"The Paper Menagerie", Ken Liu

SS F&SF (Fantasy & Science Fiction) March/April 2011 – fantasy

An American boy's Chinese mother makes origami paper animals for him. She breathes life into them, at least figuratively, perhaps more. The paper tiger, Laohu, takes on the neighbor kid's Obi-Wan Kenobi toy. The boy wants his mother to be less foreign, more American, and speak English to him.

A good story. When grown-up, the boy regretfully realizes he didn't know his mother, who was a mail-order bride, that well.

"Still on the Road", Geoffrey A. Landis

SS, ASFM (Asimov’s Science Fiction) December 2008 – science fantasy
A couple of guys travel the roads, driving from place to place. But their vehicle isn’t a car, it’s a spaceship. They give another guy a ride to a planet near Arcturus.

A very short story - less than two pages. It has a folksy feel to it.

"New Hat", Connie Willis

SS, Rocky Mountain News 9/30/08 - fiction
In 1924 a timid young woman named Clara travels alone to Denver to enquire about her Uncle Matt’s will. She realizes something about herself and her fiancé Kane.

There are no fantastic elements in this story. This is a pleasant piece of short fiction.

I read this story on good, old-fashioned paper. But here's a link to read New Hat online on the Rocky Mountain News website.

"Strangers on a Bus", Jack Skillingstead

SS ASFM (Asimov's Science Fiction) December 2007 - science fiction
A man named Neil strikes up a conversation with a woman called Freya on a Greyhound bus. He tells her that he sees stories in the faces of strangers, embellishes them, and the people become what he makes up. She isn't sure what to think, but she's got to admit that he knows way too much about her life.

An interesting story, although it sort of made me think of The Lathe of Heaven by Ursula K. LeGuin. If I was this woman, I doubt that I would have remained calmly nearby to hear the entirety of this man's tale.

"do [this]", Stephen Graham Jones

SS ASFM (Asimov's Science Fiction) December 2007 - science fiction
Over dinner, Leo's dad conjectures about testing for consciousness through language. Leo would have totally ignored his dad if he didn't have an assignment on a similar subject. Later, in his room, Leo processes function loops on his computer for his paper and gets strange results.

A rather cryptically told tale from the viewpoint of two nerds. Some readers may enjoy following these trains of thought. I think I liked this story better in hindsight.

"Cold Comfort", Ray Vukcevich

SS F&SF (Fantasy & Science Fiction) July 2007 - science fiction
A freezer which is an artificial intelligence calls security / maintenance on a Holiday. They have a nice chat.

A cute, quirky story. It's only about three pages long.

"Stray", Benjamin Rosenbaum and David Ackert

SS F&SF (Fantasy & Science Fiction) December 2007 - fantasy
In the era of FDR, Ivan, a down and out immortal, is found by a Muriel, a colored doctor's daughter. For her, Ivan becomes a light-skinned black man. They marry and Ivan works to fit into Muriel's world. Then, in a cemetery, Ivan meets crying white girl.

This story seems profound, but I'm a bit fuzzy about the point it's trying to make. Sure, there's the race issue. My guess is that this story is about making people like you.

"Transformations", David Barr Kirtley

SS RoF (Realms of Fantasy) December 2007 – science fantasy
<<- Realms of Fantasy December 2007 interior illustration by Rob Johnson for "Transformations"
Carrus, disguised as a red sports car, meets a boy named Alex. Carrus is a robotic soldier assigned to Earth on a covert mission during a space war. Alex likes Carrus because he is an awesome talking car that can transform himself into a huge robotic infantryman. Lonely Carrus makes a friend whom he visits over a period of years.

Alex as a young boy, teenager, and middle-aged man gets to play with a really cool car that only he knows about. This isn't a first contact or robot war story, it's more or less a guy's automotive fantasy dream. Sort of fun.

"Who Brought Tulips to the Moon?", S.L. Gilbow

SS F&SF (Fantasy & Science Fiction) December 2007 - science fiction
Healthy ninety-four year old Mr. Hudson is taken to the moon by his always in a rush daughter Laura Severs and her husband Danny. On the way to Smooth Passing, a company that helps you pass away, Mr. Hudson accidentally knocks over an old woman. Later, he goes out of his way to apologize to the woman and they chat over drinks. The tulips mentioned in the title are displayed with the funeral urns.

Sort of a sad story. The author evokes resignation to fate well. There's a nice twist ending.

"Osama Phone Home", David Marusek

SS F&SF (Fantasy & Science Fiction) December 2007 - science fiction
Angry that the U.S. Government did not capture Osama bin Laden at Tora Bora, a group of friends form a secret organization to help bring bin Laden to justice. They are deadly serious in their mission. Their Project Phone Home involves a truth serum drug dubbed True Confessions, genetically modified ragweed, voiceprint recognition traps, and cheap prepaid cell phones.

This is a suspenseful present-day story involving spooky but not impossible sounding technologies. It was originally published earlier in 2007 in MIT's Technology Review magazine.

"Hot Water", Richard Parks

SS RoF (Realms of Fantasy) December 2007 - fantasy
Lord Yamada is taken to a small Buddhist temple in the mountains to dry out after a bout of hard drinking. An angry, female, so-called demon is messing with temple's hot spring water. Young monk Hoshi fears he knows why this is happening.

