3.25/5 (Good)
A Life for the Stars is the second novel according to internal chronology in James Blish’s famous Cities in Flight series. Unlike the much more serious first installment, They Shall Have Stars (1956), A Life for the Stars is generally regarded as a juvenile work (i.e. science fiction for a younger audience containing a positive moral message, an intelligent but poor teen boy Continue reading
5/5 (Masterpiece)
I’d previously read four of D. G. Compton’s lesser known works before procuring a copy of his acknowledged masterpiece, The Unsleeping Eye (variant title: The Continuous Katherine Mortenhoe) (1973). The Unsleeping Eye far surpasses the remarkable The Steel Crocodile (1970) and Synthajoy (1968). Many of the themes and techniques Compton uses in the other works of his I’ve read are honed to perfection and greatly expanded on: strong intelligent female characters dominate the pages, Continue reading
1/5 (Bad)
Damon Knight’s dismal Beyond the Barrier (1964) is all plot, lacks even the most cursory world development, makes no attempt to construct a “character”, and contains one of the single most ludicrous scenes I’ve encountered. Knight is considered somewhat of a “master” of sci-fi but his supposed skills are not on show here (short stories?). Yes, there’s adventure, intrigue, action, bizarre technology, green frog aliens, time travel, Earth core traversing oscillating field machines, and time Continue reading
This is the second post in a potential series of posts showcasing the science fiction cover art by Richard Powers (1921-1996). My first post discussed a few surrealist cityscape covers from the 1950s. Here I’ve selected a variety of surrealistic, composite, conglomerated, and masked faces from his 1970s covers.
A delightful green human shape — mouthless — replete with translucent hollows? emerging occupants or surfacing memories?
(Cover for the 1973 edition of All Flesh is Grass (1965), Clifford D. Simak)
The Eternal Frontiers utilizes another Continue reading
5/5 (Masterpiece)
Robert Silverberg strikes gold with Hawksbill Station (1968), a dark, restrained, and powerful rumination. I have found Silverberg’s novels, like those of one of my other sci-fi favorites John Brunner, hit or miss. The worst of Silverberg’s novels I’ve read, for example The Time Hoppers (1967) and Master of Life and Death (1957), are cringeworthy. His best, Downward to the Earth (1970) and The World Inside (1971), rank among my all-time favorites.
Hawksbill Station‘s setting, Earth’s Cambrian era, Continue reading
Richard Powers (1921-1996) is one of my favorite science fiction cover artists. Heavily influenced by the likes of Yves Tanguey and Picasso, his delightful vein of surrealism graced the covers of multiple classics of the genre (for example, Simak’s City, Clarke’s Earthlight and The City and the Stars, Norton’s Sky Gate, Vonnegut’s The Sirens of Titan, Sturgeon’s More Than Human). His covers are unmistakable and extremely easy to identify. I’ve decided to showcase a few of his surrealist cityscapes.
(cover for 1956 edition of Reach for Tomorrow (1956), Arthur C. Clarke)
The cover for Reach for Tomorrow achieves a wonderful Continue reading
My month of infrequent posts is over — I’ve returned to Austin after a month long sojourn across Colorado, New Mexico, France and Italy…. So, what do I do in my jet lagged state? Head to the Half Price Books. Not the best haul this time but a few potentially interesting reads.
1. Witch World (1963), Andre Norton
I’ve yet to read any of Andre Norton’s immense number of novels. Not knowing exactly where to start I picked up what is generally considered among her best works — Witch World (1963). It was nominated for the 1964 Hugo award for Best novel and often places in best Fantasy/Sci-fi lists. And the cover is Continue reading
2.75/5 (Average)
Poul Anderson’s third novel contains a few glimmers of his later slick storytelling but lacks developed ideas and convincing characters. This is not entirely Anderson’s fault, as he points out in the introduction to a later edition, because the original manuscript was heavily edited without his knowledge in order to achieve a specific page Continue reading
3.5/5 (Good)
Leigh Brackett’s The Big Jump (1955) is a solid (if predictable) pulp sci-fi adventure with a few delightful poetic moments. Although Brackett is primarily known for her numerous short stories from the 40s and 50s and screenplays (The Big Sleep, Rio Bravo, The Empire Strikes Back, etc) her novels deserve to be read as well. Continue reading
Science Fiction and Other Suspect Ruminations 