The Best of the Best: 20 Years of the Year's Best Science Fiction

I have decided to stop reading sci-fi short story anthologies: at least those compiled after 1970. The items collected here can hardly be called the best of anything, let alone the best of the best. Even usually fairly reliable authors (Gene Wolfe, William Gibson, Ursula LeGuin, James Patrick Kelly) come a cropper here. The only redeeming tale is "Story of Your Life" by Ted Chiang, a work so good that I've given the entire collection a second star as a reward. Actually, Chiang's work is really more a novella than a short story, which only goes to add evidence to my conviction that the novella is the perfect form for sci-fi. Perhaps I will enlarge on that in another place and at another time.

I admit: I read only 14 stories out of 26, but please understand me: I just couldn't take it any more! For me, Dozois' yearly Best of SF were always a so-so mix: some good, many bad. But in this Best of Best he overdid himself: it's actually Worst of the Best! From 20 years!
The first problem: almost none is actually scifi, but, you know, "edgy", "slippy" and so on. Second and bigger problem: they are exactly the kind of artsy texts going for the ravishing, highly polished form and completely forgetting the need for an actual, original and good story. Just what usually Dozois and Datlow are looking for, and exactly what I run away from.
From the first 14 I actually enjoyed 3 (Greg Bear, Pat Cadigan, Eileen Gunn) and strongly disliked the show more others (even Gene Wolfe, a first for me). The average rating was 2,2/5, but I felt so badly cheated in not actually getting scifi for my bucks, that the overall feeling is even worse. It is a firm "Did not like it." show less

"History of Death" is a long story, but well worth the read, and is easily one of the most interesting pieces of fiction I have ever read. I highly recommend others to read this story. The story details Mortimer Gray's journey of writing about death, and the fascination people have with it, once people become essentially immortal. The story's author works on a number of volumes in the History, which takes 174 years to complete. Battling several close calls with death himself, Mortimer Gray is an intriguing and highly flawed character, who is a joy to read about.

"The Undiscovered" by William Sanders - Another 'alternate history' story, "The Undiscovered" ponders what Williams Shakespeare might have accomplished, were his audience show more completely different than the ones he wrote for. The story details how 'Spearshaker' puts on a play with native-americans, after being stranded in the new-world, rather than writing his plays back in England. It's an interesting twist for a story to ponder, but Sanders does an admirable job.

"Story of Your Life" by Ted Chiang - Though not a highly prolific author, I cannot help feeling like I've been missing something. "Story of Your Life" was arguably the best story in the book, and grabbed my attention more than any story I can remember. Another longer piece, "Story or Your Life" is both a flashback, and a flash-forward--sort of. Aliens at last visit us, but we find it more difficult to communicate than imagination could provide. Using 'semagrams', the main character learns not only how to communicate with the aliens', but also how to think like them--to unusual results. It's one of the best-written stories I've ever encountered, and should be required reading for any science fiction fan.

"10-16 to 1" by James Patrick Kelly - This is actually a story I had run across before, in a science fiction magazine. A time-traveler enlists the help of a young boy, to change the course of history for all life on Earth--if the boy completes his task properly. Set during the Cuban Missile Crisis, the tension of the story is a character in itself, and helps set the tone for the world that the boy lives in. Add the dysfunctional family, in a time where families weren't supposed to be dysfunctional, and the reality of the situation sets even further. With an interesting premise, and an even more interesting ending, this story is an enjoyable, and thought-provoking read.

"Lobsters" by Charles Stross - Another author whose work I've never delved into, Stross does a superb job portraying the future of the 'internet-age' in a believable, and somewhat terrifying manner. The technical portions of this story are what made me take notice, describing how even a Windows NT server from Russia can survive into the future, and become a character worth interacting with. Stross has become an author I will be looking for now, in order to see if his other stories are as technically rich. If so, I have a new favorite.

"Lambing Season" by Molly Gloss - Another story that I'd read in a magazine, "Lambing Season" is another fantastically understated work. Portraying an encounter with aliens, who look nothing like we'd expect, this story is leisurely and relaxed, and makes the reader feel comfortable with the idea that it's okay not to report the contact. I've not seen a lot of work by this author, but look forward to finding more.

