"We Will Teach You How to Read" (stylized as "We Will Teach You How to Read | We Will Teach You How to Read") is a science fiction short story by Caroline M. Yoachim. It was first published in Lightspeed, in May 2024.
Synopsis Rather than being a standard narrative, "We Will Teach You How to Read | We Will Teach You How to Read" is presented as a message from an alien intelligence whose thought processes involve a significantly greater degree of parallel processing than those of humans, and whose lifespan is orders of magnitude less than that of humans; thus, as an essential part of communication, the alien intelligence must teach humans to read in a new way.
Reception "We Will Teach You How to Read | We Will Teach You How to Read" was a finalist for the Nebula Award for Best Short Story in 2024"We Will Teach You How to Read|We Will Teach You How to Read" at Science Fiction Writers of America and the 2025 Hugo Award for Best Short Story,2025 Hugo Finalists – Where to Read Complete Works or Samples for Free, by Mike Glyer, at File 770; published April 7, 2025; retrieved June 23, 2025 and is a finalist for the 2025 Eugie Award.2025 Eugie Award Finalists, by Mike Glyer, at File 770; published June 20, 2025; retrieved June 23, 2025
The story won the 2025 Ignyte Award for Best Short Story.
Locus described it as "well worth spending some time with".Charles Payseur Reviews Short Fiction: Cast of Wonders, Escape Pod, Strange Horizons, and Lightspeed, by Charles L. Payseur, at Locus; published August 2, 2024; retrieved July 24, 2025
References
External links Text of the story at Lightspeed Interview in which Yoachim describes the process of writing the story, at Lightspeed