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table process. process. table can be exhilarating as well as frustrating. It It frustrating. as well as exhilarating be can

Cont. on p. 2 p. on Cont.

- inevi accumulative, simple a is knowledge basic underlying assumptions, an effect that that effect an assumptions, underlying basic

jecting the “progress” narrative that assumes assumes that narrative “progress” the jecting of making me excavate and even question my my question even and excavate me making of

- re for basis theoretical a provided argument ing my thinking has had the salutary effect effect salutary the had has thinking my ing

irrational farrago of superstitions. Foucault’s Foucault’s superstitions. of farrago irrational - reconfigur of process recurrent The erything.

havior that had been previously taken for an an for taken previously been had that havior - ev almost re-think to necessary it made has

- be and ideas medieval late in logic the for has occurred since my intellectual formation formation intellectual my since occurred has

ollowing the example of my advisor, I looked looked I advisor, my of example the ollowing F 3 shift.”) For someone like me, each shift that that shift each me, like someone For shift.”)

egories of thought that constitute such shifts. such constitute that thought of egories in disciplines, it’s often called a “paradigm “paradigm a called often it’s disciplines, in

- cat and language altered newly the into late” - with occurs this (When reality. consensual

- “trans to impossible it found I that insights thus our shared store of ideas shaping our our shaping ideas of store shared our thus

also has frequently meant losing hard-won hard-won losing meant frequently has also vocabulary, and sometimes even syntax) and and syntax) even sometimes and vocabulary,

ruptive, altering language (most obviously obviously (most language altering ruptive, the vantage point of 2019, I now view view now I 2019, of point vantage the

- dis are they but “bad,” or “good” necessarily

previously understood as political. From From political. as understood previously

knowledge practices. Epistemic shifts aren’t aren’t shifts Epistemic practices. knowledge

of processes and structures that had been been had that structures and processes of

y refers to ways of knowing and and knowing of ways to refers y Epistemolog 2

most prominently by the depoliticization depoliticization the by prominently most Krasnostein. Krasnostein.

neath us. For me, this was characterized characterized was this me, For us. neath (2015), eds. Alexandra Pierce and Alisa Alisa and Pierce Alexandra eds. (2015), tree

- Tip to Letters Press’s Planet Twelfth in found - be jolted had knowledge and truth of

ice Sheldon. Both of my letters to her can be be can her to letters my of Both Sheldon. ice

ings of words, but that the very ground ground very the that but words, of ings

- Al to letter second my in this about rote w I 1

- mean altered of matter a simply wasn’t

seven decades of life. of decades seven I first encountered encountered first I

Only later did I perceive that that shift shift that that perceive I did later Only

2

enced during the course of my nearly nearly my of course the during enced

me, went back to the drawing board. board. drawing the to back went me,

- experi myself have I those of couple a

that mattered to them, while others, like like others, while them, to mattered that

epistemic breaks and shifts, particularly particularly shifts, and breaks epistemic

understood as political. as understood people gave up trying to talk about things things about talk to trying up gave people

In that same essay I wrote about about wrote I essay same that In that had been previously previously been had that

we had been stripped of our voices; some some voices; our of stripped been had we

seems to portend cataclysmic failure. failure. cataclysmic portend to seems processes and structures structures and processes

of such magnitude that many of us felt felt us of many that magnitude such of

tory actually is actually tory this cascade of events events of cascade this — the depoliticization of of depoliticization the

that we had undergone a discursive shift shift discursive a undergone had we that

- his unpredictable how just forget I is, most prominently by by prominently most

1 In early 1991 it had dawned on me me on dawned had it 1991 early In

this was characterized characterized was this a cascading series. At times At series. cascading a when, that that when, —

US in my lifetime. my in US

our voices;…. For me, me, For voices;…. our i the early days of 2019, to be instances in in instances be to 2019, of days early the

about shifts that had taken place in the the in place taken had that shifts about

had been stripped of of stripped been had events of 2016. Those events appear, in in appear, events Those 2016. of events

Barker’s book in turn helped me think think me helped turn in book Barker’s

that many of us felt we we felt us of many that of years before the cataclysmic political political cataclysmic the before years of

ing on the de-realization of the body. body. the of de-realization the on ing shift of such magnitude magnitude such of shift

I delivered that conclusion a couple couple a conclusion that delivered I

had undergone a discursive discursive a undergone had - focus England, seventeenth-century in

89) 89) Tiptree,

dawned on me that we we that me on dawned at the epistemological shift that occurred occurred that shift epistemological the at

Letters to to Letters ( it.” of part being of illusion the

In early 1991 it had had it 1991 early In which looks looks which Body, Private Tremulous The

inevitably fall too far behind to have even even have to behind far too fall inevitably

the shift). Later, I read Francis Barker’s Barker’s Francis read I Later, shift). the toll, I know that if I live long enough, I’ll I’ll enough, long live I if that know I toll,

rope (rather than being one aspect of of aspect one being than (rather

change with the world, but as age takes its its takes age as but world, the with change

3

- Eu Western throughout changes such I wrote gloomily, “I consciously strive to to strive consciously “I gloomily, wrote I

scientific revolution was responsible for for responsible was revolution scientific increasingly out of synch. “These days,” days,” “These synch. of out increasingly

ing rational thinking into the world, the the world, the into thinking rational ing around him, falling, over the centuries, centuries, the over falling, him, around

torians typically assumed that by bring by that assumed typically torians - than glacial pace in relation to the world world the to relation in pace glacial than

area of French life. Before Foucault, his Foucault, Before life. French of area - accident, moves in his space suit at a less less a at suit space his in moves accident,

Foucault describes swept through every every through swept describes Foucault John Delgano, caught up in a time-travel time-travel a in up caught Delgano, John

reality but also of knowledge itself that that itself knowledge of also but reality

a new meaning for me. for meaning new a In that story, one one story, that In

1

underlying logic of not just political political just not of logic underlying lized by a Tiptree story that suddenly held held suddenly that story Tiptree a by lized

enteenth century. The change, in the the in change, The century. enteenth world around me. That sense was crystal was sense That me. around world -

century with such a list from the sev the from list a such with century - rible sense of falling out of synch with the the with synch of out falling of sense rible

categorized together in the sixteenth sixteenth the in together categorized A few years back, I suffered from a ter a from suffered I back, years few A -

the idea by contrasting a list of things things of list a contrasting by idea the Bruno Latour Bruno —

, which illuminated illuminated which , Things of Order The leads to epistemological delirium. epistemological to leads

the 1970s, reading Michel Foucault’s Foucault’s Michel reading 1970s, the The abandonment of a common world world common a of abandonment The

the notion of epistemic shift back in in back shift epistemic of notion the

y L. Timmel Duchamp Timmel L. y b

Clarification of Year A 2018: y Clarification this shift as the finalization, as it were, of hasn’t-yet-happened is the soil in which (cont. from p. 1) neoliberalism’s stamp on our shared re- we can root our efforts to create another ality: the very logic of our thinking and world than the one mainstream dis- political grammar had altered irrevoca- course assumes is the only one possible. bly. Though this shift unfolded over the If the events of 2016 had indeed been course of the 1980s, I experienced it as a the beginning of an epistemic shift, the shocking rupture. hope that drives radical resistance (i.e., Interestingly, I have come to think not the “resistance” now being claimed that 2016 did not mark such a rupture. by the DNC) to Trump and everything This conclusion gives me heart, first be- he represents would have grown increas- I believe that we may be cause such ruptures are impossible to ingly tenuous and to a certain degree moving toward a shift in the ways in which we avert and can never be reversed, second impossible, given that such ruptures usu- think about what the because it allows me to escape the help- ally re-form language and other forms world and life itself is. less sense of being caught up in a cascade of communication in such a way as to More bluntly, I believe that failure, and finally because I believe that demand new figurations of resistance. I the survival of our species we may be moving toward a shift in the don’t mean to suggest that new figura- depends on our making ways in which we think about what the tions are necessarily a bad thing; but such such a shift…. world and life itself is. More bluntly, I a demand can wrong-foot and derail even believe that the survival of our species massively supported struggles. Stuart Hall depends on our making such a shift, and describes such an instance in his account thus if I am to imagine a human future of the miner’s strike against Thatcherism at all, I must be hopeful about the pros- in the UK, massively supported across pects of such a change. multiple political lines, “which was fought Bruno Latour astutely insists that the and lost, imprisoned in the categories and 6 prominent events of 2016 are expres- strategies of the past.” sions not of a “rise of populism,” but, The difficulties many of us had ar- rather, of “the panicky desire to return to ticulating dissenting views following the H 7 the old protections of the nation-state,” rupture of 1990/1991 instilled in me a 2 a desire most news media have refused chilling sense of how this would work. to acknowledge much less examine.4 But here at the beginning of 2019, I feel Many people, though, have become anx- confident that although many things ious that these events were the leading have changed in the last two years, the edge of such a shift, heralding the de- conceptual tools we already have for act- struction of our most cherished demo- strategy. I suppose this is partly because US cratic institutions and the advent of a elites have had very little exposure to history, culture in which the powerful are no and partly because most US elites think that any attention to epistemology is boring and longer compelled to pay even lip service impractical. For more on how “fact-checking” I feel confident that to the rule of law.5 For me, this particular although many things is a losing political strategy, see Emmett Ren- have changed in the last 4 Bruno Latour, Down to Earth: Politics in the sin “The Blathering Superego,” Los Angeles New Climatic Regime. Review of Books, June 18, 2017. two years, the conceptual 5 An index of this fear is the way in which pro- 6 Stuart Hall, Hard Road to Renewal, p. 2015. tools we already have for fessionals in the mainstream media constantly This epistemic shift took place in the UK in acting in the world don’t express anxiety about speech in a “post-truth” advance of the one that struck the US a few all need to be discarded or world and their permanent sense of being un- years later. reinvented. der attack by a rival they can’t seem to over- 7 I spell out some of this in my second letter to come in the form of “fake news.” (For myself, Tiptree (and hope to write about this prob- I’m constantly struck by the irony of their lem more extensively in future essays). More outrage as I recollect how continually venues than a quarter-century on, this shift appears like The New York Times distorted and mis- to me to be an unconscious, wholesale adop- represented the “facts” in their 1980s cover- tion of the logic of neoliberalism in combi- age of Central America, which usually came nation with the trickling down of concepts from US embassy “sources” rather than from drawn from postmodern theory. Many of the investigative reporting.) Mainstream media words that changed meaning or were no lon- professionals (as well as the Hillary Clinton ger available for either academic or ordinary

wing of the Democratic Party) continue to discourse dismissed the importance (or even

imagine that the tactic of “fact-checking” existence) of community in favor of individu- should be (even if it isn’t actually) a winning al agency and responsibility. n

n

Yale University Press, 2017. Press, University Yale Protest, given at the University of London, available available London, of University the at given

Cont. on p. 4 p. on Cont.

Gas: The Power and Fragility of Networked Networked of Fragility and Power The Gas: “Expulsions: A category for our age” (a talk talk (a age” our for category A “Expulsions:

Twitter and Tear Tear and Twitter Tufekci, Zeynep see sword, and Saskia Sassen, Sassen, Saskia and Trump; Donald of Election

or more on social media as a double-edged double-edged a as media social on more or F 8 Insider Story of Putin’s War on America and the the and America on War Putin’s of Story Insider

Russian Roulette: The The Roulette: Russian Corn, David and Isikoff people, as though the only real problem problem real only the though as people,

; Michael Michael ; Politics American of History Hidden

of dissent confuses the issue for a lot of of lot a for issue the confuses dissent of

The Politicians and Egalitarians: The The Egalitarians: and Politicians The Willentz,

Trump. But such a variety of expressions expressions of variety a such But Trump.

