Title: The Zeppelin Conductors’ Society Annual Gentlemen’s Ball
Author: Genevieve Valentine
In: The Mammoth Book of Steampunk (Sean Wallace)
Rating Out of 5: 3 (On the fence about this one)
My Bookshelves: Contemporary, Steampunk
Pace: Slow
Format: Short story
Publisher: Robinson
Year: 2010
5th sentence, 74th page: God, when we realized what was happening to us!

The conductors of the Zeppelins are slightly malformed and grotesque, but that doesn’t stop them from having their own lives and realities.

Never judge a book by it’s cover. And never make assumptions on a person based on how they look. That’s the message that overwhelmingly resonates with me after reading this short story.

Alright, the tale is set in a steampunk world. With conductors and zeppelins and all sorts of incredible world building. But it is written from “the other” and that gives an extra bit of oomph and zing to the idea that no matter how terrible someone may look, you should never judge them for that and always find a way to move past how someone looks.

Acceptance. That is the one word that stands out in this story and the one word that helps to sum it up.

Image source: Amazon