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Annual World's Best SF #6
The 1977 Annual World's Best SF
Legendary Science Fiction Editor Donald A. Wollheim published an Annual World's Best SF anthology series for many years. This is the 1977 volume.
280 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published May 17, 1977
About the author
Donald A. Wollheim
290 books39 followersDonald Allen Wollheim was a science fiction writer, editor, publisher and fan. He published his own works under pseudonyms, including David Grinnell and Millard Verne Gordon
A member of the Futurians, he was one of the leading influences on the development of science fiction and science fiction fandom in the 20th century United States.
In 1937, Wollheim founded the Fantasy Amateur Press Association. The first mailing was distributed in July of that year and included this statement from Wollheim: "There are many fans desiring to put out a voice who dare not, for fear of being obliged to keep it up, and for the worry and time taken by subscriptions and advertising. It is for them and for the fan who admits it is his hobby and not his business that we formed the FAPA."
Wollheim was also a member of the New York Science Fiction League, one of the clubs established by Hugo Gernsback to promote science fiction. When Wollheim published a complaint of non-payment for stories against Gernsback, Gernsback dissolved the New York chapter of the club.
Wollheim's first story, "The Man from Ariel," was published in the January 1934 issue of Wonder Stories when Wollheim was nineteen. Wollheim was not paid for the story and when he began to look into the situation, he learned that many other authors had not been paid for their work, publishing his findings in the Bulletin of the Terrestrial Fantascience Guild. Gernsback eventually settled the case with Wollheim and other authors out of court for $75, but when Wollheim submitted another story to Gernsback, under the pseudonym "Millard Verne Gordon," he was again not paid. One of Wollheim's short stories, "Mimic" was made into the feature film of the same name, which was released in 1997.
He left Avon Books in 1952 to work for A. A. Wyn at Ace Books. In 1953 he introduced science fiction to the Ace lineup, and for 20 years edited their renowned sf list. Ace was well known for the Ace Doubles series which consisted of pairs of books, usually by different authors, bound back-to-back with two "front" covers. Because these paired books had to fit a fixed total page-length, one or both were usually heavily abridged to fit, and Wollheim often made many other editorial alterations and title changes — as witness the many differences between Poul Anderson's Ace novel War of the Wing-Men and its definitive revised edition, The Man Who Counts. It was also during the 1950s he bought the book Junk by William S. Burroughs, which, in his inimitable fashion, he retitled Junkie.
In 1965 Wollheim published an unauthorized Ace edition of The Lord of the Rings by J. R. R. Tolkien in three volumes — the first mass-market paperback edition of Tolkien's epic. This was done because Wollheim believed the Houghton Mifflin hardcover editions failed to properly assert copyright. In a 2006 interview, Wollheim's daughter claimed that Tolkien had angered her father by saying that his magnum opus would never be published in so ‘degenerate a form’ as the paperback book. However, Tolkien had previously authorized a paperback edition of The Hobbit in 1961, and eventually supported paperback editions of The Lord of the Rings and several of his other texts. In any case, Ace was forced to cease publishing the unauthorized edition and to pay Tolkien for their sales following a grass-roots campaign and boycott by Tolkien's U.S. fans. In 1993 a court found that the copyright loophole suggested by Ace Books was incorrect and their paperback edition found to have been a violation of Tolkien's copyright under US law.
After leaving Ace he founded DAW Books in 1971, named by his initials, which can claim to be the first mass market specialist science fiction and fantasy fiction publishing house. In later years, when his distributors, New American Library, threatened to withhold distribution of Thomas Burnett Swann's Biblical fantasy How are the Mighty Fallen (1974) because of its homosexual co
A member of the Futurians, he was one of the leading influences on the development of science fiction and science fiction fandom in the 20th century United States.
In 1937, Wollheim founded the Fantasy Amateur Press Association. The first mailing was distributed in July of that year and included this statement from Wollheim: "There are many fans desiring to put out a voice who dare not, for fear of being obliged to keep it up, and for the worry and time taken by subscriptions and advertising. It is for them and for the fan who admits it is his hobby and not his business that we formed the FAPA."
Wollheim was also a member of the New York Science Fiction League, one of the clubs established by Hugo Gernsback to promote science fiction. When Wollheim published a complaint of non-payment for stories against Gernsback, Gernsback dissolved the New York chapter of the club.
Wollheim's first story, "The Man from Ariel," was published in the January 1934 issue of Wonder Stories when Wollheim was nineteen. Wollheim was not paid for the story and when he began to look into the situation, he learned that many other authors had not been paid for their work, publishing his findings in the Bulletin of the Terrestrial Fantascience Guild. Gernsback eventually settled the case with Wollheim and other authors out of court for $75, but when Wollheim submitted another story to Gernsback, under the pseudonym "Millard Verne Gordon," he was again not paid. One of Wollheim's short stories, "Mimic" was made into the feature film of the same name, which was released in 1997.
He left Avon Books in 1952 to work for A. A. Wyn at Ace Books. In 1953 he introduced science fiction to the Ace lineup, and for 20 years edited their renowned sf list. Ace was well known for the Ace Doubles series which consisted of pairs of books, usually by different authors, bound back-to-back with two "front" covers. Because these paired books had to fit a fixed total page-length, one or both were usually heavily abridged to fit, and Wollheim often made many other editorial alterations and title changes — as witness the many differences between Poul Anderson's Ace novel War of the Wing-Men and its definitive revised edition, The Man Who Counts. It was also during the 1950s he bought the book Junk by William S. Burroughs, which, in his inimitable fashion, he retitled Junkie.
In 1965 Wollheim published an unauthorized Ace edition of The Lord of the Rings by J. R. R. Tolkien in three volumes — the first mass-market paperback edition of Tolkien's epic. This was done because Wollheim believed the Houghton Mifflin hardcover editions failed to properly assert copyright. In a 2006 interview, Wollheim's daughter claimed that Tolkien had angered her father by saying that his magnum opus would never be published in so ‘degenerate a form’ as the paperback book. However, Tolkien had previously authorized a paperback edition of The Hobbit in 1961, and eventually supported paperback editions of The Lord of the Rings and several of his other texts. In any case, Ace was forced to cease publishing the unauthorized edition and to pay Tolkien for their sales following a grass-roots campaign and boycott by Tolkien's U.S. fans. In 1993 a court found that the copyright loophole suggested by Ace Books was incorrect and their paperback edition found to have been a violation of Tolkien's copyright under US law.
