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Who says "impossible"?
Despite the achievements of Stanislaw Lem and Italo Calvino whose works received rave reviews, many high-brow readers look down on those who indulge themselves with science fiction. The problem with most sci-fi stories is that they seem too far-fetched to be taken seriously, with all the aliens, future state-of-the-art technologies that often seem ridiculous, and the characters from the future invented to amaze rather than make us sympathize with them. Moreover, the plot often seems to develop only in order to stuff the potential movie adaptations with special effects.
Having said that, we should avoid such stereotypical assesment of all science fiction publications. The fact that there are hundreds of dumbing-down sitcoms does not imply that nothing shown on TV can be valuable. The same has to be stated about science fiction stories.
If you are looking for moving, memorable reading, why not try some of Connie Willis' fiction? Don't let the sci-fi label mislead you - it is not hackneyed images of the future that her writing is all about. Willis' "Impossible Things" collection is indeed set in the future, but it is not the kind of future that we are used to after watching Hollywood blockbusters. On the contrary, when you start turning pages of her stories, you will find their plots both brilliantly creative and moving. Some of them seem only hilarious (e.g. the future of menstruation pictured in "Even the Queen"), but when one thinks it over, they give a genuine insight in the problems of the mankind (in this very case, the impact of the feminist movement on women's lives).
How come? Connie Willis is certainly a virtuoso of imagination. Basing on our today's, common problems, she considers their implications and developes stories which no one else would probably think of, but which are on the other hand so realistic that readers will consider them highly believable. After reading "Impossible things" I doubt anything is impossible. Maybe one thing only - that you will regret reading Willis's stories.