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Rating: 
Summary: Fantastic Survey of the Field!
Review: Dozois is, and has long been, one of the best editors and anthologizers in all of SF. The anthology ranges over the many different sub-genres of Science Fiction, and I therefore cannot say I enjoyed all of his stories; nevertheless, all were well-written, and some of the stories were among the best I've ever read. I strongly recommend this and any other of Dozois' "Year's Best..." series.
Rating:
Summary: Fantastic Survey of the Field!
Review: Dozois is, and has long been, one of the best editors and anthologizers in all of SF. The anthology ranges over the many different sub-genres of Science Fiction, and I therefore cannot say I enjoyed all of his stories; nevertheless, all were well-written, and some of the stories were among the best I've ever read. I strongly recommend this and any other of Dozois' "Year's Best..." series.
Rating: 
Summary: Slim pickens in this edition
Review: Note-see also my reviews of other hard to find-but far superior--First, Second, and Fourth Annual editions.
"Rachel in Love" by Pat Murphy. A chimp with a teenager girl's brain must fend for herself after her brilliant father/creator dies. A poignant exploration of the best and worst in human nature. B
"Dream Baby" by Bruce McCallister. A young volunteer nurse in Viet Nam begins having prophetic nightmares about soldiers getting butchered in combat. Scary, graphically violent. B `"Flowers of Edo" by Bruce Sterling. Seemingly straight fictional account of East meets West in 1860's Japan explodes with a supernatural surprise at the end. As usual, Sterling conjures up intriguing characters and astonishingly vivid prose. A
"Forever Yours, Anna" by Kate Wilhelm. World-weary divorced graphologist falls in love with an unknown woman's handwriting. Moving character study with an elegant surprise finish. A
"At the Cross-Time Jaunter's Ball" by Alexander Jablokov. A tongue-in-cheek look at the love-hate relationship between artist and critic is the highlight of this meandering story about a man cut adrift in an ever-changing sea of alternate worlds. C
"Dinosaurs" by Walter Jon Williams. How will we evolve over the next six million years? That's the subject of this spellbinder about an eighteen-foot tall human diplomat who comes to a planet of inferior canine creatures to hammer out a peace treaty. Brilliant scientific speculation (humans bioengineer everything, including the furniture), and dialog crackling with trenchant social and political satire. A+
"The Temporary King" by Paul J. McAuley. Mysterious offworld traveler/adventurer drops in on a backwoods Earth village and stirs the pot big time. C+
"Perpetuity Blues" by Neal Barrett, Jr. Girl reared by degenerate uncle. Zzzz.
"Buffalo Gals, Won't You Come Out Tonight" by Ursula K. LeGuin. Girl reared by magic coyote. Zzzz.
"The Pardoner's Tale" by Robert Silverberg. Squid-like entities enslave Earth, save for a handful of artful hackers who can manipulate their intricate computer identification systems. While in Los Angeles, the cleverest of them all falls into an even cleverer trap. B
"Glass Cloud" by James Patrick Kelly. Kelly's aliens enslave humans far more subtly than Silverberg's, but just as surely. In the near future, a frustrated architect ponders his broken marriage, his future, and metaphysics under the growing influence of an inscrutable alien presence. B
"The Morning and the Evening and the Night" by Octavia E. Butler. The cure for cancer leads to an even more horrific disease, with which a tight-knit group of young afflicted must come to terms. As in Butler's "Bloodchild" from the Second Annual, cannibalistic gore stands in stark contrast to a tender exploration of the human condition. B
"Night of the Cooters" by Howard Waldrop. A few of H.G. Wells' Martians get off track and land in a sleepy Texas cow town. True to form, the cooters fire up their flame-throwers, but the Texans stay cool. Snappy narrative peppered with humorous Old West jargon. B
"Angel" by Pat Cadigan. A couple of misfits-one human, one not-team up to get more out of life. C
