BIPOC Sci-Fi Shorts - The Algorithm Will See You Now and ....Weight of Han

Welcome to Interrobang?! Book Club’s BIPOC Sci-Fi Shorts winter series. We will read six contemporary short stories by BIPOC authors. All of the stories are available for free online, or can be found collected in the Best American Science Fiction and Fantasy 2022, edited by Rebecca Roanhorse. These stories cover a variety of topics and themes, such as life after death, first contact with intelligent non-human life, inhabiting virtual and alternate realities, surveillance of our lives and thoughts, and the integration of technology into our bodies, brains, and homes. Come read with us!

Schedule:
January 11, 2026 - "The Future Library", by Peng Shepherd; "I Was a Teenage Space Jockey", by Stephen Graham Jones
February 15, 2026 - “The Frankly Impossible Weight of Han”, by Maria Dong; “The Algorithm Will See You Now”, by Justin C. Key
March 15, 2026 - "Proof by Induction", by José Pablo Iriarte; "If the Martians Have Magic", by P. Djèlí Clark

"The Algorithm Will See You Now", by Justin C. Key
Topics: Psychiatry, trauma, augmented bodies, altered minds & memories
https://www.vitalanthology.com/the-algorithm-will-see-you-now/
"Alaina Harris didn’t look depressed. The twenty-eight-year-old Black woman smiled at our receptionist and showed bright interest in the paintings on the waiting room wall. Why was she here?"

"The Frankly Impossible Weight of Han", by Maria Dong
Topics: Grief, replication technology, unreliable narration
https://www.khoreomag.com/fiction/the-frankly-impossible-weight-of-han/
"Four hours after Grant Rutherford completes his life’s work—a machine that extracts energy and matter from ambient sources to create exact copies of anything it scans—he passes out behind the wheel of his 2025 Ford Fusion, crests a highway embankment, and flips into a ditch."

General overview of a meeting
Our meetings start with an icebreaker question and a chance for each person to introduce themselves. We then move to rating the book with a thumbs up/down/sideways. We spend most of the meeting discussing the book, including strong opinions, questioning why the author made the choices they did, personal reactions to the story and characters, and wondering how it could have been improved.

You don't need to finish reading the whole book to come to the meeting! However, if you haven't finished the book, please be OK with hearing spoilers.

To find us, look for the group with the book of the month displayed on the table.

Dues Announcement
Starting in January 2026, we will start collecting dues at each meeting to cover costs such as Meetup/Bookclubs(dot)com fees and paying for special meeting locations. Donations can be made with cash (preferred) or through a Ko-Fi link. Suggested donation is $2 per person per meeting but never required. We happily accept more $ in dues in order to cover costs for those who cannot contribute. Our goal is to keep the club accessible to all.