A Century of Science Fiction 1950-1959 : The Greatest Stories of the Decade

by Robert Silverberg (Editor)

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Science fiction is fortunate, as a relatively recent branch of fiction, to have an over flowingly huge amount of material starting back from the early 20th century (or earlier, depending on where you draw the line). The 1950's were one of the most fruitful and important decades, giving rise to some of the greatest names in the genre, like those featured in this book!

The stories presented are, for the most part, very good. Silverberg, himself legendary, was sure to pick some of the finest specimens out of this benchmark era. Of particular note is William Tenn's 'Down Among the Dead Men', a chilling, witty, and fascinating portrayal of an alien war gone on so long, humanity has been forced to reconstitute its dead into clones of heroes to show more stay the course. Cordwainer Smith's 'The Game of Rat and Dragon' gives us a very clever insight on space travel, the dangers involved, and the unusual lengths people will go to make it safer. Bradbury, Dick, Clarke, the names go on and on, and they are all fantastic. Interestingly enough, the weakest story, I felt, was the one written by the editor himself, not that I'm complaining.

(Might I also add that the book itself is of exceptional quality, with thick, sturdy paper and a binding you could stake your life on. These sort of things matter, when you are piercing the atmosphere at 50 g's.)

If you are a fan of science fiction, vintage or otherwise, try to get your hands on this volume. It's worth the trouble.
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Super fine condition. Doesn't look touched.

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989+ Works 62,465 Members

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Anderson, Poul (Contributor)
Asimov, Isaac (Contributor)
Blish, James (Contributor)
Bradbury, Ray (Contributor)
Clarke, Arthur C. (Contributor)
Dick, Philip K. (Contributor)
Farmer, Philip Jose (Contributor)
Kornbluth, C.M. (Contributor)
Kuttner, Henry (Contributor)
Leiber, Fritz (Contributor)
Miller, Walter M. Jr. (Contributor)
Sheckley, Robert (Contributor)
Smith, Cordwainer (Contributor)
Sturgeon, Theodore (Contributor)
Tenn, William (Contributor)
Vance, Jack (Contributor)

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Di Fate, Vincent (Cover artist)
Rossiter, Richard (Cover designer)

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Original title
A Century of Science Fiction 1950-1959 : The Greatest Stories of the Decade
Original publication date
1996
Original language
English

Classifications

Genres
Fiction and Literature, Science Fiction
DDC/MDS
813.0876208Literature & rhetoricAmerican literature in EnglishAmerican fiction in EnglishBy typeGenre fictionAdventure fictionSpeculative fictionScience fictionCollections and anthologiesAnthologies
LCC
PS648 .S3 .C4Language and LiteratureAmerican literatureAmerican literatureCollections of American literatureProse (General)

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63
Popularity
492,314
Reviews
2
Rating
½ (3.43)
Languages
English
Media
Paper
ISBNs
1
UPCs
1