"Shades" by Lucius Shepard. A journalist is lured back to Viet Nam to meet the ghost of his former squad leader. The psychodrama is slightly less compelling than in his earlier Best contributions, but still good. B
"The Faithful Companion at Forty" by Karen Joy Fowler. A bit of whimsy about Tonto and his labor of love, The Lone Ranger. B
"Candle in a Cosmic Wind" by Joseph Manzione. Wow. The author's first published story is a tour de force of well-articulated hard science, dazzling plot, and fantastic characterization, revolving around a female Soviet soldier who is the sole survivor of an all-out nuclear war. Full of surprises! A+
"The Emir's Clock" by Ian Watson. God sends us a message, but not the one we want to hear. C
"Ever After" by Susan Patwick. As Dozois observes, we see the "gritty underside" of a fairy tale-a Cinderella story of deadly court intrigues and sinister magic. B
"The Forest of Time" by Michael F. Flynn. Thought-provoking alternate history: in a somber, balkanized North America, a faltering Pennsylvanian army captures a traveler from our world. The soldiers can't decide whether he's a spy, a madman-or an opportunity. A
"The Million-Dollar Wound" by Dean Whitlock. Soldiers in a surgically advanced near future can't get injured badly enough to buy a ticket home. C
"Moon of the Popping Trees" by R. Garcia y Robinson. With Indians on the verge of annihilation at Wounded Knee, a medicine man has relativistic visions of peace that baffle a local schoolteacher. C
"Diner" by Neal Barrett, Jr. Zzzz.
"All the Hues of Hell" by Gene Wolfe. Zzzz.
"Halley's Passing" by Michael McDowell. Sickeningly violent slice of a meticulous murderer's life. D
"America" by Orson Scott Card. The Lord reenacts his Incarnation to avenge the sins of Western man. Or something like that: paradoxically, this clearly and skillfully written narrative is a thematic hodgepodge of environmentalism, mysticism, anti-Catholicism and anti-capitalism. D
"For Thus Do I Remember Carthage" by Michael Bishop. Saint Augustine's long lost son returns from Cathay to confront him with what we know as modern scientific knowledge and gadgets. The dying Augustine bitterly rejects him and them. As with oh, so many stories in this volume, the point eludes me. C
"Mother Goddess of the World" by Kim Stanley Robinson. A lighthearted adventure about climbing Everest. Not nearly as good as Robinson's previous Best contributions. C
Rating:
Summary: Slim pickens in this edition
Review: Note-see also my reviews of other hard to find-but far superior--First, Second, and Fourth Annual editions.
"Rachel in Love" by Pat Murphy. A chimp with a teenager girl's brain must fend for herself after her brilliant father/creator dies. A poignant exploration of the best and worst in human nature. B
"Dream Baby" by Bruce McCallister. A young volunteer nurse in Viet Nam begins having prophetic nightmares about soldiers getting butchered in combat. Scary, graphically violent. B '"Flowers of Edo" by Bruce Sterling. Seemingly straight fictional account of East meets West in 1860's Japan explodes with a supernatural surprise at the end. As usual, Sterling conjures up intriguing characters and astonishingly vivid prose. A
"Forever Yours, Anna" by Kate Wilhelm. World-weary divorced graphologist falls in love with an unknown woman's handwriting. Moving character study with an elegant surprise finish. A
"At the Cross-Time Jaunter's Ball" by Alexander Jablokov. A tongue-in-cheek look at the love-hate relationship between artist and critic is the highlight of this meandering story about a man cut adrift in an ever-changing sea of alternate worlds. C
"Dinosaurs" by Walter Jon Williams. How will we evolve over the next six million years? That's the subject of this spellbinder about an eighteen-foot tall human diplomat who comes to a planet of inferior canine creatures to hammer out a peace treaty. Brilliant scientific speculation (humans bioengineer everything, including the furniture), and dialog crackling with trenchant social and political satire. A+
"The Temporary King" by Paul J. McAuley. Mysterious offworld traveler/adventurer drops in on a backwoods Earth village and stirs the pot big time. C+
"Perpetuity Blues" by Neal Barrett, Jr. Girl reared by degenerate uncle. Zzzz.
