What do you think?
Rate this book
What a Fish Looks Like
What are the stories we need to survive?
In ten days, the last spaceship is leaving for a new planet. Some of us will stay on Earth. How do we decide?
#TeamEarth. Once upon a time, the oceans were full of fish and the forests dark with brambles. Seb read about it in a book of fairy tales, and memory means hope.
#TeamShip. Adaptation means knowing when to walk away. Jay is ready. So their ex, Seb, shows up on the dance floor, T-minus-10. What’s the harm in one last dance?
What if the stories themselves are evolving?
Told in margin notes, posters, letters scrawled on napkins, and six retellings of classic fairy tales, What A Fish Looks Like gathers the stories of a queer community co-creating one another through the strange landscapes of climate change, wondering who is going to love us when there are not, in fact, plenty of fish in the sea.
And now this book belongs to you.
In ten days, the last spaceship is leaving for a new planet. Some of us will stay on Earth. How do we decide?
#TeamEarth. Once upon a time, the oceans were full of fish and the forests dark with brambles. Seb read about it in a book of fairy tales, and memory means hope.
#TeamShip. Adaptation means knowing when to walk away. Jay is ready. So their ex, Seb, shows up on the dance floor, T-minus-10. What’s the harm in one last dance?
What if the stories themselves are evolving?
Told in margin notes, posters, letters scrawled on napkins, and six retellings of classic fairy tales, What A Fish Looks Like gathers the stories of a queer community co-creating one another through the strange landscapes of climate change, wondering who is going to love us when there are not, in fact, plenty of fish in the sea.
And now this book belongs to you.
220 pages, Paperback
Published September 4, 2025
4 people are currently reading
85 people want to read
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 30 of 30 reviews
Read
September 4, 2025rtc
July 5, 2025
I genuinely do not understand what I read. The format of the pages was so wrong. The content was not good. I’m sorry I didn’t enjoy this novel and I hope that someone who better understands the chaos gets to enjoy it.
I received a copy on NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
I received a copy on NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
July 14, 2025
I receive an ARC in exchange for my honest review.
As soon as I started reading this, I knew I was in for something special. Playing with form and including a 'metanarrative' along short stories, I ended up absolutely adoring this. It so accurately depicted living on the edge of climate change/capitalism/of the feeling that disaster is always looming yet trying to find hope in the community around you, refusing to give in. It's gorgeous and tragic and speaks so much to right now. I cannot recommend this enough.
As soon as I started reading this, I knew I was in for something special. Playing with form and including a 'metanarrative' along short stories, I ended up absolutely adoring this. It so accurately depicted living on the edge of climate change/capitalism/of the feeling that disaster is always looming yet trying to find hope in the community around you, refusing to give in. It's gorgeous and tragic and speaks so much to right now. I cannot recommend this enough.
September 4, 2025
In my dream of a life, where I have read all the beautiful short stories written by all the writers of the world, WHAT A FISH LOOKS LIKE sits on a shelf staring back at me with the pupil-less eyes of a Mer, pleading with me to imagine a different world than the one we’re swimming toward now. Described a novella in fairy tales, each piece stands alone as its own poetically-voiced story of its big picture world.
This book collects “retellings of retellings…with a sense of wonder beyond our world,” fairy tales reimagined, a magical escape from expectations and my own trope-filled imagination (although I also do love a trope-filled story where I can shapeshift). It reminds us that “there might even still be time” to reconsider the carelessness and disregard for the oceans and the earth.
You can always trust @stelliformpress to publish a book of tales that are as cautionary as they are magical, as heartbreaking as they are emotionally rich.
These stories are about what we lose and who we lose (both by leaving and being left behind), when the oceans die. This book contains the stories that exist in the spaces between hope and loss, between love and abandonment, between what we want and what we allow to happen.
P.S. For every short story writer reading, grab a copy of this book! If you fear taking risks with your writing and escaping into your radiant mind—this is the collection to read. With letters, notes in a bar (an ex-bar), writings on a bathroom wall, full colour illustrations (descriptively written), invitations, community postings, Beker gives complexity and magic while swimming in the depths of their imagination. Brilliance lives here! And while I know this won't be for everyone (because of the expectations thing mentioned above, I really love books that pull themselves free of being just ONE thing, even if they're harder to read).
This book collects “retellings of retellings…with a sense of wonder beyond our world,” fairy tales reimagined, a magical escape from expectations and my own trope-filled imagination (although I also do love a trope-filled story where I can shapeshift). It reminds us that “there might even still be time” to reconsider the carelessness and disregard for the oceans and the earth.
You can always trust @stelliformpress to publish a book of tales that are as cautionary as they are magical, as heartbreaking as they are emotionally rich.
These stories are about what we lose and who we lose (both by leaving and being left behind), when the oceans die. This book contains the stories that exist in the spaces between hope and loss, between love and abandonment, between what we want and what we allow to happen.
P.S. For every short story writer reading, grab a copy of this book! If you fear taking risks with your writing and escaping into your radiant mind—this is the collection to read. With letters, notes in a bar (an ex-bar), writings on a bathroom wall, full colour illustrations (descriptively written), invitations, community postings, Beker gives complexity and magic while swimming in the depths of their imagination. Brilliance lives here! And while I know this won't be for everyone (because of the expectations thing mentioned above, I really love books that pull themselves free of being just ONE thing, even if they're harder to read).
