Campbellodeon

I came across this post on Boing Boing yesterday - http://www.boingboing.net/2005/08/07/charlie_stross_hugo_.html and I figured I would take Cory Doctorow’s advice to see what the fuss was about.  I am not a huge fan of Cory, Xeni, or Boing Boing for that matter; but I thoroughly enjoyed “Down and Out in the Magic Kingdom” and I have recommended it to others.  I figured if Cory Doctorow knows and collaborates with Charlie Stross, then his stuff at least deserves a chance to get on my reading list.

 

I am also a sucker for free literature.

 

I printed the short story before I left the office yesterday (51 pages) and read a couple of pages before walking out the door.  Knowing I was looking at a crappy commute (when is a commute in Atlanta not crappy?), I kept the story in my lap and read on the way home.

 

Yes, I was reading while I was driving.  Not exactly safe and I don’t recommend it, but when you don’t get out of first gear it is rather simple to keep an eye on the bumper in front of you and the sheet of paper in your hand.

 

I won’t go into details about characters, plot, etc. because I don’t want to spoil it for anyone else and I didn’t memorize it.  I will say that I enjoyed it, i.e. I finished it last night before going to sleep.  But it hasn’t stayed with me as much as “Down and Out in the Magic Kingdom” (DOMK) did.  Where DOMK was more traditional (and very well written) science fiction, “The Concrete Jungle” leans more toward the horror genre while avoiding the over-used horror clichés and formulas.  “The Concrete Jungle” is also about 1/3 the length of DOMK, at least in my mind.

 

Charlie Stross is obviously a talented author based both on the quality of the content I have read and the quantity of content he has produced.  I will definitely be reading some more of his stuff including the sequel/prequel to “The Concrete Jungle”