; Sean Sean ; Possibility Queer and Fiction Speculative

publican speakers raise their voices against against voices their raise speakers publican

Old Futures: Futures: Old Lothian, Alexis ; Relativity Social

- Re long-time when triumph and relief The General Theory of of Theory General The Drucker, Johanna tance”;

against all things Trump. Trump. things all against

- Resis the of Books “Tiny Smith, Greenwald Trump. I often encounter expressions of of expressions encounter often I Trump.

bedfellows speaking out out speaking bedfellows

; Rachel Rachel ; Essays) (and Crises American Names: fellows speaking out against all things things all against out speaking fellows

unites all the strange strange the all unites Call Them by Their True True Their by Them Call Solnit, Rebecca ; Truth

- bed strange the all unites values of set

Post- McIntyre, Lee ; Crudo Laing, Olivia pia”; fundamental set of values values of set fundamental

scribed purview, as though a fundamental fundamental a though as purview, scribed

- Uto American “An Jameson, Frederic ; Truth

purview, as though a a though as purview,

- circum tightly own its within Trump to

The Death of of Death The Kakutani, Mari ; Politics on speare tightly circumscribed circumscribed tightly

mainstream media to subsume resistance resistance subsume to media mainstream - Shake Tyrant: Greenblatt, Stephen ; Regime

to Trump within its own own its within Trump to

Down to Earth: Politics in the New Climatic Climatic New the in Politics Earth: to Down tor so far has been the tendency of the the of tendency the been has far so tor

to subsume resistance resistance subsume to

; Bruno Latour, Latour, Bruno ; Crashed Tooze, Adam ; ifesto

- fac complicating trickiest the me, For

of the mainstream media media mainstream the of

- Man A Power: and Women Beard, Mary tory”;

“real” or not. not. or “real”

has been the tendency tendency the been has

- His of End the at Superego Blathering “The

a single-question issue, viz., whether it is is it whether viz., issue, single-question a complicating factor so far far so factor complicating

; Emmett Rensin, Rensin, Emmett ; Trump of Age the in Class and

ing” story after years of positioning it as as it positioning of years after story ing”

For me, the trickiest trickiest the me, For Mistaken Identity: Race Race Identity: Mistaken Haider, Asad order:

- warm “global the toward attitude their e are some of the titles, in no particular particular no in titles, the of some are e Her 10

necessary choice. necessary mainstream media seem to be changing changing be to seem media mainstream

tween Trump and Clinton, Clinton was the the was Clinton Clinton, and Trump tween ing the world are on the move. Even the the Even move. the on are world the ing

- be choice the given that Chomsky Noam

- know of ways our that me to suggests

hich is not to say that I don’t agree with with agree don’t I that say to not is hich W 9

ing new conceptual frameworks, which which frameworks, conceptual new ing

happened to seize my attention. my seize to happened The The

- invent been have change severe rapid, 10

unevenness in quality of the books that that books the of quality in unevenness

3 the terrestrial sphere as it undergoes undergoes it as sphere terrestrial the

the heterogeneity in subject matter and and matter subject in heterogeneity the

of understanding humans’ relation to to relation humans’ understanding of

i

but I eventually dropped this due to to due this dropped eventually I but

cultural theorists tackling the difficulty difficulty the tackling theorists cultural

writing a review essay on such readings, readings, such on essay review a writing

Scientists, science studies theorists, and and theorists, studies science Scientists,

months I entertained the intention of of intention the entertained I months

cultural channels of communication. of channels cultural

8 thropogenic climate change). For a few few a For change). climate thropogenic

lessly muted by mainstream political and and political mainstream by muted lessly

- an of awareness rising the and ology,

- effort be to used what amplify to used

- ide and language Supremacist White

impossible scale, but they are also being being also are they but scale, impossible

such as #MeToo, the amplification of of amplification the #MeToo, as such manipulate individuals on a previously previously a on individuals manipulate

acknowledgment (among other factors, factors, other (among acknowledgment media have been and are being used to to used being are and been have media

before publication as a factor needing needing factor a as publication before different sort of political change. Social Social change. political of sort different

stream media in the US, or reframed reframed or US, the in media stream but could, in fact, be accompanied by a a by accompanied be fact, in could, but

change.

become a dominant obsession of main of obsession dominant a become -

dination to our current political regimes regimes political current our to dination

different sort of political political of sort different

spectacle of authoritarianism that had had that authoritarianism of spectacle

next shift won’t necessarily entail subor entail necessarily won’t shift next -

be accompanied by a a by accompanied be

ther written in direct response to the the to response direct in written ther This actually suggests to me that the the that me to suggests actually This

but could, in fact, fact, in could, but

- ei essays and books be would year the livered the triumph of neoliberalism. neoliberalism. of triumph the livered

current political regimes regimes political current

that a good chunk of my reading for for reading my of chunk good a that

- de that regimes political the to 1980s the subordination to our our to subordination

About halfway into 2018, I realized realized I 2018, into halfway About

better represented than was resistance in in resistance was than represented better necessarily entail entail necessarily

and cultural regime is far broader and and broader far is regime cultural and

…the next shift won’t won’t shift next …the

.>

will be cleared away in the coming year. year. coming the in away cleared be will I sense that resistance to a new political political new a to resistance that sense I

elections, I’m hopeful that this confusion confusion this that hopeful I’m elections, Yes, such a shift might still happen, but but happen, still might shift a such Yes,

given the outcome of the 2018 midterm midterm 2018 the of outcome the given common modes of speech and citation. citation. and speech of modes common

ing assumptions about the world. the about assumptions ing Still, Still, of resistant thinking out of synch with with synch of out thinking resistant of

9

- underly and for aims ultimate same the that we suddenly find all current modes modes current all find suddenly we that

“moderate” Republicans share many of of many share Republicans “moderate” that things haven’t changed so drastically drastically so changed haven’t things that

ful truth that “centrist” Democrats and and Democrats “centrist” that truth ful serious thinking and rethinking: it’s just just it’s rethinking: and thinking serious

calizations simply underscore the pain the underscore simply calizations - course, that the moment doesn’t demand demand doesn’t moment the that course,

For me, though, such mainstream vo mainstream such though, me, For - carded or reinvented. This is not to say, of of say, to not is This reinvented. or carded

ing in the world don’t all need to be dis be to need all don’t world the in ing - we face is the spectacle of Trump itself. itself. Trump of spectacle the is face we Clarification sheer scope and quantity of such titles litical reality to the flattest form of soap (cont. from p. 3) were far beyond my ability to sample by opera). Rather than I, it’s now the main- myself (much less amass a comprehen- stream news media that is looking to me sive list of and recruit others to read and like Tiptree’s John Delgano, more clearly review them). In addition to my reading, than ever out of synch with the living, I listened to hundreds of podcasts from moving world. a wide range of sources (too many, in Another, possibly complementary, ex- fact, to list): political, cultural (in which I planation is that the vote for Brexit and include the subcategory of literary), and its continuing aftermath as well as the …mainstream insistence academic. I should perhaps also mention 2016 presidential election (including on upholding neoliberalist that although I read some “news” online, its candidates’ campaigns) have made it policies for managing the this year I avoided television coverage of starkly apparent that mainstream insis- ongoing global disaster, any kind (except for an occasional item tence on upholding neoliberalist policies which these same policies on PBS’s News Hour that Tom brought for managing the ongoing global disaster, have accelerated, is to my attention); it may well be that ca- which these same policies have accelerat- leading everyone who lacks ble news shows may have changed over ed, is leading everyone who lacks billion- billionaire status, little the past year. And of course I continued aire status, little by little, into a precarious by little, into a precarious state. Since precarity, for Western nations, state. to read pre-2016 work that helped me think my way through the year. had previously been confined largely to I make a point here of the volume and what used to be called the “underclasses,” variety of materials I took in over the this is a shocking development for previ- year in order to dismiss the conclusion ously comfortable white people, now just that my past sense of confusion came one serious illness away from personal from too great a profusion of inputs. bankruptcy and homelessness. (Media overload, after all, is the most In short, my sense of being out-of- common explanation for the anxiety synch dropped away when I realized that the sense of confusion about Big Data H plaguing most people in the US.) Re- calling my 2015 discussion of Tiptree’s (aka “weapons of math destruction”) and 4 “The Man Who Walked Home,” I had social media I’d been struggling with were to wonder why I no longer feel out of simply details (albeit important ones) in synch with the world as I know it. Well, the larger problem confronting us. I had I have at least two theories about that. been mistaking the various spheres of so- One theory is that the mainstream cial media and the machinations of Big media has become suspended in a mo- Data for the world, which they are not. As events of the last year have demonstrated, ment of time it doesn’t know how to Climate change is not 11 the most threatening face of our ongoing break out of : its obsession with the something that is world disaster is climate change and the spectacle of Trump and its accompa- simply happening to concomitant increase in the expanses of nying specter of authoritarianism has us; it is, rather, an on- dead zones on land and sea, which con- it mesmerized (and its audiences, too, going accumulation of tinuously generate wave upon wave of tuned as we are to the 24/7 news cycle deliberate choices silently distress. Climate change is not something accompanying every land- blasting out its continual proclamations that is simply happening to us; it is, rath- use deal, every policy of “breaking news” that usually amount er, an on-going accumulation of deliber- of “deregulation” that to endless gossip fests that reduce po- is imposed, and every ate choices silently accompanying every on YouTube). land-use deal, every policy of “deregula- policy assigning resource 11 I tend to see the mainstream media as sus- allocation to corporate pended in time because their allegiance to tion” that is imposed, and every policy as- interests. neoliberal ideology makes it impossible for signing resource allocation to corporate them to look past the spectacle. For them, interests. Such decisions and policies are Trump is an outrage to neoliberal notions of usually made in the name of Progress, and normality, which a lot of people in the West they make up a constellation of policies still assume is the only rational way of view- that merely “believing in” climate change ing the world and conducting business. This ideological framework, I think, is what makes will not alter a jot. Our politicians can do

most narratives about “Trump voters” (and, in little to mitigate climate change without the UK, pro-Brexit voters) so simplistic and first learning a different way of conceptu-

stereotype-based. alizing the world, private property, health, n

n

Two of the books I read in 2018 reflect reflect 2018 in read I books the of Two

struction of Iraq. Iraq. of struction

Cont. on p. 6 p. on Cont.

- de US’s the justify to used Bush W. George rounding the expression “fake news.” news.” “fake expression the rounding

star reporters helped fabricate evidence evidence fabricate helped reporters star Times’ - sur issues the all and “Truth” on attack

The New York York New The of one example, one just take o T 12

media became obsessed with Trump’s Trump’s with obsessed became media

difference to “truth” that we did not need need not did we that “truth” to difference

After the election, the mainstream mainstream the election, the After

- in clear such with and frequency such indifference to facts. facts. to indifference

porations and government officials, with with officials, government and porations by heaping scorn on supporters for their their for supporters on scorn heaping by

- cor by as well as US, the by deployed thing. The mainstream media responded responded media mainstream The thing.

as “facts” by all of the systems of “justice” “justice” of systems the of all by “facts” as law, be enough to damn him. No such such No him. damn to enough be law,

standings of evidence are often presented presented often are evidence of standings

onstrations of misogyny and scorn for for scorn and misogyny of onstrations

officials….

- misunder or fabrications Whole-cloth

- dem many his of exposure like would,

and government government and

in isolation from other facts, “the truth.” truth.” “the facts, other from isolation in

tions as “facts,” or “changed his story,” story,” his “changed or “facts,” as tions

well as by corporations corporations by as well

resent reality. A fact is true, but it isn’t, isn’t, it but true, is fact A reality. resent

- inven whole-cloth presented Trump

deployed by the US, as as US, the by deployed

- rep to picture a into assembled data of

that revelations of how many times times many how of revelations that

of the systems of “justice” “justice” of systems the of

sarily “objective truth.” “Facts” are points points are “Facts” truth.” “objective sarily campaign, many people seemed to think think to seemed people many campaign,

presented as “facts” by all all by “facts” as presented

- neces not is result the statement, public

During the final stages of the 2016 2016 the of stages final the During

of evidence are often often are evidence of

form the basis of a report, speech, or or speech, report, a of basis the form

the usual two poles of “truth.” “truth.” of poles two usual the or misunderstandings misunderstandings or

has long been famous for doing) doing) for famous been long has Yorker

ity lies in splitting the difference between between difference the splitting in lies ity Whole-cloth fabrications fabrications Whole-cloth

The New New The which “fact-checked,” been have - objectiv that claiming continue to media

sible.) Even when “facts” (i.e., details that that details (i.e., “facts” when Even sible.) become impossible for the mainstream mainstream the for impossible become

- respon fact in was , Diaries Turner acist sible to present as coherent. And so it’s it’s so And coherent. as present to sible

- suprem white the by inspired McVeigh, - impos thus is and consistent, plausibly

carried out that terrorist attack. (Timothy (Timothy attack. terrorist that out carried reality is morally ugly; it’s also that it isn’t isn’t it that also it’s ugly; morally is reality

nouncement that Islamic terrorists had had terrorists Islamic that nouncement do it, and failed. It is not just that Trump’s Trump’s that just not is It failed. and it, do

- an the with opened reports news ning secretary tied himself into knots trying to to trying knots into himself tied secretary

- eve network the of one bombing, City false they may have been). His first press press first His been). have may they false

5 member how, the day of the Oklahoma Oklahoma the of day the how, member ances seriously, however ill-informed and and ill-informed however seriously, ances

- re still can I “facts”). even (or “truth”

- utter administrations’ other taken ways i

“News” has never been a synonym for for synonym a been never has “News” - al have media mainstream the way the

What is wrong with this picture? picture? this with wrong is What both truthful and made in good faith (in (in faith good in made and truthful both

become the great champion of Truth. Truth. of champion great the become it difficult to take Trump’s utterances as as utterances Trump’s take to difficult it

newspapers and cable news shows have have shows news cable and newspapers reporters, editors, and pundits have found found have pundits and editors, reporters,

by politicians and government officials, officials, government and politicians by spanner into this mechanism, for most most for mechanism, this into spanner

uncritically repeating untruths spoken spoken untruths repeating uncritically The Trump presidency has thrown a a thrown has presidency Trump The

time. But now, suddenly, after years of of years after suddenly, now, But with the major parties. parties. major the with

12

glean how they were being spun at the the at spun being were they how glean are unlikely to receive political traction traction political receive to unlikely are

newspaper’s coverage of them, except to to except them, of coverage newspaper’s by the mainstream media at all, and thus thus and all, at media mainstream the by

an historical account of events on that that on events of account historical an important issues cannot be articulated articulated be cannot issues important

rian who cared about “truth” would base base would “truth” about cared who rian has meant that many of our day’s most most day’s our of many that meant has

the great defender of truth. No histo No truth. of defender great the -

est campaign donors. This positioning positioning This donors. campaign est mainstream media at all.… at media mainstream

being held up as as up held being Times York New The see - larg the by supported not position any be articulated by the the by articulated be

“truth” got underway. I was bemused to to bemused was I underway. got “truth” to the right, poles that have excluded excluded have that poles right, the to important issues cannot cannot issues important

