The
Best of Electric Velocipede
Edited
by John Klima
This
collection traces the history of The Electric Velocipede
through some of the stories and poetry it published during its run.
Though the anthology presents itself as a "best of"
edition, the individual stories and poems drastically vary in quality
(moreso than in most other collections) even if they do tend to
improve as the volume proceeds. This book has its gems, as all of its
kind do, but ultimately feels somewhat scattered without a sense of
theme to guide it. The focus on speculative fiction is evident
throughout, but it's difficult to get a handle on which genre a
particular story is in as they flit between various fantasy and
science fiction tropes. This is perhaps primarily a fault of the
offending authors, but the frenetic reading experience could have
been improved by more mindful organization (the effect of
chronological ordering here results in a lot of disorienting jumps),
effective introductory notes, or other ameliorating editorial
factors. That said, the collection does have its high points and
surely does not lack for variety; I was particularly surprised to
find myself drawn in by some of the poetry. The Best of
Electric Velocipede does provide
a useful introduction to some lesser-known voices in speculative
fiction, but its many misfires lead to a wildly uneven reading
experience despite the success of its few gems.
Grade:
C
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