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A review by meganmarjorie
L. Ron Hubbard Presents Writers of the Future Volume 36: Bestselling Anthology of Award-Winning Science Fiction and Fantasy Short Stories by L. Ron Hubbard, Nnedi Okorafor
5.0
4.5 stars.
As expected, this was yet another very impressive anthology. So many of the winners were quite young - I suspect some will become big names in the future. The stories toward the beginning were stronger than the end in my opinion, but I'm quite excited about some of these new (to me) writers on my radar! I'm ashamed to admit that one of those is Nnedi Okorafor, who I've heard nothing but great things about but had not gotten around to until her story here, "The Winds of Harmattan." I was blown away and hope to read more by her soon.
Some of my favorite stories:
"The Trade" by C. Winspear - a familiar ethical question of sacrifice done in a refreshingly adventurous way
"A Prize in Every Box" by F. J. Bergman - a very engaging tale that I found difficult to predict
"As Able the Air" by Zack Be - any story that explores humanity's curious attachment to AI manages to win me over
"Educational Tapes" by Katie Livingston - MY ABSOLUTE FAVORITE. Wow, what a wonderful addition. Brilliantly written despite my initial worry that the dystopian backdrop was a little played out. I cannot believe the writer's still getting her undergrad!
Some of my favorite illustrators:
Arthur Bowling (from "The Trade")
John Dale Javier (from "Educational Tapes" and "The Green Tower")
Phoebe Rothfeld (from "Automated Everyman Migrant Theater")
As expected, this was yet another very impressive anthology. So many of the winners were quite young - I suspect some will become big names in the future. The stories toward the beginning were stronger than the end in my opinion, but I'm quite excited about some of these new (to me) writers on my radar! I'm ashamed to admit that one of those is Nnedi Okorafor, who I've heard nothing but great things about but had not gotten around to until her story here, "The Winds of Harmattan." I was blown away and hope to read more by her soon.
Some of my favorite stories:
"The Trade" by C. Winspear - a familiar ethical question of sacrifice done in a refreshingly adventurous way
"A Prize in Every Box" by F. J. Bergman - a very engaging tale that I found difficult to predict
"As Able the Air" by Zack Be - any story that explores humanity's curious attachment to AI manages to win me over
"Educational Tapes" by Katie Livingston - MY ABSOLUTE FAVORITE. Wow, what a wonderful addition. Brilliantly written despite my initial worry that the dystopian backdrop was a little played out. I cannot believe the writer's still getting her undergrad!
Some of my favorite illustrators:
Arthur Bowling (from "The Trade")
John Dale Javier (from "Educational Tapes" and "The Green Tower")
Phoebe Rothfeld (from "Automated Everyman Migrant Theater")