Though these are not all of the great stories in the book, these were just my favorites, or the ones that made me notice the authors for the first time. All of the stories in the collection are amazing, as they should be for this book, and all could be recommended easily. For any science-fiction fan who wants to get a sample from many good authors, they should pick up this book. It's also an example of what great science fiction looks like, and would-be authors should take notice. show less

I am not a fan of Dozois’ Best of collections. I don’t know why, and I know there are multiple raves about them, but something about them does not work for me. And with that in mind, I don’t know why I keep buying them. I guess it is just that fatalistic “maybe this time/everyone else thinks they are good” optimism that keeps me coming back for more.

So, I purchased the best of the best and it sat on my shelf as I geared myself for more disappointment. Wrong, wrong, wrong, wrong, wrong. This is a near-on perfect collection of great science fiction from 80s and 90s. I can still remember the first time I read Silverberg’s Science Fiction Hall of Fame collection and was instantly drowning in a sea of mind-bending science show more fiction. I can see a new reader picking up this collection and having that same reaction.

Story after story of new ideas, different approaches, and some of the finest writing that occurred in that twenty-year period. I’m not even going to bother talking about the stories (okay, just a hit list – how can any collection go wrong that includes Greg Bear’s “Blood Music”, Terry Bisson’s “Bears Discover Fire”, and Lucius Shepard’s “Salvador), except to say that Dozois has done an excellent job of tapping all types and styles of stories, providing a broad sweep that gives anyone the various experiences that exist in today’s science fiction writing. The only thing keeping this from a perfect five? Probably that broad sweep, in that one or two of the stories just didn’t stand up as well as the entire collection. Am I being picky? Perhaps. However, the bottom line is that this is a collection I would suggest to anyone who enjoys science fiction or, maybe more importantly, anyone who is just now discovering science fiction. show less

This is a collection of 36 stories ranging from 1981 to 2002 and purporting to represent the best shorts in science fiction in those years. A blurb on the back by GRR Martin says that "if a science fiction fan from 1984 chanced to stumble into a time warp and pop up in the here and now, and wanted to know what had been happening in his favorite genre in the last twenty years, all you'd need to do was hand him a copy of Gardner Dozois's Best of the Best." In a way, I'm that fan. I read a lot of science fiction in my childhood and early teens--mostly by writers of the Golden Age whose heyday had passed before I was born: Asimov, Heinlein, Clarke. Then I largely lost interest and instead my escapist drug of choice became fantasy. Maybe show more because by then science fiction had become less and less of an escape--more literary, less adventurous. Just recently I read a volume of short stories, The Science Fiction Hall of Fame filled with the classics of that Golden Age from 1929 to 1965. Several were already favorites and I recognized the names of all of the authors, almost all of whom I had read before. It's a very different case with the Dozois anthology. I had read--and recognized--few names: Nancy Kress, William Gibson, Robert Silverberg, Connie Willis, Joe Haldeman, Ursula Le Guin and Molly Gloss--who I knew from a Western she wrote. All the other names were new. And though I enjoyed and found many of the stories thought-provoking--and all were very well-written--I can't quite say I found any of them the equal of the best in the earlier anthology. There's no story here I'd put next to Asimov's "Nightfall" or Keyes' "Flowers for Algernon" in impact. And while I could say I loved all but a handful of the stories in the Golden Age anthology, I'd say that's true of perhaps only a bit more than a third here. And some stories I simply loathed--such as "Salvador," "The Pure Product," "Lobsters" or were a big huh? But that says less about the quality of the stories than my personal tastes--but it is why I rated this lower. Below are a dozen of my favorites in the order they appeared:

1) "Blood Music" by Greg Bear - reading this I was reminded how often there's a very thin line between science fiction and horror. A tale of nanotech that's truly gut-punch chilling.

2) "Trinity by Nancy Kress - I've read novels by Kress I've loved so no surprise to me she'd produce a story I'd find outstanding. This one about people trying to use science to tap God on the shoulder.

3) "Dinner in Audoghast" by Bruce Sterling - a story of prophecy and the ironies of history that lingered with me even days later. Reminiscent of the poem "Ozymandias."

4) "Kirinyaga" by Mike Resnick - this story about a "utopia" trying to recreate an old Kenyan culture--down to infanticide--is rather disturbing. Interesting especially after having recently read Chinua Achebe's Things Fall Apart.

