cover image The Ant King and Other Stories

The Ant King and Other Stories

Benjamin Rosenbaum, . . Small Beer, $24 (228pp) ISBN 978-1-931520-53-9

“Plausible-fabulist” Rosenbaum's debut collection of 17 short stories is inconsistent, but it includes some speculative gems. The thought-provoking “Start the Clock” takes place in a near future where a virus has stopped the human aging process, forcing millions of people to live forever as preadolescents. The title story is an absurdist masterwork about a man in search of a woman who has been turned into yellow gumballs, abducted and hidden away in a lair guarded by a giant roach. Most notable is World Fantasy Award–finalist “A Siege of Cranes,” which blends elements of horror, epic fantasy and religious mythology in the tale of a desperate man seeking a nightmarish enemy that has destroyed his village and killed his wife and child. Featuring outlandish and striking imagery throughout—a woman in love with an elephant, an orange that ruled the world—this collection is a surrealistic wonderland. (Aug.)