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Papa Schimmelhorn #1-1
The Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction: A 30-year Retrospective
Hardcover reprint of the October 1979 issue of The Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction, Introduction by Edward K. Ferman; F&SF at 30, essay by Isaac Asimov; Fondly Fahrenheit, by Alfred Bester (SF Hall of Fame story); And Now the News . . . by Theodore Sturgeon; Not With a Bang, by Damon Knight; Flowers for Algernon, by Daniel Keyes (winner, 1960 Hugo Award); A Canticle for Leibowitz, by Walter M. Miller, Jr.; One Ordinary Day, with Peanuts, by Shirley Jackson; The Women Men Don't See, by James Tiptree, Jr.; Born of Man and Woman, by Richard Matheson (nominated, 2001 Retro Hugo); Jeffty Is Five, by Harlan Ellison (winner, 1977 Nebula Award, 1978 Hugo Award, 1978 Locus Poll Award); Ararat, by Zenna Henderson; Sundance, by Robert Silverberg; Dreaming Is a Private Thing, by Isaac Asimov; Poor Little Warrior!, by Brian W. Aldiss; We Can Remember It for You Wholesale, by Philip K. Dick; Selectra Six-Ten, by Avram Davidson; Problems of Creativeness, by Thomas M. Disch; The Quest for Saint Aquin, by Anthony Boucher (SF Hall of Fame story); The Gnurrs Come from the Voodvork Out, by Reginald Bretnor; plus cartoons and poems.
310 pages, Hardcover
First published October 1, 1979
1 person is currently reading
54 people want to read
About the author
Edward L. Ferman
634 books7 followersEdward Ferman (born 1937) was an American science fiction and fantasy fiction editor and magazine publisher.
Ferman is the son of Joseph W. Ferman, and took over as editor of The Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction in 1964 when Avram Davidson, due to his residence in various Latin American locales with unreliable postal delivery, could no longer practically continue editing; on the masthead, Joseph Ferman was listed as editor and publisher for Edward Ferman's first two years. Edward Ferman would take on the role of publisher, as well, by 1970, as his father gradually retired. He remained as editor until 1991 when he hired his replacement, Kristine Kathryn Rusch. He remained as publisher of the magazine until he sold it to Gordon Van Gelder in 2000. While Ferman was the editor, many other magazines in the field began to fold or were shortlived, and his magazine, along with Analog, was one of the few which maintained a regular schedule and sustained critical appreciation for its contents.
From 1969-1970, he was the editor of Fantasy & Science Fiction's sister publication Venture Science Fiction Magazine. Together, the Fermans had also edited and published the short-lived nostalgia and humor magazine P.S. and a similarly brief run of a magazine about mysticism and other proto-New Age matters, Inner Space.
Ferman received the Hugo Award for Best Professional Editor three years in a row, from 1981 through 1983. F&SF had previously won several other Hugos under his editorship, which had been famously conducted, at least in the last decade of his tenure, from a table in the Ferman family's Connecticut house. He edited or co-edited several volumes of stories from F&SF and co-edited Final Stage with Barry N. Malzberg. It is probable that he also ghost-edited No Limits for or with Joseph Ferman, an anthology drawn from the pages of the first run of Venture.
Retrieved from "http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Edward_L..."
Ferman is the son of Joseph W. Ferman, and took over as editor of The Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction in 1964 when Avram Davidson, due to his residence in various Latin American locales with unreliable postal delivery, could no longer practically continue editing; on the masthead, Joseph Ferman was listed as editor and publisher for Edward Ferman's first two years. Edward Ferman would take on the role of publisher, as well, by 1970, as his father gradually retired. He remained as editor until 1991 when he hired his replacement, Kristine Kathryn Rusch. He remained as publisher of the magazine until he sold it to Gordon Van Gelder in 2000. While Ferman was the editor, many other magazines in the field began to fold or were shortlived, and his magazine, along with Analog, was one of the few which maintained a regular schedule and sustained critical appreciation for its contents.