5) "Tales from the Venia Woods" by Robert Silverberg - a tale of a Rome that never fell in the modern age. A thought-provoking alternate history about the possible gains from an everlasting empire.

6) "Even the Queen" by Connie Willis - one of a bare handful of humorous tales in the book. There's something so pitch perfect about the way Willis plays with cultural fads and fashions in this gender-twisty tale.

7) "Mortimer Gray's History of Death" by Brian Stableford - I recently read C.S. Lewis' Space Trilogy and am currently reading Joseph Campbell's Masks of God. I couldn't help but think of both works reading about this tale about the quest for immortality.

8) "Wang's Carpets" by Greg Egan - one of the few stories that really reminded me of one written in the Golden Age in the way it used science and provocative ideas that make you see the universe and what is human with new eyes.

9) "Coming of Age in Karhide" by Ursula K. Le Guin - a classic science fiction novel and a favorite book of mine is Le Guin's The Left Hand of Darkness about a planet whose people have no definitive gender, so it was interesting to read this tale set on that world.

10) "The Undiscovered" by William Sanders - an alternate history of William Shakespeare among the Cherokees; this was hysterical--the one story in the book that made me laugh out loud.

11) "The Story of Your Life" by Ted Chiang - easily the most moving story in the book, it was both a great sci-fi tale of aliens and linguistics but also a poignant story of motherhood, love and loss.

12) "Daddy's World" by Walter Jon Williams - similar in theme to Marusek's "The Wedding Album," which was also excellent--but this left me just a bit more chilled to the bone.

I've noted reading other reviews there seems no clear consensus about what are the best, or at least favorite stories. Something before reading this I thought might be a sign of weakness, but afterwards I took as a sign of strength. Everyone I think will find stories to love here--including the ones I hated. Another interesting thing struck me reading these and the Golden Age anthology--and rather reassuring. Science does have its fads, can be absurdly wrong, and science fiction writers aren't really great prognosticators. Which, given the doomsday scenarios both within these stories and trumpeted though contemporary popular media, is rather reassuring. This book is staying on my shelf. Perhaps someone other than Dozois might have picked stories from this era I might have loved more, but this is still an outstanding collection. Now if only I could find an anthology to fill in the years between 1965 and 1980 spanning the Golden Age and this later era. show less

There are gems here for every science fiction reader. I loved the stories connected to biology, race and gender. Some of the more futuristic stories relating to multiple identities or space/time travel or technology are not to my liking, but that's just personal.

There are Hugo, Nebula, Locus, Theodore Sturgeon award winners scattered throughout. The Best of the Best is great introduction for new science fiction readers or for those looking to survey the breadth of achievement within this genre.

When I consider short stories I love, I consider primarily sticking power. What I mean by this is I can recall at a whim a character or moment of realisation at the core of the story. How and why are often more important than what. It's no show more coincidence it's often the best written stories that have this knack.

Loved

Blood Music by Greg Bear - Fast-paced short story covering themes such as biotechnology, nanotechnology and consciousness. Cleverly structured to reflect the life cycle of a cell.

Kirinyaga by Mike Resnick - More anthropological study than sf. What happens when an educated man decides to lead a colony steeped in spiritual and pre-modern practices? How does the outside "civilised" world react?

Dinner in Audoghast by Bruce Sterling - A great example of why science fiction shouldn't just be concerned about the future. On the surface, this story is about a conversation among a group of feasting African aristocracy. Its striking ironic significance only comes to light towards the end.

The Story of Your Life by Ted Chiang - Beautiful, thought-provoking novella. A moving combination of psychology, linguistics and cultural dynamics. Template for the acclaimed 2016 movie Arrival.

Even the Queen by Connie Willis - Humorous and humanistic. This is the kind of story you can actually imagine playing out in the not-so-distant future. My wife does not read science fiction, the fact she enjoyed this speaks volumes.

None So Blind by Joe Haldeman - Science fiction horror from the author of The Forever War. It's well known that blindness augments other senses. But why is this? And what happens when this knowledge is used for human advancement? If you enjoyed this story and/or are looking for a twist on the plot, consider Down Memory Lane by Mike Resnick, whose Kirinyaga also features in this anthology.

