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The Third Bear
Compared by critics to Borges, Nabokov, and Kafka, contemporary fantasist Jeff VanderMeer continues to amaze with this surreal, innovative, and absurdist gathering of award-winning short fiction. Exotic beasts and improbable travelers roam restlessly through these darkly diverting and finely honed tales.
In “The Situation,” a beleaguered office worker creates a child-swallowing manta-ray to be used for educational purposes (once described as Dilbert meets Gormenghast). In “Three Days in a Border Town,” a sharpshooter seeks the truth about her husband in an elusive floating city beyond a far-future horizon; “Errata” follows an oddly familiar writer who has marshaled a penguin, a shaman, and two pearl-handled pistols with which to plot the end of the world. Also included are two stories original to this collection, including “The Quickening,” in which a lonely child is torn between familial obligation and loyalty to a maligned talking rabbit.
Chimerical and hypnotic, VanderMeer leads readers through the postmodern into a new literature of the imagination.
In “The Situation,” a beleaguered office worker creates a child-swallowing manta-ray to be used for educational purposes (once described as Dilbert meets Gormenghast). In “Three Days in a Border Town,” a sharpshooter seeks the truth about her husband in an elusive floating city beyond a far-future horizon; “Errata” follows an oddly familiar writer who has marshaled a penguin, a shaman, and two pearl-handled pistols with which to plot the end of the world. Also included are two stories original to this collection, including “The Quickening,” in which a lonely child is torn between familial obligation and loyalty to a maligned talking rabbit.
Chimerical and hypnotic, VanderMeer leads readers through the postmodern into a new literature of the imagination.
273 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 2010
106 people are currently reading
3397 people want to read
About the author
Jeff Vandermeer
239 books16.7k followersNYT bestselling writer Jeff VanderMeer has been called “the weird Thoreau” by the New Yorker for his engagement with ecological issues. His most recent novel, the national bestseller Borne, received wide-spread critical acclaim and his prior novels include the Southern Reach trilogy (Annihilation, Authority, and Acceptance). Annihilation won the Nebula and Shirley Jackson Awards, has been translated into 35 languages, and was made into a film from Paramount Pictures directed by Alex Garland. His nonfiction has appeared in New York Times, the Los Angeles Times, the Atlantic, Slate, Salon, and the Washington Post. He has coedited several iconic anthologies with his wife, the Hugo Award winning editor. Other titles include Wonderbook, the world’s first fully illustrated creative writing guide. VanderMeer served as the 2016-2017 Trias Writer in Residence at Hobart and William Smith Colleges. He has spoken at the Guggenheim, the Library of Congress, and the Arthur C. Clarke Center for the Human Imagination.
VanderMeer was born in Bellefonte, Pennsylvania, but spent much of his childhood in the Fiji Islands, where his parents worked for the Peace Corps. This experience, and the resulting trip back to the United States through Asia, Africa, and Europe, deeply influenced him.
Jeff is married to Ann VanderMeer, who is currently an acquiring editor at Tor.com and has won the Hugo Award and World Fantasy Award for her editing of magazines and anthologies. They live in Tallahassee, Florida, with two cats and thousands of books.
VanderMeer was born in Bellefonte, Pennsylvania, but spent much of his childhood in the Fiji Islands, where his parents worked for the Peace Corps. This experience, and the resulting trip back to the United States through Asia, Africa, and Europe, deeply influenced him.
Jeff is married to Ann VanderMeer, who is currently an acquiring editor at Tor.com and has won the Hugo Award and World Fantasy Award for her editing of magazines and anthologies. They live in Tallahassee, Florida, with two cats and thousands of books.
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June 25, 2018
I don't always have a lot of patience with contemporary sci-fi and fantasy, but Vandermeer here tempers forays into pulp with a better-than-working-familiarity with the more postmodern and surreal threads running through 20th-century fantastic fiction, as well as that formative dread of the turn of the century weird. Which I suppose encapsulates all of what the New Weird sub-movement he's a part of promises in general, though I don't often find it so elegant in execution as in the three or four especially standout stories here, which push into genuinely strange, memorable, and original territory.
It's bits like the mostly unexplained conceptual tendrils, for instance, permeating "Three Days in a Border Town", which could be set in an ordinary post-apocalyptic world were it not for its yearning towards a de-localized, ghostly, there-but-not-there city promising something better than dusty present life. Or the reconfiguring of Pale Fire, reinvented autobiography, and rewritten bits of other stories, in "Errata". Possibly best of all, the otherworldly office politics of "The Situation", which remains unpredictable throughout by never totally resolving its terms, even as many scenes familiarly recapitulate drab contemporary day job existence. Not so incidentally, that story also offers prototype and sub-variant of Vandermeer's stellar most recent novel, Borne. Or the multiverse-spanning political nightmare in "The Goat Variations".
Other stories do fall more neatly into their categories, and suffer for it -- there's a steampunk piece, a myth retelling, a few bits of surrealism creeping into normal life basically in line with the original weird templates of the past. These will fade down in my memory before long, I'm sure. But then you have a story of a bear plaguing a small town with the techniques of a serial killer, that soon expands from horror yarn into a bleak commentary on how society treats its outsiders. Something familiar here is turned unfamiliar, then smarter and more knowing -- even as it basks in the pulpiest pulp it can offer. Which I can get behind. Sometimes I like to be entertained, it's just that so much ostensibly purely entertaining storytelling, and especially unfortunately horror writing, for me, feels limited and uncreative or else tips over into mawkishness, and I can't really enjoy it. This, more often than not, avoids these pitfalls.
It's bits like the mostly unexplained conceptual tendrils, for instance, permeating "Three Days in a Border Town", which could be set in an ordinary post-apocalyptic world were it not for its yearning towards a de-localized, ghostly, there-but-not-there city promising something better than dusty present life. Or the reconfiguring of Pale Fire, reinvented autobiography, and rewritten bits of other stories, in "Errata". Possibly best of all, the otherworldly office politics of "The Situation", which remains unpredictable throughout by never totally resolving its terms, even as many scenes familiarly recapitulate drab contemporary day job existence. Not so incidentally, that story also offers prototype and sub-variant of Vandermeer's stellar most recent novel, Borne. Or the multiverse-spanning political nightmare in "The Goat Variations".
Other stories do fall more neatly into their categories, and suffer for it -- there's a steampunk piece, a myth retelling, a few bits of surrealism creeping into normal life basically in line with the original weird templates of the past. These will fade down in my memory before long, I'm sure. But then you have a story of a bear plaguing a small town with the techniques of a serial killer, that soon expands from horror yarn into a bleak commentary on how society treats its outsiders. Something familiar here is turned unfamiliar, then smarter and more knowing -- even as it basks in the pulpiest pulp it can offer. Which I can get behind. Sometimes I like to be entertained, it's just that so much ostensibly purely entertaining storytelling, and especially unfortunately horror writing, for me, feels limited and uncreative or else tips over into mawkishness, and I can't really enjoy it. This, more often than not, avoids these pitfalls.
