SF Masterwork series continued...

[GOLLUM]

OK folks,

I can't seem to find where I listed to SF Masterwork series to date so here's a quick and dirty cut and paste.

The newest addition is the classic Man In The High Castle - Philip K. Dick (No. 73). Funnily enough Masterworks misprinted this as No. 72 (same as The Moon is a Harsh Mistress). Perhaps this will add value to the book in another 500 years...

*NB Please also note this should not be confused with the 2001 publication of the same book by Masterworks. That was part of an offshoot 10 title series they did.

As I've retained the entire series, I'll be purchasing this 2009 edn. that was recently published.

Future Titles
Please also note that the above mentioned offshoot series contained John Wyndham's Day of the Triffids, a Canticle For Liebowitz, Left Hand Of Darkness and Childhood's End, so they may include these in the main publication line. Especially as I note Moon, Dune (2 most recent additions) and several others have been included now in their main line.

In addition, Thomas Disch's Camp Concentration and 334 never saw publication a few years back as they had been earmarked for, so they may also be ones slated for future release.

Cheers.....

SF Masterwork Series to date

1 The Forever War** Joe Haldeman


2 I Am Legend Richard Matheson


3 Cities in Flight James Blish


4 Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep Philip K. Dick


5 The Stars My Destination** Alfred Bester


6 Babel-17 Samuel R. Delany


7 Lord of Light Roger Zelazny


8 The Fifth Head of Cerberus Gene Wolfe


9 Gateway Frederik Pohl


10 The Rediscovery of Man Cordwainer Smith


11 Last and First Men Olaf Stapledon


12 Earth Abides George R. Stewart


13 Martian Time-Slip Philip K. Dick


14 The Demolished Man Alfred Bester


15 Stand on Zanzibar John Brunner


16 The Dispossessed Ursula K. Le Guin


17 The Drowned World J.G. Ballard


18 The Sirens of Titan Kurt Vonnegut


19 Emphyrio Jack Vance


20 A Scanner Darkly Philip K. Dick


21 Star Maker Olaf Stapledon


22 Behold the Man Michael Moorcock


23 The Book of Skulls Robert Silverberg


24 The Time Machine and The War of the Worlds H.G. Wells


25 Flowers for Algernon Daniel Keyes


26 Ubik Philip K. Dick


27 Timescape Gregory Benford


28 More Than Human Theodore Sturgeon


29 Man Plus Frederik Pohl


30 A Case of Conscience James Blish


31 The Centauri Device M. John Harrison


32 Dr. Bloodmoney Philip K. Dick


33 Non-Stop Brian W. Aldiss


34 The Fountains of Paradise Arthur C. Clarke


35 Pavane Keith Roberts


36 Now Wait for Last Year Philip K. Dick


37 Nova Samuel R. Delany


38 The First Men in the Moon H.G. Wells


39 The City and the Stars Arthur C. Clarke


40 Blood Music Greg Bear


41 Jem Frederik Pohl


42 Bring the Jubilee Ward Moore


43 Valis Philip K. Dick


44 The Lathe of Heaven Ursula K. Le Guin


45 The Complete Roderick John Sladek


46 Flow, My Tears, the Policeman Said Philip K. Dick


47 The Invisible Man H.G. Wells


48 Grass Sheri S. Tepper


49 A Fall of Moondust Arthur C. Clarke


50 Eon Greg Bear


51 The Shrinking Man Richard Matheson


52 The Three Stigmata of Palmer Eldritch Philip K. Dick


53 The Dancers at the End of Time Michael Moorcock


54 The Space Merchants Frederik Pohl and Cyril M. Kornbluth


55 Time Out Of Joint Philip K. Dick


56 Downward to the Earth Robert Silverberg


57 The Simulacra Philip K. Dick


58 The Penultimate Truth Philip K. Dick


59 Dying Inside Robert Silverberg


60 Ringworld** Larry Niven


61 The Child Garden Geoff Ryman


62 Mission of Gravity Hal Clement


63 A Maze of Death Philip K. Dick


64 Tau Zero Poul Anderson


65 Rendezvous With Rama Arthur C. Clarke


66 Life During Wartime Lucius Shepard


67 Where Late the Sweet Birds Sang Kate Wilhelm


68 Roadside Picnic Arkady and Boris Strugatsky


69 Dark Benediction Walter M. Miller Jr.


70 Mockingbird Walter Tevis


71 Dune Frank Herbert


72 The Moon Is a Harsh Mistress Robert A. Heinlein


73 The Man In The High Castle Philip K. Dick

 

[Connavar]

As much as i admire the great Philip K Dick it is a bit overkill, i thought the point of the series was to reprint classic of SFF that might go out of print or is already.

PKD books are almost all of them in print by other publishers.

Give the other guys a chance like Thomas Disch. Its hard to take it serious with like 15 PKD books no matter how good he is.

 

[Jayaprakash Satyamurthy]

This is a fantastic series - the single best thing it has ever done is make an affordable collection of Cordwainer Smith's short stories available in the mass market.

Emphyrio is a good introduction to Vance, although I wish Gollancz would consider acquiring the rights to reprint VIE texts of other highlights from Vance's career - a Demon Princes omnibus, a Wyst omnibus, a selection of short stories.