From 1969-1970, he was the editor of Fantasy & Science Fiction's sister publication Venture Science Fiction Magazine. Together, the Fermans had also edited and published the short-lived nostalgia and humor magazine P.S. and a similarly brief run of a magazine about mysticism and other proto-New Age matters, Inner Space.
Ferman received the Hugo Award for Best Professional Editor three years in a row, from 1981 through 1983. F&SF had previously won several other Hugos under his editorship, which had been famously conducted, at least in the last decade of his tenure, from a table in the Ferman family's Connecticut house. He edited or co-edited several volumes of stories from F&SF and co-edited Final Stage with Barry N. Malzberg. It is probable that he also ghost-edited No Limits for or with Joseph Ferman, an anthology drawn from the pages of the first run of Venture.
Retrieved from "http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Edward_L..."
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Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews
September 1, 2014
Overall this wasn't a bad collection. There were some outstanding stories, but also some that were not so good. It was worth reading for the good ones and also the science article. The following are my thoughts on each story.
Fondley Fahrenheit by Alfred Bester: (2) Really struggled with this. Wasn't sure how many characters were in the story, but in the end I think I figured it out.
Books by Algis Budrys: Book review column covering The Pleasure Tube by Robert Onopa and Stardance by Spider Robinson. I have read Stardance but had never heard of The Pleasure Tube. Interesting comment in the review on it "I think I can almost promise you that this book will still be around, and referred to among us, years from now".
And Now The News by Theodore Sturgeon: (3.5) I liked this story. Its not your typical story. There is very little conversation, but the more I read the more it grew on me.
Not With A Bang by Damon Knight: (3.5) An end of the world story about the last 2 people alive. Interesting little story with a surprising end.
Flowers For Aldgernon by Daniel Keyes: (6) This story addresses an issue which even today is probably not talked about greatly and that is people who are below average intelligence.
It is told through a journal that Charlie (the main character) keeps. It details the lead up to his operation and the outcome from it. In it he also talks about how he goes out with his friends and how they have a good time and laugh a lot, but later he realises that they are not laughing with him but at him. This abuse is not something I have come
across before in a story. One of the things I like about the story is how Charlie views other people and how those views change as the story progresses.
This story tugs at the heart strings as it follows Charlie's ups and down. I would recommend it to anyone it is superb.
Cartoons: A smile or two.
A Canticle For Leibowitz by Walter M. Miller Jr.: (4) I really liked this. I had read the novel which this forms part of, but this stands well on its own. Its a nice little piece about a Monk in a post atomic future and how finding some artifacts effects him. There are only 5 or 6 scenes in to but they are very well done. Worth the read even if you have read the novel.
One Ordinary Day, With Peanuts by Shirley Jackson: (4) Another story I really like. I struggle to find any science fiction or fantasy in it, but its about a man doing good deeds and, in the end, how things balance out. Again well worth the read.
The Women Men Don't See by James Tiptree Jr.: (3) Strange little story that I didn't quite know what to make of, but in the end it quite liked it, yet the ending came out of left field.
Born of Man and Woman by Richard Matheson: (1) If it was Thanksgiving, we at least have a turkey!
All You Zombies- by Robert A. Heinlein: (3.5) A time travel story which I'm sure breaks causes half a dozen paradoxes yet still got read.
Jeffty Is Five by Harlan Ellison: (3.5) This is a sort of story about trying to hang on to you childhood. Its never explain how it works, but that doesn't matter the story is what counts. I guess it might because I'm older and my childhood seems a very long time ago.
Ararat by Zenna Henderson: (2.5) A nice story, but its rather predictable. It really needed a bit of suspense.
Sundance by Robert Silverberg: (2) Rather confusing story. It starts of with quite a thought provoking story then at then end get rather confusing which rather ruins it.