After leaving Ace he founded DAW Books in 1971, named by his initials, which can claim to be the first mass market specialist science fiction and fantasy fiction publishing house. In later years, when his distributors, New American Library, threatened to withhold distribution of Thomas Burnett Swann's Biblical fantasy How are the Mighty Fallen (1974) because of its homosexual co
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Displaying 1 - 23 of 23 reviews
August 9, 2015
A great collection. Judging by the very high quality of most stories in this book, I'd say science fiction was in top form in 1977 (or 1976, as each volume in this series aimed to give us the best from the previous year).
Appearance of Life (Brian W. Aldiss) - An anticipation of modern day gadgets and a love triangle stretched out in time. A beautiful introduction to the book and, for me, to Aldiss.
Overdrawn at the Memory Bank (John Varley) - An early cyberpunk story, before the term existed. There's some crazy stuff here that will twist your mind pretty much like the protagonist's. It could have gone in many directions; it went the cheeky way.
Those Good Old Days of Liquid Fuel (Michael G. Coney) - One of my favorites. Timeless and unforgettable. Not for the hard sci-fi fans; although, they wouldn't know what they'd be missing.
The Hertford Manuscript (Richard Cowper) - Having not read Wells's The Time Machine (I will try to correct that), I thought I won't be able to make much sense of this story and that I won't enjoy it much. Luckily, it worked just fine. Richard Cowper is a very good storyteller and I've always loved time traveler's tales.
Natural Advantage (Lester Del Rey) - The only one in the collection that I didn't like. It was written, seemingly, with a "retro" look in mind - to recreate the feel of space operas from SF's pulp era - it was weak and uninteresting.
The Bicentennial Man (Isaac Asimov) - A longer story from the old master. Impeccable storyline; could've used a bit of color, though.
The Cabinet of Oliver Naylor (Barrington J. Bayley) - This was a huge surprise. I was actually becoming rather bored with it, having the impression I was reading nothing more than a personal dissertation on the nature of identity - and then, BAM! It hit so hard and so unexpectedly, right to the funny bone. I'm left with a permanent chuckle.
My Boat (Joanna Russ) - Not a very original theme, but nicely done. What sets it apart, I guess, is that it touches on racial integration - a subject, at that time, rarely spoken of in the genre.
Houston, Houston, Do You Read? (James Tiptree, Jr.) - Tiptree's most famous story, and a magnificent one indeed. It won both the Nebula and Hugo Awards. A view of humanity's distant future that would send most men screaming in horror to the nearest space colony.
I See You (Damon Knight) - Another gadget story, this one a little scarier. The ultimate techno-voyeurism.
Appearance of Life (Brian W. Aldiss) - An anticipation of modern day gadgets and a love triangle stretched out in time. A beautiful introduction to the book and, for me, to Aldiss.
Overdrawn at the Memory Bank (John Varley) - An early cyberpunk story, before the term existed. There's some crazy stuff here that will twist your mind pretty much like the protagonist's. It could have gone in many directions; it went the cheeky way.
Those Good Old Days of Liquid Fuel (Michael G. Coney) - One of my favorites. Timeless and unforgettable. Not for the hard sci-fi fans; although, they wouldn't know what they'd be missing.
The Hertford Manuscript (Richard Cowper) - Having not read Wells's The Time Machine (I will try to correct that), I thought I won't be able to make much sense of this story and that I won't enjoy it much. Luckily, it worked just fine. Richard Cowper is a very good storyteller and I've always loved time traveler's tales.
Natural Advantage (Lester Del Rey) - The only one in the collection that I didn't like. It was written, seemingly, with a "retro" look in mind - to recreate the feel of space operas from SF's pulp era - it was weak and uninteresting.
The Bicentennial Man (Isaac Asimov) - A longer story from the old master. Impeccable storyline; could've used a bit of color, though.
The Cabinet of Oliver Naylor (Barrington J. Bayley) - This was a huge surprise. I was actually becoming rather bored with it, having the impression I was reading nothing more than a personal dissertation on the nature of identity - and then, BAM! It hit so hard and so unexpectedly, right to the funny bone. I'm left with a permanent chuckle.
My Boat (Joanna Russ) - Not a very original theme, but nicely done. What sets it apart, I guess, is that it touches on racial integration - a subject, at that time, rarely spoken of in the genre.
Houston, Houston, Do You Read? (James Tiptree, Jr.) - Tiptree's most famous story, and a magnificent one indeed. It won both the Nebula and Hugo Awards. A view of humanity's distant future that would send most men screaming in horror to the nearest space colony.
I See You (Damon Knight) - Another gadget story, this one a little scarier. The ultimate techno-voyeurism.
August 17, 2016
I don't really know how to review anthologies objectively. In *my* opinion these were mostly mediocre, ho-hum stories; I even skipped a couple after reading the first couple of pages. I'm just not fond of SF from the 70s anyway. I will say that I was very impressed with "Those Good Old Days of Liquid Fuel" by Michael G. Coney, though, and will look for more by the author (of whom I've never heard of before...).
July 26, 2026
My favorite of the 1976 best of collections. (Wow is that a specific statement.)
Interesting to see how different those collections were.
Interesting to see how different those collections were.
January 12, 2014
This is my favorite year of Wollheim's annual "World's Best..." anthologies.
Among a few other stories, there are...
"Appearance of Life" by Brian W. Aldiss - I'm not usually really fond of Aldiss stories but this short one is just great and will surprise you (at least if you've read as much science fiction as I have).
"Overdrawn at the Memory Bank" (John Varley) - I wish I could read this again for the first time. I've read it many times, but that first time just amazed me because of how it twisted my mind. It can't do that any more because I know just what happens.
"The Hertford Manuscript" (Richard Cowper) - Good sequel to H. G. Wells' The Time Machine. Only this time, the "Time Traveler" goes into the past. The style emulates that of Wells.
"The Bicentennial Man" (Isaac Asimov) - One of the best Asimov stories out of the hundreds he has written over the years.
"The Cabinet of Oliver Naylor" (Barrington J. Bayley) - Very original settings and events. Unusual. Interesting.
"Houston, Houston, Do You Read?" (James Tiptree, Jr.) - Now we're talking! This story just blew me away. Tiptree was regularly blowing me away during these years, and was considered possibly the very best science fiction writer of her time -- even though Robert Silverberg famously introduced one of her collections and explained his reasoning for how she "had to be a man" to write like that. He compared her to Hemingway. This is one of her best.
"I See You" (Damon Knight) - Another really good Knight story.
You know, you just don't find the great science fiction in the movies. You have to read!
Among a few other stories, there are...
"Appearance of Life" by Brian W. Aldiss - I'm not usually really fond of Aldiss stories but this short one is just great and will surprise you (at least if you've read as much science fiction as I have).
"Overdrawn at the Memory Bank" (John Varley) - I wish I could read this again for the first time. I've read it many times, but that first time just amazed me because of how it twisted my mind. It can't do that any more because I know just what happens.
"The Hertford Manuscript" (Richard Cowper) - Good sequel to H. G. Wells' The Time Machine. Only this time, the "Time Traveler" goes into the past. The style emulates that of Wells.
"The Bicentennial Man" (Isaac Asimov) - One of the best Asimov stories out of the hundreds he has written over the years.
"The Cabinet of Oliver Naylor" (Barrington J. Bayley) - Very original settings and events. Unusual. Interesting.
"Houston, Houston, Do You Read?" (James Tiptree, Jr.) - Now we're talking! This story just blew me away. Tiptree was regularly blowing me away during these years, and was considered possibly the very best science fiction writer of her time -- even though Robert Silverberg famously introduced one of her collections and explained his reasoning for how she "had to be a man" to write like that. He compared her to Hemingway. This is one of her best.
"I See You" (Damon Knight) - Another really good Knight story.
You know, you just don't find the great science fiction in the movies. You have to read!
July 23, 2012
I picked this up at a library book sale a year or so ago, and promptly forgot all about it. If I had read the table of contents, I would have sat down and read the book immediately. Joanna Russ! Asimov's "Bicentennial Man"! Tiptree! It wasn't until I bought new bookshelves and rearranged my collection that I realized what my spare dollar had gotten me.
Introduction (Donald A. Wollheim) - Is pretentious too strong a word to use for this guy? From his intro to the blurbs he puts at the beginning of each story, as if having to defend why he chose to reprint it, he comes off as thinking his readers don't know as much as he does, which is always off-putting (and usually wrong). Ignore him.
"Appearance of Life" by Brian W. Aldiss - I thought this story worked a little too hard to make a point about the ways in which we fail as humans today, by showing what the future (65,000 years into the future) version of us would think of us. The current us is a long-dead specimen, an ugly point on the physical evolution of humanity, a museum piece. From this perspective, future-human sees our flaws and waxes philosphical about them. The story did bring up some interesting ideas about umwalt and the potential for humans to be influenced by outside sources; I'll file some of them away for later.
"Overdrawn at the Memory Bank" (John Varley) - I liked this quite a bit. The odd things throughout the story were suitably explained by the end, and I can see it as a precurser to a lot of cyber-fiction I like from more recent authors. Fun settings, from the "Kenya Disneyland" on the moon to the world the main character creates for himself in his head.
"Those Good Old Days of Liquid Fuel" (Michael G. Coney) - The narrator here is hard to like. He's telling an anecdote from his youth, but he doesn't have positive things to say about anyone it. He essentially just bitches about his old friends until we catch up to him in present day, where he has an opportunity to reconnect with one of the people he's been talking about - but chooses not to, on the grounds that they have nothing to say to each other. So, we just have to listen to you bitch, and there's no character arc, no resolution at the end? Eh.
"The Hertford Manuscript" (Richard Cowper) - Maybe if I cared more about HG Well's Time Machine, or hadn't already seen/read a million adaptations from that story, I'd have been more impressed. This goes along with a few others as being probably innovative in 1977, but boring today. It's not badly written but the framework of the story - an old book handed down by a dead aunt with a secret inside - wasn't original even in 1977.
"Natural Advantage" (Lester del Rey) - Wonderful. It presents aliens as the main characters, with Earth/humanity as an outside force that is met and re-met, but doesn't go on the journey. It has a little of that "humans are teh awesome and will always win" propaganda common from the time, but it doesn't overwhelm the heart of the tale. The way that the aliens cherish humanity is what gives the story its emotional weight. To be seen, from the outside, as worth remembering, worth missing ... that feeling makes the last paragraph of the story work.
"The Bicentennial Man" (Isaac Asimov) - I'd seen the movie but hadn't read the story until now. I liked it! I can see why it was so influential, and it's one of those classic tales that, if you like robot stories, you're going to want to have read.
"The Cabinet of Oliver Naylor" (Barrington J. Bayley) - This story tried to do so much. It introduced several novel ideas, but in the end the author chose the easy out of tossing the main character into a void so none of the science had to be explained, or, you know, work. It felt lazy.
"My Boat" (Joanna Russ) - Like Coney's story, this one has a narrator recounting an incident from his teen years, but not only is the anecdote far more interesting (even though it coves many of the same themes, including a male friend leaving him to spend time with a new female) but it also has a conclusion that leaves the reader hopeful and enchanted. It's one of the best pieces in the book.
"Houston, Houston, Do You Read?" (James Tiptree, Jr.) - I had to try to forget everything that came after this story because by now I've seen it redone a hundred times, but looking at it by itself, it's quite good. It has a very strong opinion about the (assumed) primal dominance of men and the utopia of a women-only society, which I don't actually agree with, but the philosophy is present inside of strong storytelling. There are definite bad guys but there's also a mostly harmless guy to show the range of male personalities, instead of simply writing them all off. I'm also not sure if I agree with the idea that the main society in the story would actually have slowed way down the way it did, but I liked that the author took the future to the logical conclusion for the rules she set for it. Bonus points for logical follow-through, always.
"I See You" (Damon Knight) - I rarely like second-person perspective, but it fits the story here. The author alternates between 2nd per, talking to you, and third-person, talking about the inventor of a device which changes people's perspective, and is what makes the way he talks to you make sense. It isn't the best story in the collection but it is a solid way to end the book. Definitely recommend to people who are interested in that kind of PoV shifting. The science isn't as novel as the storytelling, but with an author this deft, it doesn't need to be.
Overall, there was more to like than dislike, and at least half of the stories stood the test of time. If you see it, read it.
July 29, 2022
I was previously not that familiar with short stories from the 70s but this was a really good selection of very strong and memorable stories from 1976. Will definitely look into more of Wollheims collections.
The collection starts with "Appearence of Life" by Brian Aldiss which was a great opener. It manages to create a sense of deep time and a long galactic history while still keeping the story relatively small and personal. Having two holographic recordings "converse" with each other was a nice touch.
"Overdrawn at the Memory Bank" by John Varley is full of crazy ideas about living in a computer simulation. Not the first story with that concept, but definitely somewhat ahead of its time and reminded me quite a bit of Total Recall.
"Those Good Old Days of Liquid Fuel" by Michael G. Coney is a story I can best describe as about trainspotting but for spaceships. Sort of light on sf elements and really more about growing up and nostalgia for ones youth.
"The Hertford Manuscript" by Richard Cowper was a positive surprise for me because I usually don't find these "sequels" to Wells' "The Time Machine" to be that interesting. But once the premise with a recovered journal was established I became quite engaged with the story of the time traveler trying to return .
