SFBC 1999 June
James Nicoll
Contents for anthologies and omnibuses from the Locus Index
to Science Fiction www.locusmag.com/index/
JUNE
A DEEPNESS IN THE SKY by Vernor Vinge
A prequel to _A Fire Upon the Deep_, this sets two dissimilar
human cultures (one rather unlikable) against each other in a system
that may be one of the very few examples of transcendent technology
in this part of the galaxy.
I liked it at the time but have never reread it.
STAR WARS(r): EPISODE I THE PHANTOM MENACE(tm) by Terry Brooks
Novelization of a crap movie by a hack writer.
RAINBOW MARS by Larry Niven (Alternate)
I -think- this was a fix-up of the Svetz time travel stories
with a new story. Although I am fond of Svetz as the Niven character I
first met, I have never read this particular collection.
AGAINST THE TIDE OF YEARS by S.M. Stirling (Alternate)
Sequel to _Island in the Sea of Time. Never read it.
OUTWARD BOUND by James P. Hogan (Alternate)
If memory serves one of the Tor Jupiter series and therefore
a young adult novel. I never read it.
THE ENCYCLOPEDIA OF FANTASY edited by John Clute and John Grant
(Alternate)
A large and rather useful encyclopedia.
THE SHADOW OF ALBION by Andre Norton and Rosemary Edghill (Alternate)
Own it, have not yet read it.
ENCHANTMENT by Orson Scott Card (Alternate)
Never saw it.
THE ICEWIND DALE TRILOGY (3-in-1 of THE CRYSTAL SHARD, STREAMS OF
SILVER and THE HALFLING'S GEM) by R.A. Salvatore (Altiverse catalog)
Is this the first appearance of the the Altiverse?
Fantasy set in AD&D 2E's Forgotten Realms, I think. I must
have sold a kajillion of these over the years but I never read them.
STAR WARS(r): THE ART OF DAVE DORMAN (Altiverse catalog)
Artbook, which I never saw.
BUFFY THE VAMPIRE SLAYER: THE WATCHER'S GUIDE by Christopher Golden &
Nancy Holder (Altiverse catalog)
I never saw this.
COLLECTOR'S ISSUE # 1
RINCEWIND THE WIZZARD (4-in-1 of THE COLOUR OF MAGIC, THE LIGHT
FANTASTIC, SOURCERY and ERIC) by Terry Pratchett
Note how the SFBC is not afraid to spell it 'colour' when the
source material is British. Kudos.
An omnibus of Rincewind stories. Rincewind is a cowardly wizard
whose magical skills are at best worst, who despite his best efforts
keeps having adventures. I think the later Diskworld books are better
and I don't particularly like Rincwind, on account of the implausibility
of one guy having an apparently endless series of brushes with death,
but all Pratchett is worth at least one read.
EON & ETERNITY (2-in-1) by Greg Bear
In Eon, a starship from an alternate future arrives in orbit
around a post-WWIII Earth. This is a book with flashy and yet stupid
ideas.
Eternity is a sequel. I don't recall which sequel.
THE CHRONICLES OF THE LENSMEN, VOL. 2 (3-in-1 of GRAY LENSMAN,
SECOND STAGE LENSMAN and CHILDREN OF THE LENS) by E.E. "Doc"
Smith (Alternate)
Space opera, concerning the struggle between Civilization (AKA the
good guys, although "good" varies from civilization to civilization) and
the enemies of Civilization. Rather dated but important to the field.
THE EINSTEIN INTERSECTION by Samuel R. Delany (Alternate)
If I read it, I then forgot it.
Over the River and Through the Woods: The Best Short Fiction of
Clifford D. Simak Clifford D. Simak (Tachyon Publications
0-9648320-2-X, Oct '96 [Nov '96], $25.00, 218pp, hc, cover by
Michael Dashow)
+ ix o Introduction o Poul Anderson o in
+ 1 o A Death in the House o ss Galaxy Oct '59
+ 24 o The Big Front Yard o na Astounding Oct '58
+ 87 o Good Night, Mr. James o ss Galaxy Mar '51
+ 110 o Dusty Zebra o nv Galaxy Sep '54
+ 141 o Neighbor o nv Astounding Jun '54
+ 169 o Over the River and Through the Woods o ss Amazing May
'65
+ 180 o Construction Shack o ss Worlds of If Jan/Feb '73
+ 197 o The Grotto of the Dancing Deer o ss Analog Apr '80
The most recent anthology of Simak stories I know of.
Definitely worth hunting down if only for _The Big Front Yard_.
Simak was a fellow who could show mortal brushing up
against things much older and vaster than them without it ending
in a moment of sublime horror, mainly because his characters
tended to be sensible and amiable folks, even the gods.
THE CHRONICLES OF MASTER LI AND NUMBER TEN OX by Barry Hughart
(Alternate)
I have only read the first of these (Had the omnibus, sold or
gave all my copies away for Xmas presents) but I liked that quite a lot.
Master Li is a wise old man with a small flaw in his nature and Number
Ten Ox is his large side-kick (and on occasion, motivator). In the first
book, the mystery of what has put all of Number Ten Ox's village's children
into comas leads the pair on an investigation that crosses both CHina and
its mythology.
Recommended.
CORUM: THE PRINCE WITH THE SILVER HAND by Michael Moorcock (Alternate)
Own it, never read it.
LORD DARCY (3-in-1 of MURDER AND MAGIC, TOO MANY MAGICIANS and
LORD DARCY INVESTIGATES) by Randall Garrett (Alternate)
The Lord Darcy mysteries are sent in a universe where Good King
Richard did not die while slaughtering his way across Europe, where the
separation between the English and French kingdoms never occured and
where the laws of magic were developed rather than those of physics.
There are lots of references to mainstream mysteries and to people in
SF and Fandom.
Also recommended.
SUMMER
THE BURNING STONE by Kate Elliott
Never read it.
THE BLACK SWAN by Mercedes Lackey
Nor this.
FOUNDATION'S TRIUMPH by David Brin
Well, I -tried- to read this.
STAR TREK: DARK VICTORY by William Shatner (Alternate)
Never read it.
MY FAVORITE SF STORY edited by Martin H. Greenberg (Alternate)
Hmmm. Can't find the contents.
ACORNA'S PEOPLE by Anne McCaffrey & Elizabeth Ann Scarborough
(Alternate)
I missed this.
WIT'CH STORM by James Clemens (Alternate)
Nothin'g sa'ys q'uality fantas'y l'ike misuse'd apos'tro'phes.
Chicks 'n Chained Males ed. Esther M. Friesner & Martin H. Greenberg
(Baen 0-671-57814-6, May '99 [Apr '99], $5.99, 313pp, pb, cover
by Larry Elmore);
+ 1 o Introduction o Esther M. Friesner o in
+ 4 o Myth Manners' Guide to Greek Missology #1 o Harry
Turtledove o ss *
+ 19 o Chain, Link, Fence o Steven Piziks o ss *
+ 24 o Fool's Gold o Elizabeth Moon o nv *
+ 47 o In for a Pound o Lawrence Watt-Evans o ss *
+ 61 o Death Becomes Him o Marina Frants o ss *
+ 79 o Straight Arrow o Susan Shwartz o nv *
+ 106 o Bad Heir Day o Rosemary Edghill o ss *
+ 117 o Why Do You Think They Call it Middle Earth? o Susan
Casper o ss *
+ 135 o Leg Irons, the Bitch, and the Wardrobe o Laura Frankos
o nv *
+ 157 o Shiftless o Josepha Sherman o ss *
+ 169 o May/December at the Mall o Brian D. Akers o ss *
+ 178 o Yo, Baby! o Jan Stirling o ss *
+ 196 o Don't Break the Chain! o Jody Lynn Nye o ss *
+ 214 o Cross CHILDREN Walk o Esther M. Friesner o nv *
+ 239 o ...But Comedy Is Hard o Kate Daniel o ss *
+ 253 o Baubles, Bangles and Beads o Kevin Andrew Murphy o nv *
+ 276 o Hallah Iron-Thighs and the Five Unseemly Sorrows o K.
D. Wentworth o ss *
+ 294 o Miss Underwood and the Mermaid o Sarah Zettel o ss *
Comic short stories about women warriors. I never read this.
ALIENS VS. PREDATORS by Randy Stradley & various artists (Altiverse
catalog)
I have no idea. A graphic novel anthology?
ELMINSTER: THE MAKING OF A MAGE by Ed Greenwood (Altiverse catalog)
An AD&D novel. Also CanCon, as Greenwood is a Canadian librarian.
--
"Unless there are slaves to do the ugly, horrible, uninteresting work, culture
and contemplation become almost impossible. Human slavery is wrong, insecure,
and demoralizing. On mechanical slavery, on the slavery of the machine, the
future of the world depends." -Oscar Wilde, "The Soul of Man Under Socialism"
Doom & Gloom Dave
> Lists courtesy of Andrew Wheeler.
>
> Contents for anthologies and omnibuses from the Locus Index
> to Science Fiction www.locusmag.com/index/
>
>
> SILVER and THE HALFLING'S GEM) by R.A. Salvatore (Altiverse catalog)
>
> Is this the first appearance of the the Altiverse?
>
> Fantasy set in AD&D 2E's Forgotten Realms, I think. I must
> have sold a kajillion of these over the years but I never read them.
>
>
Fairly early, and weak, Salvatore. Powerful sentient crystal uses a
weak willed human to conquer some north lands in the effort to find a
more suitable conquest partner, a mean demon. Drizz't and his pals
manage to put an end to the plot.
Icewind Dale was a good CRPG though.
>
>
>
> COLLECTOR'S ISSUE # 1
>
>
> RINCEWIND THE WIZZARD (4-in-1 of THE COLOUR OF MAGIC, THE LIGHT
> FANTASTIC, SOURCERY and ERIC) by Terry Pratchett
>
The Colour of Magic and The Light Fantastic put me off Pratchett
for all eternity.
>
>
> CORUM: THE PRINCE WITH THE SILVER HAND by Michael Moorcock
(Alternate)
>
> Own it, never read it.
>
>
More eternal champion, this one the second Corum collection.
>
>
>
> FOUNDATION'S TRIUMPH by David Brin
>
> Well, I -tried- to read this.
>
>
Read it, don't recall it.
>
>
> ELMINSTER: THE MAKING OF A MAGE by Ed Greenwood (Altiverse catalog)
>
> An AD&D novel. Also CanCon, as Greenwood is a Canadian librarian.
Fairly standard secret origin work. Mediocre, but better than future
Elminster books.
James Nicoll
Doom & Gloom Dave <dwh...@hotmail.com> wrote:
>James Nicoll wrote:
>> Lists courtesy of Andrew Wheeler.
>>
>> Contents for anthologies and omnibuses from the Locus Index
>> to Science Fiction www.locusmag.com/index/
>>
>>
>> FANTASTIC, SOURCERY and ERIC) by Terry Pratchett
>>
> The Colour of Magic and The Light Fantastic put me off Pratchett
>for all eternity.
Pity. I think the series took a huge leap upwards in quality
with _Mort_.
Paul D
wrote:
>
> THE ICEWIND DALE TRILOGY (3-in-1 of THE CRYSTAL SHARD, STREAMS OF
> SILVER and THE HALFLING'S GEM) by R.A. Salvatore (Altiverse catalog)
>
> Is this the first appearance of the the Altiverse?
>
> Fantasy set in AD&D 2E's Forgotten Realms, I think. I must
>have sold a kajillion of these over the years but I never read them.
>
>
When I was 13 I thought these were great. Subsequent Salvatore
has let me down, and I no longer read anything by him. I don't
know if this is because he's declined in quality, or because my
tastes have changed. I do find the story of how he became to be
a writer pretty interesting.
Paul D
Jon Meltzer
"Doom & Gloom Dave" <dwh...@hotmail.com> wrote in message
news:c0e05c$72f$1...@news1.usf.edu...
> The Colour of Magic and The Light Fantastic put me off Pratchett
> for all eternity.
Reconsider, please. These books were written before Pratchett found his own
voice, and are quite weak by comparison with later ones.
Try "Mort", "Guards Guards", or ... oh, hell. Can someone remind me what was
the first Three Witches book?