September 2, 2025
Thank you to NetGalley for providing me an ARC of this book for an honest review. All opinions are my own.
The most ethereal and poetic post-apocalyptic novel I have ever had the pleasure of experiencing. I found the blend of genre, from retelling, to poetry, to epistolary (with the inclusion of several pieces of ephemera) to be unique and haunting. Through these disparate pieces, the story of catastrophic climate change, queer love and heartbreak, and human survival rings beautifully true.
I want to read it over and over again, to write out some of the quotes that resonate, and to more fully put together those pieces in my head, if I can.
The most ethereal and poetic post-apocalyptic novel I have ever had the pleasure of experiencing. I found the blend of genre, from retelling, to poetry, to epistolary (with the inclusion of several pieces of ephemera) to be unique and haunting. Through these disparate pieces, the story of catastrophic climate change, queer love and heartbreak, and human survival rings beautifully true.
I want to read it over and over again, to write out some of the quotes that resonate, and to more fully put together those pieces in my head, if I can.
Read
September 30, 2025I have an unwavering belief in the power of stories. It is one of the reasons I do the work I do, because I think that it is in the stories that we tell, have told, and will tell that we can truly find ourselves. In What a Fish Looks Like I found the same kind of fervent belief, mixed with a deep love for both humanity and nature, all presented inventively. Also, that cover is simply gorgeous! Thanks to Stelliform Press and NetGalley for providing me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
What kind of stories do you tell at the end of the world? What comfort can stories still offer when the ocean is gone, the air is poisonous, and you have been left by the one you love? I remember how, in early February 2020, I turned to Boccaccio's Decamerone while experiencing the first COVID lockdown in Shanghai. In that time of crisis, I wanted to read something that emerged from a similar kind of crisis, to see what Boccaccio thought might offer solace in a situation like that. What he suggested was storytelling and connection as the only real remedies to the fear and horror of something that appears world-ending. With What a Fish Looks Like, Syr Hayati Beker has also written a book which addresses an urgent crisis in our world, namely the climate crisis. Her characters are dealing with disappearing oceans, encroaching vines, and social collapse, and while this forms a crucial backdrop, it is their relationships with one another which are at the heart of the story being told. For some, this focus might feel off, in the sense that it should be more about the damage done to the climate, perhaps. But I think it is beautiful to show that what saves us in times of crisis is our love for one another and the stories we gift each other. It is not a quick fix, but only in truly seeing and appreciating what we have, in one another and in this world, can we, I think, try and save each other.
What a Fish Looks Like is both a straightforward story and a complex book. At its heart, I think, it is about stories and human connection amidst chaos. The stories told within the book's pages are interconnected by threads big and small, sometimes sharing characters but always sharing a world on the edge. It is also a novel-within-a-book, or a short story collection within a book, but also a seemingly random assembly of different forms of writing and drawing, scraped together in a way that reminds me of medieval manuscripts. The impending departure of a whole set of people from their community aboard a space ship forms the starting point of What a Fish Looks Like and a collection of fairy tales is passed around between a set of characters who all need to choose whether to stay or to go. As they consider, they add their own stories, their own scribbles, finding new ways to tell of themselves along familiar fairy tale lines. While I can't necessarily separate the stories from the whole, some of them hit me harder than others. 'Antigone, But With Spiders' was stunning in how it mixed tragedy and joy, while 'Root Systems' also really worked for me.
I really liked the freedom with which Beker approaches their book. While the form is clearly inventive, yes, it is also the writing itself which I really enjoyed. (I do have to say that on my Kindle, the formatting of the book didn't work out super well, but I am sure that in a physical copy it is stunning.) There are certain stories in What a Fish Looks Like where the writing is a little more experimental, but I mainly enjoyed how Beker showed her characters to us through their writing. Sometimes the writing was a little cringe, sometimes it was heartbreakingly open, sometimes it was closed off, but it was always very human and there was always love there. Beker's characters are almost all part of the queer community and there is a fervent kind of love for others here which I think is what makes the book's message about crisis and storytelling so powerful. I think especially in a time where LGBTQIA+ people are once again under more scrutiny and in more danger, a book like this will hopefully be a balm for members of that community. It also reminds us, however, that we have people to love and protect, even if we're not part of the community ourselves, and that it is only in truly caring for others that we can come close to averting the various crises we face. It might sound trite or cliche, but I truly believe that this is true.
I really liked What a Fish Looks Like for its inventiveness, both in form and content, and for its unwavering belief in storytelling. It is a book about the world falling apart, sure, but even more it is a book about the love we are capable of holding for one another, even at our darkest.
URL: https://universeinwords.blogspot.com/...
