STORIES OF YOUR LIFE AND OTHERS by Ted Chiang ⭐⭐⭐⭐

TOWER OF BABYLON

Immediately hooked. For something building figuratively and literally the entire way, I was relieved not to be disappointed by the ending. Oh, how we hunger for a piece of something divine, only to find we must be content with our place in existence. I loved it. Can’t wait for the rest.

UNDERSTAND

Chiang’s take on the average-guy-gets-super-smart trope, and in exploring it, blasts beyond things I can comprehend. He’s flexing some technical words and science jargon muscle here. It reminded me of American Psycho’s passages on obsession and perfection, dizzying me through much of it. The ending is good, but I didn’t find this as enjoyable as I’d hoped. The undeserved-genius well might be dry, despite even Chiang’s gifts.

DIVISION BY ZERO

I’ve always found mathematics a little daunting. Working a narrative around it is even more impressive, and even less up my alley. But I liked how this revolved around empathy versus sympathy, and how hard it can be to truly understand and relate to someone so close to you. The ending line made the whole piece worth it.

STORIES OF YOUR LIFE

Everything I hoped it would be and more. One of the best short stories I’ve ever read, both by the imaginative and technically profound encounter with the heptapods as much as the beautiful heartache of parenting. So many incredible passages about watching a child grow and doing your best to steer it, I couldn’t help but read them aloud to my wife. I see the movie (Arrival) version almost as the Heptapod A to the short story’s Heptopod B; different languages of the same vision. Both fantastic in their own ways. Like the movie, the story will stay with me long after finishing.

SEVENTY-TWO LETTERS

I didn’t get into this one. Severely repetitive passages on names and nomenclatures had me drowsing. It also felt like it was ramping up toward the end, only to fizzle with a thematic summary of the story I thought we were getting more of. Not sure what happened with this one, but it simply wasn’t for me. Deep thoughts though. I can see that’s Chiang’s calling card now.

I’m also noting a cyclical pattern to each story, often ending where it began or coming “full-circle” at the finish. An interesting and appropriate pairing with the big ideas churning here.

THE EVOLUTION OF HUMAN SCIENCE

This read like a slightly utopic take on AI. What if we made something that not only outgrew us, but didn’t affect us so negatively either? It just existed almost on its own plane? Cool concept with an interesting hermit crab-type framework of an academic journal article. I also love the thought that rather than genetically altering your child to become a metahuman and elevating them out of your life, most people choose to keep them normal and close. I would, too.

HELL IS THE ABSENCE OF GOD

I like the choice of omnipotent narration here, told almost like a summary after the fact. It gives this interesting removal from the story, looking down from above and watching this world where angels visit earth like natural disasters and cause as much pain as they do miracles.

As the other stories, Chiang has this uncanny ability to prove how much he knows things, taking something familiar and then inserting it into a world where it doesn’t quite work like you’d expect. He’s a genius, clearly. This one didn’t hit me as hard, but I still love seeing what corners of the mind Chiang manages to occupy.

LIKING WHAT YOU SEE: A DOCUMENTARY

Another thought experiment that had me rollercoastering between if I was for or against calli, and all the social implications of the fictional procedure. Excellent commentary on tech and its place in ethics. Clearly ahead of its time, the deepfake and AI boom only make this one an even more prescient read. I’m astonished how much Chiang makes you think with these stories.

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OVERALL

I really enjoyed this collection, with a few stand outs I know I’ll be thinking about for a long time. I loved the way they pulled me in, showing me a new world with new questions, new moral quandaries and tweaked realities. Many of the narratives resolved only by taking you somewhere so you could think about things a little differently. It’s almost like a book on philosophy disguised as a speculative story collection. Blending the two is a good way to expand your mind. If you’re up for something a little heady, this is a batch worth the hype.

Favorites:

1. Stories of Your Life

2. Tower of Babylon

3. Division By Zero