March 14, 2021
‘জোমুরা গ্রামের গলা ঘেঁষে বন, গহীন জঙ্গল; জিনিসটা এসে প্রথম আস্তানা গাড়লো এই গহীন জঙ্গলেই।
গ্রামের মানুষ জিনিসটার অস্তিত্ব টের পায়, কিন্তু পরিপূর্ণ বর্ণনা মেলে না। পাতা-ডালপালার আড়াল থেকে হিংস্র চোখে তাকিয়ে থাকতে দেখেছে কেউ, বলছিল, ‘কী রাগ দুই চোখে, বাবা! ঝকঝক করে উঠছিল সবুজ জহরতের মতন!’; কেউ এক পলক দেখেছে জল থেকে উঠে আসছে কালো, চারপেয়ে একটা কিছু - শরীরের পেশীতে পেশীতে ঢেউ খেলে যাচ্ছে প্রতিটা পদক্ষেপের সাথে। কেউ পেয়েছে শুধু আদিম জান্তব গন্ধ – রক্ত, শুকনো মল, আর আধ-খাওয়া পরিত্যক্ত পচাগলা শিকার মিলেমিশে একটা জঘন্য-গাঢ়-ঘ্রাণ - জমাট হয়ে ভেসেছে কিছুক্ষণ বাতাসে।
বর্ণনা অস্পষ্ট হোক, জিনিসটার গায়ে স্পষ্ট নাম লেগে যেতে সময় লাগে না। জলের কাছাকাছি থাকে। চিতার মতন আকার। জলচিতা।
জোমুরা গ্রামের কোমর ঘেঁষে বর্ষার জল, স্রোতস্বিনী নদী। জলচিতা এসে প্রথম আঘাত হানলো এই স্রোতস্বিনী নদীর পাড়েই।
ভোরবেলায় মাছ ধরতে গিয়ে উধাও হলো দু’জন। লাশ মিললো না। পরের দিন আরো তিনজন। তারপর বেড়ে যেতে লাগলো হামলার পরিমাণ; গ্রাম ছেড়ে যে-ই বেরোতে যায়, দিন হোক বা রাত্তির, আর ফেরে না। গ্রামের মানুষ দলবেঁধে সাহস করে খুঁজতে বেরোয় – জলচিতার অবহেলায় ফেলে যাওয়া চিহ্ন চোখে পড়ে তাদের –
শুকরের পাল চরে বেড়াচ্ছে নির্দ্বিধায়, রাখাল নেই।
শুকনো রক্তে ছোপ ছোপ কালো দাগ হয়ে আছে মাটিতে।
নদীর কাছে খুঁজতে খুঁজতে তারা দেখে পাড়ের কাছে উল্টোনো নৌকো।
জঙ্গলের মুখে ঢুকতেই ভাঙা ডাল, একটা বাদামী গামছা।
একটা মাথাল।
নরম কাদামাটিতে জলচিতার পায়ের ছাপ যতটা গভীর, গ্রামবাসীর নরম মস্তিষ্কে জলচিতার ভয়ের ছাপ তারচেয়ে আরো গভীর হয়ে বসতে শুরু করে।
গ্রামের দাপুটে ধনী ব্যক্তিরা বলশালী লোক ভাড়া করল, গণ্ডায় গণ্ডায় পাহারাদার লাগাল; বিশ পঁচিশজনের বহর বানিয়ে তারা নগরের সাথে চলাচল বজায় রাখতে চেষ্টা করে। সবার হাতে বল্লম, সতর্ক চাউনি। ভর দুপুরে এতোগুলো মানুষ বেরোচ্ছে, তবুও প্রতিবার যাত্রাশেষে মাথা গুনলে দুই-তিনজন কম পড়ে যায়। স্রেফ হাওয়ায় মিলিয়ে যাচ্ছে মানুষগুলো, কিভাবে সম্ভব? নামকরণের কাকতালীয় ভিন্ন অর্থ এতোদিনে চোখে পড়ে তাদের। মানুষকে চিতায় নিলে তো তবু ছাই পড়ে থাকে, জলচিতায় নিলে? তা-ও মেলে না।
ভয়ের সাথে কুসংস্কারাচ্ছন্ন সন্দেহও যুক্ত হয়, সন্দেহ জমাট বেঁধে রূপ নেয় নিরেট আতঙ্কের। জলচিতা সত্যিই কি মাংসাশী শ্বাপদ, নাকি ক্ষিপ্ত কোনো অপদেবতা?
গ্রামের মোড়ল, থিচাই তার নাম, নিরুপায় হয়ে জরুরি সালিস ডাকে। ততদিনে বর্ষা ফুরিয়ে গরম পেরিয়ে শীত-শীত নেমে গেছে; গাছের পাতা ঝরতে শুরু করেছে। সালিসঘরের মেঝে বলতে ঠাণ্ডা মাটি, কিছু তালাই ছড়িয়ে দেওয়া হয়েছে নামে মাত্র, তাতেই জোড়-আসীন হয়ে বসে পড়ে থিচাই। গ্রামের সবাই এসেছে আজ, গমগম করছে ঘরটা; কচি-জোয়ান-বুড়ো কেউ বাদ নেই। বাইরে থিচাইয়ের বউ-মেয়ে মিলে লাকড়ি জড়ো করেছে একপাহাড়, আরো কাটছে, থিচাই চিৎকার করে তাদের-ও ভেতরে আসতে বলে। আলাপে সবার থাকা দরকার।
সবাই স্থির হয়ে বসার পর প্রথম অভিযোগ তোলে এক জুম-কিষাণী, ‘বনের ধারে আমাদের সবার জমি। সারে সারে ফসল পেকে নুইয়ে আছে, গোলায় আনার সাহস পাই না। এই ফসল তুলবো কবে, শহরে নিয়ে বেচবো কবে?’
আরেকজন বলে, ‘আমার মেয়ে আগে শুকরের পাল নিয়ে বের হতো, খোঁয়াড়ে গিয়ে মাদি ছাগলের দুধ দুইতো। তা-ও সাহসে কুলায় না এখন। জলচিতার ভয়। যদি টেনে নিয়ে যায়!’
থিচাই সবাইকে শান্ত করার চেষ্টা করে। সাহস দেয়। বলে...’
গল্পসংকলনের নামগল্প - দা থার্ড বেয়ার - সেটার ভাবানুবাদ এদ্দুর ভেবে নাম দিচ্ছিলাম, 'জলচিতা'। বাঙ্গাল দেশে ভালুক পাবো কোথায়, বরং চিতাই সই! সেই গল্পের শুরুটা এমন। এত মসৃণ, অদ্ভুত, সরীসৃপ-শীতল চিন্তা, শুধু নামগল্প নয়, প্রত্যেকটা একক গল্পেই এমন ছাঁচ-ধাঁচ মুগ্ধ করবে পাঠককে।
ভ্যান্ডারমিয়ারকে আমি ভালোবাসি তার সাউদার্ন রিচ ট্রিলজি পড়ার পর থেকেই। লাভক্রফটিয়ান হরর আর কথাসাহিত্য এমন মিশ্রণ করেও লেখা যায়, সেটা তার কাজেই প্রথম দেখেছিলাম, শিখেছিলাম। চাইনা মিয়েভিলের 'ক্রাকেন' -এর পরে আর কোন লেখক এতটা শক্তিশালীভাবে উইয়ার্ড ফিকশনে পা ডোবাননি বোধহয়। ভ্যান্ডারমিয়ারের ছোটগল্প আছে এই তথ্য আবিষ্কার করে তাই আত্মহারা হয়ে ছিলাম আনন্দে; রসিয়ে রসিয়ে পড়েছি, এবং একটুও আশাহত হইনি।
ভক্তের রেটিং যেহেতু, নিরপেক্ষ নয়। কিন্তু পাঁচ তারা না দিলে খুঁতখুঁতানি রয়ে যাবে মনে। আমি তৃপ্ত।
গ্রামের মানুষ জিনিসটার অস্তিত্ব টের পায়, কিন্তু পরিপূর্ণ বর্ণনা মেলে না। পাতা-ডালপালার আড়াল থেকে হিংস্র চোখে তাকিয়ে থাকতে দেখেছে কেউ, বলছিল, ‘কী রাগ দুই চোখে, বাবা! ঝকঝক করে উঠছিল সবুজ জহরতের মতন!’; কেউ এক পলক দেখেছে জল থেকে উঠে আসছে কালো, চারপেয়ে একটা কিছু - শরীরের পেশীতে পেশীতে ঢেউ খেলে যাচ্ছে প্রতিটা পদক্ষেপের সাথে। কেউ পেয়েছে শুধু আদিম জান্তব গন্ধ – রক্ত, শুকনো মল, আর আধ-খাওয়া পরিত্যক্ত পচাগলা শিকার মিলেমিশে একটা জঘন্য-গাঢ়-ঘ্রাণ - জমাট হয়ে ভেসেছে কিছুক্ষণ বাতাসে।
বর্ণনা অস্পষ্ট হোক, জিনিসটার গায়ে স্পষ্ট নাম লেগে যেতে সময় লাগে না। জলের কাছাকাছি থাকে। চিতার মতন আকার। জলচিতা।
জোমুরা গ্রামের কোমর ঘেঁষে বর্ষার জল, স্রোতস্বিনী নদী। জলচিতা এসে প্রথম আঘাত হানলো এই স্রোতস্বিনী নদীর পাড়েই।
ভোরবেলায় মাছ ধরতে গিয়ে উধাও হলো দু’জন। লাশ মিললো না। পরের দিন আরো তিনজন। তারপর বেড়ে যেতে লাগলো হামলার পরিমাণ; গ্রাম ছেড়ে যে-ই বেরোতে যায়, দিন হোক বা রাত্তির, আর ফেরে না। গ্রামের মানুষ দলবেঁধে সাহস করে খুঁজতে বেরোয় – জলচিতার অবহেলায় ফেলে যাওয়া চিহ্ন চোখে পড়ে তাদের –
শুকরের পাল চরে বেড়াচ্ছে নির্দ্বিধায়, রাখাল নেই।