Not memorably profound, but a pleasant little tale.

"The White Isle", Von Carr

SS RoF (Realms of Fantasy) December 2007 – fairy tale
<<- Realms of Fantasy December 2007 interior illustration by Stephanie Pui-Mun Law for "The White Isle"
A witchgirl lives alone on an island in a white tower. She has a shoebox of fingernails to sink ships with. When a second shipwrecked man washes up her island’s shore, she helps him and saves his life. The man, a son of a rich merchant, signals a passing ship and convinces the captain to take him and the witchgirl, whom he loves, to the mainland.

This is a story of why you might not want to bring home exotic people from faraway places. The witchgirl is interestingly not human. The purposely unexplained magic makes this a fairy tale.

"Don't Ask", M. Rickert

SS F&SF (Fantasy & Science Fiction) December 2007 – fantasy
The lost boys were stolen from their everyday modern lives. After they are found, they are not only older but different. Don't ask, but they've been running with the wolves.

A poignant short story about mothers trying to undue what happened to their boys, hoping to find the boys they lost.

"Still Point", Graham Edwards

SS RoF (Realms of Fantasy) December 2007 – fantasy
A struggling private investigator; a behemoth in a labyrinth; a police captain existing outside time; an angelic chaperone; a creepy landlord; and The Still Point of the Turning World.

This story is overstuffed with odd details, along with some humor and some gore. The characters are rather flat. The plot was a bit too convoluted to truly work.

"Bullet Dance", John Schoffstall

SS ASFM (Asimov's Science Fiction) May 2007 - modern-day fantasy
Clio is the young daughter of an embassy official in Cairo. She claimed that she could dodge bullets. Others put this down as childish imagination. Even Clio herself, years later, thought her lessons were daydreams, until she needed to bullet dance.

This is a story where modern day issues intersect with unexplained fantasy. It's different, in a good way.

"The House Beyond Your Sky", Benjamin Rosenbaum

SS Strange Horizons September 4, 2006 – science fantasy)
A powerful yet compassionate priest called Matthias has a library that contains worlds such as our own. He is building a bubble universe behind his house. A pilgrim from far away, one of the ancient ones, visits Matthias and wants to become ubiquitous in Matthias's new universe. Matthias hides his keys from the pilgrim.

I found this short story rather odd, and I couldn't get into it. The plot line in the world like ours, with its scenes of domestic violence, was a bit unsettling. I guess I'll give brownie points to the author for writing something different -- a tale about God-like universe-spanning beings -- and for some clever phrases.

"Eight Episodes", Robert Reed

SS ASFM (Asimov's Science Fiction) June 2006 - science fiction
In 2016, a series called Invasion of a Small World debuted. It was poorly promoted, and had only adequate production values, unglamorous characters, and sloppy dialog. The series was cancelled after the fifth episode. But months later the final three episodes create a buzz by showing planetary vistas and a Permian ecosystem. Who was behind this series, who sent it?

This short story may present a more realistic view of life in the wide universe, but it lacks something in fun. Some of the golden age sci-fi genre tropes are near impossibilities, but why discourage us from reaching for the stars?

"Kin", Bruce McAllister

SS ASFM (Asimov's Science Fiction) February 2006 - science fiction
<<- Asimov's Science Fiction February 2006 cover by Dominic Harman for "Kin"
In an overpopulated California of the future, a twelve-year old boy named Kim Tuckey-Yatsen wants a man killed because he is going to kill his sister. At a local tourist spot, the boy handed out notes. A scary, dangerous Antalou alien answers the boy's note. Seems the intelligent boy knows much about the Antalou. The boy's case strikes a chord with the alien, even though what little money the boy can offer is not worth a kill. The boy understands the alien better than either imagined.

This is a memorable science fiction short story. An unusual way to bend regulations, and a neat way to make a bureaucrat think. Plus five years later, a nice added bit for the boy.

"The Bible Repairman", Tim Powers

SS anthology (The Best Science Fiction and Fantasy of the Year edited by Jonathan Strahan) - fantasy
Mr. Torrez does Bible repair by scorching out verses his customers find intolerable then re-sanctifying the book with holy water. He conducts ransom negotiations for stolen ghosts by offering some of his blood and his soul. His own dead daughter's ghost was kidnapped and was used as TV channel-changer. There are broken souls and urban magic.

This is a story filled with intriguing ideas. I recommend this story for that alone. It's like magic realism, but taken multiple steps from reality. But since the situations are really out there, and this isn't a long story, it was sometimes hard to put myself in the character's shoes. Nonetheless, an interesting tale.

"How to Talk to Girls at Parties", Neil Gaiman

SS story collection (Fragile Things) - science fantasy
Two English teenage boys -- one is outgoing, the other, the narrator, is shy about talking to girls – head off to a party, but they forget to bring the directions. They find a party, but girl they know isn't there. The girl who meets them at the door is very beautiful. Turns out it's a different party entirely, and the girls at the party are quite different indeed.

A charming story. Gaiman wisely doesn't try to explain or describe things entirely, and that helps to make the story work.