Twelve imaginative tales of nonstandard speculative fiction: Can man ever escape life’s quality of the unforeseen? How should one best prepare to secure a chance for life after death? Is the universe far stranger than we can imagine? How transferable is identity? To what heights can sorrow and a need for purpose lift a man? Will utopia necessarily be recognized when it is encountered? Is it possible for a young man to develop the wisdom necessary to face an extraterrestrial perception of evil? Can loneliness and love serve as the catalyst for the birth of something miraculous? When is a handicap of the mind an advantage? What happens to a man after his faith is removed by science? Is mankind fated to eventually return to the sea? Can a dying man save the world? The twelve tales: Little Miracle What if belief in God is centered in a spot in one’s brain? And what if a pill could erase that belief, while boosting one’s intelligence? Just Add Water A tale of an old man who makes an important choice regarding his future, in a time when people have themselves frozen after they die in hopes of being reawakened at some later point in time. The Transfer Mechanism A tale that addresses the scientific mindset and the idea that the universe we live in may be far stranger than we can hope to imagine. The Mind of Juda A tale that touches upon the philosophical question of identity, and how this question may deepen in a future of sufficiently advanced technology. Wonderland A tale about a man, a dolphin, mermaids, and how humankind might become harmfully addicted to certain future technology… Box of the Supermen A utopian tale about a man who is in need of a new cause to pursue and is unexpectedly offered one, only to find that he is unsure if he should accept. Day of the Women A tale of a young man who receives an unexpected opportunity that surprisingly leads him on an interstellar voyage to a far distant planet, and toward intellectual maturity. Painting Penelope A tale of a lonely artist who spends his time imagining an ideal love… and what happens when the unexpected enters his life. Great and Mighty Things A tale of a man who is looking for a cure to a rare disease that he suffers from, one which makes him incapable of feeling fear… His search leads him to seek out a most unusual former world chess champion and reputed big-game hunter, and to experience the extraordinary. Garden Metamorphosis A tale of a priest who decides to take the ultimate test of faith in the form of a pill known as Little Miracle, which cures temporal-lobe epilepsy, boosts memory, and increases intelligence. The pill, however, also eliminates religiosity and the predisposition to believe in God… Fragile in the Sun A tale of an undersea diver who falls into dangerous and unexpected circumstances while seeking a time out from life in order to better come to terms with the death of his mentor, a prophetic luminary of marine science. Winged Men of the Lost Planet A utopian tale featuring a heroic man who declares that he will change the world, only to learn something totally unexpected that may prevent him from attempting to do so.
