Miniatures

The Very Short Fiction of John Scalzi

By: John Scalzi

Narrated by: Khristine Hvam, Peter Ganim, Luke Daniels, John Scalzi, Greg Cope White, Fred Berman

Length: 2 hrs and 54 mins

Publisher's summary

The ex-planet Pluto has a few choice words about being thrown out of the solar system. A listing of alternate histories tells you all the various ways Hitler has died. A lawyer sues an interplanetary union for dangerous working conditions. And four artificial intelligences explain, in increasingly worrying detail, how they plan not to destroy humanity. Welcome to Miniatures: The Very Short Fiction of John Scalzi.

These four stories, along with 14 other pieces, have one thing in common: They're short, sharp, and to the point - science fiction in miniature, with none of the stories longer than 2,300 words. But in that short space exist entire universes, absurd situations, and the sort of futuristic humor that propelled Scalzi to a Hugo with his novel Redshirts. Not to mention yogurt taking over the world (as it would).

Spanning the years from 1991 to 2016, this collection is a quarter century of Scalzi at his briefest and best and features four never-before-published stories exclusive to this collection: "Morning Announcements at the Lucas Interspecies School for Troubled Youth", "Your Smart Appliances Talk About You Behind Your Back", "Important Holidays on Gronghu", and "The AI Are Absolutely Positively Without a Doubt Not Here to End Humanity, Honest".

John Scalzi is the New York Times best-selling author of Old Man's War, Lock In, and Redshirts, among others. His work has won the Hugo and Locus Awards and been nominated for the Nebula and Campbell Awards. He lives in Ohio and online. He enjoys pie.

Full cast of narrators includes Oliver Wyman, Dina Pearlman, and Allyson Johnson.

©2016 John Scalzi (P)2016 Audible, Inc.

Critic reviews

"The production includes six narrators, including Scalzi, with each taking on two or more stories. This proves a smart choice.... Between the narrators and the stories, this collection proves to be a perfect introduction for listeners wanting to get a comprehensive sense of Scalzi's style." ( AudioFile)

Great variety of stories, with intros by author.

What did you love best about Miniatures?

Most of the stories made me laugh out loud! And since I listened to it in the car, I got some really funny looks. (Which, in my opinion, makes it just that much more fun!)

What was one of the most memorable moments of Miniatures?

Hard to choose because each of the stories is so unique. My favorite is 'Denise Jones, Superbooker'. OMG!! So hilarious! The last 'story', though, is a poem he wrote to Penelope (wife of Odysseus), which is extremely sweet. Very touching.

Which character – as performed by the narrators – was your favorite?

So many characters, so many voices.... The kids in the Lemonade story had the perfect whiny tones. Ha!

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

Not necessary because the stories are so short, but I did want to because it was so entertaining.

Any additional comments?

Could not have asked for a more enjoyable two+ hours of entertainment. If you like Scalzi's work, this is a must-have.

A Gem

Imaginative writing by John Scalzi. very enjoyable. Mostly humor, and all good reads. Highly recommended.

Greatshort stories of each authors - Great!

Loved every Stories of each authors and each of their uniquely contrived characters & their activities & backgrounds !!! I therefore I was very happy how all the characters are & the fantastic storylines too !!!!!!!!

witty with a surprise ending!

these are delightful. and the poem...
I do not know if in your writers mind's eye, you pictured someone waiting a love ptsd has made distant & ultimately impossible. however, intended. you nailed it.
definitely telling my vet group.
I know a bit about both sides of the ptsd equation.
I''m a vietnam vet. (21 months) and yes, I Saw combat.

Entertaining if not essential

Hardly essential, but definitely entertaining for the erstwhile Scalzi fan. Very funny stuff.

4.5 stars

Scalzi, always genius

This is a bit of everything that makes him an amazing author. I'd def pay for a field trip to his mind any day.

A wonderful humorous collection of short stories!

This is the second anthology of short stories by John Scalzi that I have read, and I definitely enjoyed them. Not only has Scalzi included a wonderful collection of short stories here, but each one comes with an introduction in which the author provides the reader with a little bit of information about the short story in question.

Among my favorites in this collection were "To Sue the World" due to its connection to Redshirts, which I loved when I read it, "How I Keep Myself Amused on Long Flights" and "How I Keep Myself Amused on Long Flights, Part II," "When the Yogurt Took Over" for its sheer craziness, and "Missives from Possible Futures #1," which had my husband and me laughing out loud while listening.

I definitely recommend listening to this anthology. The different stories have different narrators, all of which did great jobs with their assigned short stories. Of the various narrators, I had only listened to one of them previously - Luke Daniels - though I do have a few audiobooks in my TBR list with one of the other narrators, and I am now looking forward to listening to those books even more.

Brighten a dull day some fun

This book is short and light weight but gloriously funny, filled with John Scalzi's imagination par excellence. I laughed all the way through and was sorry when it ended. Recommended with happy laughter to brighten your day.

Excellent narrators, each perfect for the particular part they read, made it even more enjoyable. Thank you Mr Scalzi.

Some of the greatest humors of sci-fi unleashed.

I have always been a fan of Scalzi's writing. He's had these streak of books that have never failed to amuse and engage. so sit back and enjoy.

Overall, more great stories than okay ones

I'm not generally a short story person, but I am a John Scalzi person. Overall, there were a lot of stories that I really liked. And there were a couple that were okay but not gripping. And I'm not a poetry fan.
If you like Scalzi, you'll like this. The narrators do an amazing job. If you're not generally a short story person, listen to the stories and narration.