Link, K., & Grant, G. J., eds. (2011). Steampunk!: An anthology of fantastically rich and strange stories. Somerville, MA: Candlewick Press. ISBN 978-0-7636-5797-0; paperback; $16.99.
“Where Steam Girl comes from, even the laws of physics are different. There’s a little magic in technology. Things are . . . less drab, less logical, less straightforward. Everything’s a little more . . . possible.” – Dylan Horrocks, “Steam Girl”
A girl falls in love with her automaton dance instructor. A group of orphans gain autonomy by creating a puppet from the body of the abusive caretaker they’ve killed. A boy avenges the death of his father by building an “oracle engine” fed on vengeful Greek and Roman legends. You’ll find all of these stories and more in this imaginative anthology of fourteen short stories of the steampunk genre.
Steampunk is like the science fiction of the past. These stories are centered around all manner of magic-infused mechanical gadgets: time travel devices, apparatuses that stop time, mechanical robots. Most of the stories are set in Victorian times, featuring steam-powered engines and pocket watches and corsets, but a few take place in the present or future. The common thread that binds them all together is that their characters risk all in the pursuit of curiosity and innovation.
If you like science fiction and fantasy, you’ll love these stories, which are a perfect blend of the two. The stories come in a variety of formats and writing styles – two are graphic novels – and the great thing is, if you’re not getting into a story, you can easily skip ahead to the next one! But I doubt that will happen – the odd characters and twisted plots in these action-packed stories make it hard to put this anthology down.
Check out steampunk fashion on Pinterest!
What is steampunk?
Here is a quick explanation:
Teen Book Buffet 