Challenge 237
Means, Motive, Opportunity
In one way or another, literally or figuratively, every single work in this issue — from the novel to the poems — deals with or touches significantly on a common topic. What is it?
In Luke Boyd’s “Apparitions,” Stephen asks “Who am I?” Why is the question so difficult for him? How do you think he might answer it?
In Michael Hart’s “The Zeitsev,” Chitnik double-crosses Alexei. Is there any reason to think that Chitnik himself might have been double-crossed?
Branigan Grace’s “The Chosen” has the same ending as Karlos Allen’s “What Would You Do?” in Contest 2. How do the two stories differ? What direction might “The Chosen” take if it began rather than ended with the “punch line”?
In what way does Lee Dresselhaus’ “Icefields” recall the fate of the Franklin expedition to find the Northwest Passage?
Is Thomas Lee Joseph Smith’s “Barging In” a story or a vignette? Is it a parody of Jurassic Park? Is it basically a tragedy or a dark comedy?
We salute the conclusion of Mike Lloyd’s Observation Two with some review questions:
The Domans differ from humans mainly in one peculiar way. What is it?
What do Toni’s travels add to the story?
Which do you think is the most appealing character in the story? The least?
How would you characterize Quo’s personality?
What might happen to the plot if Quo were unable to mind-control human beings?
The plot is driven by the Domans’ need to know where a certain rare earth is being extracted. In the Domans’ position, would a human expedition recruit agents on the planet or would they take more direct action and make more use of virtual spies? And what would humans most likely do once they had found what they were looking for?
Copyright © 2007 by Bewildering Stories
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