To continue the thread of pointing at Hugo-nominated stories which will be up for your vote in August (and no, I have not and will not be able to read all nominated works, as much as I'd like to).
Here we have a short story by Sofia Samatar, called Selkie Stories Are for Losers. It is, as you will very quickly notice, a Selkie story, told not by the Selkie or its lover, as is frequently the case, but by the abandoned child. Who is a young woman, now, and with no little hang-ups about her past and origin.
This is a story which not just deserves, but actually requires multiple readings. At first it appears inconsequential, and rather whiny in tone (that's also due to the age of the protagonist, I reckon); and only going back to it actually showed me the layers, the skilful construction, and the emotional impact which is upon first reading withheld. Maybe 'not a word out of place' is overstating the case. Maybe...
The story can be read on Strange Horizons
The picture on the right is a chance find on the Internet, I don't know who created it. Should you know then please drop me a message, and I'll add credit here.