“truth,” and numerous books defending defending books numerous and “truth,” that have since 1980 moved continually continually moved 1980 since have that …many of our day’s most most day’s our of …many

mainstream media’s role in maintaining maintaining in role media’s mainstream and DNC leadership respectively, poles poles respectively, leadership DNC and

became the posterchild for the the for posterchild the became Times poles determined by the GOP GOP the by determined poles — issue

The New York York New The charts, bestseller the hit center between two extreme poles of any any of poles extreme two between center

Shortly after the election, Orwell’s Orwell’s election, the after Shortly 1984 1984 means always positioning itself as the the as itself positioning always means

that “truth” is now under unique attack. attack. unique under now is “truth” that philosophical premise that “objectivity” “objectivity” that premise philosophical

tion of our democratic institutions, and and institutions, democratic our of tion to its stubborn adherence to the anti- the to adherence stubborn its to

books insist that “truth” is the founda the is “truth” that insist books - change is whether or not it is “real” due due “real” is it not or whether is change

“facts” was dishonest partisanship. Both Both partisanship. dishonest was “facts” tion that can be posed about climate climate about posed be can that tion

was “true” and that any challenge to their their to challenge any that and “true” was that the only politically valid ques valid politically only the that -

tence that it had a right to decide what what decide to right a had it that tence The mainstream media long insisted insisted long media mainstream The

sponse to the Trump presidency’s insis presidency’s Trump the to sponse - concepts like “agency” and “nature.” “nature.” and “agency” like concepts

and safety, thus scrapping misleading misleading scrapping thus safety, and - re panicked media’s mainstream the Clarification Foucault to teach us about the politici- the mechanism of splitting the difference (cont. from p. 5) zation of knowledge. (Both books ad- has become impossible. dressing the assault on truth that I read I began by saying that I was feeling this year blamed the postmodernists for hopeful precisely because Brexit, the rise leading us astray.) of authoritarian leaders in Eastern Eu- Our epistemological Over the course of 2018 I gradually rope and elsewhere, and the election of commons is up for grabs, came realize that truth, “objective” or Trump have not yet resulted in an epis- folks. We just have to otherwise, is no more in danger than it temic shift in the US. Such a shift would, stop assuming that when I think, already have happened had the people who were previously ever has been. While I prefer the DNC’s mainstream media not found Trump’s on opposite sides of the representation of reality to Trump’s, and political spectrum are while the DNC employs more verifi- representation of reality a step too far in singing the same hymn, able “facts” in its representation than maintaining its balancing act. Instead, a we have no choice but to does Trump (whose supposed “facts” can system that previously did its best to as- sing along with them. change from hour to hour), I still find it sume that the view from nowhere (i.e., wrong, wrong, wrong because of all the a privileged white view that dispenses facts that it omits. More interesting to with facts too inconvenient to be part of me is that the right wing’s penchant for any mainstream version of reality) was invention (and anyone my age knows actually objectively True has developed that the only rival, before Trump, to a crack. This in turn presents us with an Ronald Reagan’s habit of invention was opportunity to introduce some of those inconvenient facts into public discourse. L. Timmel Duchamp George W. Bush) has finally gone too far to be assimilated into the mainstream Our epistemological commons is up is the author of the for grabs, folks. We just have to stop as- Marq’ssan Cycle, Love’s media’s mechanism for determining its suming that when people who were pre- Body, Dancing in Time, own objectivity. Bruno Latour argues and Never at Home. Her that Trump supporters have gone off the viously on opposite sides of the political latest novel, Chercher La map, that Trump is an “out of this world spectrum are singing the same hymn, we have no choice but to sing along H Femme, was published in attractor.” Trump’s habitual disregard of 2018. inconvenient facts is so lavish and is ac- with them. Me, I’d be happy to kick that 6 companied by such constant attacks on hymn book into the fire and learn a new the mainstream media (unlike, say, Paul tune with some gutsy, liberating lyrics. Ryan’s habitual disregard of them) that y Astrolabe by Raquel Castro, translated by Lawrence Schimel

in memory of Jean Ray by a few hours or a few weeks (or even The ship needs to be ready to leave: years!) with the obvious consequences. all sailors on deck, sails at the ready, lads I studied countless old books, navi- poised to raise the anchor. Sometimes gational maps, and the ship’s logs of re- days and days go by of being in readiness tired or deceased captains before I was like that, alert; sometimes, the crew de- quite sure. My researches had made me spairs and gets drunk or gets distracted think that I could never make the trip or falls asleep or kills the captain, as a in this lifetime: I needed a measuring result of which the opportunity for the instrument that not just anyone might journey is forever lost. But that is as attain. Without revealing my intentions, important as choosing each sailor well I spoke of it with the oldest men of the and keeping the alcohol well-hidden, to port, but none of them had seen what I bring out only when it’s truly needed. described to them. Meanwhile, anxiety That’s why it’s also necessary to have began to gnaw at me from within: ac- perfectly understood each of the instruc- cording to my calculations there were

tions and to have made each calculation only a few weeks left in which to have

with precision: otherwise, one might err everything ready. n

n

veled at the perfection of the astrolabe. astrolabe. the of perfection the at veled writer Juan Villoro. Juan writer

- mar and box the opened I Instead, by Mexican Mexican by Book Wild The

Mira de Echeverría, and and Echeverría, de Mira one might later repent having spoken. spoken. having repent later might one

Argentine writer Teresa P. P. Teresa writer Argentine the best way to not say something that that something say not to way best the

by by Memory Robles, I avoided speaking immediately. It’s It’s immediately. speaking avoided I

by Spanish writer Lola Lola writer Spanish by ing with you.” with ing

an Interstellar Linguist Linguist Interstellar an

- go am I this: is price My no. and “Yes

Monteverde: Memoirs of of Memoirs Monteverde:

without even knowing me?” knowing even without

book translations include include translations book

bring with me? You’re going to trust me, me, trust to going You’re me? with bring

in Madrid. Recent genre genre Recent Madrid. in

“You’re going to give me a treasure to to treasure a me give to going “You’re

literary translator based based translator literary

True House of Wisdom of al-Mamun.” of Wisdom of House True English) author and and author English)

it’s time for the treasure to return to the the to return to treasure the for time it’s And we set sail. set we And a bilingual (Spanish/ bilingual a

his to keep. Now he has died as well, and and well, as died has he Now keep. to his like at the end of the journey. the of end the at like Lawrence Schimel is is Schimel Lawrence

board, and his foreman kept what wasn’t wasn’t what kept foreman his and board, I asked myself what she would look look would she what myself asked I

before on land or sea. or land on before - over him threw They home. way his on

lovelier than anything I had ever seen seen ever had I anything than lovelier turned with a treasure and was betrayed betrayed was and treasure a with turned

by the wind, she was now young again, again, young now was she wind, the by - re memory, his bless husband, “My

minated by the rays of that star, caressed caressed star, that of rays the by minated mistrusting.

- illu her: at right stared and moment a band?” I asked, suddenly nervous and and nervous suddenly asked, I band?”

I glanced away from the astrolabe for for astrolabe the from away glanced I - hus your from it steal you “Did

“I am,” she answered with a smile. a with answered she am,” “I

you’re looking for.” looking you’re ). ). Dead

thing I could ask. could I thing “My husband used it to find what what find to it used husband “My Feast of the the of Feast ( Muertos de

“What is the treasure?” was the only only the was treasure?” the is “What Festín Festín Villegas, Rafael “But...how?”

conversation. zombie stories with with stories zombie She nodded her head. her nodded She

I forced myself to speak, just to make make to just speak, to myself forced I an anthology of Mexican Mexican of anthology an “It’s from Nastulus?” I asked. I Nastulus?” from “It’s

and recently co-edited co-edited recently and I saw the woman, standing on the deck. deck. the on standing woman, the saw I

thousand years. thousand

7

) ) Shadows of Full Eyes ( tions. Then, out of the corner of my eye, eye, my of corner the of out Then, tions.

No one had seen that emblem in a a in emblem that seen had one No

Sombras de Llenos Ojos - calcula my began and hands my in

i

the silhouette of what could be a palace. a be could what of silhouette the

for her YA horror novel novel horror YA her for the same moment I held the astrolabe astrolabe the held I moment same the

star above the ship and, on the horizon, horizon, the on and, ship the above star

Premio Aguilar in 2012 2012 in Aguilar Premio

place. I gave the order for departure at at departure for order the gave I place.

books: a ship sailing on an ocean, a single single a ocean, an on sailing ship a books:

and adults. She won the the won She adults. and

of the sky, as if that had always been its its been always had that if as sky, the of

an engraving spoken of in many secret secret many in of spoken engraving an

author for both children children both for author

any other star, there it was, in the middle middle the in was, it there star, other any

the box between my hands. The lid bore bore lid The hands. my between box the

award-winning Mexican Mexican award-winning

It happened suddenly: brighter than than brighter suddenly: happened It

recovered my composure and picked up up picked and composure my recovered

Raquel Castro is an an is Castro Raquel

vain,” she repeated to me. to repeated she vain,”

giving me orders. So, with an effort, I I effort, an with So, orders. me giving

than a few minutes, everything will be in in be will everything minutes, few a than

en talking to me, and even less to their their to less even and me, to talking en

order our departure. If we dally more more dally we If departure. our order

- wom to used not I’m blushed: I Perhaps

use the astrolabe and, at the same time, time, same the at and, astrolabe the use

was at the same time sharp and sweet. sweet. and sharp time same the at was

“As soon as you see the star you must must you star the see you as soon “As

time,” she insisted, with that voice which which voice that with insisted, she time,”

and never on any regular cycle. regular any on never and

“Don’t get distracted, we haven’t much much haven’t we distracted, get “Don’t

sphere once every seventy years or more, more, or years seventy every once sphere

its perfumed scent. perfumed its

the star that only crosses the celestial celestial the crosses only that star the

pressed flower in the book still retained retained still book the in flower pressed

stant at which that slippery star appears, appears, star slippery that which at stant

younger than she was. It was as if the the if as was It was. she than younger

wait, looking at the sky for the precise in precise the for sky the at looking wait, -

I was surprised that her voice was much much was voice her that surprised was I

dening to anyone is sitting in the keel to to keel the in sitting is anyone to dening

we can come to an agreement,” she said. said. she agreement,” an to come can we

are more or less loyal. What can be mad be can What loyal. less or more are -

“I heard you’re looking for this. I think think I this. for looking you’re heard “I

finding provisions nor enlisting men who who men enlisting nor provisions finding

box on the table. It looked ancient. looked It table. the on box

the details. The most difficult part is not not is part difficult most The details. the

could say anything, she placed a wooden wooden a placed she anything, say could

We spent the next days refining all all refining days next the spent We

in front of me, at the tavern. Before I I Before tavern. the at me, of front in

á

book. Before I could react, she sat down down sat she react, could I Before book. my desire spoke for me. for spoke desire my

that lovers press between the pages of a a of pages the between press lovers that insisted, almost an entreaty. I nodded: nodded: I entreaty. an almost insisted,

reminded me of a dried flower, the kind kind the flower, dried a of me reminded and his maps. I can be very useful,” she she useful,” very be can I maps. his and

if she had once been very beautiful: she she beautiful: very been once had she if “In addition, I have his calculations calculations his have I addition, “In

was visited by a woman who looked as as looked who woman a by visited was hands. I felt like weeping. like felt I hands.

I was about to concede defeat when I I when defeat concede to about was I More than a thousand years rested in my my in rested years thousand a than More y “i delight in what i fear” Shirley Jackson’s We Have Always Lived in the Castle reviewed by Andy Duncan

Here are the two best arguments I can make for reading Shirley Jackson’s We This was the book of Have Always Lived in the Castle, if you which Dorothy Parker haven’t already. Argument the First: This wrote, “This novel brings was the book of which Dorothy Parker back all my faith in terror and death. I can say no wrote, “This novel brings back all my higher of it.” faith in terror and death. I can say no higher of it.” Argument the Second is the novel’s first paragraph, which I present here in The calendar shows Merricat to be its entirety. I recommend that you read eighteen, yes, but as this opening para- it aloud. graph demonstrates, she sounds both younger, a precocious child trained to My name is Mary Katherine mimic the speech of adults on formal oc- Blackwood. I am eighteen years casions, but also older, vastly older, per- old, and I live with my sister Con- haps as the result of reading too many stance. I have often thought that dusty tomes about the fifteenth-century with any luck at all I could have ancestor of all subsequent British mon- been born a werewolf, because the archs — but perhaps as the result of other two middle fingers on both my experiences, too. hands are the same length, but I We learn later that while Constance H have had to be content with what is the only housemate (indeed, the only 8 I had. I dislike washing myself, person) who matters to Merricat, they and dogs, and noise. I like my sis- share their house with a third relative, ter Constance, and Richard Plan- the mad and disabled Uncle Julian, tagenet, and Amanita phalloides, whom Merricat doesn’t mention until the death cap mushroom. Every- page two, in an aside: “Someone had to one else in my family is dead. go to the library, and the grocery; Con- stance never went past her own garden, On most days, this is my favorite and Uncle Julian could not.” He comes opening paragraph of any novel. On the up again on page three, though the café other days, it takes second place behind owner seems to view him as He Who the opening paragraph of Jackson’s pre- Must Not Be Named: vious novel, The Haunting of Hill House — “And Constance Blackwood, is she but as Hill House is a more famous book, well?” let us return to that close, shadowy par- “Very well, thank you.” lor where young Mary Katherine has so politely introduced herself, and told us “And how is he?” so many things that turn out to be not “As well as can be expected. Black quite true. coffee, please.” While Mary Katherine is her legal Back to that first paragraph, and our name, the name by which the outside narrator’s first startling confession. One world knows her (“Good morning, Mary wonders how many readers, encounter- Katherine,” a café owner will tell her on ing that delicious detail about the two page three, in the novel’s first quoted middle fingers, have been prompted to

