|
The Science Fiction Hall of Fame, Volume One | 
 enlarge | Creator: Robert Silverberg
Publisher: Orb Books
Category: Book
List Price: $18.95
Buy Used: $5.39
as of 3/11/2010 10:25:57 EST details
You Save: $13.56 (72%)
New (38) Used (25) from $5.39
Rating:  37 reviews
Sales Rank: 15341
Media: Paperback
Pages: 576
Number Of Items: 1
Shipping Weight (lbs): 1.4
Dimensions (in): 8.2 x 5.5 x 1.1
ISBN: 0765305372
Dewey Decimal Number: 813.0876208
EAN: 9780765305374
ASIN: 0765305372
Publication Date: February 1, 2005
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
| |
| Features:
| • | ISBN13: 9780765305374 | | • | Condition: NEW | | • | Notes: Brand New from Publisher. No Remainder Mark. |
|
| Also Available In:
|
| Similar Items:
| |
| Editorial Reviews:
Product Description
The definitive collection of the best in science fiction stories between 1929-1964.
This book contains twenty-six of the greatest science fiction stories ever written. They represent the considered verdict of the Science Fiction Writers of America, those who have shaped the genre and who know, more intimately than anyone else, what the criteria for excellence in the field should be. The authors chosen for The Science Fiction Hall Fame are the men and women who have shaped the body and heart of modern science fiction; their brilliantly imaginative creations continue to inspire and astound new generations of writers and fans.
Robert Heinlein in "The Roads Must Roll" describes an industrial civilization of the future caught up in the deadly flaws of its own complexity. "Country of the Kind," by Damon Knight, is a frightening portrayal of biological mutation. "Nightfall," by Isaac Asimov, one of the greatest stories in the science fiction field, is the story of a planet where the sun sets only once every millennium and is a chilling study in mass psychology.
Originally published in 1970 to honor those writers and their stories that had come before the institution of the Nebula Awards, The Science Fiction Hall Of Fame, Volume One, was the book that introduced tens of thousands of young readers to the wonders of science fiction. Too long unavailable, this new edition will treasured by all science fiction fans everywhere.
The Science Fiction Hall Of Fame, Volume One, contains stories by such great masters of the form and includes the following authors:
Isaac Asimov
Alfred Bester
Jerome Bixby
James Blish
Anthony Boucher
Ray Bradbury
Fredric Brown
John W. Campbell
Arthur C. Clarke
Lester del Rey
Tom Godwin
Robert A. Heinlein
Daniel Keyes
Damon Knight
C.M. Kornbluth
Fritz Leiber
Murray Leinster
Richard Matheson
Judith Merril
Lewis Padgett
Clifford D. Simak
Cordwainer Smith
Theodore Sturgeon
A.E. van Vogt
Stanley G. Weinbaum
Roger Zelazny
|
| Customer Reviews:
Showing reviews 1-5 of 37
A must have for your permanent collection August 27, 2006
K. Livingston (Millbrook, New York USA)
66 out of 67 found this review helpful
The stories in this book were voted by the Science Fiction Writers of America as the best short science fiction written between 1929 and 1964 and every one is a gem. Some of these stories are reasonably well known and often reprinted, but most of them are difficult to find anywhere else, making this an essential collection for a true fan of the genre. In response to an earlier request for a list of its contents, here are the story titles and authors. I was going to indulge myself by placing an asterisk next to my personal favorites, but I found myself marking almost all of them. The collection is that good.
A Martian Odyssey -- Stanley G. Weinbaum
Twilight -- John W. Campbell
Helen O'Loy -- Lester del Rey
The Roads Must Roll -- Robert A. Heinlein
Microcosmic God -- Theodore Sturgeon
Nightfall -- Isaac Asimov
The Weapon Shop -- A. E. van Vogt
Mimsy Were the Borogoves -- Lewis Padgett
Huddling Place -- Clifford D. Simak
Arena -- Fredric Brown
First Contact -- Murray Leinster
That Only a Mother -- Judith Merril
Scanners Live in Vain -- Cordwainer Smith
Mars is Heaven -- Ray Bradbury
The Little Black Bag -- C. M. Kornbluth
Born of Man and Woman -- Richard Matheson
Coming Attraction -- Fritz Leiber
The Quest for Saint Aquin -- Anthony Boucher
Surface Tension -- James Blish
The Nine Billion Names of God -- Arthur C. Clarke
It's a Good Life -- Jerome Bixby
The Cold Equations -- Tom Godwin
Fondly Fahrenheit -- Alfred Bester
The Country of the Kind -- Damon Knight
Flowers for Algernon -- Daniel Keyes
A Rose for Ecclesiastes -- Roger Zelazny
Many fine stories from Grandmasters of Science Fiction. April 7, 2005
D. Knouse (vancouver, washington United States)
39 out of 41 found this review helpful
I picked this collection up on a whim at my local used book store, mostly to get an idea of which other Sci-fi writers I might be interested in collecting from. This collection turned out to be a goldmine of Science Fiction. In fact, this is one of the only books I will not lend out to friends; and I own an old, ratty-looking paperback Copyright 1970! There are many great stories here, but there are a few I must mention as bona-fide masterpieces. "Microcosmic God" by Theodore Sturgeon is fantastic; the plotting for this story reminded me of the 1995 cable pilot episode for the film "The Outer Limits: Sandkings." Even the creators of South Park use similar ideas in one of their episodes. This collection also contains the sparkling jewel "Nightfall" from Issac Asimov. "Surface Tension" from James Blish is superb in every way. "The Nine Billion Names of God" finds Arthur C. Clarke is fine form. "The Cold Equations" from Tom Godwin is arguably the most intense and sad of all the stories here, packing an emotional wallop not ordinarily seen in Sci-fi. And of course, "Flowers for Algernon" by Daniel Keyes. I believe that last one is my favorite here, showing a retarded man's ascension to genius, 'childhood' to a wise and intellectual human being. This story was later expanded into a novel which, in fact, I am reading right now. However, I prefer the original short story version, if only slightly. There are so many stories here ranging from good to marvellous that I simply had to write a review praising this incredible collection. This book is easy to recommend.
