On "The Men and Women Like Him" by Amber Sparks (1772 words) ****

In "The Men and Women Like Him" the secret to time travel has been found. However, going back into the past would destroy the space-time continuum, so it's forbidden. This doesn't stop people from sneaking in to try to fix things and save lives. It is the job of another set of characters, called cleaners, to go back in time and stop these "do-gooders." Potentially a story about ethics, it remains too short to be anything more than a novel idea, but I suppose Sparks's goal here is more emotional--how restoring bad for "greater good" hurts. Read the story here at Guernica.

On "The Anointing" by Jamie Quatro (3553 words) *****

One of the most impressive stories from Quatro's collection is this one. What I like so much about this story is that it takes faith seriously, at the same time that we can see the main character struggle with it. The protagonist's husband is a doctor who had gotten addicted to prescription narcotics and lost his license and who is now is a near constant state of depression. Hoping to resolve the problem, the protagonist goes to her church elders for help and healing--anointing. By the story's end, we're not sure who needs help more or whether the calls for help will work. Read the story here at Guernica.

On "Jubilee" by Kirstin Valdez Quade (6857 words) ***

There are a lot of race and ethnicity issues in California, where I grew up. This story places those front and center. Andrea is a girl trying to "better" herself, to live among the rich white people for whom her parents work. Her own self-conscious doubt, in addition to whatever prejudices she might have to endure, gets in the way, however. Read the story here at Guernica.

On "Shoes for Rent" by Lynne Potts (2273 words) ***

Here's a strange story with a narrator who is almost there. We'll learn more about the narrator by the end of the story, but the narrator remains elusive in many ways. Things don't quite add up. And neither do we know or learn the whole story that the narrator tells, though it seems more complete than even the narrator's own. Unique here is the voice, which seems to go from one strange random detail to another, as if the story were haphazard rather then plotted--but that's just part of the various deceptions. Read the story here at Guernica.

On "The Genius Meetings" by Elizabeth Crane (3255 words) ***

This story is about exactly what it's title proclaims, a series of meetings among geniuses. These geniuses discuss "great" things, as geniuses are wont to do, but when it comes to personal lives the lot of them are a mess. The geniuses are all men. There's a degree of chutzpah that goes along with genius or that goes along with claiming genius that requires that one strike out in one's own direction whether brilliant or scathingly stupid (and if one is a genius, one is lucky enough to have happened upon the brilliant). But this in turn leads to an inability to interact with others--after all, why listen to council when you are the smartest of the group? Why indeed? Perhaps because respect for others--and others' views--is the only thing that leads to happy relations with others. These geniuses, able to share with one another, remain unable to share with those of the lower strain, and thus unable to share with humanity.

Crane's story reminds me a little of people I've worked with in the past who were quick to point out their IQ scores (I've never even taken a legitimate IQ test--where does one do such and why?) or their Menda Society membership. I've always been a bit skeptical of said people. After all, if they're so smart, why are they working with me? And why a need to report their score? Anyway, geniuses can be a bit annoying, but they make for an interesting story, which you can read here at Guernica.

On "The Other Gandhi" by Tania James (6338 words) ****

A few years ago now, a local bar put on an Indian independence day party. It seemed a rather kitschy thing to do, down South here, where there were all of maybe six Indians in the entire town. Put on some Bollywood movies, serve some Kingfisher beer, and play some sitar music. A strange thing, though, happened: there were actually quite a few Indian people at the party. Who knew? Nothing like an independence day party to bring people out.

"The Other Gandhi" is a story that also deals in genuineness versus kitsch, although on a much deeper level. The main character has an interest in a young woman, who is a huge fan of Gandhi. The main character manages to get a part in a movie as Gandhi. Fireworks commence. But who really knows Gandhi? Is playing him to know him? Is being a fan to know him? Is being able to imitate him to know him? Or is it more important to get at his soul? Does it matter? Can anyone even tell the difference? Can you? Read and figure out for yourself here at Guernica.

On "Babies" by Amelia Gray (438 words) ****

A relatively new friend of mine is pregnant--again--by the same man who gave her the last child seven years ago, the same man she refuses to marry because of some pretty serious problems in their relationship. For one thing, he isn't "amenable" to babies--not at first. Enter Amelia Gray, whose story parallels my friend's but speeds it up by about a nine months. And then . . . Let's just say this is a story that really doesn't get started until its ending. This story plays well with one's head. Read the story here at Guernica.