or something equally irrelevant.

Electronica:

Peter Beagle, "We Never Talk About My Brother," in Intergalactic Medicine Show. This is a very clever story, in which something I am usually highly dubious about actually works: the narrator talking at the reader, as though they're a journalist or whatever. In this case, the dude is talking about his brother who - you might realise - no one seems to mention any more. This is him explaining exactly why, and it is a very strange reason. I really liked the reason, but more than that I enjoyed the interplay between the siblings. It was, I can attest, very realistic.

Ben Burgis, "Three Perspectives on the Role of the Anarchists in the Zombie Apocalypse," in Afterburn. As an historian, I loved this story because the focus wasn't on the zombies themselves - in fact, it completely takes a back seat. The whole point of this story is different ways of looking at the same events, and the fact that they can come across completely differently depending on time, perspective, bias... it's really cleverly written.

Mari Ness, "Remembering Sara," Coyote Wild. I have a weird memory. I remember trivia like nothing else; and that's the other thing - I often forget obvious things. So a story about memory, and buying memories, and not knowing the difference between the two... that's a scary thought. And this is a great story.


Concrete:
Amelia Beamer, "Krishnaware," in Lady Churchill's Rosebud Wristlet. Virtual reality presents so many possibilities to the discerniing scifi writer, doesn't it? This is one very clever idea. Radha and Krishna, from Hindu mythology, get translated to VR... and so the possibilities for playing with the myth are myriad.

Leah Bobet, "After the War," in Sybil's Garage No. 4. This story affected me greatly because my dad was in the Vietnam War, and although I had a 'good' experience in this - compared with many of my peers' experiences - still stories of returned servicemen get to me. This one is about just that - and how his wife deals with it.

Alexandra Penn, "Second Law," Zahir #12. Time travel but with a twist, I guess. Moderately hard core science, with a romantic bent.

Gray Rinehart, "The Rocket Seamstress," also Zahir #12. A family story, of survival and determination, with Grandmother sewing as the centrepiece. A bit heartbreaking in terms of the old not respecting the new but still, I thought, uplifting in the end (no pun intended).

Sheila Finch, "First was the Word," in Fantasy and Science Fiction June. A brilliant take on the classic close-encounters idea. It came as a great relief to me to have the more recent Dr Who series explain that the TARDIS makes everyone intellible, and no not everyone in the universe speaks English, as had been assumed for countless episodes before. This story is about not having that technology. How on earth could we even begin to understand someone from another planet?

Bud Webster, "Bringing it All Back Home," in Analog July/August. Bubba is a towtruck driver. He's had some weird experiences in the past, and they come in useful when he is given a particularly weird commission by NASA. He also has some useful sidekicks. This is a long story, but ultimately worth reading.

Amy Betchel, "A Time for Lawsuits," also Analog July/August. I loved this story. A lot. The main character is a totally accident-prone vet, who has a particularly bad day - one accident involves dead calves. And then there are the monsters.... It's just a delightful, fun, and absorbing story.

I've written a review of Andromeda Spaceways Inflight Magazine #30, which can be viewed over on ASif!. Look out particularly for "The Fairytale Cookbook" and "Fendraaken," two of my favourites.

M Rickert, "Memoir of a Deer Woman," in Fantasy and Science Fiction, March. This story focusses on the relationship between a man and his partner more than the transformation the woman is undertaking. It's lovely, and heart-breaking.