শুকনো রক্তে ছোপ ছোপ কালো দাগ হয়ে আছে মাটিতে।
নদীর কাছে খুঁজতে খুঁজতে তারা দেখে পাড়ের কাছে উল্টোনো নৌকো।
জঙ্গলের মুখে ঢুকতেই ভাঙা ডাল, একটা বাদামী গামছা।
একটা মাথাল।
নরম কাদামাটিতে জলচিতার পায়ের ছাপ যতটা গভীর, গ্রামবাসীর নরম মস্তিষ্কে জলচিতার ভয়ের ছাপ তারচেয়ে আরো গভীর হয়ে বসতে শুরু করে।
গ্রামের দাপুটে ধনী ব্যক্তিরা বলশালী লোক ভাড়া করল, গণ্ডায় গণ্ডায় পাহারাদার লাগাল; বিশ পঁচিশজনের বহর বানিয়ে তারা নগরের সাথে চলাচল বজায় রাখতে চেষ্টা করে। সবার হাতে বল্লম, সতর্ক চাউনি। ভর দুপুরে এতোগুলো মানুষ বেরোচ্ছে, তবুও প্রতিবার যাত্রাশেষে মাথা গুনলে দুই-তিনজন কম পড়ে যায়। স্রেফ হাওয়ায় মিলিয়ে যাচ্ছে মানুষগুলো, কিভাবে সম্ভব? নামকরণের কাকতালীয় ভিন্ন অর্থ এতোদিনে চোখে পড়ে তাদের। মানুষকে চিতায় নিলে তো তবু ছাই পড়ে থাকে, জলচিতায় নিলে? তা-ও মেলে না।
ভয়ের সাথে কুসংস্কারাচ্ছন্ন সন্দেহও যুক্ত হয়, সন্দেহ জমাট বেঁধে রূপ নেয় নিরেট আতঙ্কের। জলচিতা সত্যিই কি মাংসাশী শ্বাপদ, নাকি ক্ষিপ্ত কোনো অপদেবতা?
গ্রামের মোড়ল, থিচাই তার নাম, নিরুপায় হয়ে জরুরি সালিস ডাকে। ততদিনে বর্ষা ফুরিয়ে গরম পেরিয়ে শীত-শীত নেমে গেছে; গাছের পাতা ঝরতে শুরু করেছে। সালিসঘরের মেঝে বলতে ঠাণ্ডা মাটি, কিছু তালাই ছড়িয়ে দেওয়া হয়েছে নামে মাত্র, তাতেই জোড়-আসীন হয়ে বসে পড়ে থিচাই। গ্রামের সবাই এসেছে আজ, গমগম করছে ঘরটা; কচি-জোয়ান-বুড়ো কেউ বাদ নেই। বাইরে থিচাইয়ের বউ-মেয়ে মিলে লাকড়ি জড়ো করেছে একপাহাড়, আরো কাটছে, থিচাই চিৎকার করে তাদের-ও ভেতরে আসতে বলে। আলাপে সবার থাকা দরকার।
সবাই স্থির হয়ে বসার পর প্রথম অভিযোগ তোলে এক জুম-কিষাণী, ‘বনের ধারে আমাদের সবার জমি। সারে সারে ফসল পেকে নুইয়ে আছে, গোলায় আনার সাহস পাই না। এই ফসল তুলবো কবে, শহরে নিয়ে বেচবো কবে?’
আরেকজন বলে, ‘আমার মেয়ে আগে শুকরের পাল নিয়ে বের হতো, খোঁয়াড়ে গিয়ে মাদি ছাগলের দুধ দুইতো। তা-ও সাহসে কুলায় না এখন। জলচিতার ভয়। যদি টেনে নিয়ে যায়!’
থিচাই সবাইকে শান্ত করার চেষ্টা করে। সাহস দেয়। বলে...’
গল্পসংকলনের নামগল্প - দা থার্ড বেয়ার - সেটার ভাবানুবাদ এদ্দুর ভেবে নাম দিচ্ছিলাম, 'জলচিতা'। বাঙ্গাল দেশে ভালুক পাবো কোথায়, বরং চিতাই সই! সেই গল্পের শুরুটা এমন। এত মসৃণ, অদ্ভুত, সরীসৃপ-শীতল চিন্তা, শুধু নামগল্প নয়, প্রত্যেকটা একক গল্পেই এমন ছাঁচ-ধাঁচ মুগ্ধ করবে পাঠককে।
ভ্যান্ডারমিয়ারকে আমি ভালোবাসি তার সাউদার্ন রিচ ট্রিলজি পড়ার পর থেকেই। লাভক্রফটিয়ান হরর আর কথাসাহিত্য এমন মিশ্রণ করেও লেখা যায়, সেটা তার কাজেই প্রথম দেখেছিলাম, শিখেছিলাম। চাইনা মিয়েভিলের 'ক্রাকেন' -এর পরে আর কোন লেখক এতটা শক্তিশালীভাবে উইয়ার্ড ফিকশনে পা ডোবাননি বোধহয়। ভ্যান্ডারমিয়ারের ছোটগল্প আছে এই তথ্য আবিষ্কার করে তাই আত্মহারা হয়ে ছিলাম আনন্দে; রসিয়ে রসিয়ে পড়েছি, এবং একটুও আশাহত হইনি।
ভক্তের রেটিং যেহেতু, নিরপেক্ষ নয়। কিন্তু পাঁচ তারা না দিলে খুঁতখুঁতানি রয়ে যাবে মনে। আমি তৃপ্ত।
January 21, 2011
Jeff VanderMeer's The Third Bear has been on my TBR pile for quite a while now. I've never read anything by the author, though his highly acclaimed novel Finch has garnered a load of attention. Likewise, his collection of bizarre short stories contained in The Third Bear has collected lauds and nods from nearly every review I've read. The book has a strange type of magic that charms the reader and takes him on a journey like never before.
So I made preparations to read this book, curiosity piqued. The library purchased it on my suggestion, and then when the book arrived, I promptly forgot about it. Too many other things to read. Carl (or Stainless Steel Droppings, check out his fantastic blog) posted a review last week on this book, and his eloquence reminded me about my library request. That very day I went and picked up VanderMeer's work. I was immediately stricken.
There's really no good way to describe this book. It defies genres. It defies expectations and normal thinking, subverting tropes and typical story-telling methodology for something unique and unforgettable. There are some stories that, upon completion, I couldn't bring myself to describe coherently, even if the tale was spectacular. This holds true for many of the stories, the inability to put into words what you just read, but it only serves to make the reading experience all the better.
For this reason, there's no way I could give reviews to each story in this collection. I don't know if I could pick my favorite, as nearly all have their own speciality.
The titular tale, "The Third Bear," is a dark and somewhat familiar story. It reads like an old fairy tale, and the growing sense of dread throughout makes for an unsettling read.
"The Situation" is baffling. Part office-life, part post-apocalyptic, part Idon'thaveaclue, this story sealed the deal for me. I read it after reading "The Third Bear" (which I recommend you do as well, even though it doesn't follow the story in the layout of the book) and noticed a few coincidences that I could not ignore. I'm not sure at all how to describe what's going on in this story, but I highly recommend you read it.
