Customer Reviews

Georgia on My Mind and Other Places

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Georgia On My Mind is a collection of fourteen SF stories published between 1987 and 1994. It also contains an introduction by the author and afterwords for most of the stories.

In The Feynman Saltation, an artist with a brain tumor starts having visions of the past. In the Bee's Kiss, a convicted voyeur uses his skills to spy on a pair of aliens. In Millennium, a Christian tries to postpone judgment day. In Fifteen-Love On the Dead Man's Chest, a tennis game and a funeral lead to confusion and distress. In Deep Safari, a spurned lover rushes to the rescue in a small way.

In Beyond the Golden Road, a Christian monk finds a soulmate in the Great Khan's court. In Health Care System, a medical researcher creates a bleeding edge support system. In Humanity Test, Godwin's The Cold Equations meet Heinlein's Jerry Was a Man, with a new twist. In That Strain Again, falling leaves repel aliens from Vegas IV. In Destroyer of Worlds, space fanatics attempt ecological engineering.

In the Fifteenth Station of the Cross, the dying ruler of the world decides to bring a miracle healer from the past. In Trapalanda, a Andean explorer guides a blind man to an extraordinary discovery. In Obsolete Skill, a science fiction writer waking in the future finds that old methods work better for him. In Georgia On My Mind, a pair of computer geeks discover evidence of a working analytical engine in New Zealand.

The author is better known for his high tech, world spanning novels, but these stories show that he can produce small gems of science fiction as well. Of course, these stories are mostly about people who use or encounter some facet of human technology or alien supertech. Some of these characters are unforgettable, especially the couple in Georgia On My Mind, even though they are known only through letters and journal entries.

Highly recommended for Sheffield fans and for anyone who enjoys short tales about humans struggling to live in a technological environment.

-Arthur W. Jordin

Sheffield has probably gotten more acclaim than he deserves because he is a "real" scientist, I admit it influenced me. His dialog and characterisations are often poor and laboured. He has the ideas okay, but Georgia on my Mind is the only story that makes it as a piece of fiction.

I don't think Sheffield is as well known as other hard sf authors like Baxter, Bear, Egan, Niven, etc. After reading some of his stuff I think that's justified. Although more human then Egan's work (but then again a dead mackerel is more human then Egan's average fair) & fairly eloquent there's nothing I couldn't get out of Clarke, Asimov, etc. (I mentioned them because he's sort of old school, but I'd like to add that I like the old school which is perhaps why I hate saying the things I'm saying.) The fact that I haven't mentioned any of the stories is kind of because they didn't strike me as that memorable. Science fiction authors (all authors really) tend to have bad marriages so it is nice to read stories about an apparently good marriage since the lost wife imagery is strong in some of his stories. (He recently remarried so it's pleasing to know he's moved on.)I've read too much hard sf I guess because if I'd started with Sheffield I'm sure I'd have a higher opinion of his stories. I'm being too harsh these are good stories there's just too much great science fiction being produced these days to make them stand out. Don't let my mood bias you & I am glad I bought it. To further defend him Asimov's my favorite author, but I've read better written stories then Asimov's. I'm sure some will have the same view of Sheffield. A good hard sf author worth reading, but his overshadowed status is understandable since hard sf is such a big field.

A Science Fiction Story

Analytical Engine kiwi discovery.


4.5 out of 5