In every episode, host LeVar Burton (Roots, Reading Rainbow, Star Trek) invites you to take a break from your daily life, and dive into a great story. LeVar’s narration blends with gorgeous soundscapes to bring stories by Neil Gaiman, Haruki Murakami, Octavia Butler, Ray Bradbury and more to life. So, if you’re ready, let’s take a deep breath...
A new immersive remix of a season one classic. An immigrant mother tries to bond with her American-born son by creating a magical paper menagerie. This story appears in Ken Liu’s collection THE PAPER MENAGERIE AND OTHER STORIES, available now from Saga Press.
Content advisory: Hospitals, death of a parent
William Andrews, an investment banker with Goldman Sachs, dies on September 23, 2012, and finds himself confronted with his life after death.
“Afterlife” appears in Stephen King’s collection THE BAZAAR OF BAD DREAMS.
Content advisory: Descriptions of death, illness, sexual assault
This week: the first place winner of the LeVar Burton Reads writing contest, as co-presented by FIYAH Literary Magazine and Tor.com! A runaway and indentured thief, Eri must provide a new secret to open each new lock, at the cost of her own memory.
An aging barbarian sets out to battle a bridge troll, mano a mano, and thus prove his mettle. “Troll Bridge” by Terry Pratchett, was first published in 1992. © Dunmanifestin Limited.
Public Enemy Number One, John Dillinger, looks to escape the feds with the help of a cunning wizard.
Content advisory: Gunfire
A sentient house, haunted by its own loneliness, exercises its powers on a skeptic. This story was published by Diabolical Plots.
Content advisory: Brief discussion of death
An AI-controlled avatar built to entertain patients in deep space performs innocuous magic tricks for patients… until one day, he adds something new to his act.
This story was originally published in AVATARS INC edited by Ann VanderMeer, and collected in THE YEAR’S BEST SCIENCE FICTION, VOL. 2 edited by Jonathan Strahan.
PLUS! With FIYAH Literary Magazine and Tor.com, we announce the winners of the LeVar Burton Reads writing contest!
Content advisory: hospice setting, death
Get a sneak peek of our immersive sound! A cab driver spends an ordinary day ferrying passengers around Manhattan — until an incident involving a wealthy alien tourist imperils his livelihood. Content advisory: alien death.
What’s the weirdest temp job you can imagine? One outside time and space…
This story appears in Tobias Buckell’s collection SHOGGOTHS IN TRAFFIC AND OTHER STORIES, published by Fairwood Press.
Content advisory: some discussion of murder/death
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