Non-Spoiler Summary

Lukasz has had a hard life. When he was a child in Poland a horrible new plague swept across the world killing nearly everyone. Now he ekes out a living with a handful of other survivors. It is in this situation that his city receives some unlikely visitors – first a *real* family with a young woman who can still bear children, and then a group of African elephants who take a keen interest in Lukasz life. Oh, and the two sets of visitors aren’t entirely unrelated – as Lukasz is about to discover for himself!

Some Juicy Tidbits About This Story

• Word count: 9,141 (13 pages)
• "The Elephants of Poznan" was nominated for the 2001 Nebula Award for Best Novelette.
• Did you know that Orson Scott Card also works as a professor of writing and literature at Southern Virginia University? Yep. You can learn more about this excellent science fiction author at his web site.

Where To Find The Elephants of Poznan

• This story first appeared in the January 2000 edition of Galaxy Online.
• You can read a free online version of "The Elephants of Poznan" at Lightspeed Magazine.
• This story is also included in Orson Scott Card’s anthology Keeper of Dreams.

Craving More SF Stories Like This One?

If you liked "The Elephants of Poznan" then you may also enjoy Orson Scott Card’s story “Ender’s Game” – which lead to his excellent and famous novel with the same title!

Non-Spoiler Summary

Ali is making the insanely dangerous trip from Beirut to Old Cairo. Why is it so dangerous? Well, there are the sand storms, the bandits and especially the nanohanced tigers. Why risk it all in this unsafe world that is the result of worldwide economic meltdown – the so-called Global Credit Crusade? Well, because his lovely wife is dying and they can’t afford medical care for much longer. Oh, and something keeps giving him messages via his retinal screens. Yeah, stuff like “go to the Western Mosque in Old Cairo.” What? That is nearly 400 miles! Oh well, the messages have been strangely persuasive – even if things don’t always end up like Ali wants them to. Time to start packing for a long hike, Ali!

Some Juicy Tidbits About This Story

• Word count: 3,447 (6 pages)
• Did you know that Saladin Ahmed is “descended from Arabs and Irishmen?” Yep. Learn more about this amazing author on his web site.
• * Warning: Be careful, this story has a lot of “adult language” in it – so stay away if you don’t like that stuff.

Where To Find The Faithful Soldier, Prompted

• This short story first appeared in the November 2010 edition of the online webzine Apex Magazine.
• You can read (or listen to) a free version of "The Faithful Soldier, Prompted" at Escape Pod.

Craving More SF Stories Like This One?

If you liked "The Faithful Soldier, Prompted" then you may also enjoy the other Saladin Ahmed story I have reviewed: “Hooves And The Hovel Of Abdel Jameela” – about an ancient Middle-Eastern doctor who helps a very strange couple.

"Lulungomeena" by Gordon R. Dickson

Page Count: 24

The story

The setting is Frontier Station 563 just beyond Sirius. But the title is named after another place: Lulungomeena on the planet Tarsus, the native home of Clay Harbank. The conflict is between Clay and The Kid. Clay is a reformed gambler; and The Kid, an active gambler, wants his considerable savings. The story is from the perspective of Mort, a Dorsai warrior on an odd assignment who observes The Kid’s relentless needling of Clay. All the characters are aboard Frontier Station for a contract of 10 years, working and living together on the back side of, literally, nowhere. The story develops in the presence of a Hixabrod, an unerringly truthful species, settling a bet on a question of sentiment … with all-or-nothing stakes.

Excerpt

My take

I find this story deeply moving, illustrating as it does the bond of male friendship and the casual confidence that comes with age. Certainly Mort is a born warrior and Clay is a recovering gambler, but they both have their impulses under control and out of that strength emerges a mutual respect and a mutual disdain of youthful arrogance and impetuosity. This story could have happened on any outpost, not only in space, but on Earth, in some remote place where people are thrown together and forced to play out their relational skills in a pressure cooker. Anyone who has ever worked in such an environment recognizes the dynamic immediately.

