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Star Trek
Star Trek: The Classic Episodes
Star Trek boldly traveled through space and into the heart of the human condition. This anthology collects 45 classic episodes that aired in the series’ first three seasons. Adapted by James Blish and J. A. Lawrence from scripts by Robert Bloch, Harlan Ellison, Richard Matheson, and other leading science fiction writers, they include: “Amok Time,” “The Doomsday Machine,” “The Trouble with Tribbles,” and Hugo Award-winners “The City on the Edge of Forever” and “The Menagerie.”
700 pages, Leather Bound
First published January 1, 1967
35 people are currently reading
408 people want to read
About the author
James Blish
454 books327 followersJames Benjamin Blish was an American author of fantasy and science fiction. Blish also wrote literary criticism of science fiction using the pen-name William Atheling Jr.
In the late 1930's to the early 1940's, Blish was a member of the Futurians.
Blish trained as a biologist at Rutgers and Columbia University, and spent 1942–1944 as a medical technician in the U.S. Army. After the war he became the science editor for the Pfizer pharmaceutical company. His first published story appeared in 1940, and his writing career progressed until he gave up his job to become a professional writer.
He is credited with coining the term gas giant, in the story "Solar Plexus" as it appeared in the anthology Beyond Human Ken, edited by Judith Merril. (The story was originally published in 1941, but that version did not contain the term; Blish apparently added it in a rewrite done for the anthology, which was first published in 1952.)
Blish was married to the literary agent Virginia Kidd from 1947 to 1963.
From 1962 to 1968, he worked for the Tobacco Institute.
Between 1967 and his death from lung cancer in 1975, Blish became the first author to write short story collections based upon the classic TV series Star Trek. In total, Blish wrote 11 volumes of short stories adapted from episodes of the 1960s TV series, as well as an original novel, Spock Must Die! in 1970 — the first original novel for adult readers based upon the series (since then hundreds more have been published). He died midway through writing Star Trek 12; his wife, J.A. Lawrence, completed the book, and later completed the adaptations in the volume Mudd's Angels.
Blish lived in Milford, Pennsylvania at Arrowhead until the mid-1960s. In 1968, Blish emigrated to England, and lived in Oxford until his death in 1975. He is buried in Holywell Cemetery, Oxford, near the grave of Kenneth Grahame.
His name in Greek is Τζέημς Μπλις"
In the late 1930's to the early 1940's, Blish was a member of the Futurians.
Blish trained as a biologist at Rutgers and Columbia University, and spent 1942–1944 as a medical technician in the U.S. Army. After the war he became the science editor for the Pfizer pharmaceutical company. His first published story appeared in 1940, and his writing career progressed until he gave up his job to become a professional writer.
He is credited with coining the term gas giant, in the story "Solar Plexus" as it appeared in the anthology Beyond Human Ken, edited by Judith Merril. (The story was originally published in 1941, but that version did not contain the term; Blish apparently added it in a rewrite done for the anthology, which was first published in 1952.)
Blish was married to the literary agent Virginia Kidd from 1947 to 1963.
From 1962 to 1968, he worked for the Tobacco Institute.
Between 1967 and his death from lung cancer in 1975, Blish became the first author to write short story collections based upon the classic TV series Star Trek. In total, Blish wrote 11 volumes of short stories adapted from episodes of the 1960s TV series, as well as an original novel, Spock Must Die! in 1970 — the first original novel for adult readers based upon the series (since then hundreds more have been published). He died midway through writing Star Trek 12; his wife, J.A. Lawrence, completed the book, and later completed the adaptations in the volume Mudd's Angels.
Blish lived in Milford, Pennsylvania at Arrowhead until the mid-1960s. In 1968, Blish emigrated to England, and lived in Oxford until his death in 1975. He is buried in Holywell Cemetery, Oxford, near the grave of Kenneth Grahame.
His name in Greek is Τζέημς Μπλις"
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Displaying 1 - 17 of 17 reviews
December 27, 2016
This book is a beast. Seven hundred pages of tiny, tiny type, it's like a SONG OF FIRE AND ICE novel on steroids.
WARNING: Do not approach this book unless you are a fan of Star Trek: The Original Series.
If you are a fan, though, or are an aspiring TV writer, I think this book is a wonderful read because it shows multiple examples of how TV scripts become short stories, and how the story part is what matters, not the format.
As a writer, it is also an exceptional example of two key things:
1) It shows you how to dive into the meat of the story very quickly, within two to three paragraphs — no muss, no fuss, no long-winded build up, just get in there and introduce your Big Concept then have at it.
2) How streamlined your storytelling can be when you have well-established characters and a well-defined setting. You can do #1, above, because you don't have to spend 100s of pages introducing main characters. In this way, this book is the opposite of a GAME OF THRONES novel.
Now of course, if you wrote a short story this thin and streamlined, this free of character development, I doubt it would even get published. This book can "cheat," in a way, because fans of the series know who Kirk is, know Spock's raised eyebrow, McCoy's growl, Uhura's questioning glance, etc. These stories are coated with the strong work of the actors who made the roles famous — you can't separate the two. That said, though, it is an exceptional example of minimalism and getting straight to the Big Concept.
It took me five million years to read this book. In the time it took me to read it, entire empires rose and fell. If had forsworn bathing while reading this book, I would look like Pig Pen from Charlie Brown, leaving a trail of filthy pollution in my wake everywhere I went.
WARNING: Do not approach this book unless you are a fan of Star Trek: The Original Series.
If you are a fan, though, or are an aspiring TV writer, I think this book is a wonderful read because it shows multiple examples of how TV scripts become short stories, and how the story part is what matters, not the format.
As a writer, it is also an exceptional example of two key things:
1) It shows you how to dive into the meat of the story very quickly, within two to three paragraphs — no muss, no fuss, no long-winded build up, just get in there and introduce your Big Concept then have at it.
2) How streamlined your storytelling can be when you have well-established characters and a well-defined setting. You can do #1, above, because you don't have to spend 100s of pages introducing main characters. In this way, this book is the opposite of a GAME OF THRONES novel.
Now of course, if you wrote a short story this thin and streamlined, this free of character development, I doubt it would even get published. This book can "cheat," in a way, because fans of the series know who Kirk is, know Spock's raised eyebrow, McCoy's growl, Uhura's questioning glance, etc. These stories are coated with the strong work of the actors who made the roles famous — you can't separate the two. That said, though, it is an exceptional example of minimalism and getting straight to the Big Concept.
It took me five million years to read this book. In the time it took me to read it, entire empires rose and fell. If had forsworn bathing while reading this book, I would look like Pig Pen from Charlie Brown, leaving a trail of filthy pollution in my wake everywhere I went.
March 28, 2019
This fiftieth anniversary book contains a collection of forty-four stories from the classic science fiction television series, many penned by some of science fiction’s greatest storytellers, including Robert Bloch, Harlan Ellison, David Gerrold, Richard Matheson, and Theodore Sturgeon.
Included in this volume are such classic episodes as “Amok Time,” “The Doomsday Machine,” “The Trouble with Tribbles,” and “A Piece of the Action.” Also included are the Hugo Award winners “The City on the Edge of Forever,” and the Menagerie.”
Each of the stories, adapted by James Blish and J. A. Lawrence from the original scripts, aired during the show’s three season run. An introduction, penned by Norman Spinrad, addresses “Star Trek” in the Real World.
Running some seven hundred pages, with color pictures of the Starship Enterprise and some of the ship’s crew gracing the inside of the front and back covers, this leather-bound collector’s edition is sure to delight all fans of the series.
Recommended.
Included in this volume are such classic episodes as “Amok Time,” “The Doomsday Machine,” “The Trouble with Tribbles,” and “A Piece of the Action.” Also included are the Hugo Award winners “The City on the Edge of Forever,” and the Menagerie.”
Each of the stories, adapted by James Blish and J. A. Lawrence from the original scripts, aired during the show’s three season run. An introduction, penned by Norman Spinrad, addresses “Star Trek” in the Real World.
Running some seven hundred pages, with color pictures of the Starship Enterprise and some of the ship’s crew gracing the inside of the front and back covers, this leather-bound collector’s edition is sure to delight all fans of the series.
Recommended.
May 16, 2017
Loved reading these since I missed out on the original episodes. I intend to watching them now.
April 2, 2021
This a great book for fans of Star Trek, who like the original series. It had the air dates listed at the beginning of each story, and the type of font is easy on the eyes. It is a good book to just pick up at random and read a story and they can be read in any order. The cover has a neat design, and is a great addition to any Star Trek collector . The thing I like about the original series, is the stories are more about human emotions and problems rather that a lot of technical stuff. Some of the human problems reflected the troubles of the times in the 60's.
