StephenBarkley.com » Science Fiction

Consider Her Ways and Others | John Wyndham

Stephen Barkley — Mon, 13 Aug 2012 10:00:50 +0000

Consider Her Ways and Others © 1961 Penguin, 1971 190 pages If your only experience with Wyndham was being forced to read The Crysalids in high school, it’s time to pay this science fiction master another visit. In addition to rereading all of his major books (The Day of the Triffids, The Kraken Wakes, The [...]

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Downward to the Earth | Robert Silverberg

Stephen Barkley — Mon, 02 Jul 2012 10:00:00 +0000

Downward to the Earth © 1969 Signet 176 pages Fantasy and Science Fiction are often kept in two separate sections of the bookstore. Silverberg marries the two masterfully in Downward to the Earth. This book is essentially the sequel to Avatar. No, it’s not set in the same world, but the themes remain. In fact, [...]

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The Empire of the Ants | H. G. Wells

Stephen Barkley — Mon, 18 Jun 2012 10:00:16 +0000

The Empire of the Ants and Other Stories © 1977 Scholastic 152 pages In high school I became infatuated with the fathers of science fiction: Jules Verne & H. G. Wells. After having read many of his famous works (The Invisible Man, The Island of Doctor Moreau, and The Time Machine to name a few), [...]

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Turn Left At Thursday | Frederick Pohl

Stephen Barkley — Mon, 20 Feb 2012 11:00:31 +0000

Turn Left at Thursday © 1961 Ballantine 159 pages Turn Left At Thursday is a collection of three novelettes and three stories, although I’d call the “novelettes” short stories as well. The longest clocked in at 43 pages. These stories go beyond the usual golden age sci-fi fare. Rather than just setting adventure stories in [...]

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The End of Eternity | Isaac Asimov

Stephen Barkley — Mon, 16 Jan 2012 11:00:32 +0000

The End of Eternity © 1955 Fawcett Crest (1971) 192 pages Reading 50 year old science fiction is an entertaining experience. Not only do you have to envision the future with the author, you have to view it through a dated lens. Asimov’s The End of Eternity is a great example of classic science fiction. [...]

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The Outward Urge | John Wyndham

Stephen Barkley — Mon, 20 Dec 2010 11:00:00 +0000

The Outward Urge © 1959 Penguin 187 pages You can enjoy The Outward Urge on a couple different levels. On the surface, it’s a collection of short stories about humanity’s exploration of space. Dig a little deeper and a couple sub-themes stand out. These stories cover 200 years of the history of the Troon family [...]

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Star-Begotten | H. G. Wells

Stephen Barkley — Wed, 08 Dec 2010 11:00:18 +0000

Star Begotten © 1937 Mannor Books 173 pages Do you remember The War of the Worlds? This is a sequel, of sorts. In War, the Martians were defeated by their vulnerability to earth’s ecosystem. Star-Begotten explains plan B. What if, instead of invading earth, they used interplanetary rays to subtly change humans into their own [...]

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The Case Against Tomorrow | Frederik Pohl

Stephen Barkley — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 10:00:40 +0000

The Case Against Tomorrow ©1957 Ballantine Second Printing 1965 152 pages There’s so much to love about golden-age science fiction like: detective stories with robots, martians with green skin, and dystopian views of the future that have proven true in ways the author didn’t quite foresee. This collection of Pohl’s short stories extrapolates the damning [...]

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The Martian Chronicles | Ray Bradbury

Stephen Barkley — Mon, 10 Aug 2009 10:00:12 +0000

Martian Chronicles © 1958 Bantam (1980) 181 pages Ray Bradbury is lauded as one of the best science fiction writers of the 20th century. I’ve only read a couple of his books now (including the famous Fahrenheit 451), but I would have to agree. Put him and the dearly departed Asimov together in a room, [...]

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Chocky | John Wyndham

Stephen Barkley — Mon, 13 Jul 2009 10:00:06 +0000

Chocky (Puffin Books) © 1968 Penguin (1970) 154 pages Chocky’s a fine science fiction tale. In it, a boy named Matthew begins to have conversations with an imaginary friend—who turns out to be more than imaginary. The back cover states that the friend, “was far too intelligent and frightening” to spring from the mind of [...]

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