I am sure it is littered with references to Wells' classic that I have missed but I think it worked well enough on its own anyway.
"Natural Advantage" by Lester del Rey is a story that was retro even in the seventies so even more now. It is not bad, and I liked the aliens and their extra sense of time, but I think when doing retro stories there needs to be some new modern element added to the mix to make it interesting. I didn't get that much here.
"The Bicentennial Man" by Isaas Asimov is an absolute classic about a family robot living for generations and in the process becomes more and more "human". It is clear to see where Star Trek got its inspiration to Data from.
"The Cabinet of Oliver Naylor" by Barrington J. Bayley is about a guy inventing something called a thespitron. Would probably be called AI generated deepfake videos today. But it was a bit confusing with all the other crazy ideas thrown into the mix. Somehow I enjoyed the data dumps more than the actual story.
"My Boat" by Joanna Russ was the only story I didn't care much for. It seems to be popular among Lovecraft fans.
"Houston, Houston, Do You Read?" by James Tiptree, Jr. is definitely an alltime classic science fiction story. Three male astronauts ends up several hundred years in the future after a trip around the sun and find Earth is now only occupied by a couple of thousands women. I thought this was a very interesting story deals with peoples hidden thoughts and prejudices without being judgemental. However att least two of the males are overtly stereotyped and it does deserve some criticism for being somewhat constructed to make a specific point. It is a story that is meant to challenge our default way of thinking, cultural norms and gender-specific prejudices. I don't think it is to be read as some sort of feminist utopia or revenge story against men. It has more subtle nuances than that.
Skipping all that, the actual story was also quite exciting and the dream feel worked, even though it at times was a bit weird to follow.
The final story is "I see you" by Damon Knight. An inventor creates a time viewer - a device that can view any point and time in history. This has some drastic consequences for everyone unsurprisingly. My only slight gripe with this otherwise great story. It is hard to believe that it won't be a bit more chaotic than Knight portrays society as here. However also nice to see a story with a positive look on humans.
The collection starts with "Appearence of Life" by Brian Aldiss which was a great opener. It manages to create a sense of deep time and a long galactic history while still keeping the story relatively small and personal. Having two holographic recordings "converse" with each other was a nice touch.
"Overdrawn at the Memory Bank" by John Varley is full of crazy ideas about living in a computer simulation. Not the first story with that concept, but definitely somewhat ahead of its time and reminded me quite a bit of Total Recall.
"Those Good Old Days of Liquid Fuel" by Michael G. Coney is a story I can best describe as about trainspotting but for spaceships. Sort of light on sf elements and really more about growing up and nostalgia for ones youth.
"The Hertford Manuscript" by Richard Cowper was a positive surprise for me because I usually don't find these "sequels" to Wells' "The Time Machine" to be that interesting. But once the premise with a recovered journal was established I became quite engaged with the story of the time traveler trying to return .
I am sure it is littered with references to Wells' classic that I have missed but I think it worked well enough on its own anyway.
"Natural Advantage" by Lester del Rey is a story that was retro even in the seventies so even more now. It is not bad, and I liked the aliens and their extra sense of time, but I think when doing retro stories there needs to be some new modern element added to the mix to make it interesting. I didn't get that much here.
"The Bicentennial Man" by Isaas Asimov is an absolute classic about a family robot living for generations and in the process becomes more and more "human". It is clear to see where Star Trek got its inspiration to Data from.
"The Cabinet of Oliver Naylor" by Barrington J. Bayley is about a guy inventing something called a thespitron. Would probably be called AI generated deepfake videos today. But it was a bit confusing with all the other crazy ideas thrown into the mix. Somehow I enjoyed the data dumps more than the actual story.
"My Boat" by Joanna Russ was the only story I didn't care much for. It seems to be popular among Lovecraft fans.
"Houston, Houston, Do You Read?" by James Tiptree, Jr. is definitely an alltime classic science fiction story. Three male astronauts ends up several hundred years in the future after a trip around the sun and find Earth is now only occupied by a couple of thousands women. I thought this was a very interesting story deals with peoples hidden thoughts and prejudices without being judgemental. However att least two of the males are overtly stereotyped and it does deserve some criticism for being somewhat constructed to make a specific point. It is a story that is meant to challenge our default way of thinking, cultural norms and gender-specific prejudices. I don't think it is to be read as some sort of feminist utopia or revenge story against men. It has more subtle nuances than that.
Skipping all that, the actual story was also quite exciting and the dream feel worked, even though it at times was a bit weird to follow.
The final story is "I see you" by Damon Knight. An inventor creates a time viewer - a device that can view any point and time in history. This has some drastic consequences for everyone unsurprisingly. My only slight gripe with this otherwise great story. It is hard to believe that it won't be a bit more chaotic than Knight portrays society as here. However also nice to see a story with a positive look on humans.
April 9, 2008
I have a pet theory that everyone reads something at the exact right time in their lives, usually around adolescence, when they have just reached a critical threshold of maturity and understanding of the wider world. If they grab the right sort of book, it bullseyes a mind that's primed and ready for it, carving out a major new emotional pathway and setting a sort of baseline book that they'll always want to read. For me it was sci-fi and the Foundation series.
This collection came a little later, but hit me at another inflection point when I really needed something like it. Totally re-energized my sci-fi interests the first time I read it (ca. 2002).
It'd been a while since the last of several re-reads, but still came in hot. An amazing collection. My fave is probably Brian Aldiss' "Appearance of Life" about a far-future space librarian*. Or Damon Knight's "I See You" which is all of 12 pages and has more ideas and better execution than most novels an order or two of magnitude longer. There's also a great Asimov story, an award-winning James Tiptree Jr. story, Richard Cowper's sequel to The Time Machine, John Varley's "Overdrawn at the Memory Bank" (the basis for a very silly MST3K episode; the story is a lot better than the cheap weird PBS movie version, and contains no uncalled-for slams on anteaters). I can't say of all these Wollheim collections were this strong or this was just a peak. Sounds like a good reading project.
*Several of these stories have some version of an analog space library, which I dig for being so wonderfully antiquated. SF authors regularly wrote about people reading the news on like a future space watch, but it never seemed to occur to anyone that we would store data digitally. One of these stories is talking about all the cargo space needed to haul physical books around the universe. Even Asimov's robot is visiting libraries.
This collection came a little later, but hit me at another inflection point when I really needed something like it. Totally re-energized my sci-fi interests the first time I read it (ca. 2002).
