Monday, January 15, 2018

The Streets of Babel, by Adam-Troy Castro

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(Allegory) A man in the countryside is scooped up by one of the “living cities” which immediately impresses him into its workforce. (6,700 words; Time: 22m)

Rating: ★★☆☆☆ Not Recommended

"," by (edited by John Joseph Adams), appeared in issue 92, published on .

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

Pro: It makes its message rather clear: that people from the countryside often find city life hellish (and that modern urban life does often look like something no sane person would submit to). It reaches a natural conclusion when it comes full circle at the end.

“He was not made for life in a big city” is such an understated summary of what happened that it’s pretty funny.

Con: The message is obvious just a page or two into the story. After that it’s a long, tedious slog to get to the end of it, although it is nice to see him go free.

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4 comments (may contain spoilers):

  1. I agree with the long slog, and was hoping for a pay off over the cities motives, if it was trying to produce what a happy life was meant to be, or if the people formed a necessary part of its machinery.
    It did sadly become clear towards the end that wasn't going to happen as it got in the way of the allegory.

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  2. I'm afraid this follows the pattern of quite a few of Castro's stories. Take an idea, push it to the extreme, and then keep going long after the point is made.

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    1. His conventional stuff is great, but he likes to experiment. Sometimes his experiments don't work. I always look forward to his work, though; even the failed experiments usually have hilarious bits and pieces in them.

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    2. I usually like his co-authored stories better, but I'll keep trying his solo work too.

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