A Century of Science Fiction

This is a good introduction to the Science Fiction genre. Damon Knight, the editor, has selected stories from the nineteenth and twentieth centuries and grouped them thematically. Thus there are sections for "Robots", "Time Travel", "Space", "Other Worlds and People", "Aliens among Us", "Superman"(not the 'Man of Steel'), and "Marvelous Inventions". Most of the selections are short stories from classic SF authors like Alfred Bester, Philip Jose Farmer, Robert Heinlein, Arthur C. Clarke, Marion Zimmer Bradley, and Poul Anderson. However there are some excerpts that highlight great novels including Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea by Jules Verne, Odd John by Olaf Stapledon, and The Time Machine by H. G. Wells. The result of these show more selection and others is a satisfying anthology of the most imaginative fiction offered over the century ending in the 1960s. A special plus is the inclusion of an introduction by the editor and a bibliography of selected readings for readers who are inspired to seek out more science fiction. show less

--Robots
Moxon's Master, by Ambrose Bierce
2 ⭐
Reason, by Isaac Asimov
3 ⭐
But Who Can Replace a Man? by Brian Aldiss
1 ⭐
--Time Travel
Of Time and Third Avenue, by Alfred Bester
2 ⭐
Sail On! Sail On! by Philip José Farmer
1 ⭐
The Business, as Usual, by Mack Reynolds
3 ⭐
--Space
What's it like out There, by Edmond Hamilton
3 ⭐
Sky Lift, by Robert Heinlein
3 ⭐ 4Gs? In a "torch ship" to Pluto
The Star, by Arthur C. Clarke
".. he [Clarke] now lives in Ceylon, and on his occasional visits to this country he complains that all the pale faces look alike. Religion interests Clarke as a psychological phenomenon."
4 ⭐
--Other Worlds and People
The Crystal Egg, by H.G.Wells
4 ⭐ The most awesome and, at the same time, sad story.
The Wind People, by show more Marion Zimmer Bradley
4 ⭐
Unhuman Sacrifice, by Katherine MacLean
4 ⭐
--Aliens Among Us
What Was It? by Fitz-James O'Brien
3 ⭐
The First Days of May, by Claude Veillot
4 ⭐
Day of Succession, by Theodore L. Thomas
4 ⭐
Angel's Egg, by Edgar Pangborn
4 ⭐
--Superman
Another World, by J.-H. Rosny aîné
2 ⭐
Call Me Joe, by Poul Anderson
3 ⭐
--Marvelous Inventions
You are With It, by Will Stanton
2 ⭐
Cease Fire, by Frank Herbert
2 ⭐ show less