“Action at a Distance” by An Hao, translated from the Chinese by Andy Dudak (Clarkesworld, May 1).

“The Inside is Always Entrails” by Fernanda Castro, translated from the Portuguese by H. Pueyo (The Dark, May 1).

The Roamers by Francesco Verso, translated from the Italian by Jennifer Delare (Flame Tree Press, May 9).

The pulldogs, a group of people at the twilight of Western civilisation, undergo an anthropological transformation caused by the dissemination of nanites (nanorobots capable of assembling molecules to create matter). This technology changes the way they eat and gives rise to a culture which, while reminiscent of an ancient nomadic society, is creative and new. Liberation from the imperative of food, combined with the ability to 3D print objects and use cloud computing, makes it possible for the pulldogs to make a choice that seems impossible and anachronistic – a new life, but is it really an Arcadia?

“Crossing “The Tartar Steppe”: A New Buzzati” by Lawrence Venuti (Public Books)