Orbit 1

Orbit #1

by Damon Knight (Editor)

An anthology which showcases the talents of many of the best sci-fi writers of the 60s & 70s.

Contents:
5 Eggs story by Thomas M. Disch
How Beautiful with Banners by James Blish
Kangaroo Court by Virginia Kidd
Splice of Life by Sonya Dorman
Staras Flonderans by Kate Wilhelm
The Deeps by Keith Roberts
The Disinherited by Poul Anderson (variant of Home)
The Loolies Are Here by Ruth Allison & Jane Rice (under the pseudonum Allison Rice)
The Secret Place by Richard McKenna

Genres: Science Fiction, Anthologies, Short Stories, Fiction

192 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1966

About the author

Damon Francis Knight was an American science fiction author, editor, and critic.
Knight's first professional sale was a cartoon drawing to a science-fiction magazine, Amazing Stories. His first story, "Resilience", was published in 1941. He is best known as the author of "To Serve Man", which was adapted for The Twilight Zone. He was a recipient of the Hugo Award, founder of the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America (SFWA), cofounder of the National Fantasy Fan Federation, cofounder of the Milford Writer's Workshop, and cofounder of the Clarion Writers Workshop. Knight lived in Eugene, Oregon, with his wife Kate Wilhelm.

Reviews

[Austin Beeman · Rating 2 out of 5]

ORBIT 1 IS RATED 67%.

9 STORIES : 1 GREAT / 4 GOOD / 2 AVERAGE / 1 POOR / 1 DNF

The Orbit series of original anthologies, edited by Damon Knight, were incredibly influential in the history of Science Fiction. The came at a time when the literary ambitions of the genre were starting to emerge. Unfortunately, this first volume is no better than a pedestrian issue of a major SF magazine.

What hurts this book the most is that nearly 1/4 of the total page count is absorbed by “Kangaroo Court,” a plodding story that I Did Not Finish (DNF.). When so much of an anthology is dedicated to a single story, that story needs to deliver. This one did not.

Four of the 9 stories were solidly good bringing us mysterious abandoned spaceships, alien assaults on nearly naked spacewomen, the break-up of a human and a bird-like alien , and scientific explorers who want to be colonists.

One truly great story stood out.

“The Deeps” by Keith Roberts. This story of daily life in undersea domes really activated my sense of wonder. I enjoyed the characters, was immersed in the aquatic world, and was invested in the outcome of the plot.

***
ORBIT 1 IS RATED 67%.
9 STORIES : 1 GREAT / 4 GOOD / 2 AVERAGE / 1 POOR / 1 DNF

Staras Flonderans by Kate Wilhelm

Good. A human spaceship with a nearly immortal alien crew member explore derelict vessels that seem to have been suddenly abandoned.

The Secret Place by Richard McKenna

Average. Probably a fantasy story about a military scientist who investigates a small amount of uranium in the Oregon desert. A young woman’s imaginary world may hold the key.

How Beautiful with Banners by James Blish

Good. Sexy female astronaut with a spacesuit made of a virus comes under attack when an alien meshes with the spacesuit.

The Disinherited by Poul Anderson

Good. Scientists are being recalled to earth from a world they’ve grown to love, but will staying destroy the very things they want to preserve.

The Loolies are Here by Allison Rice

Poor. House wives gets increasingly frustrated with her daily tasks and blames The Loolies.

Kangaroo Court by Virginia Kidd

DNF. This is the longest story in the anthology, making up almost 1/4 of the pages. Unfortunately, I had to drop out at about 15 pages in. The characters were wooden, the writing amateur, and the the plot didn’t even get started.

Splice of Life by Sonya Dorman

Average. intense but ultimate pointless story of a woman in an emergency ward where here injury is healed and reinflicted. I see what Dorman was trying to accomplish, but it didn’t work for me.

5 Eggs by Thomas M. Disch

Good. A relationship between an earthman and a bird-like alien ends briefly before the wedding with a cruel joke.

The Deeps by Keith Roberts

Great. Wonderfully atmospheric story. In the overcrowded future, mankind is embracing life within undersea domes. A slice of life and a mood piece that centers around a mother searching for a daughter that swam to a party and hasn’t come home.

[Kevin Phyland · Rating 3 out of 5]