James Nicoll
Justin Fang
Doom & Gloom Dave <dwh...@hotmail.com> wrote:
>James Nicoll wrote:
>> FOUNDATION'S TRIUMPH by David Brin
>>
>> Well, I -tried- to read this.
> Read it, don't recall it.
I skimmed it in the library.
Brin attempts to reconcile and/or retcon as much as possible of the following:
Foundation novels written by Asimov, Robot novels written by Asimov, Empire
novels written by Asimov, other stories in the same universe written by Asimov
(e.g. the story in which the Ultimate Weapon turns out to have been written
by Thomas Jefferson), Robot novels written by Allen, Foundation novels
written by authors with names beginning with B (including, most unfortunately,
Benford), and Brin's own political views.
Includes revelations such as the real reason (or one of the real reasons) why
the Empire was stable for so many thousands of years: Orbital Mind Control
Satellites installed by the robotic conspiracy.
There was one bit I liked at the very end, which suggests that, in the end,
the original idea of the Foundation wins out over Galaxia.
--
Justin Fang (jus...@panix.com)
Taki Kogoma
<jonmeltzeratmi...@youknow.whattodo> allegedly declared to
rec.arts.sf.written...
Granny Weatherwax makes her debut in _Equal Rites_ but isn't quite her
later self. The Lancre Coven proper get off to roaring start in _Wyrd
Sisters_.
--
Capt. Gym Z. Quirk | /"\ ASCII RIBBON
(Known to some as Taki Kogoma) | \ / CAMPAIGN
quirk @ swcp.com | X AGAINST HTML MAIL
Veteran of the '91 sf-lovers re-org. | / \ AND POSTINGS
Patrick Johanneson
Helpful: http://www.ie.lspace.org/books/apf/index.html
-pat
Ron Henry
news:c0dug0$4te$1...@panix3.panix.com...
> EON & ETERNITY (2-in-1) by Greg Bear
>
> In Eon, a starship from an alternate future arrives in orbit
> around a post-WWIII Earth. This is a book with flashy and yet stupid
> ideas.
>
> Eternity is a sequel. I don't recall which sequel.
Oh, people like to put these down, but I don't think they're any
sillier, or have any more character problems, than many
more-well-regarded books. I enjoyed them, personally. (Oh, and Legacy is
the third novel with a plot unconnected to the events in Eon and
Eternity, more concerned with biology of a particular world than the
physics and politics of the Way.)
> THE EINSTEIN INTERSECTION by Samuel R. Delany (Alternate)
>
> If I read it, I then forgot it.
1960's SF with literary ambitions, yet very readable; aliens have come
to the far-future earth and, in the absence of humans, have adopted
human form. They experience difficulties both in making the adopted
genetics and physiology work and in comprehending and re-enacting key
archetypes inherited from human mythology and psychology. Very
interesting book. (And it's not at all like Dhalgren, if that's the only
Delany one has read, and hated.)
> FOUNDATION'S TRIUMPH by David Brin
>
> Well, I -tried- to read this.
On the heels of my Greg Bear comments above, I feel as if I can trace my
disillusionment with his writing career to his involvement with this
stupid new Foundation sequels project.
I really liked all the novels in the Eon, Forge/Anvil, and Queen of
Angels series. The books since (the dinosaur book, the Darwin books, and
Vitals), have left me indifferent. Did the other Killer B's (who both
started declining, imho, before Bear) infect him?
Ron
Paul D
wrote:
>In article <gdel20pk14rso9nc7...@4ax.com>,
>Paul D <nospam...@hotmail.com> wrote:
>>On 11 Feb 2004 14:06:40 -0500, jdni...@panix.com (James Nicoll)
>>wrote:
>>
>>>
>>> THE ICEWIND DALE TRILOGY (3-in-1 of THE CRYSTAL SHARD, STREAMS OF
>>> SILVER and THE HALFLING'S GEM) by R.A. Salvatore (Altiverse catalog)
>>>
>>> Is this the first appearance of the the Altiverse?
>>>
>>> Fantasy set in AD&D 2E's Forgotten Realms, I think. I must
>>>have sold a kajillion of these over the years but I never read them.
>>>
>>>
>>
>>When I was 13 I thought these were great. Subsequent Salvatore
>>has let me down, and I no longer read anything by him. I don't
>>know if this is because he's declined in quality, or because my
>>tastes have changed. I do find the story of how he became to be
>>a writer pretty interesting.
>>
> Which is?
Oh right, sorry.
He was in college/university in computer science. He didn't
read much sf, but he got LOTR for Christmas . He falls in love
and reads it all in a few days. He then decides that being a
writer is what he's after, so he switches out of CS to
journalism and begins to work on his writing. He then gets an
English degree.
I'm sure that there's lot of people that have been inspired by
Tolkien, I just like the sudden impact it had on his life.
Paul D
Michael S. Schiffer
news:6jkl20pmgvo3lvsq1...@4ax.com:
[Re R.A. Salvatore]
> He was in college/university in computer science. He didn't
> read much sf, but he got LOTR for Christmas . He falls in love
> and reads it all in a few days. He then decides that being a
> writer is what he's after, so he switches out of CS to
> journalism and begins to work on his writing. He then gets an
> English degree.
>...
I'd never have guessed that the author of a book about a character
named Luthien from a land called Eriador might have been influenced
by Tolkien. :-)
Mike
--
Michael S. Schiffer, LHN, FCS
msch...@condor.depaul.edu
Mike Schilling
>
> If I read it, I then forgot it.
His strangest book (which is no small statement.) I found it more difficult
than _Dhalgren_, though it's thankfully much shorter. IIRC, a Nebula winner.
Doom & Gloom Dave
I actually did try Mort, I thought death and humour were a can't miss
combination. I didn't like it one bit. Didn't like Good Omens though I love
Gaiman. I did actually enjoy Pratchett's story in Legends so was being
somewhat hyperbolic, that is the sole enjoyable Pratchett moment in my life
though
After Mort I realized I wasn't going to ever be a part of the Pratchett
club. Happily he doesn't need me and has done quite well.
