Omnibus of Science Fiction

Forty-some years ago my uncle gave me a science fiction anthology, a thick red hardback that I read from cover to cover. It inspired a life long love of the genre. The stories in that book made me think outside the box. They filled me with awe for the imagination it took to write them and sometimes they scared the hell out of me. That book remained in my collection for many years. At some point it disappeared, but not from my memory. Recently I had a desire to read it again and thanks to Alibris.com I was able to purchase a used copy.

The title is OMNIBUS OF SCIENCE FICTION, edited by Groff Conklin, a well-known and prolific editor of the genre. It was published in 1952, the Golden Age of Science Fiction. It's a hefty tome, 562 pages, with 43 stories divided into sections relating to a common theme. Some stories are fun, some are thought-provoking and some are adventurous. I love them all.

Part I. Wonders of Earth and of Man

Katherine MacLean's "And be Merry" originally appeared in Astounding Science Fiction in February, 1950. When her husband takes off on an archeology trip, a biologist does rejuvenation experiments on herself. Believing she'll be immortal if she can avoid accidental death, she becomes afraid to live. Her husband realizes he must convince her she's dying in order to get her to live again, and he tells her she has a slow growing tumor that is inoperable.

Other stories in this section are:

"John Thomas's Cube" by John Leimert

"Hyperpilosity" by L. Sprague de Camp

"The Thing in the Woods" by Fletcher Pratt & B.F. Ruby

"The Bees from Borneo" by Will H. Gray

"The Rag Thing" by David Grinnell

"The Conqueror" by Mark Clifton

Part II. Inventions, Dangerous and Otherwise

The intriguing short story, "A Subway Named Mobius," by A.J. Deutsch was published in Astounding Science Fiction in December, 1950. The Boston Subway Authority builds an addition to the subway system and a train disappears with three hundred passengers. The closed system became so interconnected and complex that it turned into a Mobius strip, that continuous loop with one side made famous by M.C. Escher.

Other stories in this section are:

"Never Underestimate ..." by Theodore Sturgeon

"The Doorbell" by David H. Keller

"Backfire" by Ross Rocklynne

"The Box" by James Blish

"Zeritsky's Law" by Ann Griffith

"The Fourth Dynasty" by R.R. Winterbotham

Part III. From Outer Space

In "The Colour Out of Space" By H.P. Lovecraft a surveyor discovers an abandoned farm with an old well at the center. The land is devoid of life and he inquires about the name - the blasted heath. An old hermit tells him the story. In the 1880's the farm was productive until a meteorite of indescribable color crashed beside the well. After hearing the terrifying circumstances that befell the farmer and his family the surveyor ends by saying he won't be coming back and wouldn't recommend drinking the water.

Other stories in this section are:

"The Head Hunters" by Ralph Williams

"The Star Dummy" by Anthony Boucher

"Catch That Martian" by Damon Knight

"Shipshape Home" by Richard Matheson

"Homo Sol" by Isaac Asimov

Part IV. Far Traveling

"Kaleidoscope" by Ray Bradbury is a heart-breaking tale of astronauts drifting through space after their ship is destroyed. They have contact with each other but no hope of being rescued. One man laments the fact he has accomplished nothing worthwhile but as his life ends he becomes a shooting star visible to a child on earth.

Other stories in this section are:

"Alexander the Bait" by William Tenn

"Nothing Happens on the Moon" by Paul Ernst

"Trigger Tide" by Wyman Guin

"Plague" by Murray Leinster

"Winner Lose All" by Jack Vance

"Test Piece" by Eric Frank Russell

"Environment" by Chester S. Geier

Part V. Adventures in Dimension

"Spectator Sport" by John D. MacDonald was first published in Thrilling Wonder Stories in February 1950. A man travels into the future and discovers nothing much has changed. Shortly after he left someone invented virtual reality and the entire population is permanently wired into it.

Other stories in this section are:

"High Threshold" by Alan E. Nourse

"Recruiting Station" by A.E. van Vogt

"A Stone and a Spear" by Raymond F. Jones

"What You Need" by Lewis Padgett

"The Choice" by W. Hilton-Young

Part VI. Worlds of Tomorrow

"History Lesson" by Arthur C. Clarke was first published in 1949. In the future a final ice age looms. A tribe of nomadic humans travels toward the equator but gets caught between two advancing glaciers. They hide a few 21st century relics in a cairn. Five thousand years later Venusian reptiles travel to Earth and recover the relics. They try to learn about life on the Third Planet - by analyzing a cartoon film reel

Other stories in this section are:

"The War Against the Moon" by Andre Maurois

"Pleasant Dreams" by Ralph Robin

"Manners of the Age" by H.B. Fyfe

"The Weapon" by Fredric Brown

"The Scarlet Plague" by Jack London

"Heritage" by Robert Abernathy

"Instinct" by Lester del Rey

"Counter Charm" by Peter Phillips

Omnibus Of Science Fiction

Groff Conklin

Publisher: Crown Publishers 1952

Pages: 562

ASIN: B000NZ56FQ

Gail Pruszkowski reviews for "Romantic Times BOOKreviews" magazine and her work has been published in the "Cup of Comfort" Anthologies

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