The Dragon Masters
Man against dragon. Each bred for slaughter.
“The Dragon Masters is a story grounded in genetic engineering, but the science is so far advanced that it could be considered magic.” The Science Encyclopedia
Man against dragon. Each bred for slaughter.
“The Dragon Masters is a story grounded in genetic engineering, but the science is so far advanced that it could be considered magic.” The Science Encyclopedia
Harlan Ellison is probably best known as a script writer for sci-fi and fantasy movies and TV series such as the original Outer Limits, The Hunger, Logan's Run, and Babylon Five. But his range is much broader than that, encompassing stories, novels, essays, reviews, reminiscences, plays, even fake autobiographies. The Essential Ellison, a special limited edition personally signed and numbered by Ellison, contains 74 unabridged works, including such classics as "A Boy and His Dog," "Xenogenesis," and "Mefisto in Onyx."
Wizardry, transforming its master into a cloud of fine mist...cloning, duplicating the ideal man ten times over...Utopia, in a city where almost everyone is perfectly happy...
Ursula Le Guin, author of The Earthsea Trilogy, has a special way of blending stirring adventure with fantasy that has made comparison with such masters as C.S. Lewis and J.R.R. Tolkien inevitable.
Now, in The Wind's Twelve Quarters, seventeen of her favorite stories reaffirm Ursula Le Guin as one of America's outstanding writers.
CONTENTS:
Foreword
Semley's Necklace
April in Paris
The Masters
Darkness Box
The Word of Unbinding
The Rule of Names
Winter's King
The Good Trip
Nine Lives
Things
A Trip to the Head
Vaster than Empires and More Slow
The Stars Below
The Field of Vision
Direction of the Road
The Ones Who Walk Away from Omelas
The Day Before the Revolution
The recipient of numerous literary prizes, including the National Book Award, the Kafka Award, and the Pushcart Prize, Ursula K. Le Guin is renowned for her lyrical writing, rich characters, and diverse worlds. The Wind's Twelve Quarters collects seventeen powerful stories, each with an introduction by the author, ranging from fantasy to intriguing scientific concepts, from medieval settings to the future.
Including an insightful foreword by Le Guin, describing her experience, her inspirations, and her approach to writing, this stunning collection explores human values, relationships, and survival, and showcases the myriad talents of one of the most provocative writers of our time.
All you need to know about this book:
1- It is the companion volume to the most influential book of speculative fiction in the past twenty-five years, the award-winning "Dangerous Visions". Of course, you've heard of "Dangerous Visions".
2- It contains original stories, written especially for this anthology, by forty-two very special writers, none of whom were in "Dangerous Visions". Of course, you remember the writers who won all those awards for "Dangerous Visions".
3- It contains forty-six stories ranging in length from shorties of 1,000 words to short novels of 40,000 words; each story was written without thought to taboos or publishing restrictions that usually hamper sci-fi writers. Of course, you remember what a mind-blower, in this respect, was "Dangerous Visions".
4- Each story has its own Afterword by the author, as well as its own individual Introduction by the editor. Of course, you remember the wealth of addenda that made such a milestone of "Dangerous Visions".
5, 6, & 7- It took over three years to compile this book. It has been edited by Harlan Ellison who put together "Dangerous Visions", which you will surely recall. And... this is a more startling book than "Dangerous Visions". This book takes off where "Dangerous Visions" stopped and it is a BETTER book than "Dangerous Visions".
The most honored anthology of fantastic fiction ever published, featuring the works of such luminaries as Isaac Asimov, Robert Silverberg, Philip Jose Farmer, Robert Bloch, Philip K. Dick, Larry Niven, Fritz Leiber, Poul Anderson, Damon Knight, J.G. Ballard, John Brunner, Frederik Pohl, Roger Zelazny and Samuel Delany.