Doom & Gloom Dave
> In article <c0e05c$72f$1...@news1.usf.edu>,
> Doom & Gloom Dave <dwh...@hotmail.com> wrote:
>> James Nicoll wrote:
>>> FOUNDATION'S TRIUMPH by David Brin
>>>
>>> Well, I -tried- to read this.
>
>> Read it, don't recall it.
>
> I skimmed it in the library.
>
> Brin attempts to reconcile and/or retcon as much as possible of the
> following: Foundation novels written by Asimov, Robot novels written
> by Asimov, Empire novels written by Asimov, other stories in the same
> universe written by Asimov (e.g. the story in which the Ultimate
> Weapon turns out to have been written by Thomas Jefferson), Robot
> novels written by Allen, Foundation novels written by authors with
> names beginning with B (including, most unfortunately, Benford), and
> Brin's own political views.
>
> Includes revelations such as the real reason (or one of the real
> reasons) why the Empire was stable for so many thousands of years:
> Orbital Mind Control Satellites installed by the robotic conspiracy.
>
Of the whole trilogy I remember very little except that R. Daneel was a
deity and there was chimpanzee sex.
Konrad Gaertner
>
> I actually did try Mort, I thought death and humour were a can't miss
> combination. I didn't like it one bit. Didn't like Good Omens though I love
> Gaiman. I did actually enjoy Pratchett's story in Legends so was being
> somewhat hyperbolic, that is the sole enjoyable Pratchett moment in my life
> though
You may like the other witch stories too. I'd suggest giving
_Wyrd Sisters_ a try sometime.
--KG
Konrad Gaertner
>
> STAR WARS(r): EPISODE I THE PHANTOM MENACE(tm) by Terry Brooks
>
> Novelization of a crap movie by a hack writer.
Which is how you distinguish it from Wrede's novelization.
> THE ICEWIND DALE TRILOGY (3-in-1 of THE CRYSTAL SHARD, STREAMS OF
> SILVER and THE HALFLING'S GEM) by R.A. Salvatore (Altiverse catalog)
>
> Is this the first appearance of the the Altiverse?
>
> Fantasy set in AD&D 2E's Forgotten Realms, I think. I must
> have sold a kajillion of these over the years but I never read them.
If you're looking for D&D tie-ins, Salvatore wrote most of the best
stuff. If not, you're not missing much.
> RINCEWIND THE WIZZARD (4-in-1 of THE COLOUR OF MAGIC, THE LIGHT
> FANTASTIC, SOURCERY and ERIC) by Terry Pratchett
>
> Note how the SFBC is not afraid to spell it 'colour' when the
> source material is British. Kudos.
>
> An omnibus of Rincewind stories. Rincewind is a cowardly wizard
> whose magical skills are at best worst, who despite his best efforts
> keeps having adventures. I think the later Diskworld books are better
> and I don't particularly like Rincwind, on account of the implausibility
> of one guy having an apparently endless series of brushes with death,
> but all Pratchett is worth at least one read.
But there is a reason for that: he's the champion of Lady Luck.
> THE CHRONICLES OF MASTER LI AND NUMBER TEN OX by Barry Hughart
> (Alternate)
>
> I have only read the first of these (Had the omnibus, sold or
> gave all my copies away for Xmas presents) but I liked that quite a lot.
> Master Li is a wise old man with a small flaw in his nature and Number
> Ten Ox is his large side-kick (and on occasion, motivator). In the first
> book, the mystery of what has put all of Number Ten Ox's village's children
> into comas leads the pair on an investigation that crosses both CHina and
> its mythology.
>
> Recommended.
Highly recommended.
Did this edition include the artwork from the Star Our Destination
edition?
> LORD DARCY (3-in-1 of MURDER AND MAGIC, TOO MANY MAGICIANS and
> LORD DARCY INVESTIGATES) by Randall Garrett (Alternate)
>
> The Lord Darcy mysteries are sent in a universe where Good King
> Richard did not die while slaughtering his way across Europe, where the
> separation between the English and French kingdoms never occured and
> where the laws of magic were developed rather than those of physics.
> There are lots of references to mainstream mysteries and to people in
> SF and Fandom.
>
> Also recommended.
I'll second that. Only two short stories short of the complete set.
> ELMINSTER: THE MAKING OF A MAGE by Ed Greenwood (Altiverse catalog)
>
> An AD&D novel. Also CanCon, as Greenwood is a Canadian librarian.
I've read this, but can't remember anything except the goddess'
eyes floating above flames. Mediocre by tie-in standards.
--KG
Richard Horton
wrote:
> RAINBOW MARS by Larry Niven (Alternate)
>
> I -think- this was a fix-up of the Svetz time travel stories
>with a new story. Although I am fond of Svetz as the Niven character I
>first met, I have never read this particular collection.
>
Not really a fixup. Rather, it is a brand new Svetz novel, in which
space travel (to Mars) leads to finding Science Fictional examples of
Mars in the way that time travel in the original stories led to
Fantastical pasts.
It also includes as sort of an appendix the original Svetz stories.
The novel part, _Rainbow Mars_, is INCREDIBLY dire. Niven, at this
stage in his career, seems to have lost the ability to write coherent
prose. I could not make sense of the book, paragraph to paragraph.
>
> OUTWARD BOUND by James P. Hogan (Alternate)
>
> If memory serves one of the Tor Jupiter series and therefore
>a young adult novel. I never read it.
>
It's OK, far from great. I reviewed it for SF Site.
--
Rich Horton | Stable Email: mailto://richard...@sff.net
Home Page: http://www.sff.net/people/richard.horton
Also visit SF Site (http://www.sfsite.com) and Tangent Online (http://www.tangentonline.com)
Richard Horton
wrote:
> MY FAVORITE SF STORY edited by Martin H. Greenberg (Alternate)
>
> Hmmm. Can't find the contents.
My review is at <URL:http://www.sfsite.com/04b/my55.htm>
Bill Miller
> On 11 Feb 2004 14:06:40 -0500, jdni...@panix.com (James Nicoll)
> wrote:
>
>
>> RAINBOW MARS by Larry Niven (Alternate)
>>
>> I -think- this was a fix-up of the Svetz time travel stories
>>with a new story. Although I am fond of Svetz as the Niven character I
>>first met, I have never read this particular collection.