What kind of stories do you tell at the end of the world? What comfort can stories still offer when the ocean is gone, the air is poisonous, and you have been left by the one you love? I remember how, in early February 2020, I turned to Boccaccio's Decamerone while experiencing the first COVID lockdown in Shanghai. In that time of crisis, I wanted to read something that emerged from a similar kind of crisis, to see what Boccaccio thought might offer solace in a situation like that. What he suggested was storytelling and connection as the only real remedies to the fear and horror of something that appears world-ending. With What a Fish Looks Like, Syr Hayati Beker has also written a book which addresses an urgent crisis in our world, namely the climate crisis. Her characters are dealing with disappearing oceans, encroaching vines, and social collapse, and while this forms a crucial backdrop, it is their relationships with one another which are at the heart of the story being told. For some, this focus might feel off, in the sense that it should be more about the damage done to the climate, perhaps. But I think it is beautiful to show that what saves us in times of crisis is our love for one another and the stories we gift each other. It is not a quick fix, but only in truly seeing and appreciating what we have, in one another and in this world, can we, I think, try and save each other.
What a Fish Looks Like is both a straightforward story and a complex book. At its heart, I think, it is about stories and human connection amidst chaos. The stories told within the book's pages are interconnected by threads big and small, sometimes sharing characters but always sharing a world on the edge. It is also a novel-within-a-book, or a short story collection within a book, but also a seemingly random assembly of different forms of writing and drawing, scraped together in a way that reminds me of medieval manuscripts. The impending departure of a whole set of people from their community aboard a space ship forms the starting point of What a Fish Looks Like and a collection of fairy tales is passed around between a set of characters who all need to choose whether to stay or to go. As they consider, they add their own stories, their own scribbles, finding new ways to tell of themselves along familiar fairy tale lines. While I can't necessarily separate the stories from the whole, some of them hit me harder than others. 'Antigone, But With Spiders' was stunning in how it mixed tragedy and joy, while 'Root Systems' also really worked for me.
I really liked the freedom with which Beker approaches their book. While the form is clearly inventive, yes, it is also the writing itself which I really enjoyed. (I do have to say that on my Kindle, the formatting of the book didn't work out super well, but I am sure that in a physical copy it is stunning.) There are certain stories in What a Fish Looks Like where the writing is a little more experimental, but I mainly enjoyed how Beker showed her characters to us through their writing. Sometimes the writing was a little cringe, sometimes it was heartbreakingly open, sometimes it was closed off, but it was always very human and there was always love there. Beker's characters are almost all part of the queer community and there is a fervent kind of love for others here which I think is what makes the book's message about crisis and storytelling so powerful. I think especially in a time where LGBTQIA+ people are once again under more scrutiny and in more danger, a book like this will hopefully be a balm for members of that community. It also reminds us, however, that we have people to love and protect, even if we're not part of the community ourselves, and that it is only in truly caring for others that we can come close to averting the various crises we face. It might sound trite or cliche, but I truly believe that this is true.
I really liked What a Fish Looks Like for its inventiveness, both in form and content, and for its unwavering belief in storytelling. It is a book about the world falling apart, sure, but even more it is a book about the love we are capable of holding for one another, even at our darkest.
URL: https://universeinwords.blogspot.com/...
August 27, 2025
I definitely didn't really Get what-all was happening here, but it was very beautiful (and very painful).
Rtc
REVIEW
Well, I don’t think I really Got this one. The premise sounded incredibly magical, but in practice it’s much more spec fic, with a touch of sci fi and magical realism, than clear SFF. If I’d known that, I might not have requested it, because I prefer much ‘harder’, more obvious magical/sci fi elements!
The main thing that didn’t work for me is what NEVER works for me with these things (even though I insist on continually trying): I didn’t find it hopeful. I found it so, so bleak, and depressing, and heartbreaking. I don’t think that was the author’s intent – and some of the other early reviews I’ve seen make it clear that not everyone has this takeaway for this book. But this was painful to read – it’s really a story about climate collapse, and snippets of these different lives as the planet is dying and human civilisation is falling apart (or so I inferred from the not-Snow Queen story?) And like – nothing is fixed? We see climate protesters etc around the edge of some of the stories, but they don’t accomplish anything, we’re still going down, so???
I don’t know.
The set-up is amazing, though: the framing is that there is a book of fairytales, and the stories we read have been written over them – modern, very queer reimaginings of stories like The Matchstick Girl and The Snow Queen. But between the stories, we also have flyers and letters and things, scribbled on by one of a handful of interconnected trans and nonbinary people who are trying to survive, and (some of them) decide whether or not to leave Earth on the last spaceship. It’s very mixed-media, and I LOVED that, I wish we saw that so much more often!
The stories themselves…Well, I didn’t Get them. And apart from the Snow Queen and Red Riding Hood ones, I couldn’t tell what fairytales they were supposed to be retelling (although I’m guessing the mermaid one was meant to be the Little Mermaid? Somehow?) But I loved all the queer rep – specifically, so many trans and nonbinary characters, which made me SO FREAKING HAPPY – and I loved the way some of the stories were told, especially the Red Riding Hood one, which is framed like it’s a series of transmissions/queries between different machines? I think? Seb – arguably the main character? – writes notes in the introduction to the book-within-the-book, the collection of fairytales that is being written over, and I enjoyed those immensely. The writing itself is objectively excellent; Beker has a wonderful way with words, and a twisty, let’s-experiment imagination that felt playful and wickedly smart. I’d really like to read more from them in the future, even if it never gets more overtly fantastical than this!
With the caveat that I found this very depressing, I’d recommend this one to anybody interested in mixed-media stories, especially readers who are pining for trans and nonbinary rep. What a Fish Looks Like is a beautiful book, even if I definitely wasn’t smart enough to understand or catch everything it was doing. I’m very glad it exists, even if it’s not quite for me.