Philip K Dick tends to dominate the list a bit, especially considering that Vintage has re-issued his novels in attractive mass market editions twice over, at least, in the time this series has been around. Heinlein is ridiculously under-represented in comparison - so are Asimov and Clarke but their works are not hard to find elsewhere.

I'd like to see some Henry Kuttner, Eric Frank Russell, maybe even some AE van Vogt on this list. From the 70s authors, more Delaney, more Disch, more Tiptree.

 

[Fried Egg]

Thanks for that Gollum.

Although I heard that Orion Books had scheduled the following additions to the SF Masterworks series in 2010 (although there are no series no's for these yet):

April 8th - Inverted World by Christopher Priest

April 15th - The Island Of Doctor Moreau by H.G. Wells (Hardback)

 

[GOLLUM]

As much as i admire the great Philip K Dick it is a bit overkill, i thought the point of the series was to reprint classic of SFF that might go out of print or is already.

PKD books are almost all of them in print by other publishers.

Give the other guys a chance like Thomas Disch. Its hard to take it serious with like 15 PKD books no matter how good he is.

Yeh I know there does seem a bias towards Dick as good as he is.

Please note Conn, it may also relate to an issue of publishing rights.

Anyway I'm still looking forward to purchasing Man In A High Castle.

 

[Jayaprakash Satyamurthy]

Christopher Priest is another writer worth promoting with a series like this. The Affirmation and The Glamour are two more titles that could do with a re-issue.

 

[Jayaprakash Satyamurthy]

Anyway I'm still looking forward to purchasing Man In A High Castle.

Just checking - this is only because you want the whole Masterworks set, you already have this book, right?

 

[GOLLUM]

Thanks for that Gollum.

Although I heard that Orion Books had scheduled the following additions to the SF Masterworks series in 2010 (although there are no series no's for these yet):

Yes I heard that as you say too but we'll see. They've changed their minds before... they would be #74 and #75

Thanks for posting that info though.

 

[GOLLUM]

Just checking - this is only because you want the whole Masterworks set, you already have this book, right?

No, hold on to your chair, I do not own a copy of Man In a High Castle and have never read it before. Shocking yes!....

As to Priest, almost everything he pens is very good. I've got all of his novels including Inverted World.

You are correct though in the assumption that whatever they print I'll still buy whether I own another edition or not. Tradgic but true...

 

[GOLLUM]

This is a fantastic series - the single best thing it has ever done is make an affordable collection of Cordwainer Smith's short stories available in the mass market.

AH another fan of Dr. Linebarger.

I should mention now that I also have another HB edn. of a book with the same title The Rediscovery Of Man. This book contains ALL of Smith's shorter SF fiction, basically 31 stories plus another 2 unpublished works. It is not a cheap book though a very fine looking one published by NESFA Press.

I plan to read this over the summer holidays and expect it to be a higlhight of mine....

 

[Connavar]

The Priest one and HG Wells is a perfect addition. The classic author of them all and a rated author like Priest.


Gollum : I dont think its publisher rights issue since if it was that they would go after a rare PKD and sell it with ooh we found a rare one you cant buy by anyone else !

Its simply because PKD is so mainstream these days, those books are found in stores you wont find other SF books in. They are prolly looking for that same market.

 

[GOLLUM]

Possibly, someone here will probably know.

 

[Connavar]

I dont really mind i will prolly get it because i like collecting the series no matter the author.

But i have a fantasy of discovering a classic, or a modern author that isnt too well known in the series. Taking a gamble on someone like that because they are listed with Vance,Heinlein and co.

 

[Jayaprakash Satyamurthy]

If it helps under-write more obscure additions to the list, let them print all the Dick they want.

 

[GOLLUM]

If it helps under-write more obscure additions to the list, let them print all the Dick they want.

Especially when it contains ones by that author I haven't even read yet....

Anyway, it's getting late here so good night all. I'm going back to the 'sanctuary' of my Brother Cadfael DVDs.

 

[Connavar]

If it helps under-write more obscure additions to the list, let them print all the Dick they want.

Thats true but i saw the list like some sort of hall of fame of SF.

I read Emphyrio as my first Vance without knowing he was a legendary writer.

All the great ones are there. Now that i have read more SF you know how important most books,authors in the list are even the lesser known authors.

Not to complain i will still see it a classic great book list minus the popular PKD ones

 

[Fried Egg]

Looks like they are adding "Cat's Cradle" by Kurt Vonnegut (hardback edition) to the series in May 2010:

 

[GOLLUM]

Thanks for the update F.E. I've got that and Slaughterhouse 5 but not in those edns.

 

[Werthead]

Christopher Priest is another writer worth promoting with a series like this. The Affirmation and The Glamour are two more titles that could do with a re-issue.

Gollancz did reissue all of the latter-day Priests a few years back in excellent new covers which remain on sale. The Affirmation, The Glamour, The Prestige, The Extremes and The Separation are available in this range, and they just added The Dream Archipelago to the same range. I'm hoping they add A Dream of Wessex and The Quiet Woman at some point. I also have an old second-hand copy of Indoctrinaire which I haven't read yet, and would like to check out Fuge for a Darkening Island. Sounds like an interesting premise (not to mention a great title).

 

[GOLLUM]

Yes I haven't got a copy of Quiet Woman or Dream Of Wessex and hope Gollancz republishes those. I've been collelting the re-issues of Priest's work that Werthead refers to, along with a recent copy of NYRB's Inverted World. The covers certainly are good too.