Grandmother Magma dialogue), she has a truer name at home. examine their own hands, and wonder

Her adored and adoring sister Con- about their own potential for lycan-

stance has a pet name for her: Merricat. thropy. But the pious resignation Mer- n

n

thday, as it happens. it as thday, bir My 1 and it is an absolute relief to be able to to able be to relief absolute an is it and

Cont. on p. 10 p. on Cont.

and almost convincing myself i could, could, i myself convincing almost and

best seller, it even earned her a fan letter letter fan a her earned even it seller, best

trying to make a novel out of that thing thing that of out novel a make to trying

best reviews of her career. An immediate immediate An career. her of reviews best

ber 1960: “i have spent eight months months eight spent have “i 1960: ber

received the the received Castle 1962, September 21, September

- Septem in draft the abandoned Jackson

1

merely theoretical fear. Published on on Published fear. theoretical merely

Having ground out only two chapters, chapters, two only out ground Having

lowed whole by domesticity was no no was domesticity by whole lowed

end of a mushroom from another.” another.” from mushroom a of end

- swal being of dread this Jackson, For

mushrooms but i don’t really know one one know really don’t i but mushrooms

and a site of disaster.” disaster.” of site a and

possibly natural,” she wrote a friend, “like “like friend, a wrote she natural,” possibly

terpieces, a house becomes both a prison prison a both becomes house a terpieces, keep them there.” them keep

want something highly suspicious / but but / suspicious highly something want

forces that conspire to to conspire that forces - mas late her (1962), Castle the in Lived

plotting to murder a boorish husband: “i “i husband: boorish a murder to plotting

play at home and the the and home at play

We Have Always Always Have We and (1959) House Hill of

involved two sisters sisters two involved Diabolique, movie

with the roles that women women that roles the with

The Haunting Haunting The …In narrative. the in role

plot, something like Clouzot’s 1955 1955 Clouzot’s like something plot,

prone,” her “preoccupation “preoccupation her prone,”

as cooking or gardening playing a crucial crucial a playing gardening or cooking as

. Initially the the Initially . Priory the at Murder the women are especially especially are women

ditional homemaking occupations such such occupations homemaking ditional

1876 Charles Bravo poisoning case, aka aka case, poisoning Bravo Charles 1876 psychic damage to which which to damage psychic

- tra with protagonist, of kind a as tions

portrayal of “the kinds of of kinds “the of portrayal the inspiration of the famously unsolved unsolved famously the of inspiration the

- func — domain woman’s the — house

of Jackson’s career-long career-long Jackson’s of

started with little more than the title, and and title, the than more little with started

writes, “that in many of these works, a a works, these of many in “that writes,

is the culmination culmination the is Castle

She She Castle. of writing agonized long,

“It can be no accident,” Franklin Franklin accident,” no be can “It

As Franklin points out, out, points Franklin As

phy of Jackson vividly reconstructs the the reconstructs vividly Jackson of phy

that conspire to keep them there.” there.” them keep to conspire that

- biogra 2016 brilliant Franklin’s Ruth

that women play at home and the forces forces the and home at play women that

the townsfolks’ lingering hostility. lingering townsfolks’ the

prone,” her “preoccupation with the roles roles the with “preoccupation her prone,”

household emissary, to bear the brunt of of brunt the bear to emissary, household

damage to which women are especially especially are women which to damage

to emerge, and leaving Merricat, the the Merricat, leaving and emerge, to

long portrayal of “the kinds of psychic psychic of kinds “the of portrayal long

retreated behind Blackwood walls, never never walls, Blackwood behind retreated

is the culmination of Jackson’s career- Jackson’s of culmination the is

please the townsfolk by leaving town but but town leaving by townsfolk the please

Castle Castle out, points Franklin As right.” isn’t

9 points); like Lizzie Borden, she failed to to failed she Borden, Lizzie like points);

tery,” whose last words are, “It isn’t fair, it it fair, isn’t “It are, words last whose tery,”

of Jackson’s several cheerfully elided plot plot elided cheerfully several Jackson’s of

i - Lot “The of end the at Hutchison Mrs.

the crime yet, somehow, acquitted (one (one acquitted somehow, yet, crime the

and the other victims of Hill House; like like House; Hill of victims other the and

tion to detail.) Constance was accused of of accused was Constance detail.) to tion

Constance and Merricat; like Eleanor Eleanor like Merricat; and Constance

- atten meticulous Jackson’s of examples

Afraid, that is, of being trapped, like like trapped, being of is, that Afraid,

berries, is one of countless countless of one is berries, blue not ries, afraid and afraid to say so.” say to afraid and afraid

- ber black were they (That blackberries. murdering a man. it is about my being being my about is it man. a murdering

ing spooned poisoned sugar over their their over sugar poisoned spooned ing is not about two women women two about not is castle “then self.

- hav earlier, years six table dinner the at - her to perhaps letter, unsent an in wrote

absent Blackwoods: They were murdered murdered were They Blackwoods: absent graphical. “i delight in what i fear,” she she fear,” i what in delight “i graphical.

ror of what really happened to the four four the to happened really what of ror - autobio somewhat book the found have

- hor the over papers disquieting, however Merricat, but Jackson herself seems to to seems herself Jackson but Merricat,

ing. “Everyone else in my family is dead,” dead,” is family my in else “Everyone ing. see much of Sarah in the character of of character the in Sarah of much see

letter, perhaps to herself. to perhaps letter,

- mislead deeply but inaccurate only not and spells. Family friends later would would later friends Family spells. and

she wrote in an unsent unsent an in wrote she

sentence, which falls like a coffin lid, is is lid, coffin a like falls which sentence,

chronic inventor of household charms charms household of inventor chronic

“i delight in what i fear,” fear,” i what in delight “i

And the paragraph’s stunner of a final final a of stunner paragraph’s the And

12-year-old daughter Sarah, herself a a herself Sarah, daughter 12-year-old

autobiographical.

loosened, but held fast to guard us.” guard to fast held but loosened, her her — chapter to a new sounding board sounding new a to chapter

the book somewhat somewhat book the

fence, “a powerful taut web which never never which web taut powerful “a fence,

party just right, and she passed each draft draft each passed she and right, just party seems to have found found have to seems

Boo Radley-like, to construct a sort of of sort a construct to Radley-like, Boo orchestrated the fatal Blackwood dinner dinner Blackwood fatal the orchestrated Jackson herself herself Jackson

stashing objects around the property, property, the around objects stashing dining table, until she was sure she had had she sure was she until table, dining

power that must never be spoken, and and spoken, be never must that power her husband and children around the the around children and husband her

for example, memorizing words of of words memorizing example, for — ter anged anged arr ­ re- and arranged Jackson writing.

sive magic to protect herself and her sis her and herself protect to magic sive - By now, her family was involved in the the in involved was family her now, By

- transgres working tirelessly and actively mimicked mushroom poisoning. poisoning. mushroom mimicked

learn that far from being passive, she is is she passive, being from far that learn bout of colitis, the symptoms of which which of symptoms the colitis, of bout

had”) is not true, either, because we soon soon we because either, true, not is had”) 1961, ironically during a long, miserable miserable long, a during ironically 1961,

(“I have had to be content with what I I what with content be to had have (“I there.” But she returned to the idea in in idea the to returned she But there.”

ricat claims to feel at her estate in life life in estate her at feel to claims ricat look at it and say there isn’t any novel novel any isn’t there say and it at look Grandmother Magma from Isaac Bashevis Singer, who praised to Merricat’s beguiling voice, one of the (cont. from p. 9) the book’s ambiguity: “I am, like you, most astonishing high-wire acts in fic- against too much motivation. The less tion. She lingers in the mind and in the the better.” Yet, at the apex of her fame, ear long after the book is closed, and like the walls of agoraphobia closed around all truly unreliable narrators, she is utter- …the book never her. Jackson became a prisoner of her ly convincing. The last scene of the novel succumbs; it triumphs; own house in North Bennington, Ver- is set in the Blackwood kitchen (which it is filled with delight mont, too anxious to go to the post office as well as fear. It is has, of course, survived the fire), where or the grocery store, suffering a panic at- Merricat and Constance chat agreeably exuberantly witty, and tack whenever the phone rang. One of sometimes laugh-out-loud about all the usual things: spiders, child her previous books, marketed as humor, funny abuse, cannibalism. Then Merricat bursts had been titled Raising Demons, a puck- out with the final words of the novel: ish reference to her ill-behaved children; We Have Always Lived in the Castle raises “Oh, Constance,” I said, “we are so her actual demons. happy.” Yet the book never succumbs; it tri- I, for one, believe her. umphs; it is filled with delight as well as fear. It is exuberantly witty, and some- Jackson, Shirley. We Have Always Lived times laugh-out-loud funny in a darkly in the Castle, Viking, 1962. Penguin, absurd, Edward Gorey way — as when 1984. 214 pp. $9.95. the local firefighters, called in to save the Franklin, Ruth. Shirley Jackson: A Rather Blackwood mansion, set about destroy- Haunted Life. Liveright/W.W. Norton, ing it instead. Much of the effect is down 2016.

Andy Duncan’s criticism has appeared in Children’s Literature H Review, Foundation, and The New York Review of Science Fiction, but he’s 10 better known for his short fiction, which has won a Nebula Award, a Theodore Sturgeon Memorial Award, and three World Fantasy Awards. In November 2018, Small Beer published his latest, An Agent of Utopia: New and Selected Stories.

chosen by Ursula Whitcher

hey, brother, i met someone new. i think she’s going to save the world. no, really. the bones of her face are sharp like the sea-cliff you climbed. Ursula Whitcher is a she pulls ferns from her pockets uncrushed, mathematician, editor, and role-playing a hedgehog, the hilt of a sword. game enthusiast. Her sometimes she leaps in the air poetry may be found for no reason at all. she’s thinking in VoiceCatcher, The Journal of Humanistic about the fate of the world. people bring her Mathematics, The College lost children, unspillable ale. sometimes

Math Journal, and Goblin

Fruit. she walks into a wall and keeps walking, face pressed halfway into stone. n

n

available from Aqueduct Press. Aqueduct from available

to keep you on your toes. your on you keep to , is is , Change People poetry, and fiction

guaranteed She’s Ambivalence! Miss Try s. Her new collection of short short of collection new Her s. U of One

Not Not and , Lackington’s , Apex , Horizons

for any inconvenience.) any for

Strange Strange , Uncanny as publications such

apologize We doorway. a of out or in Angeles. Her work has appeared in in appeared has work Her Angeles.

A. Miss pry to trying while incurred Gwynne Garfinkle lives in Los Los in lives Garfinkle Gwynne

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11

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girls of tired you are Guys,

by Gwynne Garfinkle Gwynne by

Ambivalence Miss “De MotherJumpers,” by Celeste Rita Baker, Strange Horizons (October 15, y Short Fiction Reviews 2018), edited by Jane Crowley and Kate Dollarhyde by Karen Burnham “Memento Mori,” by Tiah Marie Beautement, Omenana (#12), edited by Mazi Nwonwu and Chinelo Onwualu “A Siren’s Cry Is a Song of Sorrow,” by Stina Leicht, Apex Magazine (September 2018), edited by Jason Sizemore Spacefaring has often been compared to Water: ocean, lake, and river. Deeply her sympathy for pain she can find souls seafaring, but in my that have become lost from their still-­ reading in 2018 I have elemental, necessary for life, but also breathing bodies (such as Alzheimer’s seen water used as a unpredictable and fatal. Spacefaring has means of escape — from often been compared to seafaring, but patients) and have sought refuge in ocean abuse, from illness, from in my reading in 2018 I have seen water currents. She collects these hard-to-find society — in a way that used as a means of escape — from abuse, souls for Death. In contrast with her ter- spacefaring stories were from illness, from society — in a way that restrial existence with its wheelchair and not. spacefaring stories were not. I’d like to splints on every finger, when she trans- discuss three stories that stood out in the forms: “The sea’s gentle caress soothed way they use water as a refuge from and her irritable skin while its bulk supported contrast to terrestrial life, and highlight her weight, easing the ache in her joints.” how even that retreat is under threat. That contrast between the comfort of “Memento Mori” is my favorite in the water and pain on land is also seen issue #12 of Omenana, a magazine for in Stina Leicht’s story “A Siren’s Cry Is “speculative fiction from across Africa a Song of Sorrow.” The story is a 7,600- and the African Diaspora” (with sto- word howl of pain, focused entirely on the ries available free online). Tiah Marie shame and violence that girls and women Beautement sets her story in South Af- endure at the hands of men. Jill, the pro- rica, in a “special place, where two great tagonist, and her slightly younger sister H oceans meet.” The unnamed protagonist Alex, are abused from childhood by their 12 is a woman living with Ehlers-Danlos father. They are raised Catholic in Hous- syndrome, a genetic disorder of the con- ton in the near past (roughly the 1960s necting tissues of the body. As she expe- or ’70s), and their church reinforces the riences it: “...the chronic condition that idea that women are shameful, that God caused her body to constantly ache, had doesn’t care about girls the way He cares taught her this: pain worsened if you about men. Despite the harassment of fought it. The only way to live with it was boys at pools, they both find swimming to to ride its wave with acceptance.” This be a respite: “The first time I submerged survival skill makes her an invaluable myself beneath the water a feeling of assistant to Death, personified in this peace surrounded me. Unlike my mother, world, with whom she quietly becomes I had no fear of drowning. I adored diving more intimate as the story progresses. into that comforting silence.” Their relationship brings real charm As girls they imagine turning into fish to the tale. Death never speaks (occa- to escape forever, and eventually they sionally producing notes on parchment) find stories about mermaids: “Most of but enjoys cooking for her, and he feels the myths portrayed mermaids as evil as awkward as any friend does, watch- (sluts) seductresses, but the illustrations ing someone struggle and trying to work told a different story — like Mary, the out when to help and when to stay out truth was in their faces. I could see se- of the way. He orders a service dog for renity in their eyes, in the way they held her, and the trainer and pet supply deliv- themselves — their grace and beauty. The ery folks arrive and depart and are never confidence of their naked breasts. I cov- quite sure where they were or why they eted their fierce fearlessness. Men who

