The Giant Book of Science Fiction Stories

by Martin H. Greenberg (Editor), Isaac Asimov (Introduction), Charles G. Waugh (Editor)

A collection which includes stories by such noted science fiction writers as Robert Silverberg, Norman Spinrad, Roger Zelazny, Frederik Pohl and Isaac Asimov

Genres: Science Fiction, Short Stories, Fiction, Anthologies

651 pages, Paperback

First published June 1, 1986

About the author

Martin Harry Greenberg was an American academic and speculative fiction anthologist. In all, he compiled 1,298 anthologies and commissioned over 8,200 original short stories. He founded Tekno Books, a packager of more than 2000 published books. In addition, he was a co-founder of the Sci-Fi Channel.

For the 1950s anthologist and publisher of Gnome Press, see Martin Greenberg.

Reviews

[Ari Pérez · Rating 3 out of 5]

⭐⭐⭐ After HENRY SLESAR
⭐⭐ All Cats Are Gray ANDRE NORTON
⭐⭐⭐ The Assassin ROBERT SILVERBERG
⭐⭐⭐ Better Than We Know WILLIAM F. TEMPLE
⭐⭐⭐ The Big Bounce WALTER TREVIS
⭐⭐⭐ Bounty T. L. SHERRED
⭐⭐⭐ The Briefing RANDALL GARRETT
⭐ Capsule ROSALIND M. GREENBERG
⭐⭐⭐ The Chasm BRYCE WALTON
⭐⭐ The Chicago Plan to Save a Species THOMAS A. EASTON
⭐⭐ Cinderella, Inc. CHRISTOPHER ANVIL
⭐⭐⭐⭐ Common Denominator JOHN D. MACDONALD
⭐⭐⭐ Crazy Annaoj FRITZ LEIBER
⭐⭐⭐ The Damned Thing AMBROSE BIERCE
⭐⭐⭐ The Dancing Partner JEROME K. JEROME
⭐⭐⭐ The Dead Valley RALPH ADAMS CRAM
⭐⭐⭐ Deadly Game EDWARD WELLEN
⭐⭐⭐⭐ Dear Pen Pal A. E. VAN VOGT
⭐⭐⭐⭐ Deathwatch NORMAN SPINRAD
⭐⭐⭐ Defense Mechanism KATHERINE MACLEAN
⭐⭐⭐⭐ Divine Madness ROGER ZELAZNY
⭐⭐⭐ The Dread Tomato Addiction MARK CLIFTON
⭐⭐⭐⭐ Dueling Clowns BARRY B. LONGYEAR
⭐⭐⭐⭐ End as a World F. L. WALLACE
⭐⭐⭐⭐ Evensong LESTER DEL REY
⭐⭐⭐ Exile EDMOND HAMILTON
⭐⭐⭐ The Exterminator A. HYATT VERRILL
⭐⭐⭐ The Eyes Have It PHILIP K. DICK
⭐⭐⭐ Father's in the Basement PHILIP JOSÉ FARMER
⭐⭐⭐ The Fear of It ROBERT BARR
⭐⭐⭐ Feeding Time JAMES E. GUNN
⭐⭐ The Fiend FREDERIK POHL
⭐⭐ For Value Received ANDREW J. OFFUTT
⭐⭐⭐ The Forbidden Word EDWARD D. HOCH
⭐⭐⭐ The Good Neighbors EDGAR PANGBORN
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ The Good Work THEODORE L. THOMAS
⭐⭐ The Great Secret GEORGE H. SMITH
⭐⭐⭐ The Harvest TOM GODWIN
⭐⭐ The Homesick Chicken EDWARD D. HOCH
⭐⭐⭐ The House of Ecstasy RALPH MILNE FARLEY
⭐⭐⭐⭐ How I Take Their Measure BARRY N. MALZBERG
⭐⭐ Hunting Machine CAROL EMSHWILLER
⭐⭐ The Immortal Bard ISAAC ASIMOV
⭐⭐ In Case of Fire RANDALL GARRETT
⭐⭐ An Incident on Route 12 JAMES H. SCHMITZ
⭐⭐⭐ Interview FRANK A. JAVOR
⭐⭐ Into the Shop RON GOULART
⭐⭐⭐⭐ Into Your Tent I'll Creep ERIC FRANK RUSSELL
