Customer Reviews

Orson Scott Card's InterGalactic Medicine Show (v. 1)

5 star:		(6)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

.... You never know what you are going to get. There's a huge variety of writers, styles and even genres (not all the stories are sci-fi). I really liked the 'afterwords' that allow one to peer a little bit in the mind of the writer.

Disclosure: I picked the book from a local library because of the title, having never read any of OSC's works before. Instead of posting a detailed review, I will try here to (subjectively) grade all the stories on the 1-5 scale and 3 factors:
- Setting/basic idea. Especially in science fiction where you imagine a world different from ours, I like to see how things work in it. Pluses for little (even is pseudo-) scientific details.
- Actual Story/Plot. Gauges how interested I was in turning the pages to learn what happens next.
- Narration: for both the flow of the story and the ability of the author to influence my feelings with his/her writing style

In the Eyes of the Empress's Cat (Bradley P. Beaulieu) 555
My favorite story of the bunch, nicely set in a vaguely Middle Eastern kingdom. Still don't understand how the Empress's cat got sick.

Mazer in Prison (Orson Scott Card) 445
Very well told story in a simple setting. A little ambiguous regarding the role of the young lieutenant. I feel that there could be more done on double and triple meanings of the communications.

Tabloid Reporter to the Stars (Eric James Stone) 545
Lots of "science" on alien life and well-narrated, but you still want more from the ending...

Audience (Ty Franck) 434
An interesting idea of exploring the world of uber-specialization but it seems difficult to make an interesting story out of it. Points for trying.

The Mooncalfe (David Farland) 453
Nice dark prequel to the era of Knights of Round Table, though I found the language (the author is trying to evoke Old English) a little tedious.

Cheater (Orson Scott Card) 445
The same review as Mazer in prison: well-told story in a simple setting. Seems it's easy for OSC to produce these on short notice...

Dream Engine (Tim Pratt) 554
This is probably the best in terms of setting the stage in a futuristic metropolis. Narration was a little overdone. I did not like the made up pronouns for the asexual Howlaa (zie and zir?)

Hats Off (David Lubar) 425
Another one with an interesting idea, well written, but basically no plot. Even in a short story format, more meat can be put on these bones.

Eviction Notice (Scott M. Roberts) NR
This is deeply disturbing story which I certainly do not want to ponder again. So no rating. Aahh! I am having nightmares just thinking about it!

To Know All Things That Are in the Earth (James Maxey) 555
I liked it! A scientific look at the Rapture!

Beats of Seven (Peter Orullian) 535
An interesting setting and a basic premise of a strange instruments and sounds, but it seems just like in "Audience" the writer struggles to make a complete, interesting story out of it--probably the best one could do in a short story format. I am not a musician--perhaps one can appreciate it more. Nice air of mystery to the narration.

Pretty Boy (Orson Scott Card) 445
Same review as Mazer and Cheater

Respite (Rachel Ann Dryden) 212
I absolutely hated this story. Basically, husband and wife are having a basic argument for some reason placed in a sci-fi setting.

Fat Farm (Aaron Johnston , Orson Scott Card) NR
This is a comic version of an OSC story. I liked it, but can't really pass judgment on the literary merits.

The Box of Beautiful Things (Brian Dolton) 324
Well-told, but the point of the "box" is nothing too special.

Taint of Treason (Eric James Stone) 213
I do not understand why this is considered to be a story worthy of inclusion. There's one powerful moment, and the author in the afterward said he struggled in putting a story around it, but a moment does not a story make.

Call Me Mr. Positive (Tom Barlow) 232
An umpteenth take on the theme of loneliness in space (2001 Space Odyssey anyone?). I did not like the style of the "journal," and there's nothing to remember afterward.

A Young Man with Prospects (Orson Scott Card) 433
Did not like this too much: majority of story consists of 3 female members of an Italian family arguing with each other. I think the idea is a little forced, and the narration is definitely worse than OSC's other work. The afterward is better than the story itself.

I bought this as an Orson Scott Card fan but dare I say that I found authors that rival the great OSC in this book? These stories are not very long and most can be read in a sitting. There is a lot of variety which was nice for me. I like fantasy slightly more than science fiction. This was a nice combination of both and some other unique items thrown in as well. I have been reading a story or two each night. I discovered author Eric James Stone by reading this book and finding his work has been like finding treasure. His stories were particularly enjoyed by my sixth grade son and I and I think we'll be buying any/everything with his name on it. His writing is brilliant. I saw the other reviewer comment that the Taint of Treason wasn't well recieved by him. I have been quoting a line from that story to my son for weeks which has us both laughing (in a morbid way). You'll know the line once you read the story. Thanks goes out to Schubert and Card for giving us a "sampler" of so many great writers. You really can't go wrong with this book.

