"nothing like what it is supposed to be"

Happy early birthday to silveraspen, and best wishes for many more to come!

I have a few links to share:

* My most recent "History of the Genre" segment (this one is about a pathbreaking dystopian short story, E.M. Forster's "The Machine Stops," which turns 100 years old this year) is available in the latest episode of StarShipSofa: The Science Fiction Audio Magazine, "Aural Delights No. 79." You can download it here, listen to it streaming here, or get it via iTunes under "StarShipSofa." A list of my other podcast commentaries, interviews, and unabridged dramatic readings is available here with links. To those of you listening, many thanks indeed! I hope you enjoy it.

* SFSignal has a terrific "Mind Meld" feature answering this question: "What are the "Forgotten Books" of science fiction/fantasy/horror?" Some outstanding titles are named, and I particularly like James Bloomer's list of apocalyptic fiction.

* io9 has a review of the 2008 anthology The Black Mirror & Other Stories: An Anthology of Science Fiction From Germany & Austria here: "German SF Through Two World Wars And The Berlin Wall."


Last but not least: once again, I have updated my working list of dystopian fiction written specifically for a young adult audience. I'm particularly interested in Earth-bound stories - and yes, I'm defining "dystopian" rather broadly in this case to include relevant post-apocalyptic works, as well. Suggestions are greatly appreciated!

( --My Working List of Young Adult Dystopian Fiction, With Links )

"We are our own memory-keepers and we have failed ourselves. It is like the game we played in school as children. Sitting in a circle, one student whispers a phrase into another student's ear and the phrase is passed around until the last student in the circle repeats what she hears, only to find out it is nothing like what it is supposed to be.

"That is our life now."

- from The Forest of Hands and Teeth by Carrie Ryan