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Magical Worlds of Fantasy #1
Wizards: Isaac Asimov's Magical Worlds of Fantasy 1
This anthology contains:
Introduction – Isaac Asimov
"Mazirian the Magician" – Jack Vance
"Please Stand By" – Ron Goulart
"What Good Is a Glass Dagger?" – Larry Niven
"The Eye of Tandyla" – L. Sprague de Camp
"The White Horse Child" – Greg Bear
"Semley's Necklace" – Ursula K. Le Guin
"And the Monsters Walk" – John Jakes
"The Seeker in the Fortress" – Manly Wade Wellman
"The Wall Around the World" – Theodore R. Cogswell
"The People of the Black Circle" – Robert E. Howard
Introduction – Isaac Asimov
"Mazirian the Magician" – Jack Vance
"Please Stand By" – Ron Goulart
"What Good Is a Glass Dagger?" – Larry Niven
"The Eye of Tandyla" – L. Sprague de Camp
"The White Horse Child" – Greg Bear
"Semley's Necklace" – Ursula K. Le Guin
"And the Monsters Walk" – John Jakes
"The Seeker in the Fortress" – Manly Wade Wellman
"The Wall Around the World" – Theodore R. Cogswell
"The People of the Black Circle" – Robert E. Howard
303 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published October 4, 1981
5 people are currently reading
343 people want to read
About the author
Isaac Asimov
4,347 books28k followersWorks of prolific Russian-American writer Isaac Asimov include popular explanations of scientific principles,
The Foundation Trilogy
(1951-1953), and other volumes of fiction.
Isaac Asimov, a professor of biochemistry, wrote as a highly successful author, best known for his books.
Asimov, professor, generally considered of all time, edited more than five hundred books and ninety thousand letters and postcards. He published in nine of the ten major categories of the Dewey decimal classification but lacked only an entry in the category of philosophy (100).
People widely considered Asimov, a master of the genre alongside Robert Anson Heinlein and Arthur Charles Clarke as the "big three" during his lifetime. He later tied Galactic Empire and the Robot into the same universe as his most famous series to create a unified "future history" for his stories much like those that Heinlein pioneered and Cordwainer Smith and Poul Anderson previously produced. He penned "Nightfall," voted in 1964 as the best short story of all time; many persons still honor this title. He also produced well mysteries, fantasy, and a great quantity of nonfiction. Asimov used Paul French, the pen name, for the Lucky Starr, series of juvenile novels.
Most books of Asimov in a historical way go as far back to a time with possible question or concept at its simplest stage. He often provides and mentions well nationalities, birth, and death dates for persons and etymologies and pronunciation guides for technical terms. Guide to Science, the tripartite set Understanding Physics, and Chronology of Science and Discovery exemplify these books.
Asimov, a long-time member, reluctantly served as vice president of Mensa international and described some members of that organization as "brain-proud and aggressive about their IQs." He took more pleasure as president of the humanist association. The asteroid 5020 Asimov, the magazine Asimov's Science Fiction, an elementary school in Brooklyn in New York, and two different awards honor his name.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Isaac_As...
Isaac Asimov, a professor of biochemistry, wrote as a highly successful author, best known for his books.
Asimov, professor, generally considered of all time, edited more than five hundred books and ninety thousand letters and postcards. He published in nine of the ten major categories of the Dewey decimal classification but lacked only an entry in the category of philosophy (100).
People widely considered Asimov, a master of the genre alongside Robert Anson Heinlein and Arthur Charles Clarke as the "big three" during his lifetime. He later tied Galactic Empire and the Robot into the same universe as his most famous series to create a unified "future history" for his stories much like those that Heinlein pioneered and Cordwainer Smith and Poul Anderson previously produced. He penned "Nightfall," voted in 1964 as the best short story of all time; many persons still honor this title. He also produced well mysteries, fantasy, and a great quantity of nonfiction. Asimov used Paul French, the pen name, for the Lucky Starr, series of juvenile novels.
Most books of Asimov in a historical way go as far back to a time with possible question or concept at its simplest stage. He often provides and mentions well nationalities, birth, and death dates for persons and etymologies and pronunciation guides for technical terms. Guide to Science, the tripartite set Understanding Physics, and Chronology of Science and Discovery exemplify these books.