Rtc
REVIEW
Well, I don’t think I really Got this one. The premise sounded incredibly magical, but in practice it’s much more spec fic, with a touch of sci fi and magical realism, than clear SFF. If I’d known that, I might not have requested it, because I prefer much ‘harder’, more obvious magical/sci fi elements!
The main thing that didn’t work for me is what NEVER works for me with these things (even though I insist on continually trying): I didn’t find it hopeful. I found it so, so bleak, and depressing, and heartbreaking. I don’t think that was the author’s intent – and some of the other early reviews I’ve seen make it clear that not everyone has this takeaway for this book. But this was painful to read – it’s really a story about climate collapse, and snippets of these different lives as the planet is dying and human civilisation is falling apart (or so I inferred from the not-Snow Queen story?) And like – nothing is fixed? We see climate protesters etc around the edge of some of the stories, but they don’t accomplish anything, we’re still going down, so???
I don’t know.
this is what theater is: the thing you do when crying isn’t enough.
The set-up is amazing, though: the framing is that there is a book of fairytales, and the stories we read have been written over them – modern, very queer reimaginings of stories like The Matchstick Girl and The Snow Queen. But between the stories, we also have flyers and letters and things, scribbled on by one of a handful of interconnected trans and nonbinary people who are trying to survive, and (some of them) decide whether or not to leave Earth on the last spaceship. It’s very mixed-media, and I LOVED that, I wish we saw that so much more often!
Question: Is the ax part of the forest for its wood handle?
The stories themselves…Well, I didn’t Get them. And apart from the Snow Queen and Red Riding Hood ones, I couldn’t tell what fairytales they were supposed to be retelling (although I’m guessing the mermaid one was meant to be the Little Mermaid? Somehow?) But I loved all the queer rep – specifically, so many trans and nonbinary characters, which made me SO FREAKING HAPPY – and I loved the way some of the stories were told, especially the Red Riding Hood one, which is framed like it’s a series of transmissions/queries between different machines? I think? Seb – arguably the main character? – writes notes in the introduction to the book-within-the-book, the collection of fairytales that is being written over, and I enjoyed those immensely. The writing itself is objectively excellent; Beker has a wonderful way with words, and a twisty, let’s-experiment imagination that felt playful and wickedly smart. I’d really like to read more from them in the future, even if it never gets more overtly fantastical than this!
With the caveat that I found this very depressing, I’d recommend this one to anybody interested in mixed-media stories, especially readers who are pining for trans and nonbinary rep. What a Fish Looks Like is a beautiful book, even if I definitely wasn’t smart enough to understand or catch everything it was doing. I’m very glad it exists, even if it’s not quite for me.
August 7, 2025
Alas, this one didn't really click for me. Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC!
This is a really neat idea for a story, and I loved the idea of the presentation, but I found it all a bit too floaty for me to make sense of. I wasn't really sure where things were happening, when things were happening, and who the characters even were. I often struggle with second-person POV, and there was a not-insignificant amount of it in these stories. The first story being second-person was a mistake, because it makes it that much more difficult to figure out what's going on in an already pretty opaque book.
I think also there were too many ideas for a book this short and structurally atypical? It seems rather mean to say that, but it felt like ideas got brought up and then abandoned, e.g. ghosting was important in the first story and seemed to be a big deal for Seb, but then it did not seem to matter anywhere else in the book, and it really felt like most of the fairy tale adaptations were like that.
Of the 6 major short stories, my two favorites were "Playlist 4Merx in Times of Sea Levels Rising" and "Antigone, But With Spiders". They were the most clear to me and also spoke to my own experiences the most, as someone about to enter teacher training and a theatre kid. I respected "Five is the Other Shade of Red"'s hustle, but I was so wildly confused about the technology in it that I couldn't understand where it fit. The ideas in "Root Systems" and "Server Farm Queen" were neat, but I had really no idea how they fit into the larger story other than thematically. I kind of don't give a singular damn about Seb and Jay's relationship if I'm being so open and vulnerable right now, so "What a Fish Looks Like" was just not something that I cared about, and the aforementioned second-person only made it worse.
I am a fairly literal person though! This might be your cup of tea if you're into more experimental/poetic stuff.
This is a really neat idea for a story, and I loved the idea of the presentation, but I found it all a bit too floaty for me to make sense of. I wasn't really sure where things were happening, when things were happening, and who the characters even were. I often struggle with second-person POV, and there was a not-insignificant amount of it in these stories. The first story being second-person was a mistake, because it makes it that much more difficult to figure out what's going on in an already pretty opaque book.
I think also there were too many ideas for a book this short and structurally atypical? It seems rather mean to say that, but it felt like ideas got brought up and then abandoned, e.g. ghosting was important in the first story and seemed to be a big deal for Seb, but then it did not seem to matter anywhere else in the book, and it really felt like most of the fairy tale adaptations were like that.
