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Ask HN: What are you reading?

467 points · 883 comments · dan-bailey

  1. nomagicbullet · · focus · HN ↗
    I'm jumping across several short story collections:

    - "Exhalation" by Ted Chiang - "Ficciones" by Borges - "I have no Mouth and I Must Scream" by Harlan Ellison.

    I'm also slowly plowing through "The Big Book of Science Fiction" edited by Jeff and Ann Vandermeer.

    I love short speculative fiction. And the above are among my favorites.

    1. jppope · · focus · HN ↗
      "Exhalation" was very good. Not every story was great, but as a whole is was lovely
      1. nomagicbullet · · focus · HN ↗
        Agree with that assessment
    2. dcminter · · focus · HN ↗
      I generally prefer novels despite having originally got into SF via collections of Asimov stories, but I read the "Stories of your life" collection recently and it was quite stunning. I think "Tower of Babylon" was my favourite but they were all excellent in different ways.

      I should get Exhalation.

      1. nomagicbullet · · focus · HN ↗
        "Tower of Babylon" is an excellent story.
    3. simpaticoder · · focus · HN ↗
      Isn't it called Stories of your life and other stories? Ted Chiang is my favorite living science fiction author. Everything I've read by him ranges from very good to sublime.
      1. shawn_w · · focus · HN ↗
        That's a different, older collection.
    4. upupupandaway · · focus · HN ↗
      Are you me??????

      I read these exact three in the past six weeks. For a follow-up, I recommend "Earthlings" and "The Memory Police".

      1. nomagicbullet · · focus · HN ↗
        Wow! Nice coincidence. I've read "The Memory Police". I will add "Earthlings" to my queue. Thanks for the recommendation
      2. alastairr · · focus · HN ↗
        I'm in a similar boat :D I love Borges and Chiang has some great short stories. I'd love hear if you know other authors that are similar?
        1. nomagicbullet · · focus · HN ↗
          I would say Italo Calvino scratches a very similar itch like Borges and Chiang.
    5. Joe_Boogz · · focus · HN ↗
      Ted Chiang is such an amazing scifi author. I find his work incredibly refreshing and thought-provoking. Personal favorite is the short story Exhalation, I think about it all the time and I highly recommend it.
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