Dust Lanes went there. What the woman contributes touched them, threatened them, and

becomes clear in the evening: at night called them names didn’t end well. Their

she becomes a kind of mermaid, and in attackers drowned or went mad.” n

n

MotherJumpers” by Celeste Rita Baker Baker Rita Celeste by MotherJumpers” for: “I feel someting slick and warm, too too warm, and slick someting feel “I for:

Cont. on p. 15 p. on Cont.

welcoming waters become hostile. “De “De hostile. become waters welcoming something that Junpee barely has words words has barely Junpee that something

example of sorts, a story where once once where story a sorts, of example back they have a tragic encounter with with encounter tragic a have they back

Next I’d like to turn to a counter- a to turn to like I’d Next whole lives in the water). On the way way the On water). the in lives whole

goodbye with relief.” relief.” with goodbye standing up (they’re born and spend their their spend and born (they’re up standing

that make me of use to them, and I say say I and them, to use of me make that lying out on the sand and working on on working and sand the on out lying

and men are so obsessed with, the things things the with, obsessed so are men and that they’ve been eyeing, rebelliously rebelliously eyeing, been they’ve that

that place that boys boys that place that — ) clitoris my gina, gather food they stop at an island reef reef island an at stop they food gather

- va my vulva, my ( — who’ve fallen ill. On their way out to to out way their On ill. fallen who’ve place between them between place

partly medicinal for two young people people young two for medicinal partly goodbye to my voice, my legs, and that that and legs, my voice, my to goodbye

changes.

are partly for Sosal’s birthday party and and party birthday Sosal’s for partly are humously save her sister as well. “I say say “I well. as sister her save humously

society undergoing drastic drastic undergoing society

that that — ent kinds of seaweed and shrimp and seaweed of kinds ent - post possibly and ocean the to escape

story of an underwater underwater an of story

- differ — to bring back specific foods specific back bring to looks like Jill might finally be able to to able be finally might Jill like looks Rita Baker is a difficult difficult a is Baker Rita

She and her friends go out on a mission mission a on out go friends her and She boyfriend). At the end of the story it it story the of end the At boyfriend). MotherJumpers” by Celeste Celeste by MotherJumpers”

but can also be harmful to the wildlife. wildlife. the to harmful be also can but sort of unpleasant relationship with a a with relationship unpleasant of sort become hostile. “De “De hostile. become

once welcoming waters waters welcoming once that might be useful useful be might that — plastic bottles plastic (who also has been subsumed into some some into subsumed been has also (who

sorts, a story where where story a sorts, six pack rings and and rings pack six — lege savings to reach out to Sula again again Sula to out reach to savings lege nize as plastic waste plastic as nize

a counterexample of of counterexample a - col her raids Jill bunkers. mental own - recog will reader the that things back

… I’d like to turn to to turn to like I’d …

eryone in the family to retreat into their their into retreat to family the in eryone other prides of sea people, he’s bringing bringing he’s people, sea of prides other

- ev causes death, Alex’s with combined brother swims back and forth between between forth and back swims brother

thing that’s been happening and that, that, and happening been that’s thing been rare and are now common. As her her As common. now are and rare been

- every mother her tells finally Jill escape. with bone and ear illnesses that had once once had that illnesses ear and bone with

­ transform/ to able been have might she abandoning. Some of her friends are sick sick are friends her of Some abandoning.

not a utopia that she would be foolishly foolishly be would she that utopia a not only steps away from a bayou where where bayou a from away steps only

as the story progresses we see that this is is this that see we progresses story the as get Jill. Eventually Alex is found, dead, dead, found, is Alex Eventually Jill. get

13 is due only to Junpee’s love of novelty, but but novelty, of love Junpee’s to only due is him. He grabbed Alex but wasn’t able to to able wasn’t but Alex grabbed He him.

their own pride. At first it seems like this this like seems it first At pride. own their but everyone told them to just ignore ignore just to them told everyone but i

been thinking about splitting off to form form to off splitting about thinking been They’d been stalked by a man for weeks, weeks, for man a by stalked been They’d

Junpee and ten of her friends have have friends her of ten and Junpee worse, until eventually Alex is abducted. abducted. is Alex eventually until worse,

they love. love. they As they grow older everything gets gets everything older grow they As

survived to start their “pride,” and how how and “pride,” their start to survived ing through with the plan. plan. the with through ing

the specific woman who jumped and and jumped who woman specific the - go from sister her dissuades poisonous,

of their biology, the founding legend of of legend founding the biology, their of and fearing that the potion might be be might potion the that fearing and

needed. In this long story we get details details get we story long this In needed. disillusioned with magic and religion religion and magic with disillusioned

malian strategy, surfacing to breathe as as breathe to surfacing strategy, malian allow them to transform and escape. Jill, Jill, escape. and transform to them allow

the hands of men. of hands the - mam ocean an via survive can who ple a potion and ritual that she says would would says she that ritual and potion a

girls and women endure at at endure women and girls - peo sea into transformed and ago years gets the story and later sends them each each them sends later and story the gets

shame and violence that that violence and shame

from slave ships three hundred and fifty fifty and hundred three ships slave from for a child. Another psychic, Sula, also also Sula, psychic, Another child. a for

focused entirely on the the on entirely focused

handful of people who survived jumping jumping survived who people of handful them and not something she would do do would she something not and them

7,600-word howl of pain, pain, of howl 7,600-word

is part of a community descended from a a from descended community a of part is ing mermaids is not the right answer for for answer right the not is mermaids ing

Sorrow.” The story is a a is story The Sorrow.”

[2015], you’re missing out.) Junpee Junpee out.) missing you’re [2015], Tales - becom that but real, are mermaids yes,

Siren’s Cry Is a Song of of Song a Is Cry Siren’s

Back, Belly, & Side: True Lies and False False and Lies True Side: & Belly, Back, them to the police. She mentions that that mentions She police. the to them in Stina Leicht’s story “A “A story Leicht’s Stina in

if you haven’t read her debut collection collection debut her read haven’t you if them and tries to do the right thing: get get thing: right the do to tries and them and pain on land is…seen is…seen land on pain and

and and — figures out what’s been happening to to happening been what’s out figures Caribbean author Baker’s work Baker’s author Caribbean the comfort of the water water the of comfort the

That contrast between between contrast That to one of the “psychics,” Helena, who who Helena, “psychics,” the of one to story will be familiar to those who know know who those to familiar be will story

ally be turned into mermaids. They talk talk They mermaids. into turned be ally guage that Junpee uses to narrate the the narrate to uses Junpee that guage

- liter can they hopes Alex Psychics.” of - lan creole (The home.” ship sunkin we

teens, Alex contacts “Sister Zara’s House House Zara’s “Sister contacts Alex teens, sea fan and de buried in de sand part of of part sand de in buried de and fan sea

that ends happily. When they are pre are they When happily. ends that - herself and her lover, “between de blue blue de “between lover, her and herself

it, and instead makes up a lovely story story lovely a up makes instead and it, on the seafloor. She has made a space for for space a made has She seafloor. the on

storybook before her sister Alex can read read can Alex sister her before storybook beginning, Junpee has a pretty good life life good pretty a has Junpee beginning,

and tears it out of the the of out it tears and Mermaid Little The ciety undergoing drastic changes. At the the At changes. drastic undergoing ciety

Jill reads Hans Christian Andersen’s Andersen’s Christian Hans reads Jill is a difficult story of an underwater so underwater an of story difficult a is - y We Are the Reasons We’re Broken People Change, by Gwynne Garfinkle, Aqueduct Press, September 2018, 128 pp., $12 reviewed by Arley Sorg

Garfinkle’s collectionPeople Change comprises six short stories and 32 poems, including the titular “People Change: A Most of the fiction (like Love Story,” a brief, three-part poem much of the poetry) utilizing three films to examine irony deals with relationships, and loss. So half the book is poetry. The especially power problem is, I’m a terrible poet and an relationships, the power amateur (at best) reader of poetry. For often exerted as direct this reason, I will share a few comments control. about the poetry, but will focus primarily on the fiction. Nine poems in this collection are orig- inals. The rest are drawn from the pages of The Cascadia Subduction Zone, Mythic Delirium, Strange Horizons, Mithila Re- Most of the fiction (like much of the po- view, Apex Magazine, and more. In other etry) deals with relationships, especially words, editors with far more experience power relationships, the power often ex- than I, and with robust slush piles, have erted as direct control. All of the stories paid good money for them. It is clear are solid; some are even impressive. that the field’s opinions of these poems The collection opens with “In Lieu are quite high. of a Thank You,” a slightly disorienting H The forms of poetry appearing here and surprising story that calls to mind vary in length and structure, though Frankenstein’s Monster or The Island of Dr. 14 several utilize non-rhyming paired Moreau. Not only is it written in a voice lines. “Dorothy’s Prayer” experiments reminiscent of black and white movies, a bit more, drawing comparison to e but it is about a high-society woman, e cummings, and a few such as “Ode “Miss Grand. Miss Vanessa Grand,” who to Dwight Frye” are closer in form to is kidnapped from London and brought William Carlos Williams. Most of the to a lab for experimentation. The narra- poems draw upon popular (especially tive upends the expectations of charac- film) culture, such as “Gojira/Godzilla,” ter, drawing metaphors to the limitations “Linda Blair Pantoum,” and “she’s alive, placed on women via social expectations, alive.” A few draw on myths, legends, while examining the definitions of mon- and fairytales. Some touch on gender strosity. It’s a wonderful opener, being dynamics, relationships, or power and slyly intellectual while both engaging control. Standouts for me are “Gin- and very entertaining. nie and the Cooking Contest,” a prose “The Paper Doll Golems,” a twist on poem in a page-long paragraph, which both golem tales and doll fiction, is the is strangely captivating; and “family (a sole original story in the collection. A form somehow must),” which grabs the young girl named Ruthie brings two pa- reader and gently unsettles them in the per dolls to life in order to have friends. best way. This is a deft tale about longing and lone- The fiction is consistently well-com- liness, as well as familial dysfunction. It posed. Variations on character and struc- delves deep into the complex nature of ture demonstrate skill in storytelling. The monsters, as a child negotiates her need voice and plotting of each of the pieces for companionship, the oppressive ­nature

Reviews are slightly different but remain strong. of her family, and her r­elationship with

Themes stay true to the collection’s title, the powerless dolls she has made.

