Earth is But a Star: Excursions Through Science Fiction to the Far Future
General fiction, Science fiction, Anthologies, Essays
Synthetic audio, Automated braille
Summary
The dark magic of the far future... Science is there in the background: the Age of Man is over, much like the Age of Great Reptiles... Brian W. Aldiss Deep time: the ultimate frontier, tomorrow's most romantic landscape. Our sun… is a vast, sullen wheel hanging at the horizon. Beings walk the dying world in its red light, but few are human. Robots return from the edges of the galaxy to mourn their lost ancestors. Mages weave plots, their science so advanced it is indistinguishable from magic. In the vastness of eternity, Earth is but a star. Only science fantasy knows the paths into this wondrous realm. A remarkable blend of myth, science and pure dark imagination, science fantasy is a genre still little known to science fiction enthusiasts or critics. Here, for the first time, many of its key tales are gathered, together with new essays that illuminate their strange power--and provide a treasury of superb, unusual entertainment. Damien Broderick is Australia's premier critic and anthologist of science fiction, and an award-winning novelist. He is Senior Fellow, Department of English and Cultural Studies, University of Melbourne. Contributors Brian W. Aldiss Poul Anderson Michael Andre-Driussi Stephen Baxter Elizabeth Billinger Russell Blackford Claire Brialey Damien Broderick John Brunner C. J. Cherryh Arthur C. Clarke John Clute Bruce Gillespie Stanislaw Lem Rosaleen Love Walter Minkel Yvonne Rousseau Anders Sandberg Robert Silverberg Brian Stableford Olaf Stapledon Alice Turner Jack Vance Paul Voermans A. E. van Vogt Jo Walton Robert Moore Williams Gene Wolfe George Zebrowski Pamela Zoline