Dreaming Again

Dreaming

by Dirk Strasser (Editor), Christopher Green (Contributor)

Following in the footsteps of the landmark collection, Dreaming Down-Under, this new book brings together Australia's greatest fantasy writers and cutting-edge new authors 35 new stories celebrating the wild side of Australian fantasy writing Welcome to the energy, invention and imagination of Australia's finest writers of speculative fiction - from acclaimed international bestsellers to the freshest new voices. ten years ago, Dreaming Down-Under captured the excitement of the wild side of Australian fiction and won a coveted World Fantasy Award. Now it's time to start Dreaming Again ... CONtRIBUtORS: Peter M. Ball, Lee Battersby, John Birmingham, Jenny Blackford, Russell Blackford, Adam Brown, Simon Brown, trudi Canavan, Isobelle Carmody, Paul Collins, Rowena Cory Daniells, Cecilia Dart-thornton, Rjurik Davidson, Stephen Dedman, Sara Douglass, terry Dowling, Jason Fischer, Ben Francisco, Christopher Green, Richard Harland, trent Jamieson, Margo Lanagan, Rosaleen Love, Chris Lynch, Sean McMullen, Jason Nahrung, Garth Nix, Cecily Scutt, Angela Slatter, Aaron Sterns, Dirk Strasser, Lucy Sussex, Janeen Webb, Kim Westwood and Kim Wilkins And including a previously unpublished story from the late great A. Bertram Chandler 'Dreaming Again is at once quintessentially Australian and enticingly other. If you read short fiction you'll want this collection. If you don't, this is a reason to start.' Bookseller + Publisher

Genres: Fantasy, Short Stories, Fiction, Anthologies, Science Fiction, Australia, Science Fiction Fantasy

576 pages, Paperback

First published September 30, 2008

About the author

Dirk Strasser has won multiple Australian Publisher Association Awards and a Ditmar for Best Professional Achievement. His mythic fantasy series, The Books of Ascension, has been republished by Macmillan Momentum, this time including Eclipse – The Lost Book of Ascension for the first time in English. His novels and short stories have been translated into a number of languages. He also founded the Aurealis Awards and has co-edited and co-published Aurealis magazine for over twenty years.

Reviews

[Karissa · Rating 4 out of 5]

The stories in this collection are all over the place; some are horror, many are sci-fi, and many just explore other alternate realities. As a whole the collection was an enjoyable read. There is a lot here so it was not the quickest read for me; I also had a little bit of trouble reading the stories consecutively because their subject matter was so varied and disjointed. I have found that with very different short stories I sometimes need a break between them so that I can think about and process what I have read before jumping into something completely new.

All in all it was a decent collections of stories; there were only a couple stories I disliked.

For me some of the highlight stories were:
- Nightship by Kim Westwood
Ship boy escapes the dismal confines of the fogged out island area. This was a dismal and dark story, but had a very interesting world and culture. The imagery was great too!

- Neverland Blues by Adam Browne
In future earth Michael Jackson is a spaceship and he needs a friend to travel with. Okay I thought the storyline was a bit hokey, but I really liked this guy's writing style. He used great imagery, with many fast-paced observations. Writing style reminded me a little of the Nightside series by Simon Green.

- The Forest by Kim Wilkins
This is retelling of Hansel and Gretel in near future earth. I love retelling of classic fairytales and I thought this was a great story. I really want to check out more of her writings.

- The Lost Property Room by Trudi Caravan
Cute story about a lady who retrieves an item from the train property room that's not hers and ends up paying a steep price for it. I liked this story.

- The Lanes of Camberhill by Cecilia Dart-Thornton
This was about a woman and a man seeking secret ways in the Lanes of Camberhill. It was a beautiful story with lush description and interesting thoughts on the philosophy behind geography, I really liked it!

- Purgatory by Rowena Cory Daniells
A virus has infected all of humanity and it invokes religious fanaticism. The main character finds a cure and administers it but at a great cost. This was a very creative and very interesting story. I love the idea of fanaticism being a disease.

- Perchance to Dream by Isobelle Carmody
About a girl who is stuck in a dream trying to figure out what went wrong with her life. I really liked this story; it reminded me a little of some of the Charles deLint stories I have read.