>>
>
>
> Not really a fixup. Rather, it is a brand new Svetz novel, in which
> space travel (to Mars) leads to finding Science Fictional examples of
> Mars in the way that time travel in the original stories led to
> Fantastical pasts.
>
> It also includes as sort of an appendix the original Svetz stories.
>
> The novel part, _Rainbow Mars_, is INCREDIBLY dire. Niven, at this
> stage in his career, seems to have lost the ability to write coherent
> prose. I could not make sense of the book, paragraph to paragraph.
>
--
Bill Miller
"Remember Thor Five!"
http://home.houston.rr.com/wbmiller3
James Nicoll
William December Starr <wds...@panix.com> wrote:
>In article <c0dug0$4te$1...@panix3.panix.com>,
>jdni...@panix.com (James Nicoll) said:
>
>spoilerish stuff regarding EON by Greg Bear...
>...
>...
>...
>...
>...
>...
>...
>...
>...
>...
>...
>...
>...
>...
>...
>...
>...
>...
>...
>...
>...
>...
>...
>...
>
>> In Eon, a starship from an alternate future arrives in orbit around
>> a post-WWIII Earth.
>
>Earth. WWIII begins _during_ the story, partly triggered by mutual
>paranoia regarding the big rock that's really a starship and more.
Actually, there had been a small WWIII some years earlier.
What broke out was WWIV.
>Of course, in the alternate universe a US/USSR WWIII of roughly equal
>destructiveness (i.e., lots) had broken out at about the same time
>even though no big rock had shown up in that Earth's sky, so it seems
>to have been sort of inevitable.
>
>> This is a book with flashy and yet stupid ideas.
>
>As ten-word summaries go, that's really quite good.
>
Thanks.
William December Starr
> MY FAVORITE SF STORY edited by Martin H. Greenberg (Alternate)
>
> Hmmm. Can't find the contents.
If the ISFDB fails you, try the (annoyingly non-unified) Locus
databases:
<http://www.locusmag.com/index/yr1999/t7.html#A788>
My Favorite Science Fiction Story ed. Martin H. Greenberg (DAW
0-88677-830-1, Mar '99 [Feb '99], $6.99, 372pp, pb, cover by
Angus McKie); Anthology of 17 SF stories by authors including
Theodore Sturgeon, Keith Laumer, and Cordwainer Smith. Each
story was selected, and commented on, by authors including
Arthur C. Clarke, Anne McCaffrey, and Joe Haldeman.
+ ix o Introduction o Martin H. Greenberg o in
+ 1 o The Man Who Lost the Sea o Theodore Sturgeon o ss F&SF
Oct '59
+ 13 o The Last Command [Bolo] o Keith Laumer o ss Analog Jan
'67
+ 32 o Day Million o Frederik Pohl o ss Rogue Feb '66
+ 38 o The Little Black Bag o C. M. Kornbluth o nv Astounding
Jul '50
+ 67 o A Galaxy Called Rome o Barry N. Malzberg o nv F&SF Jul
'75
+ 86 o Diabologic o Eric Frank Russell o ss Astounding Mar '55
+ 108 o Untouched by Human Hands ["One Man's Poison"] o Robert
Sheckley o ss Galaxy Dec '53
+ 123 o Black Charlie o Gordon R. Dickson o ss Galaxy Apr '54
+ 139 o The Ugly Chickens o Howard Waldrop o nv Universe 10,
ed. Terry Carr, Doubleday, 1980
+ 162 o The Mathenauts o Norman Kagan o ss If Jul '64
+ 178 o Lot [David Jimmon] o Ward Moore o nv F&SF May '53
+ 205 o The Ballad of Lost C'Mell o Cordwainer Smith o nv
Galaxy Oct '62
+ 226 o A Martian Odyssey [Tweel] o Stanley G. Weinbaum o nv
Wonder Stories Jul '34
+ 252 o Common Time o James Blish o ss Science Fiction
Quarterly Aug '53
+ 273 o The Engine at Heartspring's Center o Roger Zelazny o ss
Analog Jul '74
+ 282 o Nerves o Lester del Rey o na Astounding Sep '42
+ 356 o The Only Thing We Learn o C. M. Kornbluth o ss
Startling Stories Jul '49
Is it heresy to say that I really didn't like "Nerves"?
-- William December Starr <wds...@panix.com>
William December Starr
> In Eon, a starship from an alternate future arrives in orbit around
> a post-WWIII Earth.
In fact, it arrives in orbit around a US/USSR-tensions-are-very-high
Earth. WWIII begins _during_ the story, partly triggered by mutual
paranoia regarding the big rock that's really a starship and more.
Of course, in the alternate universe a US/USSR WWIII of roughly equal
destructiveness (i.e., lots) had broken out at about the same time
even though no big rock had shown up in that Earth's sky, so it seems
to have been sort of inevitable.
> This is a book with flashy and yet stupid ideas.
As ten-word summaries go, that's really quite good.
-- William December Starr <wds...@panix.com>
Mike Schilling
"William December Starr" <wds...@panix.com> wrote in message
news:c0erpc$r9i$1...@panix2.panix.com...
Or to say that I find "Common Time" pointless?
Alexander Kay
>COLLECTOR'S ISSUE # 1
> THE CHRONICLES OF MASTER LI AND NUMBER TEN OX by Barry Hughart
> (Alternate)
> I have only read the first of these (Had the omnibus, sold or
>gave all my copies away for Xmas presents) but I liked that quite a lot.
>Master Li is a wise old man with a small flaw in his nature and Number
>Ten Ox is his large side-kick (and on occasion, motivator). In the first
>book, the mystery of what has put all of Number Ten Ox's village's children
>into comas leads the pair on an investigation that crosses both CHina and
>its mythology.
> Recommended.
I think that having only read the first of these may be a win. My enjoyment
of the second was somewhat dimmed by its excessive similarity to the first.
Amazingly enough, the third one managed to be even *more* like the first than
the second one was. The first book, as a stand-alone, was quite delightful.
The three books together give more reading time, but, left me far less
impressed at the end. Of course, there are people for whom "just like the
first book" is a recommendation, not a dis, and those folks should definitely
pick this up.
Alexx
Opinions expressed are my own and not necessarily those of my employers.
alexx@carolingiaSPAMBL@CK.org http://www.panix.com/~alexx
"Apply these very simple and practical rules to the incoherent and
chaotic sprawl of bloodstains, alibis, and random events surrounding
the Whitechapel crimes, and it seems very possible to me that you
would quickly find spectacularly orderly blossoms of idea and theory
radiating out from the murders, in breathtaking arrays of increasing
complexity and symmetry."
-- Alan Moore in correspondence with Dave Sim about _From Hell_
Dave Roy
>In article <c0e05c$72f$1...@news1.usf.edu>,
>Doom & Gloom Dave <dwh...@hotmail.com> wrote:
>>James Nicoll wrote:
>>> FOUNDATION'S TRIUMPH by David Brin
>>>
>>> Well, I -tried- to read this.
>
>> Read it, don't recall it.
>
>I skimmed it in the library.
(snip explanation of the book)
Ugh. I really wish they wouldn't try to extend dead authors' stories.
Between the Foundation books and the Dune book, what's next. The Rama
series? Oh, wait. Clarke already did that with a little help.
Dave Roy
Martin Wisse
> RAINBOW MARS by Larry Niven (Alternate)
>
> I -think- this was a fix-up of the Svetz time travel stories
>with a new story. Although I am fond of Svetz as the Niven character I
>first met, I have never read this particular collection.
A collection of all Svetz stories, plus a new novel lenght adventure set
on Mars and which is, as is the nature of Svetz's timetravel, somewhat
fictional. Many encounters with wellknown and loved characters from
stories written by better writers ensue.
Best remembered because it started life as a collaboration between Niven
and Pratchett.
Martin Wisse
--
British SF is full of rain and cooked cabbage, is gloomy, introspective and
obsessed with the underclass. Pratchett, who is half of the industry
all by himself, writes this sort of stuff all the time, not at all like that
cheerful and shiny left-pondian cyberpunk stuff. --Julian Flood, rasseff
raymond larsson
Schilling says...
>
> "William December Starr"
[...]
> > + 252 o Common Time o James Blish o ss Science Fiction
> > Quarterly Aug '53
> >
>
> Or to say that I find "Common Time" pointless?
No, and no it's just an adventure/puzzle story but you should read
William Atheling's analysis of "Common Time".
--
rgl vg'f nobhg frk
Mike Schilling
"raymond larsson" <ragl...@sasktel.net> wrote in message
news:MPG.1a959bb2e...@news.sasktel.net...
What would he know about it? [1]
1. Yes, I do know that Blish and Atheling are the same person.
John F. Carr
Richard Horton <rrho...@prodigy.net> wrote:
>
>The novel part, _Rainbow Mars_, is INCREDIBLY dire. Niven, at this
>stage in his career, seems to have lost the ability to write coherent
>prose. I could not make sense of the book, paragraph to paragraph.
He also gets lost in the paragraphs and forgets to move the story
along. At half its length it would have been a much less bad novel.
(Less bad by a factor of more than two, because trudging through
uninspiring prose that advances the plot is less painful on a
per-word basis.)
--
John Carr (j...@mit.edu)
Peter D. Tillman
Konrad Gaertner <kgae...@worldnet.att.net> wrote:
>
> > LORD DARCY (3-in-1 of MURDER AND MAGIC, TOO MANY MAGICIANS and
> > LORD DARCY INVESTIGATES) by Randall Garrett (Alternate)
> >
> > The Lord Darcy mysteries are sent in a universe where Good King
> > Richard did not die while slaughtering his way across Europe, where the
> > separation between the English and French kingdoms never occured and
> > where the laws of magic were developed rather than those of physics.
> > There are lots of references to mainstream mysteries and to people in
> > SF and Fandom.
> >
> > Also recommended.
>
> I'll second that. Only two short stories short of the complete set.
>
-- which are included, I believe, in the recent Baen omnibus, also
titled LORD DARCY. And a third to the reco.
Cheers -- Pete Tillman
Peter D. Tillman
Richard Horton <rrho...@prodigy.net> wrote:
> On 11 Feb 2004 14:06:40 -0500, jdni...@panix.com (James Nicoll)
> wrote:
>
> > RAINBOW MARS by Larry Niven (Alternate)
> >
> > I -think- this was a fix-up of the Svetz time travel stories
> >with a new story. Although I am fond of Svetz as the Niven character I
> >first met, I have never read this particular collection.
> >
>
> Not really a fixup. Rather, it is a brand new Svetz novel, in which
> space travel (to Mars) leads to finding Science Fictional examples of
> Mars in the way that time travel in the original stories led to
> Fantastical pasts.
>
> It also includes as sort of an appendix the original Svetz stories.
>
> The novel part, _Rainbow Mars_, is INCREDIBLY dire. Niven, at this
> stage in his career, seems to have lost the ability to write coherent
> prose. I could not make sense of the book, paragraph to paragraph.
>
Well, I liked it, though mine definitely seems a minority opinion:
http://www.iplus.zetnet.co.uk/nonfiction/marsbow.htm
I mean, here's a *very* fast-paced visit to a Martian past that's an
amalgam of (and hommage to) Burroughs, Wells, Bradbury, Heinlein --
with Integral Tree-style beanstalks thrown in as an illustration of
Being Careful of what you wish for. Not to mention a Princess of Mars,
and how she learned to surf. And sex in a hot-tub. And enough insider
jokes and references to challenge the memory of the best-read fan. And
yet *another* sfnal heroine named Miya=Maya. "This is my take on
Mars, and Yggdrasil, and (God help me) the space program" -- done up in
a delicious hard-fantasy souffle'. What's not to like?
Cheers -- Pete Tillman
William December Starr
jdni...@panix.com (James Nicoll) said:
>> [wdstarr]
>
> Actually, there had been a small WWIII some years earlier. What
> broke out was WWIV.
Really? Oops. (Um, can we retroactively recategorize the small one
as 2.9? It's not like any of the survivors of the big one are likely
to raise a fuss over a slight bookkeeping adjustment, after all, and
besides, "WWIII" is supposed to be reserved for full-bore blowout
holocausts, not little fizzles. It's a matter of _form_, dammit.)