Of the 6 major short stories, my two favorites were "Playlist 4Merx in Times of Sea Levels Rising" and "Antigone, But With Spiders". They were the most clear to me and also spoke to my own experiences the most, as someone about to enter teacher training and a theatre kid. I respected "Five is the Other Shade of Red"'s hustle, but I was so wildly confused about the technology in it that I couldn't understand where it fit. The ideas in "Root Systems" and "Server Farm Queen" were neat, but I had really no idea how they fit into the larger story other than thematically. I kind of don't give a singular damn about Seb and Jay's relationship if I'm being so open and vulnerable right now, so "What a Fish Looks Like" was just not something that I cared about, and the aforementioned second-person only made it worse.
I am a fairly literal person though! This might be your cup of tea if you're into more experimental/poetic stuff.
August 28, 2025
Publishing date: 04.09.2025 (DD/MM/YYYY)
Thank you to NetGalley and Stelliform Press for the ARC. My opinions are my own.
TLDR: A collection of possibly related stories told through various kinds of "media" (books, napkins, letters, art, you name it), while our two main characters struggle with the coming end of the world. I think that might be summarized correctly ...
My positives:
- Dreamy and strange
- Had some very important topics told in a new and interesting way
- A way of storytelling that I hope get refined and brought to other books (mixed media is always cool)
My negatives:
- A little too dreamy and strange maybe
- Hard to know when, where, and who
- Left me more confused than I have ever been while reading
- You have to get really deep into the book before the puzzle pieces start falling into place
I think this one is another for the collection of "Not for me, sadly". The premise is great, I love mixed media, I love overly queer stories, I love the subjects tackled in the book, but ... I just can't for the life of me tell anyone what I really read.
I don't think I will be recommending this to anyone. I have no idea who would like this.
Giving this 2 stars. Great premise, flawed execution, and I remember almost nothing of what I read.
Thank you to NetGalley and Stelliform Press for the ARC. My opinions are my own.
TLDR: A collection of possibly related stories told through various kinds of "media" (books, napkins, letters, art, you name it), while our two main characters struggle with the coming end of the world. I think that might be summarized correctly ...
My positives:
- Dreamy and strange
- Had some very important topics told in a new and interesting way
- A way of storytelling that I hope get refined and brought to other books (mixed media is always cool)
My negatives:
- A little too dreamy and strange maybe
- Hard to know when, where, and who
- Left me more confused than I have ever been while reading
- You have to get really deep into the book before the puzzle pieces start falling into place
I think this one is another for the collection of "Not for me, sadly". The premise is great, I love mixed media, I love overly queer stories, I love the subjects tackled in the book, but ... I just can't for the life of me tell anyone what I really read.
I don't think I will be recommending this to anyone. I have no idea who would like this.
Giving this 2 stars. Great premise, flawed execution, and I remember almost nothing of what I read.
November 9, 2025
What can I possibly say about What a Fish Looks Like that has not been said in the copious praise its received from a variety of amazing writers?
For me it is a love letter to queer community, queer spaces, and the potentiality of transformation. The world as we know it is ending, more quickly in the story than IRL, but who knows when we’ll catch up?
The recently-split Seb and Jay pass a book of fairy tales back and forth. It accumulates their notes and ephemera from events their daily lives navigating the apocalypse and making their plans for remaining and/or for escape. The places and characters invade the stories in the book just as the stories invade their lives. Seriously, watch out for the encroaching carnivorous vines!
I was struck by the necessity of collectivity for survival, and of an undoing of narratives that have not served us as a species. Transformation is inevitable.
This book is for folks who enjoy sci-fi, fantasy, and sci-fi fantasy mash ups. For folks who like books filled with artifacts and ephemera. Fans of wistful queer love/breakup stories. For lovers of language: What a Fish Looks Like frequently reads like poetry. And for folks who want to see, feel, and experience what an anti-colonial “happily ever after” can be.
For me it is a love letter to queer community, queer spaces, and the potentiality of transformation. The world as we know it is ending, more quickly in the story than IRL, but who knows when we’ll catch up?
The recently-split Seb and Jay pass a book of fairy tales back and forth. It accumulates their notes and ephemera from events their daily lives navigating the apocalypse and making their plans for remaining and/or for escape. The places and characters invade the stories in the book just as the stories invade their lives. Seriously, watch out for the encroaching carnivorous vines!
I was struck by the necessity of collectivity for survival, and of an undoing of narratives that have not served us as a species. Transformation is inevitable.
This book is for folks who enjoy sci-fi, fantasy, and sci-fi fantasy mash ups. For folks who like books filled with artifacts and ephemera. Fans of wistful queer love/breakup stories. For lovers of language: What a Fish Looks Like frequently reads like poetry. And for folks who want to see, feel, and experience what an anti-colonial “happily ever after” can be.
July 26, 2025
Thank you to NetGalley for an ARC of this book.
So this story is split into two parts that interconnect. Our main storyline follows a group of queer friends, lovers, and exes. The earth is dying, and there is a ship that is going to take a limited number of people to a different planet. Nobody knows if it’s better than where they are now or worse, but some people are willing to take that risk. This book delves into the struggle of abandoning the only home you’ve ever known for the unknown. And the difference between the people who want to leave and the people who still think this world is worth trying to save. And the fights and inner turmoil that arises from a choice like that. The other storyline is a collection of past stories about members of said group of people and their experiences in this dying/changing world.
