| Title | : | Lesser Known Monsters of the 21st Century |
| Author | : | |
| Rating | : | |
| ISBN | : | 1951142993 |
| ISBN-10 | : | 9781951142995 |
| Language | : | English |
| Format Type | : | Paperback |
| Number of Pages | : | 232 |
| Publication | : | First published February 1, 2022 |
| Awards | : | Scotiabank Giller Prize (2022), Shirley Jackson Award Short Fiction for Pre-Simulation Consultation XF007867 (2022) |
Mesmerizing, electric, and wholly original, Kim Fu’s Lesser Known Monsters of the 21st Century blurs the boundaries of the real and fantastic, offering intricate and surprising insights into human nature.
Lesser Known Monsters of the 21st Century Reviews
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3.5/5 rounded down
Short story collections are always a mixed bag. The themes in this collection vary between realistic, satirical, fantastical , futuristic and dystopian with touches of magical realism and revolve around themes of coming of age, loneliness, grief, mortality, relationships, regret and so much more. One of my personal favorites is the first story, "Pre-Simulation Consultation XF007867" which is about a client in discussion with a simulator operator describing the specific requirements desired in recreating a day spent with said client's late mother in a controlled simulated environment. The story "Twenty Hours" featuring a married couple taking turns killing each other only to be recreated in original form by a special printer was quite unique. I also enjoyed “Do You Remember Candy?” which revolves around a world where people lose their sense of taste and how one person profits from her creative ways to relive the memories of their favorite foods. In "Time Cubes" we meet a young woman who befriends a salesman who deals in special cubes designed to control and regulate the aging cycle of living things.
In “Liddy, First to Fly” a young girl sprouts wings from her ankles and with the help of her friends tries to learn how to use them. We see the distrustful and revengeful side in people who are known to be intimate friends in “#ClimbingNation”.In another story, an insomniac can enjoy a deep sleep only after submitting to the “Sandman”. A creepy doll discovered by neighborhood kids on the grounds of a home of a family, members of which have recently perished causes haunting dreams and strange experiences in "The Doll". "In This Fantasy” is centered around a woman who spends time fantasizing about alternative lives she could be leading. In “Scissors” the author explores the themes of sexual control and dominance. “June Bugs” tell the tale of a woman who walks away from a troubled relationship and ends up in a home infested with beetles. “Bridezilla” revolves around a bride not sure of herself or what she wants.
Lesser Known Monsters of the 21st Century by Kim Fu is a collection of twelve short stories that revolve around human nature in its complexity . Kim Fu knows how to weave a tale. The sheer versatility in theme and tone in these stories is a testimonial to the author’s creative imagination and skillful storytelling. One common thread that defines these stories is that these “monsters” are not those that hide under our beds, lurk in the shadows or are results of human experimentation gone wrong. The monsters that plague life in the 21st century are within people themselves- their inner darkness that is often manifested in self-serving behavior characterized by lack of inhibition, self-obsession, lack of accountability, a tendency towards escapism and obsession with social media and technology.
I have always been a fan of magical realism and, in principle have no objection to dystopian themes but I felt Kim Fu’s Lesser Known Monsters of the 21st Century suffers from excessive use of metaphors and the author relies too heavily upon the readers to interpret the abrupt endings/outcome of the stories as they perceive it. While there is nothing wrong with ambiguous endings, had this been the case for a few of the stories I would not have a problem. In some of the stories the ambiguity felt forced and that is why my rating is not as high as it could have been. The stories are original and unique and though some of them were a bit too dark for my taste, I did not dislike the collection in its totality. However, this is not a book I would recommend to everyone. Having said that, I am sure many readers will appreciate this book more than I have.
I won an ARC of this book in a Goodreads Giveaway and would like to thank the author and publisher for the opportunity to read and review this unique collection of stories.
All opinions expressed in this review are my own. -
Lesser Known Monsters of the 21st Century is an eclectic collection of dark-themed short stories. The individual story ratings range from three stars (average) to five stars (outstanding).
The first story, "Pre-Simulation Consultation XF007867," was probably my favorite, a fun and thought-provoking conversation between the user of an artificial intelligence simulator and the computerized administrator of the simulation.
I also really loved "Twenty Hours," which is about a married couple who keep killing each other and then regenerating their bodies through a next-generation 3D printer, i.e., additive manufacturing of a human being. This is another very creative and thought-provoking story.
The other stories were also good, but perhaps won't stay with me as long as the two mentioned above. -
Ordinarily for short story collections, I'd skip the overall rating and rate each entry individually.
But Kim Fu is no ordinary author.
And Lesser Known Monsters of the 21st Century is no ordinary book.
This is an easy 5 stars from me, her specific way of combining words marveling me just as much as her novel The Lost Girls of Camp Forevermore did. Nothing gets lost in this short-form content, and so much is gained - like reading what magic Fu can work in genres weird, horrific, sci-fi, and fantastical.
So, if I were to give individual ratings, they'd look like this:
Pre-Simulation Consultation XF007867: BANGER
Liddy, First to Fly: BANGER
Times Cubes: BANGER
#ClimbingNation: BANGER
Sandman: BANGER
Twenty Hours: BANGER
The Doll: BANGER
In This Fantasty: BANGER
Scissors: BANGER
Junebugs: BANGER
Bridezilla: BANGER
Do You Remember Candy: BANGER -
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Like most other collections of short stories, Lesser Known Monsters of the 21st Century is a bit of a mixed bag. Out of the 12 stories, only 2 really stood out to me while the rest blended together somewhat. The author uses fantastical elements to explore familiar themes and dynamics. I liked her use of magical realism and found that it suited her story’s subject matter. In the second story for example a girl on the cusps of adolescence sprouts wings. There is a story about an insomniac who receives visits from the Sandman. Another one features a haunted doll. Grief, guilt, and mortality are the running motifs in this collection. The author's use of the absurd permeates her realistic scenarios with a sense of surreality. Her prose was not only compelling but interspersed throughout there were some beautiful descriptions and clever observations. Despite this, I did not find her collection particularly memorable. While I did find the first two stories to be touching and creative, the ones that followed played around with vaguely formulaic concepts that are very much staples of the magical realism genre. Additionally, some of these stories just came across as writing exercises (and they stuck too closely to the ‘how to write a short story’ formula). Still, even if I wasn’t blown away by this collection it was far from an unpleasant read and I will probably check out more by this author. -
A very strong weird women write fiction collection!! Speculative and humanistic, childlike realism meets adult imagination— very compelling. Wish there were more stories!
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About once a year I try to read a book of short stories and always end up deciding the form is not for me, but for some reason I keep trying. Lesser Known Monsters of the 21st Century was so wonderful to read, it’s made up for all my past efforts. I love every story in this book. I found myself trying to find a balance between slowing down, pausing between stories to think about them and hurriedly reading the next story to see where Kim Fu would take us next.
I don’t really know how to categorize the collection… dystopian fiction, magical realism, normal life? What I enjoyed is that each story seems completely believable, with the characters relatable despite the unusual or fantastical situations in which they find themselves. And even though the breadth of subjects for the stories is so varied, each one is deeply engaging.
Definitely going to recommend this book to a lot of folks. -
Thanks to Coach Books Toronto for providing an ARC of Lesser Known Monsters of the 21st Century in exchange for an honest review.
⇢Lesser Known Monsters of the 21st Century in under 10 words
- Twisty and dark
- Simultaneously contemporary, historical, and futuristic
- INCREDIBLE
⇢Description
In the twelve unforgettable tales of Lesser Known Monsters of the 21st Century, the strange is made familiar and the familiar strange, such that a girl growing wings on her legs feels like an ordinary rite of passage, while a bug-infested house becomes an impossible, Kafkaesque nightmare.
Each story builds a new world all its own: a group of children steal a haunted doll; a runaway bride encounters a sea monster; a vendor sells toy boxes that seemingly control the passage of time; an insomniac is seduced by the Sandman.
These visions of modern life wrestle with themes of death and technological consequence, guilt and sexuality, and unmask the contradictions that exist within all of us.
⇢Thoughts
I rarely read collections of short stories, so this book surprised me, because I absolutely LOVED it. Each story was memorable and the twists and turns were just so good.
I think my favourites were “Pre-Simulation Consultation XF007867”, “Time Cubes” and “Sandman”. Even days later, I’m still thinking of each of those stories and their characters, which is incredible considering how short the glimpses we got were.
I know some people will dislike the sudden endings and metaphorical concepts that will leave the reader just the slightest bit confused but I personally loved the experience and am already looking to reread some of my favourite stories.
⇢Rating
*Disclaimer: not every story in this collection was 5 stars for me! But the overall experience as well as the rating I would give my favourite of the stories is what compelled me to give this book that rating overall :)✧･ﾟ: *✧･ﾟ:* *:･ﾟ✧*:･ﾟ✧
MY LINKTREE ❦
BOOKISH PRODUCTS: USE MY CODE JAZ10 ❦
BOOKMARKS, BLIND DATE WITH A BOOK ETC: USE MY CODE JAZ10 ❦ -
What an altogether delightful surprise.
I went into Kim Fu's Lesser Known Monsters of the 21st Century with zero expectations and found myself quite enchanted by their ability to develop compelling characters (and sometimes worlds) in the same time it takes most writers to describe a table.
This is a very quick book featuring some very short fiction on a wide range of topics including artificial intelligence exploring human memory in Pre-Simulation Consultation XF007867 to a woman facing a particularly daunting Kaiju-union in the extremely clever Bridezilla.
Kim Fu's collection of 12 short stories deftly handle horror and magical realism with expert technique, but my personal favourite of this collection has to be JUNE BUGS.
A descent into the cruelty of our expectations and the slow degenerating decay of emotional and physical abuse against a backdrop of toxic nostalgia.
This whole book is worth a look, but that story in particular hits so hard it will collapse your lungs. Days after I read June Bugs, I am still coughing up hordes of insects and pissing Dr. Pepper.
I blame Kim Fu and acknowledge their obvious (and terrifying) powers. 8/10
Part of my big Halloween Review Round Up
www.patreon.com/posts/74021554 -
there’s something so satisfying about kim fu’s prose. it’s deliciously unconventional and magnetic - compulsively readable. these are stories that combine the recognizable with the fantastical. speculative, surreal (and sometimes horrifying or grotesque) narratives bloom from our most mundane emotions, desires, and experiences - insomnia, grief, depression, resentment and banality in a marriage, wanting a different life, wanting out of a relationship, wanting to see one’s deceased mother one last time. i enjoyed the first few stories in this collection more than the latter half, yet even those were unrelentingly vivid and visceral.
for me, the standout stories in this collection were “Pre-Simulation Consultation XF007867”, the opening tale written in unconventional form and set in a high-tech future; “Time Cubes”, a similarly futuristic tale that involves a piece of life-changing - or life-ending - technology; and “#ClimbingNation”, a story that really sticks its landing - i found the ending to be pithily, cleverly spiteful.
thanks for buddy reading with me,
sheena! 🪲 -
I didn’t really find anything to particularly like or dislike about this collection of unrelated short stories. The debate about the possible dangers of fantasy fulfillment was interesting in “Pre-Simulation Consultation XF007867” and the insect infestation in “June Bugs” initially had a nice creepy factor that became muted when the story devolved into a tale of domestic abuse. Maybe I was misled by the title. There are no monsters here and the book was just OK for me.
I received a free copy of this book from the publisher. -
This is my first time reading Kim Fu's work but will certainly not be the last. In this collection of 12 stories that are wild and weird and wondrous, Fu explores loneliness, time, intimacy, expectations, sleep, fantasies, and so much more with these compelling premises that keep you guessing with each turn of the page.
The opening story is a prime example of Fu's ability to craft a lot with very little. "Pre-Simulation Consultation XF007867" is told solely in dialogue between two people that uses a technological experiment to raise questions about memory and consciousness.
Many times throughout the collection, Fu begins a story with a surprising opening. Her hooks are never gimmicky though; they do play out and unfurl in even more surprising ways while always retaining the thesis of the story she is writing in a clear, strong way.
I particularly loved how she used each of these stories to explore different aspects of the human psyche. There's a lot about longing in this collection, why we want the things we do, what it means to give ourselves permission to want, what happens when we want for the wrong reasons. Fu just seems to get how weird it can be, at times, to be (a) human and these sometimes wacky but always heartfelt stories demonstrate the singular nature of humanity.
My favorite stories were "Sandman", "Twenty Hours", "June Bugs" and the final story "Do You Remember Candy" but truthfully there wasn't a single story I didn't enjoy.
I only wish that a few had gone a bit deeper or been ever so slightly longer. Once in a while I felt the story cut off *just* before a. breakthrough or satisfying conclusion, which is the nature of short stories sometimes, and I would've happily read more. But I suppose that's not a major complaint because Fu does demonstrate restraint that is often required in the form. -
This is a collection of 12 short stories. A few were individually published in the past.
I have to praise the author’s superb writing skills and terrific imagination.
It’s hard to put a collection that will please equally (or everyone).
Some stories worked for me and some didn’t.
Some are not memorable and didn’t make too much sense, but it didn’t diminish the writing qualities.
My favourite was the opening story (although it did remind me of the 1990 movie “Total Recall”), as I thought it was a thought provoking one, with great dialogues.
I’m looking forward to reading this author previous work and future releases. -
Pulsating, gripping, atmospheric, immersive… a stellar collection!
Lesser Known Monsters of the 21st Century by Kim Fu is a collection of twelve short stories that are distinctly different but equally haunting. The collection is the perfect mix of fantasy, magical realism, dystopian and surrealism- when they say this collection is a mixed bags of chips, believe it, but also know there is a story in this collection for you.
Themes of grief, loneliness, desire, love, regret and aging are expertly explored in a clever way. We meet a woman who booked a simulation session to go back in time to talk to her mother but the simulation comes with a lot of T&Cs. A teenager who starts growing wings on her heels, her friends aren’t sure what the next step (or flight should be) perfect examination of coming-of-age and the magic of that time. We meet a woman who becomes obsessed with trying to sleep, but rest eludes her. Then there is a couple who spent millions on a machine that rebuilds your body and uploads your consciousness after you die so you can come back… this couple spends their time committing suicide and killing off each other but never talks about it. Then there is a girl tied to a chair, blindfolded in the middle of a theater as her lover performs certain acts on her with a scissors, the girl’s only rule is that no one is allowed to touch her except her partner…what happens when the audience starts lining up?
Honestly, these stories are weird but captivating, you will finish this collection thinking “a weh mi just read?” but also feeling the need to tell everyone about what you thought you just read!
If you loved THE DANGERS OF SMOKING IN BED and FEVER DREAM you will absolutely enjoy this one! -
I don't usually like story collections unless I'm really sure of the author. However, Kim Fu has a collection of highly imaginative metaphorical stories that will push the boundaries for the reader. Most were futuristic and almost dystopian, and what booksellers are calling speculative fiction. Each is thoughtful and each is a masterpiece in its own right. I did like some more than others, with "Time Cubes" and "The Doll" among my favorites. "#ClimbingNation" had a really great twist at the end which could rival some of the greater mystery writers.
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A witty collection that explores longing, guilt, and the different ways that we feel ensnared. From stories that range from horrific to charming to melancholy, Lesser Known Monsters of the 21st Century explores the ways in which human connection evolves, our increasingly codependent relationship with technology, and how our own minds can create entire universes, infinite comforts and tortures. Each story reflects the different kinds of loneliness that we encounter in this life, and the ways in which we attempt to keep the flames of passion alive within ourselves, between ourselves and others.
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3.5 stars
"I am aware that I’m about to die. I have been kept almost entirely away from pain and violence, from complex sensation, from ordinary people who I now imagine will tear me apart like dogs. I feel the relief of a debtor releasing coins from his fist – a weight lifted, no longer beholden. Just imagine it: no longer feeling guilty for everything you have and
don’t deserve, for an unjust world bent in your favor, paying the piper at last. Wasn’t it worth it, after all? My head on a pike for this sweet, short, pleasure-drenched life."
Lesser Known Monsters of the 21st Century was a little inconsistent as a collection for me, but on the whole I feel like its stronger stories really helped elevate it in the end.
The stories in this collection vary in genre: some skew more speculative or magical realist, while others are firmly set in the "real world." Regardless of how they lean in terms of genre, though, all these stories are characterized by a sense of disquietude: there is always something that's unsettling, not quite right. In some stories, what is unsettling is elusive, hard to put your finger on; in others, it is very much front and center, obvious though not necessarily comprehensible. In "The Doll," a group of friends find an abandoned doll in the yard of a family whose members all tragically died; in "In This Fantasy," a narrator takes us through the kinds of lives she imagines having and the personas that come with them; in "June Bugs," a woman running away from an abusive relationship finds her house inexplicably overrun with june bugs.
Regardless of their particular narratives, the glue holding these stories together is Kim Fu's writing, which is just pitch-perfect. Fu's writing, in this collection, is clear and precise, taut in a way that allows it to be unflinching without feeling overblown or overly dramatic. Even more, it's a writing style that is perfectly suited to the disquieting tone that these stories have. Nowhere is this more evident than in what was, in my view, this collection's strongest story: "Twenty Hours." In lieu of giving you a description of what it's about, I'll just leave you with its first line: "After I killed my wife, I had twenty hours before her new body finished printing downstairs." And oof, what an incredible story. It's not particularly long, but it is so bracing and incisive in the way that it just cuts straight to the heart of its narrative."I had poisoned her, a great wallop of poison in her morning coffee. So I didn’t have the defense of passion, a momentary loss of reason. Poison took forethought. Poison said: I wanted to be apart from you for a while. Then why not just leave the house? Why not go for a walk? No, it said more than that. Poison said: I wanted you to not exist for a while. I wanted to move through the world without you in it."
This is what I mean when I talk about Fu's writing being unflinching but not overblown; there is so much that's disturbing about that passage, but the way that Fu delivers it is almost blasé, casual and so that much more unsettling when you read it.
("Twenty Hours" was by far my favourite of the collection, but there were some others that I thought were particular standouts as well, namely "Time Cubes," "Sandman," "Scissors," and "In This Fantasy.")
Despite all the things I enjoyed about it, though, Lesser Known Monsters of the 21st Century didn't quite deliver on some fronts for me. As a collection, it's a bit inconsistent in the quality of its stories. It's not so much that some of these stories are bad, but more that the stories that are good are so good that they make the subpar ones all the more disappointing; the stories that stick the landing--"Twenty Hours" being a chief example--end up making the ones that don't stand out all the more starkly. "Liddy, First to Fly" and "Bridezilla," for example, I found a bit lackluster, lacking that oomph that the more successful stories had. A big part of that was, for me, their abrupt endings, which made them feel like the narrative got cut off before the story had really gotten started. There's a fine line between unsettling and underwhelming, and though these stories felt like they were aiming for the former, in actuality they ended up reading as the latter.
Regardless, though, there was still plenty about this collection that I enjoyed. If you like your stories a bit fantastical, a bit supernatural, and a lot unsettling, then this is definitely the collection for you.
Thank you so much to Coach House books for sending me a review copy of this collection! -
If you:
1) enjoy a blend of sci-fi and horror
2) appreciate ambiguity in fiction
3) liked Paul Tremblay’s Growing Things
4) love thought-provoking content
5) and don’t mind feeling deeply unsettled in your gut from time to time
I highly recommend checking out this short story collection! Kim Fu successfully provoked a variety of emotions with each immersive tale!
My average rating for all of the stories came out as 4.25. Here are my individual ratings and brief thoughts.
Pre-Simulation Consultation XF007868 ~ 5 stars ~ As the first story in the book, it was the story that would seal the deal on whether or not I’d continue with the collection. As you can see by my rating, it was completely successful. The story was unexpectedly beautiful and I teared up at the end of it.
Liddy, First to Fly ~ 4.5 stars ~ There were some lines at the end of this that really captured its magic perfectly. While the story itself did not remind me of The Ocean at the End of the Lane by Neil Gaiman, its theme easily conjured memories of that book.
Time Cube ~ 4.5 stars ~ This was really very sad in the end.
#climbingnation ~ 4.5 stars ~ I loved the twist at the end of this and how the author managed to capture a variety of monsters in such a subtle way.
Sandman ~ 3.5 stars ~ I didn’t love this as much as I loved those that came before it. It didn’t have the same startling quality the others did, but it was certainly well-written.
Twenty Hours ~ 5 stars ~ This had one of the most intriguing first lines I’ve ever read. I was wholly captivated from the start and while it had its creepy elements, it seemed to be more a story of regret, of running out of chances, of only understanding the pureness of someone’s intentions when it might be too late to love them for it.
The Doll ~ 4 stars ~ This was very sad and haunting. I wanted it to be creepier, but I liked the thoughtfulness of it.
In My Fantasy ~ 3 stars ~ I understand the unhappiness of the narrator, but I found this to be a bit lackluster.
Scissors ~ 3 stars ~ Don’t be fooled by my rating. This dark story was extremely effective in the discomfort it aimed to cause, but I felt suffocated by the helplessness of it all.
June Bugs ~ 5 stars ~ It doesn’t matter that this was the longest story in the book. It was an absolute page-turner. I was envisioning something like Subsoil at first (which I love!) but this was much different and absolutely brilliant. This was easily my favorite from the collection. I appreciated how accurately the author illustrated the reality of a certain situation and the ending was utterly superb.
Bridezilla ~ 4 stars ~ Deeply unsettling and terribly sad. Another story that aptly captures the weight of regret and the inability to fix what we’ve made a mess of sometimes.
Do You Remember Candy? ~ 5 stars ~ “She doesn’t create sensations, she awakens the memory of them, and only in those who are primed for it, who want so badly to return to those memories, who want to believe.” I originally gave this 4.5 stars but after realizing how it had impacted me, how I could not stop pondering its meaning, I knew it deserved the other half of that last star.
Not everyone in this collection is a bad monster; an evil monster. While I love anything that looks at the monster that could exist within any one of us, I loved how these stories also look at the innocuous monsters we might forget fit the name.
I am immensely grateful to Tin House for my review copy. All opinions are my own. -
There were so many awesome stories in this collection that it made some of the ones that were just ok drag it down haha. It had a perfect Twilight Zone feel to it.
Kim Fu has a gift for storytelling, and I will be checking out her other work in the future.
There were 12 stories included in this collection, which were:
Pre-Simulation Consultation XF007867: 3.5 Stars (length is too short, idea is 5 stars)
This one was too short for me. I loved the implications but wanted to go through the simulation itself. I hope that Kim Fu will run this concept into a full-length novel because I am there for it. I can see the simulation itself, the potential addition—the bureaucratic politics, etc.
Liddy, First to Fly: 4 Stars
Cute, it works at this length and could be fun longer, but seems more like it's meant to be a short story concept or just a character in something else.
Time Cubes: 2 Stars
It was an interesting idea, but I just wasn't feeling it as much as the other stories—my least favorite of the collection.
#ClimbingNation: 5 Stars
I loved this one. So contemporary and relevant. I could see this one happening. That devious closure was perfect. Perfect length.
Sandman: 3 Stars
If you are into Monster Erotica, Here's a short one to add to your list. The paranormal aspect is fun.
Twenty Hours: 4.5 Stars
3-D Printing Life insurance. genius concept. They are a hilarious, ordinary couple. I wish it would have been from the wife's POV because we would have learned more about it. it definitely makes you speculate.
The Doll: 2.5 Stars
I love the premise, but the delivery was lackluster for me, and the ending was meh.
In This Fantasy: 3.5 Stars
An exploration of our darkest and deepest inner desires and what would happen if they could come true. Again, it was good, but the delivery wasn't making it feel as real as I wanted it to.
Scissors: 5 Stars
Perfect length, perfect intrigue. Phenomenally portrayed, the visualization and the ability to grasp what the Narrator was thinking/feeling was on point. I loved the ending questions as you wonder about the final trust along with the character at the end.
June Bugs: 3.5-4 Stars
I loved the relationship turmoil and wish that the June Bugs weren't a part of it. The couple and the thoughts are very well done, but then it just gets weird for no reason when it didn't need to.
Bridezilla: 3 stars
It was a good, and funny concept, but nothing really stood out starkly to me.
Do you Remember Candy?: 5 Stars
Probably the greatest story in the entire collection. The details going into recreating an experience to remember a taste are well-thought and I would read a whole book about this. I do wish she had been a bit more present for her children. Maybe I would like her less with more of that persona, but I also get that it was showing the obsession and how much it took over everything.
Sitting at a final solid 4 star rating for me. Check this one out! -
I don't remember the last time I had such an uneven experience with a short story collection. The first story here was my favourite, so it felt unfortunately like the book just went downhill from there. I spent the whole book waiting for another story to move me in the same way and it never happened. That story, "Pre-Simulation Consultation," is a brilliant sci fi investigation of memory and death, told in expertly crafted dialogue with an emotional resonance that lingered. I also really liked the last story, "Do you remember candy?", about a future world where everyone has lost their sense of taste and a woman goes about recreating people's favourite food memories via other sensory experiences. There was one sapphic BDSM story that I found very interesting and appropriately tense. Another called "The Cubes" was a great foray into the experience of depression. While the others often had great fantastical concepts, unique from each other, after a while they started to feel repetitive in their execution even despite some being speculative and other being realist. I felt like I could see the "how to write an effective short story" structure poking up into the story itself. I also was hoping for more queer content, but there's just the one sapphic story I mentioned.
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LESSER KNOWN MONSTERS OF THE 21ST CENTURY by Kim Fu is an excellent short story collection! I loved this book! This book features 12 stories that reflect on grief, growing up, family and technology with a touch of the fantastical.
I really enjoyed all the stories even the one that left me feeling unsettled as the writing really transports you. My fave story was #ClimbingNation that featured a stellar twist just like in thrillers that I love. This will definitely be one of my fave collections of this year. It’s a five star read for me!
And I think I’ve mentioned it before but I absolutely LOVE the paper used in this book! It’s printed at the Coach House in Toronto on Zephyr Antique Laid paper, which was manufactured in Quebec, from second growth forests. It feels luxurious!
Thank you to Coach House Books for my gifted review copy! -
Maybe it’s a little impulsive, but it’s such an even collection with so many stories I loved. And I felt invested within the first story
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a fantastic collection of dark, eclectic, and odd short stories.
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Mesmerizing, electric, and wholly original, Kim Fu’s Lesser Known Monsters of the 21st Century blurs the boundaries of the real and fantastic, offering intricate and surprising insights into human nature
I totally agree. This anthology was part brilliant and part bat shit crazy (that's magical realism for you) and I will not likely forget this one.
4.5 Stars -
I had this at three stars but then realized that within one day of finishing these short stories I can barely remember most of them so I think two stars is a more accurate rating given my reaction to them. Personally, I think the first story is head and shoulders above the rest and on audio it's the best because it is just dialogue. The rest of the stories are hit and miss and I think that the title and the description set up expectations for what these stories would be like but it's not like what I thought they'd be: generally, I expected more fantastical elements and for the stories to push farther into the realm of weird than they do and as a result, I think maybe I'm more disappointed in this collection than other readers.
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I loved the title and the first story, "Pre-Simulation Consultation XF007867", but after that it was diminishing returns, ending with one skimmed story and half-hearted guilt over abandoning the last three. Coincidentally, after starting the book I discovered that Levar Burton read one of the stories, "#ClimbingNation", on his podcast, "Levar Burton Reads". It was pretty good, and Levar was great as always :)
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Some excellent personality filled writing. Funny at times, unsettling at others. Don't expect many happy endings in this short story collection.
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I enjoyed the clever ideas most of the stories, but was less enthusiastic about the execution. Fu writes some killer opening sentences though. "Twenty Hours":
After I killed my wife, I had twenty hours before her new body finished printing downstairs.
For example, the protagonist of "Do You Remember Candy?" is a former conceptual artist who builds small personal installation/experiences, for people who've lost the sense of taste (no, COVID is not mentioned). But it took a few tangents that I would prefer to avoid.
The dark, restrained "#climbingnation" is my favorite by far, with its multiple deceptions, tantalizing loose ends, and intriguing non-resolution. I usually don't get into lesbian S/M erotica, but "In This Fantasy" was well-done and enjoyable. -
Every story was good but the last three?? Wow. I have so many thoughts on so many of these stories and I'm definitely going to be thinking about this book for a long time. I like the way these stories examined what truly are lesser known monsters that could only have become real in this century and what that means for humanity and humans.
I will definitely pick up another book by this author! -
Kim Fu, you did the damn thing!!
