Would read again
I enjoyed most of the stories and would read agian. Liked reading from diiferent sci-fi and other genre authors. Would recommened.
A really good read
One could argue for ages on whether all the stories included in this book are true "wastelands" type of stories, regardless it is a very enjoyable read cover-to-cover
Too Much Politics Masquerading as Science Fiction
This book is a collection of short stories about the end of the world/society/countries/our current way of life, etc. Some of the stories are very good and entertain the "what ifs" of the future and mankind in general. However, about half of the stories in this book are clearly political statements about the current war in Iraq, global warming, capitalism, and environmentalism. I dont' mind some social and political commentary in science fiction. After all, it has always been there. From Mark Twain's, "A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court" to Star Trek, and even George Romero zombie flicks, there has always been some reflection of real-world politics in science fiction. Nevertheless, I felt like the politics in this collection was overtly slanted to the left and it unfortunately colored the whole book for me. As I started each new story, I had to ask myself, "Is this going to be another good story or is this another veiled pro-feminist, anti-Bush piece?" It was hit or miss. If you're a political centrist or even a conservative, I recommend you buy used on this one. The plain ol' good stories in this book are worth the used price.
Nothing special
All the stories begin with a review of the writer's accomplishments and awards. Hugos, Nebulas, and many I have never heard of. After reading many of these stories, all I could think was "Wow, they have really lowered the standards on giving out awards...."
What's next? The "Able to use a three syllable word" award?
Perhaps six of the stories are memorable and really interesting. The rest are a mix of average to poor. The first story is a Stephen King short. It's actually one of the worst in the book.
See the picture on the front cover?
well, that's the sort of PA story I like, crumbling skyscrapers and people struggling to rebuild civilisation. Bit of a back story, no unanswered questions. That sort of stuff, but its my own fault really. It is after all a collection of short stories and Im being a bit harsh. Some of them "Speech Sounds" for example I found annoying when reading them, but appreciate them more thinking back on the issues they raised. Mind you, I found the lack of a decent back story in Mad Max a little annoying as well, and I love the fan sites where people have interpolated the "facts" to make up their own back-stories. You have to do that a bit with many of these stories. The one with Winston Churchill in it was probably the one that came closest to hitting my buttons, and I would be interested in finding out what happened to the 2 protagonists. Churchill is an odd avatar to choose, however... in summary, I would recommend perhaps that you get this one from the library or borrow it from someone. To be fair to the authors though, I am knackered after getting home from work, and am rather lazy when it comes to using too much brain power to fill in holes or make big leaps of imagination. This is an ok book.