This story introduced Dickson’s Dorsai culture, predating the Hugo nominated book Dorsai! by years. It does not fit neatly into the Childe Cycle he developed in conjunction with the writing of Dorsai!, but it maintains, for the most part, a consistency with the philosophy of the framework. Mort comes across as the kind of warrior one expects from the Dorsai: big, strong, controlled, experienced, with an inexplicable aura of unconquerable command. The only sharp contrast I can find between the story and the books is in the universal assumptions of life. Where “Lulungomeena” presents us with alien races, especially the Hixabrod, the rest of the Childe Cycle seems to ignore the possibility of alien life.

The Good:

Read Lululomeenga for the relative gentility of the story. It lacks overt violence, though the possibility lies just below the surface and bubbles up a couple of times. I love it when strength can be demonstrated in character and without a bloodbath. Also, the feeling (I am told) of “home” is universal. Most people will be able to identify with Clay and even, in this way, with the alien Hixabrod.

The Bad … ish:

Ok, not so bad, but the characters do have a strong resemblance to some classic wild-western stereotypes. That’s ok when you remember when the story was written and the type of audience forming the story’s primary readership. It’s also ok, because those characters can be fun.

Hunt for the Story

This story is relatively hard to find. It was originally published in Galaxy Science Fiction, January 1954. It was anthologized by Robert Silverberg in Deep Space (1973); paperback 1977.

Luckily, for posterity, it was dramatized for the 1950s radio drama X minus One and is available for free download. The dramatization is reasonably faithful to the original. You will note that X minus One spelled the title of the story differently than Dickson.

If you like this story…

…you’ll love the Dickson story “Warrior” which is much more readily available in Lost Dorsai. Also “Brothers” is available in The Spirit of Dorsai. Both can be found in The Dorsai Companion. The Award winning and nominated books Tactics of Mistake and, of course, Dorsai! are both part of the same SF framework.

Thanks to Tim for this providing this article. You can read more of Tim’s stuff on his blog: The Darling Virtual Mind.

Non-Spoiler Summary

Nico hates the aliens, and agrees that they must die. That is why he is signing up for the war effort. They’re ugly too – with their lizard heads and green scaly hides. But as Nico is forced to make several physical changes in order to become a better fighter he begins to realize that maybe the enemy isn’t so different after all! Oh well, he has a job to do… right?

Some Juicy Tidbits About This Story

• Word count: 1,847 (4 pages)
• Special thanks to Free SF Reader for recommending this awesome story!

Where To Find Scales

• This story originally appeared as a podcast on The Guardian – where you can still listen to it for free.
• You can read "Scales" for free at the LightSpeed web site.

Craving More SF Stories Like This One?

If you liked "Scales" then you may also enjoy Alastair Reynolds other story “Diamond Dogs” – about a group of highly specialized people who travel to a deadly alien tower on a remote planet.

Non-Spoiler Summary

Mia joined the MedCorps a long time ago, and for a variety of reasons. Now, near the end of her life, the Corps is investigating a beautiful planet where a deadly plague destroyed all the humans over 350 years ago. Well, not *all* the people. The team discovers that there are some survivors, but they have a peculiar way of life. As Mia tries to help one native girl, she learns that well people aren’t always the happiest people.

Some Juicy Tidbits About This Story

• Word count: 6,848 (26 pages)
• "Ej-Es" was nominated for the 2004 Locus Poll Award for Best Short Story.
• Special thanks to Free SF Reader for pointing out this great story.

Where To Find Ej-Es

• This story originally appeared in the anthology Stars: Original Stories Based on the Songs of Janis Ian.
• You can read (or listen to) "Ej-Es" for free online at Lightspeed Magazine.

Craving More SF Stories Like This One?

If you liked "Ej-Es" then you may also enjoy “The Ugly Little Boy” by Isaac Asimov – about a small Neanderthal boy who is brought into the future for scientific experimentation.

Non-Spoiler Summary

Jerry works in the public relations department at NASA. It is a pretty fun job in which he gets to meet a lot of astronauts and important people. But there are always the scandals that make his job a headache. His most recent headache involves Russian pictures which show an artificial structure on the Moon… in 1967! To make matters worse is the fact that the first joint American-Russian space flight to the Moon is about to take place. As Jerry delves into the mystery of the photos he discovers more than one thing that makes his life miserable. Oh the joy.

