Changing Planes

I read this on the actual airplane to Worldcon last week.

I would have preferred to simply stay on the same plane rather than going through the hassle of changing planes.

It's an odd sort of linked collection. Each piece functions more as a travelogue than a traditional story with a proper narrative arc.

Instead, Le Guin effortlessly builds new worlds. She devotes just five pages to ideas that other writers might spend entire novels exploring, perhaps out of fear of never having such a great idea again.

There's a first-person protagonist who is only described in relation to the worlds she is visiting. We learn very little about her, but curiously, it doesn't seem to matter.

Le Guin isn't typically known for her humor, but there is a distinct humor in this collection, at times wry and ironic. For example, there's a world populated by royalty, all of whom are intrigued by the single family of commoners. Or a plane that is exploited by a holiday-themed resort company.

Other stories are unexpectedly poignant.

The ideas here possess a casual genius that makes me extremely glad to have read this. It offers a unique and captivating reading experience that is both thought-provoking and entertaining.

Perhaps this is the coolest collection of fantastic stories I have ever read. The main heroine, a tourist, travels between worlds, constantly exploring new nations, their life philosophies and customs. The method of travel is simple - as soon as you get tired of sitting in a stuffy airport, you travel somewhere to kill time.

The inhabitants of the world of Hennebet live several lives, but not like in reincarnation. It is impossible to explain to them what a soul is, and in general, it is difficult to understand them in metaphysical questions.

The brutal people of Vexi will bark at a dying person on his deathbed because he has left them, and at the same time, they will incredibly write that their relative has lived to the time when his fur has turned white.

In the world of Aislak, plush bears were crossed with a bug with a newt's tail so that they would be small, cute and alive. It is not difficult to guess that nothing good came of this. Further fascination with genetic modifications led to the collapse of the entire world. The waitress the heroine talks to is a biologist, but she cannot find a decent job because she is up to 4%... corn!

In the silent nation of Azon, only children are talkative. With age, they speak less and less until words become completely unnecessary for them. Tourists, seeing such a feature, often get Azonians to talk about their lives. One mischievous scientist kidnaps a child to prove that adults simply force children to be silent over time. The cruel treatment of the child closes the entrance for tourists to this fragile world of silence forever.

In Anzara, each year lasts 24 Earth years. Due to the terrible drought in summer, all inhabitants are forced to migrate north, leaving their sunny cities. The transition is very difficult, and each Anzarian makes a maximum of three such transitions in life. Many old people die on the way or settle in temporary housing to slowly await their death. In the north, people live in villages, in pairs. All spring and summer they actively love each other, have children and raise them. In autumn, they travel back to the cities, where they live in communities according to their interests. Children go to school and gradually become independent. Sex is not practiced in the cities; there they study, work, and invent. The balance of the world is disrupted when the barbarians come, the inhabitants of the technological world, and shame the Anzarians for their way of life, offering an alternative.

Dreams in the world of Frin are not something personal because everyone shares your dream with you, and you share their dreams with them. So you can see fragments of the dreams of your relatives, neighbors, and even pets. All dreams mix, influencing each other.

In the world of Hegan, there are so many people of royal blood who have to follow a bunch of aristocratic rules that observing those few common people and their everyday problems is better than any Brazilian soap opera.

Businessmen and large corporations have reached an unremarkable primitive world and turned its islands into holiday islands: Christmas Island - on which Christmas is celebrated every day, Easter Island, New Year's Island, and the 4th of July Island. Only the inhabitants of the world on these islands are imprisoned, forced to give elves and rabbits every day and speak an incomprehensible language. Tourists are happy, but the tubercular patients are not at all.

Scientists are checking the theory that people waste a lot of time on sleep, and if we could all not sleep, we would be able to develop twice as fast. To confirm the experiment, they take babies and teach them not to sleep. However, instead of highly intellectual geniuses, apathetic semi-animals come out of the children.

The language of the people of Nna Mmu is so complex that it is impossible for a foreigner to learn it. The native inhabitants themselves learn their language all their lives. Their world is dull, everything is safe there, the flora and fauna are poor, but very suitable for obtaining food and resources. This simplicity is compensated for by the complexity of their language, each word of which has countless meanings and changes depending on the words that surround it. Their writing is non-linear and looks like the branches of trees growing in all directions or like the spirals of sophisticated flowers.

The world of Gaia is inhabited by human-birds: their heads and bodies are covered with feathers, their culture resembles the Victorian era, and they absolutely do not want to develop further. Tourists adore this world because of the atmosphere, but they despise the inhabitants of Gaia because they are in feathers but do not have wings. But this is not true. Once in a thousand people, a mutation occurs and wings grow. This is accompanied by terrible pains. After this, people either tie their wings and try to live as before, or they dedicate their whole lives to flight. But it's not all so rosy for the flyers. Once in a lifetime, the wings fail and never work again. This can happen at any moment: during the first or even during the hundred and first flight.

Learning that there are immortal people in one of the worlds, the heroine sets off in search of them and is surprised that no one in this world tells her about this miracle and avoids the question. All the immortals live on a distant island where they used to mine diamonds. When she sees an immortal who is more than three thousand years old and is looked after by a local family, she understands why this topic is not liked to be talked about.

One should also try the method of City Dipl and travel to some new world while waiting for the plane.

Ever feel uncomfortable in an airport? The long lines seem to stretch on forever,

the invasive security measures make you feel violated, and the unpleasant customs agents add to the stress.

The overpriced airport food is a rip-off, and the bad elevator music plays non-stop, grating on your nerves.

But what if the discomfort of waiting for a flight in an airport could actually cause you to change from one "plane" of reality to another?

Thanks to the different flow of time in other planes, you could spend a week visiting another plane and still return in time to make a connecting flight.

Each chapter in this story features a new plane, each one unique. Some are horrifying, sending shivers down your spine.

Others are delightful, filled with wonder and beauty. Some are full of danger and adventures, testing your courage and resourcefulness.

And some are made for relaxation and contemplative silence, allowing you to unwind and reflect.

The author has put so much creativity into these stories! She focuses on language, culture, history, and takes you on little anthropological tours through some of the stranger societies in the multiverse.

I thought it was brilliant! It's not only very entertaining but also thought-provoking, making you question the nature of reality and our place in it.

I guess we can refer to these as short stories, but that's only because I don't truly have another suitable name for them. Perhaps they are more akin to essays?

In this collection, beginning with the premise that the state of being in an airport, waiting for the next plane (experiencing boredom, fatigue, and indigestion), enables one to traverse between different planes of existence. Le Guin writes about these worlds in a sort of travelogue - presenting descriptions and vignettes of other worlds that bear resemblances to, yet are distinct from, our own.

There are peoples who have jumbled their genomes, individuals whose language is impossible to master, those who never utter a word, and others who sometimes sprout wings.

I discovered this to be charming, imaginative, and thought-provoking. However, if you are in need of something with a well-defined plot and character development, then this might not be the right choice for you.

Pues nada, parece que estoy haciendo pleno con mis libros elegidos de ciencia ficción. Voy acertando en mis elecciones y eso me hace disfrutar de lecturas que de otro modo habría abandonado.

En este caso, la autora nos presenta una serie de relatos que me han llamado mucho la atención. He notado una clara similitud con "Los viajes de Gulliver" en algunos de ellos. De hecho, en uno de los relatos finales, ella misma pone en boca de la narradora un miniensayo de la obra de Swift.

Cada relato muestra distintas acciones y actitudes de los habitantes de los planos. Y la ironía y crítica cuando se compara con la raza humana son innegables.

Me ha gustado mucho el sentido del humor y la forma de escribir de la autora. Sin embargo, he notado algo curioso. Tiene una absoluta fijación con las violaciones. Parece que en muchos relatos del libro se habla de ello.

Como en todo compendio de relatos, siempre hay unos que gustan más que otros. Mis preferidos son "Los Voladores de Gy", "Como en casa con los hennebet", "La Isla de los Inmortales", "Gran felicidad" y "La realeza de Hegn". Además, me ha encantado cómo describe los Jardines de Lectura de la Biblioteca Imperial.

¿Recomendaría este libro? Sí, definitivamente. Es muy entretenido y me ha dado muchas horas de disfrute.

A book of short stories about travels to parallel planes. Planes that you can access while waiting at the airport for your flight.

Ursula K Le Guin never ceases to amaze me. In this book, she tells us about different parallel societies where what she is actually doing is reflecting on human society. It has seemed fantastic to me. It's as if you were reading anthropology articles and I have really enjoyed it a lot.

It reminded me very much of her story "The Ones Who Walk Away from Omelas", which to this day remains my favorite of hers. Her stories stay with you for a long time after reading them.

4.5 ★彡 This collection of short stories takes the reader on a fascinating journey through various parallel planes. Each story offers a unique perspective on different aspects of society, making it not only an entertaining read but also a thought-provoking one. Le Guin's writing is masterful, drawing the reader in and making them feel as if they are actually experiencing these parallel worlds. The connections between the stories and the real world are both subtle and profound, adding an extra layer of depth to the book. Overall, it is a must-read for fans of science fiction and anyone interested in exploring the human condition.

A sweet (and sometimes despairing) journey through worlds and ideas that never got to develop into full-fledged stories on their own.

Le Guin's work is truly captivating. Her powerful imagination allows her to create vivid and unique worlds that draw the reader in.

Moreover, her anthropological approach to stories adds an extra layer of depth. She explores the cultures, societies, and behaviors of the characters in a way that makes them feel real and relatable.

Even though these are just snippets of ideas that didn't fully develop into complete stories, they still offer a glimpse into Le Guin's creative mind.

Reading her work is like taking a journey through different dimensions, experiencing new and exciting things along the way.

Whether it's the sweet moments of discovery or the despairing ones of loss, Le Guin's writing always manages to evoke strong emotions in the reader.

Overall, her work is a fascinating read that will leave you wanting more.

I have enjoyed reading this short story collection. However, it is not a book that I would recommend as I feel that the stories end up being a bit "nothing." By that "nothing," I mean that the author doesn't have enough time to deepen those ideas and develop them better.

Regarding the ideas, I think the 16 short stories have good ideas. Among those 16, at least half have very good ideas that could even be ideal for a novel.

Reading this author is always a pleasure, both because of her ideas and her style.

I have probably been a bit generous in some scores, but they are very easy to read and enjoyable.

(Score out of 10)

-El método de Sita Dulip (7)

-Gachas en Islac (8)

-El silencio de los asonu (7)

-Como en casa con los hennebet (6)

-La cólera de los veksi (5.5)

-Las estaciones de los ansarac (7)

-El sueño social de los frin (6)

-La realeza de Hegn (7.5)

-Cuentos tristes de Mahigul (5.5)

-Gran felicidad (7)

-La Isla Despierta (7.5)

-La lengua de Nna Mmoy (4)

-El Edificio (4)

-Los Voladores de Gy (8)

-La isla de los Inmortales (8)

-Las confusiones de Uñi (6)