The Gnurrs Come From the Voodwork Out by R. Bretnor: (3.5) A fun story which is the first in a series. Definitely brought a smile to my face.
Films by Baird Searles: The film reviewed is Alien. Its strange reading a review of a film that's over 35 years old. Mind you its even scarier that Alien is 35 years old.
Dreaming Is A Private Thing by Isaac Asimov: (3) A nice little story about the future of the entertainment industry.
Poor Little Warrior by Brian W. Aldiss: (2.5) Reminded me of the second Jurassic Park movie.
We Cam Remember It For You Wholesale by Philip K. Dick: (4) This is the story on which the film Total Recall is based, however there are big differences between the two and if you didn't like the film you might still like this. I really enjoyed this story and wanted more of it,
Selectra Six-Ten by Avram Davidson: (1) Just didn't get this one.
Science by Isaac Asimov: (4) This is a science fact piece and Asimov covers the changes in knowledge about the solar system in the 30 years since F&SF. Its a fascinating piece and I really would like to see a follow up one about what has changed in the 35 years since this was written.
Problems With Creativeness by Thomas M. Disch: (2) This was an okay story, by nothing in it grabbed me.
The Quest for Saint Aquin by Anthony Boucher: (1.5) This just didn't do it for me.
Fondley Fahrenheit by Alfred Bester: (2) Really struggled with this. Wasn't sure how many characters were in the story, but in the end I think I figured it out.
Books by Algis Budrys: Book review column covering The Pleasure Tube by Robert Onopa and Stardance by Spider Robinson. I have read Stardance but had never heard of The Pleasure Tube. Interesting comment in the review on it "I think I can almost promise you that this book will still be around, and referred to among us, years from now".
And Now The News by Theodore Sturgeon: (3.5) I liked this story. Its not your typical story. There is very little conversation, but the more I read the more it grew on me.
Not With A Bang by Damon Knight: (3.5) An end of the world story about the last 2 people alive. Interesting little story with a surprising end.
Flowers For Aldgernon by Daniel Keyes: (6) This story addresses an issue which even today is probably not talked about greatly and that is people who are below average intelligence.
It is told through a journal that Charlie (the main character) keeps. It details the lead up to his operation and the outcome from it. In it he also talks about how he goes out with his friends and how they have a good time and laugh a lot, but later he realises that they are not laughing with him but at him. This abuse is not something I have come
across before in a story. One of the things I like about the story is how Charlie views other people and how those views change as the story progresses.
This story tugs at the heart strings as it follows Charlie's ups and down. I would recommend it to anyone it is superb.
Cartoons: A smile or two.
A Canticle For Leibowitz by Walter M. Miller Jr.: (4) I really liked this. I had read the novel which this forms part of, but this stands well on its own. Its a nice little piece about a Monk in a post atomic future and how finding some artifacts effects him. There are only 5 or 6 scenes in to but they are very well done. Worth the read even if you have read the novel.
One Ordinary Day, With Peanuts by Shirley Jackson: (4) Another story I really like. I struggle to find any science fiction or fantasy in it, but its about a man doing good deeds and, in the end, how things balance out. Again well worth the read.
The Women Men Don't See by James Tiptree Jr.: (3) Strange little story that I didn't quite know what to make of, but in the end it quite liked it, yet the ending came out of left field.
Born of Man and Woman by Richard Matheson: (1) If it was Thanksgiving, we at least have a turkey!
All You Zombies- by Robert A. Heinlein: (3.5) A time travel story which I'm sure breaks causes half a dozen paradoxes yet still got read.
Jeffty Is Five by Harlan Ellison: (3.5) This is a sort of story about trying to hang on to you childhood. Its never explain how it works, but that doesn't matter the story is what counts. I guess it might because I'm older and my childhood seems a very long time ago.
Ararat by Zenna Henderson: (2.5) A nice story, but its rather predictable. It really needed a bit of suspense.