⭐⭐ Itself! A. E. VAN VOGT
⭐⭐⭐ Job Offer HENRY SLESAR
⭐⭐⭐⭐ Just Desserts IRVING FANG
⭐⭐⭐ The Last Brave Invader CHARLES L. FONTENAY
⭐⭐⭐ The Last Men FRANK BELKNAP LONG
⭐⭐ Last Warning MACK REYNOLDS
⭐⭐⭐⭐ Light of Other Days BOB SHAW
⭐⭐⭐ Long Way Home CHARLES G. WAUGH
⭐⭐⭐ The Looking Glass of the Law KEVIN O'DONNELL, JR.
⭐⭐⭐⭐ Lost Love ALGIS BUDRYS
⭐⭐ Lucifer ROGER ZELAZNY
⭐⭐⭐ Man of Destiny JOHN CHRISTOPHER
⭐⭐⭐⭐ Man of Distinction MICHAEL SHAARA
⭐⭐⭐ The Man Who Always Knew ALGIS BUDRYS
⭐ The Man with English H. L. GOLD
⭐⭐ The Mansion of Forgetfulness DON MARK LEMON
⭐⭐⭐⭐ My Object All Sublime POUL ANDERSON
⭐⭐⭐ No Harm Done JACK SHARKEY
⭐⭐ Nobody Lives on Burton Street GREGORY BENFORD
⭐⭐⭐ Now I'm Watching Roger ALEXEI PANSHIN
⭐⭐⭐ On Account of Darkness BARRY N. MALZBERG / BILL PRONZINI
⭐⭐⭐ One Man's Ambition A. BERTRAM CHANDLER
⭐⭐ Optical Illusion MACK REYNOLDS
⭐⭐ The Pair JOE L. HENSLEY
⭐⭐ The Patient E. MAYNE HULL
⭐⭐⭐ The People's Choice WILLIAM JOHN WATKINS
⭐⭐⭐ Playing the Game JACK DANN / GARDNER DOZOIS
⭐⭐⭐ Ponce GLEN COOK
⭐⭐⭐ Poor Little Warrior! BRIAN W. ALDISS
⭐⭐⭐ The Problem Was Lubrication DAVID R. BUNCH
⭐⭐⭐ Publish and Perish PAUL J. NAHIN
⭐⭐⭐ Pythias FREDERIK POHL
⭐⭐⭐ Refuge DONALD WISMER
⭐⭐⭐ The Rescuer ARTHUR PORGES
⭐⭐⭐ Ripples RAY RUSSELL
⭐⭐⭐ The Saga of DMM LARRY EISENBERG
⭐⭐⭐ Segregationist ISAAC ASIMOV
⭐⭐⭐ The Spy THEODORE L. THOMAS
⭐⭐⭐ Straw GENE WOLFE
⭐⭐ Superiority Complex THOMAS N. SCORTIA
⭐⭐⭐⭐ Teaching Prime LEO P. KELLEY
⭐⭐⭐ That Only a Mother JUDITH MERRIL
⭐⭐⭐ They Live Forever LLOYD BIGGLE, JR.
⭐ They're Playing Our Song HARRY HARRISON
⭐⭐⭐⭐ A Thousand Deaths JACK LONDON
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ Threshold SHARON WEBB
⭐⭐⭐ To Be Continued ROBERT SILVERBERG
⭐⭐ Too Many Eggs KRIS NEVILLE
⭐⭐⭐ Try and Change the Past FRITZ LEIBER
⭐⭐⭐⭐ Turning Point ARTHUR PORGES
⭐⭐⭐⭐ The Twerlik JACK SHARKEY
⭐⭐ What's Your Excuse? ALEXEI PANSHIN
⭐⭐⭐ While-You-Wait EDWARD WELLEN

[Victor · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was an OK sort of collection.Handful of really good ones with lots of average ones .Not very impressive since I barely recall only a few …

[Aaron Long · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a mixed bag with more duds than I'd anticipated, not only that but the typos and misspellings in the book were just far too many and would have thought as being edited by Isaac Asimov, wouldn't be the case, notwithstanding some real meagre stories here that felt like they were picked to pad out this doorstep of a book. In saying that however, there were some real memorable gems in here and will list those below as always.

