As the title suggests, the book is a collection of 28 works – some prose and some poetry, from India, Pakistan and Bangladesh. I liked the premise of quite a few, but in many cases, it didn’t fulfil the promise. If you have a deep interest in science/speculative fiction from this region, go for it.
There was a time when I used to only read Indian fiction, because I found it more relatable. The only genre that was an exception was science fiction. And now, we have an Indian sci-fi anthology. From a walking Taj Mahal to zombies in Chennai, it has amazing diversity of context and actual storytelling.
Ted Chiang is master of speculative fiction and the nine stories are an example of his abilities – not just the imagination, but the ability to articulate it. There is profound insight in all the stories, irrespective of its length, and across multiple streams – from artificial intelligence to free will. An absolute must-read.
A political novel written in 1935 that’s prescient about how an authoritarian regime could actually take power in the United States. Though it begins with a democratic victory, it soon becomes a “corporatist” regime with its own paramilitary force called Minute Men. Through the struggles of Doremus Jessup, a liberal, we see the journey downhill. The references to real life personalities might require some research, but a great read nevertheless.
An absolute treasure if you’re even remotely interested in science fiction. The stated objective of the book is diversity, and it does justice to it on many fronts – non-English writings, the setting in terms of geography, gender, sub-genres – dystopian, alien encounters, space operas, post-apocalypse, and even satire. 105 stories spanning 1160 pages, this book definitely needs to be on your shelf!