Somehow when I bought this book I assumed that it would contain the complete written works of OSC's IGMS up to this point - 8 issues. (There's 9 now, but there was 8 when the book was published.) Excluding the audio stories, essays, and interviews (which requires subscribing to the IGMS to get) this is what I expected to get in a bound paperback book:
issue #1 - 10 written stories
issue #2 - 9 written stories
issue #3 - 10 written stories
issue #4 - 10 written stories
issue #5 - 10 written stories
issue #6 - 10 written stories
issue #7 - 11 written stories
issue #8 - 10 written stories
(80 in all)

Instead I got 18 select stories out of the first 4 issues:
5 from issue #1
4 from issue #2
5 from issue #3
4 from issue #4

The book includes the artwork for each story. It also contains the new Ender stories from each of the first 4 issues. And it's 432 pages. I suspect it'd be somewhere around 2000 pages if it included all of the stories up to issue 8.
Despite my disappointment in the book's lack of completeness, I'm still glad I bought it. It's a solid collection of great stories that I can hold in my hand and read, without having to stare at a computer screen. And I'm thinking it might be worth paying an extra $2.50 to get the rest of the stories from his website.

The eighteen stories selected for this anthology were first published in the online magazine Intergalactic Medicine Show in 2006 and were considered the best from the four IGMS issues. Mr. Card provides four fine Enderverse short stories not seen in printed form before. Although some of the contributors are acclaimed talents like David Lubar and David Farland (Camelot never looked so fresh) fans will also appreciate the entries by less famous authors as Mr. Card and Mr. Schubert introduce Enders readers to endless possibility of meeting talented writers. There are no losers as all the tales are entertaining. Especially fascinating are the Rapture tale "To Know All Things That Are in the Earth" by James Maxey, a pair by Eric James Stone, and Tom Barlow's satirical Pollyanna "Call Me Mr. Positive". Also adding to the freshness is Aaron Johnston's comic book style "Fat Farm" based on a story by Mr. Card. This compilation is superb and should send the audience to the OSCIGMS website.

Harriet Klausner

I read "Orson Scott Card's Intergalactic Medicine Show". And I highly recommend it. This collection is full of powerful stories... I found myself thinking about stories from this book long after I finished reading it. There are some pretty profound, thought provoking ideas that were fresh and new to ponder. I am affected that, life can be truly changed by a passion or belief... or even by an open mind to possibilities that are magical. Images flooded my mind, as I read of powers beyond our realm of sight. The editors were careful to choose authors that are talented and passionate! And they allow them to discuss their stories after the read. If you skim to find a good story, don't miss "Beats of Seven" by Peter Orullian. If your soul is deeply touched by music, you will enjoy the imagery of this mystical story. This book is "A definite good read!"

I enjoyed reading some of the stories. Others just didn't interest me at all. All of the stories that Card wrote were excellent.

Some good background for the Ender's Game Universe fans, and a few other entertaining stories by some unknowns. A few of the stories weren't very intriguing for me.

I was a bit disappointed to realize that only a handful of the stories in this book are actually written by Orson Scott Card himself. However, I did read them all. His stories are by far the best of the bunch. If you didn't know who wrote which ones, it would be easy to pick his out. A few of the rest were very good; most were just OK. Overall worth the time to read but not spellbinding.

I liked this book a lot. Card's Ender's Game stories were what I bought it for and I was not disappointed. I also found some of the other author's stories to be very good and I hope they write more.

The book was a bit too short though. I hope there will be more volumes in the future.

I'll admit I purchased the book because of its inclusion of more stories from the "Enderverse". And since it came with so many other authors' stories, I went ahead and read them too.

And I'm glad I did.

With so many science fiction anthologies, it's nice to have a more modern one that's an easy read, while still provoking you to think a bit further. The stories all touch different concepts but are were well-picked and of course well-written. The author's afterword are a nice touch with each too.

Card mentions that part of his intent of IGMS is to introduce his readers to other very talented authors, and this book achieves this end. This sampling provides enough to convince you to subscribe to IGMS online and read the rest, while giving enough service to Ender fans.

But I won't say it's without faults. It's a bit of a letdown that of the four Ender stories included, one is itself a chapter of the latest 'Ender in Exile'. But perhaps Mr. Card will make it up to us by releasing some later volumes of the IGMS.

Faults aside, with 400+ pages of brilliant artwork, author feedback, and superb writing, this book easily deserves a quality 5-star rating.