The Loneliest Ward, by Hao Jingfang

[Clarkesworld]

★☆☆☆☆ Needs Improvement

(Near-Future SF) Qina works as a nurse on a ward of comatose patients, but she’s having boyfriend trouble and she’s extra distracted today. (2,783 words; Time: 09m)

Folding Beijing, by Hao Jingfang

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(Science Fantasy) Lao Dao processes trash in a fantastic future "third-space" Beijing. To get money for his daughter's education, he makes a dangerous trip to first-space--a city that unfolds when his own Beijing sleeps. (16,336 words; Time: 54m)

Rating: ★★★☆☆, Average

Recommended By: RHorton:5 LTilton

Summer at Grandma's House, by Hao Jingfang (translated by Carmen Yiling Yan)

Clarkesworld Magazine, October 2015; 4,843 words
Rating: 3, Good, ordinary, story  Recommended By:   SFRevu:4

In China, a failing student decides to spend the summer with his grandmother, an eccentric scientist.

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

Pro: Grandma's crazy house is a nice metaphor for how things can be different from expectations and yet still be perfectly useful. Zhanzhan gradually learns his grandmother's lesson; that making the best use of your past (the only way evolution works) can be the best choice for the future.

Con: The ending is a bit forced. The thief next door serves little real purpose in the story. And, unlike evolution, real people need to make some intelligent decisions.