William December Starr
mwi...@cloggie.org (Martin Wisse) said:
>> RAINBOW MARS by Larry Niven
>
> Best remembered because it started life as a collaboration
> between Niven and Pratchett.
I hadn't heard that. What happened?
David Allsopp
In article <c0dug0$4te$1...@panix3.panix.com>, James Nicoll
<jdni...@panix.com> writes
> A DEEPNESS IN THE SKY by Vernor Vinge
>
> A prequel to _A Fire Upon the Deep_, this sets two dissimilar
>human cultures (one rather unlikable) against each other in a system
>that may be one of the very few examples of transcendent technology
>in this part of the galaxy.
>
> I liked it at the time but have never reread it.
Started it, got to the "Children's Hour" bit, never felt like picking it
up again. I've tried to get a summary of the last bit of the book,
since I retain just that much residual interest, but there seems to be a
Massive Conspiracy To Make Me Read The Rest. But, ha ha!, I've fooled
them, because I've given my copy away.
> BUFFY THE VAMPIRE SLAYER: THE WATCHER'S GUIDE by Christopher Golden &
> Nancy Holder (Altiverse catalog)
>
> I never saw this.
An encyclopaedia-style thingy for Buffy fans. Fun if you like Buffy.
>COLLECTOR'S ISSUE # 1
>
>
> RINCEWIND THE WIZZARD (4-in-1 of THE COLOUR OF MAGIC, THE LIGHT
> FANTASTIC, SOURCERY and ERIC) by Terry Pratchett
>
> Note how the SFBC is not afraid to spell it 'colour' when the
>source material is British. Kudos.
>
> An omnibus of Rincewind stories. Rincewind is a cowardly wizard
>whose magical skills are at best worst, who despite his best efforts
>keeps having adventures. I think the later Diskworld books are better
>and I don't particularly like Rincwind, on account of the implausibility
>of one guy having an apparently endless series of brushes with death,
>but all Pratchett is worth at least one read.
Why do publishers feel the need to shoehorn things into inappropriate
categories? I've seen Wyrd Sisters/Witches Abroad/Lords & Ladies
packaged as "The Witches Trilogy", which isn't any meaning of the word
"trilogy" I know of.
In any case, as you say, "Pratchett" => "highly recommended".
> EON & ETERNITY (2-in-1) by Greg Bear
>
> In Eon, a starship from an alternate future arrives in orbit
>around a post-WWIII Earth. This is a book with flashy and yet stupid
>ideas.
>
> Eternity is a sequel. I don't recall which sequel.
Quite fun Big Weird Artifact stories, which I'm always a sucker for.
>
> THE CHRONICLES OF THE LENSMEN, VOL. 2 (3-in-1 of GRAY LENSMAN,
> SECOND STAGE LENSMAN and CHILDREN OF THE LENS) by E.E. "Doc"
> Smith (Alternate)
>
> Space opera, concerning the struggle between Civilization (AKA the
>good guys, although "good" varies from civilization to civilization) and
>the enemies of Civilization. Rather dated but important to the field.
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
James takes possession of the "Understatement Of The Century So Far"
trophy. I really should buy new copies of these to stop my 30 year old
copies disintegrating due to rereading.
>
> THE EINSTEIN INTERSECTION by Samuel R. Delany (Alternate)
>
> If I read it, I then forgot it.
Weird but interesting story about aliens trying to [be, understand,
replace] humans by exploring human myths, tropes, legends, etc...
>
> THE CHRONICLES OF MASTER LI AND NUMBER TEN OX by Barry Hughart
> (Alternate)
>
> I have only read the first of these (Had the omnibus, sold or
>gave all my copies away for Xmas presents) but I liked that quite a lot.
>Master Li is a wise old man with a small flaw in his nature and Number
>Ten Ox is his large side-kick (and on occasion, motivator). In the first
>book, the mystery of what has put all of Number Ten Ox's village's children
>into comas leads the pair on an investigation that crosses both CHina and
>its mythology.
>
> Recommended.
Seconded. Some scenes still make me weep even after several readings.
The second two aren't quite up to the standard of the first, but if the
fourth ever sees the light of day, I'll buy it sight unseen.
Anyone know if Bill G. is an SF fan? He could afford $10M or so for the
Getting Really Good Authors Who Stopped Making Money To Finish Their
Damn Series Already Fund. Hughart, Panshin, WJW, etc...
>
> CORUM: THE PRINCE WITH THE SILVER HAND by Michael Moorcock (Alternate)
>
> Own it, never read it.
Second Corum series. Superior S&S, the kind of stuff that Moorcock
could write in his sleep. I believe he sometimes did, but not in this
case.
>
> LORD DARCY (3-in-1 of MURDER AND MAGIC, TOO MANY MAGICIANS and
> LORD DARCY INVESTIGATES) by Randall Garrett (Alternate)
>
> The Lord Darcy mysteries are sent in a universe where Good King
>Richard did not die while slaughtering his way across Europe, where the
>separation between the English and French kingdoms never occured and
>where the laws of magic were developed rather than those of physics.
>There are lots of references to mainstream mysteries and to people in
>SF and Fandom.
>
> Also recommended.
Seconded again. I believe that this has recently been reissued with
some extra stories?
> Chicks 'n Chained Males ed. Esther M. Friesner & Martin H. Greenberg
> (Baen 0-671-57814-6, May '99 [Apr '99], $5.99, 313pp, pb, cover
> by Larry Elmore);
[contents snipped]
> Comic short stories about women warriors. I never read this.
Erm, well, if you like this sort of thing then this is the sort of thing
you like. I've found all the volumes pretty consistently amusing, and
I'm particularly fond of the Elizabeth Moon stories, which use the same
world and characters across all the books.
--
David Allsopp Houston, this is Tranquillity Base.
Remove SPAM to email me The Eagle has landed.
Jon Meltzer
"Konrad Gaertner" <kgae...@worldnet.att.net> wrote in message
news:402AD463...@worldnet.att.net...
Or the City Watch stories: "Guards, Guards"
raymond larsson
Schilling says...
