Stephanie Burgis, Anne E. Johnson, Patrice Sarath and many more – Futuristica: Volume 1

Grāmatas apraksts no Goodreads/Synopsis from Goodreads:

What does the future hold for us? This anthology of nineteen diverse stories from authors around the world shows us a future full of adventure, intrigue, fun, heart-ache, and wonder.
A imprisoned space pirate from Phobos is given a last chance for freedom, but only if he’s willing to kill his younger brother. Again.
In post-climate change Italy, a deaf African-American woman and her native partner struggle to build a communal farm that can survive the new environment, a lasting hope for a future.
A Latina party girl is addicted to cybernetic body modification when the latest experimental ‘fix’ comes out, promising to let her deepest desires rise.
An Asian woman is called to Nigeria to find out why her company’s cyborg policeman just killed an unarmed teenage boy.
A mech-suited mercenary on a war torn alien planet is just trying to earn enough to get out, but her daughter is on the battlefield the day all hell breaks loose.
And many more. The future is as infinite as the stars. Let’s go explore it!

Izdevniecība/Publisher: Metasagas Press

Kā tiku pie šīs grāmatas?/How I got this book?

Laimēju Goodreads izlozē.

Vērtējums/Rating: 3.75/5

Mana recenzija (pārdomas)/My (thoughts) review

Futuristica: Volume 1 ir 19 sci-fi stāstu krājums ar ieskatu tuvākā un tālākā nākotnē gan uz Zemes, gan kosmosā vai uz citas planētas, iespējams, pat ne mūsu Saules sistēmā. Ir optimistiskas prognozes, ir pasaules pēc apokaliptiska notikuma, ir arī vairāk no varbūtējās ikdienas.

Light-Years from Now by E.E. King no visiem ļāva visvairāk pasmaidīt. Tajā Toms nogarlaikojies diendienā pēta monitorus pilnus ar zvaigznēm un planētām ar cerību reiz uztvert kādu ziņu no citām inteliģentām būtnēm Visumā, kad vienudien vēlu vakarā viņu pārsteidz negaidīts viesis, Druv, kuru Toms notur par apmaiņas studentu. Patīkamā ziņā pārsteidza homoseksuāla tēla parādīšanās, un drusku izbrīna, ka visā krājumā šis stāsts tāds ir vienīgais.

Dreamwire by Anne E. Johnson – apsēstība ar plastiskajām operācijām ieguvusi jaunu nozīmi. If They Can Learn by Wole Talabi – robotu-policistu sistēma saskaras ar letālām sekām, kad robotiem, situācijas novērtēšanai, liela daļa datu ņemti no 20.gs ASV pieredzes. Mum’s Group by Stephanie Burgis – vēsta par pasauli, kurā gandrīz katrai mātei, bet nevienam tēvam, galvā ir ievietots implants, kas saka priekšā, ko darīt un ko nedarīt, lai būtu ideāla māte. Bet Llamacide by Gary Kloster brīdina, ka lamām labāk neuzticēties, tās ir ļaunas! Tie ir tikai daži stāsti, kurus varētu izcelt, un daudzi ir savas grāmatas cienīgi, un ir potenciāls, lai tos varētu izvērstu plašāk. Tomēr no kopējās bildes visvairāk laukā krita pats pirmais stāsts Sterile Technique by Megan Chaudhuri un The Soma Earth by Ciro Faienza.

Nesen kā lasīju viena autora stāstu krājumu, bet šajā katrs ir no citā. Lai gan vērtējums šai grāmatai, Futuristica: Volume 1, ir zemāks, grūti pateikt, kurš variants šķiet labāks.

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Futuristica: Volume 1 is a collection of 19 sci-fi short stories that look into closer and farther future both on Earth and in space or on another planet, maybe not even in our Solar system. There are storis with optimistic prognosis and with worlds after apocalypse, there are also some that shows more day to day life.

Light-Years from Now by E.E. King from all the stories made me smile the most. In it Tom bored to death every day watches monitors full with stars and planets hoping to someday receive a message from intelligent life form. Late in a day as every other Tom is surprised by unexpected visitor (Druv), that he mistakes for exchange student. I was pleasantly surprised by this story as it was the only one with gay character in it, which was in this day and age surprisingly in itself.

In Dreamwire by Anne E. Johnson the obsession with plastic surgeries gets a new meaning. If They Can Learn by Wole Talabi – robot-policeman system faces lethal consequences when the most of the date for robots to assess the situation are taken from the practice of 20^th century USA. Mum’s Group by Stephanie Burgis tells about a world where almost every mother (but no father) has an implant in their head that tells for you everything you should and shouldn’t do so you can be ideal mother. But Llamacide by Gary Kloster warns that there are some evil llamas out there, don’t trust them! These are only few that I could highlight and many are worthy to be expanded into a book. However the first story Sterile Technique by Megan Chaudhuri and The Soma Earth by Ciro Faienza fell out the most from the whole composition.

Recently I read a short story collection by one author but in Futuristica: Volume 1 each one was by a different author, although the rating for the latter one from me is lower, it’s hard to say witch version I like better.