The Year's Best Science Fiction And Fantasy, 2012 Edition, edited by Jonathan Strahan

Jonathan Strahan is known for his ability to select and collect the year's best stories in the genres of science fiction and fantasy.  He has done several of these volumes, and the 2012 edition is one of his best.  This is a long work, at 643 pages.  It includes established authors as well as new voices.  There is a good mix of male and female voices, as well as authors from diverse cultures.

The authors are: Jonathan Carroll, Neil Gaiman, E. Lily Yu, Caitlin Kiernan, Karen Joy Fowler, Catherynne Valente, A.N. Owomoyela, Geoff Ryman, Hannu Rajaniemi, Paul McCauley, Peter Watts, Nalo Hopkinson, K.J. Parker, Kelly Link, Cory Doctorow, Michael Swanwick, M. Rickert, Ken Liu, Dylan Horrocks, Maureen McHugh, Peter Beagle, Jeffrey Ford, Stephen Baxter, Robert Reed, Robert Shearman, Bruce Sterling, Margo Lanagan, Libby Bray, Nnedi Okorafor, Ian McDonald, Kij Johnson and Ellen Klagesti.

In addition to diverse voices, Strahan has included an interesting mix of fantasy and science fiction.  Some is science fiction written for the engineer and mathematician reader; some are dragon stories for fans of fantasies.  Some stories are very short while others are novella length.  My personal favorite was the one by Libby Bray in which a group of wild women banded together as thieves similar to Sundance and the Kid.  Every reader in these genres will find a story to love.  This book is recommended for readers of science fiction and fantasy as well as those who enjoy anthologies and discovering new authors.