Exhalation in Beyond Reality

Oct 07, 2024 Natalie rated it liked it

Shelves: science-fiction

Rating 3.5 stars. This is my second collection of stories by Chiang and it felt like this collection had a colder, more analytical tone than Stories of Your Life and Others. People were in difficult and strange situations but the writing laid it all out like a series of steps leading to inevitable conclusions rather than pointing out the heart wrenching difficulties.
The stories, some of which were quite long, include:
"The Merchant and the Alchemist's Gate:" People can travel 20 years in the fut Rating 3.5 stars. This is my second collection of stories by Chiang and it felt like this collection had a colder, more analytical tone than Stories of Your Life and Others. People were in difficult and strange situations but the writing laid it all out like a series of steps leading to inevitable conclusions rather than pointing out the heart wrenching difficulties.
The stories, some of which were quite long, include:
"The Merchant and the Alchemist's Gate:" People can travel 20 years in the future or 20 years in the past. A man tries to change the future but realizes being forgiven is more important than changing events. I really enjoyed this story.
"Exhalation:" An AI takes himself apart to see how he functions and realizes his delicate parts will eventually stop working.
"What's Expected of Us:" Do we have free will or is everything based on determinism. This story leans towards determinism.
"The Lifecycle of Software Objects:" A company, Blue Gamma, designs interactive robot like animals. Several of the designers become very close to their "pets" even as their popularity wanes and their practicality comes into question. The pets have personalities but require significant time and effort.
"Dacy's Patent Automatic Nanny:" A man invents a mechanical nanny but a death causes them to lose popularity. Later, the man has a second child and has a mechanical nanny raise the child until he's 2. It's discovered the child is only happy when he has the nanny around.
"The Truth of Fact, The Truth of Feeling:" This is composed of two parts. 1. There is an invention called a Remem which records life events and then replays events upon command, so people can see the accurate memory. After much debate, the main character realizes the value is to accurately evaluate your own life.
2. Jijingi lives in a village and Europeans come. One European, Moseby, explains writing and reading to Jijingi, then teaches him how to write. Jijingi becomes more European because he can write.
At the end, there is the comment that writing changes how we think and digital memory changes how we remember. We are formed by the things we use.
"The Great Silence:" This story talks about the Fermi Paradox: why aren't there more intelligent beings in the universe. Are parrots the voice of creation?
"Omphalos:" A female archeologist addressed "the Lord" throughout. She looks for signs of creation; things that are pre evolution. She wonders about her ability to continue to have faith as others doubt God.
"Anxiety is the Dizziness of Freedom:" People are able to use a prism to see "paraselves" or other versions of themselves. We see several examples of how people handle having another self. Dana, a therapist, theorizes that your self is consistent across experiences, no matter what happens. One woman, Nat, decides she wants to be a better person. Another woman, Vinessa, is prone to addiction and destructive behavior no matter what her friend does. It questions which self is the real one.
While the stories are well thought out and thought provoking, I found the emphasis on scientific possibilities to draw the focus away from human emotions and towards humans as just variables in an experiment. I also felt some key religious theory is absent from the couple of stories that touch on religious themes. The prose is clear but feels like a series of facts rather than complex tales. Most stories were far from heart warming. That is probably the intent but I disliked the tone. ...more

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Jul 11, 2020 Chessa rated it really liked it

Shelves: sf_fantasy, audiobook, short-stories, own_it, novella, novelette, kindle, hugo-nominee

I didn’t *really* finish this book, but I did listen to “Omphalos” and “Anxiety is the Dizziness of Freedom” for Hugo voting.

Omphalos: ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️

Anxiety is the Dizziness of Freedom ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ 1/2

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Jun 09, 2020 Kerry rated it really liked it

Shelves: 2020, sf, 8-out-of-10, ebooks, anthology, shorter-than-a-novel, 2020-hugo-nominees, 2023

I've only read one story from this collection so far, but I intend to read the rest. So far, I've read Omphalos which is a nominee for the Best Novelette category in the 202o Hugo Awards. I'll add comments on others as I get them read, especially Anxiety is the Dizziness of Freedom which is also a 2020 Hugo Nominee, for Best Novella. I'll rate it when I've read more.

Omphalos (8/10)
I really liked this a lot. It explores the idea "what if the world really was created by God 8000 years ago?" The wa I've only read one story from this collection so far, but I intend to read the rest. So far, I've read Omphalos which is a nominee for the Best Novelette category in the 202o Hugo Awards. I'll add comments on others as I get them read, especially Anxiety is the Dizziness of Freedom which is also a 2020 Hugo Nominee, for Best Novella. I'll rate it when I've read more.

Omphalos (8/10)
I really liked this a lot. It explores the idea "what if the world really was created by God 8000 years ago?" The way the world would function if this was true was fascinating, especially the idea of primordial creatures (the ones that were created complete and whole by God) and how tree rings and any other kind of growth rings would occur. Then it gets more complicated, as astronomers (an unlauded profession, because why look at the stars when they are just there to light up the night sky?) make an unexpected discovery. It wasn't what I expected (view spoiler), but it still shook the narrator's faith and made for a very interesting story.

Anxiety is the Dizziness of Freedom (8/10)
A very interesting premise that led to an interesting speculative story. There's a lot in here about self-perception, about free will and about being a better person. I was interested all along and my engagement grew as the story progressed. I was particularly happy about the ending and what it said about who Nat had become compared to who she had been. In the end, we are all responsible for ourselves and the choices we make in our own, specific lives.

I finally finished the whole book in October 2023. Since I paused for about 9 months around halfway through, I can't remember exactly what I thought of the other stories, but I'm left with a good feeling about them. I think Chiang does a very clever thing of taking a strange premise (often that something we've figured out isn't true - like young Earth creationism in "Omphalos") and then speculating with a high degree of scientific accuracy about what the world would be like and what stories might be told if it actually was true. I like the stories he comes up with a lot and will keep my eye on what he writes in future.

After reading the two Hugo Award nominees back in 2020, I thought my Dad would like them too and I was planning on giving him this book for Christmas. Sadly, he passed away earlier that December and I never had the chance. A very kind friend wanted to give me a gift in his memory and I chose this book. It feels good to have finally finished it. I still think Dad would have liked it, and I'm happy to have done so myself even if I can't discuss it with him. ...more

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May 14, 2023 Lulu rated it it was amazing

Shelves: science-fiction, short-stories, books-read-in-2023

I bounced hard off Stories of Your Life & Others, so it surprised me how much I loved this collection! Ted Chiang really knows his way around a short story, and excited me about the form again. Brilliant. They are all very "message"y stories, but they work really well. The overarching theme of the collection seems to be about our choices mattering, even if they feel like they do not.

Also, I can't believe I cried over a story about parrots.

The Merchant and the Alchemist's Gate: 4/5
Exhalation: 4/5 ...more

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May 19, 2024 Christine rated it liked it

Interesting short stories but it seems as if he's writing a story to illustrate his philosophy on life. I didn't read the last couple of stories ...more

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