false http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1172130427m/141805.jpg 141805 13 <I>Cities in Flight</I> is an omnibus volume of four novels, originally published between 1955 and 1962, two of which are fix-ups of pieces that first appeared in various magazines in the early '50s. Despite having been conceived more than 50 years ago, and produced in episodic fashion, they stand head and shoulders above most SF available today.<p> In <I>They Shall Have Stars</I>, humankind's will to explore space is renewed with the advent of two discoveries: anti-gravity (the "spindizzy" machines) and the key to almost eternal life (anti-agathic drugs). By <I>A Life for the Stars</I>, centuries have passed and most of the major cities have built spindizzies into their bedrock and left earth, cruising the galaxy looking for work, much like the hobos of the Depression Era. <I>Earthman, Come Home</I>, told from the perspective of John Amalfi, the major of New York, was the first-written of the novels and--although not as tightly woven as the other segments--is still a masterly work. Blish gives the same weight and authority both to the sweeping cultural change wrought and suffered by the cities, and to the emotional growth of a man who is several hundred years old. We stay with Amalfi for the final episode, <I>The Triumph of Time</I>. New York is now planet-bound in the Greater Magellanic Cloud, but when Amalfi learns of the impending destruction of time itself, he is forced into space one more time, to take a last, desperate chance. The novel ends, literally, with a bang.<p> Despite the occasional, inevitable anachronism, such as vacuum tubes, <I>Cities in Flight</I> stands up remarkably well to modern reading. The novel's political and literary sophistication was unmatched in its time; there is very little to rival it even today. For most readers of a certain age, this was probably the first SF they encountered that was written from a mature standpoint and adult sensibility. The fact that Blish also manages to tell a fabulous, galaxy-spanning adventure tale makes this essential reading. <I>--Luc Duplessis</I> 136770 1962 Cities in Flight total:222|5:7|4:7|3:4|2:3|1:0| 222 849 382 27 141805 1585676020 9781585676026 179 24 3.82 http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1172130427m/141805.jpg http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/141805.Cities_in_Flight 2 1 false Sat May 02 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Fri Mar 13 12:06:14 -0700 2009 Wed Jun 24 20:31:36 -0700 2009 1 They Shall Have Stars. The year is 2013 and humanity is out among the solar system while, back on Earth, a quiet struggle is going on between the West and the Soviets. It's getting harder and harder to tel...more...]]> 141805 1585676020 9781585676026 179 24 3.82 http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1172130427m/141805.jpg http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/141805.Cities_in_Flight 3 1 false Sat Jan 01 00:00:00 -0800 1972 Sat Mar 08 13:13:42 -0800 2008 Thu Mar 20 02:27:56 -0700 2008 more...]]> 141805 1585676020 9781585676026 179 24 3.82 http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1172130427m/141805.jpg http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/141805.Cities_in_Flight 0 0 false Thu Apr 09 19:20:26 -0700 2009 Thu Apr 09 19:29:38 -0700 2009
I expect the social s...more...]]> 141805 1585676020 9781585676026 179 24 3.82 http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1172130427m/141805.jpg http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/141805.Cities_in_Flight 0 0 false Fri Jan 16 00:00:00 -0800 2009 Thu Jan 15 16:56:42 -0800 2009 Thu Jan 15 17:02:11 -0800 2009 more...]]> 141805 1585676020 9781585676026 179 24 3.82 http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1172130427m/141805.jpg http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/141805.Cities_in_Flight 4 0 false Sun Aug 17 08:44:21 -0700 2008 Sun Aug 17 08:48:59 -0700 2008 more...]]> 141805 1585676020 9781585676026 179 24 3.82 http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1172130427m/141805.jpg http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/141805.Cities_in_Flight 5 0 false Wed Oct 01 00:00:00 -0700 2008 Thu Jan 08 08:42:13 -0800 2009 Fri Jan 09 06:37:05 -0800 2009 more...]]> 141805 1585676020 9781585676026 179 24 3.82 http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1172130427m/141805.jpg http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/141805.Cities_in_Flight 5 0 false Sat Aug 08 14:21:47 -0700 2009 Sat Aug 08 14:22:58 -0700 2009 more...]]> 141805 1585676020 9781585676026 179 24 3.82 http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1172130427m/141805.jpg http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/141805.Cities_in_Flight 2 0 false Sun Nov 08 00:00:00 -0800 2009 Wed Sep 16 13:09:13 -0700 2009 Sun Nov 08 13:42:57 -0800 2009
