Universe 1

There are twenty stories collected in Universe 1, only two of which (by Francis Valery and K. Hernandez-Brun) are unreadable. Most of the remaining eighteen are provocative, enjoyable, amusing, moving, or all of the above - a remarkably high success rate for any anthology.Some particular standouts:"The Translator" by Kim Stanley Robinson. A human is forced to use an inaccurate translating machine to avert a war between two alien cultures. A deft portrayal of cunning deception, and the loose translations generated by the machine show Robinson to be herself a master of language."One Night in Television City" by Paul DiFilippo. The story itself is rather blah, but DiFilippo creates a narrative voice that is very Raymond Chandler-esque while advancing the slang and idioms a few hundred years. The word choices and the language that ensues is a fine example of a technical mastery of the written word (it is just unfortunate that the substance does not live up to the technique)."Alimentary Tract" by Scott Baker describes a world where gluttony is punished by allowing the glutton to gorge himself; all calories are diverted to needy families in Southeast Asia. An intriguing idea played to out to wonderful comedic and insightful effect."The Songs the Anemone Sing" by Grania Davis is a powerful, moving tale of inter-species (platonic) love. Davis' ability to evoke powerful emotions in fifteen pages is astonishing."Love Is a Drug" by Leah Alpert is, perhaps, the highlight of the book. In Alpert's society, couples must undergo drug therapy before they can be divorced. Occasionally, though, the therapist injects the wrong drug! Wildly entertaining, and a pure pleasure from the opening line to the satisfying ending.Amidst such excellent stories, Ursula K. LeGuin's contribution, "The Shobie's Story" is the only actual disappointment. Which isn't to say that the Shobie's story is a dull one; it's just that one expects perfection from the author of The Left Hand of Darkness and perfection isn't present here.One final observation, several of the stories are post-apocalyptic, which is somewhat surprising given the stories were written in 1989/1990 when the Cold War seemed to be coming to an end and world-wide optimism was high. Once upon a time science fiction was the literature of the hopeful; not for several of these writers.Overall, Universe 1 is a very worthwhile collection, one that should be appreciated by not only science fiction fans, but also fans of good literature in general.