How Alike Are We, by Bo-Young Kim

[Clarkesworld]

★★☆☆☆

(SF Thriller) A ship bound for Europa is rerouted to Titan to help with an emergency at the colony, but on approach, the AI demanded to be given a human body, and the new entity isn’t sure what’s going on. (25,648 words; Time: 1h:25m)

Winter Wheat, by Gord Sellar

[Asimov's]

★★★☆☆

(SF Epic) Over eleven years, a farm boy grows to a man on the Canadian prairie while new technology utterly changes the world he lives in. (24,559 words; Time: 1h:21m)

Recommended By: 👍STomaino+1 (Q&A)

The Peppers of GreenScallion, by Myung-Hoon Bae and Jihyun Park

[Clarkesworld]

★☆☆☆☆ Needs Improvement

(Colony SF) The war divides the GreenScallion colonists into opposing camps, but the irregularity of food deliveries makes the diet monotonous—unless someone is willing to break the rules and trade. (7,386 words; Time: 24m)

The Flowering, by Soyeon Jeong

[Clarkesworld]

★★★☆☆ Average

(Cyberpunk Dystopia) A future Korea requires government proof of identity before you can access the Internet, and the narrator tells about her sister, who was a subversive trying to enable an uncensored, anonymous system. (5,336 words; Time: 17m)

Focus, by Gord Sellar

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(Near-Future SF) Locals plan a riot to disrupt foreign factories in Vietnam which use a drug called “focus” to control their employees. (4,255 words; Time: 14m)

Rating: ★★★☆☆ Average

Prodigal, by Gord Sellar

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(Near-Future SF) Benji was an ordinary terrier until his master decided to have him sentientized. (9,628 words; Time: 32m)

Rating: ★★★★★ Moving, thought-provoking exploration of animal uplift.

Recommended By: SFRevu:4 GDozois:5 RHorton:4 NClarke Readers

An Evolutionary Myth, by Bo-Young Kim (translated by Gord Sellar and Jihyun Park)

Clarkesworld Magazine, May 2015;  8,173 words
Rating: 3, Good, ordinary, story  Recommended By:  Locus

What if people's bodies evolved during a single lifespan, changing form according to the actions and the character of each individual?

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

Pro: The evolution of the crown prince from a man, to a cat, to a lizard, to a water snake, and finally into a dragon reminds us of a fairy tale. The drought afflicts the land from the time the usurper takes power up until the prince fulfills his destiny.

Con: The prince doesn't really seem to earn a good fate, nor does he seem to learn anything profound about the universe nor even about himself. He's a very passive hero--things happen to him, but he doesn't really cause anything to happen.