January 3, 2024 – Northcote
After enjoying Exhalation so much I picked up Ted Chiang's other book, which includes the story the film Arrival is based off.
Ostensibly this is a sci fi short story collection but Chiang has a really curious and fascinating style where he takes an obviously untrue thing and extrapolates what if that were true? What would the world be like if that were true? In Exhalation he explores this with creationism, and in this book there are stories of angels, aliens and more. And they all really surprise and challenge you with the depth of thinking and imagination.
His take on more traditional sci fi also skews towards the religious, with a compelling story about an implant that enables people to no longer perceive facial ugliness and the almost cultist debate and passion it inspires. Less time travel in this volume but perhaps deeper interrogations of the philosophy and ethics that underpin all speculative fiction, whether technology focused or not.
The eponymous story of Arrival "Stories of your Life" is moving and complex, although the film is a notably excellent adaptation, with some changes that make sense and keep in the spirit of the story in my opinion.
If you've read this and have any similar recommendations please let me know, I'm really enjoying returning to short stories, one of my favourite genres.