I thought all the stories were really interesting; they were all supposed to be retellings of fairytales, and they were very unique. I will say, the narrative was a bit confusing at first. I had a hard time for probably the first story or so to get into it. But as soon as I did, it was very captivating.
So this story is split into two parts that interconnect. Our main storyline follows a group of queer friends, lovers, and exes. The earth is dying, and there is a ship that is going to take a limited number of people to a different planet. Nobody knows if it’s better than where they are now or worse, but some people are willing to take that risk. This book delves into the struggle of abandoning the only home you’ve ever known for the unknown. And the difference between the people who want to leave and the people who still think this world is worth trying to save. And the fights and inner turmoil that arises from a choice like that. The other storyline is a collection of past stories about members of said group of people and their experiences in this dying/changing world.
I thought all the stories were really interesting; they were all supposed to be retellings of fairytales, and they were very unique. I will say, the narrative was a bit confusing at first. I had a hard time for probably the first story or so to get into it. But as soon as I did, it was very captivating.
September 30, 2025
This is a sort of novella made up of short stories and various fragments - ads, letters, etc. One of those short stories is absolutely outstanding, one of the best I've read this year. It's the title story of the book, "What a Fish Looks Like", and it's about a woman who takes polar bear DNA into herself to one day resurrect the species, which has gone extinct. This is a magical realist story rather than a science fiction one, but the generosity and the transformation are deeply affecting. I love it.
I admire the other stories here, but the don't quite give me the same emotional punch as the polar bear story does. (I admit: I'm a sucker for bears.) That being said, however, I really appreciate that this is a depiction of a future dystopia that is so fundamentally based in positive disagreement. A lot of the characters here, particularly Seb and Jay, have completely different ideas about the future and about what and where and how their own futures should be. More important than the conflict, however, is the reconciliation, and that's the most appealing part of this book for me. Apart from the bear, of course.
I admire the other stories here, but the don't quite give me the same emotional punch as the polar bear story does. (I admit: I'm a sucker for bears.) That being said, however, I really appreciate that this is a depiction of a future dystopia that is so fundamentally based in positive disagreement. A lot of the characters here, particularly Seb and Jay, have completely different ideas about the future and about what and where and how their own futures should be. More important than the conflict, however, is the reconciliation, and that's the most appealing part of this book for me. Apart from the bear, of course.
October 15, 2025
This is a beautifully written, utterly unique book that reflects the brilliant, unique mind behind it (and full disclosure, I have the pleasure of knowing the author) while capturing many of the anxieties and hopes of the world we appear to be living on the brink of. Set in a post climate collapse Bay Area, the mix of references familiar and alien work together elegantly to paint a surreal landscape populated by almost characters, many of whom (and this can sometimes be challenging) rarely get enough stage time to truly leap to life and become individual people we can invest in. Still, the core conflict they all face (variations on "do we stay or do we go") unifies them into a collective dance between the Lover and the Beloved, with the stakes ranging from romantic relationships, to identities present and potential, to remaining on Earth or forsaking it for a fresh start on a distant planet. Ultimately, SHB strikes enough emotional chords to give the final, almost stream of consciousness chapters real resonance and impact, while the early, more conventionally charming fairy tale reevisionings lay a groundwork of ideas and images which readers are unlikely to forget.
August 15, 2025
I love an unconventional narrative and structure and this novella is that: experimental and alluring in its design and language. That said, there is still a constant theme of love and loss throughout that I felt was beautifully captured through the ephemeral writing, which is told in an epistolary format of varying POVs, letters, notes, and other bits of remembrances.
At once lyrical and mournful… This haunting and poignant tale tells the individual stories of a group of friends who come together, separate and fracture while the world crumbles and violently morphs around them through climate change as some prepare to leave this world while others commit to stay. There is a deep sense of loss and longing in the individual tales, both for friends and lovers and for the earth itself, with flashes of hope for renewal and rebirth. I found this book to be quite beautiful and moving, and has managed to achieve its rightful place as a modern-day fable.
My thanks to NetGalley and Stelliform Press for the Advance Reader Copy.
At once lyrical and mournful… This haunting and poignant tale tells the individual stories of a group of friends who come together, separate and fracture while the world crumbles and violently morphs around them through climate change as some prepare to leave this world while others commit to stay. There is a deep sense of loss and longing in the individual tales, both for friends and lovers and for the earth itself, with flashes of hope for renewal and rebirth. I found this book to be quite beautiful and moving, and has managed to achieve its rightful place as a modern-day fable.
My thanks to NetGalley and Stelliform Press for the Advance Reader Copy.
December 12, 2025
From the moment I got my copy in the mail, this book felt like magic—beginning with the cover. I usually read on Kindle, but I’m SO glad I bought the paperback; the shimmering blues and greens, almost iridescent, are the perfect tone for the story’s dreamlike beauty.
Inside, the book is just as shimmering. It’s a queer, tender, hopeful exploration of love and climate change, told through reimagined fairy tales that feel both familiar and fresh. I read a lot, and it’s rare for me to finish a book and want to immediately start from the beginning and start it again. This is one of those books. Every sentence feels intentional, beautifully crafted, poetic without ever tipping into excess. I took my time, reading slowly, re reading sentences and entire passages simply because they were gorgeous.