I was debating if adding a list of the stories would make the review too long. Since I already have it written, figure I might as well include it. So...

Below is a list of the stories with a short synopsis and thoughts.

Old Friends by Garth Nix
Old tree warrior fights long time enemy to the death. Very short and sad, yet hopeful, good imagery.

A Guided Tour in the Kingdom of the Dead by Richard Harland
Eager tourist tells a PhD of his journey through the kingdom of the dead. Interesting topic and idea, done with a little humor.

This is my Blood by Ben Francisco and Chris Lynch
Tells of missionary Mother Rena on plant Stark dealing with the Duvari. Engaging story, I think about it a lot, done in a diary-type style. Very science fiction.

Nightship by Kim Westwood
Ship boy escapes the dismal confines of the fogged out island area (maybe future Japan?). Dismal and dark story, interesting world and culture.

The Fooly by Terry Dowling
A ghost is haunted by a ghost. Well-written, unexpected ending. Paranormal genre.

Neverland Blues by Adam Browne
In future earth Michael Jackson is a spaceship and he needs a friend to travel with. Great imagery, fast-paced observations like Nightside.

The Jacaranda Wife by Angela Slatter
Folktale about a woman that is a tree. Written in a very historian/literature type of style.

The Constant Past by Sean McMullen
Time traveling serial killer foisted by a librarian. Was okay.

The Forest by Kim Wilkins
Retelling of Hansil and Gretel in near future earth. I really liked this one.

Robots & Zombies, Inc. by Lucy Sussex
Fragmented interview with a robot in power. Apparently all power figures are robots and controlling the world. I didn't like the fragmented way the tale was told. So far the weakest story in the book.

This Way to the Exit by Sara Douglass
People start disappearing from an underground railway in London. Good story - kind of Neil Gaimenish

Grimmes and the Gaijin Daimgo by A. Bertran Chandler
Skipped this one, couldn't get through it.

Lure by Paul Collins
Virus is killing avatars in a virtual universe. Good writing, cute story, straightforward.

Empire by Simon Brown
Alternate history where two boys help to sing away a Martian invasion. Okay story, wasn't my favorite.

Lakeside by Christopher Green
Girl plays with a dead/alive baby by the lake. Vague story I wasn't exactly sure what was going on here. More of a horror story than anything.

Trolls' Night Out by Jenny Blackwell?
Wolf woman with twins comes up with a cure for Troll metamorphism. Cute, fast reading story. Throws you a couple interesting twists. Introduces what could be a very interesting world if expanded on.

The Rest is Silence by Aaron Stevens
Man is attacked by ghosts of people in his past and literally fights them off. This is horror story and was very gory and candid, it was okay but not my favorite

Smoking, Waiting for the Dawn by Hason Nahrung
Vampire hunter is forced to decide if he will Turn to protect a vampire friend's kids and wife. Kind of done in an old western style/alternate reality genre. It was okay.

The Lanes of Camberhill by Cecilia Dart-Thornton
About a woman and a man seeking secret ways in the Lanes of Camberhill. Beautiful story, lush description, lots of philosophy behind geography, I really liked it!

Lost Arts by Stephen Dedman
Van Gogh's Starry Night painting goes missing in a utopian society and the governor Tao works to recover it. Futuristic utopia, sci-fi. Good story, I liked it.

Undead Camels Ate Their Flesh by Jason Fischer
Classic bad horror zombie flick in story form. Aussie camels turned zombie and eating people! Fun and gross :-)

Europa by Cecily Scott
About Yanni trying to cross the sea. Written in a vague way I didn't like it very much.

Riding on the Q-ball by Rosaleen Love
Quick paced tongue-in-cheek story. Very Tom Holt like, sci-fi.

In From the Snow by Lee Battersby
Story about a family surviving in the snow. Written in a brutal, no-frills style. It was okay, not a pretty enough story for me.

The Lost Property Room by Trudi Caravan
Cute story about a lady who retrieves an item from the train property room that's not hers and ends up paying a steep price for it. I liked this story.

Heere Be Monsters by John Birmingham
As a British exploration fleet approaches Australia they realize the whole place has been taken over by zombies. It was okay, not my favorite

Purgatory by Rowena Cory Daniells
A virus has infected all of humanity and it invokes religious fanaticism. The main character finds a cure and administers it but at a great cost. This was a great story.

