Clarkesworld Magazine, Issue 238

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Issue can be read on-line: https://clarkesworldmagazine.com/issue_238/

Rating: 3/5.

An interesting issue, with good stories by K. J. Khan, Fiona Moore, Carlos Hernandez and Ju Chu.

• “The Life and Times of the Extraterrestrial Potoo” by K. J. Khan: a traveller on an alien world is collecting pollen as part of his job. He runs into an alien ‘potoo’ that proves surprisingly friendly. On they journey together, the man discovers more about the potoo’s life cycle and is dismayed to realise the pollen he collects may affect the potoo. But he may have a way to avoid his corporation from exploiting the pollen in the future.
• “Cliff’s Girl” by Fiona Moore: another story in the author’s series of stories set in the post collapse world, this one has one of the main character’s robot acting strangely. After an event, she is forced to shut it down and contemplates doing a reboot, erasing the robot’s character than had been developing since the collapse. But events may force her hand in this.
• “Focus” by Carlos Hernandez: a group of ultrarich people, who are also avid bird watchers, debate over what to do with the body of one of their members. A large gathering of birds over their meeting hints at what the dead person had done before his death, and may still be capable of doing even after his death.
• “The Animator and the Glazer” by Ju Chu, translated by S. Qiouyi Lu: in a future where AI can imitate any artists’ style unless the artwork is protected by ‘glazing’ it (making minute changes that cause the AI to mis-interpret the images), one glazer meets with an elderly person who turns out to be a superb animator. But when his work gets imitated by AI, the animator may have no choice but act in order to preserve future human art from AI imitation.
• “Our Revels Now Are Ended” by Thomas Ha: in a simulated environment, an interrogator questions a suspect over acts that may endanger the State. But with multiple instances of the interrogation happening at once, questions arise over whom the one being interrogated and to what end.
• “This Is an Emergency Broadcast” by R.S.A. Garcia: a story told in a series of conversations and news dialogues about a new drug and virtual simulation system that takes over the world, and the company takes over the lives of the people using it.
• “Nesting Behavior of Imported Species Troglodytes aedon on Planet Americearth” by R.L. Meza: a story told from the viewpoint of an alien animal inhabiting a tree. As the story develops, we discover humans have taken over the tree. But the alien wants it back and, possibly, the rest of the its world too.

Magazine read from 2026/07/06 to 2026/07/20.