Asimov, a long-time member, reluctantly served as vice president of Mensa international and described some members of that organization as "brain-proud and aggressive about their IQs." He took more pleasure as president of the humanist association. The asteroid 5020 Asimov, the magazine Asimov's Science Fiction, an elementary school in Brooklyn in New York, and two different awards honor his name.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Isaac_As...
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Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews
February 2, 2017
Ten reasons this is the best fantasy anthology--evah--besides being a naturally occurring Appendix N sampler. Get it anywhere for $3. Asimov introduces clever, funny--and at times, dark Wizards.
1. "Mazirian The Magician", Jack Vance (1950)
Influential to D&D and DCC spell casting. Mazirian's magical gardens closely resemble the cover
2. "Please Stand By", Ron Goulart (1961)
Popular funny short.
3. "What Good Is A Glass Dagger", Larry Niven (1972)
Appendix N greatness.
4. "The Eye Of Tandyla", L. Sprague de Camp (1951)
Did this inspire the Players Handbook 1 ed. cover? Alas, the world may never now. RIP David A. Trampier (April 22, 1954 – March 24, 2014) legendary creator of "Wormy" comics and famous recluse.
5. "The White Horse Child", Greg Bear (1979)
Don't talk to strangers offering magic.
6. "Semley's Necklace", Ursula K. Le Guin (1964)
Arthur C. Clark, "To the beholder, an advanced science seems like magic."
7. "And The Monsters Walk", John Jakes (1952)
Hardboiled first appearance in an anthology. Did this inspire Stephen King's, "Crate?"
8. "The Seeker In The Fortress," Manly Wade Wellman (1979)
John the Ballad Singer, legendary lover, and lyricist.
9. "The Wall Around The World," Theodore Cogswell (1953)
For the Harry Potter crowd.
10. "The People Of The Black Circle," Robert E. Howard (1934)
Conan and arguably Lovecraft Mythos. 'Nuff said.
1. "Mazirian The Magician", Jack Vance (1950)
Influential to D&D and DCC spell casting. Mazirian's magical gardens closely resemble the cover
2. "Please Stand By", Ron Goulart (1961)
Popular funny short.
3. "What Good Is A Glass Dagger", Larry Niven (1972)
Appendix N greatness.
4. "The Eye Of Tandyla", L. Sprague de Camp (1951)
Did this inspire the Players Handbook 1 ed. cover? Alas, the world may never now. RIP David A. Trampier (April 22, 1954 – March 24, 2014) legendary creator of "Wormy" comics and famous recluse.
5. "The White Horse Child", Greg Bear (1979)
Don't talk to strangers offering magic.
6. "Semley's Necklace", Ursula K. Le Guin (1964)
Arthur C. Clark, "To the beholder, an advanced science seems like magic."
7. "And The Monsters Walk", John Jakes (1952)
Hardboiled first appearance in an anthology. Did this inspire Stephen King's, "Crate?"
8. "The Seeker In The Fortress," Manly Wade Wellman (1979)
John the Ballad Singer, legendary lover, and lyricist.
9. "The Wall Around The World," Theodore Cogswell (1953)
For the Harry Potter crowd.
10. "The People Of The Black Circle," Robert E. Howard (1934)
Conan and arguably Lovecraft Mythos. 'Nuff said.
January 20, 2018
I liked this selection - it goes from Jack Vance to Robert E. Howard with pretty even quality in between. I bought several other collections in this series and none of them were quite as good. I think the subsequent collections tended to force in a few more stories causing the average quality to decrease.
Favorite: Ron Goulart's "Please Stand By" - A man gets cursed to turn into a medium-sized elephant on national holidays.
Favorite: Ron Goulart's "Please Stand By" - A man gets cursed to turn into a medium-sized elephant on national holidays.
June 20, 2015
Greg Bear's "The White Horse Child," about the power of stories, will stick with me. The others were enjoyable, if not life-changing. Extra credit to Ron Goulart for "Please Stand By," in which a character is cursed to turn into an elephant on all national holidays.
February 19, 2017
I am totally submerged in the stories. Very entertaining.
December 24, 2021
-Gregory Kerkman
Want to read
July 18, 20139/4/86. No library.
Read
August 28, 2012Loved every story of it.. Looking forward to read the rest of the books in the series!
November 7, 2013
Anthology
Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews