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Why I Left Harry's All Night Hamburgers
A collection of science fiction tales by such writers as Isaac Asimov, Edward D. Hoch, Keith Minnion, Connie Willis, and Jane Yolen
285 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 1990
3 people are currently reading
80 people want to read
About the author
Sheila Williams
276 books66 followersLibrarian Note: There is more than one author in the GoodReads database with this name. See this thread for more information.
Sheila Williams is the editor of Asimov's Science Fiction magazine. She is also the recipient of the 2012 Hugo Award for Best Editor, Short Form.
Sheila grew up in a family of five in western Massachusetts. Her mother had a master's degree in microbiology. Ms. Williams’ interest in science fiction came from her father who read Edgar Rice Burroughs books to her as a child. Later Ms. Williams received a bachelor's degree from Elmira College in Elmira, New York, although she studied at the London School of Economics during her junior year. She received her Master's from Washington University in St. Louis. She is married to David Bruce and has two daughters.
She became interested in Isaac Asimov's Science Fiction Magazine (as it was then titled) while studying philosophy at Washington University. In 1982 she was hired at the magazine, and worked with Isaac Asimov for ten years. While working there, she co-founded the Dell Magazines Award for Undergraduate Excellence in Science Fiction and Fantasy Writing (at one time called the Isaac Asimov Award for Undergraduate Excellence in Science Fiction and Fantasy writing). In 2004, with the retirement of Gardner Dozois, she became the editor of the magazine.
Along with Gardner Dozois she also edited the "Isaac Asimov's" anthology series. She also co-edited A Woman's Liberation: A Choice of Futures by and About Women (2001) with Connie Willis. Most recently she has edited a retrospective anthology of fiction published by Asimov's: Asimov's Science Fiction Magazine: 30th Anniversary Anthology. Booklist called the book "A gem, and a credit to editor Williams."
She has been nominated for 4 Hugo Awards as editor of Isaac Asimov's Science Fiction Magazine.
See also Sheila Williams's entry in the Internet Speculative Fiction Database.
Sheila Williams is the editor of Asimov's Science Fiction magazine. She is also the recipient of the 2012 Hugo Award for Best Editor, Short Form.
Sheila grew up in a family of five in western Massachusetts. Her mother had a master's degree in microbiology. Ms. Williams’ interest in science fiction came from her father who read Edgar Rice Burroughs books to her as a child. Later Ms. Williams received a bachelor's degree from Elmira College in Elmira, New York, although she studied at the London School of Economics during her junior year. She received her Master's from Washington University in St. Louis. She is married to David Bruce and has two daughters.
She became interested in Isaac Asimov's Science Fiction Magazine (as it was then titled) while studying philosophy at Washington University. In 1982 she was hired at the magazine, and worked with Isaac Asimov for ten years. While working there, she co-founded the Dell Magazines Award for Undergraduate Excellence in Science Fiction and Fantasy Writing (at one time called the Isaac Asimov Award for Undergraduate Excellence in Science Fiction and Fantasy writing). In 2004, with the retirement of Gardner Dozois, she became the editor of the magazine.
Along with Gardner Dozois she also edited the "Isaac Asimov's" anthology series. She also co-edited A Woman's Liberation: A Choice of Futures by and About Women (2001) with Connie Willis. Most recently she has edited a retrospective anthology of fiction published by Asimov's: Asimov's Science Fiction Magazine: 30th Anniversary Anthology. Booklist called the book "A gem, and a credit to editor Williams."
She has been nominated for 4 Hugo Awards as editor of Isaac Asimov's Science Fiction Magazine.
See also Sheila Williams's entry in the Internet Speculative Fiction Database.
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Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews
August 6, 2021
This is an anthology of a dozen stories reprinted from Asimov's SF Magazine that are appropriate for all ages, some with really funny sections. The title story by Lawrence Watt-Evans has long been one of my favorites, and there are good stories as well by Connie Willis (an uncharacteristic fantasy story), Barry B. Longyear, Judith Moffett, and Andrew Weiner (rock'n'roll will never die), not to mention The Good Doctor himself.
August 3, 2016
Solid collection of science-fiction stories, very loosely themed around the viewpoint of children, although in a few stories I don't see who is the child or how the fact that he or she is a child matters much. A few of the stories have an enjoyably humorous tinge.
