Brian Aldiss, A Kind of Artistry (1962) ***
Fascinating first contact collapses into Game of Thrones shite.
Philip K. Dick, Second Variety (1953) ***
I still haven't properly cracked open his short fiction, but this cautionary technofear parable didn't feel like the one you'd highlight for your anthology, outside of its ongoing prescience.
Keith Roberts, Weihnachtsabend (1972) **
Enough with Nazis already.
Robert Bloch, I Do Not Love Thee, Doctor Fell (1955) **
Lame satire building to an inevitable twist. Is this the best he's got?
Samuel R. Delany, Aye, & Gomorrah... (1967) **
I don't really get the New Wave.
Stanislaw Lem, How Erg the Self-Inducting Slew a Paleface (1977) ***
A welcome second helping of electro fairy tale nonsense.
Joanna Russ, Nobody's Home (1972) **
Disconcerting utopia.
Gérard Klein, Party Line (1973) ****
Life hands you an indecisive cheat mode.
Lewis Padgett, The Proud Robot (1943) ****
Adventures of a noir Dirk Gently and his vain can opener.
Henry Kuttner & C.L. Moore, Vintage Season (1946) ***
Connoisseur voyeurs.
Arkady & Boris Strugatsky, The Way to Amalteia (1984) ****
Humbled space survival. Let's just stay at home.
Interesting Times (1994) ****
The first Rincewind book I've really enjoyed, and one of the better Discworlds generally, this might be down to Terry P's writing maturing, its take on Chinese alt-history and notions of civilisation and revolution being more interesting than the customary stock fantasy adventures, or even just the glut of puns.
In Praise of Darkness (1969) **
Ageing introspection. No fun at all.
Brodie's Report (1970) *
A conscious regression to the humdrum biographies of his earliest writing, because that's what we read Borges for. Labyrinths is all the abridged bibliography you need.
A. A. Milne, Best-Loved Winnie-the-Pooh Stories
Winnie-the-Pooh and Some Bees (1926) ****
A private story from father to son, made public to shame other parents into raising our game. Properly funny too, I should have been reading these instead of Noddy.
Pooh Goes Visiting and Pooh and Piglet Nearly Catch a Woozle (1926) ***
More logical, less substantial and down-to-earth vignettes after the flight of fancy, the animation adaptation is more notable for upsetting my toddler.
Piglet Meets a Heffalump (1926) ****
Infectious incompetent optimism.
Eeyore Has a Birthday (1926) **
A last-minute turnaround doesn't keep this from being generally depressing.
Kanga and Baby Roo Come to the Forest (1926) ***
A kidnapping farce is successfully executed, but the mother doesn't really mind.
An Expotition to the North Pole (1926) ****
Improv epic.
Piglet Is Entirely Surrounded by Water (1926) ****
Self-explanatory.
Christopher Robin Gives a Party (1926) ***
A sweet wrap-up.
