Having previously read the two best stories in this collection ("Rescue Party", a masterpiece and Clarke's first published story, and "Jupiter Five", a believable exploration of Jupiter's closest moon) I did not like this book as much as I would have if I had not read those two masterpieces. If I hadn't I would certainly have given this book a 5 star rating. Anyways...
There are other good stories here too, of course. "Technical Error", "The Fires Within" and "The Possessed" are standouts, among others. In fact, there are a wide variety of SF styles in this collection. But it's the two stories I mentioned that are the centerpieces of this book. If you haven't read any of the short stories in this book then rack my rating up a star.