I really enjoyed the narrative structure, which is very creative and engaging. I honestly can’t wait to see what this author writes next!
Inside, the book is just as shimmering. It’s a queer, tender, hopeful exploration of love and climate change, told through reimagined fairy tales that feel both familiar and fresh. I read a lot, and it’s rare for me to finish a book and want to immediately start from the beginning and start it again. This is one of those books. Every sentence feels intentional, beautifully crafted, poetic without ever tipping into excess. I took my time, reading slowly, re reading sentences and entire passages simply because they were gorgeous.
I really enjoyed the narrative structure, which is very creative and engaging. I honestly can’t wait to see what this author writes next!
July 4, 2025
I received an advance copy from the publisher via Netgalley for review purposes; this in no way influences my review.
I was reading Green Fuse Burning and fell down the rabbit hole of Stelliform’s catalogue, and knew I wanted to try every one. Seeing What A Fish Looks Like available for request felt like a sign, and I’m so glad I got the opportunity to read it. This is a very strange book, but I love how it weaves and distorts familiar fairy tales. This is extremely queer and full of messy interpersonal stories. I’m not quite sure if this is hopeful or tragic, but I do love how many stories are woven into one whole. What a Fish Looks Like is a very interesting book and I especially enjoyed how fairytales are a framework, but the whole story is really the letters and chats between the characters.
I was reading Green Fuse Burning and fell down the rabbit hole of Stelliform’s catalogue, and knew I wanted to try every one. Seeing What A Fish Looks Like available for request felt like a sign, and I’m so glad I got the opportunity to read it. This is a very strange book, but I love how it weaves and distorts familiar fairy tales. This is extremely queer and full of messy interpersonal stories. I’m not quite sure if this is hopeful or tragic, but I do love how many stories are woven into one whole. What a Fish Looks Like is a very interesting book and I especially enjoyed how fairytales are a framework, but the whole story is really the letters and chats between the characters.
Read
July 8, 2025DNF
I was excited to dive into this title, as I love Stelliform Press and their singular brand of queer eco-fiction. This one, unfortunately, was my least favourite of their releases so far.
Although I love many of the themes, imagery and ideas in it, I couldn’t push through until the end. The format of this book just didn’t work for me at all. It’s told through text-messages, threads, scraps and margin notes with barely any actual prose tying it all together. The whole felt entirely disjointed and due to this format it was impossible for me to get a feeling for any of the characters.
I’m keeping a keen eye on any new releases by this independent publisher, but unfortunately recommend this particular title.
Many thanks to Stelliform Press for providing me with an ARC in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.
I was excited to dive into this title, as I love Stelliform Press and their singular brand of queer eco-fiction. This one, unfortunately, was my least favourite of their releases so far.
Although I love many of the themes, imagery and ideas in it, I couldn’t push through until the end. The format of this book just didn’t work for me at all. It’s told through text-messages, threads, scraps and margin notes with barely any actual prose tying it all together. The whole felt entirely disjointed and due to this format it was impossible for me to get a feeling for any of the characters.
I’m keeping a keen eye on any new releases by this independent publisher, but unfortunately recommend this particular title.
Many thanks to Stelliform Press for providing me with an ARC in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.
August 1, 2025
A compendium of short stories, that all get related through a main story, about two ex lovers dealing with the end of the world.
This is one of the weirdest books I've read, and I have read a lot of weird books recently.
It was a challenging book, but I am not quite sure if I mean it as a good thing.
The description promised a sci fi retelling of classical stories, honestly besides the names I could not relate the stories with the classics.
Overall it was an interesting read, however I do not know if I recommend this one, its confusing, I do not like the ending of the stories since they are open an not very hopeful, to be sad I dont read a book I just see the news.
It was kind of disappointing, the cover gave me very high hopes I guess.
Thanks to NetGalley for this book in exchange for an honest review.
This is one of the weirdest books I've read, and I have read a lot of weird books recently.
It was a challenging book, but I am not quite sure if I mean it as a good thing.
The description promised a sci fi retelling of classical stories, honestly besides the names I could not relate the stories with the classics.
Overall it was an interesting read, however I do not know if I recommend this one, its confusing, I do not like the ending of the stories since they are open an not very hopeful, to be sad I dont read a book I just see the news.
It was kind of disappointing, the cover gave me very high hopes I guess.
Thanks to NetGalley for this book in exchange for an honest review.
July 10, 2025
I overall enjoyed this apocalyptic queer metanarrative, but its experimental structure failed at times. I think it was weakest in the red riding hood and grandma parts, but otherwise I found it followable. I think I could discuss this book for ages with someone who’s down to tear into all its layers.
Ultimately, this book suffered for being in ebook format. It was somewhat unsatisfying to view what I imagine looks better on a printed page. Also sometimes I spent too long trying to wade through the language and I lost the story. And that sucks because the story at the heart of this book was great. The little mermaid part was my favorite.
Ultimately, this book suffered for being in ebook format. It was somewhat unsatisfying to view what I imagine looks better on a printed page. Also sometimes I spent too long trying to wade through the language and I lost the story. And that sucks because the story at the heart of this book was great. The little mermaid part was my favorite.
August 19, 2025
🐟 Bookish Thoughts
I genuinely don’t know what I just read. This was a very short book (around 150 pages) but instead of feeling quick and easy, it left me more confused than anything else 🫠
I recognize that I might not be the right reader for this type of story.
