Pump Six and Other Stories

Bleak, clear-eyed and unblinking, Paolo Bacigalupi forces us to look our future directly in the face. At the end of the story that gives this collection its name, the protagonist, a Quixotic factotum who finds himself in charge of the titular mechanical Rocinante (and possibly civilization itself), says “I chose a book at random and started reading.”

Those us back here in the coalmines of the 21st century would do well to do the same. This is the book to start with.

As all short story collections there were some good and some bad stories. I skipped one story set in the same world as [b:The Windup Girl|6597651|The Windup Girl|Paolo Bacigalupi|http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1278940608s/6597651.jpg|6791425] because it had been a long time since I read it, and I got confused. Other than that, the stories were enjoyable and often tackled social issues or dystopian futures. Some of these had violent/horrific or sexual imagery. Be forewarned.