Cont. on p. 16 being generally about transformations. n

n

in distress. De cyclones coming coming cyclones De distress. in

well. More a we dying young or or young dying we a More well.

more a we can’t see far, can’t hear hear can’t far, see can’t we a more

More a we getting skin sickness, sickness, skin getting we a More

stinging to de eye and de skin. skin. de and eye de to stinging

is more biting, more piercing, piercing, more biting, more is

before and Mommy say it change, change, it say Mommy and before

from dem. De water hotter dan dan hotter water De dem. from

tures, big and small does benefit benefit does small and big tures,

- crea sea we of lungs and hearts

ing out, and de coral is one a de de a one is coral de and out, ing

- dy slowly color, losing dem coral

dat does clog up we pores. De De pores. we up clog does dat

lives with her family. family. her with lives

caused by de noise. De black oil oil black De noise. de by caused

industry in Michigan, where she she where Michigan, in industry

my been alive. De bone disease, disease, bone De alive. been my

She works in the automotive automotive the in works She

- Mom me since new Horrors

from University of Illinois Press. Press. Illinois of University from

is available available is Egan Greg study

pening in isolation: in pening

other venues. Her single-author single-author Her venues. other

- hap not are trash random and disorders

online and and online Magazine Locus for

this point we also learn that the bone bone the that learn also we point this

reviewer and critic. She writes writes She critic. and reviewer

community is effectively torn apart. At At apart. torn effectively is community

and avocationally a book book a avocationally and

and (while no more fatalities result), the the result), fatalities more no (while and an electromagnetics engineer engineer electromagnetics an

did it, she goes after them with a knife, knife, a with them after goes she it, did

Karen Burnham is vocationally vocationally is Burnham Karen

15

what happened to her and finds out who who out finds and her to happened what

i placing them. When her mother sees sees mother her When them. placing

- re start and pregnant get better she’d

because she lost so many young people people young many so lost she because

skies, space, and waters. and space, skies,

find her and gang rape her, saying that that saying her, rape gang and her find

pollution into every corner of the land, land, the of corner every into —

men who get worse when they’re drunk, drunk, they’re when worse get who men

same systems same patriarchy, slavery, abuse, abuse, slavery, patriarchy, —

friends, already established as creepy creepy as established already friends,

suffer won’t mean much if we bring those those bring we if much mean won’t suffer

her sorrow and pain, her uncle and his his and uncle her pain, and sorrow her

oppression under which we currently currently we which under oppression

blame. As she’s completely immersed in in immersed completely she’s As blame.

hope of escape from the systems of of systems the from escape of hope

and in her grief she internalizes that that internalizes she grief her in and

racism, and environmental justice. Any Any justice. environmental and racism,

that area if it weren’t for her exploring), exploring), her for weren’t it if area that

intersections of disability, feminism, feminism, disability, of intersections

pee (they wouldn’t have been exactly in in exactly been have wouldn’t (they pee

Between these three stories we see see we stories three these Between

places the blame for the tragedy on Jun on tragedy the for blame the places -

for utopias. utopias. for

their way to collect their food, everybody everybody food, their collect to way their

environmental justice. environmental could possibly be better, any space left left space any better, be possibly could

ered that the group went to the island on on island the to went group the that ered

feminism, racism, and and racism, feminism, anywhere for her to go, anywhere that that anywhere go, to her for anywhere

- discov is it when aftermath, the In intersections of disability, disability, of intersections

situation, we have to wonder if there is is there if wonder to have we situation,

three stories we see see we stories three

we, the readers, know about the world’s world’s the about know readers, the we,

Between these these Between people, this is a stunning loss. loss. stunning a is this people,

of her home pride. Yet because of what what of because Yet pride. home her of

are wounded. In a pride of less than fifty fifty than less of pride a In wounded. are

having suffered so badly in the midst midst the in badly so suffered having

are dead, including Sosal, and the others others the and Sosal, including dead, are

even after losing so many friends and and friends many so losing after even

end of the encounter six of her friends friends her of six encounter the of end

to establish something new elsewhere, elsewhere, new something establish to

from other fights along de wing.” At the the At wing.” de along fights other from

still committed to leaving and trying trying and leaving to committed still

grown. I could feel de scratches and scars scars and scratches de feel could I grown.

hadn’t yet wanted to say, ends the story story the ends say, to wanted yet hadn’t

be a shark. Is a manatee den, a big one, one, big a den, manatee a Is shark. a be

been pregnant with her lover’s child but but child lover’s her with pregnant been

big and smooth to be a limb, too flat to to flat too limb, a be to smooth and big

Junpee, who ironically had already already had ironically who Junpee,

all leaving. all 13) p. from (cont.

larger and more often. De fish and and fish De often. more and larger Lanes Dust People Change “The Imaginary Friend” stands as The last story in the collection, “The (cont. from p. 14) somewhat similar in theme and concept Hedgehog and the Pine Cone,” is a cute to “The Paper Doll Golems”: a young fairy tale about two hedgehogs who are girl (Gigi) creates an imaginary friend best friends. They play and tell each The story is a subtler based on a character in a movie, a friend other stories and all is well. Until one of examination of the results who is real, but whose reality is entirely them inexplicably turns into a pine cone. of seemingly innocuous dependent on and limited to the protag- The other undertakes a journey hoping actions. Impressive here onist. The story is a subtler examination to find a way to understand what’s hap- is the way Garfinkle of the results of seemingly innocuous pening, and hopefully, to make the pine- seamlessly imbues the actions. Impressive here is the way Gar- cone a hedgehog again. The tale becomes unreal with character finkle seamlessly imbues the unreal with both a tribute to stories themselves and a and emotion, rendering character and emotion, rendering them lovely piece on friendship. them in some very strong in some very strong moments; as well moments…. L. Timmel Duchamp’s introduction as sharing varied, touching portrayals of describes Aqueduct’s Conversation Piec- loneliness and being an outcast. es series as feminist sf engaged in a grand “Don’t Look Back” is a sort-of time conversation. Garfinkle enters that con- travel tale built around excerpts from versation with stories that are entertain- the Orpheus and Eurydice myth. A ing, engaging, and affecting. They make woman, specifically “never his Eurydice,” great points without sacrifice of story, is enamored of the music of a musician and their insights are undeniable. Even who died, so she goes back in time — better, so many of the people in these sacrificing the timeline she had already pages feel real and vibrant, brought to lived — to change her past with the mu- life through accomplished dialogue and sician. She wants to meet him sooner, interactions. These are stories that most and she wants to experience his music readers can enjoy, consciously feminist or again, even more so than she had, say- “Man-Size” is easily my not. And if you pay attention, you might H favorite of the bunch, ing, “I’ll change my life for him, even if actually learn something. it won’t change one second of his.” Not 16 which is saying quite a bit when all the stories are only is it a fascinating story, but it’s told strong. with great dialogue and interactions. It captures and reveals the nature of rela- tionships (especially gender dynamics) in clever ways, never heavy-handed or preachy, but still incredibly insightful. “Man-Size” is easily my favorite of the Arley Sorg lives in Oakland, bunch, which is saying quite a bit when CA. A 2014 Odyssey Writing all the stories are strong. Jill is a teen les- Workshop graduate, he’s an bian whose best friend Amy has fallen associate editor at Locus Magazine in love with a toxic guy named Ted. As and does odd jobs for Lightspeed Ted exerts more control over Amy, Jill Magazine. He’s soldering together realizes there is a connection between a novel, has thrown a few short Amy’s declining health and Ted’s grow- stories into orbit, and hopes to launch more. L. Timmel Duchamp’s ing charisma. Amy has to battle her own introduction describes insecurities to stand against Ted’s influ- Aqueduct’s “Conversation ence. Pop culture touchstones and excel- Pieces” series as feminist lent characterizations lend a realness to sf engaged in a grand the narrative. Sure, this is obviously a conversation. Garfinkle look at the power dynamic of men and enters that conversation with stories that are women. But it’s more than that. It’s a entertaining, engaging, look at the ways in which we are com- and affecting. plicit in our own destruction. Ultimately, it’s about dealing with the things that

life has made us feel about ourselves. It’s

poignant as hell and had me in tears. n

n

nversations, the nature nature the nversations, ­ co ­ insightful in named mother on Ceres: an Earth-born Earth-born an Ceres: on mother named

Cont. on p. 18 p. on Cont.

begins visiting her and participating participating and her visiting begins - un an is character central The SF. core is

cas of other people, but as her stepfather stepfather her as but people, other of cas setting, an alien planet in the near future, future, near the in planet alien an setting,

- repli include to designed aren’t lations (who also writes as Tendai Huchu). The The Huchu). Tendai as writes also (who

- simu The sky. the in visible always Mars by the Zimbabwean author T.L. Huchu Huchu T.L. author Zimbabwean the by

suburban garden of her childhood, with with childhood, her of garden suburban “Njuzu,” a beautiful and insightful story story insightful and beautiful a “Njuzu,”

ized virtual reality. Amahle’s “sim” is the the is “sim” Amahle’s reality. virtual ized The anthology opens strongly with with strongly opens anthology The

- personal a receives aboard everyone the twelve stories individually. stories twelve the

hopes of preventing further breakdowns, breakdowns, further preventing of hopes In pursuit of the answer, I shall discuss discuss shall I answer, the of pursuit In

to psychosis, suicide, and murder. In In murder. and suicide, psychosis, to ? ? AfroSFv3 in embodied is fiction ence

settlement have both pushed colonists colonists pushed both have settlement - sci of definition What child? missing a

voyages and the underground Mars Mars underground the and voyages is addiction, or the nature of reality, or or reality, of nature the or addiction, is

by race. In addition, past interplanetary interplanetary past addition, In race. by set in the future, but the central concern concern central the but future, the in set author T.L. Huchu.… T.L. author

colonists, which are already complicated complicated already are which colonists, superhero powers? What if the story is is story the if What powers? superhero story by the Zimbabwean Zimbabwean the by story

Amahle’s relationships with her fellow fellow her with relationships Amahle’s beautiful and insightful insightful and beautiful to ghost-like energy beings, or granted granted or beings, energy ghost-like to

strongly with “Njuzu,” a a “Njuzu,” with strongly family history that does nothing for for nothing does that history family element, or people who’ve been turned turned been who’ve people or element,

The anthology opens opens anthology The a a — her mother and died soon thereafter soon died and mother her sible technology, but also a supernatural supernatural a also but technology, sible

her beloved step-father, Dumza, killed killed Dumza, step-father, beloved her - pos has story the if What fiction? ence

dying Earth. On the emotional front, front, emotional the On Earth. dying - sci it is technology, impossible has but

cally, she’s on a light-sail ship fleeing a a fleeing ship light-sail a on she’s cally, proves slippery. If a story is set on Mars, Mars, on set is story a If slippery. proves

- Physi ways. significant of number a in lifeforms. But on reflection, the question question the reflection, on But lifeforms.

The titular narrator, Amahle, is alienated alienated is Amahle, narrator, titular The gies and societies, and alien worlds and and worlds alien and societies, and gies

lovely “The Girl Who Stared at Mars.” Mars.” at Stared Who Girl “The lovely - technolo new travel, time travel, space

South African author Cristy Zinn’s Zinn’s Cristy author African South ately identify core topics, like the future, future, the like topics, core identify ately

other planet-spanning near-future story, story, near-future planet-spanning other - immedi can alike outsiders and insiders

- an of heart the at lies also Ambiguity after all, genre genre all, after — initially sounds simple sounds initially 17

fate is at the conclusion. the at is fate

The question “What is science fiction?” fiction?” science is “What question The

i

as agonizingly ambivalent as her son’s son’s her as ambivalent agonizingly as of the genre surged back to prominence. prominence. to back surged genre the of

eponymous water spirit. But she remains remains she But spirit. water eponymous the perennial debate about the nature nature the about debate perennial the

his mother subsequently dreams of the the of dreams subsequently mother his tion by contemporary African writers, writers, African contemporary by tion

pany of the njuzu,” and may return; and and return; may and njuzu,” the of pany - fic science original of series thology

- com the in well and alive “is boy lost - an the in volume space-themed new

practice and advanced technology, the the technology, advanced and practice , the the , AfroSFv3 reading began I As

the funeral rites, which mingle ancient ancient mingle which rites, funeral the

cording to a revelation given during during given revelation a to cording

- Ac issues. familial larger and ficulties

individually.

- dif marital couple’s the worsens it and

discuss the twelve stories stories twelve the discuss

the spirit of a man), remain unshaken; unshaken; remain man), a of spirit the

of the answer, I shall shall I answer, the of

of her husband, Tarisai (a woman with with woman (a Tarisai husband, her of

? In pursuit pursuit In ? AfroSFv3

for her ancestral faith, even as the beliefs beliefs the as even faith, ancestral her for

fiction is embodied in in embodied is fiction

of the alien world; it sparks skepticism skepticism sparks it world; alien the of What definition of science science of definition What

wracked grief; it strengthens her hatred hatred her strengthens it grief; wracked

ic disappearance complicates her guilt- her complicates disappearance ic

- enigmat Anesu’s response. mother’s the

however, isn’t the scientific mystery; it’s it’s mystery; scientific the isn’t however,

oid’s minimal gravity. The central focus, focus, central The gravity. minimal oid’s

shouldn’t be possible, given the aster the given possible, be shouldn’t -

apparently drowned where drowning drowning where drowned apparently

Shona woman whose young son has has son young whose woman Shona

eviewed by Cynthia Ward Cynthia by eviewed r

edited by Ivor W. Hartmann, StoryTime, December 2018, 189 pp., $12.50 pp., 189 2018, December StoryTime, Hartmann, W. Ivor by edited AfroSFv3,

