Friday, July 1, 2016

Against the Stream, by A Que

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(Time Travel) An "illness" causes a man to wake each morning in the previous day, and as he lives his life backwards, he sees the mistakes he made. (3,036 words; Time: 10m)

Rating: ★★★★☆ Recommended

"," by (translated by Nick Stember, edited by Neil Clarke), appeared in issue 118, published on .

Mini-Review (click to view--possible spoilers)

Pro: The sad descriptions of how he stifled his poor wife's desire to live give this story enormous poignancy. By the end, we realize the protagonist doesn't want to be a bad man, and his choice to edit himself out of reality rather than ruin his wife's life makes complete sense. He fails to cure his illness, but he wins a more important victory.

Narration and dialogue are both clean and natural.

Con: The scientist offering advice is a little too convenient.

Other Reviews: Search Web, Browse Review Sites (Issue 118)
A Que Info: Interviews, Websites, ISFDB, FreeSFOnline

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