Manannan's Children by Russell Blackford
A young warrior learns that he is an immortal. A young woman immortal helps him to learn what that means. Very good story, great imagery, and interesting philosophy.

The Fifth Star in the Southern Cross by Margo Lanagan
Futuristic world where being able to birth a good child can provide your lifetime income. Interesting concept, okay story.

Twilight in Caeli-Amur by Rjurik Davidson
This was about a scientist that goes to retrieve an old man's notebook on plants from his wife. It was okay and had a nice twist to it at the end.

Paradise Design'd by Janeen Webb
This was a retelling of Adam and Eve with dinosaurs.

The New Deal by Trent Jamieson
About a world where your deals with gods constantly remake you. I didn't like it that much.

Conquist by Dirk Strasser
Spanish explorers stumble into a new world of elves and dwarves. This was a pretty good story!

The Last Great House of Isla Tortuga by Peter M. Ball
About some pirates who stop off for a break with some dead..ummm...ladies of the night. It was an okay story.

Perchance to Dream by Isobelle Carmody
About a girl who is stuck in a dream trying to figure out what went wrong with her life. I really liked this story.

[Chris Lynch · Rating 4 out of 5]

I shouldn't really review a book that I appear in; suffice to say that I enjoyed reading a bunch of well-crafted genre stories, and am happy to see my second published story among such good company. The anthology has been nominated for an Aurealis Award, as have a number of the stories within it, and has just gone into a second printing. Good motivation: I'm aiming to finish a short story every month next year, and have already sent off my first submission for 2009.

[Catherine · Rating 4 out of 5]

Nice collection. These were my favorites:

The Jacaranda Wife by Angela Slatter
The Constant Past by Sean McMullen
The Lanes of Camberwell by Cecilia Dart-Thornton
Lost Arts by Stephen Dedman
The Lost Property Room by Trudi Canavan
Perchance to Dream by Isobelle Carmody

[Cat Campberri · Rating 2 out of 5]

Struggling to get into this book. Read a few short stories from my favourite authors but I prefer to read full novels/series.

[Geoff Field · Rating 4 out of 5]

It's actually a while since I finished reading it.
A lot of stories, some of which I liked, and some of which I didn't like as much.
Probably something for everybody in there.

[Liviania · Rating 5 out of 5]

For the past couple of weeks I've been using this collection of thirty-five speculative fiction stories from Australian writers as a present to myself. A story here, a story there, and I haven't even finished yet. (Oh, how I don't want it to end! I'm having fun!) Once I do, I need to find a copy of DREAMING DOWN-UNDER, the previous anthology edited by Jack Dann and Janeen Webb. (Janeen Webb also contributed a story to the anthology.) If it impresses me as much as this one, they're going on my editors-to-trust list, with such people as Ellen Datlow and Terri Windling.

I love anthologies. Short stories allow authors to show off, to show their technique and style in a concise manner. I knew several names that contributed to this work, but I'd only previously read Garth Nix, Terry Dowling, and Stephen Dedman. You can bet I'm buying some more of the contributors' backlists now.

Of course, while anthologies are an excellent source of new authors to explore, there are always those stories that you feel bring the quality of the anthology down. Sometimes you wish you could pick and choose which stories you could buy if enough of them are duds. So far, with a mere ten stories to go, none of them have disappointed me. There have certainly been some I enjoyed more than others, but no bad stories whatsoever. I wish all anthologies were so well chosen.

The stories cover a variety of subjects, moods, and themes. Some are extremely unsettling, others funny, others mysterious. It's hard to pick favorites. The end of "This is My Blood" by Ben Francisco (the only American in the book) and Chris Lynch was the first thing to truly terrify me. They left the details of the end to my imagination, which is apparently a sick, sick place. This one is followed by the unnerving "Nightship" by Kim Westwood. I wanted more elaboration on how gender worked in the society (for instance, the ship's captain appeared to me to be a member of an Iron Family and female), but this one really caught my attention and made me think. The final one that's truly freaked me out is "In From the Snow" by Lee Battersby, the story of a pack living outside of human civilization. This wasn't truly a horror story, but my mind seized ahold of the darkness and continued thinking of it after I finished.