A spaceship is found derelict, abandoned completely by its human passengers, everything still turned on. Whatever happened it was a long time ago and the salvage crew of two humans and a Chlaesan, an alien like an inverted tulip, are mystified. The sudden arrival of a Thosar ship after 12,000 years brings joy to the Chlaesan but the abject terror of the humans explains many things in “Staras Flonderans” by Kate Wilhelm. A geologist recalls the time during WWII when he was left to do field work in remote Oregon and became part of a strange fantasy involving ancient sediments, uranium and a young traumatised girl. “The Secret Place” by Richard McKenna is a whimsical tale. James Blish takes us to Saturn’s moon Titan, where astronaut Ulla is trapped when a native diaphanous cloak creature covers her suit in “How Beautiful With Banners”. When a research colony, which has been on the planet Mithras for over a hundred years, is summoned back to Earth they rebel. But the illogic of staying is inescapable: genetic trouble, environmental pressure, loss of expertise and subjugation of the less aggressive Mithrans. Only one solution remains in “The Disinherited” by Poul Anderson. Compound author Allison Rice (Jane Rice & Ruth Allison) provide a minor tale about the gremlins that bedevil everyday life in “The Loolies Are Here”, while Virginia Kidd gives us the lengthy tale of aliens who look a lot like kangaroos, who have returned to Earth in search of a colony they left here, in “Kangaroo Court”. Trouble is, their new drive has taken them 100 million years into the future and their descendants are in fact just kangaroos. The future of ophthalmology is terrifying, but students will still need to be taught accurately. Sonya Dorman’s horrific tale is one you will not soon forget! Thomas M. Disch’s “5 Eggs” has a certain mythic quality, where the alien and possibly birdlike Nyctimene leaves her human lover with her eggs for him to look after. When humans make the transition to underwater cities there will inevitably be some adjustments, as one woman finds in “The Deeps” by Keith Roberts.

[Joachim Boaz · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.25/5 (collated rating: Vaguely Good)

Damon Knight’s Orbit anthology series ran from 1966-1976. A while back I reviewed Orbit 8 (1970)–which contained the brilliant Gardner Dozois “Horse of Air” (1970 and a selection of intriguing Wolfe and Lafferty short stories—and was impressed enough to snatch up a copy of Orbit 1 (1966). And it is graced with a Richard Powers cover I had not seen…

Orbit 1 contains nine short works (with four by women authors) and maintains solid quality [...]

Full review: https://sciencefictionruminations.com...

[Thomas · Rating 4 out of 5]

Orbit 1 is a collection of original stories by authors such as Kate Wilhelm, Poul Anderson, Richard McKenna, and James Blish. Knight’s introduction does not mention the New Wave, but he seems to suggest that these are stories with literary merit that do not require a radically new style. Those who do not like this book call it dated and dull, but I find the stories well-crafted and expressive of the cultural ennui that set in at the beginning of the Vietnam War.

[Jim · Rating 3 out of 5]

The standout story was "The Secret Place" by Richard McKenna which won the Nebula I believe and was up for the Hugo award. Although they weren't great stories I enjoyed:

- "Staras Flonderans" by Kate Wilhelm
- "How Beautiful, With Banners" by James Blish
- "Kangaroo Court" by Virginia Kidd
- "The Deeps" by Keith Roberts

[Ari Pérez · Rating 3 out of 5]

[***] Staras Flonderans by Kate Wilhelm
[***] The Secret Place by Richard McKenna
[**] How Beautiful with Banners by James Blish
[****] The Disinherited by Poul Anderson
[**] The Loolies are Here by Allison Rice
[***] Kangaroo Court by Virginia Kidd
[***] Splice of Life by Sonya Dorman
[**] 5 Eggs by Thomas M. Disch
[***] The Deeps by Keith Roberts

[Sue Chant · Rating 2 out of 5]

Mainly rather dated collection. Three good ones are:
The Loolies are Here - Allison Rice. Hilarious, excellent.
Splice of Life - Sonya Dorman.Good
5 Eggs - Thomas M Disch. Good

[Perry Middlemiss · Rating 3 out of 5]

The first of what would end up being twenty-one volumes in this original anthology series. The stories are all of average quality or above with the stand-outs being: “The Disinherited” by Poul Anderson; “Splice of Life” by Sonya Dorman; Kangaroo Court by Virginia Kidd; and “Staras Flonderans” by Kate Wilhelm. So, 4 out of 9. Also with 4 of the 9 stories by women, indicating a slow changing of the old masculine guard. This anthology also contains the 1967 Nebula Award winner for Best Short Story, “The Secret Place” by Richard McKenna, which is a rather light story with little new to say. An average volume of stories. R: 2.9/5.0

[Taksya · Rating 4 out of 5]

Racconto vincitore di un Premio Nebula e nominato per un Premio Hugo, pubblicato postumo nel 1966.
Ambientato durante la Seconda Guerra Mondiale, ha come protagonista un geologo lasciato a controllare uno scavo nel deserto,.studiato da scienziati e militari per un fantomatico giacimento di uranio.
Uranio trovato in possesso di un ragazzo morto in quel tratto di deserto e, nonostante tutte le ricerche, impossibile da trovare.

Racconto breve ma di effetto, precursore di argomenti in voga ancora oggi.

[Charles · Rating 2 out of 5]

I'm giving it 2 stars because I don't remember the book much and none of the titles really set off fond memories. But there are some good writers here, including Disch and Blish and Anderson. So it might be worth more than 2.

[Erik Graff · Rating 3 out of 5]

Somehow I acquired the Damon Knight collections Orbit 1, 2, 4, 7 & 9 and was able to read them all, one after another, during summer break from Loyola University in 1982.

[Jack Teague]

science fiction,Anthology,1960s

[Kevin · Rating 3 out of 5]

Nebula Award Best Short Story 1966