September 27, 2021
first independent book i've read since oh.. just about a year ago? and before that it would be middle school. needless to say i have not been reading nearly as much as i used to. i feel like i no longer have the mental capacity to devour books the way i used to. or maybe i'm not reading the right ones. idk. anyway, i finally finished this after two years of sporadic reading with long periods in between.
it was a great time revisiting these timeless stories after nearly five years. i watched this series on my own in the winter of sixth grade.
this book was a product of its time. it has insensitive and frankly unnecessary remarks about race, gender expectations, etc. but it somehow fits nicely with the egalitarian message that star trek usually has, and i have a feeling blish truly believed in these utopian ideals through his excellent and colorful writing, even if it is a tad "illogical" for me to make such assumptions
it was a great time revisiting these timeless stories after nearly five years. i watched this series on my own in the winter of sixth grade.
this book was a product of its time. it has insensitive and frankly unnecessary remarks about race, gender expectations, etc. but it somehow fits nicely with the egalitarian message that star trek usually has, and i have a feeling blish truly believed in these utopian ideals through his excellent and colorful writing, even if it is a tad "illogical" for me to make such assumptions
April 23, 2018
Even though all these episode novelizations are by the same author, I almost get a sense he got tired after awhile and just started doing Readers' Digest summaries of the episodes. The first third or so of stories are attempts to add marrow to the bones of the televised stories ... sometimes they succeed in adding characterization and back stories, other times they take away or even change the meaning of what we saw on screen. However, after awhile it just seems straight summaries of the episode more than independent novelizations. I'd say if you are a die-hard TOS fan, then this is a book for you. But otherwise, I'd get the episodes on DVD/Blu-ray with all the extras and then just buy regular TOS books.
September 18, 2019
I've always been a huge original series fan; the characters and stories are a great inspiration to my imagination. I'd always hoped the novelizations of those episodes would offer greater elaboration on great stories, unfortunately this volume did not deliver. Any enjoyment derived was simply from recolection of the episodes they so inadequately attempted to narrate.
Yes, I understand that these are simply narratives produced by a 3rd party far removed from their conceptions, derived from television scripts produced by a myriad of different writers (thusly ment to feed the mind visually rather than via the readers imagination), so there was only so much that could be done. But, I also think some licence could have been taken since permission was given. Unfortunatly these short stories seem half-assed productions ment to purely to feed of the name and popularity of the show rather than their own merit.
Had I not already been well versed in the material I would have been put off by their insipid construction and sterile content. If anything, this book just made me want to rewrite each and every story with the heart, commitment, and desire they deserve.
Yes, I understand that these are simply narratives produced by a 3rd party far removed from their conceptions, derived from television scripts produced by a myriad of different writers (thusly ment to feed the mind visually rather than via the readers imagination), so there was only so much that could be done. But, I also think some licence could have been taken since permission was given. Unfortunatly these short stories seem half-assed productions ment to purely to feed of the name and popularity of the show rather than their own merit.
Had I not already been well versed in the material I would have been put off by their insipid construction and sterile content. If anything, this book just made me want to rewrite each and every story with the heart, commitment, and desire they deserve.
March 9, 2020
This is a novel adaptation of all the classic T.V. episodes that aired in the “60s. The introduction is intriguing and has a rather scintillating description of Spock. Episode “Space Seed” was an interesting one for me as it further explains the origins of Khan. You’ll have to be a Trekkie to enjoy this one. The author’s efforts to adapt T.V. Scripts to chapter book format was no small feat and the author’s ability to only add necessary nuance without changing or overloading the story was noted by me. I bought this for the Trekkie in my life and they graciously lent it to me to read.
October 20, 2018
This leather bound bookshelf copy was a gift and contains 44 story versions of original Trek shows plus an essay on Star Trek in the Real World. Each story is roughly 15 pages long and mostly true to the original show. If you enjoyed the original show, you'll like this book, If you didn't, then not so much. This represents some excellent science fiction and covers a wide range of issues metaphorically like race relations, economic disparity, environmental disaster and does so with wit, creativity and at times humor. Enjoy!