"The Constant Past" by Sean McMullen features a librarian and a time traveler. What more can one ask for, really? (The answer is found in "Undead Camels Ate Their Flesh" by Jason Fischer. To quote the TV Tropes wiki, it's Exactly What It Says On The Tin.)

The viral mystery "Lure" by Paul Collins had a nice twist at the end, even though I did expect it. I enjoyed his style, exploration of cyber-cheating, and assertion that PCs are better than Macs. "Empire" by Simon Brown is an amusing look at WAR OF THE WORLDS and Gilbert & Sullivan. Shortly after finishing, I learned the Mikado would be playing in my area soon (swoon-worthy) and that bubbles and squeak is a real dish in England (bemusing). "Smoking, Waiting for the Dawn" by Jason Nahrung is a vampire story that stands out from the current pack I've been reading. (Added bonus: zombies.)

I feel bad for not mentioning more of the stories I've read, because each had something special. These are just my personal highlights.

[Travis · Rating 4 out of 5]

This review is long.... To long to post up the full length review. In stead, if you want an in-depth look at the anthology as a whole, go here: http://travizzt.wordpress.com/2010/04...

OVERALL AVERAGED ANTHOLOGY: 4/5
PERSONAL OVERALL ANTHOLOGY:2/5
Final Thoughts:
First let me address why I have two overall grades. The first grade is the averaged grade and is self-explanatory. The second is what I felt the anthology should be. This was a soul sucking book to read. Why? Because it's TOO LONG. Thirty-five short stories may be awesome and great, but to read so many stories, it physically hurt. Also, I'm not a fan of 'real world' fiction. It bores me. I don't mean to sound obnoxious, but it just isn't interesting to me. Now I like things I can image and know they aren't real, hence why I love fantasy novels. I love being able to see another world where modern-day things don't exist. It like to use my imagination. I'm not saying this anthology is bad, it's actually very good. It just isn't my personal preference. I do recommend picking it up, most of the stories are worth the read.
Stories You Should Read:
1) “A Guided Tour of the Dead” by Richard Harland
2) “The Jacaranda Wife” by Angela Slatter
3) “Lure” by Simon Brown
4) “Undead Camels Ate Their Flesh” by Jason Fischer
5) “The Lost Property Room” by Trudi Canavan
6) “Twilight in Caeli-Amur” by Rjurik Davidson
7) “The New Deal” by Trent Jamieson
8) “Perchance to Dream” by Isobelle Carmody
Stories That You Should Avoid:
1) “Nightship” by Kim Westwood
2) “Neverland Blues” by Adam Browne
3) “Robots & Zombies, Inc.” by Lucy Sussex

[Kirralee · Rating 3 out of 5]

It's great to see collections of Australian Fiction, and appropriately it's a very mixed bag of short stories.
This collection is pretty heavy with sci-fi themes of post apocalypse, and a few of the stories push that genre beyond its cliches. Kim Wilkins' The Forest is a standout in that respect mixing familiar components of Hansel & Gretel with a bleak industrial future landscape to create a different beast completely.
The New Deal by Trent Jamieson also has some fun with apocalypse themes in a way that breaks genre cliches.

Trigger warning for In from the snow by Lee Battersby: there was explicit sexual violence near the end of the story that i found disturbing, and it was a very violent story generally, although i enjoyed his writing style otherwise.

The Fooly by Terry Dowling, and Lakeside by Christopher Green were both enjoyably mysterious. They both play with the idea of haunting in different ways; Dowling playfully, and Green threateningly. These stories felt like walking into a snippet of a larger story that remains unexplained and adds to the horror element of them. This kind of short story is often the one i like best: exploring elements of interest without trying to neaten and explain everything.

Other stories in the collection that stood out are Adam Browne's Neverland Blues (Michael Jackson as a spaceship seeking a friend), and Sara Douglass' This Way to the Exit (Ghosthunters investigating disappearing train passengers).

I skipped a few of the stories that were stylistically jarring, but overall plenty of good reads in here and some authors worth looking up.

