From Publishers Weekly
Powerful human emotions and the relationship between the inner self and outer world are the central concerns in a deeply moving story collection by the author of Beggars in Spain . Whether the tale concerns slips through time ("The Price of Oranges," "The Battle of Long Island," "Wild for to Hold"), colonies for the diseased ("Inertia") or a man receiving calls from a nonexistent house ("Phone Repairs"), the characters are real, their suffering is valid and realistic despite the fantasy context, and the author's insights ring true. The writing is smooth and fluid; the stark, black-and-white illustrations are simplistic but well chosen for mood and impact, adding an extra kick to an already affecting array of works.
Copyright 1993 Reed Business Information, Inc.
What consequences would befall an individual, or society as a whole, if science discovered that an occasional purge of our memories would keep us eternally young--as well as destroy our wisdom? Or if you could get rid of the unpleasant people in your life simply by willing them into a dollhouse? Or if cutting off a finger could prevent an accident and save countless lives? Propositions such as these and others equally discomfiting set the tone for Kress' sometimes brilliant and always absorbing second collection of short stories. Her deliberately skewed but skillfully rendered visions encompass a world on the brink of, or long since past, environmental and social collapse. In "Inertia," the quarantined victims of a disfiguring but nonfatal disease discover their affliction also keeps them sane and content, unlike those in the chaotic world outside. "And Wild for to Hold" masterfully alternates perspective between that of Henry VIII's second wife, Anne Boleyn, and that of a historian from a distant future to which pivotal historic figures like Boleyn are taken in order to prevent otherwise inevitable bloodshed. In every tale, Kress displays a characteristic penchant for subtle horror that is contained by her mature, original storytelling ability. Easily one of the year's best sf collections.
Carl Hays