It'd been a while since the last of several re-reads, but still came in hot. An amazing collection. My fave is probably Brian Aldiss' "Appearance of Life" about a far-future space librarian*. Or Damon Knight's "I See You" which is all of 12 pages and has more ideas and better execution than most novels an order or two of magnitude longer. There's also a great Asimov story, an award-winning James Tiptree Jr. story, Richard Cowper's sequel to The Time Machine, John Varley's "Overdrawn at the Memory Bank" (the basis for a very silly MST3K episode; the story is a lot better than the cheap weird PBS movie version, and contains no uncalled-for slams on anteaters). I can't say of all these Wollheim collections were this strong or this was just a peak. Sounds like a good reading project.
*Several of these stories have some version of an analog space library, which I dig for being so wonderfully antiquated. SF authors regularly wrote about people reading the news on like a future space watch, but it never seemed to occur to anyone that we would store data digitally. One of these stories is talking about all the cargo space needed to haul physical books around the universe. Even Asimov's robot is visiting libraries.
October 12, 2026
The overall theme of 1976 sci-fi was clear -- the future is gonna be a bummer.
There were only three stories that I liked here, with "The Bicentennial Man" being the massive standout. However, you can find this in a zillion other anthologies. The other stories I liked were "Overdrawn at the Memory Bank" (again, this appears in other anthologies) and "Natural Advantage" (which appears rarely.) The other stories rated from "meh" to "I wish somebody had killed me before I read this."
I read the hardback edition, which had a really annoying quirk. Usually, there's a paragraph break to denote a passage of time -- especially in stories using flashbacks, or that go back and forth in time. For the most part, they were missing here.
Selections:
* "Introduction" by Our Editor. Nothing memorable here.
* "Appearances of Life" by Brian W. Aldiss. More depressing than even I could possibly imagine.
* "Overdrawn at the Memory Bank" by John Varley. Sadly, Galaxy never paid Varley for this brilliant novellette. The nature of reality has been done to death and back in sci-fi, but this is the most interesting story I've ever read on the subject. This was made into a low-budget PBS film starring Raul Julia in 1983. I seem to be the only person in the world who liked that film.
* "Those Good Old Days of Liquid Fuel" by Michael G. Coney. This is a nostalgic coming of age story marred by the senseless killing of a pet. Also, Our Protagonist mentioned that he bred an alien animal for the skins, but didn't how the skins were harvested. (Could the skins have been shed? Who knows?) Our Protagonist was more upset at old spaceships getting wrecked than the dead animals. Fuck him.
* "The Hertford Manuscript" by Richard Cowper. This was inspired by H. G. Wells' The Time Machine, and is supposedly a sequel. It's a terrible sequel, merely showing off Cowper's knowledge of the bubonic plague in 1665 London more than anything else.
* "Natural Advantage" by Lester del Rey. This was inspired by the editorial policies of John W. Campbell, Jr. Despite that, it's quite nice. A three-eyed alien species warns Earth that they only have 10 years before the Sun goes kerflooey. This would be one of Del Rey's final short stories.
* "The Bicentennial Man" by Isaac Asimov. This novellette won multiple awards, and was turned into a highly panned film in 1999, despite a sensitive performance by Robin Williams. The "man" is a malfunctioning robot in this sci-fi version of Pinocchio.
* "The Cabinet of Oliver Naylor" by Barrington J. Bayley. This novellette has way too many details to keep track of, really disgusting domestic violence, and is just too damn confusing.
* "My Boat" by Joanna Russ. This was inspired by H. P. Lovecraft's Cthulu stories. I find that hard to believe, since this was much better than a Lovecraft story. Still, it leaves you thinking, "Oh, that's all there is, is there?"
* "Houston, Houston, Do You Read?" By James Tiptree, Jr./ Alice Hastings Bradley/Racoona Sheldon/etc. Three American astronauts returning to Earth encounter ... AUSTRALIANS IN SPACE. A promising story gets sillier and sillier, then finally becomes offensive (and I'm not easily offended.) WARNING: Iguana shot, kitten gassed.
* "I See You" by Damon Knight. And Our Editor sees Knight, advising in his intro for Knight to stop the Orbit series and get back to writing stories like this. However, this was one of Knight's worst stories. It was disjointed, lacked sense, and seemed to be written in a numb monotone.
There were only three stories that I liked here, with "The Bicentennial Man" being the massive standout. However, you can find this in a zillion other anthologies. The other stories I liked were "Overdrawn at the Memory Bank" (again, this appears in other anthologies) and "Natural Advantage" (which appears rarely.) The other stories rated from "meh" to "I wish somebody had killed me before I read this."
I read the hardback edition, which had a really annoying quirk. Usually, there's a paragraph break to denote a passage of time -- especially in stories using flashbacks, or that go back and forth in time. For the most part, they were missing here.
Selections:
* "Introduction" by Our Editor. Nothing memorable here.
* "Appearances of Life" by Brian W. Aldiss. More depressing than even I could possibly imagine.
* "Overdrawn at the Memory Bank" by John Varley. Sadly, Galaxy never paid Varley for this brilliant novellette. The nature of reality has been done to death and back in sci-fi, but this is the most interesting story I've ever read on the subject. This was made into a low-budget PBS film starring Raul Julia in 1983. I seem to be the only person in the world who liked that film.
* "Those Good Old Days of Liquid Fuel" by Michael G. Coney. This is a nostalgic coming of age story marred by the senseless killing of a pet. Also, Our Protagonist mentioned that he bred an alien animal for the skins, but didn't how the skins were harvested. (Could the skins have been shed? Who knows?) Our Protagonist was more upset at old spaceships getting wrecked than the dead animals. Fuck him.
* "The Hertford Manuscript" by Richard Cowper. This was inspired by H. G. Wells' The Time Machine, and is supposedly a sequel. It's a terrible sequel, merely showing off Cowper's knowledge of the bubonic plague in 1665 London more than anything else.
* "Natural Advantage" by Lester del Rey. This was inspired by the editorial policies of John W. Campbell, Jr. Despite that, it's quite nice. A three-eyed alien species warns Earth that they only have 10 years before the Sun goes kerflooey. This would be one of Del Rey's final short stories.
* "The Bicentennial Man" by Isaac Asimov. This novellette won multiple awards, and was turned into a highly panned film in 1999, despite a sensitive performance by Robin Williams. The "man" is a malfunctioning robot in this sci-fi version of Pinocchio.
* "The Cabinet of Oliver Naylor" by Barrington J. Bayley. This novellette has way too many details to keep track of, really disgusting domestic violence, and is just too damn confusing.
* "My Boat" by Joanna Russ. This was inspired by H. P. Lovecraft's Cthulu stories. I find that hard to believe, since this was much better than a Lovecraft story. Still, it leaves you thinking, "Oh, that's all there is, is there?"
