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wealhtheow

wealhtheow

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The Theory of the Leisure Class (Modern Library Classics)
Thorstein Veblen, Alan Wolfe
Jukebox Bard - Maria Velazques,  A.H. Jennings,  A.R. Yngve,  Kate Bachus,  Joyce Chng,  Patricia J. Eposito,  Catt Kingsgrave,  C. Gabriel Wright,  Maria Deira,  Karen J.H. Thistle,  Uche Obieri A collection of sf/f short stories and poems. Definitely better than most of the genre collections out there, but like most anthologies, there are at least as many misses as hits.
The Good:
"I Know of Snow White and Her Apple" by
Maria Velazquez. Dark poem with a building rhythm to it.
"Nodespace" by Karen J.H. Thistle. Cyberpunk. The standout of the collection. Captain Vex is a fantastic character, and the world building here is top-notch. My only complaint is that I wish this was a novel instead of a short story--it's that good.
"Crawl,"by Kate Bachus, is a real novelty in the sf genre. A few hours in the life of a middle-aged, blue-collar woman trying to both survive and make some money in the midst of a terrifying conflagration. Lots of grit and great character details--another stand-out story.

The Bad:
"The Trouble With Dragons" by Joyce Chng. Steampunk set in 1800s China. Clunky writing. The main character was odd--it was told from his perspective, and he very much bought into Victorian ideals of gender and beauty.
"Los Pequenos" by Maria Deira
"Heart of Brass" by AH Jennings would undoubtedly have been enjoyable, but it seems to end in the middle of the action. Later in the collection, there's another story by the same author, with the same characters. Again, it starts in media res and finishes in the middle of the plot, without resolution. Very odd.
"The King of" by AH Jennings makes *no sense.*