The Songs of Distant Earth & Other Stories

by Arthur C. Clarke, Maxwell Caulfield, Emily Woof (Reading)

In addition to the well-known and ever popular stories "The Other Side of the Sky," "I Remember Babylon," and "The Songs of Distant Earth," this volume features comic cosmic narratives originally collected in Tales From the White Hart, including "The Defenestration of Ermintrude Inch," "The Next Tenants," and "The Man Who Ploughed the Sea."

Genres: Science Fiction, Short Stories, Audiobook, Fiction, Science Fiction Fantasy

10 pages, Audio Cassette

First published August 9, 2001

About the author

Stories, works of noted British writer, scientist, and underwater explorer Sir Arthur Charles Clarke, include 2001: A Space Odyssey (1968).

This most important and influential figure in 20th century fiction spent the first half of his life in England and served in World War II as a radar operator before migrating to Ceylon in 1956. He co-created his best known novel and movie with the assistance of Stanley Kubrick.

Clarke, a graduate of King's College, London, obtained first class honours in physics and mathematics. He served as past chairman of the interplanetary society and as a member of the academy of astronautics, the royal astronomical society, and many other organizations.

He authored more than fifty books and won his numerous awards: the Kalinga prize of 1961, the American association for the advancement Westinghouse prize, the Bradford Washburn award, and the John W. Campbell award for his novel Rendezvous with Rama. Clarke also won the nebula award of the fiction of America in 1972, 1974 and 1979, the Hugo award of the world fiction convention in 1974 and 1980. In 1986, he stood as grand master of the fiction of America. The queen knighted him as the commander of the British Empire in 1989.

Reviews

[Maximilian Wolf]

Classic SF stories, you will enjoy it.

[J Merridew]

I just read Songs From Distant Earth and not the other stories.

Apparently this is the 1958 short story and there is a 1986 novel that is better. I won’t spoil anything, but the plot is completely pointless. I don’t know why the story was written except to illustrate the concepts of interstellar travel and the hibernation practiced along with it.

[James De Leon]

Cosmic Heartache

Rounding down slightly to a 3.5. Nice, short bittersweet story. I continue to be fascinated by Arthur C. Clarke's imaginative mind. As far as I understand it, this short story served as the premise for a longer book, which Clarke wrote a decade or so later. I look forward to more heartache once I read it.

[Kimberlyn]

An interesting read: all of Clarke's short stories over the course of his career (sometimes brtilliant, sometimes, not so much....). By reading the whole series one after another, the change and growth of his inimitable style through the decades can be truly appreciated.

[gấu]

interesting sci-fi classics read.

[Olof]

I'm still missing the genius of his early short stories... Still interesting though.

[Walt Trizna]

A great read of earth destruction and mankind's fight to survive.