For more of David's opinions, we've put together a table of contents for other Editor's Choice columns.

Steven Utley's "The Here and Now" is a time travel piece which takes us to the fall of Berlin during WWII, as a pair of time traveling tour guides inhabit unsuspecting hosts from this war torn period. The young guide -- The Kid -- seems to revel in the violence and destruction regardless of whether he's visiting the Civil War or here, and is used as counterpoint to the wisdom of the Elder guide. Perhaps the author is making a comment on the desensitizing effect the continued exposure to violence has on those without the wisdom to appreciate its true nature. If so, a point well taken.

"Datableed" is a trifling gimmick idea, a frustrating (for the reader, and more or less pointless) little exercise set in cyberspace, and not one of Pat Cadigan's best. It literally goes nowhere... twice. But I guess this is the point. I suppose it was published as another little brick to help complete the wall of virtual ideas not hitherto covered. Ah, well.

From Virtual Obscura we come to a very short piece the original Galaxy (from the 50s), or even F&SF today, would have published. Deceptively simple on the surface, I think it deserves closer examination as my first...

Moving on:

"Scientifiction" is more than an apt title. With tongue in cheek, the always whacko Howard Waldrop here lets the situation he has contrived supply the smile. A planet of bugs must try to shield themselves from the solar eruptions from their nearby red sun. Told in the rather confusing prose reminiscent of the worst of the early pulp stories, the deadpan seriousness belies the gentle poke at the "good old days." Wild idea, perplexingly told.

Both Mary Rosenblum's "The Eye of God" and Stephen Dedman's "Transit" deal with hermaphrodites. Rosenblum's alien Rethe are mostly hermaphroditic (that is to say, most of them are, but only a few aren't; it's a little complicated) and are one of the few species superior to homo sapiens. (It seems they've given us an inferiority complex.) A retired human empath is surreptitiously employed by them to search out another human, an "art-creator," who they have granted the privilege of seeing the literal Eye of God for purposes of artistic expression. This is an engaging tale of the relationship between the empath and the otherwise aloof, reserved Rethe, and what is revealed when the "art-creator" is rescued from his mishap. Nicely sketched aliens, a welcome dollop of the sense of wonder, and a different look at human-alien interaction make this one an enjoyable read on several fronts.

Stephen Dedman's "Transit" shows us a human-colonized planet with no one but hermaphrodites (via the bio-tech contraplants everyone is obliged to have installed at puberty, if I remember correctly). Then comes an off-world visitor stopping on this peaceful planet -- named da Vinci -- on her way to Earth, da Vinci being an interstellar way station in the galactic scheme. Enter the young and alluring Aisha, who sets one young lad's testrogen (my word) a-twizzle. (I've used the male case here because "s/he" is described as appearing more outwardly "male.") But the wicket -- if I may -- gets sticky when it is revealed that Aisha comes from the world of al-Gohara, which is puritanically Muslim. The conflicts, problems, and obstacles to be overcome are laid out nicely, if predictably. Will the sexually "free" young lad and the sexually "repressed" young lass finally get together? And what are they to do when she must leave for her pilgrimage to Earth? How will Aisha's parents deal with this? Lovers of happy endings won't mind if the answer is a tad simplistic; it's often enough that obstacles are overcome and love wins out. Still, a nice (if quick) examination of diametrically opposed views on sexuality which are based on deeply ingrained cultural/religious philosophies.

David Marusek's "Getting to Know You" is difficult to encapsulate in a short space. There are two stories vying for dominance -- that of a holographic scam of elderly dying patients, and that of a personalized computer "bug" that is programmed to cater to its owner's every thought. But this AI bug is so much more; cyber-sleuth, secretary, assistant, and friend. The future setting is noir, dreary and jam-packed with super high-tech gizmos; quite enough to make one dizzy and angst-filled at the same time. It's a cross between Silverberg's The World Inside and any of Bruce Sterling's dark cyber-tales. I'm not quite convinced either story is totally successful, but "Getting to Know You" is worth it for the well realized look at this stark future.

A tale of wild science and lost love serves as my second...

But the smoldering and lovely Marta is not entirely lost to the aged Eastaboga; for when he brings forth special crystal goblets -- and the light, and the cigarette smoke he blows their way are just right, a tiny, many-faceted Marta materializes and speaks softly to him of times past and love lost. Their bond is so strong that sometimes even a street fog wafting against a store window brings distorted, silent images of her.

Sad yet enchanting, "Radio Praha" is quite unforgettable.