Fiction Science About Talk We When … y AfroSFv3 of r­eality ­becomes less cer­ tain — and (so immersive as to be toxic) defends (cont. from p. 17) Amahle isn’t the only one having diffi- our damaged planet, literally, with a pri- culty maintaining confidence in physical vate army. One of these Earth Mother existence. Knights is Joshua, new father and power-­ Differences among nonphysical and suited paladin, whose unquestioning physical realities are not ambiguous in faith isn’t quite shared by his wife, Miku. Nigerian writer Mazi Nwonwu’s compas- Miku’s search for a more satisfying life, sionate “Parental Control”; they’re very by means of a forbidden technology that Nonphysical and physical clearly delineated. However, the prob- is considerably more advanced than her realities also figure in lem is sixteen-year-old Dadzie Maduka’s husband’s cyberpunky mecha, embroils Gambian author Biram heavy reliance on virtual gaming. A taste Joshua in fast-paced double trouble, in Mboob’s powerful story, for escapism isn’t surprising, when you’re an entertaining mix of domestic noir, “The Luminal Frontier.” the literal child of a “mec” — a despised Hitchcockian thriller, and comic-book- … Memory wipes itself, android — and a man who not only lives ish heroics. personalities double in on another continent, but has a wife who Faith is also critical to South African existence, time itself is author Stephen Embleton’s gripping transcended — but, no wants nothing to do with you. Still, the young man hopes for at least a détente “Journal of a DNA Pirate,” although its matter which escape central technology is the use of DNA as mechanism the mind may with the couple, but a secret too long “the ultimate mass storage technology.” enact, the meaning of withheld may make addiction inevitable. pain will not be evaded. Nonphysical and physical realities also The Mars-dwelling titular revolution- figure in Gambian author Biram Mboob’s ary’s belief is secular: unaltered genes powerful story, “The Luminal Frontier.” must be preserved by any means neces- sary — means which include transmitting When a spaceship crew learns of police a radical new virus by touch. presence, they discover their memo- Like “The EMO Hunter,” Nigerian ries will be wiped and their mysterious writer Wole Talabi’s “Drift-Flux” is cargo will be ejected — into the Lumi- action- ­packed to a satisfyingly superhe- H nal. The Luminal is not merely the no- roic degree. Orshio and Lien-Adel are place outside of existence which existed 18 an odd-couple spaceship crew, enhanced before and coexists with physical reality, with impressive genetic and other modi- the no-place which makes faster-than- fications to ease their dangerous duties. light travel possible. In the words of the As the story opens (with a tip of the space crewman-narrator, who has already been helmet to the classic film Alien), the pair mem-wiped once, and who hasn’t left re- witness the explosion of a mining ship. ligion behind quite as thoroughly as he’d Their suspicion of terrorist activity spikes thought: “The Luminal is our eternal and as they’re ordered to dock immediately Faith is also critical to infinite cathedral” — and for most of the at Ceres Station. They expect they’ll be South African author crew, who belong to the Sun Cult, dump- giving eyewitness accounts. Instead, they Stephen Embleton’s ing anything in the Luminal is at least as find themselves struggling to save Earth gripping “Journal of a sacrilegious as desecrating a physical ca- from literal obliteration. DNA Pirate,” although thedral. Then the crew discovers a second The reader will find both homage and its central technology is sin. The contraband cargo to be thrown critique in Ugandan-American writer the use of DNA as “the out is people — slaves. It is a situation so ultimate mass storage Gabriella Muwanga’s heart-felt contri- horrifying, so intolerable, that mutiny is technology.” bution, “The Far Side,” which offers a not the only possibility. Memory wipes reversal of what some SF fans consider itself, personalities double in existence, the quintessential hard-SF story, and time itself is transcended — but, no mat- others consider a work of contrived cru- ter which escape mechanism the mind elty or reprehensible design: “The Cold may enact, the meaning of pain will not Equations” (1954) by Tom Godwin be evaded. (1915-1980). In Godwin’s story, a teen- Another story in which belief plays age stowaway must be fatally ejected a central role is “The EMO Hunter” by from a starship, lest the vessel burn too

South African writer Mandisi Nkomo. much fuel to reach its destination and

Here, an Earth-centered new religion deliver life-saving medical supplies. In n

n

- interplan to metastasized corporations Adventure of the Dux Bellorum. Dux the of Adventure

The The and Countess Incognita the of cern of SF: the conflicts of multinational multinational of conflicts the SF: of cern

The Adventure Adventure The novels, short her - con core newer a examines it as scale

. Aqueduct published published Aqueduct . Approach space and time, achieving space-operatic space-operatic achieving time, and space

Writing the Other: A Practical Practical A Other: the Writing

Mame Bougouma Diene, jumps across across jumps Diene, Bougouma Mame

ed ed thor ­ coau she Shawl, Nisi

Song,” by Senegalese-American writer writer Senegalese-American by Song,”

Volumes 1-2. With With 1-2. Volumes , West Weird

The concluding story, “Ogotemmeli’s “Ogotemmeli’s story, concluding The

Trails: Forgotten Tales of the the of Tales Forgotten Trails:

odds of survival any better? any survival of odds

Lost Lost edited She elsewhere. and

will be destroyed. But if they do, are their their are do, they if But destroyed. be will

, , Nightmare , Asimov’s , Analog to

captors with the latter’s war, the humans humans the war, latter’s the with captors Cynthia Ward has sold stories stories sold has Ward Cynthia

“Inhabitable.” If they don’t help their their help don’t they If “Inhabitable.”

equal measure. equal in his thought-provoking contribution, contribution, thought-provoking his in

satisfy and expand you in in you expand and satisfy selves helpless prisoners of an alien race race alien an of prisoners helpless selves

will will AfroSFv3 literature, - them find explorers galactic of band

selection of superior world world superior of selection

writer Andrew C. Dakalira’s intrepid intrepid Dakalira’s C. Andrew writer

a strong SF anthology or a a or anthology SF strong a

equal measure. equal Exploration has risks, and Malawian Malawian and risks, has Exploration

Whether you’re looking for for looking you’re Whether

will satisfy and expand you in in you expand and satisfy will AfroSFv3 the exploratory mission to other stars. stars. other to mission exploratory the

selection of superior world literature, literature, world superior of selection media franchise, is is franchise, media Trek Star the by ized

looking for a strong SF anthology or a a or anthology SF strong a for looking - popular scenario, SF classic Another

best SF anthologies. Whether you’re you’re Whether anthologies. SF best survivors with plans of their own. their of plans with survivors

’s stories in forthcoming year’s year’s forthcoming in stories ’s AfroSFv3 ably depopulated world, but there are are there but world, depopulated ably

and I’d be unsurprised to find many of of many find to unsurprised be I’d and - presum and now-frozen the for plans

, , SF Asimov’s or Analog in as fiction ary its three suns. Offworld interests make make interests Offworld suns. three its

- liter of journals genre-fluid more the cused on a planet knocked far away from from away far knocked planet a on cused

at Mars,” would be as much at home in in home at much as be would Mars,” at - fo is narrative the because Hamilton,

like “Njuzu” and “The Girl Who Stared Stared Who Girl “The and “Njuzu” like SF author, Edmond “World-Wrecker” “World-Wrecker” Edmond author, SF

19

themes and human nature. A few stories, stories, few A nature. human and themes be fondly reminded of the classic pulp pulp classic the of reminded fondly be

i fer fresh perspectives on both classic SF SF classic both on perspectives fresh fer pany” does not smash planets, some may may some planets, smash not does pany”

- of all and characterization, insightful - Com Water Interplanetary “The While

derdeveloped, all have strong prose and and prose strong have all derdeveloped, Masimba Musodza’s impressive story. story. impressive Musodza’s Masimba

- un or stiff bit a are stories few a while temporal in British-Zimbabwean writer writer British-Zimbabwean in temporal

removed, the story would collapse.” And, And, collapse.” would story the removed, The cosmic scale is spatial instead of of instead spatial is scale cosmic The

tegral to the plot that, if that aspect were were aspect that if that, plot the to tegral triples the millennium of transit time. transit of millennium the triples

interpretation.

- in so is technology or science future of ing system proves buggy and an accident accident an and buggy proves system ing

naturalistic or scientific scientific or naturalistic

stories [are those] in which some aspect aspect some which in those] [are stories - operat his when discovers Otim-droid

be understood with a a with understood be

writers-guidelines/): “[S]cience fiction fiction “[S]cience writers-guidelines/):

biguous to the supervising android, as as android, supervising the to biguous but all may logically logically may all but

(http://www.analogsf.com/contact-us/ - am prove may sleep cold in people of or divine influence, influence, divine or

Magazine Fact Science Fiction Science “Safari Nyota: A Prologue,” the status status the Prologue,” A Nyota: “Safari possibility of supernatural supernatural of possibility

the definition of SF offered by by offered SF of definition the Analog Analog and filmmaker Dilman Dila’s tense tale, tale, tense Dila’s Dilman filmmaker and few stories suggest the the suggest stories few

interpretation. They’re in accord with with accord in They’re interpretation. these elements, and a a and elements, these light spaceship. But in Ugandan writer writer Ugandan in But spaceship. light

not necessarily center on on center necessarily not derstood with a naturalistic or scientific scientific or naturalistic a with derstood centuries-long flight of a slower-than- a of flight centuries-long

SF elements. They do do They elements. SF influence, but all may logically be un be logically may all but influence, - passengers or crew for the months- or or months- the for crew or passengers

all employ core core employ all AfroSFv3

the possibility of supernatural or divine divine or supernatural of possibility the is the cryonic preservation of of preservation cryonic the is — Odyssey

the twelve stories in in stories twelve the

these elements, and a few stories suggest suggest stories few a and elements, these

Dumarest series to the film film the to series Dumarest 2001: A Space Space A 2001:

apocalyptic futures, futures, apocalyptic

ments. They do not necessarily center on on center necessarily not do They ments. utilized in everything from E.C. Tubb’s Tubb’s E.C. from everything in utilized

modifications and and modifications

- ele SF core employ all AfroSFv3 in ries — — Another core science fiction scenario fiction science core Another

to radical genetic genetic radical to

and apocalyptic futures, the twelve sto twelve the futures, apocalyptic and - cannot foresee every risk. every foresee cannot

wars and virtual realities realities virtual and wars

realities to radical genetic modifications modifications genetic radical to realities

loving father and experienced captain captain experienced and father loving From interplanetary interplanetary From

From interplanetary wars and virtual virtual and wars interplanetary From with enormous care, but even the most most the even but care, enormous with

hope of human survival. human of hope next flight. He plans her lunar relocation relocation lunar her plans He flight. next

tals” whose new abilities offer the last last the offer abilities new whose tals” disability, and he stows her aboard his his aboard her stows he and disability,

- “elemen or beings energy posthuman as tion from a doomed Earth due to her her to due Earth doomed a from tion

some Africans to gas. But they survive, survive, they But gas. to Africans some - emigra denied is daughter asthmatic

etary war. Here, the devastation turns turns devastation the Here, war. etary Muwanga’s story, a spaceship captain’s captain’s spaceship a story, Muwanga’s y Under the Sea Tentacle, by Rita Indiana, And Other Stories, January 2019, 132 pp., $13.95 reviewed by Nisi Shawl

“What lies at the bottom of the ocean?” This is the question followers of the African diasporan deity Olokun are instructed to ask themselves: it’s our meditation, our koan. “Olokun” is the title of the first chapter of Rita Indiana’s Mobius-like novel Tentacle, and the Originally published in Spanish, most of Tentacle’s book as a mystical whole offers a good text was ably translated answer to that question. into English by Achy Tentacle’s story — a tale of traveling Obejas, a Cuban American through time — begins in the not-too- author living in California. distant future, on a plague-haunted, However, the book’s high-tech version of the Caribbean is- numerous invocations are land Santo Domingo. Acilde, maidser- rendered in their original vant to a Santeria priestess, reflects on liturgical Yoruba. how grateful she feels to have graduated their original liturgical Yoruba. This is to her new job: cleaning her boss’s house. appropriate as a reflection of common This position is a step up from her for- spiritual practice — many prayers and mer one of sucking the dicks of rich men praise songs are difficult to render into who thought she was a boy, an illusion English, and often they’re learned by Acilde did her best to cultivate. But she’s rote. The author’s use of the meta-speech H not so grateful that she calls off a violent of science fictional tropes likewise re- robbery of the priestess’s shrine — only ceives no translation. Nor does it need 20 ambivalent enough to wind up in pos- any, as it will be perfectly intelligible to session of the santera’s most valuable ob- most in the Cascadia Subduction Zone ject of worship: a live sea anemone, rare community. survivor of a recent ecological disaster. Fiction about time travel often leads Next we’re taken to a current day fake to logistical questions as vexed as the one psychics’ call center, where frustrated I began this review with. Is it possible to artist Argenis works, and where he re- change the past? If so, how? Does inter- ceives an invitation to a creative retreat ference with the past lead to branching on a private beach. His hosts’ cause is realities? And are these realities infinite Fiction about time travel coral reef protection, a cause we know in number? Tentacle’s structure and voice often leads to logistical will be futile due to the coming disas- questions as vexed as the revel in such paradox-driven quandaries. ter revealed in chapter one. Soon dreams one I began this review In apparent homage to the Robert A. with. Is it possible to of a distant past fill Argenis’s days and Heinlein classic “All You Zombies,” Al- change the past?… nights, overlapping with and influencing cide, after ingesting oral sex-­reassignment Tentacle’s structure his reactions to the “present.” All three medicine, assumes the name of Arge- and voice revel in such timelines come together satisfyingly in a nis’s father and impregnates his mother. paradox-driven quandaries. conclusion whose momentum carries its A neat narrative sleight-of-mind, but readers beyond the book’s last pages. it gave rise to my only sense of unease Indiana is a Dominican musician and over this book. Newly male-bodied Al- novelist, winner of the Association of Ca- cide’s first female sexual partner is barely ribbean Writers Grand Prize. Originally pubescent, and her consent is neither published in Spanish, most of Tentacle’s clearly given nor clearly refused. I found text was ably translated into English by the scene too reminiscent of trans-as- Achy Obejas, a Cuban American author predator stereotypes, stereotypes which

living in California. However, the book’s have sometimes had fatal real-life conse-

numerous invocations are rendered in quences for the gender-nonconforming. n

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Seashell study Seashell

21

i

Tor.

is available from from available is Everfair

Congo steampunk novel novel steampunk Congo

Her Belgian Belgian Her Approach.

the Other: A Practical Practical A Other: the

Writing Writing of coauthor is

Jr. Award in 2009. She She 2009. in Award Jr.

co-won the James Tiptree, Tiptree, James the co-won

House Filter collection - bot the on life to inimical is Oxygen

Nisi Shawl’s story story Shawl’s Nisi Tons of water crush the darkness. darkness. the crush water of Tons

achronological plot. achronological

as religion, as maze-like as as maze-like as religion, as ’s ’s Tentacle

all these are shown to be as mysterious mysterious as be to shown are these all

tics, the secrets of evangelical enclaves, enclaves, evangelical of secrets the tics,

the seamy backside of presidential poli presidential of backside seamy the -

novel and step through them. through step and novel

achronological plot. achronological

of art galleries and grant applications, applications, grant and galleries art of

a shifting series of doorways. Read this this Read doorways. of series shifting a

