Part way through
The Silence by Don DeLillo (Picador) I came across a passage that resonated with me more that it perhaps might have done in other circumstances. One of the characters, in one of those archetypal DeLillo conversations that have the dispiriting and disconnecting feel of overlapping monologues, asks: “Is this the casual embrace that marks the fall of world civilization?”
DeLillo’s novella was written before the pandemic that has had us all spending the year in that casual embrace, but for me it captures perfectly the affect of that year: the sense of isolation, the way that everything is turned so resolutely inwards that any world out there disappears from our ken. And in a year in which our social life has been conducted digitally, our cultural life has been spent not in cinemas and theatres, in concert halls and galleries, but in front of a television screen, then the loss of that digital connection, the blankness of that television screen, is especially chil
Deuces Down is both the 16th and 30th book in the Wild Cards series. The anthology was first published in 2002; this new version is refreshed with added stories by Carrie Vaughn, Mary Anne Mohanraj, and Caroline Spector. Although referred to on the title page as a mosaic novel, it remains – despite the linking story by Vaughn – an anthology of stories related only by the theme: deuces, folk with minor superpowers in the alternate superhero Wild Cards universe.
If you are unaware of what Wild Cards is, in brief and simplistically: created by George R.R. Martin (first book published in 1987), the Wild Card universe departs from ours in 1946 when an alien virus arrives on Earth. Ninety percent of those who contract it die; the DNA of the ten percent who survive it is altered. Nine percent acquire debilitating mutations and become known as jokers. The remaining one percent, aces, gain unique superpowers. There’s also an uncounted number of those whose powers – like the deuce
Science Fiction & Fantasy
Clarkesworld Magazine Issue 173 - Terra Rasa by Anastasia Bookreyeva [39:37m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download (22655)
Originally published in in Russian in
Terra Rasa, edited by Nova Team (2018).
I loved the story, but wondered how this was science fiction.
Leave a Comment
Website
Note: Comments containing name-calling, personal attacks, threats, or other abusive content will be edited or deleted. All comments must be directly related to the story.
Notify me of followup comments via e-mail
Tell a friend, share this on:
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Playwright and short story writer Anastasia Bookreyeva graduated from the Russian State Institute of Stage Arts (Theatre Academy) in 2016 with an M.A. in Theatrical Arts. She is the winner of many literary and theatrical contests. Her plays have been performed in more than twenty-five productions since 2016 in cities across Russia, including in Moscow and St. Petersburg. Her plays and stories have a
CSKA withstands huge Olympiacos rally
CSKA Moscow escaped from Piraeus with a hard-fought 74-75 win against Olympiacos on Thursday night. Two free throws by Mike James with 3 seconds remaining aborted an incredible comeback by the Reds, who trailed by 25 points (26-51) early in the third quarter and 49-65 with 8 minutes to go. CSKA, whose record improved to 17-8, was led by James, who tallied 15 points and 6 assists. He was followed by Johannes Voigtmann, who contributed 14 points in less than 20 minutes, while debutant Iffe Lundberg and Joel Bolomboy had 13 and 10, respectively. Shaquielle McKissic registered career-highs in points (24) and steals (4) and Sasha Vezenkov had 14 points and 7 rebounds for the Reds, who lost their sixth game in a row and fell to 11-15.
Valencia dominates in St Petersburg
Valencia Basket chalked up its third consecutive victory with a dominating 62-91 road victory at Zenit St Petersburg on Thursday night at Sibur Arena. The final margin was Valencia s largest ever in a road game and Zenit s worst ever. Valencia raised its record to 14-12 while Zenit, which was held to a season-low in scoring, saw its record slip to 15-10. After Alex Poythress took a steal in for a slam to make it a 1-point game in the first minute of the second quarter, Valencia dominated the rest of the way, outscoring Zenit 19-47 over the game s final 17 minutes. Bojan Dubljevic led five Valencia scorers in double figures with 19 points. Nikola Kalinic shined with 12 points and a career-high 10 assists, Mike Tobey scored 12 off the bench and Derrick Williams and Sam Van Rossom added 10 points apiece. Alex Poythress paced Zenit with 12 points and Billy Baron had 11.