Ghosts: Isaac Asimov's Magical Worlds of Fantasy 10

Magical Worlds of Fantasy #10

by Isaac Asimov (Editor, Introduction, Contributo), Charles G. Waugh (Editor), J.K. Potter (illustrator)

CONTENTS

Introduction: Ghosts · Isaac Asimov ·
Ringing the Changes · Robert Aickman ·
Author! Author! · Isaac Asimov ·
Touring · Gardner R. Dozois, Jack M. Dann & Michael Swanwick ·
The Wind in the Rose-Bush · Mary E. Wilkins Freeman ·
Come Dance with Me on My Pony’s Grave · Charles L. Grant ·
The Fire When It Comes · Parke Godwin ·
The Toll-House · W. W. Jacobs ·
The Invasion of the Church of the Holy Ghost · Russell Kirk ·
A Terrible Vengeance · Charlotte Riddell ·
Elle Est Trois, (La Mort) · Tanith Lee ·
A Passion for History · Stephen Minot ·
Daemon · C. L. Moore ·
The Lady’s Maid’s Bell · Edith Wharton ·
The King of Thieves [Magnus Ridolph] · Jack Vance

Genres: Fantasy, Horror, Short Stories, Anthologies, Science Fiction Fantasy

347 pages, Mass Market Paperback

First published December 1, 1988

About the author

Works of prolific Russian-American writer Isaac Asimov include popular explanations of scientific principles, The Foundation Trilogy (1951-1953), and other volumes of fiction.

Isaac Asimov, a professor of biochemistry, wrote as a highly successful author, best known for his books.

Asimov, professor, generally considered of all time, edited more than five hundred books and ninety thousand letters and postcards. He published in nine of the ten major categories of the Dewey decimal classification but lacked only an entry in the category of philosophy (100).

People widely considered Asimov, a master of the genre alongside Robert Anson Heinlein and Arthur Charles Clarke as the "big three" during his lifetime. He later tied Galactic Empire and the Robot into the same universe as his most famous series to create a unified "future history" for his stories much like those that Heinlein pioneered and Cordwainer Smith and Poul Anderson previously produced. He penned "Nightfall," voted in 1964 as the best short story of all time; many persons still honor this title. He also produced well mysteries, fantasy, and a great quantity of nonfiction. Asimov used Paul French, the pen name, for the Lucky Starr, series of juvenile novels.

Most books of Asimov in a historical way go as far back to a time with possible question or concept at its simplest stage. He often provides and mentions well nationalities, birth, and death dates for persons and etymologies and pronunciation guides for technical terms. Guide to Science, the tripartite set Understanding Physics, and Chronology of Science and Discovery exemplify these books.

Asimov, a long-time member, reluctantly served as vice president of Mensa international and described some members of that organization as "brain-proud and aggressive about their IQs." He took more pleasure as president of the humanist association. The asteroid 5020 Asimov, the magazine Asimov's Science Fiction, an elementary school in Brooklyn in New York, and two different awards honor his name.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Isaac_As...

Reviews

[Andrew · Rating 3 out of 5]

Another in the series of young readers from a variety of famous genre authors. Like others in the series this was aimed at the 8 and up reader although looking at some of the stories here I wonder if they would carry the same classification today.

These do reflect their time (there is even a twilight zone story here I am sure I have seen) but then again a good ghost story never really loses its impact - take the work of M R James for example rather it is the scene setting that dates.

Still this is a charming book with some great introductory stories to start off an author - and yes there are some great names here and for me that is the real appeal of this book - reminding myself of those writers who may have fallen out of fashion over the years but who still well worth reading

[Liam Ostermann · Rating 3 out of 5]

A collection of 'ghosts' stories from almost entirely out-of-copyright authors and clearly Asimov's name was the selling point. It was apparently at younger readers from eight onwards which, even the late 1980s, was an optimistic pitch. There is nothing wrong with this collection, many of the stories are excellent but many are more easily classed as interesting. I don't see any point in searching it out, stories like this can be found in many anthologies. It is a matter of taste and interest.

I have given it three stars as an anthology not as a reflection, good or bad, on its contents.

[Kirsty · Rating 3 out of 5]

Big yes to Robert Aickman's Ringing the Changes (though I've read it several times in other anthologies), Parke Godwin's The Fire When It Comes, Stephen Minot's A Passion for History and Edith Wharton's The Lady’s Maid’s Bell. Everything else was dull, clunky written and, often, uncomfortably misogynistic. I'm always on the hunt for good literary horror (particularly if women, people of colour or LGBT people are involved), and this book is not for that.

[Aaron Dehn]

“No. I don’t end, you say. Not me, not the center of the universe. And yet it’s happened and I’m stuck with it, no way out, trying to hack the whole thing at once, skittering back and forth from the bedroom to the living room, through the kitchen with its new cream paint, crawling like cigarette smoke in the drapes, beating my nothing-fists against the wall sometimes, collapsing out of habit and exhaustion into a chair or bed I can’t feel under me, wearing myself out with the only sensation left, exhaust and terror.
I’m not dead. I can’t be dead, because if I am, why am I still here. Let me out!
To go where, honey?”

THE FIRE WHEN IT COMES, Parke Godwin

This was a good smattering of ghosts :) Frustrated afterlifers, ghastly maids in gothic castles, fae, ghostly alien wisps.

[Rhonda · Rating 4 out of 5]

Isaac Asimov never fails me, even when it is a collection he is offering, and not his own writing. Totally satisfying collection of different authors and styles but maybe not hugely memorable - but I did discover a new writer to follow up - Parke Goodwin.

[Andrew · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is the last installment in the series - since I am reading the UK editions from Robinson Publishing they were neither numbered or particularly well linked to others in the series so if more were published I would greatly appreciate knowing since it appears the series has been deleted from all records. If you are interested in my thoughts in this series look back at the others books I have commented on although I would stress that I like the choice of stories, both in the range of styles and authors but also in the various interpretations of the theme of each book

[Kristen · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Fire When it Comes is en extremely well written story. One of my all-time favorites.

[Katherine]

1/17/89. No library.