An Enthusiastic Review of the Clockwork Jungle Book
May 2, 2010
Faithful reader C.S.E. Cooney waxes enthusiastic about the Clockwork Jungle Book.
I want you to know that it’s constantly surprising, often mind-blowing, and well-worth the read. Plus, there’s this woodcut of a wolf riding a unicycle that you MUST see…
And what about that tough-as-rusted-factory-works prose of Jay Lake in “Shedding Skin”? And then, the elegant despair of Susannah Mandel’s gentleman Monkey! Oh, and I won’t even TELL you about “Otto’s Elephant” by Vincent Pendergast because you have to find out for yourself!
I tell you, I never liked clockworks much, but I’m being wooed. I’m three stories away from succumbing to seduction. But never mind THAT. All I’m saying is…
Read Shimmer’s Clockwork Jungle.
Honorable Mentions in Year’s Best Horror
April 12, 2010
Wow, Ellen Datlow listed ten Shimmer stories in the honorable mentions! Thanks, Ellen! And congrats to the authors. The full listing is at Ellen’s blog, and lists a wealth of wonderful stories and poems.
Slatter, Angela “Dresses, Three,” Shimmer 8
Slatter, Angela “The Hummingbird Heart,” Shimmer 9
Marchand, Joy “The Shape of her Sorrow,” Shimmer 9
Hobson, M.K. “The Hand of the Devil on a String,” Shimmer 9
Wallace, Tinatsu “Chimera and Qi,” Shimmer 9
Genge, Sara “Counting Down to the End of the Universe,” Shimmer 10
Wilson, Alex “The Spoils of Springfield,” Shimmer 10.
Lalumière, Claude “What to Do With the Dead,” Shimmer 10.
Paxson, Caitlyn “The Carnivale of Abandoned Tales,” Shimmer 10.
Yaniv, Nir “A Painter, a Sheep, and a Boa Constrictor,” Shimmer 10.
Yay!
A Tasty Trio of Reviews
January 18, 2010
Last Short Story falls in love with the Clockwork Jungle Book: “…whimsical, beautifully written and presented… full of beautiful, fascinating stories.”
SFRevu finds lots to like: “This was a flawless issue Shimmer and a big thick one, too.”
And last but not least, check out Richard Horton’s summary of Shimmer’s 09 output.
Thanks for the terrific reviews!
Congrats to Nir Yaniv!
December 22, 2009
Nir’s story from Issue 10 was selected for the Year’s Best Fantasy and Science Fiction, edited by Rich Horton. Yay!
“A Painter, a Sheep, and a Boa Constrictor,” by Nir Yaniv (Translation by Lavie Tidhar)
“Please, draw me a sheep,” he said — he looked just like you — and I thought, oh my, the kid makes demands. I would have liked to be in the desert, beside the broken remains of my airplane, or anywhere else for that matter. But no — we were both in the space port, I who was thrown like a discarded tool from the bowels of a trading ship, and he, who had seemed to arrive from nowhere.
If you haven’t read Issue 10 yet, start reading today. It’s available in a print copy or free download.
Tangent reviews Issue 10
August 16, 2009
Bob Blough over at Tangent Online posted a review of Issue 10, with lovely things to say about each story.
“They are unfailingly well written, which gives hope for the future of the genre. … Read this issue of Shimmer to get a look at the future giants of the field.”
Our authors are already giants to me, but I expect even greater things from them all in the future.
Grab your copy of issue 10 today: either the free electronic version or the sleek print edition.
Issue 10 reviews
June 18, 2009
IROSF reviews Issue 10 (free registration required). Our cover story, Caitlyn Paxson’s “Carnivale of Abandoned Tales” gets a Recommended, as does Becca De La Rosa’s “River Water.” It’s a “highly imaginative look at love and death and storytelling,” Lois Tilton says. We completely agree. Thanks, Lois!
Sam Tomaino at SF Review weighs in: The stories in Shimmer are like pieces of rich fudge, all very different but quite delicious. It is worthy of our support.
Grab your copy of Issue 10 today: you can download the electronic edition for free, or subscribe. Delicious stories waiting to be read!
Art Issue Review
March 24, 2008
The Fix reviewed Shimmer’s Art Issue.
” …this is a solid example of good fantastical short fiction, and an issue of Shimmer well worth acquiring.”
Be sure to check out the rest of the review, which covers the strengths and weaknesses of every story in the issue.
Pirate Review and Interview With JJA
December 12, 2007
Grasping for the Wind had this to say:
These ten stories and 1 interview are well written, and were good choices for a speculative fiction magazine’s issue on pirates. The fantasy, horror and/or sci-fi elements were neatly incorporated into the pirate stories.
Check out the full review here.
They also have an interview with John Joseph Adams (of Fantasy and Science Fiction), who guest edited the pirate issue.
GFTW: You were recently invited to be a guest editor for the Pirate Issue of Shimmer Magazine. What was your approach to choosing stories for this issue?
JJA: One of the things I wanted to do with the Pirate Issue is have a broad range of pirate stories, which took some liberties interpreting the term “pirate.” Of course, there are some stories in the issue that are your typical iconic Caribbean-style pirate, but it was important to me to have a certain diversity represented. So that was one factor.
You can read the rest of the interview here.
SFRevu Reviews The Pirate Issue
December 1, 2007
Sam Tomino of SFRevu says:
I’m sick of pirates. I was never a big fan of them and this wave of pirate stuff in pop culture has not endeared them to me. When I saw that the Shimmer Vol. 2, Issue 3 was “The Pirate Issue”, I groaned. What would I encounter here? I needn’t have worried. I enjoyed all the stories.
Head on over to SFRevu to check out the rest of the review!
Review, Shimmer Winter 2007 issue
May 4, 2007
Chris Gerrib gave the Winter Shimmer issue quite a nice review
Second, I finally got around to reading the Winter 2007 issue of Shimmer Magazine. If you’re not subscribing to this magazine, you’re missing a real gem. This edition seemed to be heavy on fantasy stories, but still well worth the price of admission. Highlights include:
* Juana and the Dancing Bear by n. a. bourke (spelling his), a lovely fantasy story about a Spanish princess and a talking, dancing bear. It’s quite nice.
* Duets, by Philip J. Lees, is a story about a harpist whose got a way with the ladies. He gets a pleasant surprise from his latest conquest, a fellow musician.
* Michael Livingston’s Catch of the Day was an unusual first contact story, but quite interesting.
* Sparrow and Egg, by Amal El-Mohtar, was a very short but surprisingly touching story. It’s really a parable for parent-child relationships, and quite memorable.