As the title suggests, the technology allows complete cities to leave the earth intact, protected by the antigravity shi...more...]]> 141805 1585676020 9781585676026 179 24 3.82 http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1172130427m/141805.jpg http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/141805.Cities_in_Flight 5 0 false Tue Sep 01 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Wed Oct 28 20:46:20 -0700 2009 Wed Oct 28 20:53:17 -0700 2009 1003147 0380009986 9780380009985 14 1 3.82 http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/1003147.Cities_in_Flight 5 0 false Fri Jul 17 07:56:52 -0700 2009 Fri Jul 17 07:59:57 -0700 2009 141805 1585676020 9781585676026 179 24 3.82 http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1172130427m/141805.jpg http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/141805.Cities_in_Flight 2 0 false Fri Jan 01 00:00:00 -0800 1999 Thu Sep 24 13:26:54 -0700 2009 Thu Sep 24 13:26:54 -0700 2009 141805 1585676020 9781585676026 179 24 3.82 http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1172130427m/141805.jpg http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/141805.Cities_in_Flight 4 0 false Mon Sep 07 04:30:07 -0700 2009 Mon Sep 07 04:36:01 -0700 2009 141805 1585676020 9781585676026 179 24 3.82 http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1172130427m/141805.jpg http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/141805.Cities_in_Flight 4 0 false Mon Mar 09 09:20:06 -0700 2009 Mon Mar 09 09:20:41 -0700 2009 141805 1585676020 9781585676026 179 24 3.82 http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1172130427m/141805.jpg http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/141805.Cities_in_Flight 4 0 false Sun Jan 01 00:00:00 -0800 1967 Sat Jul 11 13:24:17 -0700 2009 Sat Jul 11 13:24:17 -0700 2009 607863 0671720708 9780671720704 4 1 3.82 http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/607863.Cities_in_Flight_2 0 0 false Sun Dec 14 09:45:19 -0800 2008 Sun Dec 14 09:45:19 -0800 2008 5090383 2 1 3.82 http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1224145849m/5090383.jpg http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/5090383.Cities_in_Flight 4 0 false Tue Sep 01 00:00:00 -0700 1970 Thu Oct 16 01:24:27 -0700 2008 Thu Oct 16 01:30:09 -0700 2008 1
Blish calls the ...more...]]> 141805 1585676020 9781585676026 179 24 3.82 http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1172130427m/141805.jpg http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/141805.Cities_in_Flight 3 0 false Thu Jan 01 00:00:00 -0800 2009 Wed Nov 25 10:39:51 -0800 2009 Wed Nov 25 10:40:28 -0800 2009 141805 1585676020 9781585676026 179 24 3.82 http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1172130427m/141805.jpg http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/141805.Cities_in_Flight 3 0 false Sun Aug 16 06:49:53 -0700 2009 Sun Aug 23 15:33:58 -0700 2009 141805 1585676020 9781585676026 179 24 3.82 http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1172130427m/141805.jpg http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/141805.Cities_in_Flight 4 0 false Wed Jan 09 21:34:16 -0800 2008 Thu Jan 10 06:09:08 -0800 2008 The tales primarily concern the space going city of New York. Many of Earth cities have literally left the planet, carried al...more...]]> 141805 1585676020 9781585676026 179 24 3.82 http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1172130427m/141805.jpg http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/141805.Cities_in_Flight 4 0 false Sun Jun 01 00:00:00 -0700 2008 Mon Jun 30 22:12:57 -0700 2008 Mon Jun 30 22:15:28 -0700 2008 http://www.goodreads.com/book_link/follow/8?book_id=141805