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If you missed my first Yuletide rec post, here it is.
I'm happily browsing the collection while stuck at home as it's alternately raining, snowing, and/or freezing, and the main road off the mountain had a sinkhole open up in it.
As usual, my recs are sorted by how much canon knowledge you need.
Don't need to know canon:
Le città invisibili | Invisible Cities - Italo Calvino.
Three Watery Cities. 1928 words.
The water comes hurrying now, its flow steady and relentless, broadening again to become a stream; the stream deepens to become a river, and still with irresistible generosity it builds, until the river overflows, bursting its bank, and Severina fills like a chalice.
Absolutely gorgeous, pitch-perfect pastiche, a set of descriptions of three different watery cities.
"Top 5 Rat Movies I Made Up" - JP Brammer: Legends of the Great Below
the greatest thread in the history of the forums. 3615 words.
I think there’s something so special about the idea that JP saw all of us thirsty fuckers in the trenches of Twitter and Tumblr and PawsNClaws and thought “I’m gonna make this one for them. I’m gonna give them the gay rat bro romance they deserve.”
Another fic for the article about rat movies that don't exist but should, this homage to fandom starts a bit low-key but gets funnier and funnier as it goes along. I ended up literally crying with laughter.
Canon knowledge preferable but not necessary:
Anne of Green Gables - L. M.Montgomery
Ice Flowers. Art.
A lovely wintery watercolor of Anne and Diana kissing.
Nod - Adrian Barnes
marginalia. 16,402 words.
Several years after the end of the world, what is left of humanity has set about the task of rebuilding the civilization and protecting the children, not necessarily in that order. But who decides what civilization is, anyway?
This story is set years after the events of the book and involves different characters. All you need to know is that an apocalypse occurred because most people became unable to sleep, causing psychosis and death. The Sleepers consisted of a few adults who all dreamed of beautiful golden light, and a few children who stopped speaking and became unnaturally calm.
This story works as a standalone and is satisfying on multiple levels, blending post-apocalypse, horror, and a cleverly constructed murder mystery.
Content warning: child murder, creepy children, cults, violence.
Need to know canon, but the canon is short and available online.
"Black Box" - Jennifer Egan
A short story available online here.
A strange, compelling story about a woman on a secret mission.
Content warning: rape, violence, probable imperialism.
Burn Bag. 2013 words.
Expect a period of readjustment following mission termination and retrieval.
Stunning, beautifully written story of trauma and recovery.
Content warning: PTSD from everything in the content warning to the original.
The canon you need to know is this xkcd comic.
Spherical Cows and Other Questions. 1426 words.
What if the wave that blew up the cows had made them even bigger, like the size of a moon, or a planet? Would a cow-planet weigh more than the Earth? How many people could it feed?
I skipped the math, which is apparently accurate (!) but it was still hilarious.
If you enjoy something, please comment and let the author know!
What have you enjoyed so far this Yuletide?
I'm happily browsing the collection while stuck at home as it's alternately raining, snowing, and/or freezing, and the main road off the mountain had a sinkhole open up in it.
As usual, my recs are sorted by how much canon knowledge you need.
Don't need to know canon:
Le città invisibili | Invisible Cities - Italo Calvino.
Three Watery Cities. 1928 words.
The water comes hurrying now, its flow steady and relentless, broadening again to become a stream; the stream deepens to become a river, and still with irresistible generosity it builds, until the river overflows, bursting its bank, and Severina fills like a chalice.
Absolutely gorgeous, pitch-perfect pastiche, a set of descriptions of three different watery cities.
"Top 5 Rat Movies I Made Up" - JP Brammer: Legends of the Great Below
the greatest thread in the history of the forums. 3615 words.
I think there’s something so special about the idea that JP saw all of us thirsty fuckers in the trenches of Twitter and Tumblr and PawsNClaws and thought “I’m gonna make this one for them. I’m gonna give them the gay rat bro romance they deserve.”
Another fic for the article about rat movies that don't exist but should, this homage to fandom starts a bit low-key but gets funnier and funnier as it goes along. I ended up literally crying with laughter.
Canon knowledge preferable but not necessary:
Anne of Green Gables - L. M.Montgomery
Ice Flowers. Art.
A lovely wintery watercolor of Anne and Diana kissing.
Nod - Adrian Barnes
marginalia. 16,402 words.
Several years after the end of the world, what is left of humanity has set about the task of rebuilding the civilization and protecting the children, not necessarily in that order. But who decides what civilization is, anyway?
This story is set years after the events of the book and involves different characters. All you need to know is that an apocalypse occurred because most people became unable to sleep, causing psychosis and death. The Sleepers consisted of a few adults who all dreamed of beautiful golden light, and a few children who stopped speaking and became unnaturally calm.
This story works as a standalone and is satisfying on multiple levels, blending post-apocalypse, horror, and a cleverly constructed murder mystery.
Content warning: child murder, creepy children, cults, violence.
Need to know canon, but the canon is short and available online.
"Black Box" - Jennifer Egan
A short story available online here.
A strange, compelling story about a woman on a secret mission.
Content warning: rape, violence, probable imperialism.
Burn Bag. 2013 words.
Expect a period of readjustment following mission termination and retrieval.
Stunning, beautifully written story of trauma and recovery.
Content warning: PTSD from everything in the content warning to the original.
The canon you need to know is this xkcd comic.
Spherical Cows and Other Questions. 1426 words.
What if the wave that blew up the cows had made them even bigger, like the size of a moon, or a planet? Would a cow-planet weigh more than the Earth? How many people could it feed?
I skipped the math, which is apparently accurate (!) but it was still hilarious.
If you enjoy something, please comment and let the author know!
What have you enjoyed so far this Yuletide?
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P.
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I mean, thank you for the reality check; now you can be stuck there for a while. P.
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The canon you need to know is this xkcd comic.
The link you have there goes to example.com.
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https://what-if.xkcd.com/120/
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(And you, Rachel.)