Today, as I continue reviewing science fiction short stories from the year 1985, I switch to Gardner Dozois' excellent anthology series, this volume titled The Year's Best Science Fiction, Third Annual Collection, first published in 1986. As with 1984 and 1985 there is little overlapping between his selection of stories and those of Donald A. Wollheim. For 1985 there are only two stories, which I have already reviewed, appearing in both books: Fermi and Frost by Frederik Pohl and Sailing to Byzantium by Robert Silverberg. Here are my reactions to the first (other) stories from the Dozois anthology...
THE JAGUAR HUNTER by Lucius Shepard
Set in a poor, rural tropical American country, a farmer with a carelessly extravagant wife finds himself unable to pay her bills, so in an arrangement with his creditor he promises to hunt and kill the wild jaguar that has been killing people in the area. He knows what he's doing; he's successfully hunted jaguars before. But this one's quite different and opens him up to a different reality, as well as to his creditor's ulterior motives. Not so much a science fiction story as it is fantasy, but the anthology's editor has a penchant for blurring the boundaries between the two genres...
DOGFIGHT by William Gibson
In a near-future world where virtual games are played on tabletop, a man seeks to dethrone the champion game-player of a local community. In doing so, he progressively becomes pettier and more underhanded as he deceives a young woman into providing him extra software advantages, ultimately betraying her. And the champ he is challenging has his own compelling story, but no: it must be victory at all costs...
GREEN DAYS IN BRUNEI by Bruce Sterling
The small nation of Brunei is situated on the island of Borneo, which it shares with the much larger country of Indonesia. Very wealthy for its oil reserves and production, this story is set after the wells run dry and Brunei officially reverts to a pretechnological economy. But the government has hired an expert from the West to help them build a fleet of boats using robots. He has to overcome the social and political obstacles hurled his way while at the same time courting the royal princess. I guess the robots in this story make it science fiction, right?
SNOW by John Crowley
A brilliant little tale of how the passage of time eventually takes the essence out of all attempts to record people and events, as a young widow is bequeathed a tiny drone that follows here around everywhere for eight thousand hours, recording everything going on in her life for that span. After her death, it is stored in a mausoleum for viewing by specially selected loved ones, including the protagonist. A bittersweet and incisive look at how memories are bleached over time...
THE FRINGE by Orson Scott Card
In a post-apocalyptic near future, in Utah (where the author originates) attempts are being made to reinstitute agriculture and social and economic recovery in the years following the disaster. But rules are rigid, and freedoms are limited, as simple survival is on the line. An agricultural scientist crippled by palsy takes on the task of teaching the rebellious and spoiled children in the area while at the same time considering turning in their parents, who are stealing food and provisions to sell to the black market for their own enrichment. A good tale about ethical dilemmas and when one should take a stand and when they just might let things go...
THE LAKE WAS FULL OF ARTIFICIAL THINGS by Karen Joy Fowler
Miranda is using special vivid dream memory therapy to reimagine her old boyfriend Daniel, with whom she broke up just before he was sent as a draftee to fight (and die) in Southeast Asia. It's a poignant look at self-inflicted guilt, what could have been and people's tendency to put words into the mouths of others that are reflections of their own desires and regrets...
Next week I continue looking at stories from 1985 that appeared in the Gardner Dozois series...
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