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Alpha 7
These stories are more than classics
They are the seminal stories that set the scene for today's SF writers. Since 1970 this acclaimed series has presented the most provocative and challenging science fiction writing. Here is number 7 in this library of SF masterpieces.
They are the seminal stories that set the scene for today's SF writers. Since 1970 this acclaimed series has presented the most provocative and challenging science fiction writing. Here is number 7 in this library of SF masterpieces.
240 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published July 1, 1977
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About the author
Robert Silverberg
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Robert Silverberg is a highly celebrated American science fiction author and editor known for his prolific output and literary range. Over a career spanning decades, he has won multiple Hugo and Nebula Awards and was named a Grand Master by the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America in 2004. Inducted into the Science Fiction and Fantasy Hall of Fame in 1999, Silverberg is recognized for both his immense productivity and his contributions to the genre's evolution.
Born in Brooklyn, he began writing in his teens and won his first Hugo Award in 1956 as the best new writer. Throughout the 1950s, he produced vast amounts of fiction, often under pseudonyms, and was known for writing up to a million words a year. When the market declined, he diversified into other genres, including historical nonfiction and erotica.
Silverberg’s return to science fiction in the 1960s marked a shift toward deeper psychological and literary themes, contributing significantly to the New Wave movement. Acclaimed works from this period include Downward to the Earth, Dying Inside, Nightwings, and The World Inside. In the 1980s, he launched the Majipoor series with Lord Valentine’s Castle, creating one of the most imaginative planetary settings in science fiction.
Though he announced his retirement from writing in the mid-1970s, Silverberg returned with renewed vigor and continued to publish acclaimed fiction into the 1990s. He received further recognition with the Nebula-winning Sailing to Byzantium and the Hugo-winning Gilgamesh in the Outback.
Silverberg has also played a significant role as an editor and anthologist, shaping science fiction literature through both his own work and his influence on others. He lives in the San Francisco Bay Area with his wife, author Karen Haber.
Robert Silverberg is a highly celebrated American science fiction author and editor known for his prolific output and literary range. Over a career spanning decades, he has won multiple Hugo and Nebula Awards and was named a Grand Master by the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America in 2004. Inducted into the Science Fiction and Fantasy Hall of Fame in 1999, Silverberg is recognized for both his immense productivity and his contributions to the genre's evolution.
Born in Brooklyn, he began writing in his teens and won his first Hugo Award in 1956 as the best new writer. Throughout the 1950s, he produced vast amounts of fiction, often under pseudonyms, and was known for writing up to a million words a year. When the market declined, he diversified into other genres, including historical nonfiction and erotica.
Silverberg’s return to science fiction in the 1960s marked a shift toward deeper psychological and literary themes, contributing significantly to the New Wave movement. Acclaimed works from this period include Downward to the Earth, Dying Inside, Nightwings, and The World Inside. In the 1980s, he launched the Majipoor series with Lord Valentine’s Castle, creating one of the most imaginative planetary settings in science fiction.
Though he announced his retirement from writing in the mid-1970s, Silverberg returned with renewed vigor and continued to publish acclaimed fiction into the 1990s. He received further recognition with the Nebula-winning Sailing to Byzantium and the Hugo-winning Gilgamesh in the Outback.
Silverberg has also played a significant role as an editor and anthologist, shaping science fiction literature through both his own work and his influence on others. He lives in the San Francisco Bay Area with his wife, author Karen Haber.
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Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
July 8, 2020
This is the seventh volume in Silverberg's series of reprint anthologies in which he selected and presented works of short science fiction he thought were of high value but that had not garnered equal appreciation or recognition in the field. I thought this one was the weakest entry in the series; I'm not sure why, but many of the stories just resonate with me. There's a morose Malzberg story (now there's a redundant phrase), and good pieces by Effinger, Boucher, Carr, and Kornbluth. The one really terrific story, my favorite, is Julian May's Dune Roller.
August 21, 2010
Every time I read these stories, I'm struck by just how consistently awesome they are. Granted I still don't quite get the point of 'A Galaxy Called Rome', and I sometimes feel I'm missing something in 'World War II' the rest are examples of some of the best short sci-fi anywhere.
From the beautifully descriptive 'Dune Roller' penned by a teenage Julian May, to Terry Carr's haunting 'Rejoice, Rejoice, We Have No Choice' it's thought provoking and enjoyable. There are less known pieces here too, like McKenna's 'The Night Of Hoggy Darn' that don't seem dated at all regardless of original publication date. Plenty here to enjoy again and again. I wonder if Alpha 1 thru 6 are around somewhere....
From the beautifully descriptive 'Dune Roller' penned by a teenage Julian May, to Terry Carr's haunting 'Rejoice, Rejoice, We Have No Choice' it's thought provoking and enjoyable. There are less known pieces here too, like McKenna's 'The Night Of Hoggy Darn' that don't seem dated at all regardless of original publication date. Plenty here to enjoy again and again. I wonder if Alpha 1 thru 6 are around somewhere....
July 2, 2023
*** Dune Roller (1951) • Julian May
***** Shape (1953) • Robert Sheckley
**** Transfer Point (1950) • Anthony Boucher
*** A Galaxy Called Rome (1975) • Barry N. Malzberg
*** Rejoice, Rejoice, We Have No Choice (1974) • Terry Carr
**** Orphans of the Void (1952) • Michael Shaara
**** The Luckiest Man in Denv (1952) • C. M. Kornbluth
*** For Love (1962) • Algis Budrys
**** World War Two (1973) • George Alec Effinger
*** The Night of Hoggy Darn (1958) • Richard McKenna
***** Shape (1953) • Robert Sheckley
**** Transfer Point (1950) • Anthony Boucher
*** A Galaxy Called Rome (1975) • Barry N. Malzberg
*** Rejoice, Rejoice, We Have No Choice (1974) • Terry Carr
**** Orphans of the Void (1952) • Michael Shaara
**** The Luckiest Man in Denv (1952) • C. M. Kornbluth
*** For Love (1962) • Algis Budrys
**** World War Two (1973) • George Alec Effinger
*** The Night of Hoggy Darn (1958) • Richard McKenna
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews