I received this short story set in three volumes, so I'll try to pick at least one story from each that I think sticks with me a bit, as well as commenting on the "keynote" story, if I can refer to it as such.
In volume 1 of Dangerous Women (ed. Geroge R.R. Martin and Gardner Dozios) I enjoyed "Raisa Stepanova", by Carrie Vaughn. Of the authors I hadn't previously read, I'd be inclined to read another by her. "Nora's Song" by Cecelia Holland (about one of the daughters of Eleanor of Aquitane) is a type of story I'd be less likely to pick up, but was well done and inspired me enough to search around on Wikipedia learning a bit about that era of English history.
The standout, however, is by one of my favourite authors, Megan Lindholm. Strictly speaking, Robin Hobb is one of my favourite authors and that's a pen name of Megan Lindholm. Having read short stories under each name, and accepting the premise that there may be a different voice for each, Robin Hobb's stories are generally my preference.
"Neighbors" is a very well done science fiction/fantasy story. I've spent quite a bit of time thinking about it since reading it, and in this book I turned back to it a few times. Ostensibly it's about a hidden world accessible to certain people when they realize time doesn't matter and are therefore free of the constraints of time. It's also a story about memory, aging and the importance of seeing and knowing people, not merely fulfilling tasks for them.
The protagonist, Sarah, visits her brother in a nursing home. She's convinced she visits him like clockwork, though once she's free of the constraints of time that's a little less certain. Her son asks her the question whether it makes any difference to anyone, since he's not able to remember her visits anyway. Sarah quickly connects that the same attitude will confront her if she permits her son to commit her to a nursing home.
From there she finds which memories and signifiers of memory are worth keeping, and which she can let go. From the outside she's degenerating into senility or Alzheimers, but in her mind she's taking with her the things that matter most.
While written more in what I think of as Megan Lindholm's haunting, wistful style, her ideas about memory and to what extent memories form a person are what draws me back, again and again to her Farseer trilogy (Assassin's Apprentice et al.) and her Liveship trilogy (Ship of Magic, Mad Ship and Ship of Destiny).
To my mind, "Neighbors" is excellent science fiction in that it tells an intriguing, compelling story while making you think about a different perspective and assessing a contemporary problem. It also made me want to hug my Grandma.
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