[Thoraiya · Rating 4 out of 5]

Oh yeah, just realised that I forgot to add this when I read it. Holy Weird and Wonderful Fiction, Batman! I bought this for Peter Ball's story and ended up with so much more. Aside from the whole contantly entertained thing, I managed to get myself educated, too. Who knew that Garth Nix could write such powerful adult fiction? Or that some dead guy who I'd only heard of because of all the Awards named after him had written about Feudal Japan colonising Australia well before the parallel universe became an overused plot device?

I really do prefer novels. And thus reading good short fiction is a financial problem, because I find myself putting little asterixes all down the table of contents with the note: "Buy more of this."

Peter Ball doesn't have a novel out yet. But A. Bertram Chandler? It's gonna take me a loooong time to get through his REALLY cool-seeming back catalogue.

(For this reason, I've put the horror anthology "Macabre" down for a bit of a rest because I know that when I get back into it, more little asterixes are going to appear down its TOC, and I already can't afford the Kaaron Warren and Will Elliot novel backlists (D'OH) that I want SO BAD.)

[Brynna · Rating 4 out of 5]

The increasing number of really stunning Australian fantasy authors I've been running across induced me to pick up this book. I'm very glad I did. The overall feel is often pretty dark and there were rather a lot of zombies, but there's enough light-heartedness to keep things balanced. Don't read this like a novel; pick one that sounds interesting (Undead Camels Ate Their Flesh?) and start there.
As with any story collection, I enjoyed some of the stories more than others. My particular favorites were: This Way to the Exit (Sara Douglass), The Jacaranda Wife (Angela Slatter), and Conquist (Dirk Strasser). Twilight in Caeli-Amur (Rjurik Davidson), The Lost Property Room (Trudi Caravan), and The Lanes of Camberhill (Cecilia Dart-Thornton) were also very enjoyable. I loved the idea and plot of The Constant Past (Sean McMullen), but really disliked the writing style.

[George Christie · Rating 2 out of 5]

A handful of decent specfic surrounded by padding of sub par tripe. Only finished it because I'm so far behind on my reading goal for the year. If you do pick it up (from the library, don't buy it) read the following
The Constant Past - best in the volume
Undead Camels ate their Flesh - for the title alone
Smoking, Waiting for the Dawn - Vamps done well
Perchance ti Dream -cliche done well
This way to the Exit - decent enough mystical victorianism
Old Friends - Garth Nix tries to be Roger Zelazny or Neil Gaiman
skip the rest because they're either terrible or so mundane as to be forgotten within minutes

[melydia · Rating 4 out of 5]

A surprisingly consistent collection of quality fantasy stories by Australian authors. I haven't read much Australian lit - and indeed had only heard of one of the authors (Garth Nix) - but this was marvelous. Only a couple of the stories were boring and/or needlessly unpleasant to read. (I don't object to unpleasant reading as a general rule, but when it's unpleasant for no reason I feel manipulated.) The range is broad, from angels to zombies, humor to tragedy, modern Australia to the Garden of Eden. All in all a great sampler.

[Katharine (Ventureadlaxre) · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'll have to read this again so I can review it story by story as I'm doing with my other anthologies, but the story I remember standing out was Trudi Canavan's. It's because of this that I got out her first series from my book storage.

[Shelleyrae at Book'd Out · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a pretty solid collection - a little too heavy on Sci Fi for me which is not really my thing. I love that there is such a quality Australian collection out there though and really appreciated a chance to read Australian writers in the genre.

[Nathan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Excellent collection of short stories by Australian authors. As with any anthology, not all were to my taste, but it's a very strong collection. Highly recommended.

[Malini Sridharan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Many of the stories are run of the mill sci-fi fantasy. The post apocalyptic fairy tales are entertaining, and the one about Michael Jackson as a spaceship in the future is strange and wonderful.

[Carlotta · Rating 2 out of 5]

Quick Word: Some stories were well crafted, but the collection as a whole was to dark and unsettling for me.

[Monica Tilley · Rating 4 out of 5]

As a library worker I particularly liked "The Constant Past". Everyone who works in a library should read it.

[Rowena Daniells · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is the sequel anthology to Dreaming DownUnder which won a World Fantasy Award.

[David · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good series of short stories, unusual as many are clearly Australasian.