'Pump Six and Other Stories' in the 'Windup Universe' series by Paolo Bacigalupi is a collection of cautionary and dystopian short stories set in a future world plagued by environmental and societal issues. The stories explore themes such as bioengineering, population control, corporate greed, and the consequences of human actions on the planet. Bacigalupi's writing style is described as dark, thought-provoking, and immersive, presenting complex environmental and social problems through the lens of individual characters dealing with the bleak realities of their world.

Characters:

The characters often embody a sense of powerlessness within oppressive systems, and their moral complexities enrich the narratives.

Writing/Prose:

The writing style is engaging, with sharp prose and well-crafted narratives, often featuring ambiguous and thought-provoking endings.

Plot/Storyline:

The stories revolve around dystopian themes, each delving into unique and dark futures shaped by overpopulation, environmental collapse, and biotechnology.

Setting:

The settings are predominantly dystopian and environmentally ruined worlds, reflecting the consequences of societal and technological failings.

Pacing:

The pacing is generally concise, engaging readers quickly within each story, although some narratives delve deeper and may feel slower.

It rose into the evening darkness, a massive city core, dwarfing even Chengdu's skyscrapers. Construction workers dangled from its rising skeleton, swinging from one section of growth to the next on l...

Notes:

Paolo Bacigalupi's collection includes ten biopunk stories that won the Locus Award for Best Collection.

The stories explore themes such as overpopulation, climate change, and environmental recklessness.

One story, 'Pocketful of Dharma,' features a young street urchin who finds a digital storage device.

In 'The Fluted Girl,' a girl is surgically modified to become a musical instrument under the control of her mistress.

'The People of Sand and Slag' features colleagues who discover a dog in a world where humans have undergone extreme body modifications.

'The Calorie Man' is set in Bacigalupi's Windup world, where bioterrorism has ravaged the global food supply.

'Pop Squad' examines a future where human evolution has led to an illegal ban on childbirth.

In 'Pump Six,' the protagonist, a sewage worker, tries to save a failing city in a world where intelligence has degraded.

Readers found Bacigalupi's work thought-provoking and often deeply disturbing, touching on heavy subject matter.

Many readers expressed a desire for Bacigalupi's short stories to be expanded into full-length novels.

Sensitive Topics/Content Warnings

Content warnings include disturbing imagery, body horror, violence, themes of death, and moral ambiguity.

From The Publisher:

Bacigalupi creates believable, detailed, lived-in futures that just happen to portray an ugly set of sunsets for humanity on Earth….He is a truly dark bard, in the spirit of Ellison at his most vivid and cynical.-The Daily Camera

From Paolo Bacigalupi, author of The Wind-Up Girl; winner of the Hugo, Nebula, and Locus Awards; and winner of the Theodore Sturgeon Memorial Award, comes a collection of eleven short science fiction stories. Social criticism, environmental advocacy, and political parable are at the core of Paolo's work. Each tale is simultaneously a warning and a celebration of the tragic comedy that is the human experience.

These eleven stories represent the best of Bacigalupi's work. They include the Hugo nominee "Yellow Card Man," the Sturgeon Award-winning story "The Calorie Man," and the Nebula- and Hugo-nominated story "The People of Sand and slag." Readers of Ted Chiang and Kelly Link will enjoy this collection.

Skyhorse Publishing, under our Night Shade and Talos imprints, is proud to publish a broad range of titles for readers interested in science fiction (space opera, time travel, hard SF, alien invasion, near-future dystopia), fantasy (grimdark, sword and sorcery, contemporary urban fantasy, steampunk, alternative history), and horror (zombies, vampires, and the occult and supernatural), and much more. While not every title we publish becomes a New York Times bestseller, a national bestseller, or a Hugo or Nebula award-winner, we are committed to publishing quality books from a diverse group of authors.

Ratings (1)

It Was OK (1)

Reader Stats (6):

Read It (1)
Want To Read (5)

What can you read after
Pump Six and Other Stories?

See the list (99 books)

Meet New Books is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a way for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to products and services on amazon.com and its subsidiaries.
When you click the Amazon link and make a purchase, we may receive a small commision, at no cost to you.

Pump Six and Other Stories

Paolo Bacigalupi

Book 1 in the series:Windup Universe