Do Not Kiss Isabel by Sergiu Someşan

Witty and erudite, this collection of fantasy fiction, while set in a futuristic civilization, actually underscores the timeless, universal qualities that make us human: the search for love and meaning in our lives, a fundamental compassion for fellow beings, the resilience of humor that renders desperation bearable. Sergiu Somesan draws on surreal images of advanced societies (automaton-soldiers programmed with computer chips, time-altering technologies, the lovely android Isabel of the title story), yet grounds them in classic legends ranging from creation mythologies to an invasion of the Huns. Even as we laugh at the absurdity of governmental dicta regarding the fate of an infant deemed a "military genius," we are stopped cold at the mother's loss of that child ("Goo-Goo-Ga-Ga General"); our chuckles at the very practical fears of friends on an outing turn to chills at the imminent demise of Planet Earth when a computer program solves the "unsolvable" Tower of Brahma ("The Egg"). In a world where technology seems capable of anything, readers are reminded that we humans with our faults and foibles still lend the elements of love, laughter, and common sense-a comforting and reassuring endorsement, after all, of our humanity!