"Errata" is possibly the weirdest piece of fiction I've ever read. I daresay fiction because the story is about a writer named Jeff VanderMeer and he's working on a story around Lake Baikal. The thing reads as a letter written by VanderMeer to an editor and seems to be taken as a true story. Suffice it say that this story unfolded beautifully and still lingers in my mind.
"The Surgeon's Tale" is probably the longest piece in this collection, but one of my favorites. It's reminiscent of Frankenstein, but it's also much more. This tale was emotional and beautifully written. I could smell the sea salt on the pages. I could watch the sargassum dance beneath the surface. The protagonist's longing was tragic, but his love was uncanny.
And lastly is "Appoggiatura," a story so twisted and confusing, so different, so essential, that it practically begs to be re-read immediately. Reading this was like catching glimmers of the City out of the corners of my eye, almost as if I myself were somehow involved in the rich tales collected in the book.
I think one of the main reasons I enjoyed The Third Bear so much is because Jeff VanderMeer knows his craft. His voice is strong; his imagery is top-notch; his creativity is uncapped. I'm tempted to say I've never read a work that evokes more imagery in the mind than this book (see the remarks regarding "The Surgeon's Tale"). His prose is fluid, flowing through the surreal landscapes he's created with ease, making the reader feel both comfortable and lost. He takes little-to-no time explaining himself, but instead leaves what he's told as fact and we're to accept it and go on. There's no reasoning why the rabbit can talk in "The Quickening," it just can. Once these weird truths are accepted, the stories shine like a reappearing sun after an eclipse, bright and glorious.
After finishing "Appoggiatura" and the Author's Note, I felt the desire to return to some earlier tales, though I resisted this urge. Some other day.
Am I gushing? Perhaps, but The Third Bear is worthy of it. The book was so unlike anything I've ever read that it has me wanting to read the rest of VanderMeer's catalog immediately. If you're in a rut and tired of reading the same thing over and over, check this book out. Or, if you're just wanting to experience the thrill of Vandermeer's magical oddity, do yourself a favor and read The Third Bear. I can't recommend it enough.
Oh, and do check out Carl's review (here). Some of these stories are available for free online, and Carl's got all these links collected for your viewing pleasure.
So I made preparations to read this book, curiosity piqued. The library purchased it on my suggestion, and then when the book arrived, I promptly forgot about it. Too many other things to read. Carl (or Stainless Steel Droppings, check out his fantastic blog) posted a review last week on this book, and his eloquence reminded me about my library request. That very day I went and picked up VanderMeer's work. I was immediately stricken.
There's really no good way to describe this book. It defies genres. It defies expectations and normal thinking, subverting tropes and typical story-telling methodology for something unique and unforgettable. There are some stories that, upon completion, I couldn't bring myself to describe coherently, even if the tale was spectacular. This holds true for many of the stories, the inability to put into words what you just read, but it only serves to make the reading experience all the better.
For this reason, there's no way I could give reviews to each story in this collection. I don't know if I could pick my favorite, as nearly all have their own speciality.
The titular tale, "The Third Bear," is a dark and somewhat familiar story. It reads like an old fairy tale, and the growing sense of dread throughout makes for an unsettling read.
"The Situation" is baffling. Part office-life, part post-apocalyptic, part Idon'thaveaclue, this story sealed the deal for me. I read it after reading "The Third Bear" (which I recommend you do as well, even though it doesn't follow the story in the layout of the book) and noticed a few coincidences that I could not ignore. I'm not sure at all how to describe what's going on in this story, but I highly recommend you read it.
"Errata" is possibly the weirdest piece of fiction I've ever read. I daresay fiction because the story is about a writer named Jeff VanderMeer and he's working on a story around Lake Baikal. The thing reads as a letter written by VanderMeer to an editor and seems to be taken as a true story. Suffice it say that this story unfolded beautifully and still lingers in my mind.
"The Surgeon's Tale" is probably the longest piece in this collection, but one of my favorites. It's reminiscent of Frankenstein, but it's also much more. This tale was emotional and beautifully written. I could smell the sea salt on the pages. I could watch the sargassum dance beneath the surface. The protagonist's longing was tragic, but his love was uncanny.
And lastly is "Appoggiatura," a story so twisted and confusing, so different, so essential, that it practically begs to be re-read immediately. Reading this was like catching glimmers of the City out of the corners of my eye, almost as if I myself were somehow involved in the rich tales collected in the book.
I think one of the main reasons I enjoyed The Third Bear so much is because Jeff VanderMeer knows his craft. His voice is strong; his imagery is top-notch; his creativity is uncapped. I'm tempted to say I've never read a work that evokes more imagery in the mind than this book (see the remarks regarding "The Surgeon's Tale"). His prose is fluid, flowing through the surreal landscapes he's created with ease, making the reader feel both comfortable and lost. He takes little-to-no time explaining himself, but instead leaves what he's told as fact and we're to accept it and go on. There's no reasoning why the rabbit can talk in "The Quickening," it just can. Once these weird truths are accepted, the stories shine like a reappearing sun after an eclipse, bright and glorious.
After finishing "Appoggiatura" and the Author's Note, I felt the desire to return to some earlier tales, though I resisted this urge. Some other day.
Am I gushing? Perhaps, but The Third Bear is worthy of it. The book was so unlike anything I've ever read that it has me wanting to read the rest of VanderMeer's catalog immediately. If you're in a rut and tired of reading the same thing over and over, check this book out. Or, if you're just wanting to experience the thrill of Vandermeer's magical oddity, do yourself a favor and read The Third Bear. I can't recommend it enough.
Oh, and do check out Carl's review (here). Some of these stories are available for free online, and Carl's got all these links collected for your viewing pleasure.
October 16, 2022
I feel like Jeff VanderMeer’s writing is just like. Not nearly as weird or layered or politically-developed as he seems to think it is. I also think he’s unfortunately a very easy author to outgrow, once you’ve started to read enough of his extremely obvious literary influences (Jorge Luis Borges, Kafka, Nabokov, Italo Calvino, Philip K. Dick, China Miéville).
The 9/11 short story, “The Goat Variations”, felt nearly laugh out loud embarrassing to read in 2022.
The 9/11 short story, “The Goat Variations”, felt nearly laugh out loud embarrassing to read in 2022.
July 20, 2010
The Third Bear is an excellent collection of Jeff Vandermeer’s category-defying short fiction, filled with stories that are unique, mostly excellent, and often incredibly hard to describe. Asking someone who has read this book (say, a reviewer) what one of the stories is about could well get you a blank stare as a response, or a few mumbled words, or simply “you’ll have to read it for yourself”. Pinning these stories down in a few words is very hard, not to mention a bit unfair to both the stories and the new reader. In that spirit, I’m going to stay as vague as possible in this review, but please, don’t let that stop you from picking up this truly excellent collection.
Jeff Vandermeer has been compared to Kafka, Borges and Nabokov, and the first two of those are definitely appropriate comparisons for this collection. (I couldn’t attest to the third one because I’m not much of a Nabokov expert, but I’m sure those critics wouldn’t just make it up.) A story like “The Situation” reads like something Kafka might have written if he’d had easy access to the more popular Sixties-era recreational hallucinogenics. And as for Borges - “Finding Sonoria” is a little gem of a story about a stamp collector, a down and out private detective, and their attempt to find a non-existent country on the basis of a mysterious stamp. If this story were a student, it would probably want to sit next to Borges’ "Tlön, Uqbar, Orbis Tertius" in the back of the class, so they could pass notes back and forth and fuck with the teacher’s perception of reality. It also includes one of my favorite lines in the entire book: “Bolger snorted. “You got that right.” It was the kind of snort Crake would’ve expected from a sausage, if a sausage could snort.”
These precise, surprising word choices that make you blink, think and then nod somehow help the reader adjust to, and be drawn into, each story’s particular brand of strangeness. Be prepared for mostly gradual, but occasionally jolting, changes to your expectations. “The Quickening” features a talking rabbit that adamantly insists it is, in fact, not a rabbit - which is not the most interesting thing in this story. “Predecessor” reads like the final scene of what would be a chilling - and very bizarre - horror/action movie. Trying to puzzle out what the rest of the movie looks like is part of the enjoyment of this chilling story, and its lack of context enhances the surreality of, well, everything in it.
