Book Review: Masterpiece: The Best Science Fiction of the (20th) Century edited by Orson Scott Card

Masterpieces: The Best Science Fiction of the Century
edited by Orson Scott Card (813.08 Car)

This collection, released in 2001, was overseen by author/editor Orson Scott Card (Ender’s Game), and in addition to an introductory essay to open the book, Card contributes a biographical essay about each of the included authors before their stories. My Lincoln science fiction club recently read and discussed it for our 200th monthly book discussion.

 

There are 27 stories included in this moderately hefty volume (the trade paperback was 432 pages). Authors included are: Isaac Asimov • Arthur C. Clarke • Robert A. Heinlein • Ursula K. Le Guin • Ray Bradbury • Frederik Pohl • Harlan Ellison • George Alec Effinger • Brian W. Aldiss • William Gibson & Michael Swanwick • Theodore Sturgeon • Larry Niven • Robert Silverberg • Harry Turtledove • James Blish • George R. R. Martin • James Patrick Kelly • Karen Joy Fowler • Lloyd Biggle, Jr. • Terry Bisson • Poul Anderson • John Kessel • R.A. Lafferty • C.J. Cherryh • Lisa Goldstein • Edmond Hamilton. I had read several of the included stories previously, as I’ve been a life-long fan of science fiction, however quite a few in this collection were new to me. There were a few “clunkers”, which haven’t really held up well in the decades since they were originally published — either with regards to scientific developments or lack of good representation of female, or non-caucasian characters.

 

The collection is divided into thirds, roughly, with the first third featuring “classic” or “Golden Age” stories, the second third is New Wave (late 1960s to late 1970s) and the final third focusing on the “modern era” (the 1980s and 1990s). Some of the stories are incredible stand-outs! Oddly enough, the collection has a melancholy tone to it — a majority of the stories have sad or depressing endings.

 

None-the-less, enough of these stories are excellent, and highly representative of the times they were written in, and I have no problem giving this book a recommendation as a good introduction to short science fiction of the 20th century.

 

(If you enjoy this, you may also wish to try the multi-volume Science Fiction Hall of Fame series, where the selections were made from a survey of writers, editors, publishers and fans — unlike the Masterpieces collection, where Orson Scott Card was the sole selector.)

 

( Wikipedia entry for Masterpieces anthology )

 

Recommended by Scott C.
Bennett Martin Public Library — Public Service

 

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Book Review: Geektastic edited by Holly Black and Cecil Castellucci

Geektastic: Stories From the Nerd Herd

edited by Holly Black and Cecil Castellucci (YA PB (Non-Fiction) Black or j813.08 Bla)

 

I stumbled across a copy of this 2009 anthology a few years ago in a used bookstore and snatched it up for my own personal collection, and finally got around to reading it. I’m pleased to see it exists as both a physical book and E-book through the libraries as well!

 

Geektastic features 15 short stories and 14 interstitial 1- or 2-page comics that all explore the concept of “fandom” and “being a geek/nerd” -- all written by some of the hottest Young Adult authors at the time of publication, including Scott Westerfeld, Cassandra Clare, David Levithan, Garth Nix, Kelly Link, John Green, Libba Bray and more! In some cases, this might involve science fiction or fantasy — the characters may be huge Star Trek or Star Wars fans, but it can also involve intense fans of other types of things as well — fanfiction, gaming, devotees of an actor — anything where the person can “geek out” over their interests. These stories cover a broad range of styles and tones, and I didn’t necessarily love all of them. But, there were enough strong entries for me to feel comfortable recommending the collection.

 

Though it’s classified in the Young Adult section, I’m reviewing it as an “adult” item, for adult readers. Obviously, it’s appropriate for YA readership. My only real complaint — I got to enjoy some of the characters in the stories so much I was sorry the story was over in just 10-15 pages!

 

Strongly recommended — especially for anyone who’s ever felt ostracized for being overly devoted to an interest, or, conversely, for anyone who’s never really understood the mindset that can lead to that level of devotion. Truly, a celebration of being on the fringes of mainstream.

[ official Geektastic anthology page on the official Holly Black web site ]

 

Recommended by Scott C.
Bennett Martin Public Library — Public Services

 

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Book Review: Dream Catchers, POPS the Club Anthology, edited by Amy Friedman

Dream Catchers, POPS the Club Anthology

by Amy Friedman (and others) (YA PB (Non-Fiction) Friedman)

 

In the United States mothers and fathers go to prison at troubling rates. One of every 12 American children, more than 5.7 million kids under age 18, have experienced parental incarceration at some point during their lives. (https://www.sentencingproject.org/publications/6148/) It’s an issue that hadn’t crossed my radar until I picked up Dream Catchers, POPS the Club Anthology. I was attracted to the essays because of my interest in first person views of the childhood experience.