1) The Big Bounce by Walter Tevis is a fun and humorous 1958 short that tells of a scientist who accidentally creates a revolutionary, highly energetic rubber-like substance. The material converts heat into kinetic energy, causing balls made from it to bounce progressively higher, creating a dangerous, uncontrollable, and destructive, yet humorous, runaway reaction.

2) The Chicago Plan to Save a Species by Thomas Easton- A thought provoking short that deals with scientific data analysis on population control.

3) Cinderella Inc by Christopher Anvil- A woman undergoes the ultimate in cosmetic treatment by injection and was really ahead of its time. One of the stronger stories of the collection but had read it before in another anthology.

4) The Damned Thing by Ambrose Bierce- Easily one of the best short stories ever written in my opinion and have read this numerous times so wont go into detail here but the fact Asimov included it here did the average book justice. An unsettling blend of supernatural elements interwoven with science fiction by one of the best.

5) The Dancing Partner by Jerome K. Jerome- Again had read this one previously and is fun and original. Happy to see it included.

6) Deathwatch By Norman Spinrad- Is a poignant short story that explores a future where humanity has achieved immortality, except for one, who ages normally. Very visceral and slowly gets under the skin, excellent stuff.

7) Defense Mechanism by Katherine Mclean- Written in 1949 and her debut short story exploring themes of hidden, inherent psionic abilities. The narrative focuses on a father and infant son who share a telepathic, sensory connection that allows them to perceive the minds around them, serving as a mental defense or adaptation. Insanely good read.

8) The Dread Tomato Addiction By Mark Clifton- A lesser known short and is only one and half pages long but one which will stick with you leaving you wondering why.

9) End as a World By F.L. Wallace- A young boy in 20th-century Los Angeles bides his time before the apocalypse by doing nothing out of the ordinary. Today is the day that the apocalypse is supposed to occur. It's been pinpointed down to the minute; all there's left to do is wait.

10) Evensong By Lester Del Ray depicts a fatigued, fading God fleeing through the galaxy from "the Usurpers"—humanity, which has become technologically supreme. Seeking refuge on a quiet planet, God is pursued, captured, and ultimately judged by a human scout, marking a reversal where humanity has surpassed its creator.

11) The Exterminator By A. Hyatt Verrill follows a swift, predatory creature navigating a dark, liquid environment, hunting prey while facing a new, existential threat. The story highlights a brutal, savage struggle for survival within a microscopic or alien world. This was definitely one of my favorites of the book. Amazing stuff.

12) Fathers in the Basement By Philip Jose Farmer follows a young girl who stays home from school to assist her father in the basement, where he is working on his "magnum opus" or masterwork novel. The narrative focuses on the daughter and her efforts to fulfill her dying father's final wishes regarding the completion of this masterpiece.

13) Value Received By Andrew J. Offutt follows a new father who refuses to pay a hospital bill, resulting in the parents leaving their baby at the hospital while visiting daily.

14) The Forbidden Word By Edward D. Hoch depicts a future United States divided by extreme cultural differences between the East and West Coasts. The story explores themes of language and censorship that are all too familiar in today's world. How correct was Hoch way back in 1972 when he foresaw the pillage of freedom of speech.

15) The Good Work By Theodore L. Thomas is set within a future of huge unemployment and synthetic food, one man manages to land a job tightening bolts.

16) The Harvest By Tom Godwin follows space-dwelling energy beings that harvest "fralings", a delicacy provided by a race of planet-based creatures.

17) The Homesick Chicken By Edward D. Hoch investigates why a genetically modified chicken escaped a research farm, crossed a major highway, and was found pecking in a specific empty field. The story revolves around solving this high-tech mystery, essentially exploring a futuristic version of the classic "why did the chicken cross the road" joke.

18) The House of Ecstasy By Ralph Milne Farley is a second person narration telling of an encounter with a dwarf hypnotist and a beautiful girl. The story is that the encounter actually happened to the reader but the hypnotist made them forget it. Very clever and original for the time and even to this day.

19) How I Take Their Measure By Barry N. Malzberg depicts a future welfare worker who torments his cases. Very well written and unnerving.

20) The Immortal Bard By Isaac Asimov narrated by physicist Dr. Phineas Welch tells an English instructor that he used temporal transference to bring Shakespeare to the modern era. After failing a modern literature class due to his "incorrect" interpretations of his own work, a furious Shakespeare returns to 1600. The better story of Asimov's two entries into the anthology.

