Hardcover, 368 pages
English language
Published by Picador.
This much-anticipated second collection of stories is signature Ted Chiang, full of revelatory ideas and deeply sympathetic characters. In The Merchant and the Alchemist's Gate, a portal through time forces a fabric seller in ancient Baghdad to grapple with past mistakes and the temptation of second chances. In the epistolary Exhalation, an alien scientist makes a shocking discovery with ramifications not just for his own people, but for all of reality. And in The Lifecycle of Software Objects, a woman cares for an artificial intelligence over twenty years, elevating a faddish digital pet into what might be a true living being. Also included are two brand-new stories: Omphalos and Anxiety Is the Dizziness of Freedom.
In this fantastical and elegant collection, Ted Chiang wrestles with the oldest questions on earth—What is the nature of the universe? What does it mean to be human?—and ones that no one else has …
This much-anticipated second collection of stories is signature Ted Chiang, full of revelatory ideas and deeply sympathetic characters. In The Merchant and the Alchemist's Gate, a portal through time forces a fabric seller in ancient Baghdad to grapple with past mistakes and the temptation of second chances. In the epistolary Exhalation, an alien scientist makes a shocking discovery with ramifications not just for his own people, but for all of reality. And in The Lifecycle of Software Objects, a woman cares for an artificial intelligence over twenty years, elevating a faddish digital pet into what might be a true living being. Also included are two brand-new stories: Omphalos and Anxiety Is the Dizziness of Freedom.
In this fantastical and elegant collection, Ted Chiang wrestles with the oldest questions on earth—What is the nature of the universe? What does it mean to be human?—and ones that no one else has even imagined. And, each in its own way, the stories prove that complex and thoughtful science fiction can rise to new heights of beauty, meaning, and compassion.
Such a beautiful, outstanding collection of short stories. Chiang has an eye for the human experience, and his stories reflect that.
The sci fi short story is my jam. It’s what I fall back on time and time again when I’m looking for a book to scratch that itch—the one to rekindle my love of reading.
I adored this collection of short stories, with my favorites being the first, the titular story, and the one about the life cycle of digients.
As in his previous short story collection, Ted Chiang offers us a series of essays presenting thought experiments, camouflaged perfectly as well written fiction, in his own calm, measured, well polished style.
This collection seems to be concerned a lot with parenting, free will and AIs. I think especially on AI, it makes very interesting observations, which everyone should read. It offers an alternative vision for producing AIs that has a chance to avoid the pitfalls that creating them based on principles put forth in code has (at least in my mind).
All in all, it would even be worth it just for the story in question, so the fact that most of the stories are great means everyone interested in thought experiments about science should read it.
This collection is a tour of fascinating ideas. The philosophical/moral implications of technology pop up a lot. Some of my favorites:
The Merchant and the Alchemist's Gate: hear LeVar Burton read it here
Exhalation: A character's intense self-examination
The Truth of Fact, the Truth of Feeling: A pair of related stories discussing technology's impact on us.
Anxiety is the Dizziness of Freedom: Branching timelines, possibilities, and their implications for the meaning of personal choice.
While I enjoyed all of the central ideas, some of the individual stories lost me. For example, I found the premise of "The Lifecycle of Software Objects" more interesting than the actual story. Ditto for "Omphalos".
This collection is a tour of fascinating ideas. The philosophical/moral implications of technology pop up a lot. Some of my favorites:
The Merchant and the Alchemist's Gate: hear LeVar Burton read it here
Exhalation: A character's intense self-examination
The Truth of Fact, the Truth of Feeling: A pair of related stories discussing technology's impact on us.
Anxiety is the Dizziness of Freedom: Branching timelines, possibilities, and their implications for the meaning of personal choice.
While I enjoyed all of the central ideas, some of the individual stories lost me. For example, I found the premise of "The Lifecycle of Software Objects" more interesting than the actual story. Ditto for "Omphalos".