This is also one of those collections where each reader will have his or her own favorite story, and one person’s favorite may be someone else’s least favorite - and, maybe more importantly and the entire point of this terribly convoluted sentence, someone’s least favorite story may turn into a favorite upon rereading, which happened to me twice as I browsed and re-browsed through the collection for this review. And so, because I don’t want to have to eat my words later, I won’t list the few stories I currently consider the weaker ones (where “weaker” is anyway meant to be taken as relative to the generally mind-blowing quality of the others) and only list those that, after a few readings, are my favorites:
- “Lost” is a gorgeous prose poem that packs a mighty punch in just five short pages.
- “The Goat Variations” gave me the same kind of existential chill, and almost physical sense of discomfort, as some of Philip K. Dick’s better novels.
- the collection’s final story, “Appoggiatura,” pulls together its bizarre and disparate elements so stunningly at the end that you’re almost forced to reread it.
Those 3 stories are listed here in the same order in which they appear in the collection, and after reading every one of them, I quite literally thought: “Okay, this has to be THE story of the collection - it can’t get possibly much better than this.” Until the next one, and then the next one, and in between each of them, my mind was quite thoroughly blown more than a handful of times.
If you’re looking for adjectives and categories, the two on the back cover are as good as any: “surrealist” and “absurdist”. Despite fantasy elements in many of the stories, and a few touches of horror, I’d definitely shelve this one with literary fiction rather than SF&F. Whatever box you try to put it in, it’s simply an excellent collection of short fiction that you’re guaranteed to think about long after you turn the final page. Highly recommended.
(This review will also be published on fantasyliterature.com)
Jeff Vandermeer has been compared to Kafka, Borges and Nabokov, and the first two of those are definitely appropriate comparisons for this collection. (I couldn’t attest to the third one because I’m not much of a Nabokov expert, but I’m sure those critics wouldn’t just make it up.) A story like “The Situation” reads like something Kafka might have written if he’d had easy access to the more popular Sixties-era recreational hallucinogenics. And as for Borges - “Finding Sonoria” is a little gem of a story about a stamp collector, a down and out private detective, and their attempt to find a non-existent country on the basis of a mysterious stamp. If this story were a student, it would probably want to sit next to Borges’ "Tlön, Uqbar, Orbis Tertius" in the back of the class, so they could pass notes back and forth and fuck with the teacher’s perception of reality. It also includes one of my favorite lines in the entire book: “Bolger snorted. “You got that right.” It was the kind of snort Crake would’ve expected from a sausage, if a sausage could snort.”
These precise, surprising word choices that make you blink, think and then nod somehow help the reader adjust to, and be drawn into, each story’s particular brand of strangeness. Be prepared for mostly gradual, but occasionally jolting, changes to your expectations. “The Quickening” features a talking rabbit that adamantly insists it is, in fact, not a rabbit - which is not the most interesting thing in this story. “Predecessor” reads like the final scene of what would be a chilling - and very bizarre - horror/action movie. Trying to puzzle out what the rest of the movie looks like is part of the enjoyment of this chilling story, and its lack of context enhances the surreality of, well, everything in it.
This is also one of those collections where each reader will have his or her own favorite story, and one person’s favorite may be someone else’s least favorite - and, maybe more importantly and the entire point of this terribly convoluted sentence, someone’s least favorite story may turn into a favorite upon rereading, which happened to me twice as I browsed and re-browsed through the collection for this review. And so, because I don’t want to have to eat my words later, I won’t list the few stories I currently consider the weaker ones (where “weaker” is anyway meant to be taken as relative to the generally mind-blowing quality of the others) and only list those that, after a few readings, are my favorites:
- “Lost” is a gorgeous prose poem that packs a mighty punch in just five short pages.
- “The Goat Variations” gave me the same kind of existential chill, and almost physical sense of discomfort, as some of Philip K. Dick’s better novels.
- the collection’s final story, “Appoggiatura,” pulls together its bizarre and disparate elements so stunningly at the end that you’re almost forced to reread it.
Those 3 stories are listed here in the same order in which they appear in the collection, and after reading every one of them, I quite literally thought: “Okay, this has to be THE story of the collection - it can’t get possibly much better than this.” Until the next one, and then the next one, and in between each of them, my mind was quite thoroughly blown more than a handful of times.
If you’re looking for adjectives and categories, the two on the back cover are as good as any: “surrealist” and “absurdist”. Despite fantasy elements in many of the stories, and a few touches of horror, I’d definitely shelve this one with literary fiction rather than SF&F. Whatever box you try to put it in, it’s simply an excellent collection of short fiction that you’re guaranteed to think about long after you turn the final page. Highly recommended.
(This review will also be published on fantasyliterature.com)
April 14, 2018
Medieval fantasy about a bear that's unlike any, terrifying and causing havoc amongst local villagers. Good tale, bested by its ending and how the "bear" lives his or her mark on the chaotic village plagued by him or her.
3.5/5
3.5/5
May 26, 2018
Wonderful fantasy short story collection. Keep in mind that Jeff VanderMeer is a literary fantasist. It sounds like a snooty label, but it is accurate. Now, I read fantasy more than is likely healthy. Epic fantasy, pulp fantasy, fantasy classics, you name it, but what I don't read much of is literary fantasy, because who has the time and energy to read literature? I first learned of Jeff VanderMeer through his Southern Reach trilogy (Area X) but I did not then think of him as a fantasist. Maybe they should have printed more of his pedigree in that trilogy; I had no awareness of his prior body of work or degree of critical acclaim. Now I find myself going back and reading some of his earlier work, largely by happenstance. I happened to see his novella The Strange Bird on the 'New Books' shelf at my local library, I grabbed it and went looking in the stacks to see what else they had from him. I chose this and Veniss Underground, which I plan to read soon.
Well, I like what I have seen! This is a memorable collection of stories. As a literary fantasist (yes I have to keep saying it like that), Jeff VanderMeer doesn't worldbuild, he doesn't create workable magic systems, he doesn't create maps or geopolitics. What he does create, in the stories in this collection, is longing, sadness, yearning for something dreamt or lost. His wordcraft is often sublime. I found myself drawn into an evocative, emotional world in the first paragraphs of many stories.
Some had little fantasy, others were deeply steeped in it (or in just plain weirdness at times). The titular story, The Third Bear, was chilling from the first sentences, and only became more so. Most of the stories are highly memorable. The Goat Variations lays a fascinating weird framework over a significant real-world event; Three Days in a Border Town was the most emotionally poignant of the lot, in my opinion. Many have small links, inconsequential in that each story stands by itself, but cute; these might be a name, a place, or a distant event, lending to the thought that despite the widely variant fantasy settings in each tale, there is a shared story here.
There was only one dud story, in my opinion: Predecessor. Particularly placed as it was immediately following The Situation, I found its parade of mutilated but viable body parts and aberrant biology tiresome. And as to The Situation, though it was highly imaginative, carrying concepts of bio-engineering to extreme ends, it was rather lightweight in impact. I believe it is strongly linked, at least conceptually (and Mord-ly), to VanderMeer's more recent novel Borne (which I have not yet read, so I am basing this belief on The Strange Bird, which is a spinoff of Borne). This theme of manipulated biology seems to be a theme through much of VanderMeer's oeuvre (my wife has related some of Shriek: An Afterword to me, which has added to my idea of this). There was certainly some of it in his Southern Reach trilogy. One might think that he has some kind of phobia or anxiety about this type of thing, much like David Cronenberg's well-portrayed penetration anxiety.
I appreciated that all of the stories in this collection were relatively short, since I sometimes struggle with committing to a book with some depth when there is so much enjoyable pulp all around. I am very glad that I read this. Will I go on to read all of Jeff VanderMeer's published works? No. But I will certainly pursue at least some of them with interest.
Well, I like what I have seen! This is a memorable collection of stories. As a literary fantasist (yes I have to keep saying it like that), Jeff VanderMeer doesn't worldbuild, he doesn't create workable magic systems, he doesn't create maps or geopolitics. What he does create, in the stories in this collection, is longing, sadness, yearning for something dreamt or lost. His wordcraft is often sublime. I found myself drawn into an evocative, emotional world in the first paragraphs of many stories.