21) An Incident on Route 12 By James H. Schmitz follows thief on the run that has broken down on a lonely stretch of highway and gets more than he bargains for. This was my personal favorite of the collection and is packed full of suspense. A true hidden gem that is both atmospheric and pulsating.

22) Job Offer By Henry Slesar focuses on Wally, a deformed young man whose parents are worried about his future in a failing economy. Despite it being insulting, Wally reluctantly accepts a job offer to join a freak show due to financial desperation.

23) The Last Brave Invader By Charles L. Fontenay. A dystopian society where men enter homes to take what they want at will. The story follows Lauria whom in youth was beautiful, proud, unattainable. But when autumn came, she changed her code and lowered her defense.

24) The Last Men By Frank Belknap Long is a dystopian science fiction story set over 50 million years in the future, where giant, intelligent insects dominate Earth, having reduced humanity to a slave race and pets. The plot follows a human male named Maljoc, who is selected to choose a mate in this insect-ruled society where humans are engineered in "homoriums".

25) Light of Other Days By Bob Shaw follows a strained couple, Garland and Selina who travel through Scotland to mend their relationship during a difficult pregnancy. They encounter a farmer, Hagan, selling "slow glass"—a material that delays the passage of light by years, allowing viewers to see past, scenic events. This one was creative and original and had me glued from start to finish.

26) Long Way Home By Charles G. Waugh tells a story about a caring father losing his son, due to the world's advanced technology and his yearning to find a home among the stars. When you can tell such a poignant story in two pages then you have a gift such was the case here. A true scarce and hidden gem that shouldn't be. utterly magnificent.

27) Lost Love By Algis Budrys is a tear jerker involving a young man who passes up an opportunity for companionship, resulting in continued isolation.

28) Man Of Destiny By John Christopher follows a man who experiences an unbroken, almost supernatural string of good luck. Things constantly turn out perfectly for him, leading him to believe he is chosen for some significant, high-stakes, and mysterious cosmic purpose.

29) Man of Distinction By Michael Shaara follows Thatcher Blitt, a wealthy founder of "Genealogy, Inc." in 2180, who discovers that despite his success, his bloodline is entirely undistinguished over 40,000 years, making him uniquely average.

30) The Man Who Always Knew By Algis Budrys follows Mr. McMahon, a man with the "secondhand luck" of instinctively knowing when and where people will invent significant things, allowing him to license their creations. The story focuses on his unique, somewhat cursed, ability. I absolutely loved this one and is in my top 3 of this collection. I loved both Algis's stories in this book but this one was exceptional. Great author.

31) The Man With English By H.L. Gold centers on a puzzling, transient figure whose speech uses recognizable English words in a way that makes no logical sense, leaving the protagonist, Ira Kaplan, deeply intrigued and unsettled. Very humorous and cleverly written.

32) One Mans Ambition By Bertrand Chandler is a darkly humorous story that begins with a tense, quiet atmosphere between a middle aged couple, rather than one of affection and ends in a satisfyingly good way.

33) Ponce By Glen Cook centers on a poverty-stricken family living in St. Louis who encounter a mysterious dog with blue eyes. This dog serves as a conduit to the "undisclosed secrets of the universe. This one is yet another hidden gem that deserves more credit. Amazing story.

34) Poor Little Warrior By Brian Aldiss is a second-person narrative following Claude Ford, a man from 2181, who travels back to the Jurassic era to hunt a brontosaurus to escape his mundane life.

35) The Rescuer By Arthur Porges is structured as a legal hearing regarding the destruction of a, groundbreaking, and dangerous time machine with the main focal point in time being the crucifixion.

36) Ripples By Ray Russell is my second favorite of the book based on Ezekiel's Wheel on the river Chebar within the old testament. As an ancient astronaut enthusiast this one really had me smiling. Fantastic stuff by Russell.

37) Straw By Gene Wolfe features mercenaries in an alternate medieval world who operate hot-air balloons. When they land to seek fuel (straw) from a baron, they are compelled to defend his castle against an enemy attack, showcasing themes of manipulated systems and premature technological development.

38) Superiority Complex By Thomas N. Scortia is another hidden gem that doesn't get the credit it deserves about a man named Dalton who is having no luck finding his superman through gene testing.

