Joanna Russ, ‘Useful Phrases for the Tourist’ (1972)

A four-page piece written as a series of phrases uttered by a tourist to an alien planet. This manages both to be amusing (‘This cannot be my room because I cannot breathe ammonia’), and to hint at a complete story. Very neatly done.

Rating: ****

This is one of a series of posts on the anthology Not the Only Planet.

1 Comment

  1. This is a wonderful story. I have rarely laughed more times per page.

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