Revisions [Mass Market Paperback]

Unlike most alternate history anthologies, ReVisions consists of all new and original stories, a great change from the constantly re-hashed collections. All of the stories in ReVisions deal with some sort of technological, social, or anthropological change. There's everything from Nikola Tesla inventing the laser to the Sumerians creating the printing press, to what might have happened if dogs had never been domesticated or if Da Vinci's inventions had actually been put into effect.

The stories themselves, while creative and original, do not seem to have been edited as well as they might have been, keeping me from giving ReVisions a full five stars. It's a new release, and so you probably won't find it in used bookstores. That being said, I have no regrets about spending the full price to buy from Amazon.

The topics featured for diversion are best-suited for scientific and engineering types, but there are a few to satisfy those preferring socially-based or even anthropological stories.

These are not your typical, predictable "what if someone went back in time and gave General Lee machine guns?" type of historical revision tales. Instead, they are based in real science, and speculate about how real, historical (or scientific) events could have changed the world if they happened in a just slightly (and realistically) different way. Brilliantly written, and very fun to read.

I have an uneasy relationship with short story anthologies. On the plus side, they give me a cross section of stories about a topic or premise in which I'm interested. And I can read one or two of stories before I conk out at night, which is good for time management.

But by definition, anthologies are a mixed bag. I have come to expect that I'll find a few great stories, several that are decent, and a few time-wasters. I also expect that I'll have read at least a few of the stories before because the premise of any given anthology will usually bring one "classic" to mind. That's not bad, but it does mean that I'm paying for a story I already own.

I'm happy to report that ReVisions breaks the rules -- in the best way. The premise is excellent, the stories are all new to the anthology, and I didn't find a single clunker.

ReVisions is an alternate history anthology with a tiny twist: in which scientific breakthroughs were made in a different time or place. How would history have played out differently if the printing press were created by the Sumerians or if the laser was developed 50 years earlier? (I stole those examples off the back of the book, so they aren't quite spoilers, or anyway no more so than it would be for you when you picked it up yourself. It's hard to be specific here because I don't want to spoil your pleasure in figuring out the scientific difference in each tale.) It's a great idea, and it works well.

The 15 short story authors are excellent, too, and I found this book when I was searching for more from some of my favorites. I'm sure they're familiar to you, too: Julie Czerneda, Isaac Szpindel, Geoffrey Landis, Laura Anne Gilman, Kage Baker, Doranna Durgin, James Alan Gardner, Robin Wayne Bailey, Kay Kenyon, Mike Resnick, Susan R. Matthews, Cory Doctorow, Charles Stross, Jay Caselberg, Peter Watts, John G. McDaid. None of them are in the universe(s) for which the authors are most famous (i.e. this isn't a "Company" story from Kage Baker) so you get to see the writers doing something different.

And they do it well. Several of the stories are truly great, and most of the rest are a solid "good." I confess that I was ho-hum about "Unwirer," by Doctorow and Stross, and about Caselberg's "Herd Mentality," but you might disagree. Besides, if the worst in this collection is "okay," that's far better than most anthologies.

I'm really glad I took the time to read ReVisions. I heartily recommend it to any fan of alternate history, or anyone who likes these authors.

› Go to Amazon.com to see all 4 reviews  4.8 out of 5 stars