Sundance by Robert Silverberg: (2) Rather confusing story. It starts of with quite a thought provoking story then at then end get rather confusing which rather ruins it.
The Gnurrs Come From the Voodwork Out by R. Bretnor: (3.5) A fun story which is the first in a series. Definitely brought a smile to my face.
Films by Baird Searles: The film reviewed is Alien. Its strange reading a review of a film that's over 35 years old. Mind you its even scarier that Alien is 35 years old.
Dreaming Is A Private Thing by Isaac Asimov: (3) A nice little story about the future of the entertainment industry.
Poor Little Warrior by Brian W. Aldiss: (2.5) Reminded me of the second Jurassic Park movie.
We Cam Remember It For You Wholesale by Philip K. Dick: (4) This is the story on which the film Total Recall is based, however there are big differences between the two and if you didn't like the film you might still like this. I really enjoyed this story and wanted more of it,
Selectra Six-Ten by Avram Davidson: (1) Just didn't get this one.
Science by Isaac Asimov: (4) This is a science fact piece and Asimov covers the changes in knowledge about the solar system in the 30 years since F&SF. Its a fascinating piece and I really would like to see a follow up one about what has changed in the 35 years since this was written.
Problems With Creativeness by Thomas M. Disch: (2) This was an okay story, by nothing in it grabbed me.
The Quest for Saint Aquin by Anthony Boucher: (1.5) This just didn't do it for me.
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April 9, 2009SF-Fer
November 30, 2022
An anthology of stories collected from the golden age of F & SF (which happened about a couple decades after the golden age of science fiction.) The stories are well-chosen, from high-pedigreed professional scribes, with a roster featuring still-relevant names like Philip Dick and Shirley Jackson, as well as some who’ve sadly been forgotten.
The anthology is pretty consistent in terms of quality, and it had better be when you consider that its net is cast widely over a period of thirty years. Standouts include Theodore Sturgeon’s And Now the News, a sometimes acerbic, mostly poignant tale about the psychologically deleterious effects of keeping up with current events. Considering it was written before the era of 24-news (and cable news) it’s more than a little prescient, as well as more than a touch ironic. Another gem is the closing story, Anthony Boucher’s The Quest for Saint Aquin. The tale of a discourse between a religious pilgrim and his mechanized donkey, it gives new meaning to the phrase deux ex machina. It also manages to achieve the sustained elegiac mood of a tone poem on a level with Flowers for Algernon while saying more about religious faith than Canticle for Liebowitz.
Clunkers include Thomas Disch’s meandering Problems of Creativeness, about a mentally challenged man attempting to prove he’s worthy to reproduce in a eugenic dystopia. Harlan Ellison’s Jeffty is Five might’ve hit like an atomic bomb when it came out, but now merely carries all the hallmarks of Ellison at his most emotionally manipulative. What was it Stephen King said about that Harlan story about the owl bemoaning the destruction of nature? I like my morals when they’re not mounted in bright, neon letters. Something like that.
All in all, though, this is a very good sampling of the output of some very talented writers. They are probably—sadly—to a man and a woman no longer with us. You would figure that someone in the hard sciences, inspired by SF, would have figured out how to make us immortal by now. Ben Bova claims it might have something to do with lengthening telomere strands, but even if we eventually figure it out, it’s probably too late for this lot. Unless, of course, James Tiptree Jr. or someone else in here secretly had themselves cryogenically frozen and is waiting for the correct moment to thaw?
One can always hope, at least.
The anthology is pretty consistent in terms of quality, and it had better be when you consider that its net is cast widely over a period of thirty years. Standouts include Theodore Sturgeon’s And Now the News, a sometimes acerbic, mostly poignant tale about the psychologically deleterious effects of keeping up with current events. Considering it was written before the era of 24-news (and cable news) it’s more than a little prescient, as well as more than a touch ironic. Another gem is the closing story, Anthony Boucher’s The Quest for Saint Aquin. The tale of a discourse between a religious pilgrim and his mechanized donkey, it gives new meaning to the phrase deux ex machina. It also manages to achieve the sustained elegiac mood of a tone poem on a level with Flowers for Algernon while saying more about religious faith than Canticle for Liebowitz.
