Exhalation

A collection of short stories that will make you think, grapple with big questions, and feel more human. The best kind of science fiction. -- Barack Obama

Beautifully written and conceived, this is a marvelous, astonishing collection that we would do well to read before the worlds it conjures are upon us. Urgently recommended. -- Alan Moore

One of the most exciting writers in science fiction . . . Although dark in premise, these parables – threaded through with references to ancient mythology and folklore – are filled with hope and humanism: a balm for anxious souls. ― The Daily Telegraph

Deeply beautiful . . . This book is as generous as it is marvelous, and I’m left feeling nothing so much as grateful for it. ― The New York Times

Chiang’s writing . . . inspires awe for the natural properties of the universe; it renders the fundamentals of science poignant and affecting. ― The Economist

A scintillating cavalcade of ideas . . . Chiang breathes new life into well-worn SF themes such as time travel, artificial intelligence and parallel universes. ― Financial Times

Ted Chiang is a superstar . . . Every sentence is the perfect incision in the dissection of the idea at hand. ― The Guardian

Illuminating, thrilling . . . Individual sentences possess the windowpane transparency that George Orwell advocated as a prose ideal. -- Joyce Carol Oates, The New Yorker

Chiang is a virtuoso of short fiction . . . This collection is a stunning achievement in speculative fiction, from an author whose star will only continue to rise. ― Los Angeles Review of Books

Breaks down what it really means to be human ― TIME

Meticulously crafted and innovative short fiction . . . Masterful and striking . . . plucks both heartstrings and gray matter in equal measure ― The Washington Post

Ted Chiang’s stories are lean, relentless, and incandescent. -- Colson Whitehead

We all know Ted Chiang is a fucking genius, but: Ted Chiang is a fucking genius. -- Carmen Maria Machado

Ted Chiang has no contemporary peers . . . His name deserves to be mentioned in the same breath as Carver, Poe, Borges, and Kafka . . . You will inhale Exhalation in a single, stunned sitting, because true genius doesn’t come along nearly as often as advertised. This is the real thing. -- Blake Crouch

Ted Chiang writes with such a matter-of-fact grace and visionary power that one simply takes on faith that his worlds and his characters exist, whether they are human or robot or parrot. -- Karen Russell

A beguiling mix of compassion and awe, worthy of comparisons to the work of Philip K. Dick . . . An immensely pleasing book ― San Francisco Chronicle

So jammed with brilliant, mind-exploding ideas it's like the author packed fireworks between the covers -- NPR

Chiang produces deeply moving drama from fascinating first premises . . . These stories are brilliant experiments, and [Chiang’s] commitment to exploring deep human questions elevates them to among the very best science fiction. -- Publisher’s Weekly, starred review

This stellar collection . . . begins with an instant classic . . . Visionary speculative stories that will change the way readers see themselves and the world around them: This book delivers in a big way. -- Kirkus Reviews, starred review

Each of his devastating stories mines little pieces of humanity from unexpected points of view. ― Vulture

Explores emotional and physical landscapes with precise and incisive prose . . . Chiang remains one of the most skilled stylists in SF, and this will appeal to genre and literary fiction fans alike. -- Booklist, starred review

Chiang is always thought-provoking, and his latest collection is no exception. -- Library Journal, starred review

Chiang is a master. . . . The Alice Munro of science fiction ― LitHub

[Chiang] is so good that this book qualifies as an event. ― Newsday

Ted Chiang has long been one of science fiction’s best-kept secrets. ― GQ