This short story was my favorite of the bunch (until the ending). Chiang has a way of picking an object or idea that seems insignificant and exploring all possible implications of said object in truly surprising ways. “The Lifecycle of Software Objects”: This one is the most frustrating stories due entirely to the ending. It manages to pack in a fair amount of philosophical questions before hitting the reader with a wonderfully comic ending. “What’s Expected of Us”: This one is a very short story about the nature of free will in a world where little clickers that light up before you click them are ubiquitous. The main scientist through which the story is told takes a very mature take on all of his discoveries which is a lesson for us in our analysis of our place in this world. A group of air-powered beings discovered that their current form of existence or existence at all is at risk. “Exhalation”: A wonderfully meditative twist to the problem of a perpetual motion machine.

The philosophical questions of free-will are not fully explored in this story, but this story does kick start a series of stories that will explore similar themes. I especially enjoyed the “Arabian Nights” style of retelling stories within a story. “The Merchant and the Alchemist’s Gate”: An interesting and novel take on time travel. No story feels out of place or like an intruder. Chiang created a collection of stories that all meshes together. Collectively, each story forced upon a small crisis of identity in how I relate to technology in my own world, and I am a more self-aware person for it. Below is a short review of each story but over-all, Exhalation: Stories made me think. Exhalation: Stories is a collection of short sci-fi stories written by Ted Chiang.

Exhalation goodreads