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"Speculation is compounded with suspense" in these thirteen short works of sci-fi from the Hugo Award-winning author of Stand on Zanzibar--"Genuine startlers" (Kirkus Reviews, starred review). Collected when Brunner was at the peak of his writing form, this even dozen of his short stories, with a bonus poem thrown into the mix, offers provocative ideas and thrilling action mixed with conceptions of the inevitable future, the inventable future, the alternate future, the future to be avoided, and the future that is sometimes right now. A heady brew. For each generation, there is a writer meant to bend the rules of what we know. Hugo Award winner (Best Novel, Stand on Zanzibar) and British science fiction master John Brunner remains one of the most influential and respected authors of all time, and now many of his classic works are being reintroduced. For readers familiar with his vision, this is a chance to reexamine his thoughtful worlds and words, while for new readers, Brunner's work proves itself the very definition of timeless.… (more)
User reviews
This collection of John Brunner stories is much shorter – it is in no way meant to be a full collection. Heck, it was published back in 1972 so there is no way it could take on that challenge. However, it reminded me why John Brunner is one of my favorite authors, and it reminded me of some excellent stories that I had not remembered to be written by him.
By that I mean that, for some of these stories, when I started reading I began to remember the exact story and how much I enjoyed it. For example, the story "The Vitanuls." The concepts within the story (I will not tell you them because, if you haven't read the story, then it shouldn't be spoiled) are ones that I still find myself thinking about as the world still looks at issues about population. And yet I had forgotten that the story was Brunner's.
If there is any fault to the collection, it is that most of the stories still have just a little of the "clunk" one finds in the writing of the 50s and 60s. But they are still well enough written that you can get past that. And a couple still seem fresh.
You want suggestions? Well there is "The Biggest Game" about a ladies man who tries to conquer a lady that may not be one he really wants, "Wasted on the Young" which explores the penalties youth might pay for having fun, "Planetfall" which explores grass-is-always-greener concepts, and, as already suggested, "The Vitanuls."
You can probably find just a better collection of Brunner's work in recent collections. However, if you stumble across this early edition you won't go wrong by picking it up. For anyone too young to remember, this is a good example of science fiction of the time. And for those of us who do remember, it is a trip back and a reminder of why we got hooked.