Darwin's Bastards
{{Short description|Science fiction story anthology}}
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Darwin's Bastards: Astounding Tales from Tomorrow is a 2010 anthology of dystopian science fiction stories.[https://www.theglobeandmail.com/arts/books-and-media/when-the-crystal-ball-foretells-a-bumpy-ride/article4312462/ When the crystal ball foretells a bumpy ride], in the Globe and Mail, published March 27, 2010; retrieved April 16, 2015 It was edited by Zsuzsi Gartner, and published by Douglas & McIntyre. All of its stories were written by Canadians.
Contributors
- Adam Lewis Schroeder
- Annabel Lyon
- Anosh Irani
- Buffy Cram
- David Whitton
- Douglas Coupland
- Elyse Friedman
- Heather O'Neill
- Jay Brown
- Jessica Grant
- Laura Trunkey
- Lee Henderson
- Mark Anthony Jarman
- Matthew J. Trafford
- Neil Smith
- Oliver Kellhammer
- Pasha Malla
- Paul Carlucci
- Sheila Heti
- Stephen Marche
- Timothy Taylor
- William Gibson
- Yann Martel
Critical reception
The Los Angeles Times stated that the stories were of varying degrees of originality, but emphasized that "the quality of writing across the collection is wonderfully high".[https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2010-may-23-la-ca-zsuzsi-gartner-20100523-story.html Book review: 'Darwin's Bastards' edited by Zsuzsi Gartner], review by Sasha Watson, in the Los Angeles Times; published May 23, 2010; retrieved April 16, 2015 The Globe and Mail called it "excellent",[https://www.theglobeandmail.com/arts/books-and-media/darwins-bastards-edited-by-zsuzsi-gartner/article570003/ Darwin's Bastards, edited by Zsuzsi Gartner], review by Micah Toub, in the Globe and Mail; published March 26, 2010; retrieved April 16, 2015 and CBC Radio ranked it as the best Canadian work of science fiction and fantasy for 2010,[http://www.cbc.ca/books/bookclub/2011/02/the-cbc-bookies-winners-revealed.html The CBC Bookies winners revealed!], by CBC Book Club; at CBC.ca; published February 24, 2011; retrieved April 16, 2015 while the Georgia Straight described the scenarios in the collection as "dismal", "grim", and "genuinely scarifying", while specifying that the collection as a whole is "riotously enjoyable".[https://www.straight.com/article-318863/vancouver/future-ruled-bastards Book review: Darwin's Bastards, edited by Zsuzsi Gartner], review by Alexander Varty, in the Georgia Straight; published April 21, 2010; retrieved April 16, 2015
Quill and Quire, however, criticized Gartner's editorial decision to mostly exclude science fiction authors with genre experience in favor of primarily literary contributors, stating that many of the collection's "futuristic and dystopian speculations hang suspended like colloids in slack, unformed narratives", and observing that the contributors seem to "have not read very widely in the genre", with the result that many of the scenarios portrayed "feel second-hand at best".[http://www.quillandquire.com/review/darwin-s-bastards/ Darwin’s Bastards, by Zsuzsi Gartner, ed.], reviewed by James Grainger, in Quill and Quire; published 2010; retrieved April 16, 2015 Similarly, Geist concluded that "(m)any of the stories (...) try too hard", and that "(t)he quality and originality vary wildly".[http://www.geist.com/fact/reviews/darwins-bastards/ Darwin's Bastards], reviewed by Kris Rothstein, in Geist; originally published in Geist #77; retrieved April 16, 2015
References
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Category:Science fiction anthologies
Category:Douglas & McIntyre books
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