Excellent: "Thy Tryouts," by Barry Longyear, funny and clever and draws a really nice picture of an alien culture. "The Band from the Planet Zoom," by Andrew Weiner, very unlike any other science-fiction stories I've ever read, also quite funny, had additional appeal to me as a rock music fan. "And Who Would Pity a Swan?", by Connie Willis," a fairy tale about remembering the past, with layers and a sharp last line (not a twist, just a sharp comment). The title story, "Why I Left Harry's All-Night Hamburgers," by Lawrence Watt-Evans, cute and leaves a a smile on your face.
Very good: "Profession," by Isaac Asimov, striking similarities to The Giver. "Glacier," by Kim Stanley Robinson, much different from the other stories in that it is somber, slow, and driven by mood rather than plot (somewhat surprising it was selected as the first story as it does not set the tone for the rest of the stories).
Other stories were pretty good, with only one story that I thought was genuinely poor, "The Web Dancer" by Somtow Sucharitkul.
Excellent: "Thy Tryouts," by Barry Longyear, funny and clever and draws a really nice picture of an alien culture. "The Band from the Planet Zoom," by Andrew Weiner, very unlike any other science-fiction stories I've ever read, also quite funny, had additional appeal to me as a rock music fan. "And Who Would Pity a Swan?", by Connie Willis," a fairy tale about remembering the past, with layers and a sharp last line (not a twist, just a sharp comment). The title story, "Why I Left Harry's All-Night Hamburgers," by Lawrence Watt-Evans, cute and leaves a a smile on your face.
Very good: "Profession," by Isaac Asimov, striking similarities to The Giver. "Glacier," by Kim Stanley Robinson, much different from the other stories in that it is somber, slow, and driven by mood rather than plot (somewhat surprising it was selected as the first story as it does not set the tone for the rest of the stories).
Other stories were pretty good, with only one story that I thought was genuinely poor, "The Web Dancer" by Somtow Sucharitkul.
November 6, 2014
A collection of thirteen short stories taken from Isaac Asimov's science fiction magazine. A fun book taken from the imagination of science fiction writers. Nice light stories for a nice quick read when one is short of time, or perhaps stressed out from one's day. Yes, there is actually a short story bearing the name of the book "Why I Life Harry's All Night Hamburgers". Of course as it takes those special ones to compose science fiction it taken one equally in vision to read and enjoy the stories. Enjoy.
August 5, 2018
A collection of 12 short stories, selected by the editors to primarily appeal to young adults. There's one or two fantasy stories in here, but for the most part this is a science fiction anthology of stories set on Earth, and for the most part it's enjoyable. There were a small handful of stories that I really did not care for, but in such cases I prefer to focus instead on the ones that I enjoyed the most. Best picks in here, for me, are Jane Yolen's "The White Babe", which has a really appealing structure that alternates myth with in-universe academic analysis, and "The Web Dancer" by Somtow Sucharitkul, which has a fantastic main character and a real sense of alien wonder. Just beating these out for top place, however, is "Glacier" by Kim Stanley Robinson, a near-future story of a boy trying to bond with an untrusting pet cat as glaciers slowly encroach on the town that they live in. It's so beautifully restrained in its approach, I can't help but admire it.
June 10, 2020
This book has four of my favorite science fiction short stories. "The Tryout" is just a lot of fun. "The Homesick Chicken" is a futuristic mystery based on why the genetically modified chicken cross the belt highway. "The Band from the Planet Zoom" has a unique slant on the aliens-among-us story. And "The Hob" is wonderful with its explanation behind the legend of the hog in Britain and one of the best ending of any short story I've read.
July 12, 2025
Loved the short stories „The Tryouts“ and „Why I left Harry’s All-Night Hamburgers“
October 10, 2009
Liked it a lot. Exactly what I want from a sort story. Interesting throughout, enough twists to keep you reading, and a strong positive message. I may be giving it 5 stars because I had just read (book-on-tape to be completely honest) a bunch of terrible short stories before it... Anyway, I only read "Why I Left Harry's All Night Hamburgers." I can't comment on any of the other stories in this volume by Sheila Williams.
January 18, 2010
I particularly remember reading the title story from this collection. It is a favorite of mine, and one of think of whenever I start yearning to see the stars... and other wonders.
Read
April 14, 2011this book not on reading counts list
January 7, 2012
This is a review for Harry's only.
A simple fun novella that hits all the right notes of classic sci fi.
A simple fun novella that hits all the right notes of classic sci fi.
not-finished
November 10, 2016I will definitely come back to this one! I have been busy this month and unfortunately have to return this to our Interlibrary Loans department. Next time!
Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews