Review: Short Science Fiction Stories that Pack an Impact
Rating: 4 out of 5
Date: 10 29, 2013
"Memes of Loss and Devotion" is a collection of short stories that are primarily science fiction and explore, as good science fiction stories do, themes like the price and benefit of progress, loss, hope, despair, and other human elements. The point of a short story is not to become attached to any certain character (usually), but to be prompted by that story to feel a certain emotion or think deeply about a situation.Many of these stories did that for me, in particular the one entitled "Ethnomethodology," where a girl named Sophie has a conversation with an alien whose world the humans have colonized. The story focuses not on Sophie's adjustment to the world, but how the arrival of humanity challenged the aliens' belief in their own uniqueness and dreams--and the obliviousness of the humans to that. "Ourselves Alone" also prompted thought about technology's role in our perception of reality, simulation, and the merging of the two, while "Sub Rosa" packs in a brief shock at what a little girl's angels actually are.Of course those are just a few of the stories in "Memes of Loss and Devotion," and I enjoyed many of the others as well, though I can't say I understood them all--some seem more like snippets of stories that didn't quite reach fruition. That small criticism aside, I would recommend this book to those who enjoy the short story medium and especially to those who enjoy science fiction and futuristic fiction.