Welcome to the strangest, most distinctive future ever imagined by a science fiction writer. An insterstellar empire ruled by the mysterious Lords of the Instrumentality, whose access to the drug stroon from the planet Norstrilia confers on them virtual immortality. A world in which wealthy and leisured humanity is served by the underpeople, genetically engineered animals turned into the semblance of people. A world in which the great ships which sail between the stars are eventually supplanted by the mysterious, instantaneous technique of planoforming. A world of wonder and myth, and extraordinary imagination.
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The unusual mythic quality of Cordwainer Smith's extraordinary future comes partly from his upbringing in China and love of Oriental literature. His tales of far tomorrow are told as ancient legends which everyone finds familiar, but not completely: "You already know the end ... But you do not know the beginning." This Millennium SF Masterworks collection opens with Smith's remarkable 1950 debut story "Scanners Live in Vain" and continues with tales of the Instrumentality of Mankind, near-immortal overlords who wield the terrible power of Imperial Inquisitors in old China. Cats appear frequently: as essential fighters against space-borne horrors in "The Game of Rat and Dragon", subjected to forced evolution in "The Crime and the Glory of Commander Suzdal", uplifted (like other animals) to human shape as human's slaves in "The Ballad of Lost C'Mell" and other haunting tales of these "underpeople". The stories throb with crazy rhythms and dangerous music, notably the very strange "Under Old Earth"; Joan of Arc's fate is echoed in "The Dead Lady of Clown Town"; one of the weirdest Hells ever imagined--the Instrumentality's ultimate punishment--comes nightmarishly alive in "A Planet Named Shayol". There are further stories with memorably poetic titles, promising a rich strangeness which Smith always delivers. --David Langford
Synopsis
Welcome to the strangest, most distinctive future ever imagined by a science fiction writer. An insterstellar empire ruled by the mysterious Lords of the Instrumentality, whose access to the drug stroon from the planet Norstrilia confers on them virtual immortality. A world in which wealthy and leisured humanity is served by the underpeople, genetically engineered animals turned into the semblance of people. A world in which the great ships which sail between the stars are eventually supplanted by the mysterious, instantaneous technique of planoforming. A world of wonder and myth, and extraordinary imagination.
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Von Philip Tachtalis
Format:Taschenbuch|Von Amazon bestätigter Kauf
This is one of the best science fiction books I have read, even including the other books from the S.F. Masterworks collection. Most fascinating is the relationship between "true men" and "underpeople", which comes to its climax in "The Ballad of Lost C'Mell", the best story in the book:
She got the which of what-she-did,
Hid the bell with a blot, she did,
But she fell in love with a hominid,
Where is the which of the what-she-did?
Smith's imagination is scary sometimes, but his stories are always full of life and it is easy to imagine them actually happening.
She got the which of what-she-did,
Hid the bell with a blot, she did,
But she fell in love with a hominid,
Where is the which of the what-she-did?
Smith's imagination is scary sometimes, but his stories are always full of life and it is easy to imagine them actually happening.
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Von Suspense Fan
Format:Taschenbuch
Apart from being a highly fascinating man in his own right, Cordwainer Smith was a literary Genius who has created one of SF's most complete, most thoroughly thought-through and elaborated future histories of mankind spanning some 8,000 years of development.
Ranging from the first age of space over planoform space travel, guided by the 'Instrumentality of mankind' made possibly by the life-extending 'stroon' and the support of underpeople (genetically engineered animals in human shapes) towards a possible common vision for all people and underpeople (this is the focus of his masterpiece novel, 'Norstrilia').
This book provides the timeline by putting some of his finer stand-alone stories into one big collection.
Highly advisable for the discerning SF fan.
Best regards,
Andy
Ranging from the first age of space over planoform space travel, guided by the 'Instrumentality of mankind' made possibly by the life-extending 'stroon' and the support of underpeople (genetically engineered animals in human shapes) towards a possible common vision for all people and underpeople (this is the focus of his masterpiece novel, 'Norstrilia').
This book provides the timeline by putting some of his finer stand-alone stories into one big collection.
Highly advisable for the discerning SF fan.
Best regards,
Andy
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be forewarned
30. Juni 2007
Von William Ekhardt
- Veröffentlicht auf Amazon.com
Format:Taschenbuch|Von Amazon bestätigter Kauf
THIS IS NOT THE COMPLETE SHORT FICTION OF CORDWAINER SMITH, RATHER A COLLECTION BY THE SAME NAME!!!
5.0 von 5 Sternen
This book stays
27. Juni 2012
Von Abe Tenn
- Veröffentlicht auf Amazon.com
Format:Taschenbuch
This is the British version, Publication by Victor Gollancz. This SF Masters edition is still based off the NESFA edition of the 1993-Complete works- Which means that this edition also places the stories in rough chronological order, ( rather than the order of when they were first published).
Before each work a paragraph discusses the relevance the piece may have within the time line, or the real life of Cordwainer, possibly featuring a forward by Jon Pierce. I don't recall as I passed along the book straight away to a friend as I needed to share the experience.
The selected pieces in the book are powerful good and struck me profoundly. I do not find this would have been possible were the order nonsensical or had poor selections been included. This is a fine introduction and it wont let you down.
