Jupiter: Speculative Fiction

by Frederik Pohl

Jupiter the Giant (1973) essay by Isaac Jupiter at Last (1973) essay by Frederik Pohl and Carol PohlBridge (1952) novelette by James BlishVictory Unintentional (1942) short story by Isaac AsimovDesertion [City] (1944) short story by Clifford D. SimakThe Mad Moon (1935) novelette by Stanley G. WeinbaumHeavy Planet (1939) short story by Milton A. Rothman [as by Lee Gregor]The Lotus-Engine (1940) short story by Raymond Z. GallunCall Me Joe (1957) novelette by Poul AndersonHabit (1939) short story by Lester del ReyA Meeting With Medusa (1971) novelette by Arthur C. Clarke

Genres: Short Stories, Science Fiction

Mass Market Paperback

First published December 1, 1973

About the author

Frederik George Pohl, Jr. was an American science fiction writer, editor and fan, with a career spanning over seventy years. From about 1959 until 1969, Pohl edited Galaxy magazine and its sister magazine IF winning the Hugo for IF three years in a row. His writing also won him three Hugos and multiple Nebula Awards. He became a Nebula Grand Master in 1993.

Reviews

[Ian · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.8 ⭐
Vintage collection of some of the best stories up to the time about Jupiter. My favourites were " The Bridge", "Call Me Joe" and "Meeting With Medusa." A solid anthology, I hope someone does an update, including some newer material.

[Craig · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a very nice anthology of stories edited by the Pohls about our largest planet. It has a nice John Berkey cover and an introduction from Isaac Asimov. They did a good job of selecting both old and new (for 1973) stories. Of course part of the fun with books like this is playing second-guess games by naming stories you would have included instead of some of the ones the editors did. My favorite stories in this one are Desertion by Clifford D. Simak and Call Me Joe by Poul Anderson, though I didn't actually dislike any of them.

[Merle Burbaugh · Rating 4 out of 5]

An old Ballantine Books with famous and not so famous authors.

Several stories were quite good. 'The Mad Moon' and 'Call Me Joe' I found notable with all of them good.

[Ariana Rosel · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a wonderful collection of stories and I very much enjoyed seeing different authors tackle Jupiter. My favorites were Asimov's Victory Unintentional and Clarke's A Meeting with Medusa.

[Timothy · Rating 3 out of 5]

9 stories:

Bridge (1952) • James Blish
Victory Unintentional (1942) • Isaac Asimov
Desertion (1944) • Clifford D. Simak
The Mad Moon (1935) • Stanley G. Weinbaum
Heavy Planet (1939) • Milton A. Rothman
The Lotus-Engine (1940) • Raymond Z. Gallun
Call Me Joe (1957) • Poul Anderson
Habit (1939) • Lester del Rey
A Meeting with Medusa (1971) • Arthur C. Clarke