Description
Book SynopsisNow in Paperback! Between an ancient Roman''s trip to the moon and the fantastic tales of H.G. Wells lies a journey through time and space and an awesome evolution in scientific thinking. From Gilgamesh''s search for immortality to Lucian''s odyssey on the moon; from Jonathan Swift''s hilarious satire on scientists in Gulliver''s Travels to Mary Shelley''s horrifying description of a scientist who has gone too far in Frankenstein from Edgar Allan Poe''s balloon trip in the year 2848 to Jules Verne''s prophesies of the impact of scientific inventions on future civilization; from Edward Bellamy''s utopian escape from the industrial Revolution to H.G. Wells''s magnificent story of Earth threatened by an inescapable menace-here are the chief ancestors of the modern science fiction story. For the first time in paperback, these and other key works are gathered together in one anthology, complete with revealing commentary on the authors, their eras, and the role each played in establishing wh
Trade ReviewAn excellent introduction to the history of the genre. * The New York Times *
The best series, historically arranged, of SF anthologies ever assembled...All six volumes belong in the library of every university, school, and teacher and reader of science fiction. Gunn has gathered stories of importance to the development of SF and stories that represent the best writing of the genre. * Anatomy of Wonder, 5th Edition *
...provides one of the most comprehensive views of the field and should be required reading for all students of sf. It has withstood the test of time, with classic stories....Gunn's headnotes and introductions remain provocative, even years later. The Road to Science Fiction can be read as an historical document, one that says much about Gunn, his mind, and his take on sf as it does about the state of sf from its roots to its full maturity as a genre. * Science Fiction Studies *
Table of ContentsChapter 1 Acknowledgments Chapter 2 Introduction Chapter 3 Science: The New Accelerator Chapter 4 The New Accelerator—by H.G. Wells Chapter 5 The Literary Dissent Chapter 6 The Machine Stops—by E.M. Forster Chapter 7 Islands in the Sky, Or Romance Triumphant Chapter 8 FromUnder the Moons of Mars—by Edgar Rice Burroughs Chapter 9 More Things Under Heaven and Earth Chapter 10 The Moon Pool—by A. Merritt Chapter 11 The Call of the Fantastic Chapter 12 The Red One—by Jack London Chapter 13 The Horror Out of Providence Chapter 14 Dagon—by H.P. Lovecraft Chapter 15 The Science-Fiction Magazine Begins Its Amazing Career Chapter 16 The Tissue-Culture King—by Julian Huxley Chapter 17 Pedestrian Words, Soaring Concepts Chapter 18 The Revolt of the Pedestrians—by David H. Keller, M.D. Chapter 19 The Philosopher of Time and Space Chapter 20 FromLast and First Men—by Olaf Stapledon Chapter 21 Ford's in His Flivver Chapter 22 FromBrave New World—by Aldous Huxley Chapter 23 The Alien from Milwaukee Chapter 24 A Martian Odyssey—by Stanley G. Weinbaum Chapter 25 Who Went There Chapter 26 Twilight—by John W. Campbell Chapter 27 The Idea Machine Chapter 28 Proxima Centauri—by Murray Leinster Chapter 29 The World-Wrecker on Mars Chapter 30 What's It Like Out There?—by Edmond Hamilton Chapter 31 The Legion of Science Fiction Chapter 32 With Folded Hands—by Jack Williamson Chapter 33 Mission of Levity Chapter 34 Hyperpilosity—by L. Sprague de Camp Chapter 35 The Alchemists Gather Chapter 36 The Faithful—by Lester del Rey Chapter 37 The Fairy Tales of Science Chapter 38 Black Destroyer—by A.E. van Vogt Chapter 39 The Stars Appear Chapter 40 Nightfall—by Isaac Asimov Chapter 41 The Man Who Sold the Genre Chapter 42 Requiem—by Robert A. Heinlein Chapter 43 A chronology of Science Fiction Chapter 44 About the Editor