Be warned to pay special note to the games Smith plays with words, lots of numbers in there as names, sometimes his narrative structure or style is closer to eastern narrative story telling methods. Other times the words seem to be constructed to be read aloud.
Before each work a paragraph discusses the relevance the piece may have within the time line, or the real life of Cordwainer, possibly featuring a forward by Jon Pierce. I don't recall as I passed along the book straight away to a friend as I needed to share the experience.
The selected pieces in the book are powerful good and struck me profoundly. I do not find this would have been possible were the order nonsensical or had poor selections been included. This is a fine introduction and it wont let you down.
Be warned to pay special note to the games Smith plays with words, lots of numbers in there as names, sometimes his narrative structure or style is closer to eastern narrative story telling methods. Other times the words seem to be constructed to be read aloud.
5.0 von 5 Sternen
Some Fragments of the Future.
31. Dezember 2011
Von Maximiliano F Yofre
- Veröffentlicht auf Amazon.com
Format:Taschenbuch
First of all let me state that this is a British collection of only 12 short stories from the author, named "The Best of Cordwainer Smith" in other editions.
Cordwainer Smith is the pen name of Mr. Paul M. A. Linebarger, who lived a comparatively short (1913 - 1966) and difficult life. He was educated in China, Germany and USA. He loose one eye in an accident being a child. Had a PH degree in Political Sciences, was a university professor and worked undercover for CIA. At the same time he wrote fascinating sci-fi stories.
My first contact with the author's stories was "Alpha Ralpha Boulevard" (included in this volume). It was obvious for me that this was a fragment of a greater story, full of mysterious and provoking ideas as the Rediscovery of Man, the Eketeli and so on. I was captivated by the imagery and searched for more works from Cordwainer Smith. Little by little they were appearing in different sci-fi magazines and short stories collections.
There are various editions of collected short stories of the author. This book contains twelve of them, constituting a fair sample of the author's universe giving the reader a broad inkling to it.
Each story of this publication has a short introduction by J. J. Pierce, editor of this collection.
"Scanners Live in Vain" was Cordwainer's first published tale, situated around year 6000 AD, describes a crisis within the Scanners Guild and the emerging of a new type of interstellar flight.
In "The Game of Rat and Dragon" humans and telepathic cats join forces against dreadful dragons of deep space.
The story "The Dead Lady of Clown Town" is an overwhelming recreation Joan D'Arc story transferred to the Underpeople and my favorite one from the author.
The second outstanding story in this volume is "Under Old Earth" describing the pilgrimage of agonizing Lord Sto Odin to the Gebiet a mysterious place under old Earth.
"Alpha Ralpha Boulevard" describes the Rediscovery of Man a sort of Cultural Revolution decided by the Instrumentality and focuses on a young couple trying to cope with the new situation.
Last of my favorite tales in this book is "Ballad o Lost C'Mell" about the lovely cat-girl C'Mell and her impossible love for Lord Jestocost.
Recently all Cordwainer Smith tales has been published in Spanish in a four volume edition and I obviously treasure them!
This is a wonderful sample from an unjustly underrated author.
Reviewed by Max Yofre.
Cordwainer Smith is the pen name of Mr. Paul M. A. Linebarger, who lived a comparatively short (1913 - 1966) and difficult life. He was educated in China, Germany and USA. He loose one eye in an accident being a child. Had a PH degree in Political Sciences, was a university professor and worked undercover for CIA. At the same time he wrote fascinating sci-fi stories.
My first contact with the author's stories was "Alpha Ralpha Boulevard" (included in this volume). It was obvious for me that this was a fragment of a greater story, full of mysterious and provoking ideas as the Rediscovery of Man, the Eketeli and so on. I was captivated by the imagery and searched for more works from Cordwainer Smith. Little by little they were appearing in different sci-fi magazines and short stories collections.
There are various editions of collected short stories of the author. This book contains twelve of them, constituting a fair sample of the author's universe giving the reader a broad inkling to it.
Each story of this publication has a short introduction by J. J. Pierce, editor of this collection.
"Scanners Live in Vain" was Cordwainer's first published tale, situated around year 6000 AD, describes a crisis within the Scanners Guild and the emerging of a new type of interstellar flight.
In "The Game of Rat and Dragon" humans and telepathic cats join forces against dreadful dragons of deep space.
The story "The Dead Lady of Clown Town" is an overwhelming recreation Joan D'Arc story transferred to the Underpeople and my favorite one from the author.
The second outstanding story in this volume is "Under Old Earth" describing the pilgrimage of agonizing Lord Sto Odin to the Gebiet a mysterious place under old Earth.
"Alpha Ralpha Boulevard" describes the Rediscovery of Man a sort of Cultural Revolution decided by the Instrumentality and focuses on a young couple trying to cope with the new situation.
Last of my favorite tales in this book is "Ballad o Lost C'Mell" about the lovely cat-girl C'Mell and her impossible love for Lord Jestocost.
Recently all Cordwainer Smith tales has been published in Spanish in a four volume edition and I obviously treasure them!
This is a wonderful sample from an unjustly underrated author.
Reviewed by Max Yofre.
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