Contents
xi • Foreword: Year 2002 (Dangerous Visions 35th Anniversary Edition) • (2002) • essay by Michael Moorcock
xiii • Introduction: Year 2002 (Dangerous Visions 35th Anniversary Edition • (2002) • essay by Harlan Ellison
xxiii • Foreword 1-The Second Revolution • (1967) • essay by Isaac Asimov
xxxiii • Introduction: Thirty-Two Soothsayers • (1967) • essay by Harlan Ellison (variant of Thirty-Two Soothsayers)
xxxix • Foreword 2-Harlan and I • (1967) • essay by Isaac Asimov
1 • Evensong • (1967) • shortstory by Lester del Rey
9 • Flies • (1967) • shortstory by Robert Silverberg
21 • The Day After the Day the Martians Came • (1967) • shortstory by Frederik Pohl (variant of The Day the Martians Came)
30 • Riders of the Purple Wage • (1967) • novella by Philip José Farmer
105 • The Malley System • (1967) • shortstory by Miriam Allen deFord
115 • A Toy for Juliette • (1967) • shortstory by Robert Bloch
128 • The Prowler in the City at the Edge of the World • (1967) • novelette by Harlan Ellison
154 • The Night That All Time Broke Out • (1967) • shortstory by Brian W. Aldiss
169 • The Man Who Went to the Moon - Twice • (1967) • shortstory by Howard Rodman
181 • Faith of Our Fathers • (1967) • novelette by Philip K. Dick
216 • The Jigsaw Man • [Known Space] • (1967) • shortstory by Larry Niven
231 • Gonna Roll the Bones • (1967) • novelette by Fritz Leiber
256 • Lord Randy, My Son • (1967) • shortstory by Joe L. Hensley
272 • Eutopia • (1967) • novelette by Poul Anderson
295 • Incident in Moderan • [Moderan] • (1967) • shortstory by David R. Bunch
299 • The Escaping • (1967) • shortstory by David R. Bunch
305 • The Doll-House • (1967) • shortstory by James Cross
326 • Sex and/or Mr. Morrison • (1967) • shortstory by Carol Emshwiller
338 • Shall the Dust Praise Thee? • (1967) • shortstory by Damon Knight
344 • If All Men Were Brothers, Would You Let One Marry Your Sister? • (1967) • novella by Theodore Sturgeon
390 • What Happened to Auguste Clarot? • (1967) • shortstory by Larry Eisenberg
396 • Ersatz • (1967) • shortstory by Henry Slesar
404 • Go, Go, Go, Said the Bird • (1967) • shortstory by Sonya Dorman
412 • The Happy Breed • (1967) • shortstory by John Sladek [as by John T. Sladek ]
433 • Encounter with a Hick • (1967) • shortstory by Jonathan Brand
439 • From the Government Printing Office • (1967) • shortstory by Kris Neville
447 • Land of the Great Horses • (1967) • shortstory by R. A. Lafferty
458 • The Recognition • (1967) • shortstory by J. G. Ballard
472 • Judas • (1967) • shortstory by John Brunner
483 • Test to Destruction • (1967) • novelette by Keith Laumer
510 • Carcinoma Angels • (1967) • shortstory by Norman Spinrad
523 • Auto-da-Fé • (1967) • shortstory by Roger Zelazny
532 • Aye, and Gomorrah . . . • (1967) • shortstory by Samuel R. Delany
The award-winning masterpiece by one of today’s most honored writers! The Word for World is ForestWhen the inhabitants of a peaceful world are conquered by the bloodthirsty yumens, their existence is irrevocably altered. Forced into servitude, the Athsheans find themselves at the mercy of their brutal masters. Desperation causes the Athsheans, led by Selver, to retaliate against their captors, abandoning their strictures against violence. But in defending their lives, they have endangered the very foundations of their society. For every blow against the invaders is a blow to the humanity of the Athsheans. And once the killing starts, there is no turning back. At the publisher's request, this title is being sold without Digital Rights Management software (DRM) applied.
Volume III of The Dragonriders of Pern®, the influential series by sci-fi/fantasy titan Anne McCaffrey
Never in the history of Pern has there been a dragon like Ruth. Mocked by other dragons for his small size and pure white color, Ruth is smart, brave, and loyal—qualities that he shares with his rider, the young Lord Jaxom. Unfortunately, Jaxom is also looked down upon by his fellow lords, and by other riders as well. His dreams of joining the dragonriders in defending Pern are dismissed. What else can Jaxom and Ruth do but strike out on their own, pursuing in secret all they are denied? But in doing so, the two friends will find themselves facing a desperate choice—one that will push their bond to the breaking point . . . and threaten the future of Pern itself.
From the moment John Varley burst onto the scene in 1974, his short fiction was like nothing anyone else was writing. His stories won every award the science fiction field had to offer, many times over. His first collection, The Persistence of Vision, published in 1978, was the most important collection of the decade, and changed what fans would come to expect from science fiction.
Now, The John Varley Reader gathers his best stories, many out of print for years. This is the volume no Varley fan - or science fiction reader - can do without.
1 • Picnic on Nearside • [Eight Worlds] • (1974) • novelette by John Varley
24 • Overdrawn at the Memory Bank • [Eight Worlds] • (1976) • novelette by John Varley
53 • In the Hall of the Martian Kings • (1976) • novella by John Varley
91 • Gotta Sing, Gotta Dance • [Eight Worlds] • (1976) • novelette by John Varley
119 • The Barbie Murders • [Anna-Louise Bach] • (1978) • novelette by John Varley
146 • The Phantom of Kansas • [Eight Worlds] • (1976) • novelette by John Varley
180 • Beatnik Bayou • [Eight Worlds] • (1980) • novelette by John Varley
212 • Air Raid • (1977) • shortstory by John Varley
228 • The Persistence of Vision • (1978) • novella by John Varley
271 • Press Enter [] • (1984) • novella by John Varley
327 • The Pusher • (1981) • shortstory by John Varley
343 • Tango Charlie and Foxtrot Romeo • [Eight Worlds] • (1986) • novella by John Varley
409 • Options • [Eight Worlds] • (1979) • novelette by John Varley
437 • Just Another Perfect Day • (1989) • shortstory by John Varley
449 • In Fading Suns and Dying Moons • (2003) • novelette by John Varley
467 • The Flying Dutchman • (1998) • shortstory by John Varley
486 • Good Intentions • (1992) • shortstory by John Varley
502 • The Bellman • [Anna-Louise Bach] • (2003) • novelette by John Varley