The Inner City by Karen Heuler

Published by ChiZine Publications on February 26, 2013

A woman finds trouble when she sneaks into a business in New York City that vexes residents by stealing their parking spaces, trimming space from their apartments, and messing up their utility bills. Girls who have been manufactured with genes taken from dogs are playful and have limited attention spans, but they can be trained to do simple tasks if rewarded with treats. A tightrope walker meets an angel on her tightrope. A woman falls in love with a fish that grants her a wish. A girl sews pieces of meat together to reassemble an ungrateful cow. A man begins to walk lightly -- so lightly that he worries about floating away.

Strange stories? Yes. Yet the stories are told with wit and imagination. Some are dark, but even when things don't work out for the characters (really, if a fish wants to grant your wish, just walk away), the stories often reveal an underlying optimism.

Three stories stand out:

"The Great Spin" - When the Rapture comes, can the people who get left behind lay claim to all the stuff that belonged to the newly departed? And who will take care of their dogs? The irreverent kid who asks those questions (my kind of kid) may have been chosen for the Rapture -- or he may be a random victim of misfortune -- forcing his religious buddy to face a crisis of faith.

"Thick Water" - Explorers "go native" on an alien world, eating the thick water. A scientist left inside the dome, the only one left unchanged, wonders what to do.

"Beds" - Every day a bed disappears from a hospital ward, taken away on a truck, selected by doctors using unknown criteria. None of the patients want to be in that bed.

Some of the stories, including one about environmentalists dressed in business attire who grow out of the ground like cornstalks and eat salads made of cash, are a bit fanciful for my taste. Some are cute but insubstantial. A couple just didn't work for me. But every story is well-written, most are amusing, and the best are infused with meaning that belies their lightness.

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