Clunkers include Thomas Disch’s meandering Problems of Creativeness, about a mentally challenged man attempting to prove he’s worthy to reproduce in a eugenic dystopia. Harlan Ellison’s Jeffty is Five might’ve hit like an atomic bomb when it came out, but now merely carries all the hallmarks of Ellison at his most emotionally manipulative. What was it Stephen King said about that Harlan story about the owl bemoaning the destruction of nature? I like my morals when they’re not mounted in bright, neon letters. Something like that.
All in all, though, this is a very good sampling of the output of some very talented writers. They are probably—sadly—to a man and a woman no longer with us. You would figure that someone in the hard sciences, inspired by SF, would have figured out how to make us immortal by now. Ben Bova claims it might have something to do with lengthening telomere strands, but even if we eventually figure it out, it’s probably too late for this lot. Unless, of course, James Tiptree Jr. or someone else in here secretly had themselves cryogenically frozen and is waiting for the correct moment to thaw?
One can always hope, at least.
March 16, 2023
Last week I watched an episode of a show called Mythic Quest. I’ve since learned, to my chagrin, it was a flashback episode and essentially a one-off. The episode centered around three characters working at a sci-fi magazine in the 70’s. I immediately wanted to read some golden age sci-fi (probably my favorite sci-fi).
There’s a few good stories here, particularly the Brian Aldiss, PKD, Harlan Ellison, and Sturgeon selections. This collection also includes Daniel Keyes’ short story Flowers for Algernon, which is fantastic.
But there’s quite a few stories here that go nowhere, and feel like cliche sci-fi tropes. For the most part this 1979 collection hit the spot, but I think I prefer my sci-fi collections to be of the Dangerous Visions variety.
My favorite passage comes the story Poor Little Warrior, by Brian Aldiss. The story is set in the 23rd century. A man is having a sort of midlife crisis. He's unhappy, in a failing marriage, and is generally overcome with ennui. So he picks up a brochure from a time-travel company in hopes of reinvigorating his life. He travels back to the Jurassic era to go big game hunting. As he hunts a brontosaurus he becomes overwhelmed by the beauty and majesty of the creature. He finds himself struggling to pull the trigger, because he realizes doing so will bring him no relief. This is what he says--
"I was foolish enough to think that 150 million years either way made an ounce of difference to the muddle of thoughts in a man's cerebral vortex."
There’s a few good stories here, particularly the Brian Aldiss, PKD, Harlan Ellison, and Sturgeon selections. This collection also includes Daniel Keyes’ short story Flowers for Algernon, which is fantastic.
But there’s quite a few stories here that go nowhere, and feel like cliche sci-fi tropes. For the most part this 1979 collection hit the spot, but I think I prefer my sci-fi collections to be of the Dangerous Visions variety.
My favorite passage comes the story Poor Little Warrior, by Brian Aldiss. The story is set in the 23rd century. A man is having a sort of midlife crisis. He's unhappy, in a failing marriage, and is generally overcome with ennui. So he picks up a brochure from a time-travel company in hopes of reinvigorating his life. He travels back to the Jurassic era to go big game hunting. As he hunts a brontosaurus he becomes overwhelmed by the beauty and majesty of the creature. He finds himself struggling to pull the trigger, because he realizes doing so will bring him no relief. This is what he says--
"I was foolish enough to think that 150 million years either way made an ounce of difference to the muddle of thoughts in a man's cerebral vortex."
June 28, 2025
Anthologies always seem to be highly hit or miss. Unfortunately this one was mostly miss to me. It has some good ones, but most are simply okay or worse.
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews