Rebecca Adams Wright

I'm afraid I didn't care for this collection of short stories by Rebecca Adams Wright, although this is most likely due to the fact that my taste in short fiction trends somewhat away from science fiction. I can also place much of the blame on the titular short story in the collection, as the title is what mostly attracted me to this collection, yet the short story The Thing About Great White Sharks was by far my least favorite of the collection. The way it reveals the sci-fi world it takes place in exemplifies everything I don't like about science fiction writing, so it's hard not to let that color my perception of the rest of the works within.

To be fair to the author, Wright takes risks with several of these stories, as pushing the envelope of creativity is the only real way to separate yourself from the crowd these days, and while many of these calculated risks don't work in the end (for me, at least), the attempt is still commendable.

Still, other stories - Tiger Bright and Orchids, for example - feel too forced and/or simplistic with predictable payoffs, and feel like they belong in a collection for young adults.

The only piece I really enjoyed from this collection was What to Expect When You're Expecting An Alien Parasite. Short, sweet, and tongue-in-cheek. My favorite type of sci-fi.… (mer)

(Fiction, Short Stories)

Many of these are set in the near-future or in dystopian worlds. In the title story, after “the fever” has turned all flora & fauna into human-attackers, Jennifer is conscripted by the government for ‘fear’ testing. Put into a room or a pool with such animals as pythons and sharks, her reactions are monitored for use in the military.

In Sheila, the story I remember most clearly, an elderly man faces the destruction of his beloved robotic dog. It’s heart-breaking.
Other stories include aliens or Orwellian futures.

If you’re a reader of science-fiction, or a fan of dystopia, do pick this book. For me, it was a little too weird.

3½ stars… (mer)