Imaginarium 2012: The Best Canadian Speculative Writing

Otherworld Stories #10.1 -The List

by Sandra Kasturi (Editor), Halli Villegas (Editor), Kelley Armstrong

At their best, these stories disrupt habits, overcome barriers of cultural perception to make the familiar strange through the use of speculative elements such as magic and technology. They provide glimpses of alternate realities and possible futures and pasts that provoke an ethical, social, political, environmental and biological inquiry into what it means to be human. Featuring stories by Camille Alexa, Kelley Armstrong, Madeline Ashby, Peter Chiykowski, Carolyn Clink, David Livingstone Clink, Geoffrey W. Cole, Cory Doctorow, Amal El-Mohtar, Steven Erikson, Gemma Files, Neile Graham, Lisa L. Hannett, Ada Hoffman, Claire Humphrey, Susan Ioannu, Kristin Janz, Kathryn Kuitenbrouwer, Derek Künsken, Helen Marshall, Anna Mioduchowska, Silvia Moreno-Garcia, David Nickle, Rhonda Parrish, Kelly Rose Pflug-Back, Timothy Reynolds, Ian Rogers, Robert Runté, Geoff Ryman, Rebecca M. Senese, George Swede, Peter Watts, A.C. Wise, and Rio Youers.

table of contents

INTRODUCTION
STEVEN ERIKSON

LOOKER
DAVID NICKLE

THE LIST
KELLEY ARMSTONG

BITING TONGUES
AMAL EL-MOHTAR

BLEAKER COLLEGIATE PRESENTS AN
ALL-FEMALE PRODUCTION OF
WAITING FOR GODOT
CLAIRE HUMPHREY

SPLIT DECISION
ROBERT RUNTÉ

THE CINDER GIRL
PETER CHIYKOWSKI

THE CANDLE
IAN ROGERS

THROUGH THE DOOR
SUSAN IOANNU

SIGNAL TO NOISE
GEMMA FILES

THE ONES OUTSIDE YOUR DOOR
NEILE GRAHAM

DOWN WHERE THE BEST LILIES GROW
CAMILLE ALEXA

HIDE
REBECCA M. SENESE

WHAT WE FOUND
GEOFF RYMAN

LIE-FATHER
GEMMA FILES

CENTIPEDE GIRL
ADA HOFFMANN

CLOCKWORK FAGIN
CORY DOCTOROW

SELECTED HAIKU
GEORGE SWEDE

PURE
RIO YOUERS

10 THINGS TO KNOW ABOUT STAPLERS
CAROLYN CLINK

LAIKAS I
KATHRYN KUITENBROUWER

ON THE MANY USES OF CEDAR
GEOFFREY W. COLE

OBSCURED
RHONDA PARRISH

HAWKWOOD’S FOLLY
TIMOTHY REYNOLDS

RAZOR VOICES
KELLY ROSE PFLUG-BACK

THE BEAN-SIDHE CALLS IN OWL-LIGHT
NEILE GRAHAM

FUR AND FEATHERS
LISA L. HANNETT

BREATHING BONES
PETER CHIYKOWSKI

THE EDUCATION OF JUNIOR
NUMBER 12
MADELINE ASHBY

ONE QUARTER GORGON
HELEN MARSHALL

A PUDDLE OF BLOOD
SILVIA MORENO-GARCIA

NOTHING BUT SKY OVERHEAD
DAVID LIVINGSTONE CLINK

THE KISS OF THE BLOOD-RED
POMEGRANATE
KRISTIN JANZ

CHARM
ANNA MIODUCHOWSKA

FINAL GIRL THEORY
A.C. WISE

TO LIVE AND DIE IN GIBBONTOWN
DEREK KÜNSKEN

BEAUTIFUL MONSTER
HELEN MARSHALL

MALAK
PETER WATTS

HONOURABLE MENTIONS
ABOUT THE EDITORS

Genres: Fantasy, Short Stories, Science Fiction, Horror, Anthologies, Speculative Fiction, Poetry

372 pages, Paperback

First published July 15, 2012

About the author

Author of The Animal Bridegroom (Tightrope Books; introduction by Neil Gaiman). Co-Publisher of ChiZine Publications. Co-organizer of the Toronto SpecFic Colloquium and the Chiaroscuro Reading Series. Founder of the CZP/Rannu Fund for Writers of Speculative Literature. Co-editor (with Halli Villegas) of the yearly series Imaginarium: Best Canadian Speculative Writing. Founding member of the Algonquin Square Table Poetry Workshop and the Bellefire Club.

