The Turning Place by Jean E. Karl
It's been far too long since I finished reading The Turning Place. I still remember a lot of the book, but the feeling of everything coming together that you get when you close a book is long gone.
This delay was not intentional. Life conspired against me with sick family members, house-sitting obligations, work trips, family trips, holiday trips, and birthday get-togethers.
Stupid life.
The Turning Place is a compilation of short sci-fi YA stories by Jean E. Karl spanning what must be hundreds of years. We start with an earth much like that of 1976—when the book was published—but with a dash of nearby aliens nervous about our potential expansion into the stars. From there, time leaps forward by decades and centuries, showing a new slice of life often directly impacted by the actions of the previous story. Characters don't double up, and the specifics don't carry over. The events of the last story have shaped the galaxy in which this story takes place. That is all.
Naturally, the stories often cover Big Moments when something momentous happens. At first, I loved seeing these unfurl. In time, though, I started to wish I could stay with the stories a little longer. Often, what's most interesting about change is how people and society at large grapple with it, but we miss almost all of that. I began to feel like I was reading a highlight reel rather than nuanced stories.
Reading started to become a bit of a chore. I didn't hate the stories, but the excitement wasn't there. I kinda expected to finish it dutifully, give it a mediocre review with a caveat that kids really into sci-fi might find it engaging, and call it a day.
It wasn't until late in the book that I began to see the nuance of each story building towards an emotional climax about what it means to be alive.
And once that came into focus, the stories I kinda stolidly marched through, out of a sense of obligation, took on new meanings. I could see myself as a kid reading the last page and then immediately flipping back to the first page to start over again—this time looking for the buildup and savoring how each moment affects the next.
It's still not perfect. There are a few stories that seemed a bit ho-hum and others that hit super hard. It doesn't feel well balanced, but perhaps that is part of the point. Ho-hum moments followed by massive excitement are certainly part and parcel of being alive.
Kids interested in sci-fi who don't need constant high-stakes action would almost certainly like The Turning Place. I wouldn't recommend it quite so highly for adults, mostly because even with the accumulation of an emotional arc, we still do miss out on those moments after a significant discovery where people are at their most exposed and honest. I feel like adults need those moments more than children do.
Cover Artist: Unknown :(