’s ’s Tentacle as maze-like

vectored views. The troubled domains domains troubled The views. vectored what lies at the bottom of the ocean is is ocean the of bottom the at lies what

mysterious as religion, as as religion, as mysterious

has his points when seen in multiply multiply in seen when points his has

, , Tentacle to According intentions. by these are shown to be as as be to shown are these

able, but even a cowardly dog-poisoner dog-poisoner cowardly a even but able,

the realms of secrets, realms connected connected realms secrets, of realms the evangelical enclaves, all all enclaves, evangelical

- like thoroughly everyone’s Not future. ing and closing entrancing entrances to to entrances entrancing closing and ing politics, the secrets of of secrets the politics,

the fraught present, and the probable probable the and present, fraught the - open there, another one into collapse backside of presidential presidential of backside

plunges along, depicting the deep past, past, deep the depicting along, plunges applications, the seamy seamy the applications, cal lures of monsters. Time and space space and Time monsters. of lures cal

art galleries and grant grant and galleries art enough to furrow my forehead as it it as forehead my furrow to enough light to be seen is emitted by the chemi the by emitted is seen be to light -

The troubled domains of of domains troubled The a pleasurable read pleasurable a just challenging challenging just — ment come from below, and the only only the and below, from come ment

Other than that, though, the book’s book’s the though, that, than Other - nourish and Heat ocean. the of tom y Nightmares of Chiseled Glass Alphaland, by Cristina Jurado, Nevsky Books, July 2018, 124 pp., $10 reviewed by Kathleen Alcalá

Alphaland, a short collection of stories by Spanish author Cristina Jurado, is not quite like anything I have read before. This is like Jorge Luis Borges, I thought as I began. No no, this is like H.P. Love- craft, with all those invisible rats running up and down the walls. No, this imagery is straight from Picasso, all those mind- less, burrowing phallic symbols. Wait. Is After four comparisons, I there a little Clarice Lispector in here, the had to admit that Cristina wistfulness of an imaginary life not lived? Jurado’s style is all her own. This is definitely the After four comparisons, I had to admit stuff nightmares are made that Cristina Jurado’s style is all her own. of.… This is definitely the stuff nightmares are made of — from “Vanth,” where a child- hood accident reaches fruition years later, cia Lara, the English edition of Spanish to a metaphysical ending, the title story Women of Wonder, and her story “The “Alphaland,” that could be set in one of Shepherd” was included in The Best of these worlds, another terrible world of its Spanish Steampunk. “Alphaland” appears own, or the most frightening possibility, in Supersonic #6. In September 2015, our own world. Cristina was guest editor for Apex‘s spe- H Jurado was born in Madrid and cur- cial edition dedicated to international rently lives in Dubai. This is her first speculative fiction. 22 book in English, and four of the sto- But let’s get back to these creepy stories. ries it contains were translated from the “He has tried, but without success, to Spanish by James Womack; the others push away the migraine that bites at his were either translated by the author, or head, the ghost of a childhood bullet.” written by her in English. “Vanth” starts the collection off from a I find the stories in Alphaland disturb- child’s point of view, a boy forced to go ing in the way that The Delta of Venus, hunting with his father and a group of Anaïs Nin’s erotic stories, creep me out: ne’er do well men every Sunday. He re- I find the stories in we are put into the heads of anonymous sents them, knows he is there to act as an Alphaland disturbing in people who must act out certain sce- errand boy for his alcoholic father, whose the way that The Delta of narios that are both fearful and erotic, hands shake so badly he cannot load his Venus, Anaïs Nin’s erotic taking place in a space between wak- own gun. The subsequent accident leaves stories, creep me out: we ing and dreaming, free to go yet, at the the boy with a permanent headache, yet are put into the heads same time, bound in place. As a reader, I he grows up to be a successful politician of anonymous people feel the urge to intervene in the action, who uses anonymous sex for relief. Until who must act out certain to stop the actors and say, “This is not he meets Vanth. scenarios that are both how it has to be.” But, says our narrator, Jurado leads us on a circuitous route fearful and erotic.… it does have to be this way. through this story, one cruel sentence af- ter another: “This vagina is an abyss, a According to Wired.com, Jurado is a bottomless mine dug into her flesh.” Too writer, editor, and all-around champion late, the protagonist realizes that he has of Spanish language science fiction. She become the victim of a sort of cosmic is currently editor of the online maga- succubus. “You open your mouth, I know zine Supersonic, which features both not if it is to swallow me once and for all,

English and Spanish fiction and non- or laugh at me, now that I am no more

fiction. She recently edited, with Leti- than a puppet, rotten on the inside.” n

n

us through these stories with sentences sentences with stories these through us

wax.” Again, Jurado relentlessly draws draws relentlessly Jurado Again, wax.”

- bees wild of colour gold dull the had ble

- dou his now but man, dark very a been

her life after his death. “Her father had had father “Her death. his after life her

seems determined to insert himself into into himself insert to determined seems

during the protagonist’s childhood, but but childhood, protagonist’s the during

ances by a father who was mostly absent absent mostly was who father a by ances

- appear of numbers increasing with ages

- im nightmare the pairs Father,” the of www.kathleenalcala.com

first of these stories, “The Second Death Death Second “The stories, these of first at More Northwest.

creatures that must bow to its will. The The will. its to bow must that creatures writing, and lives in the the in lives and writing,

writes, teaches creative creative teaches writes, identify with the carnivore or the mute mute the or carnivore the with identify

author if six books. She She books. six if author and we cannot quite decide if we should should we if decide quite cannot we and

Kathleen Alcalá is the the is Alcalá Kathleen and raised as food by a malevolent being, being, malevolent a by food as raised and

turbing imagery of creatures being kept kept being creatures of imagery turbing

- dis the share stories two next The

her previous life for good reason. good for life previous her

that make us think she was shut out of of out shut was she think us make that

and make more work available to all of us. of all to available work more make and

marks, until she begins behaving in ways ways in behaving begins she until marks,

that straddle the lines between languages languages between lines the straddle that

- land or family without land strange a

I look forward to more genre mash-ups mash-ups genre more to forward look I

tries to regain her bearings, a stranger in in stranger a bearings, her regain to tries

tion of Spanish genre-bending writing. writing. genre-bending Spanish of tion

Alice tugs at our heartstrings as she she as heartstrings our at tugs Alice

- transla English in list a building rently

is assured that they are quite common. common. quite are they that assured is

- cur is and Tidbeck) Karin Rhei, Sofía

as “personal cleaning services,” and Alice Alice and services,” cleaning “personal as

Spanish (Anna Starobinets, Nina Allan, Allan, Nina Starobinets, (Anna Spanish

23

der. These transformations are described described are transformations These der.

lished European speculative fiction in in fiction speculative European lished

- gen her even apparently, changed, been i - pub has It UK. the and Spain in based

Everything about Alice may have have may Alice about Everything

Ediciones Nevsky/Nevsky Books is is Books Nevsky/Nevsky Ediciones

engorged….”

asylum. asylum.

The earlobe of the nurse is even more more even is nurse the of earlobe The

does spend much of her life in an insane insane an in life her of much spend does

cation of her high levels of happiness. happiness. of levels high her of cation

New Zealand author Janet Frame, really really Frame, Janet author Zealand New

- indi clear a swollen, greatly is earlobe

where the narrator, somewhat like the the like somewhat narrator, the where

to seek anything familiar. “…her left left “…her familiar. anything seek to

room is undermined in “Alphaland,” “Alphaland,” in undermined is room

city. Completely disoriented, she wakes wakes she disoriented, Completely city.

- bed safe a of conceit the even Finally,

finds she must start anew in a strange strange a in anew start must she finds stroyed long ago. long stroyed

prior life, apparently on purpose, and and purpose, on apparently life, prior - de were told been have you objects find

in which she has lost all memory of her her of memory all lost has she which in unused part of a relative’s house, only to to only house, relative’s a of part unused

“Alice” is the protagonist of a story story a of protagonist the is “Alice” in their translated quality. translated their in an unfamiliar way, like stepping into an an into stepping like way, unfamiliar an

every need, his every want. every his need, every glass, pleasingly evocative evocative pleasingly glass, tic lifestyle. The scenes are familiar in in familiar are scenes The lifestyle. tic

seemingly chiseled out of of out chiseled seemingly call it “Mother” even as it anticipates his his anticipates it as even “Mother” it call to willingly conduct a futuristic, fascis futuristic, a conduct willingly to -

stories with sentences sentences with stories name, because he cannot quite bear to to bear quite cannot he because name, a very nineteenth-century way, yet seem seem yet way, nineteenth-century very a

draws us through these these through us draws

all costs. He calls it Peggy, his mother’s mother’s his Peggy, it calls He costs. all that fly and crawl and use magnetism in in magnetism use and crawl and fly that

…Jurado relentlessly relentlessly …Jurado

who has evaded a planned death, alive at at alive death, planned a evaded has who that are not quite vampires, creatures creatures vampires, quite not are that

cal one intends to keep the astronaut, astronaut, the keep to intends one cal and imagery in this story, with vampires vampires with story, this in imagery and

- mechani this but womb, enveloping an Jurado plays with all sorts of stereotypes stereotypes of sorts all with plays Jurado

story, the protagonist is at the mercy of of mercy the at is protagonist the story, comforts of a safe and secure bedroom. bedroom. secure and safe a of comforts

ing the song,“Inchworm.” As in the first first the in As song,“Inchworm.” the ing to break out of a nightmare and find the the find and nightmare a of out break to

and break the pattern, the way one hopes hopes one way the pattern, the break and turn, was inspired by Danny Kaye sing Kaye Danny by inspired was turn, -

pelled to examine this beastly behavior behavior beastly this examine to pelled ity” that she saw as a child. Bowie, in in Bowie, child. a as saw she that ity”

tor with more free will, someone com someone will, free more with tor - by a David Bowie video for “Space Odd “Space for video Bowie David a by -

“The Shepherd” introduces a narra a introduces Shepherd” “The - ing us she was inspired to write this story story this write to inspired was she us ing

ingly evocative in their translated quality. quality. translated their in evocative ingly - tell intrusion, authorial an with worm,”

seemingly chiseled out of glass, pleas glass, of out chiseled seemingly - - “Inch story, next the starts Jurado The Dancing Clouds of Margaret Stermer-Cox

My artist story starts out as a famil- At the start of this artistic path, my iar one. Like many of us, I have always husband and I lived on the Washington wanted to be an artist. And drawing and coast. And, I wanted to create images that painting were what I loved best. reflected our home environment, but were However, the road to becoming an personal. That is, they expressed what I artist has been long. And that is because saw and felt about living by the sea. along the way, I took detours and alter- I started playing with subjects like nate paths. In college, for example, I ma- shells from the beach and the local jored in zoology. Then, after my degree, I lighthouse. I drew and painted from life, went off to join the Army. Twenty years memory, and imagination. Soon enough, later, I retired. And, finally, the time had I had a series of lighthouse paintings, plus come to focus on my dream of becoming mermaids, seahorses, and sea dragons. an artist. This same approach spilled over into Let’s go back to the beginning, though. our travels. Take, for example, when we spent time in Utah at some of the What I think is special about my per- national parks. I wanted to create images sonal story is that I grew up in an artist’s that conveyed the stunning splendor of family. My father was a classically trained nature. And I needed the images to be a painter. Plus, Mom and Dad were inter- bit different and personal. ested in all the arts. So, from paintings to So, when we were at the Grand Stair- literature, dance to theater, opera to jazz, case Escalante (Utah) and I saw weeds ours was a home with an art-friendly tra- growing out of a man-made hole in a dition. As such, my childhood environ- rock, I knew I had my subject! What H ment helped shape my aesthetic sense. struck me was the tenacity of the small 24 And, I bring this background to how I plants as they reclaimed a rock that peo- approach my work. ple had used then discarded. And, the Fast forward, so to speak, to more weeds were beautiful. Thus, a series of recent history. In 2002, after retiring leaf paintings was born. Some of the leaf from the Army, I began working at my paintings have a circle, a nod to the hole art. I am a “self-taught” artist. That is in the rock. to say, I do not have formal training in To summarize, I use life, memory, an academy, atelier, or similar academic and imagination to create my artwork. environment. Instead, I guide my own Throughout my years of work, doing art education. Put another way, I learn things my own personal way has been from books and magazines, from classes my hallmark. It is my desire to share given by local artists, and from practical with you my love of drawing and paint- experience. ing; color and light; and, perhaps, the The choice to work in watercolor humor and joy of life. started simply enough. When I retired, For more, please visit my portfolio at there was a watercolor class offered by https://dancingclouds.com/. the local community college. And, so, with nothing to lose and everything to gain, I enrolled and began to study. Fortunately, I liked working with water- color and have used it ever since. It is a medium that continues to surprise and delight.

Featured Artist What you’ll see, then, when looking

at the work published here, is a sampling

of my artistic journey. n

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Toward the Light the Toward

I Can’t Hear You Hear Can’t I

Reclamation

Sea Swirls Swirls Sea

25

i Valley of the Hoodoos the of Valley She Reads Science Fiction

Lighthouse, D9

Pelican Quartet

$5.00 The Cascadia Subduction Zone PO Box 95787 Seattle, WA 98145-2787