#ReadShortStories in another direction (186 to 190)

As I write the story count in the title of this blog post, I realise how close I am to hitting 200 stories read in 2018. Looks like I won't have much trouble reaching that goal and will probably end up going a bit over. While not finishing on a round number is a little disappointing, it would be weirder to stop so inorganically. Overall, it looks like this short story reading and blogging experiment has worked well and I will probably continue with it next year.

In other news, it was after the first two stories in this batch that I decided to give up on How to Fracture a Fairytale by Jane Yolen, so don't expect to see more of those stories here. You can read about why in this blog post.

Sleeping Ugly by Jane Yolen — A children’s story but an amusing remix of Sleeping Beauty. The tone worked well for this one, I thought. Source: How To Fracture A Fairy Tale by Jane Yolen

The Undine by Jane Yolen — A more depressing version of The Little Mermaid? I’m not really sure what we were meant to take from this very short story. Source: How To Fracture A Fairy Tale by Jane Yolen

Next Station, Shibuya by Iori Kusano — A lovely and faintly creepy story told in second person from the point of view of a city, abut a grad student studying historic geography through poetry. I enjoyed the calm tempo of the story and the gorgeous imagery of Tokyo. Source: https://www.apex-magazine.com/next-station-shibuya/

We Interrupt This Broadcast by Mary Robinette Kowal — A prequel short story to The Calculating Stars that had me exclaiming in disbelief. Is this cannon? I’m not sure, but it’s an interesting and quick read for people who have read the novels or the novelette (I don’t know that it stands alone nearly as well). Source: http://maryrobinettekowal.com/journal/45th-birthday-short-story-party-favour/

To Rain Upon One City by Rivqa Rafael — A story set in a future on another world, where the poor aren’t even allowed fresh water that rains outside, but must drink recycled water as they barely scrape by. The main character, despite her youth, spends most of her time looking after her mother. I liked this story and I thought the martial arts aspect was a nice distinguishing touch. Source: Resist Fascism edited by Bart R. Leib and Kay T. Holt