★★★☆☆ Average
(Alien SF) Trax 9Legs worries that she’s too ugly to ever get a mate, so she braves the social conventions against cosmetic body modifications. (1,765 words; Time: 05m)
"The Intertidal Zone," by Rahul Kanakia [bio] (edited by Sheila Williams), appeared in Asimov's Science Fiction issue 05-06|19, published on April 19, 2019 by Penny Publications.
Mini-Review (click to view--possible spoilers)
Review: 2019.248 (A Word for Authors)
Pro: It does a nice job of moving the concerns about physical beauty into a completely alien realm where we can look at them objectively.
It was easy to understand what compelled her to reject convention and seek the modifications; the sad account of how she worked so hard and yet no one wanted to fertilize her eggs was very moving.
Con: At the end of it, I’m not sure what the point of the story was. That if you’re going to get cosmetic surgery, do it while you’re young enough to find a mate?
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Rahul Kanakia Info: Interviews, Websites, ISFDB, FreeSFOnline
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Pro: It does a nice job of moving the concerns about physical beauty into a completely alien realm where we can look at them objectively.
It was easy to understand what compelled her to reject convention and seek the modifications; the sad account of how she worked so hard and yet no one wanted to fertilize her eggs was very moving.
Con: At the end of it, I’m not sure what the point of the story was. That if you’re going to get cosmetic surgery, do it while you’re young enough to find a mate?
Other Reviews: Search Web
Rahul Kanakia Info: Interviews, Websites, ISFDB, FreeSFOnline
Follow RSR on Twitter, Facebook, RSS, or E-mail.
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