Some great memories February 14, 2007
Jonathan Tu (College football, USA)
10 out of 10 found this review helpful
The old purple and blue version of this book - the purple was on the edge of the pages, the way some older books have velvety green sides - was my first introduction to the Golden Age of science fiction. The inventiveness and the creative audacity of these stories was always enough to overcome what I felt would have been a cripplingly antiquated "Gee golly" 1950s vernacular... except that the writing almost never has that black and white Leave it to Beaver sitcomish feel that, for some reason, was always attached to the Golden Age in my mind. Stylistically the collection is all over the place. The Connecticut Yankee anachronism of Roger Zelazny in "Lord of Light" is nowhere to be found in "A Rose for Ecclesiastices". Clarke's famous "The Nine Billion Names of God" isn't even a science fiction story until, basically, the last sentence. And describing anything written by Cordwainer Smith with "genre", "usual" or even "describable" is not applicable. I love this collection and, impossibly, every story in it - though some more than others.
I won't dwell on the weakest. Instead I'll highlight what I consider to be the best:
Sturgeon's "Microcosmic God" has the creepy, jealousy tinged atmosphere of nerds watching another nerd who is better at being a nerd than anyone else. This is what I would've been doing with my adolescent years if only mind and matter would've allowed, so reading it brings the distinct pleasure of reliving childhood fantasies. I'm also pretty sure it's the inspiration for a Simpsons Halloween episode involving Lisa and her tooth, which became a South Park nod to both the story and the Simpsons.
Asimov's "Nightfall" is rightly considered one of the best science fiction short stories ever. I've read the longer form and this is superior in pretty much every way: it's already one of the longer stories in this collection but it still benefits from the shorter form with its building stress and, yes, horror during the final pages. Many would disagree but I think "Nightfall" is one of the least creative stories in the collection in terms of sheer inventiveness. Despite that it's still incredible.
Cordwainer Smith is just amazing. As prosaic as that sounds it's about all I can say. "Scanners Live in Vain" is one of the weirdest stories in the collection and it might arguably be one of Smith's most "mundane". Reading a Smith story is like opening the pages of the Book of Revelations as interpreted by the grandson of cartoonist Gary Larson, the painter Francis Bacon, a very wise female clown and Joan of Arc - and you're on acid. This is all an endorsement, by the way.
James Blish's "Surface Tension" is as good an "adventure" story as you'll find here. It's got a fairly linear plot and isn't hard to follow. It isn't simplistic, per se, but it hasn't got the style of some of the other pieces in this collection. It's one of my sentimental favorites, though, for its ability to impart - at least somewhat - a finer sense of proportion than pretty much any description of the vastness of the universe, including Doug Adams'.
And, finally, my absolutely favorite: "Mimsy Were the Borogroves". I'm not doing to describe it. I'm going to simply agree with another commentator that purchasing this book is worth it if only for this one story.
the best of early SF stories, in one must-read package January 12, 1998
C. J. Silverio (Menlo Park, CA USA)
9 out of 10 found this review helpful
This is the book that started me reading science fiction. I remember my father reaching up way over my head to a library shelf and pulling down an orange and yellow book that I needed both hands to hold. "I think you'll like these," he said to me. And indeed I did. These stories stayed with me, laying a great foundation for a typically nerdy adolescence spent reading SF. If you want to see the where the genre came from, in the short form where it's best, you must read this collection. Consider these titles:
Stanley G. Weinbaum, "A Martian odyssey." Frederic Brown, "Arena." Asimov, "Nightfall." John W. Campbell, "Who goes there?" Alfred Bester, "Fondly Fahrenheit." Murray Leinster, "First Contact." Lewis Padgett, "Mimsy were the borogoves." Jerome Bixby, "It's a *good* life." James Blish, "Surface tension." And (unfortunately) Tom Godwin's "The cold equations," but there's no such thing as perfection. I am overjoyed to learn this book has been reissued. Buy it, read it yourself, give it to your kids the way my father gave it to me. Help a new generation of readers learn to love SF.
It Just Doesnýt Get Any Better Than This March 21, 2003
A. Wolverton (Crofton, MD United States)
4 out of 4 found this review helpful
Any newcomer to sf looking for a place to start could do no better than `The Science Fiction Hall of Fame Volume I.' The collection includes some of the very best sf stories from 1929 to 1964, as nominated by members of SFWA (Science Fiction Writers of America) and chosen by editor Robert Silverberg. They include such classics as:"Nightfall" Isaac Asimov (perhaps the most famous sf story ever)
"Scanners Live in Vain" Cordwainer Smith
"The Nine Billion Names of God" Arthur C. Clarke "Flowers for Algernon" Daniel Keyes
"A Rose for Ecclesiastes" Roger Zelazny
just to name a handful So many other powerhouse writers are also represented: Ray Bradbury, John W. Campbell, Robert A. Heinlein, Clifford Simak, Theodore Sturgeon, James Blish, Alfred Bester, Damon Knight...the list goes on and on and on. If I could only have one book of sf stories, this would be the one. A classic. 672 pages
Showing reviews 1-5 of 37
|
|
|
| |