Some Juicy Tidbits About This Story

• Word count: 4,993 (23 pages)
• Did you know that Jack McDevitt’s novel Seeker won the 2006 Nebula Award for Best Novel? Yep. You can learn more about this awesome science fiction author at Wikipedia.

Where To Find The Cassandra Project

• This short story originally appeared in the June 2010 edition of the online magazine Lightspeed – where you can still read it for free!

Craving More SF Stories Like This One?

If you liked "The Cassandra Project" then be sure to check out “Melville on Iapetus” also by Jack McDevitt – about a group of astronauts who discover an ancient statue on one of Saturn’s moons.

NON SPOILER SUMMARY

The narrator of this story is a woman who is fighting a war against aliens.  She fights better than the men.  So do all the women soldiers.  This is because a specific trait in women has been isolated, and activated.  The trait?  Maternal instinct.  The side effects?  I’ll let you read for yourself, it’s fascinating.

MY THOUGHTS

As a mother, I can personally vouch for the well known fact that NOTHING comes between a mama bear and her cubs.  Us mothers are famous for ripping to shreds anything and everything that threatens our babies.  How powerful an army would be if that maternal instinct could be tapped into and used as a deadly force.  I enjoyed the brainstorm this idea caused for me.  And equally thought provoking were the side effects this procedure caused for the storyteller.

INTERESTING TIDBITS

• Word Count: 1796
• Page Count: 6
• Published: 2008
• Besides writing science fiction and fantasy, Kristine Kathryn Rusch also writes romance and mystery.  Be sure to check out her website.

WHERE TO FIND THIS STORY

You can read The Observer or listen to a podcast for free at Lightspeed Magazine.

I enjoyed reading the authors own thoughts and discussion about The Observer in an author spotlight she did for Lightspeed Magazine.  SPOILER WARNING!

The Observer was first published in Front Lines edited by Denise Little, available at Amazon.

Happy President’s Day!
Today is officially President’s Day here in the USA, and to honor the occasion I thought I would point you towards a funny science fiction story about the president of the United States. Enjoy!

Non-spoiler Summary in a Nutshell

Deputy White House Chief of Staff Alexander Lipsyte has just learned something amazing – the President of the United States has no brain! No, really, his brain is literally missing… gone poof… playing hide-and-seek… just plain not there! But how can this be you ask? Well, that is what he has been tasked to find out. The trail leads him on a very interesting goose chase involving military officials, top secret UFO bases, famous museums, the secret service and little known Washington, D.C. bunkers. He finally gets some answers and is quite surprised by what he finds out.

Interesting Tidbits About This Story:

• Page Count: 16
• Word Count: 6,695
• Did you know that John Scalzi worked for America Online during the 1990s? Yep. You can learn more about this science fiction author by reading the bio on his web site.

Where You Can Find The President’s Brain is Missing:

• This short story was first published in July 2010 on the Tor.com web site – where you can still read (or listen to) it for free.

If you liked "The President’s Brain is Missing" then you may also be interested in “Copperhead” by Gene Wolfe – about a powerful remote control held by the president of the United States.

Becoming Part of Another Culture

Have you ever tried to be part of a different culture? It is difficult and takes a long time, but the rewards for learning a different way of thinking are extremely satisfying. I spent a year living on the pacific island of Pohnpei, and I can relate to the feelings the protagonist of this story describes: curiosity, fear, embarrassment, paranoia, not fitting in, striving to understand… and ultimately a bit of acceptance. It is very difficult to describe, but I think this story does a great job of it.

Non-spoiler Summary in a Nutshell

The narrator of this story is an unemployed man who is wandering across the United States working odd jobs and staying with self-sustaining communities. Variety is the spice of life, and he is getting a lot of it. As he gets closer to California he comes across a commune of deaf-blind people and his curiosity forces him to see how they live. He finds out that they are children whose mothers were infected with Rubella while pregnant – which caused their condition. There were initially loads of deaf-blind children in the early 1960s, but these hundred or so have been educated and subsequently fought for their right to live on their own. They are a tight-knit community with some strict rules, but our drifter is determined to learn their ways – especially since getting to know Pink, the teen aged daughter of one of the deaf-blind people. She helps him learn their language, culture and rules. But there is something he is missing and he can’t quite put his finger on it – perhaps it is better that he doesn’t find out what it is!