* "Houston, Houston, Do You Read?" By James Tiptree, Jr./ Alice Hastings Bradley/Racoona Sheldon/etc. Three American astronauts returning to Earth encounter ... AUSTRALIANS IN SPACE. A promising story gets sillier and sillier, then finally becomes offensive (and I'm not easily offended.) WARNING: Iguana shot, kitten gassed.
* "I See You" by Damon Knight. And Our Editor sees Knight, advising in his intro for Knight to stop the Orbit series and get back to writing stories like this. However, this was one of Knight's worst stories. It was disjointed, lacked sense, and seemed to be written in a numb monotone.
September 12, 2026
Generally enjoyable, though few will likely be memorable.
Favorites:
* "Those Good Old Days of Liquid Fuel", by Michael G. Coney (an author new to me, but whom I intend to explore)
* "The Bicentenial Man", by Isaac Asimov
Least Favorites:
* "Appearance of Life", by Brian W. Aldiss
* "Natural Advantage", by Lester del Rey
* "My Boat", by Joanna Russ
* "I See You", by Damon Knight
[Note: This is one of the many speculative fiction books I inherited from my brother]
Favorites:
* "Those Good Old Days of Liquid Fuel", by Michael G. Coney (an author new to me, but whom I intend to explore)
* "The Bicentenial Man", by Isaac Asimov
Least Favorites:
* "Appearance of Life", by Brian W. Aldiss
* "Natural Advantage", by Lester del Rey
* "My Boat", by Joanna Russ
* "I See You", by Damon Knight
[Note: This is one of the many speculative fiction books I inherited from my brother]
January 23, 2020
4.25/5 (collated rating: Very Good)
The 1977 Annual World’s Best SF, ed. Donald A. Wolheim and Arthur S. Saha (1977) is a glorious anthology of SF published from the year before containing rousing works by the established masters (Isaac Asimov and Brian W. Aldiss), philosophical gems from New Wave icons (Barrington J. Bayley), and gritty and disturbing commentaries on masculinity by the newer voices (James Tiptree, Jr.). While Richard Cowper and Lester del Rey misfire, the overall quality is high for a large anthology of this nature.
Highly recommended–especially those interested in a cross-section of the SF published in the mid-1970s. A marked improvement [...]
For the complete review: https://sciencefictionruminations.com...
The 1977 Annual World’s Best SF, ed. Donald A. Wolheim and Arthur S. Saha (1977) is a glorious anthology of SF published from the year before containing rousing works by the established masters (Isaac Asimov and Brian W. Aldiss), philosophical gems from New Wave icons (Barrington J. Bayley), and gritty and disturbing commentaries on masculinity by the newer voices (James Tiptree, Jr.). While Richard Cowper and Lester del Rey misfire, the overall quality is high for a large anthology of this nature.
Highly recommended–especially those interested in a cross-section of the SF published in the mid-1970s. A marked improvement [...]
For the complete review: https://sciencefictionruminations.com...
Want to Read
January 31, 202610 stories:
(4/10 read)
Appearance of Life (1976) • Brian W. Aldiss
**** Overdrawn at the Memory Bank (1976) • John Varley
Those Good Old Days of Liquid Fuel (1976) • Michael G. Coney
The Hertford Manuscript (1976) • Richard Cowper
Natural Advantage (1976) • Lester del Rey
*** The Bicentennial Man (1976) • Isaac Asimov
The Cabinet of Oliver Naylor (1976) • Barrington J. Bayley
My Boat (1976) • Joanna Russ
***** Houston, Houston, Do You Read? (1976) • James Tiptree, Jr.
*** I See You (1976) • Damon Knight
(4/10 read)
Appearance of Life (1976) • Brian W. Aldiss
**** Overdrawn at the Memory Bank (1976) • John Varley
Those Good Old Days of Liquid Fuel (1976) • Michael G. Coney
The Hertford Manuscript (1976) • Richard Cowper
Natural Advantage (1976) • Lester del Rey
*** The Bicentennial Man (1976) • Isaac Asimov
The Cabinet of Oliver Naylor (1976) • Barrington J. Bayley
My Boat (1976) • Joanna Russ
***** Houston, Houston, Do You Read? (1976) • James Tiptree, Jr.
*** I See You (1976) • Damon Knight
October 23, 2025
Amazing top tier anthology collection. Big hits from Tiptree Jr and Bayley stand out as really excellent examples of short sf. But in reality, every story in here is worth your time. A truly top tier collection that has been my favorite so far
May 17, 2025
these stories were shit
March 30, 2013
Rather intermittently I’ve written about sci-fi and I find that if I don’t take the time to slow down and write something out then I promptly forget whatever it is that I just read. This post is not only an attempt to share but also one of self-preservation for my own recollection.
Appearance of Life – Brian W. Aldiss
The introductory paragraph for this story says, and I quote, that Brian has been writing stories that “baffle the comprehension.” I don’t find personally that this story is completely beyond my comprehension but I will say that such a statement does little to recommend such a narrative. The bits that stand out for me, many days after reading this story, center around a planet-wide museum constructed by an ancient and extinct race. Our narrator visits the locale and spends many months seeking out some greater truth about our history as a species. Eventually, he comes to a conclusion which his mind cannot accept, that drives him mad, that causes him to extract himself from humanity entirely lest he loose this knowledge upon the universe and create havoc.
Overdrawn at the Memory Bank – John Varley
If this book were a pop song, this story would be “the hook.” Our narrator, in a far distant time is visiting the equivalent of Disney World. He’s having his consciousness implanted into an African lion for a few weeks to relax and disconnect from the world around him. Unfortunately, when he returns from his excursion he finds that his real body has been misplaced. In the months and months which follow while Uncle Walt looks for his body, he discovers a few key truths about himself and about mankind in general.
Those Good Old Days of Liquid Fuel – Michael G. Coney
The Wonder Years meets Trainspotting. ’nuff said.
The Hertford Manuscript – Richard Cowper
In this short tale Cowper does a fairly reasonable job of filling in some of the narrative holes left in H.G. Wells “The Time Machine”. Cowper’s protagonist doesn’t come to anything approaching a happy ending but it is good nonetheless to have an answer, even if it isn’t the most uplifting one.
Natural Advantage – Lester Del Rey
Aliens are nice enough to visit Earth, but sadly, it’s with nothing but bad news. A solar flare is coming to wipe us off the face of the planet within the decade. This particular race has trinocular vision and that allows them to not only perceive depth of field but depth of time and thus they can see that our puny race is about to snuff it. At least they’re nice enough to tell us though, right? After delivering their news they agree to an exchange of technology with our sadly doomed race and go on their way. When they return to their homeworld years later they find that humanity had a little more ingenuity than they bargained for.
