Phoenix in Ashes C

Phoenix in the Ashes is a collection of six stories. They are both a demonstration of the range of Joan Vinge's talent and an clear indication of the importance of characterization in her works. All the protaganists in these stories are alienated in some way from their culture and each must resolve their own eccentric problems. The title story involves two individuals, each an outcast in their own society, who learn to fulfill each other's needs; it strongly reminds me of the Gift of the Magi in tone. Voices From the Dust has two scientists who detest each other, but find common ground when an alien presence seizes control of their minds. The Storm King is a tale of emotional growth, as a noble boy learns empathy. The Peddler's Apprentice also has a boy growing both emotionally and intellectually, finally gaining some measure of wisdom. Psiren has Cat coming to grips with his power and guilt. Mother and Child tells of an alien who develops a degree of affection and appreciation for humanity through his contact with a human woman and her child. Each of these stories involves an individual who is in some way almost unique in their society, but these stories have a larger theme of the uniqueness of all persons. They seem to say, forget the averages and concentrate on the distinctly different aspects of each person. The only problem I have with Joan D. Vinge is that she doesn't write enough. Of course, quantity doesn't replace quality. And Vinge exemplifies quality to me. Enjoy! -Arthur W. Jordin

Phoenix in the Ashes is an amazing collection of Ms. Vinge's short stories. Each story has an afterword written by Ms. Vinge, which gives the reader insight, into what inspired that particular tale, which I found to be a very pleasant experience. This collection is something any fan of Ms. Vinge must get, unfortunately at this time it is out of print. One story in particular flashes back on Cat from the Catspaw, Psion, Dreamfall series, and is set in the time between Psion and Catspaw when our hero is recovering from the mental-psionic breakdown he suffered because of his time spent in the Telhassium mines of the Federation. This interlude in Cat's life is just one of six tales included in this collection. The other five range all the way from a desolate future Earth, where technology is considered to be part of the evil spirits (Phoenix in the Ashes), to a sort of world where humans who can see clearly or even hear are considered "blessed" or "gifted" and has an incredibly suprising plot(Mother and Child). All the stories in this collection have characters of depth and intriguing story lines, in spite of the short length. There is no way to sum up this collection as each story is an individual gem, of a different color and cut set in the ring of adaptation and survival