My Two Cents…

• There is a lot of so-called “hippy” culture in this story – liberal amounts of free-love and self-expression. I found it fascinating but your tastes may vary.
• The narrator’s discussions about communication, language, learning and love is deeply interesting.
• Wow – this story is told in a fantastic way! The writing style, the characters, the situations – excellent!
• "The Persistence of Vision" is a very soft science fiction story – so don’t be expecting anything too alien. Ha – pun intended!
• Warning: There are a few sexually explicit scenes in this story – so stay away if that kind of stuff bothers you.

Interesting Tidbits:

• Page Count: 40
• Audio Length: 2 hours
• Did you know that John Varley was once an unemployed drifter himself? Yep. You can learn more about this fascinating author on his web site.
• "The Persistence of Vision" won the 1979 Hugo Award for Best Novella, the 1979 Nebula Award for Best Novella and placed 1st in the 1979 Locus Readers Poll.
• Special thanks to Variety SF for pointing out this great story!

Where You Can Find The Persistence of Vision:

• This story was first published in the March 1978 edition of The Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction.
• You can listen to (or download) a wonderful audio version of "The Persistence of Vision" at spiderrobinson.com. (The story begins at time index 5:43, and there is a 12 minute musical intermission.)
• It is included in the excellent collection The John Varley Reader.
• You can also read this story online for free courtesy of Google Books. (This link may not work if you are outside the United States)
  

Craving More Science Fiction Short Stories?

If you enjoyed "The Persistence of Vision" then you might also like "…For a Single Yesterday" by George R. R. Martin – about a musician in a post-apocalyptic commune who uses a powerful drug to re-live the past.

Worse Than A Root Canal

Do you ever have those times in life that just plain suck? You know – the really, really painful moments. Wouldn’t it be nice to let somebody else experience that pain? But how much would that be worth to you? In this story we find out just how far some people will go to get rid of negative feelings, and what kind of toll that exacts on those who take on this unfortunate burden.

Non-spoiler Summary in a Nutshell

Transfer Corp has cornered the market on guilt… not by making other people feel it – but by feeling it for them. Oh, and they charge a hefty price to do so. But why stop there? Their research and development department has learned how to transfer all kinds of negative emotions, and is reaping a financial windfall. But what about the poor employees who are the ones that actually feel that pain for the clients? Well, it’s not pretty, or fun, but most of them find ways to deal with it. But one employee finds out that everyone has their limits, and sometimes there is an unexpected reward – and that makes everything better. Aw… how sweet! Or is it?

My Two Cents…

• So, my favorite part of this story was the very cool idea of transferring negative emotions – and how businesses capitalized on that. Very intriguing.
• But a close second was the amazing writing skills of Charles Yu. Wow – this story was told well and that made it very easy (and fun) to read. Bravo!
• Honestly, the only thing I didn’t like about this story was that it ended too soon. I wanted to learn more about this sadistic industry, and felt that the author kind of cut it off too soon. Oh well, I guess that is part of what makes this such a savory sweet story.

Interesting Tidbits:

• Page Count: 14
• Word Count: 7,034
• Did you know that Charles Yu was selected by the National Book Foundation as one of its “5 Under 35″ authors for 2007? Yep. You can learn more about this talented author at Wikipedia.
• Special thanks to Free SF Reader for pointing me towards this great story.
• If you enjoyed this story be sure to check out Charles Yu’s story collection Third Class Superhero.

Where You Can Find Standard Loneliness Package:

• This short story first appeared in the November 2010 edition of Lightspeed – where you can still read (or listen to) it for free.

Craving More Science Fiction Short Stories?

So you like stories about people who charge hefty prices to carry other people’s burdens do you? Well then be sure to check out Johnny Mnemonic by William Gibson – about a guy with sensitive information implanted in his head, who is running from a Yakuza hit man.