Dreaming again ed. by Jack Dann
Harper Voyager, 2008. ISBN
978073228625 5
This collection of 35 new short stories celebrates Australian fantasy
and science fiction authors. There are some wonderful authors to read:
Garth Nix, Sara Douglas, Isobelle Carmody and Terry Dowling, to name a
few. Not every story will be interesting to all readers because this
collection touches on all aspects of the genre, but there are stories
to satisfy every reader of the genre.
I particularly enjoy those tales that are set in the present day
reality but with a twist. Many of those in this edition seem to involve
the undead. I appreciated the afterword from the authors who were able
to give an insight into their stories' origins and evolution.
Kim Westwood's Nightship gives a view of a possible future, one
that I
can relate to because it isn't a high tech future, but a future
returning to a more violent and almost feudal past, with an
environmental twist. Terry Dowling's Fooly has an interesting
twist as a ghost story, while Angela Slatter's The Jacaranda Wife
is a
story that combines Aboriginal myth with the surreal. It mirrors the
ambitions of humanity for beauty, perfection and greed and shows the
impossibility of ever succeeding in gaining it.
The constant past by Sean McMillan is one of those unsettling
tales of
a misplaced person who is seeking to right a perceived wrong of the
past. Kim Wilkins has given the Hansel and Gretel story a tweak, but
has kept the essentials the same - selfishness, poverty and
inhumanity. Sara Douglass' The way to the exit, ropes you in
and is
able to use the development of the Underground in London as the basis
for her fantasy. What a great way to use information that is there and
give it a twist. I really enjoyed this one.
Others that caught my attention were Simon Brown's The Empire,
Jenny
Blackford's Troll's night out (an unexpected gem) as was Smoking,
waiting for the dawn by Jason Nahrung (a very Aussie zombie story)
Jason Fischer's Undead camels ate their flesh could be read in
conjunction with Jason's because of its Australian flavour and
wonderful sense of humour. The lost property room by Trudi
Canavan is a
classic of its type, a wonderfully ordinary story that takes you in an
unexpected direction. Paradise Designed by Janeen Webb was a
glorious
reconstruction of the biblical Adam and Eve story and a lovely satire
on Intelligent Design.
I've only skimmed the surface of this treasury of incredible fantasy,
but I've been very satisfied with the wonderful variety and quality of
writing. What a treat.
Mark Knight