> > >
> > > "William December Starr":
> > [...]
> > > > + 252 o Common Time o James Blish o ss Science Fiction
> > > > Quarterly Aug '53
> > > > + 282 o Nerves o Lester del Rey o na Astounding Sep '42
> > > >
> > > > Is it heresy to say that I really didn't like "Nerves"?
> > >
> > > Or to say that I find "Common Time" pointless?
> >
> > No, and no it's just an adventure/puzzle story but you should read
> > William Atheling's analysis of "Common Time".
>
> What would he know about it? [1]
Have you read the article ? If not spoilers for it follow.
> 1. Yes, I do know that Blish and Atheling are the same person.
>
>
>
"What would he know about it?" is basically the real point of the essay.
--
rgl not even going to mention how the title _The Issue at Hand_
pertains
Mike Schilling
"raymond larsson" <ragl...@sasktel.net> wrote in message
news:MPG.1a972cfc9...@news.sasktel.net...
Is that the essay about the use of sexual imagery?
Richard Todd
>> LORD DARCY (3-in-1 of MURDER AND MAGIC, TOO MANY MAGICIANS and
>> LORD DARCY INVESTIGATES) by Randall Garrett (Alternate)
>>
>> The Lord Darcy mysteries are sent in a universe where Good King
>>Richard did not die while slaughtering his way across Europe, where the
>>separation between the English and French kingdoms never occured and
>>where the laws of magic were developed rather than those of physics.
>>There are lots of references to mainstream mysteries and to people in
>>SF and Fandom.
>>
>> Also recommended.
>
> Seconded again. I believe that this has recently been reissued with
> some extra stories?
Yes, two years ago, by Baen; I've got the downloadable-html version. The
extra stories are "The Bitter End" (Sean is in Paris and has to solve a
murder on his own) and "The Spell of War" (Sean and Lord Darcy's first meeting
in their younger days when they're both in the Army).
raymond larsson
>
> "raymond larsson" <ragl...@sasktel.net> wrote in message
> news:MPG.1a972cfc9...@news.sasktel.net...
> > In article <F3WWb.23128$Ti1....@newssvr27.news.prodigy.com>, Mike
> > Schilling says...
> > >
> > > "raymond larsson" <ragl...@sasktel.net>
> > > > William Atheling's analysis of "Common Time".
> > >
> > > What would he know about it? [1]
> >
> > Have you read the article ? If not spoilers for it follow.
> >
> > > 1. Yes, I do know that Blish and Atheling are the same person.
> > >
> > >
> > >
> > "What would he know about it?" is basically the real point of the essay.
>
> Is that the essay about the use of sexual imagery?
In a backwards way, yes. Though I think radiceles comes from
'radi(ating)'+celes(tial).
Bill Snyder
Got to be the same fucking essay.
I was just putting my coat on anyway, but let me mention on the way
out . . .
There's also an analysis, which finds lots of paired sex/death images,
in Knight's _In Search of Wonder_.
--
Bill Snyder [This space unintentionally left blank.]
Christopher J. Henrich
<rmt...@ichotolot.servalan.com> wrote:
In my timeline, these stories were in the trade pb edition of July 2002.
--
Chris Henrich
Yes, one can rant about the program designs, but generally things keep getting
more and more confused as time goes on. --Sea Wasp
Konrad Gaertner
>
> In article <x7bro23...@ichotolot.servalan.com>, Richard Todd
> <rmt...@ichotolot.servalan.com> wrote:
>
> > David Allsopp <d...@tqSPAMbase.demon.co.uk> writes:
> >
> > >> LORD DARCY (3-in-1 of MURDER AND MAGIC, TOO MANY MAGICIANS and
> > >> LORD DARCY INVESTIGATES) by Randall Garrett (Alternate)
> > >>
> > >> The Lord Darcy mysteries are sent in a universe where Good King
> > >>Richard did not die while slaughtering his way across Europe, where the
> > >>separation between the English and French kingdoms never occured and
> > >>where the laws of magic were developed rather than those of physics.
> > >>There are lots of references to mainstream mysteries and to people in
> > >>SF and Fandom.
> > >>
> > >> Also recommended.
> > >
> > > Seconded again. I believe that this has recently been reissued with
> > > some extra stories?
> >
> > Yes, two years ago, by Baen; I've got the downloadable-html version. The
> > extra stories are "The Bitter End" (Sean is in Paris and has to solve a
> > murder on his own) and "The Spell of War" (Sean and Lord Darcy's first meeting
> > in their younger days when they're both in the Army).
>
> In my timeline, these stories were in the trade pb edition of July 2002.
19 months rounds to two years. And the original point was that they
weren't in the SFBC edition.
--KG
Martin Wisse
Starr) wrote:
>In article <403fa3f1....@news.cis.dfn.de>,
>mwi...@cloggie.org (Martin Wisse) said:
>
>>> RAINBOW MARS by Larry Niven
>>
>> Best remembered because it started life as a collaboration
>> between Niven and Pratchett.
>
>I hadn't heard that. What happened?
Apparantely, the central beanstalk idea of the book was something Niven
had been kicking around for a long time. He then met Pratchett, they got
to talking and started exploring a collaboration along those lines,
since Pratchett was also interested in doing something with a beanstalk.
However, due to being on different continents and all this was all a bit
difficult and the colleboration plans fizzled out before they got
started, when Niven wrote _Rainbow Mars_.
Martin Wisse
--
There are no normal people--only people you don't know very much about.
-Nancy Lebovitz, rasfw
William December Starr
mwi...@cloggie.org (Martin Wisse) said:
[ re Niven's _Rainbow Mars_ not being a collaboration ]
> Apparantely, the central beanstalk idea of the book was something
> Niven had been kicking around for a long time. He then met
> Pratchett, they got to talking and started exploring a collaboration
> along those lines, since Pratchett was also interested in doing
> something with a beanstalk.
>
> However, due to being on different continents and all this was all
> a bit difficult and the colleboration plans fizzled out before they
> got started, when Niven wrote _Rainbow Mars_.
Ah, thanks. I'd been wondering if it had been something like "And
things were going along great until Niven introduced Pratchett to
Jerry Pournelle at a party..."