July 10, 2019
Beautiful leather bound book and a trip back in time to the original and best Star Trek. Ignoring the negativity elsewhere about how not every single episode is included in the James Blish adaptations. I used to buy the Star Trek books when I was a teenager in the 70s and this has been a thoroughly enjoyable trip back in time for me. Live long and prosper.
Ray Smillie
Ray Smillie
September 8, 2022
This was quite an enjoyable read. At first I was a bit sceptic since it was the first "thick" book after a while, but a few episodes in I just couldn't put the book down.
The episodes are well-written and just the right length.
What I especially liked is the fact that I now know a few of the crucial episodes that I never saw (I watched TNG and just a few episodes of the original).
The episodes are well-written and just the right length.
What I especially liked is the fact that I now know a few of the crucial episodes that I never saw (I watched TNG and just a few episodes of the original).
December 9, 2019
There is no way for a Star Trek fan to dislike this book. It is a joy to read the classic episodes in narrative form. Just be prepared to devote a lot of time to the effort.
November 16, 2021
More fun than watching the originals.
November 18, 2021
It expands upon each of the episodes like the best tv show or movie novelizations. If you're a fan of the iconic original series of Star Trek this is a must-read.
August 4, 2025
A very pretty decorative book (also a great read)
Read
September 6, 2022Full disclosure. I'm not going to finish this book. So I'm leaving this review without posting a rating.
I was actually really excited for this as I grew up on the original cast.
It's an interesting concept for a book and I think there is potential but it just isn't executed well enough. The stories in here are incredibly short and offer very little more than what was likely on the page in the original script. At times I felt like I was reading more of a synopsis of the episodes, rather than a true novelization. Often there would be sequences that, in the show would likely take upwards of five minutes but in this book last only a handful of paragraphs of bland exposition.
I was willing to go with it until I got to Space Seed, which is my favorite of the original episodes. Because I was more familiar with it, I realized that the author had omitted entire scenes from the story, so much so that the overall narrative made no sense.
So I'm leaving this one behind. I wouldn't suggest it unless you're already pretty familiar with the original show and maybe not even then. In my opinion, this has little value more than holding some historical interest. There's very little sense of the characters or the vibe of the show here, if you don't already know it. I think there would be more to gain by actually reading the original screenplays. This is just a dud.
EDIT - I felt like I needed to return to this review and correct somewhat of a misstep on my part. I read these, or tried to, thinking that they had been published some time after the show had originally aired. I only recently found out that they were actually meant to be published alongside the episodes as they hit television and that Blish was largely working off of earlier versions of the screenplays. Considering how notorious Roddenberry was for rewrites, it’s no surprise that there is a bit of a disconnect between the episodes and these novelizations.
That info doesn’t necessarily make the stories more enjoyable but I think I might revisit them at some point and give another try with a fresh perspective. Live and learn.
I was actually really excited for this as I grew up on the original cast.
It's an interesting concept for a book and I think there is potential but it just isn't executed well enough. The stories in here are incredibly short and offer very little more than what was likely on the page in the original script. At times I felt like I was reading more of a synopsis of the episodes, rather than a true novelization. Often there would be sequences that, in the show would likely take upwards of five minutes but in this book last only a handful of paragraphs of bland exposition.
I was willing to go with it until I got to Space Seed, which is my favorite of the original episodes. Because I was more familiar with it, I realized that the author had omitted entire scenes from the story, so much so that the overall narrative made no sense.
So I'm leaving this one behind. I wouldn't suggest it unless you're already pretty familiar with the original show and maybe not even then. In my opinion, this has little value more than holding some historical interest. There's very little sense of the characters or the vibe of the show here, if you don't already know it. I think there would be more to gain by actually reading the original screenplays. This is just a dud.
EDIT - I felt like I needed to return to this review and correct somewhat of a misstep on my part. I read these, or tried to, thinking that they had been published some time after the show had originally aired. I only recently found out that they were actually meant to be published alongside the episodes as they hit television and that Blish was largely working off of earlier versions of the screenplays. Considering how notorious Roddenberry was for rewrites, it’s no surprise that there is a bit of a disconnect between the episodes and these novelizations.
That info doesn’t necessarily make the stories more enjoyable but I think I might revisit them at some point and give another try with a fresh perspective. Live and learn.
March 28, 2017
Nice retelling of some of the best Star Trek episodes. Not much detail in the storytelling. Pretty much just a recount of what the characters did with minimal emotion detail.
Displaying 1 - 17 of 17 reviews