39) Teaching Prime By Leo P. Kelley is a fun story about a group of intergalactic students who are being taken through an intergalactic simulator for study.

40) That Only a Mother By Judith Merril is a poignant, early post-apocalyptic short story set during a nuclear war, told through letters from a mother, Margaret, to her absent husband, Hank. Due to radiation exposure, birth defects are rampant. Margaret convinces herself their child is normal, but the baby, Henrietta, is a, perhaps intelligent, severely malformed mutant that only her mother loves. Fantastic short story.

41) They Live Forever By Lloyd Biggle. Jr. An alien ship crashes on Earth and the sole survivor lives among humans for decades without apparently ageing. Human scientists set off in search of his planet in the hope of discovering the secret of longevity.

42) They're Playing Our Song By Harry Harrison. Very fun story that follows a young group of fanatics who are obsessed with a rock band named "The Spiders". Very imaginative and specifically noted as a response to the Beatles invasion, featuring the fictional band "The Spiders".

43) Too Many Eggs By Kris Neville follows a man who buys a second-hand fridge. The only thing he can find wrong is that packets of what look like fish eggs keep appearing in it. Extremely bizarre but I like bizarre so this was a winner.

44) The Twerlik By Jack Sharkey. A photosynthetic life form is amazed by the energy and knowledge it gains when visiting humans unwittingly land a rocket on it.

45) A Thousand Deaths By Jack London written in 1899 and one which I had already read previously in a Jack London short story collection. His first published short story, featuring a gothic, science-fiction plot where a son is repeatedly killed and resurrected by his estranged, mad-scientist father on a remote island.

So out of the 101 collected stories I only really cared for 45 notwithstanding that five or six of these I had previously read as stated. The other 56 really didn't do much for me whatsoever although the 45 mentioned were very strong. But if your looking for a quick science fiction mash-up whilst on the bus or train then pick it up. An average collection for me though where I discovered around 40 new gems so not all bad.

[Rena Sherwood · Rating 3 out of 5]

Well, this was a disappointment. There were only a handful of excellent stories. Most are just "meh." One good point in it's favor -- the cover image actually refers to a story in the anthology. Many sci-fi or speculative fiction anthologies just use a generic "spacey" image. The intro by Asimov is peculiar -- he seemed really pissed off that he has to write one. I also was disappointed to see so many typos in my edition. (I'm sure it was BLOCK and tackle and not BLACK and tackle, for example.) There were THREE editors on this, so all of the typos are unacceptable because they interrupted the flow of the stories.

[Ashley · Rating 5 out of 5]

101 Science Fidtion Stories Edited by Martin H. Greenberg, Charles G. Waugh and Jenny-Lynn Waugh.

651 pages of shirt science fiction stories, most between 4-10 pages long. Most were good, some great and a few average, no terrible ones. A noticeable number of spelling and editing mistakes throughout but not too bad. Really enjoyed and will be glad to have it on my shelf.

[Phorc Ewe · Rating 1 out of 5]

Phuc this book.
There were only like FIVE or so good stories, a number of ok ones, and a LOT of terrible ones.

[Moe · Rating 3 out of 5]

Read 25 stories. Most under 8 pages. Weak to average.

[Charlie Pasta · Rating 4 out of 5]

A particularly good collection

[bluetyson]

101 Science Fiction Stories by Martin H. Greenberg (1987)

[Chris Gager · Rating 3 out of 5]

A sustitute for one of those Amazon deletes. A stand-in for an anthology I read and didn't write down the actual title.

[Lance · Rating 3 out of 5]

Very short stories, as usual some better than others. The good ones are worth the time to find them, some thought provoking.

[Glyn Gardner · Rating 1 out of 5]

Couldn't finish. Some of the stories were pretty good. Some were just down right bad. Had to put it down for good.

[James Turner · Rating 4 out of 5]

A nice collection of stories. Many different catagories are here from dead serious to downright funny.

[Michelle Farinella · Rating 3 out of 5]

Really short sci-fi shorts. Funny intro by Asimov. Some stories are more than worth trying to ignore all the typos and misspellings. Some of them are so bad they hurt my feelings.

[Katie Robles · Rating 5 out of 5]

It's 650 pages of sci-fi stories...does it get any better than that?!