17 X infinity (1963)

A Canticle for Leibowitz

Walter M. Miller Jr.

1959 · 320 pages · 4 reviews

Others: Mixed

Highly unusual After the Holocaust novel. In the far future, 20th century texts are preserved in a monastery, as "sacred books". The monks preserve for centuries what little science there is, and have saved the science texts and blueprints from destruction many times, also making beautifully illuminated copies. As the story opens to a world run on a basically fuedal lines, science is again becoming fashionable, as a hobby of rich men, at perhaps 18th or early 19th century level of comprehesion. A local lord, interested in science, comes to the monastery. What happens after that is an exquisitely told tale, stunning and extremely moving, totally different from any other After the Holocaust story

A Feast Unknown

Philip José Farmer

1969 · 286 pages · 2 reviews

Others: Negative

Sci-fi meets gritty, erotic horror in the Hugo Award–winning author’s controversial pastiche of mid-twentieth century pulp fiction icons. Philip José Farmer took the art of literary mashups to an epic new level with his novels of the Wold Newton Universe, in which fictional characters such as James Bond, Sherlock Holmes, and Philip Marlowe crossed paths in a complex narrative web. In A Feast Unknown, he presents thinly veiled versions of two iconic characters—Tarzan and Doc Savage—in a dark tale of psychosexual ferocity. Lord Grandrith, the fabled “king of the jungle,” is endowed with special powers that come at a terrible cost. He can only experience sexual pleasure while engaged in acts of violence. His affliction is shared by his nemesis, Doc Caliban, the legendary Man of Bronze. These two titans are also half-brothers—progeny of the infamous serial killer Jack the Ripper. As they face each other in an epic battle for immortality, they discover a common the dark manipulators behind their tragic fate.

A Perfect Vacuum

Stanisław Lem

1979 · 256 pages · 1 review

Others: Mixed

In A Perfect Vacuum, Stanislaw Lem presents a collection of book reviews of nonexistent works of literature--works that, in many cases, could not possibly be written. Embracing postmodernism's "games for games' sake" ethos, Lem joins the contest with hilarious and grotesque results, lampooning the movement's self-indulgence and exploiting its mannerisms.Beginning with a review of his own book, Lem moves on to tackles (or create pastiches of) the French new novel, James Joyce, pornography, authorless writing, and Dostoevsky, while at the same time ranging across scientific topics, from cosmology to the pervasiveness of computers. The result is a metafictional tour de force by one of the world's most popular writers.

A reader's guide to science fiction

Baird Searles

1979 · 256 pages · 1 review

Others: Mixed

From A to Z (Akers and Asimov to Zebrowski and Zelazny), from the first astounding magazine to DUNE, A READER"S GUIDE TO SCIENCE FICTION is an invaluable reference work, chronicling where science fiction has been, and where you-the reader-can travel next in the most exciting literature of the cosmos.

A Wreath of Stars

Bob Shaw

1976 · 189 pages · 1 review

Others: Mixed

And all the stars a stage

James Blish

1971 · 206 pages · 1 review

Others: Mixed

From back cover of Avon paperback May 1974: WHEN THE SUN EXPLODES All life will end. No one will survive the blow-up; except the men and women who crowd into a few starships and fly away into space while there is still time, to look for a new home in the infinite void, a new planet on which to settle. Jorn, unskilled, unemployed, seemingly a reject from society, finds that he has what it takes to become one of the brave survivors, blasting off in hastily built ships that have never flown before. Jorn and his companions begin a long search, threatened by repeated disasters and despair, but ultimately leading through to an expected climax for which no one is prepared.