Some had little fantasy, others were deeply steeped in it (or in just plain weirdness at times). The titular story, The Third Bear, was chilling from the first sentences, and only became more so. Most of the stories are highly memorable. The Goat Variations lays a fascinating weird framework over a significant real-world event; Three Days in a Border Town was the most emotionally poignant of the lot, in my opinion. Many have small links, inconsequential in that each story stands by itself, but cute; these might be a name, a place, or a distant event, lending to the thought that despite the widely variant fantasy settings in each tale, there is a shared story here.
There was only one dud story, in my opinion: Predecessor. Particularly placed as it was immediately following The Situation, I found its parade of mutilated but viable body parts and aberrant biology tiresome. And as to The Situation, though it was highly imaginative, carrying concepts of bio-engineering to extreme ends, it was rather lightweight in impact. I believe it is strongly linked, at least conceptually (and Mord-ly), to VanderMeer's more recent novel Borne (which I have not yet read, so I am basing this belief on The Strange Bird, which is a spinoff of Borne). This theme of manipulated biology seems to be a theme through much of VanderMeer's oeuvre (my wife has related some of Shriek: An Afterword to me, which has added to my idea of this). There was certainly some of it in his Southern Reach trilogy. One might think that he has some kind of phobia or anxiety about this type of thing, much like David Cronenberg's well-portrayed penetration anxiety.
I appreciated that all of the stories in this collection were relatively short, since I sometimes struggle with committing to a book with some depth when there is so much enjoyable pulp all around. I am very glad that I read this. Will I go on to read all of Jeff VanderMeer's published works? No. But I will certainly pursue at least some of them with interest.
September 4, 2016
Sometimes, the best ways to understand the complexities of the world we live in is to look at it in a new way. Jeff Vandermeer does precisely this using short story format in, “The Third Bear”.
“The Third Bear” is a compilation of 14 short stories by award-winning author Jeff Vandermeer. These stories strike off from the norm combining features of folk tales, fantasy, surrealism, and even mysticism mixed in with realism attributes making Vandermeer’s writing quite special. Even those readers who are not generally a fan of these genres/themes will see the high-quality of Vandermeer’s writing.
The initial stories within “The Third Bear” are cohesive and make sense in ordering with each story containing beautiful prose, literary language, with deep nuances; and yet do not overwhelm the reader. The amazing feature of Vandermeer’s stories is that they observe the world and even wander on philosophical/insightful paths but in an effortless and entertaining way making the short stories more compelling than some full-fledged novels.
Naturally, some stories are stronger than others and readers will not enjoy every single one. Yet, even the less-resonating tales leave an impact by being ‘different’ in texture and being well-written. On a negative note, Vandermeer tends to end stories abruptly or anti-climatically. Not sure if this is a weakness or on purpose – but it negatively impacts the overall beauty of “The Third Bear”.
“The Third Bear” noticeable weakens in strength as it progresses in terms of storytelling. Even though the tales are still well-composed in structure; the plots and complexities are thinner and bluntly, “weird” making the reading less enjoyable and less of a page-turner. The entire work becomes less formulated as a whole. In a way, it feels that Vandermeer ‘forced’ his pen to compose these stories and his writing didn’t come as naturally.
Sadly, “The Third Bear” concludes in this more shriveled version of itself lacking the former special essence and charm. In this way, “The Third Bear” ends on a disappointing note.
Vandermeer’s “The Third Bear” is certainly unique and contains elevated prose and writing but unfortunately isn’t maintained in all of the stories throughout. “The Third Bear” is suggested for fans of short story surrealism but more so to pick-and-choose stories to read versus cover-to-cover which doesn’t work as well.
“The Third Bear” is a compilation of 14 short stories by award-winning author Jeff Vandermeer. These stories strike off from the norm combining features of folk tales, fantasy, surrealism, and even mysticism mixed in with realism attributes making Vandermeer’s writing quite special. Even those readers who are not generally a fan of these genres/themes will see the high-quality of Vandermeer’s writing.
The initial stories within “The Third Bear” are cohesive and make sense in ordering with each story containing beautiful prose, literary language, with deep nuances; and yet do not overwhelm the reader. The amazing feature of Vandermeer’s stories is that they observe the world and even wander on philosophical/insightful paths but in an effortless and entertaining way making the short stories more compelling than some full-fledged novels.
Naturally, some stories are stronger than others and readers will not enjoy every single one. Yet, even the less-resonating tales leave an impact by being ‘different’ in texture and being well-written. On a negative note, Vandermeer tends to end stories abruptly or anti-climatically. Not sure if this is a weakness or on purpose – but it negatively impacts the overall beauty of “The Third Bear”.
“The Third Bear” noticeable weakens in strength as it progresses in terms of storytelling. Even though the tales are still well-composed in structure; the plots and complexities are thinner and bluntly, “weird” making the reading less enjoyable and less of a page-turner. The entire work becomes less formulated as a whole. In a way, it feels that Vandermeer ‘forced’ his pen to compose these stories and his writing didn’t come as naturally.
Sadly, “The Third Bear” concludes in this more shriveled version of itself lacking the former special essence and charm. In this way, “The Third Bear” ends on a disappointing note.
Vandermeer’s “The Third Bear” is certainly unique and contains elevated prose and writing but unfortunately isn’t maintained in all of the stories throughout. “The Third Bear” is suggested for fans of short story surrealism but more so to pick-and-choose stories to read versus cover-to-cover which doesn’t work as well.
February 7, 2011
I set out to give this collection four stars. I was arguing to myself that because it didn't make me clasp it to my chest and sigh romantically, it didn't deserve it, but I couldn't get some of the stories out of my head. For a short story to stick with me, for me to remember it past when I start the next one, it has to be really something. And several of these had that kind of niggling memory.
I still feel disturbed that The Situation reminds me of my work place, although we don't have genetically engineered sea creatures or creativity cockroaches. Or do we?!?
These stories are bizarre and memorable and potentially disturbing, but only if you see any of it as non-fiction. I forgot they were stories at times. Aren't they? ;)
I still feel disturbed that The Situation reminds me of my work place, although we don't have genetically engineered sea creatures or creativity cockroaches. Or do we?!?
These stories are bizarre and memorable and potentially disturbing, but only if you see any of it as non-fiction. I forgot they were stories at times. Aren't they? ;)
May 28, 2020
Odlicnih prica ima u zbirci od kojih su mi se posebno svidjele
The Third Bear
Finfing Sonoria
Lost
Shark God
The Surgeon's tale
The Third Bear
Finfing Sonoria
Lost
Shark God
The Surgeon's tale
May 22, 2025
4.25 ⭐️
May 25, 2025
4.25⭐
When you want to microdose Jeff Vandermeer rather than fully trip balls.
Fantastic collection! Hard to pick one favorite but I think it was "Erratta".
When you want to microdose Jeff Vandermeer rather than fully trip balls.
Fantastic collection! Hard to pick one favorite but I think it was "Erratta".
July 18, 2018
I tried to enjoy it, but VanderMeer's concepts just feel hollow and emotionally flat. It's not you, Jeff, it's me.
Read
June 16, 2024Skipped some of the stories as I didn’t find them that compelling, but I still liked a lot of them such as the third bear and the predecessor
December 11, 2014
Jeff VanderMeer.
Your imagination knows no bounds.
This is a collection of the strangest, most wonderful, weirdest, loveliest, most imaginative stories I have ever read.
In the middle of a sentence, of a story, I've literally stopped breathing just to bask in the creative genius of it all.
Surreal. You know what these stories are? They're stories that show you a brief glimpse of other dimensions, other worlds, a brief, haunting glimpse of magic that leaves you changed, leaves you knowing more and knowing less and feeling all the more imbued with a sense of wonder.
Take one of the best stories, "The Situation". While reading it, I truly felt such a place to be a real. And, considering that there are probably an infinite number of universes out there, there's a high possibility it is. Either way, Jeff VanderMeer made something that seemed to have come from another dimension feel real and possible, through our limited words and our limited comprehensions. If that's not genius, I don't know what is.