Liked
Coming of Age in Karhide by Ursula K. Le Guin
Bears Discover Fire by Terry Bisson
Tales from the Venia Woods by Robert Silverberg
The Dead by Michael Swanwick
Snow by John Crowley
The Undiscovered by William Sanders
A Dry Quiet War by Tony Daniel
Daddy's World by Walter Jon Williams
The Lincoln Train by Maureen F. McHugh
Salvador by Lucius Shepard
10^16 to 1 by James Patrick Kelly

Undecided
Trinity by Nancy Kress
Roadside Rescue by Pat Cadigan
Recording Angel by Ian McDonald
The Winter Market by William Gibson
The Pure Product by John Kessel
A Cabin on the Coast by Gene Wolfe
People Came from Earth by Stephen Baxter
The Real World by Steven Utley

Loathed
Flying Saucer Rock & Roll by Howard Waldrop
Mortimer Gray's History of Death by Brian Stableford
Have Not Have by Geoff Ryman
Lobsters by Charles Stross
Breathmoss by Ian R. MacLeod
The Wedding Album by David Marusek
Wang's Carpets by Greg Egan
Guest of Honor by Robert Reed
Second Skin by Paul J. McAuley
Stable Strategies for Middle Management by Eileen Gunn
Lambing Season by Molly Gloss show less

"History of Death" is a long story, but well worth the read, and is easily one of the most interesting pieces of fiction I have ever read. I highly recommend others to read this story. The story details Mortimer Gray's journey of writing about death, and the fascination people have with it, once people become essentially immortal. The story's author works on a number of volumes in the History, which takes 174 years to complete. Battling several close calls with death himself, Mortimer Gray is an intriguing and highly flawed character, who is a joy to read about.

"The Undiscovered" by William Sanders - Another 'alternate history' story, "The Undiscovered" ponders what Williams Shakespeare might have accomplished, were his audience show more completely different than the ones he wrote for. The story details how 'Spearshaker' puts on a play with native-americans, after being stranded in the new-world, rather than writing his plays back in England. It's an interesting twist for a story to ponder, but Sanders does an admirable job.

"Story of Your Life" by Ted Chiang - Though not a highly prolific author, I cannot help feeling like I've been missing something. "Story of Your Life" was arguably the best story in the book, and grabbed my attention more than any story I can remember. Another longer piece, "Story or Your Life" is both a flashback, and a flash-forward--sort of. Aliens at last visit us, but we find it more difficult to communicate than imagination could provide. Using 'semagrams', the main character learns not only how to communicate with the aliens', but also how to think like them--to unusual results. It's one of the best-written stories I've ever encountered, and should be required reading for any science fiction fan.

"10-16 to 1" by James Patrick Kelly - This is actually a story I had run across before, in a science fiction magazine. A time-traveler enlists the help of a young boy, to change the course of history for all life on Earth--if the boy completes his task properly. Set during the Cuban Missile Crisis, the tension of the story is a character in itself, and helps set the tone for the world that the boy lives in. Add the dysfunctional family, in a time where families weren't supposed to be dysfunctional, and the reality of the situation sets even further. With an interesting premise, and an even more interesting ending, this story is an enjoyable, and thought-provoking read.

"Lobsters" by Charles Stross - Another author whose work I've never delved into, Stross does a superb job portraying the future of the 'internet-age' in a believable, and somewhat terrifying manner. The technical portions of this story are what made me take notice, describing how even a Windows NT server from Russia can survive into the future, and become a character worth interacting with. Stross has become an author I will be looking for now, in order to see if his other stories are as technically rich. If so, I have a new favorite.

"Lambing Season" by Molly Gloss - Another story that I'd read in a magazine, "Lambing Season" is another fantastically understated work. Portraying an encounter with aliens, who look nothing like we'd expect, this story is leisurely and relaxed, and makes the reader feel comfortable with the idea that it's okay not to report the contact. I've not seen a lot of work by this author, but look forward to finding more.

Though these are not all of the great stories in the book, these were just my favorites, or the ones that made me notice the authors for the first time. All of the stories in the collection are amazing, as they should be for this book, and all could be recommended easily. For any science-fiction fan who wants to get a sample from many good authors, they should pick up this book. It's also an example of what great science fiction looks like, and would-be authors should take notice. show less