From Library Journal
With so little serious sf currently available on unabridged audio, the release of this comprehensive collection of Clarke's short stories is an occasion for celebration, for he is an undisputed master of hard sfDthat which combines creative storytelling with ideas grounded in plausible science. Clarke is, after all, best known as the writer behind 2001: A Space Odyssey, one of the few films that depicts space travel realistically. It is thus not surprising that his tales are filled with intelligent, fresh, and fascinating ideas, as well as interesting and plausible characters. The stories on these tapes are arranged in chronological order, with titles printed on each side of each cassetteDa nice feature that more audiobook publishers should emulate. Clarke himself reads the foreword to the first set, and each of his stories is preceded by a brief discussion of its themes and publishing history, read by someone else. The readers are a large and diverse assemblage, ranging from actors such as Maxwell Caulfield, Samantha Eggar, and William Windom, to other well-known sf writers, such as Harlan Ellison and Ben Bova. The collection is overproduced; its many different reading voices make it confusingDespecially the introductions that are read by two different people. Moreover, screen actors and writers don't always make the best readers. Nevertheless, libraries with many serious sf fans should consider buying the entire cassette collection, and other libraries should consider the CDs.DR. Kent Rasmussen, Thousand Oaks, CA
Copyright 2002 Reed Business Information, Inc.
Copyright 2002 Reed Business Information, Inc.
Book Description
Arthur C. Clarke is one of the greatest science fiction writers of the century, and surely the most celebrated science fiction writer alive. He is -- with H. G. Wells, Isaac Asimov and Robert A. Heinlein -- one of the writers who define the genre. Now, at the dawn of the year 2001, Sir Arthur C. Clarke has cooperated in the preparation of a massive definitive edition of his collected shorter works, which will be made available on audio in five chronological volumes, followed by a 10 CD volume of favorite selection and a 30 cassette gift set...the most ambitious science fiction audio project in history.
From early stories like "Rescue Party" and "The Lion of Comarre", to classics like "The Star", "Earthlight", "The Nine Billion Names of God", and "The Sentinel" (kernel of the later novel, and movie, 2001: A Space Odyssey), all the way to later works like "A Meeting With Medusa" and "The Hammer of God", this volume encapsulates one of the great SF careers of all time.
About the Author
Arthur C. Clarke is considered to be the greatest science fiction writer of all time. He is an international treasure in many other ways: An article written by him in 1945 led to the invention of satellite technology. Books by Mr. Clarke--both fiction and nonfiction--have more than one hundred million copies in print worldwide. He lives in Sri Lanka.
"From the Trade Paperback edition."
From AudioFile
Short fiction spanning the career of one of science fiction's greatest writers is narrated by several performers. Each story is preceded by a short description of where and when it first appeared, along with a brief introduction written by (but not read by) Arthur C. Clarke. This choice provides a nice break between stories. Clarke himself reads an introduction to the whole work. The readers are strong and well matched with the material. This excellent collection should be important to science fiction fans and collectors. S.D. © AudioFile 2002, Portland, Maine-- Copyright © AudioFile, Portland, Maine