 

The authors, poets and artists in this anthology have parents or family that are incarcerated and they are striving to find their own ways to deal with this pain in their lives. They share their resilience and wisdom through pieces about navigating change and overcoming adversity.

 

One of my favorite essays is by John Rodriguez, who shares how he feels when slips out of his house at night and how his art is an escape from the negative factors in his world. Another favorite is by Julian Izaguirre, who invites us to paint our own version of his life, and challenges us to use the tools he’s been given to paint a different picture than what we assume. The poem Visiting Day by Kei’Arri McGruder, is poignant and heartbreaking. So many of these pieces deserve deep consideration. We often assume that childhood is carefree, when in reality so many children are experiencing things that are nearly impossible to fathom.

 

Dream Catchers is the seventh volume produced by POPS clubs. It is a fascinating lens into the lives of teenagers with incarcerated parents. As with any compilation of material by teenagers, there’s a range of polish in the works, but the depth of feeling is consistent all the way through.

 

For more information on POPS Clubs: https://popsclubs.org/.

 

[ publisher’s official Dream Catchers web page ]

 

Recommended by Carrie K.
Bennett Martin Public Library — Public Service

 

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Nebraska Poetry: A Sesquicentennial Anthology edited by Daniel Simon

Nebraska Poetry: A Sesquicentennial Anthology
edited by Daniel Simon [ 811.08 Sim ] 

In conjunction with the statewide celebrations of Nebraska’s 150th anniversary of Statehood in 2017 (a “sesquicentennial”), this marvelous hardback anthology, covering the history of poetry by poets from Nebraska, was released at a gala event at the Bennett Martin Public Library downtown on April 2nd, 2017. This book, featuring over 160 works by over 80 Nebraska poets, covers the entire 150-year history of Nebraska, from the very first poem published after our statehood was established, to selections by several of today’s most acclaimed and active poets in the state. Organized in chronological order, the first part of the book features selections from some of Nebraska’s most famed authors, including Willa Cather, Bess Streeter Aldrich, Loren Corey Eiseley and John G. Neihardt. The middle section of the book is dedicated to poets who made a strong impression in the early and middle parts of the 20th century, including long-time State Poet William Kloefkorn, two-time National Poet Laureate Ted Kooser, current State Poet Twyla Hansen and many more. The latter part of the book features selections from many of today’s up-and-coming Cornhusker wordslingers.

If you’re a fan of poetry from Nebraska, and have followed any of the 80+ poets represented within, I recommend this anthology to expand your reading. If you are dabbling in the literary world of Nebraska history as the state celebrates its 150th birthday, this is a great sampler, that may lead you to numerous poets whose more extensive works exist in the libraries’ collection. And even if you’re just a poetry fan who doesn’t care where the poets originated, this is a still a stellar collection, filled with excellent representative samplings from a variety of regional authors. And it seems especially fitting to be reviewing this volume in April, which is National Poetry Month!

[If you enjoy this, you may also wish to try many of the volumes of poetry collections by Nebraska poets, found in the American Poetry section of the non-fiction collection — 811 (Poet’s name).]

[ official Nebraska Poetry: A Sesquicentennial Anthology web page] | [ Nebraska 150 Books challenge ]

Recommended by Scott C.
Bennett Martin Public Library

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The Big Book of Sherlock Holmes Stories edited by Otto Penzler

The Big Book of Sherlock Holmes Stories
edited by Otto Penzler [828 DoyYp] 

This massive anthology of shorter Sherlock Holmes works is merely the latest in a series of creative anthologies edited by Otto Penzler for Vintage Crime/Black Lizard books. Previous volumes have included The Big Book of Christmas Mysteries (previously reviewed here), and The Black Lizard Big Book of Locked-Room Mysteries). For this Sherlock Holmes collection, Penzler has gather 83 short works from authors both best-selling and obscure. He opens with two short-short works by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle himself (although he does not include the newly-discovered new story by Doyle that was unearthed in somebody’s attic in 2015. Stories included in this collection range from serious, written in classic Doyle Holmes style, to parodies and pastiches, having fun with the characters and tropes of the Holmesian canon.

There are many Holmes collections or anthologies out there, and often you see the same stories in many of those books. I can’t say I’ve ever seen this many different stories featuring Holmes in any collection previously, and Penzler has certainly included some of the rare, lesser-seen tales. If you are a true lover of the world of Sherlock Holmes, or even if you’re just a basic mystery fiction fan, I highly recommend this volume, although obviously nothing substitutes for Doyle’s 56 stories and 4 novels for authenticity!

[ publisher’s official The Big Book of Sherlock Holmes Stories web page] | [ Wikipedia page on Sherlock Holmes ]

Check out more Sherlock Holmes related titles in our Elementary booklist on BookGuide!