"Buffalo Gals, Won't You Come Out Tonight" by Ursula K. LeGuin. Girl reared by magic coyote. Zzzz.
"The Pardoner's Tale" by Robert Silverberg. Squid-like entities enslave Earth, save for a handful of artful hackers who can manipulate their intricate computer identification systems. While in Los Angeles, the cleverest of them all falls into an even cleverer trap. B
"Glass Cloud" by James Patrick Kelly. Kelly's aliens enslave humans far more subtly than Silverberg's, but just as surely. In the near future, a frustrated architect ponders his broken marriage, his future, and metaphysics under the growing influence of an inscrutable alien presence. B
"The Morning and the Evening and the Night" by Octavia E. Butler. The cure for cancer leads to an even more horrific disease, with which a tight-knit group of young afflicted must come to terms. As in Butler's "Bloodchild" from the Second Annual, cannibalistic gore stands in stark contrast to a tender exploration of the human condition. B
"Night of the Cooters" by Howard Waldrop. A few of H.G. Wells' Martians get off track and land in a sleepy Texas cow town. True to form, the cooters fire up their flame-throwers, but the Texans stay cool. Snappy narrative peppered with humorous Old West jargon. B
"Angel" by Pat Cadigan. A couple of misfits-one human, one not-team up to get more out of life. C
"Shades" by Lucius Shepard. A journalist is lured back to Viet Nam to meet the ghost of his former squad leader. The psychodrama is slightly less compelling than in his earlier Best contributions, but still good. B
"The Faithful Companion at Forty" by Karen Joy Fowler. A bit of whimsy about Tonto and his labor of love, The Lone Ranger. B
"Candle in a Cosmic Wind" by Joseph Manzione. Wow. The author's first published story is a tour de force of well-articulated hard science, dazzling plot, and fantastic characterization, revolving around a female Soviet soldier who is the sole survivor of an all-out nuclear war. Full of surprises! A+
"The Emir's Clock" by Ian Watson. God sends us a message, but not the one we want to hear. C
"Ever After" by Susan Patwick. As Dozois observes, we see the "gritty underside" of a fairy tale-a Cinderella story of deadly court intrigues and sinister magic. B
"The Forest of Time" by Michael F. Flynn. Thought-provoking alternate history: in a somber, balkanized North America, a faltering Pennsylvanian army captures a traveler from our world. The soldiers can't decide whether he's a spy, a madman-or an opportunity. A
"The Million-Dollar Wound" by Dean Whitlock. Soldiers in a surgically advanced near future can't get injured badly enough to buy a ticket home. C
"Moon of the Popping Trees" by R. Garcia y Robinson. With Indians on the verge of annihilation at Wounded Knee, a medicine man has relativistic visions of peace that baffle a local schoolteacher. C
"Diner" by Neal Barrett, Jr. Zzzz.
"All the Hues of Hell" by Gene Wolfe. Zzzz.
"Halley's Passing" by Michael McDowell. Sickeningly violent slice of a meticulous murderer's life. D
"America" by Orson Scott Card. The Lord reenacts his Incarnation to avenge the sins of Western man. Or something like that: paradoxically, this clearly and skillfully written narrative is a thematic hodgepodge of environmentalism, mysticism, anti-Catholicism and anti-capitalism. D
"For Thus Do I Remember Carthage" by Michael Bishop. Saint Augustine's long lost son returns from Cathay to confront him with what we know as modern scientific knowledge and gadgets. The dying Augustine bitterly rejects him and them. As with oh, so many stories in this volume, the point eludes me. C
"Mother Goddess of the World" by Kim Stanley Robinson. A lighthearted adventure about climbing Everest. Not nearly as good as Robinson's previous Best contributions. C
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