Reviews

[Alan · Rating 4 out of 5]

I cut my teeth on the sf anthologies that appeared as if by magic on the shelves of my local branch library and biweekly bookmobile—those thick compendia of wonder, their spines usually broad enough to display all of their red and yellow rocket-ship-and-atom label. Great ones like Robert Silverberg's The Science Fiction Hall of Fame, Volume 1 and its successors, compiling the Nebula and Hugo Award winners; Anthony Boucher's two-volume A Treasury of Great Science Fiction (with those striking dust jackets, on which another view of that classic finned rocket ship appears in red against contrasting black and white); Damon Knight's monumental A Science Fiction Argosy; the regular Judith Merril compilations, Terry Carr annuals and Galaxy Readers... and too many others to remember or mention. I was a voracious reader in those days, usually checking out as many books as I was allowed, when not scouring the impoverished sf section of our local bookstore for something I'd overlooked, and when counting books, the variegated menu of even an obscure anthology often seemed like more of a bargain to me than the single-mindedness of a novel.

Later, the Gardner Dozois Year's Best series has of course provided much the same sense of value. But apart from those (and a few others), the sf anthology seems in recent years to've run out of steam... to have devolved into a splintering of too-precious themes and weary, rote retrospectives.

That's why it was so heartening for me to see how Sandra Kasturi and Halli Villegas put together Imaginarium 2012, which collects so many recent stories and poems (none have copyrights older than 2011), all of which deliver in one form or another a satisfying shock of the new. Not that the contents are very similar otherwise... the hook for this anthology is that it's "the best Canadian speculative writing," but Canada's a pretty big country, and the diversity of the horror, science fiction and fantasy on display here is continental in breadth.

Most of the stories that really stood out for me came towards the end of the book—the momentum definitely built—but the lead story set the bar, and the tone, for the rest of the book: "Looker," by David Nickle, a punchy tale that could have come from Richard Matheson's wine-dark pen. Others... although I'm not as enamored of his work as some, Cory Doctorow has a good steampunk entry here, "Clockwork Fagin." Lisa Hannett's rural fairy tale "Fur and Feathers"; "The Education of Junior Number 12" by Madeline Ashby; Silvia Moreno-Garcia's fresh twist on vampires in "A Puddle of Blood"; and the mashup of Greek myths in "The Kiss of the Blood-Red Pomegranate" by Kristin Janz were all impressive tales by authors whose names were new to me. And the book concludes with another strong story, "Malak," by Peter Watts, which reminded me of a more serious version of one of Keith Laumer's "Bolo" stories.

The short stories here were also intermingled with poetry, which—at least for me—afforded a nice rhythm and break between the stories. I don't have a lot to say about the verse in this volume, but I certainly didn't mind its inclusion; I'd actually like to see more sf anthologies willing to include poems amid their pages.

It says here (on the back cover) that Imaginarium 2012 is but the first in a yearly series... now that's something to look forward to.

[Tyrannosaurus regina · Rating 3 out of 5]

I did like this anthology, I genuinely did, but there was nothing that stood out for me. And usually the very fact that something is Canadian gives it a leg up for me. Of course, this also means there was nothing that stood out for me in the bad way either, which was refreshing because usually there are at least a couple of stories that I actively dislike.

[Matt Moore · Rating 5 out of 5]

Full Disclosure: I know a lot of the writers and the editors.

With that out of the way, this anthology is a mix of poems and poetry, offering up horror, SF, fantasy, bizarro, new weired, what have you. While some of the stories knocked my socks off, others didn't do it for me.

But such is an anthology. But, unlike other anthos were I disliked stories, every one of these tales will make you think, open your eyes to new possibilities, and leave you glad you read it.

A great anthology.

[Janet · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was crazy good! I love short stories, and this collection of speculative fiction has to be oneof the best collections I've ever read. Funny, creepy, scary, and thrilling - something here for everyone.

[Timothy Reynolds · Rating 5 out of 5]

A great collection and hopefully the beginning of an annual tradition in Canadian speculative fiction.

[Brian Gaston · Rating 3 out of 5]

There are some really strong stories in this volumes interspersed with some average ones.

[Shé M]

Pleasantly surprised to find poetry in this collection.

I bought it for the Silvia Moreno-Garcia story tbh. Turns out it was a test run/ snippet of 'Cerrtain Dark Things'!

[Deyara · Rating 3 out of 5]

A lot of poetry and alternative formatting which I find too difficult to read so skipped them. Rest were a real mixed bag so most people should find something to enjoy.

[Jack · Rating 3 out of 5]

Of the 37 short stories and poems in this collection, I only liked 9 (so 25%). Here are a few of the stand outs:

"Clockwork Fagin" by Cory Doctorow -- an interesting story of crippled orphans who kill their keeper and construct a clockwork replacement.

"The Kiss of the Blood-Red Pomegranate" by Kristin Janz -- a pseudo-retelling of the classic Persephone myth.

"To Live and Die in Gibbontown" by Derek Kunsken -- a tale of assassinations and euthanasia...and monkeys.

Even though I only liked a quarter of the stories in the collection, I would still recommend this book to anyone looking for science fiction/fantasy short stories. The stories I did like were excellent and I'll keep the book to give them a re-read in the future.

[Tara]

This was great. Definitely going to look up several of the authors.