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A review by gunner
Arrival (Originally published as Stories of Your Life and Others) by Ted Chiang
3.0
I never seem to be very excited about short story collections, even when I love the author, and this collection is no different. I had added it to my to-read list when I first got Goodreads back in 2011. I don't remember why, but it's sat there mostly forgotten until I saw the movie Arrival, and was reminded by the mention of the author during the end credits.
The title story was very good, but this is one of those rare instances where I believe the filmmakers did an even better job with the story than the author did. The ideas were more clearly presented and the twist was more powerful in the film.
The other story I liked was "Liking What You See: A Documentary", which explores the concept of physical beauty, its benefits and its distractions. This story really got me thinking and I think it will stick with me.
The rest of the stories didn't do much for me at all, though as a group they're probably slightly better than average.
If you love short fiction then this is a good collection to try. If not, I'd simply say to go check out the Arrival movie instead.
The title story was very good, but this is one of those rare instances where I believe the filmmakers did an even better job with the story than the author did. The ideas were more clearly presented and the twist was more powerful in the film.
The other story I liked was "Liking What You See: A Documentary", which explores the concept of physical beauty, its benefits and its distractions. This story really got me thinking and I think it will stick with me.
The rest of the stories didn't do much for me at all, though as a group they're probably slightly better than average.
If you love short fiction then this is a good collection to try. If not, I'd simply say to go check out the Arrival movie instead.