Exhalation, Ted Chiang

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The Next Book is: Exhalation
The Author is: Ted Chiang
The meeting date/time will be: 1/11/2019
The meeting location will be: Barbara’s

In these nine stunningly original, provocative, and poignant stories, Ted Chiang tackles some of humanity’s oldest questions along with new quandaries only he could imagine.

In “The Merchant and the Alchemist’s Gate,” a portal through time forces a fabric seller in ancient Baghdad to grapple with past mistakes and second chances. In “Exhalation,” an alien scientist makes a shocking discovery with ramifications that are literally universal. In “Anxiety Is the Dizziness of Freedom,” the ability to glimpse into alternate universes necessitates a radically new examination of the concepts of choice and free will.

Including stories being published for the first time as well as some of his rare and classic uncollected work, Exhalation is Ted Chiang at his best: profound, sympathetic—revelatory.

We did his previous book of short stories

This looks like fun

I might try this one for book club.

What were your favorite 3 stories?

  • The Merchant and the Alchemist’s Gate
  • Exhalation
  • What’s Expected Of Us
  • The Lifecycle of Software Objects
  • Dacey’s Patent Autonomic Nanny
  • The Truth of Fact, the Truth of Feeling
  • The Great Silence
  • Omphalos
  • Anxiety is the Dizziness of Freedom

0 voters

Here are my mnemonics for remembering the stories:

  • The Merchant and the Alchemist’s Gate - Time gates
  • Exhalation - Air robots
  • What’s Expected Of Us - Predictor button
  • The Lifecycle of Software Objects - AI kids
  • Dacey’s Patent Autonomic Nanny - Robot moms
  • The Truth of Fact, the Truth of Feeling - Memory implants
  • The Great Silence - Parrots
  • Omphalos - Science God
  • Anxiety is the Dizziness of Freedom - Many universes

The Nebula award finalists were announced today

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The final story of this book was on the list for best novella. I think this one was my favorite in that book.

Good (rare?) interview with Chiang. Klein is one of my favorite interviewers also.