Why it springs to mind: Love! Astronauts! Oz! I love stories about older women and the authors who write them. The protagonist in this story, Elma, is 63.
Where read: Free e-book from Tor and it's online here.
Length: 8,000+ words
Summary: A retired astronaut has another chance to go into space.
Memorable: Kowal's descriptions of inner conflict ring true. And the very touching scene that leads to the observation that astronauts also wear adult diapers. The end left me in tears.
Notable: I read this just before it won the 2014 Hugo Award Winning for Best Novelette — always so delightful when a story I love is loved by others and earns recognition.
Quote:
Personal connection: As a hospice volunteer and part of a childless couple, I found this story particularly moving. It's a wonderful layer-cake of a love story. It reminds me of one of my favorite Alice Walker poems read in college on the back page of an issue of Ms. Magazine, "My Friend, Yeshi." This part:
About the author: Mary Robinette Kowal is the author of Shades of Milk and Honey (Tor 2010). Other stories to check out include: 2009 Hugo nominee “Evil Robot Monkey” and the 2011 Hugo Award-winning “For Want of a Nail”.
Where read: Free e-book from Tor and it's online here.
Length: 8,000+ words
Summary: A retired astronaut has another chance to go into space.
Memorable: Kowal's descriptions of inner conflict ring true. And the very touching scene that leads to the observation that astronauts also wear adult diapers. The end left me in tears.
Notable: I read this just before it won the 2014 Hugo Award Winning for Best Novelette — always so delightful when a story I love is loved by others and earns recognition.
Quote:
"Because I wanted to be in the sky, weightless, and watching the impossibly bright stars. Because I didn’t want to watch Nathaniel die."Particularly lovely: How our bonds of love for each other transcend family ties or genetic links. How we are not alone.
Personal connection: As a hospice volunteer and part of a childless couple, I found this story particularly moving. It's a wonderful layer-cake of a love story. It reminds me of one of my favorite Alice Walker poems read in college on the back page of an issue of Ms. Magazine, "My Friend, Yeshi." This part:
"Who knows
Where the newness to old life
Comes from?
Suddenly
It appears.
Babies are caught by hands they assumed were always waiting.
Ink streaks
From the
Pen
Left dusty
On
The shelf.
This is the true wine of astonishment:
We are notPairs well with: Islands by Marta Randall; Oz Reimagined: New Tales from the Emerald City and Beyond, an anthology edited by John Joseph Adams and Douglas Cohen.
Over
When we think
We Are.
About the author: Mary Robinette Kowal is the author of Shades of Milk and Honey (Tor 2010). Other stories to check out include: 2009 Hugo nominee “Evil Robot Monkey” and the 2011 Hugo Award-winning “For Want of a Nail”.
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