The Bicentennial Man – Isaac Asimov
In this old and familiar story we find a robot with an ambition. Before the story of this robot there was a wooden marionette with the same ambition. So many are the articles of furniture which yearn to be human. Why do we write of such things? Is it possibly because we want to make our finite and human frailties seem somehow valuable? The Bicentennial Man yearns to be human, to expire, to pass on from a mortal existence. How many of us would give everything to NOT be human?
The Cabinet of Oliver Naylor – Barrington Bayley
Mankind’s technology has outpaced his morality. He can travel not only faster than light but exponentially faster. He can cruise about the cosmos and watch every possible sitcom produced mechanically by a simple box. (Not that there are all that many possible combinations mind you). So what WOULD happen if the entirety of the omniverse became the equivalent of the wild west?
My Boat – Joanna Russ
A young black girl close on the heels of the civil rights movement proves to be more than she might seem. In fact she might be downright alien…
Houston, Houston, Do You Read? – James Tiptree Jr.
Our protagonists were on a mission. All they had to do was loop around the sun and come back to Earth. Unfortunately for them, the Earth has changed since they left, especially since 300 years passed when they approached perihelion. Pesky temporal distortions. Plague has ravaged the planet they’re returning to and they’re the last three human males in the universe. What greater paradise could there be? Or perhaps it’s really hell in disguise….
I See You – Damon Knight
Television has come a long way. Now you can dial in the time and location of whatever you want to view, even your next door neighbor. What exactly WOULD happen if all of history both distant and recent was wide open to scrutiny from a hoard of people with a $7 gadget from Radio Shack?
Appearance of Life – Brian W. Aldiss
The introductory paragraph for this story says, and I quote, that Brian has been writing stories that “baffle the comprehension.” I don’t find personally that this story is completely beyond my comprehension but I will say that such a statement does little to recommend such a narrative. The bits that stand out for me, many days after reading this story, center around a planet-wide museum constructed by an ancient and extinct race. Our narrator visits the locale and spends many months seeking out some greater truth about our history as a species. Eventually, he comes to a conclusion which his mind cannot accept, that drives him mad, that causes him to extract himself from humanity entirely lest he loose this knowledge upon the universe and create havoc.
Overdrawn at the Memory Bank – John Varley
If this book were a pop song, this story would be “the hook.” Our narrator, in a far distant time is visiting the equivalent of Disney World. He’s having his consciousness implanted into an African lion for a few weeks to relax and disconnect from the world around him. Unfortunately, when he returns from his excursion he finds that his real body has been misplaced. In the months and months which follow while Uncle Walt looks for his body, he discovers a few key truths about himself and about mankind in general.
Those Good Old Days of Liquid Fuel – Michael G. Coney
The Wonder Years meets Trainspotting. ’nuff said.
The Hertford Manuscript – Richard Cowper
In this short tale Cowper does a fairly reasonable job of filling in some of the narrative holes left in H.G. Wells “The Time Machine”. Cowper’s protagonist doesn’t come to anything approaching a happy ending but it is good nonetheless to have an answer, even if it isn’t the most uplifting one.
Natural Advantage – Lester Del Rey
Aliens are nice enough to visit Earth, but sadly, it’s with nothing but bad news. A solar flare is coming to wipe us off the face of the planet within the decade. This particular race has trinocular vision and that allows them to not only perceive depth of field but depth of time and thus they can see that our puny race is about to snuff it. At least they’re nice enough to tell us though, right? After delivering their news they agree to an exchange of technology with our sadly doomed race and go on their way. When they return to their homeworld years later they find that humanity had a little more ingenuity than they bargained for.
The Bicentennial Man – Isaac Asimov
In this old and familiar story we find a robot with an ambition. Before the story of this robot there was a wooden marionette with the same ambition. So many are the articles of furniture which yearn to be human. Why do we write of such things? Is it possibly because we want to make our finite and human frailties seem somehow valuable? The Bicentennial Man yearns to be human, to expire, to pass on from a mortal existence. How many of us would give everything to NOT be human?
The Cabinet of Oliver Naylor – Barrington Bayley
Mankind’s technology has outpaced his morality. He can travel not only faster than light but exponentially faster. He can cruise about the cosmos and watch every possible sitcom produced mechanically by a simple box. (Not that there are all that many possible combinations mind you). So what WOULD happen if the entirety of the omniverse became the equivalent of the wild west?
My Boat – Joanna Russ
A young black girl close on the heels of the civil rights movement proves to be more than she might seem. In fact she might be downright alien…
Houston, Houston, Do You Read? – James Tiptree Jr.
Our protagonists were on a mission. All they had to do was loop around the sun and come back to Earth. Unfortunately for them, the Earth has changed since they left, especially since 300 years passed when they approached perihelion. Pesky temporal distortions. Plague has ravaged the planet they’re returning to and they’re the last three human males in the universe. What greater paradise could there be? Or perhaps it’s really hell in disguise….
I See You – Damon Knight
Television has come a long way. Now you can dial in the time and location of whatever you want to view, even your next door neighbor. What exactly WOULD happen if all of history both distant and recent was wide open to scrutiny from a hoard of people with a $7 gadget from Radio Shack?
January 12, 2020
5 stars just for the brilliant "My Boat" by Joanna Russ.
The Asimov and the Tiptree stories are both masterpieces as well.
Overdrawn at the Memory Bank by John Varley is also very good.
'76 was a great year for scifi.
The Asimov and the Tiptree stories are both masterpieces as well.
Overdrawn at the Memory Bank by John Varley is also very good.
'76 was a great year for scifi.
November 29, 2011
I always enjoy these "little slice of history" anthologies... this one, while not dramatically outstanding for me, was good as always, as most of this series is...
I'd read the Cowper, Del Rey and Tiptree stories before, but long enough ago that I read them over...
Appearance of Life - Brian Aldiss
Holographic recordings of a long-dead couple lead to an insight(?) about the nature of our universe.
Overdrawn at the Memory Bank - John Varley
A futuristic 'vacation' technique involving transfer of consciousness leads to a man being stuck inside a computer system in this playful tale.
Those Good Old Days of Liquid Fuel - Michael Coney
A nostalgia-fest for the future - pretty original gimmick, actually. The 'classic' early spaceships are being phased out by new technology. A man remembers his boyhood watching the dramatic launches and landings with his best friend - who has grown up to be a very different person.
The Hertford Manuscript - Richard Cowper
Could H.G. Wells have been telling the truth when he wrote The Time Machine? Excellent recreation of the Victorian literary style.
Natural Advantage - Lester Del Rey
Humans are smart, and underestimated by some rather fatalistic aliens.
The Bicentennial Man - Isaac Asimov
A classic tale investigating the nature of humanity through the story of a robot who wants to be human. Won the Hugo and Nebula that year, but honestly, I thought the robot was way too whiny and frustratingly stupid. And WHY does he want to be human, anyway? Is it just pressure to conform and be like everyone else?
OK, so I haven't read it in many years, but I really thought "Pinocchio" did a better job with this same theme. (Did you know that in the original (1883), Pinocchio dies at the end? I didn't, until just now! Collodi apparently was pressured by publishers to write a 'happy ending.')
The Cabinet of Oliver Naylor - Barrington Bayley
The inventor of the 'thespitron' (a sort of automatic movie generator) is asked to transport (unbeknownst to him) a government agent in his spaceship in order to apprehend a petty criminal. Things go badly.
My Boat - Joanna Russ
I haven't been a huge Joanna Russ fan - I've sort of WANTED to like her work, but I've read Extra(ordinary) People and We Who Are About To, and neither of them really did it for me. But I liked this story quite a lot - featuring a couple of kids who escape the mundane misery of life in 1960s America into glorious history and the worlds of H.P. Lovecraft(!) - from the perspective of one who doesn't go. Really nice piece!
Houston Houston Do You Read - James Tiptree, Jr.
Also won the Hugo and Nebula.
Strangely, this story reminded me a lot of Joanna Russ' short story "When it Changed," which was retrospectively awarded the Tiptree award. "When it Changed" was written first (1972.) Both feature a situation where, due to a plague or epidemic, only women have survived, and have created a self-sufficient, peaceful all-female society. Men arrive, and don't get it.
I See You - Damon Knight
Shortlisted for the Hugo. Inventor creates a "far-seeing" machine which can view both through space and time. He disseminates these machines widely, and they become omnipresent, changing the nature of society radically.
I'd read the Cowper, Del Rey and Tiptree stories before, but long enough ago that I read them over...
Appearance of Life - Brian Aldiss
Holographic recordings of a long-dead couple lead to an insight(?) about the nature of our universe.
Overdrawn at the Memory Bank - John Varley
A futuristic 'vacation' technique involving transfer of consciousness leads to a man being stuck inside a computer system in this playful tale.
Those Good Old Days of Liquid Fuel - Michael Coney
A nostalgia-fest for the future - pretty original gimmick, actually. The 'classic' early spaceships are being phased out by new technology. A man remembers his boyhood watching the dramatic launches and landings with his best friend - who has grown up to be a very different person.
The Hertford Manuscript - Richard Cowper
Could H.G. Wells have been telling the truth when he wrote The Time Machine? Excellent recreation of the Victorian literary style.
Natural Advantage - Lester Del Rey
Humans are smart, and underestimated by some rather fatalistic aliens.
The Bicentennial Man - Isaac Asimov
A classic tale investigating the nature of humanity through the story of a robot who wants to be human. Won the Hugo and Nebula that year, but honestly, I thought the robot was way too whiny and frustratingly stupid. And WHY does he want to be human, anyway? Is it just pressure to conform and be like everyone else?
OK, so I haven't read it in many years, but I really thought "Pinocchio" did a better job with this same theme. (Did you know that in the original (1883), Pinocchio dies at the end? I didn't, until just now! Collodi apparently was pressured by publishers to write a 'happy ending.')
The Cabinet of Oliver Naylor - Barrington Bayley
The inventor of the 'thespitron' (a sort of automatic movie generator) is asked to transport (unbeknownst to him) a government agent in his spaceship in order to apprehend a petty criminal. Things go badly.
My Boat - Joanna Russ
I haven't been a huge Joanna Russ fan - I've sort of WANTED to like her work, but I've read Extra(ordinary) People and We Who Are About To, and neither of them really did it for me. But I liked this story quite a lot - featuring a couple of kids who escape the mundane misery of life in 1960s America into glorious history and the worlds of H.P. Lovecraft(!) - from the perspective of one who doesn't go. Really nice piece!
Houston Houston Do You Read - James Tiptree, Jr.
Also won the Hugo and Nebula.
Strangely, this story reminded me a lot of Joanna Russ' short story "When it Changed," which was retrospectively awarded the Tiptree award. "When it Changed" was written first (1972.) Both feature a situation where, due to a plague or epidemic, only women have survived, and have created a self-sufficient, peaceful all-female society. Men arrive, and don't get it.
I See You - Damon Knight
Shortlisted for the Hugo. Inventor creates a "far-seeing" machine which can view both through space and time. He disseminates these machines widely, and they become omnipresent, changing the nature of society radically.
January 9, 2012
Best passage in the whole collection, from Those Good Old Days of Liquid Fuel by Michael G. Coney:
"I was scanning my Newspocket to pass away the time, when my interest was suddenly caught by a news item."
It's always fun to run across a SF reference that pans out, this time 30 years in advance. I was there in 1977, excited about the Commodore 64 and the Tandy computers, thinking that someday I might really have a computer at my house! I had no thought that I'd have a computer in my pocket, but here's my iPhone. Too cool.
"I was scanning my Newspocket to pass away the time, when my interest was suddenly caught by a news item."
It's always fun to run across a SF reference that pans out, this time 30 years in advance. I was there in 1977, excited about the Commodore 64 and the Tandy computers, thinking that someday I might really have a computer at my house! I had no thought that I'd have a computer in my pocket, but here's my iPhone. Too cool.
July 6, 2010
Donald Wollheim edited a series of books on the year's best science fiction works. This volume focuses on 1977. My favorite story is Isaac Asimov's "The Bicentennial Man." Other of my favorite authors in this work: Brian Aldiss, Lester Del Rey, Joanna Russ, James Tiptree, Jr., and Damon Knight.
I really enjoyed this series back in the day!!
I really enjoyed this series back in the day!!
March 5, 2009
Overdrawn at the Memory Bank is my favorite story in this book.
January 15, 2010
I really liked the James Tiptree Jr. story (Houston, Houston Do you Read?) and "Appearance of Life" by Brian Aldiss. Alas, I don't remember the rest very well.
August 14, 2010
Highlights for me: "The Bicentennial Man" by Isaac Asimov and "Houston, Houston, Do You Read?" by James Tiptree, Jr.
September 1, 2013
Another excellent collection. The last two stories, by Tiptree and Knight, were especially terrifying, and "The Bicentennial Man" was really great too.
February 16, 2015
Some real gems in this book.
Displaying 1 - 23 of 23 reviews