Pure wonder.
Pure magic.
Your imagination knows no bounds.
This is a collection of the strangest, most wonderful, weirdest, loveliest, most imaginative stories I have ever read.
In the middle of a sentence, of a story, I've literally stopped breathing just to bask in the creative genius of it all.
Surreal. You know what these stories are? They're stories that show you a brief glimpse of other dimensions, other worlds, a brief, haunting glimpse of magic that leaves you changed, leaves you knowing more and knowing less and feeling all the more imbued with a sense of wonder.
Take one of the best stories, "The Situation". While reading it, I truly felt such a place to be a real. And, considering that there are probably an infinite number of universes out there, there's a high possibility it is. Either way, Jeff VanderMeer made something that seemed to have come from another dimension feel real and possible, through our limited words and our limited comprehensions. If that's not genius, I don't know what is.
Pure wonder.
Pure magic.
January 22, 2020
I am bad at reading short story collections lol
I've been reading this one for (checks date) a year and 4 months. I don't have a coherent review, except that if you like Jeff VanderMeer, you'll like these. They're all wierd, like Borne is wierd, or like China Mieville's Perdido Street Station is wierd. The stories that tied into Borne were also good.
4/5 stars, I repeat, I am bad at these
I've been reading this one for (checks date) a year and 4 months. I don't have a coherent review, except that if you like Jeff VanderMeer, you'll like these. They're all wierd, like Borne is wierd, or like China Mieville's Perdido Street Station is wierd. The stories that tied into Borne were also good.
4/5 stars, I repeat, I am bad at these
April 12, 2018
Review is just for the short story, "The Third Bear".
People like to feel they have control. If I do x, y happens. Y used to be terrifying and unknown, but now I know I don't need to fear it, just as long as I do x. People spend their whole lives solving for x. But what if y has it's own plans?
This is classic Jeff Vandermeer in that it's completely original, doesn't concern itself too much with explanations, and it will make you think. It's available free here: http://clarkesworldmagazine.com/vande...
People like to feel they have control. If I do x, y happens. Y used to be terrifying and unknown, but now I know I don't need to fear it, just as long as I do x. People spend their whole lives solving for x. But what if y has it's own plans?
This is classic Jeff Vandermeer in that it's completely original, doesn't concern itself too much with explanations, and it will make you think. It's available free here: http://clarkesworldmagazine.com/vande...
May 1, 2015
I felt really luke-warm about this series of stories in the beginning (and really did not like the title tale) but it got much better as it went along, and became great. "The Situation" was my favorite, but I loved many of the stories toward the end as well. Wonderful ideas live in this book, just not at the beginning of it?
June 2, 2025
The horrors of bears that aren’t bears, rabbits that aren’t rabbits, and time machines that aren’t time machines. The Third Bear is a collection of short, punchy, dreadfully impactful stories written by the master of unsettling superimposition.
If you haven’t read any of VanderMeer’s work before, I’d suggest you revisit this after you do. It contains unexpected connections to some of his later novels, which further enrich and add depth to those stories. He even goes as far as placing some bigger characters from those novels on the sidelines or digging deeper into their past without directly disclosing their identity.
In the afterword, VanderMeer shares:
“Perhaps, too, I’m not interested in my perception of the stories any more — I am interested in yours. My interpretation is on the page, encoded with the personal experience that makes almost every story, no matter how surreal, a secret diary entry. How you personalize them now is the most important thing.”
VanderMeer isn’t known for straightforward plots or clean endings—he writes for himself and his own entertainment (he’s said he’d be writing even if he couldn’t make a living off of it), but he also wants each of his readers to experience his creations in a bespoke way. He seems to treasure ambiguity and building tales with the flexibility for every reread to be a new journey into his weird universe.
If you haven’t read any of VanderMeer’s work before, I’d suggest you revisit this after you do. It contains unexpected connections to some of his later novels, which further enrich and add depth to those stories. He even goes as far as placing some bigger characters from those novels on the sidelines or digging deeper into their past without directly disclosing their identity.
In the afterword, VanderMeer shares:
“Perhaps, too, I’m not interested in my perception of the stories any more — I am interested in yours. My interpretation is on the page, encoded with the personal experience that makes almost every story, no matter how surreal, a secret diary entry. How you personalize them now is the most important thing.”
VanderMeer isn’t known for straightforward plots or clean endings—he writes for himself and his own entertainment (he’s said he’d be writing even if he couldn’t make a living off of it), but he also wants each of his readers to experience his creations in a bespoke way. He seems to treasure ambiguity and building tales with the flexibility for every reread to be a new journey into his weird universe.
January 7, 2022
Short stories can be a fun playground for weird worlds and strange ideas. Without the weight of a completely built world to weigh it down, a surreal or fantasy short story can just dive in and do its thing. Clearly Vandermeer is exploring and rummaging through his ideas in this collection, and how well they work is absolutely up to the reader. Since these stories do not speak from a common narrative or genre (such as something Raymond Carver or Ron Rash would do), each must stand on it’s own merit. For me, some work great and some don’t work at all.
It is truly hit or miss, and there were a couple I could barely get through. I really enjoyed “Searching for Sonoria,” “The Situation,” “Fixing Hanover” and “The Secret Life of Shane Hamill.” I returned the library book and forgot to note the story names so I might be misremembering the exact names.
Essentially, if you enjoy unexplained worlds that may or may not resemble our own, with characters or situations that may or may not make complete sense, there is something here for you.
It is truly hit or miss, and there were a couple I could barely get through. I really enjoyed “Searching for Sonoria,” “The Situation,” “Fixing Hanover” and “The Secret Life of Shane Hamill.” I returned the library book and forgot to note the story names so I might be misremembering the exact names.
Essentially, if you enjoy unexplained worlds that may or may not resemble our own, with characters or situations that may or may not make complete sense, there is something here for you.
October 13, 2017
I haven't read VanderMeer's short fiction in a while (though I remember the excellent "The Quickening" from an early creative writing class in college), and it was a treat to see him playing with themes and concepts that would later form the backbone of his recent novels.
May 16, 2024
How deep does the Mord lore go?? Also “would you still love me if I was a worm” is out, “would you still love me if I was the semi-sentient, autonomous arm of a corpse you stole from a morgue and failed to revive and ended up setting aflame in the ocean” is in
February 2, 2018
The best I've read since China M - and a bit easier to understand. Outstanding!
October 31, 2017
This is exactly what would happen if China Mieville were asked to right his own book of short stories in the spirit of Cathedral, by Carver. With that same feel of kind of walking in on the lives of these people for a bit and then walking back out.
To say VanerMeer writes like Mieville isn't accurate - Mieville likes to bask in the weird and see where it takes his writing, while my take on Vandermeer is his stories have a simmering unease that is often a story that is at odds with a vein of the bizarre.
Anyways, I loved Annhilation and the Southern Reach trilogy and the wife found this one at a book sale - while I somehow missed it (thank you wife) and I was all over it.
I can't say every story was truly 5* - and when are they ever in any collection - but this was as great a book of short fiction as I've ever read. The Situation was particularly notable and I'm still not sure as to whether it's out there as a full length novel or the short story was made into a graphic novel... might hunt it down either way.
I think I can call myself a fan at this point. Will continue on with reading his other stuff. This book is 5/5 assuming you like bizarre fiction/like being unsettled to some extent. This kind of writing makes my brain happy.
Also, PS, can I say these stories do a better job at evoking the 'feeling' and 'unknowable' quality of Lovecraftian fiction then much of the so called Mythos stories I've read. That's not to say VanderMeer is at all writing about the Mythos (IDK, maybe he is!) but that the core feeling of these stories are better in tune of what I'm looking for when I pick up something like "the black wings of Cthulu" or "the Gods of HP lovecraft." The mythos... it's like alternative rock... there's no way to explain it to someone, you just know it when you hear it.
To say VanerMeer writes like Mieville isn't accurate - Mieville likes to bask in the weird and see where it takes his writing, while my take on Vandermeer is his stories have a simmering unease that is often a story that is at odds with a vein of the bizarre.
