Today I Remember

Insight and imagination infuse the stories of this eclectic collection from Shoemaker (The Last Dance), each of which pays homage to the author’s departed friends, family, coworkers, and fellow artists. Inspired by people who influenced Shoemaker’s career and life, these short works of science fiction double as love letters to those who’ve died. The two poignant stories dedicated to his parents take on dementia: in the title story, a patient’s implant helps him remember his tragic past as a circus performer, and in “Today I Am Paul,” an android caretaker impersonates the neglectful family members of its Alzheimer’s patients. In the melancholy standout “Bookmarked,” a dying man records his brain activity in an artificial consciousness that crashes and reboots each day, erasing his memories. Shoemaker breaks up the sorrow with welcome doses of humor, as in the epistolary “Il Gran Cavallo,” which finds Leonardo da Vinci transforming his famous bronze horse statue, and the comedy of errors of “The Vampire’s New Clothes.” The gritty action thriller “Scramble” offers another tonal shift, as the members of the Tycho Rescue squad search for survivors of a crashed spaceship. These powerful, carefully rendered tales are sure to draw in readers. (July)