale. The authority, the magic, tWhat an amazing book. I've been lucky enough to read this prior to the release and Mary Rajotte has woven a powerful tale. The authority, the magic, the grand weirdness, the emotion—it's a rollercoaster ride, and I could NOT put it down. And what a great cover. ...more
This is about the Icebound, an extreme race, that is not just huskies and sleds, but with the UNDEAD. The Dunning–Kruger effect is “a cognitive bias wThis is about the Icebound, an extreme race, that is not just huskies and sleds, but with the UNDEAD. The Dunning–Kruger effect is “a cognitive bias whereby people with low ability, expertise, or experience regarding a certain type of task or area of knowledge tend to overestimate their ability or knowledge.” We get introduced to the revenants. Which for me is so much creepier and weirder and more dangerous than zombie or undead. In folklore, a revenant is an animated corpse that is believed to have been revived from death to haunt the living. The word revenant is derived from the Old French word, revenant, the "returning". The walking normally bit when they visit the revenants, that was creepy. Tense. The sense of electricity that permeates this story. The magnets, for safety, over the cages. The whole idea of fate—zigging or zagging. The story of her father and uncle, running from war, trying to survive, a bullet getting one of them. Then they are lost, the dogs gone, and the woman! She is so creepy, so unsettling. The idea of our protagonist living out many lives, many fates, and seeing them ALL in this moment—zigging and zagging. Powerful stuff. The woman—the zoetrope—a world, a universe. The revenants disappearing into the blind spot. And then the end—wow. I love that hope. One of my favorite stories I've taught in my workshops. ...more
I’ve really become a huge fan of Rich’s work in the last couple of years. Check out his story “Painless” at Tor.com as well, it’s amazing. This is a wI’ve really become a huge fan of Rich’s work in the last couple of years. Check out his story “Painless” at Tor.com as well, it’s amazing. This is a wild ride. It was just so much fun, filled with a lot of originality and weirdness, so I wanted to do it for this class. Felt like a flavor and story we didn’t see a LOT this year. SYNOPSIS: When an illicit trade deal goes wrong and Quandary is blamed for it, she goes on the run to avoid the crosshairs of a bioengineered killer that only lives for 24 hours. If Q can evade it for that long, she just might survive. Quandry is a HOOT. So much fun to follow and root for across this story. (Great name, too.) I love the crazy ways they use drugs throughout this story—for pleasure, to get their heads straight, to ward off viruses. Love the addition of her baba, he’s a great twist and interesting element to the story. Genetically the butterfly man is closer to a flatworm. “Regrows organs. Breathes through its skin. No real skeleton, hydrostatic muscle.” Love the conversation with the BM in the back of the cab, about how he has changed, gotten bored, wants more. The line about pushing people CHEF’S KISS, just so funny and touching at the same time. LOL. Love the ending, the emotions Rich puts us through, sadness, and then laughter, and then contemplation. Just a brilliant story done so well. Love it. One of my favorite stories that I taught in my workshops this year....more
Strong opening, the autotruck, Mars seeking it out, wanting to kill himself, but then deciding he wants to live! It’s not until the very end that we rStrong opening, the autotruck, Mars seeking it out, wanting to kill himself, but then deciding he wants to live! It’s not until the very end that we realize what REALLY happened here, right? The scene with the dog is intense. So much great detail in this story—setting, sensory, world, culture—but him slicing off parts of his own body to feed to the dog, knowing he’ll heal and regrow the flesh quickly is pretty insane LOL. Plastivores—wild. I hear we are actually working on putting these things in the ocean to eat the plastic waste. The Muslim prayers is an interesting touch. The use of foreign languages (Nigerian, I think—Hausa?) throughout is done very well. We get the words, and then enough context to understand what is being said. (Rich is, as far as I know, a white man, but he does a great job with his protagonist and a diverse cast, I think. He was born in Niger, and lived in Canada, the USA, and Spain—currently in the Czech Republic. Wow.) I like the conversation with the chief, and the exchange of funds, in francs! The boy in the village, the electricity—wow, that’s intense. Larson works in the past in very subtle notes, just a hint of a past life, the cartoons, a brother. Well done. The organism—I mean, we knew SOMETHING was coming. The cigar cutter—jeez. There is violence in this story but see how the author handles it? We don’t always see it on the page—more of the ECHO of violence. When he finds his other half—literally—it’s pretty powerful. It’s him, but as a boy, somehow. He rescues him, not to turn him in to the authorities, but to have a friend, to save him from this life that HE has lived, somebody that won’t look at him like a freak. Powerful ending. Really worked for me. This is a story that gets better the more you read it. One of my favorite stories that I taught in my workshops this year....more
Really enjoyed this. The ending was really powerful, ramped up at the end. WOW. I didn't give it 5/5 just due to this having such a huge cast, and quiReally enjoyed this. The ending was really powerful, ramped up at the end. WOW. I didn't give it 5/5 just due to this having such a huge cast, and quite often I was confused who was who, or they blurred together a bit. But overall, one hell of a wild ride. Dug it for sure. Original, creepy, with a lot of emotion. Well done....more
Really enjoyed this, loved the ending. Lots of tech and authority, at times a bit much, but the emotion at the end made this dark thriller worth it. IReally enjoyed this, loved the ending. Lots of tech and authority, at times a bit much, but the emotion at the end made this dark thriller worth it. I liked this a bit more than Dark Matter. But both were very good....more
Always a wonderful experience, such a range of stories. Here are my favorite tales, the ones I taught in my Advanced Creative Writing Workshop:
Sugar IAlways a wonderful experience, such a range of stories. Here are my favorite tales, the ones I taught in my Advanced Creative Writing Workshop:
Sugar Island by Claire Luchette The Hollow by Greg Jackson The Wind by Lauren Groff The Meeting by Alix Ohlin Bears Among the Living by Kevin Moffett Ghost Birds by Karen Russell A Ravishing Sun by Leslie Blanco The Little Widow from the Capital by Yohanca Delgado ...more
Always a wonderful experience, such a range of stories. Here are my favorite tales, the ones I taught in my Advanced Creative Writing Workshop:
The PizAlways a wonderful experience, such a range of stories. Here are my favorite tales, the ones I taught in my Advanced Creative Writing Workshop:
The Pizza Boy by Meg Elison I Was a Teenage Space Jockey by Stephen Graham Jones The Red Mother by Elizabeth Bear Skinder’s Veil by Kelly Link The Future Library by Peng Shepherd Tripping Through Time by Rich Larson The Frankly Impossible Weight of Han by Maria Dong ...more
Always a wonderful experience, such a range of stories. Here are my favorite tales, the ones I taught in my Advanced Creative Writing Workshop:
Black LAlways a wonderful experience, such a range of stories. Here are my favorite tales, the ones I taught in my Advanced Creative Writing Workshop:
Black Leg by Glen Hirshberg The God Bag by Christopher Golden Dancing Sober in the Dust by Steve Toase Chit Chit by Steve Toase Shuck by GV Anderson Stolen Property by Sarah Lamparelli Three Sisters Bog by Eion Murphy Trap by Carly Holmes Tiptoe by Laird Barron Anne Gare’s Rare and Import Video Catalogue October 2022 by Jonathan Raab ...more
Really enjoyed this weird western. Some nice twists and turns, an easy voice to fall into, with some emotion and impact at the end. "Up From Slavery" Really enjoyed this weird western. Some nice twists and turns, an easy voice to fall into, with some emotion and impact at the end. "Up From Slavery" is probably still my favorite piece of his work, but this was very good....more
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