Speculative September – Michael Pryor – Ten Futures

This is a collection of 10 short stories, featuring the same two characters (Sam and Tara) in 10 future time zones/dystopias.  The first story ‘2100’ was very reminiscent of the Bicentennial Man movie and even Sci Fi classics like ‘The fun they had’ (Isaac Asimov) and ‘There will come soft rains’ (Ray Bradbury). Indeed, Pryor acknowledges the influence of Asimov and the like. I enjoyed the continuation of the characters throughout the book and seeing how they react to different situations.  I would love to introduce this book to an elective English class and think as a librarian it could be a good recommendation to those students who love dystopias like The Hunger Games (see story 2 – 2030).

Check out his website and the teacher guide for more…..

http://www.michaelpryor.com.au/novels/10-futures/

http://www.randomhouse.com.au/content/teachers/tsk_10futures.pdf