The Dozois anthologies are massive, probably 200,000 to 250,000 words, and I pick them up when I see them at Half-Price Books for a buck or two. I figure I'm sure to find something worthwhile in that many words. This doorstop contains stories from 1987, and here's what I've read so far:"Perpetuity Blues" by Neal Barrett, Jr., is one of two Barrett stories in the volume. Like a lot of his work, it's hard to describe. It involves time travel, family, and a young woman who wants to write plays. It's also hilarious.
"Diner" is the other Barrett story. Not as funny, but it has its moments. Set in Galveston after the U.S. has lost a war to China. Things are not going well for the survivors under the new rulers.
"Buffalo Gals Won't You Come Out Tonight" by Ursula K. LeGuin was also in another FFB I mentioned recently. A well-known story (Hugo and World Fantasy Award winner) about a girl who winds up among talking animals, including Coyote, and is surrounded by earth magic but who eventually returns to civilization. (Does growing up mean you can't see the magic anymore?)
"The Pardoner's Tale" by Robert Silverberg is old-fashioned SF in the best sense of the word. The earth has been invaded and humans are enslaved. A few hackers can take advantage of the system and remain free. They can also "pardon" others. Getting caught means big trouble, however.
"Night of the Cooters" by Howard Waldrop is another well-known story. It's about what happens to some of H. G. Wells' Martian invaders who get lost and land in West Texas. You think the Martians stand a chance? No way.
"The Faithful Companion at Forty" by Karen Joy Fowler is funny story about a certain faithful companion and the masked man he worked with.
"For Thus Do I Remember Carthage" by Michael Bishop is set in an alternative world where St. Augustine's long-lost son returns to him from China and tells him of all kinds of magic and wonders, many of which are modern inventions that didn't exist in our world at that time. The dying Augustine doesn't like these ideas or wish to accept them. I'm not sure I got the point of this story.
"Dinosaurs" by Walter Jon Williams is set six million years in the future. Humanity has evolved into a kind of creature that's very different physically from us. It's also pretty much conquered the universe. A human diplomat is trying to explain that resistance is futile to a race of dog-like creatures. The satire is hard to miss, but most of it is amusing.
There are plenty of other stories here, and maybe I'll get around to some of them eventually.
6 comments:
I pick up these Dozois anthologies when I run across them. Dozois includes a lot of just okay stories in these books, but they're certainly worth a buck or two.
I've bought all of the books in this series as soon as they came out, put them all in a row on the shelf, and there they sit. They just seem too humungous to take one down and start making my way through it. This one seems early enough that I might enjoy reading it, though. I even recognize the names of the authors. I don't much any more, and that's sad.
Actually, I think "Diner" is set after the U.S. loses a war to China, not Japan...
You're right, Lawrence. The old memory is about shot.
Oh, and I have almost all the Dozois year's best anthologies in first edition hardback...
I made the correction.
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