Recommended by Scott C.
Bennett Martin Public Library

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Faceoff edited by David Baldacci

Faceoff
edited by David Baldacci [813.08 Fac]

Eleven short stories that pair our favorite authors and their characters. I'm a Lincoln Rhyme (Jeffery Deaver) and Lucas Davenport (John Sandford) fan so was pleased to see a short story that put them together ("Rhymes with Prey" -- gotta love that title). In this case, the two of them cementing a friendship seemed to happen rather quickly for their natures but this is afterall a short story format. On the plus side, their mystery was interesting and believable, and most of the favorite series characters made an appearance. Other authors were paired with" like" characters, for example Repairman Jack (by F. Paul Wilson) is a paranormal series -- he "repairs" situations for people that involve curses, ancient evil, and demons. Jack is set in a short story in New Orleans with Heather Graham's series characters - Michael Quinn and Danni Cafferty - who also deal with old, supernatural evil. No need to read this book in order, pick and choose which authors you're interested in, or find a new author based on who they are paired with. Sit back and enjoy Harry Bosch, Aloysius Pendergast, and Jack Reacher, to name a few. If you haven't yet read some of these characters, these short stories will give you a quick introduction that might pique your interest enough to pick up a full-length novel starring that character. -- recommended by Charlotte K. - Bennett Martin Public Library [ see Charlotte's Reviewer Profile and more of her reviews ]

[ publisher's official Faceoff web site ]

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A Match Made in Texas: A Novella Collection

A Match Made in Texas: A Novella Collection
by Karen Wilemeyer (and others) [Wilemeyer]

This is a collection of four novellas, each about 100 pages long. They were lighthearted and humorous, great for a quick read over your lunch break! -- recommended by Marie P. - Bennett Martin Public Library

[ publisher's official A Match Made in Texas web page ]

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The Big Book of Christmas Mysteries

The Big Book of Christmas Mysteries
edited by Otto Penzler [813.08 Pen]

The category of Christmas mysteries within the broader mystery publishing business has been a popular one for decades. So much so that one of the booklists on the libraries' BookGuide site that gets the largest number of comments is our Mistletoe Mysteries list - updated each year. This oversized trade paperback anthology came out in 2013, and I kicked myself for not picking up a copy before it disappeared from local bookstores after the holidays. So, I was thrilled to see it appear again this year, AND to see that the libraries have also added it to our collections. In The Big Book of Christmas Mysteries, editor Otto Penzler gathers a set of 60 of his favorite holiday-themed mysteries, covering over 100 years in publishing. Time periods range from old-style Victorian (Sherlock Holmes) to modern and contemporary. Writing styles range from typical cozies or puzzle stories, to noir, hard-boiled and pulp tales, with stops along the way for comical farces and super natural mysteries (think Dicken's "A Christmas Carol"). Many of these stories are popular and get reprinted regularly in holiday collections, but quite a few are rare, previously hard-to-find tales by authors you might not be familiar with. If you, like me, enjoy reading seasonal mysteries as the year winds down, then I highly recommend that you add this marvelous collection to your end-of-year reading list! -- recommended by Scott C. - Bennett Martin Public Library [ see Scott's Reviewer Profile and more of his reviews ]

[ official The Mysterious Bookshop web site - the bookstore run by Otto Penzler ]

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Customer Review: Games Creatures Play

Games Creatures Play
edited by Charlaine Harris and Toni L. Kelner [813.08 Har]

A fun collection of supernatural story telling! The stories follow the same thread in that they all revolve around games. The variety of play makes them all stand out on their own. A few authors that I?ve read before and really enjoyed in this book were Charlaine Harris, Scott Sigler and Laura Lippman. Harris brings Sookie Stackhouse into this short story not as the main character, but with a supporting role that helps create a really cool story. Sigler's "The Case of the Haunted Safeway" was a great piece of storytelling where the characters were made alive, even though some of them were ghosts. My favorite story of the bunch was "Jammed" by Seanan McGuire, which creatively combined roller derby and a chimera. The last tale of the bunch was also a favorite, "Bell, Book, and Candlepin" by Toni L. P. Kelner, which mixed together a werewolf, witch, and bowling alley. Overall, an engaging group of stories. -- review submitted by Liz H. - a customer of the Gere Branch Library

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New Customer Reviews appear regularly in the pages of the BookGuide web site, particularly during the Summer Reading Program. You can visit the Customer Reviews page to see them all and/or submit your own, or watch them appear here in the BookGuide blog individually as we receive them.