I can see it finding the right audience among readers who enjoy abstract, or unconventional storytelling.
——-
📖 Final Score: 2 stars
📅 Pub Date: September 4, 2025
Thank you to NetGalley and the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America for the advanced copy. All thoughts are my own.
I genuinely don’t know what I just read. This was a very short book (around 150 pages) but instead of feeling quick and easy, it left me more confused than anything else 🫠
I recognize that I might not be the right reader for this type of story.
I can see it finding the right audience among readers who enjoy abstract, or unconventional storytelling.
——-
📖 Final Score: 2 stars
📅 Pub Date: September 4, 2025
Thank you to NetGalley and the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America for the advanced copy. All thoughts are my own.
September 4, 2025
I don’t even know what this book was trying to do, like fish or spaceship or fairy tales?? Notes on napkins and posters and hashtags, I swear half of it was scribbles and I felt like I was reading somebody’s recycling bin instead of a story. I kept waiting for the plot to happen but instead it was dance floors and climate change and six fairy tales that weren’t fairy tales and maybe a fish but maybe not?? Confusing and messy and by the end I wasn’t sure if I was supposed to laugh or cry or just throw it in the ocean with the rest of the fish that apparently don’t exist anymore.
August 4, 2025
✨This one left me confused for most of the book. Told through letters to exes, friends, and lovers, it took until about 70% before I understood what was going on. There’s a fascinating premise—Earth is dying and humanity is moving to a new planet—but I struggled to connect with it due to the abstract structure.✨
✨If you enjoy experimental, nonlinear storytelling, this might be for you. It just wasn’t the right fit for me.✨
✨ Thank you to NetGalley for this arc ✨
✨If you enjoy experimental, nonlinear storytelling, this might be for you. It just wasn’t the right fit for me.✨
✨ Thank you to NetGalley for this arc ✨
November 4, 2025
Thank you Netgalley, Stelliform Press, and Syr Hayati Beker for sending me this advance review copy for free. I am leaving this review voluntarily.
This book felt like a weird fever dream. I am so confused by it, and it was just random bits thrown together and not coherent at all. The formatting was a bit messed up on my ebook copy, and that didn't help either.
Overall this wasn't the book for me.
This book felt like a weird fever dream. I am so confused by it, and it was just random bits thrown together and not coherent at all. The formatting was a bit messed up on my ebook copy, and that didn't help either.
Overall this wasn't the book for me.
December 19, 2025
one of my favorite reads of 2025.
this whimsical and melancholic book punched me in the sternum.
more of a thematic / character exploration than a plot-heavy book.
I loved all the pictures and drawings and hand written text, and the poetic quality of the prose was delightful and engaging.
I had the pleasure of hearing the author perform a reading from this and was moved to grab the book and I was not disappointed with it.
this whimsical and melancholic book punched me in the sternum.
more of a thematic / character exploration than a plot-heavy book.
I loved all the pictures and drawings and hand written text, and the poetic quality of the prose was delightful and engaging.
I had the pleasure of hearing the author perform a reading from this and was moved to grab the book and I was not disappointed with it.
August 31, 2025
Wow. What an extraordinary book. A sci-fi in the form of a collection of fairy tales, all haunted by climate catastrophe. The writing is exquisite: complex, experimental, torn between metafiction and myth. Dark, tragic even, but there is a thread of hope in how community forms around disaster.
Read
July 9, 2025Entirely original, queer, surreal dystopia. Review to follow.
November 4, 2025
This was the first book I've read for pleasure in a long time. I loved the writing, the diverse cast, and the format worked well for me.
November 9, 2025
I don't know how to explain this book because I don't know if I understood all of it, but it was beautifully written and very well put together. I will always hold parts of this book with me.
July 24, 2025
We get a neat book about various LGBTQIA+ bars throughout the United States, including a few in places I would not have expected (a trans bar in Green Bay that's still open today!). A few of these places went under between writing it and publication, but this is still a pretty great read, and has given me a few places to look up when I'm in these cities.
August 4, 2025
I received this book from Netgalley for an honest review.
I loved the concept of this book. The world is ending and these exoduses are happening to get people off Earth. I enjoyed the Queer elements of the story and the mystery of the people who went missing. There is this underlying fear that something is not right with these exodus trips. The first and second exoduses both end in tragedy. I was interested in Seb and Jay's relationship or lack of. The first story about Seb was honestly the most interesting and I wish we could have gotten some more of that.
Why I'm giving it 3 stars is that I think some of the other stories got lost in the shuffle. I think this story has a lot of potential and I think it might translate better when there is a physical copy to hold.
I loved the concept of this book. The world is ending and these exoduses are happening to get people off Earth. I enjoyed the Queer elements of the story and the mystery of the people who went missing. There is this underlying fear that something is not right with these exodus trips. The first and second exoduses both end in tragedy. I was interested in Seb and Jay's relationship or lack of. The first story about Seb was honestly the most interesting and I wish we could have gotten some more of that.
Why I'm giving it 3 stars is that I think some of the other stories got lost in the shuffle. I think this story has a lot of potential and I think it might translate better when there is a physical copy to hold.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 30 reviews