Lightspeed Magazine, July 2011 - Fiction Recap

I enjoyed every story presented in this issue.  My heart lies in hard science fiction which is well represented here.

I am a big fan of humans; I like stories that involve people; I prefer it when the future is the setting and humans are involved in the drama or conflict.  With aliens, often too much word count is wasted on describing how strange or icky the creatures are, rather than pursuing a story.  I was happy that Face Value did not fall into that trap and we were given a compelling story, involving aliens, but focused on the two humans in it.

I purchased the issue primarily for The Cold Equations and the re-imagined The Old Equations.  I must say; The Cold Equations has lost nothing of its ability to grip the reader since it was first published in 1954.

Below are links to my thoughts on each story in the issue.

The Cold Equations -
 http://eric-the-mailman.blogspot.ca/2015/01/the-cold-equations-by-tom-godwin.html

The Old Equations -
http://eric-the-mailman.blogspot.ca/2015/02/the-old-equations-by-jake-kerr.html

Sweet Sixteen -
http://eric-the-mailman.blogspot.ca/2015/02/sweet-sixteen-by-kat-howard.html

Face Value -
http://eric-the-mailman.blogspot.ca/2015/02/face-value-by-karen-joy-fowler.html

Face Value by Karen Joy Fowler

4/100

What an interesting story.

Two explorers, Hesper a linguist / poet and Taki an xenologist are embedded in an alien community trying to communicate with the native beings.

The story is interesting on two levels.

First, the team is trying to make, not so much first contact, as they are already accepted within the strange community, but first communication. The residents know they are there and interact by touching each human and going through their things.

Second, we witness the changing dynamics between Taki and Hesper: their relationship becomes strained by the frustrating lack of progress.

Stories like this one expose the fallacy of our current TV science fiction trope; that all we need to communicate is a universal translator.

Well worth reading.

This story was originally published in The Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction, November 1986.

Karen Joy Fowler's website is here:   http://karenjoyfowler.com/

Karen Joy Fowler

Fantasy & Science Fiction, November 1986

Sweet Sixteen by Kat Howard

3/100

An interesting story about genetic manipulation and a society that forces young girls into career rolls.

Forces is a bit strong, but not by much; at sixteen years of age girls are genetically and psychologically tested to determine what career she is best suited, for the betterment of society.  She does have input into this decision by listing her top three career choices.

It was a bit dystopian in feel, especially in that self-determination seems to have been lost.

It was a quick and easy read, definitely a nice addition to an issue that seems devoted to exploring situations where choices are limited.  There is a lot of subject matter to think about here, enough that expanding it to novel length would be welcomed.

Kat Howard's blog can be found here -  http://strangeink.blogspot.ca/

Kat Howard

The Old Equations by Jake Kerr

2/100

Here is a fun alternative history story.  What if Einstein's life was cut short and his theory of relativity was ignored?

In this future quantum mechanics is the basis of all physics. Now see what happens to a mission, headed to a nearby star, as it accelerates closer and closer to light speed.

I've always had trouble getting my head around the effects of speed on space-time, known as time dilation, and these poor souls must struggle with it too.

It was not what I expected for a re-imagining of The Cold Equations but it was very satisfying in that ignoring the laws of physics can have a very serious outcome.

I liked this one.

Jake Kerr's website is:   http://jakekerr.com/

Jake Kerr

The Cold Equations by Tom Godwin

1/100

Oh my god!  This story is just as chilling as it was when it was first published in 1954. 

As the title suggests, the universe does not care about good intentions. There is no compromise when it comes to physics and mathematics. 

In this story we run into the desire of a young girl to surprise her older brother. But the laws of physics and the good of the many, to borrow a quote from Star Trek, has something to say about it. 

This is an excellent story and one that should not be missed by any science fiction fan. 

I read this in the July 2011 issue of Lightspeed magazine which includes a follow up short story called The Old Equations by Jake Kerr. 

The original story is now in the public domain and can easily be found with a Google search. Or, if you like you can find it HERE.