The Big Book of Science Fiction

Starred review from June 6, 2016
At 105 stories—taken from around the world and since the genre’s very beginnings to its recent heights—and more than 1,000 pages, this extraordinary anthology handily earns its billing as the “ultimate collection” of science fiction. Featuring authors from A (Isaac Asimov’s “The Last Question”) to Z (Valentina Zhuravlyova’s “The Astronaut”), the anthology manages to touch all bases of the genre, from its origins (H.G. Wells’s “The Star”), through the pulp era (Edmond Hamilton’s “The Star-Stealers”), the so-called golden age of the 1940s and ’50s (Ray Bradbury’s “September 2005: The Martian”), New Wave (Samuel R. Delany’s “Aye, and Gomorrah...”), cyberpunk (William Gibson’s “New Rose Hotel”), and beyond (the most recent story is Johanna Sinisalo’s “Baby Doll,” published in 2002). There is hard science fiction (James White’s “Sector General”) and horror (George R.R. Martin’s “Sandkings”) as well as stories that are humanist (Ted Chiang’s “Story of Your Life”) and feminist (Joanna Russ’s “When It Changed”). World-famous authors are included (Kurt Vonnegut’s “2BRO2B”) as well as those now unfortunately obscure (Katherine MacLean’s “The Snowball Effect”). Women are well represented, including SFWA Grand Masters Ursula K. Le Guin (“Vaster than Empires and More Slow”), Connie Willis (“Schwarzschild Radius”), and C.J. Cherryh (“Pots”), as is work by international authors past (Miguel de Unamuno’s “Mechanopolis”) and present (Cixin Liu’s “The Poetry Cloud”); 29 stories are translated, many appearing in English for the first time. The VanderMeers, longtime SF/F editors (The Time Traveler’s Almanac and many others), provide a critical survey of the field as well as incisive biographies of the contributors. The book is dedicated to the late Judith Merril, one of SF’s most highly regarded anthologists, and it is a worthy homage to her enshrinement of genre excellence.

May 15, 2016
A comprehensive, chronological journey through a century of seminal science fiction, compiled by the editorial team of the VanderMeers (Sisters of the Revolution: A Feminist Speculative Fiction Anthology, 2015, etc.). This ambitious collection is united around no less humble a theme than the very nature of science fiction--a question endlessly debated by genre aficionados. In their introduction, the VanderMeers define SF as that which "lives in the future"; they trace the history of the form from its early roots in contes philosophiques to the pulps; followed by the golden age, new wave, humanist, feminist, cyberpunk, and postmodernist traditions...and non-Western SF too. Feeling dizzy yet? But if the task of trying to chart such a broad sea seems prohibitive, the anthology does its best through the inclusion of a massive 105 short stories. Legendary authors are present, of course--Asimov, Bradbury, Clarke, Dick--but the strength of the collection lies in the light it shines into lesser-known corners of science fiction's past and present: stories translated into English (Sever Gansovsky's "Day of Wrath" is worth special mention, as is Jean-Claude Dunyach's surreal "Paranamanco"), many for the first time, as well as stories by women (Carol Emshwiller's excellent "Pelt," C.J. Cherryh's moving "Pots") and authors of color (Samuel R. Delany and Octavia E. Butler are predictable names, but did you know W.E.B. Du Bois wrote science fiction? Misha Nogha, Ted Chiang, and Manjula Padmanabhan also feature, to name just a few). Teachers wishing for a survey text of SF could hardly do better than this exhaustive volume. The stories defy neat classification beyond being science fiction, resulting in a reading experience as diverse as its author list. A necessity for those wishing to broaden their understanding of science fiction as a genre...or just those looking for some darn good stories.

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Starred review from July 1, 2016

With 97 stories and more than 1,200 pages, this latest collection attempts to survey the sf genre. Editors Jeff and Ann VanderMeer focus on the 20th century, though they dip into the 19th for the earliest story from H.G. Wells ("The Star") and edge over into the 21st century for the final piece, Johanna Sinisalo's "Baby Doll." In between there are award-winning tales from canon authors such as Isaac Asimov, Ray Bradbury, and Ralph Ellison. The editors made efforts to cast the widest net possible, however, making this a true voyage of discovery of underappreciated female writers such as Clare Winger Harris, Katherine MacLean, and Josephine Saxton. There are also stories from dozens of countries, many of which are translated into English for the first time or for which the editors commissioned new translations. Each story gets a lengthy introduction, placing the authors and their work in historical context, which allow new sf readers a fun and solid genre education. Some pieces showcase the playful language and surreal subjects covered in depth in the editors' compilation The Weird. VERDICT Libraries will want this on their shelves for years to come--although their patrons might also appreciate the lighter digital version.--MM

Copyright 2016 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

Starred review from July 1, 2016
The VanderMeers (famous for their previous anthologies) bring together a mammoth collection of international science-fiction stories that attempts to create a cohesive and inclusive picture of the genre at its best. Their vision of the genre is one rooted in the same tradition of philosophical and narrative experimentation that gave birth to modernism, and so although they do include stories ranging from the pulps and Asimov to the new wave and cyberpunk, the overall focus is on stories that best embody a sense of vision and experimentation, whether in content or form. Some of the most interesting stories in the anthology are rare or new translations, such as Yoshio Aramaki's surreal Soft Clocks; Angelica Gorodischer's strange, far-future The Unmistakable Smell of Violets; Yasutaka Tsutsui's beautiful, if dystopian, Standing Woman; and, most prominently, a strange and exciting space-opera novella by recent Hugo winner Cixin Liu, The Poetry Cloud. Of the nontranslated stories, all of them are of excellent quality, ranging from frequently reprinted classics, such as Joanna Russ' When It Changed or Ted Chiang's Story of Your Life, to more rarely reprinted stories, such as Josephine Saxton's The Snake Who Read Chomsky or David R. Bunch's Three from Moderan. This anthology is a breathtaking survey of the most exciting and engaging fiction in the genre worldwide, and it may become an essential recommendation for anyone interested in the genre.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2016, American Library Association.)