Space adventures
MURALI N. KRISHNASWAMY
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Sci-fi at its best. An interesting collection.
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"A Martian homecoming", "A question", "Science fiction stories" are a part of the readable string of words that hang stalactite-like on the cover. The blurb calls it a "diverse collection that is funny, thought-provoking and weird". To help kindle interest further is a pointer that this is a compilation by some of India's finest contemporary sci-fi writers.
Samit Basu's "Intergalactic Idol" is the first account. It begins with the persona sitting quietly at his desk at home doing his homework ... All of a sudden, there is a loud roaring sound, which the boy thinks is another plane (he lives near the airport). An alien spaceship has landed in his garden.
Kuzhali Manickavel's "The Story Collector" follows next and is thought provoking.
The third story, "Star Light, Star Bright", is actually more about the growing up years than science fiction, as the author Nilanjana Roy pits the prima donna in school against the new girl in class.
"A Question of Time" sees Onex and Trebla clash over constructing a time machine, an impossibility for Onex who argues that time is zero-dimensional. Anushka Ravishankar is a skilful storyteller here.
What appear next, "A Martian Homecoming" (Vandana Singh) and "Baba Yaga" (Anshumani Ruddra) are again masterful accounts.
Finally, Manjula Padmanabhan steps in with "Shrinking Vanita", and perhaps the best in this collection. Padmanabhan's rendition is truly spellbinding.
7 Science Fiction Stories, Scholastic India, Rs. 125
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