Anyways, I loved Annhilation and the Southern Reach trilogy and the wife found this one at a book sale - while I somehow missed it (thank you wife) and I was all over it.
I can't say every story was truly 5* - and when are they ever in any collection - but this was as great a book of short fiction as I've ever read. The Situation was particularly notable and I'm still not sure as to whether it's out there as a full length novel or the short story was made into a graphic novel... might hunt it down either way.
I think I can call myself a fan at this point. Will continue on with reading his other stuff. This book is 5/5 assuming you like bizarre fiction/like being unsettled to some extent. This kind of writing makes my brain happy.
Also, PS, can I say these stories do a better job at evoking the 'feeling' and 'unknowable' quality of Lovecraftian fiction then much of the so called Mythos stories I've read. That's not to say VanderMeer is at all writing about the Mythos (IDK, maybe he is!) but that the core feeling of these stories are better in tune of what I'm looking for when I pick up something like "the black wings of Cthulu" or "the Gods of HP lovecraft." The mythos... it's like alternative rock... there's no way to explain it to someone, you just know it when you hear it.
February 24, 2018
I expected to love this book. So soon on the heels of the incomparable Annihilation, and less than a year after thoroughly enjoying Borne, I thought perhaps that VanderMeer could do no wrong.
This book is far from bad from beginning to end. I tried to like it. I applied myself to it. As I did, I found elements to like in almost every piece. But I rarely found stories. These are tales of weird happenings and confrontations with the unknown. Unfortunately, most of the stories didn't grab me with an interesting character enough to want to care.
I could tell as I read that there was serious thought put into the collection. As I reached the end, I discerned some threads that tied stories together. Nevertheless, I do not care to try the book again to tease out the hidden details that I am sure are there. It may be that this is a book to be mined. It didn't excite me to do the mining.
Perhaps with some notes from the author offering context I would have enjoyed the book more.
I know that VanderMeer's longer work can be excellent. If this collection contains the steps he took to become the writer he is now, the for it I am very thankful.
☠
Trade Paperback, First
Tachyon Publications, 2010
Design by Jacob McMurray
Two stars
February 18-22, 2018
☠
This book is far from bad from beginning to end. I tried to like it. I applied myself to it. As I did, I found elements to like in almost every piece. But I rarely found stories. These are tales of weird happenings and confrontations with the unknown. Unfortunately, most of the stories didn't grab me with an interesting character enough to want to care.
I could tell as I read that there was serious thought put into the collection. As I reached the end, I discerned some threads that tied stories together. Nevertheless, I do not care to try the book again to tease out the hidden details that I am sure are there. It may be that this is a book to be mined. It didn't excite me to do the mining.
Perhaps with some notes from the author offering context I would have enjoyed the book more.
I know that VanderMeer's longer work can be excellent. If this collection contains the steps he took to become the writer he is now, the for it I am very thankful.
☠
Trade Paperback, First
Tachyon Publications, 2010
Design by Jacob McMurray
Two stars
February 18-22, 2018
☠
April 30, 2019
As always Jeff VenderMeer's work is baffling and all-consuming. I had previously read the Southern Reach trilogy and while I instantly loved Annihilation, I have only come to appreciate Authority and Acceptance upon recollection. I feel like The Third Bear is a bit of a microcosm of that experience, but in reverse.
The stories start of slow and confusing. Though the prose is impeccable and the characters and worlds are beautifully crafted, you as the reader are just dropped into a scenario without context, told a paragraph of a larger narrative, and then left with more questions than answers. You are left without satisfaction.
That all changed for me with the story The Goat Variations. I started out confused, then curious, then suspicious, then ultimately awestruck at the narrative climax. Suddenly this wasn't just a book of short stories, but a self contained anthology where all of the stories were connected. Each story was just a small piece of the whole and one has to read the whole book to see the grand design. And it is marvelous. While each story may leave the reader pining for closure, the book as a whole is complete.
The stories start of slow and confusing. Though the prose is impeccable and the characters and worlds are beautifully crafted, you as the reader are just dropped into a scenario without context, told a paragraph of a larger narrative, and then left with more questions than answers. You are left without satisfaction.
That all changed for me with the story The Goat Variations. I started out confused, then curious, then suspicious, then ultimately awestruck at the narrative climax. Suddenly this wasn't just a book of short stories, but a self contained anthology where all of the stories were connected. Each story was just a small piece of the whole and one has to read the whole book to see the grand design. And it is marvelous. While each story may leave the reader pining for closure, the book as a whole is complete.
August 20, 2012
I tried. This was my second attempt at Vandermeer, and I just can't do it. Nothing about him inspires me. His stories read like fables or parables; nothing has a point, none of the characters have any depth. It is reminiscent to studying early short stories. He tells stories with a purpose, and the purpose drives the story, not anything else.
In "Third Bear", I was pretty sure I knew the end at the beginning, and I was right, but that isn't necessarily bad, what is bad is that there was no point. The only possible point was a vague reprimand about judging others, but if that was really the point then I'm even more disappointed and little disgusting. There are hundreds of stories which have that exact point and are written almost identically.
Like the last time I read him, Vandermeer has a poetry to his writing, but it isn't one which catches my ear. I can hear it, but just like a jazz saxophone, I don't really appreciate or like it. I understand the skill there, I just want it to go away though, and I certainly don't want to have to listen to any more of it.
In "Third Bear", I was pretty sure I knew the end at the beginning, and I was right, but that isn't necessarily bad, what is bad is that there was no point. The only possible point was a vague reprimand about judging others, but if that was really the point then I'm even more disappointed and little disgusting. There are hundreds of stories which have that exact point and are written almost identically.
Like the last time I read him, Vandermeer has a poetry to his writing, but it isn't one which catches my ear. I can hear it, but just like a jazz saxophone, I don't really appreciate or like it. I understand the skill there, I just want it to go away though, and I certainly don't want to have to listen to any more of it.
April 6, 2015
As with most short story collections, there were things I liked about this, and things that I didn't. But for never having read VanderMeer before, this collection has made me want to track down his other work. It always surprises me when I find out that someone I thought was a relatively new author is one that is not only established but is also at the forefront of their genre. I can see why VanderMeer is considered one of the best, as his writing is wonderful and lyrical, and his stories tend to be the perfect balance of empathetic and bizarre.
There are a few quirks here, and some of the stories left me feeling less than fulfilled. However, the subtle interconnected-ness that comes through--especially in that of the final story--is a wonderful and marvelous thing. It suddenly felt so much bigger than just a short story collection. And for that, I applaud VanderMeer, and he's earned himself another loyal reader.
There are a few quirks here, and some of the stories left me feeling less than fulfilled. However, the subtle interconnected-ness that comes through--especially in that of the final story--is a wonderful and marvelous thing. It suddenly felt so much bigger than just a short story collection. And for that, I applaud VanderMeer, and he's earned himself another loyal reader.
August 3, 2015
A really excellent collection of weird stories. It felt a bit like VanderMeer's Twilight Zone at times. If you've read the Southern Reach Trilogy, most of these stories are much weirder. Having finished, I do think it would have helped to have been provided a little context for some of the stories. Specifically, "Appogiatura" was a writing exercise for a magazine where authors were prompted to write a story based on choosing a word from a list of final words given in spelling bee contests. VanderMeer decided to take on the whole list! Knowing this helps make more sense of that story. Highlights were "Fixing Hanover", "Errata", "The Third Bear", and "Finding Sonoria".
August 6, 2024
If I were to introduce someone to the works of Jeff Vandermeer, I would hand them 'The Third Bear'. I'd love to throw them in the deep end with 'City of Saints and Madmen', but I'd be much too afraid of scaring them off. The stories in here, however, are more accessible and are brilliant without exception. I mean it; every single story is amazing.
I'd like to come back here and write a complete review when I next re-read this collection, but until then I'll point you toward a review by another user, 'Stefan', because I agree with it wholeheartedly.
I'd like to come back here and write a complete review when I next re-read this collection, but until then I'll point you toward a review by another user, 'Stefan', because I agree with it wholeheartedly.
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