New Cthulhu: The Recent Weird

New Cthulhu: The Recent Weird
edited by Paula Guran [813.08 Gur]

Inspired by the impact of the groundbreaking horror works of H.P. Lovecraft in the 20th century, this collection of 27 short works is a sampling of what is being referred to as "the new weird". The stories are not necessarily Lovecraftian in style -- although some have strong hints of that -- but they are modern, up-to-date takes on the kinds of themes and ideas that Lovecraft's stories touched upon 100 years ago. The stories in this collection vary in quality, but even at their weakest, they still exude a sense of otherworldieness -- humanity is still a small speck in the greater cosmos, and we appear to be sharing our small planet with fascinating and terrifying creatures beyond our imaginings. I highly recommend this collection, in part, due to the reputations of many of its contributors. The stories are all reprints from other sources, but you'd be hard pressed to find as good a collection featuring such an esteemed variety of contributors, including: Neil Gaiman, China Mieville, Charles Stross, Elizabeth Bear, Kim Newman, John Shirley and Sarah Monette. If you have even the slightest interest in contemporary horror fiction, you'll want to try this one on for size!. [If you enjoy this, you may also wish to try Lovecraft's original stories and novels.] -- recommended by Scott C. - Bennett Martin Public Library [Subscribe to Scott's monthly booklist newsletter It's All Geek to Me! - on the Books, Movies & More newsletter sign-up page]

[ The New Weird entry on Wikipedia ]
 
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A Study in Sherlock

A Study in Sherlock: Stories Inspired by the Holmes Canon
by various authors, edited by Laurie King [823.08 Kin]

This series of short stories by various authors is a fun read. All stories are inspired by the Holmes Canon. Some very loosely, while others it helps to have read many of the original Doyle stories to solve the current mystery you are reading. A must read for any Sherlock Holmes fan. -- recommended by Jodene G. - Walt Branch Library

[ Publisher's official A Study in Sherlock web site ] | [ official Laurie R. King web site ]

Check out the libraries' extensive Sherlock Holmes booklist on BookGuide
 
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Great Classic Science Fiction (on CD)

Great Classic Science Fiction
an audio anthology with works by eight authors [Compact Disc 813.08 Gre]

Interesting collection of eight classic science fiction short stories or novellas, on a set of seven compact discs. These stories, from some of the giants in the genre -- H.G. Wells, Andre Norton, Stanley Weinbaum, Lester del Rey, Fritz Leiber, James Schmitz, Philip K. Dick and Frank Herbert -- run the gamut from thought-provoking and timeless to kitchy, dated and awkward. But, if you're looking to sample some works by any of the included authors, this is a nice starting point -- especially if you're on a road trip and looking for something mild to pass the time. I particularly enjoyed the Wells, Del Rey and Herbert stories...but your mileage may vary. [If you enjoy this science fiction audio collection, you may also wish to try the sets of Twilight Zone stories adapted to radio broadcasts on CD.]

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Zombies vs. Unicorns

Zombies vs. Unicorns
edited by Holly Black and Justine Larbalestier [j 813.08 Bla]

The title sums it up. This book is an anthology of stories written about zombies and unicorns and is aimed primarily at young adults. Between each story is a running commentary by two editors - Holly Black is the leader of Team Unicorn is Justine Larbalestier leads Team Zombie. While a bit graphic at times it redeems itself with bits of comedy. [If you enjoy this, you may also wish to try The Walking Dead graphic novel series by Kirkman or if you're looking for more young adult anthologies on magical beings I'd suggest Sideshow: Ten Original Tales of Freaks, Illusionists and Other Matters Odd and Magical which is available through interlibrary loan.] -- recommended by Carrie K. - Bennett Martin Public Library and South Branch Library


[ official publisher's page for Zombies vs. Unicorns ]

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Crimes by Moonlight

Crimes by Moonlight
by the Mystery Writers of America [813.08 Mys]

I love anthologies. They are a great way to find new authors or try out new genres. This compilation of short stories is written by members of the Mystery Writers of America all trying their hand at the paranormal genre. It includes ghosts, vampires, and -- well -- the simply odd. Charlaine Harris is great as always, but I also found new (to me) authors Margaret Maron, S.W. Hubbard, and Lou Kemp to be very enjoyable. Give it a try! -- recommended by Jodene G. - Walt Branch Library


[ official Mystery Writers of America web site ]

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Staff Recommendation - Many Bloody Returns

Many Bloody Returns

edited by Charlaine Harris

Looking for a new paranormal author? Want to start reading vampire or wizard books but not sure you can commit to an entire 240 page novel? Many Bloody Returns is for you! This anthology of new works by 14 authors will introduce you to the new as well as the tried and true of the genre. This series of short stories combines two seemingly unrelated, or very closely related, topics - life (birthdays) and death (vampires). Each story combines the living dead with a birthday celebration of some kind. To name just a few, you can read about Katherine's life-changing event at her 55th birthday, Sookie's invitiation to Vlad Tepes' birthday celebration at Fangtasia, or a fake medium in Victorian days who gets his just reward. Bwa-ha-ha!

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