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The Best from Fantasy and Science Fiction, Eighth (8th) Series
Ace Books, 1963. Mass market paperback, reprints most of the material from the 1959 hardcover. Collection of stories that first appeared in F&SF magazine in 1958. Quite a line-up of the day's great Alfred Bester, Shirley Jackson, Kit Reed, C. M. Kornbluth, Isaac Asimov and others.
224 pages, Paperback
Published January 1, 1963
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Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews
May 7, 2021
A great collection of sci-fi and fantasy stories! Many of which I had not read before, in other anthologies. Even though these are from the 1950s, most of them don't feel dated. Still very enjoyable reads!
March 14, 2024
Fantasy and Science Fiction magazine put out these yearly collections of Best Of stories. This 1959 volume is a collection of stories published in the magazine in 1958. I picked it up a few years ago on the $1 table at the Brattle Street Bookshop.
The magazine, to this day, prides itself on publishing an eclectic selection of authors and stories. This volume has the first English translation of a Jules Verne story. It is a clever alternative history about a previously unknown invasion of the British colony at Gibraltar. There is also a science fiction story by C. S. Lewis, which is fairly misogynist.
The magazine also always published stories by the big names of the time. Isaac Asimov has a slight shaggy dog story. Fritz Lieber has an overwritten horror story. Brian Aldiss' story is a well-done adventure story with a solid twist.
There are also good stories by 1959 newcomers. Avram Davidson has a very funny first alien contact story and Ron Goulart does a spot-on parody of Charles Fort and conspiracy thinking in general.
The two best stories are by Shirley Jackson and Zenna Henderson. Jackson's story, "The Omen", is magical. It is a relaxed tale of one older woman going downtown to buy some presents for her family and a young woman taking a bus to visit a friend. Jackson, with the lightest of touch, weaves it into a mysterious, unforgettable and gentle story. She was a brilliant writer.
The Zenna Henderson story, "Captivity", is the longest story in the book. It is set in a small town. A strange foster care boy is a social outcaste at school. He is considered "spooky" by the other kids. A substitute teacher befriends him and begins to understand that he has strange powers. Henderson slowly unwinds the truth about the boy. I wondered whether Stephen King's "Carrie" was influenced or inspired in part by the story. It is a fascinating and scary story.
This is an excellent collection worth picking up if you see it.
The magazine, to this day, prides itself on publishing an eclectic selection of authors and stories. This volume has the first English translation of a Jules Verne story. It is a clever alternative history about a previously unknown invasion of the British colony at Gibraltar. There is also a science fiction story by C. S. Lewis, which is fairly misogynist.
The magazine also always published stories by the big names of the time. Isaac Asimov has a slight shaggy dog story. Fritz Lieber has an overwritten horror story. Brian Aldiss' story is a well-done adventure story with a solid twist.
There are also good stories by 1959 newcomers. Avram Davidson has a very funny first alien contact story and Ron Goulart does a spot-on parody of Charles Fort and conspiracy thinking in general.
The two best stories are by Shirley Jackson and Zenna Henderson. Jackson's story, "The Omen", is magical. It is a relaxed tale of one older woman going downtown to buy some presents for her family and a young woman taking a bus to visit a friend. Jackson, with the lightest of touch, weaves it into a mysterious, unforgettable and gentle story. She was a brilliant writer.
The Zenna Henderson story, "Captivity", is the longest story in the book. It is set in a small town. A strange foster care boy is a social outcaste at school. He is considered "spooky" by the other kids. A substitute teacher befriends him and begins to understand that he has strange powers. Henderson slowly unwinds the truth about the boy. I wondered whether Stephen King's "Carrie" was influenced or inspired in part by the story. It is a fascinating and scary story.
This is an excellent collection worth picking up if you see it.
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews