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Astounding: John W. Campbell, Isaac Asimov, Robert A. Heinlein, L. Ron Hubbard, and the Golden Age of Science Fiction
by Alec Nevala-Lee“A big biography of John Campbell, the genius magazine editor who created a mass market for science fiction, couldn’t be timelier. Alec Nevala-Lee’s granular portrait of Campbell and the quirky superstars whose careers he launched in the 1940s and 1950s is a gift to science fiction fans everywhere.” — Sylvia Nasar, New York Times bestselling author of A Beautiful Mind“[Astounding] is a major work of popular culture scholarship that science fiction fans will devour.” — Publishers Weekly (starred review)Astounding is the landmark account of the extraordinary partnership between four controversial writers—John W. Campbell, Isaac Asimov, Robert A. Heinlein, and L. Ron Hubbard—who set off a revolution in science fiction and forever changed our world. This remarkable cultural narrative centers on the figure of John W. Campbell, Jr., whom Asimov called “the most powerful force in science fiction ever.” Campbell, who has never been the subject of a biography until now, was both a visionary author—he wrote the story that was later filmed as The Thing—and the editor of the groundbreaking magazine best known as Astounding Science Fiction, in which he discovered countless legendary writers and published classic works ranging from the I, Robot series to Dune. Over a period of more than thirty years, from the rise of the pulps to the debut of Star Trek, he dominated the genre, and his three closest collaborators reached unimaginable heights. Asimov became the most prolific author in American history; Heinlein emerged as the leading science fiction writer of his generation with the novels Starship Troopers and Stranger in a Strange Land; and Hubbard achieved lasting fame—and infamy—as the founder of the Church of Scientology. Drawing on unexplored archives, thousands of unpublished letters, and dozens of interviews, Alec Nevala-Lee offers a riveting portrait of this circle of authors, their work, and their tumultuous private lives. With unprecedented scope, drama, and detail, Astounding describes how fan culture was born in the depths of the Great Depression; follows these four friends and rivals through World War II and the dawn of the atomic era; and honors such exceptional women as Doña Campbell and Leslyn Heinlein, whose pivotal roles in the history of the genre have gone largely unacknowledged. For the first time, it reveals the startling extent of Campbell’s influence on the ideas that evolved into Scientology, which prompted Asimov to observe: “I knew Campbell and I knew Hubbard, and no movement can have two Messiahs.” It looks unsparingly at the tragic final act that estranged the others from Campbell, bringing the golden age of science fiction to a close, and it illuminates how their complicated legacy continues to shape the imaginations of millions and our vision of the future itself.
Astounding Days
by Sir Arthur C. ClarkeArthur C. Clarke acquired his first science fiction magazine - a copy of Astounding Stories - in 1930, when he was 13. Immediately he became an avid reader and collector: and, soon enough, a would-be-writer. The rest is history. Now, in Astounding Days, he looks back over those impressed by him, discussing their scientific howlers, and their remarkable proportion of predictive bulls-eyes - and writing of his early life and career. Written with relaxed good humour, Astounding Days is full of fascinating comment and anecdote.
The Astounding Science Fiction Anthology
by John W. Campbell Jr.Real Golden Age science-fiction is what you will read here. These stories were written in the forties and fifties for Astounding, now Analog Science Fiction, garnered from many authors considered to be master wordsmiths by an editor who is considered one of the most exacting editors in the field.
Astounding Wonder
by John ChengWhen physicist Robert Goddard, whose career was inspired by H. G. Wells's War of the Worlds, published "A Method of Reaching Extreme Altitudes," the response was electric. Newspaper headlines across the country announced, "Modern Jules Verne Invents Rocket to Reach Moon," while people from around the world, including two World War I pilots, volunteered as pioneers in space exploration. Though premature (Goddard's rocket, alas, was only imagined), the episode demonstrated not only science's general popularity but also its intersection with interwar popular and commercial culture. In that intersection, the stories that inspired Goddard and others became a recognizable genre: science fiction. Astounding Wonder explores science fiction's emergence in the era's "pulps," colorful magazines that shouted from the newsstands, attracting an extraordinarily loyal and active audience.Pulps invited readers not only to read science fiction but also to participate in it, joining writers and editors in celebrating a collective wonder for and investment in the potential of science. But in conjuring fantastic machines, travel across time and space, unexplored worlds, and alien foes, science fiction offered more than rousing adventure and romance. It also assuaged contemporary concerns about nation, gender, race, authority, ability, and progress--about the place of ordinary individuals within modern science and society--in the process freeing readers to debate scientific theories and implications separate from such concerns.Readers similarly sought to establish their worth and place outside the pulps. Organizing clubs and conventions and producing their own magazines, some expanded science fiction's community and created a fan subculture separate from the professional pulp industry. Others formed societies to launch and experiment with rockets. From debating relativity and the use of slang in the future to printing purple fanzines and calculating the speed of spaceships, fans' enthusiastic industry revealed the tensions between popular science and modern science. Even as it inspired readers' imagination and activities, science fiction's participatory ethos sparked debates about amateurs and professionals that divided the worlds of science fiction in the 1930s and after.
Astra: Synchronicity
by Lisa EskraMagnius Zoleki has everything a fifty-year-old man could want except the psionic assassin trying to kill him. In 2310, humans persecute psions and hunt them to extinction regardless of guilt. Magnius is one of them: an evolutionary offshoot of mankind known for their psychic abilities and tendency to murder in order to utilize their power. Despite using his telekinesis sparingly, his secret makes it back to his childhood tutor. She murdered his best friend's father in cold blood, giving him every reason to run away before his abilities manifested. Now with the hope he'll join her cause to strike down humanity, she sends an assassin to bring him home. Of course, that doesn't mean he needs to bring him in one piece. As a consequence of his double life, Magnius faces divorce, bankruptcy, and death "but not necessarily in that order. In his flight to survive, he meets Amii Martin, a woman who recently lost her memory in a laboratory accident. She implores him for help rescuing the only man with ties to her past after relations with a benevolent alien race take a tragic turn. The last thing Magnius needs is to get mixed up in an ugly war, but in order to escape the clutches of his nefarious mentor and save Amii's father, he's willing to risk it or die trying. Astra: Synchronicity is a science-fiction thriller that will appeal to readers who enjoy the work of C. J. Cherryh and also those who fell in love with the romance of The Time Traveler's Wife.
Astra
by Naomi FoyleLike every child in Is-Land, all Astra Ordott wants is to have her Security Shot, do her National Service and defend her Gaian homeland from Non-Lander "infiltrators. " But when one of her Shelter mothers, the formidable Dr Hokma Blesser, tells her the shot will limit her chances of becoming a scientist and offers her an alternative, Astra agrees to her plan. When the orphaned Lil arrives to share Astra's home, Astra is torn between jealousy and fascination. Lil's father taught her some alarming ideas about Is-Land and the world, but when she pushes Astra too far, the heartache that results goes far beyond the loss of a friend. If she is to survive, Astra must learn to deal with devastating truths about Is-Land, Non-Land and the secret web of adult relationships that surrounds her.
Astra: The Gaia Chronicles Book 1 (The Gaia Chronicles #1)
by Naomi FoyleIs-land is a Gaian paradise in the middle of a blasted world - but its success comes at a dark price.Like every child in Is-Land, all Astra Ordott has ever wanted is to get her Security Shot, do her National Service and defend her Gaian homeland from Non-Lander 'infiltrators'. But when one of her Shelter mothers, the formidable Dr Hokma Blesser, tells her the shot will limit her chances of becoming a scientist and offers her an alternative, Astra agrees to her plan.Then the orphaned Lil arrives to share Astra's home and Astra is torn between jealousy and fascination. Lil's father taught her some alarming ideas about Is-Land and the world, but when she pushes Astra too far, the heartache that results goes far beyond the loss of a friend. If she is to survive, Astra must learn to deal with devastating truths about Is-Land, Non-Land and the secret web of adult relationships that surrounds her . . . or her actions could bring the whole community toppling down.
Astra: The Gaia Chronicles Book 1
by Naomi FoyleIs-land is a Gaian paradise in the middle of a blasted world - but its success comes at a dark price.Like every child in Is-Land, all Astra Ordott has ever wanted is to get her Security Shot, do her National Service and defend her Gaian homeland from Non-Lander 'infiltrators'. But when one of her Shelter mothers, the formidable Dr Hokma Blesser, tells her the shot will limit her chances of becoming a scientist and offers her an alternative, Astra agrees to her plan.Then the orphaned Lil arrives to share Astra's home and Astra is torn between jealousy and fascination. Lil's father taught her some alarming ideas about Is-Land and the world, but when she pushes Astra too far, the heartache that results goes far beyond the loss of a friend. If she is to survive, Astra must learn to deal with devastating truths about Is-Land, Non-Land and the secret web of adult relationships that surrounds her . . . or her actions could bring the whole community toppling down.
The Astral Traveller's Handbook and Other Tales
by David MichieIn this collection of short stories, David Michie offers life-enhancing insights with the same heart-warming compassion that pervades his Dalai Lama’s Cat books.“Whatever dreams he was having, Jason knew they had nothing to do with his physical body. His eyes were firmly shut and his consciousness withdrawn from his senses when all this was going on. Yet in his dreams he experienced sights, sounds and even visceral sensations much more intensely than when he was awake. From this he understood that you didn’t need a physical body to see, or smell, or endure any kind of experience with an acuteness that was more real than reality. From an early age he deduced that heaven or hell need not be material places so much as states of mind – and no less glorious or horrifying because of that. There were no limits to mind untethered from form.” What if you could re-live the enchantment of childhood bedtime—but with magic that is real? What if you felt the wonder you once sensed when you believed that anything is possible? Or were inspired to see the world through fresh eyes? In this compendium of delightful short stories, David Michie draws us into the extraordinary experiences of everyday people as they encounter those tell-tale cracks exposing reality as not quite what it seems. Four female book club members are unexpectedly propelled, by the same black and white photograph, to discover a shared purpose beyond their wildest imaginings. An earnest young seeker finds that drawing aside the veil to an immeasurably more wonderful reality, doesn’t depend so much on the arcane books he reads as on a source much closer to home. A cat-crazy woman, who wishes her beloved felines would talk to her, is shaken when she realises what they have been trying to communicate all along. Through intriguing storylines and revelations, David Michie offers life-enhancing insights with the same heart-warming benevolence that pervades his Dalai Lama’s Cat books. How better to gently unwind at the end of the day - and to prepare for the infinite possibilities we may encounter in the realms of our dreams?
Astralis – Los hijos del pasado
by Ana García García A. J. MitarEl Imperio Astralis está proyectado hacia la conquista de nuevos sectores de la galaxia, pero un misterio se cierne desde el pasado y un potente imperio no puede tolerar puntos oscuros en su propia historia. La arqueóloga Akia K'Prock indaga, mientras llega una nueva amenaza...
Astralis – Sons Of The Past
by A. J. MitarThe Astralis Empire is determined to conquering new sectors of the galaxy, but a mystery looms from the past, and a powerful empire cannot tolerate dark spots in its history. Archaeologist Akia K'Prock investigates, as a new threat arises...
Astralis - The day of the gods
by A. J. MitarA terrible generational war is coming to an end. The fearsome Teyon species is winning, but the intervention of an unknown alien power will change everything. Who are these aliens? What mystery does their arrival hide?
Astralis - El día de los dioses
by A. J. MitarUna terrible guerra generacional está llegando a su fin. La temible especie teyon está ganando, pero la intervención de una potencia alienígena desconocida lo cambiará todo. ¿Quiénes son los alienígenas? ¿Qué misterio esconde su llegada?
Astralis - O Dia dos Deuses
by A. J. MitarUma terrível guerra geracional está a chegar ao fim. A temível espécie teyon está a vencer, mas a intervenção de uma potência alienígena desconhecida mudará tudo. Quem são os aliens? Que mistério esconde a sua chegada?
Astralis - o retorno dos hidras
by A. J. MitarEles foram forçados a migrar até os confins do grande vazio escuro, na busca de uma nova pátria. Mas na Era Renascente das novas cores vitais, o retorno dos destruidores de povos, uma espécie de guerreiros adoradores das armas e do extermínio, ameaçará a ordem e a tranquilidade. Vencer uma batalha trará a salvação?
Astrid, The Au-Pair From Outer Space
by Emily SmithWhen Harry's mum tells him they are going to get an au pair, he isn't quite sure what it means. When he finds out it's a girl to help look after him and baby brother, Fred, he feels a bit suspicious. It might just be a good excuse for the school bully to tease him. However, he soon warms to Astrid when she turns up and especially when she gives him an idea that stops the bully from ever bothering him again. All the same, Harry can't help wondering why Astrid's never heard of tin openers or Coke, and how come her suitcase can move around by itself...
Astrid Volume 1: Cult of the Volcanic Moon
by VariousFormerly the Galactic Coalition&’s top recruit, the now-disgraced Astrid is offered a special mission from her old commander. She&’ll prove herself worthy of another chance at becoming a Galactic Peacekeeper . . . if she can survive giant insects, brutal sects, and the ancient evil of an uncharted volcanic moon, of course! Swedish comics creator Kim W. Andersson (The Complete Love Hurts, Alena) weaves a comedic sci-fi epic for fans of Firefly and Mass Effect!
Astro-Avian Apocalypse
by Peter HusseyProbably as soon as our great ancestors could put faces on their fears and notice the patterns of decay, destruction, and death throughout nature, they cobbled together tales of woe. Prophets had foretold various doomsday scenarios--all the extent of some god's righteous wrath. As it turned out, doomsday fell on a Saturday, 27th of June, 2076 AD, when two immense saucers 'blinked' into existence over Earth's polar caps and began a reign of unimaginable destruction. All attempts to communicate were futile, as were any efforts to thwart them while they continued their devastation, unabated. Were these two colossal discs the devices of God's will or were they from another world? Who was behind this 'stellar-assured' destruction and what would be the fate of humankind and its world when it ended? Only within these pages lie the answers.
Astro Boy 1 & 2 (Astro Boy)
by Osamu TezukaDark Horse proudly presents one of the crown jewels of manga—Astro Boy! Created by the late Osamu Tezuka, a revered animator and cartoonist (who created over 150,000 pages of comics in his career!) considered the Walt Disney of Japan, Astro Boy was the first manga series to be adapted to animation and became a worldwide phenomenon, making Astro Boy the Mickey Mouse of anime-a jet-powered, super-strong, evil-robot-bashing, alien-invasion-smashing Mickey Mouse, that is! Exciting, whimsical, and touching, Astro Boy hearkens back to the classic era of comics and animation, featuring stories that readers young and old will enjoy.* This special edition combines the first two volumes of the collected Astro Boy, in one value-priced collection!
Astro Boy Volume 10
by Osamu TezukaThe works of Osamu Tezuka are being enthusiastically discovered and re-discovered by American audiences. Tezuka is the unquestioned creative wellspring for the modern anime and manga industries, the influence of his genius now pervading popular culture around the globe, and Astro Boy is the quintessential Tezuka work -- innovative, exciting, hilarious, and even heartbreaking. Few works of graphic fiction -- or any fiction, for that matter -- offer so much fun and humanity that appeals to so many different ages. In this volume: Astro battles the mighty (and really BIG!) Garon; Astro must solve "The 100 Million Year Old Crime;" and Astro is stolen!
Astro Boy Volume 11
by Osamu TezukaFifty years after his creation, Astro Boy continues to lead the manga and anime charge, his adventures still as fresh and exciting as when first crafted by master storyteller/cartoonist/animator Osamu Tezuka. In this volume: Astro Boy must help a robot bomb escape his creators and prevent earth from being destroyed; Astro battles a deadly underground tank controlled by an evil general bent on world conquest; a famous police detective enlists Astro to help him solve a murder - with the detective's father as the prime suspect!
Astro Boy Volume 12
by Osamu TezukaWith the rapidly expanding explosion of manga and anime, the vast creative and spiritual influence of the late, great Osamu Tezuka is being recognized worldwide, the skill, depth, and humanity of his storytelling placing him among the giants of the comics medium. Astro Boy is the action/adventure archetype for the 21st century, an action-packed roller-coaster ride for all ages imbued with humor, warmth, and wry commentary on humanity in the technological age. In this volume: "Roboid"; "The Eues of Christ"; "Rejuvenating Gas"; and "Space Broadcast."
Astro Boy Volume 4 (Astro Boy #4)
by Osamu TezukaStanding shoulder to shoulder with comics and animation icons Krazy Kat, Mickey Mouse, and Tin Tin, Osama Tezuka's Astro Boy remains as fresh today as when the boy robot first appeared nearly fifty years ago. And Tezuka's Astro Boy original manga are now finally available in America in an English-language edition, produced in collaboration with Studio Proteus and translated by Frederik L. Schodt, well-known to manga readers for his work on Ghost in the Shell. In this volume: Astro fights to free abused robots from a robot theme park that masks a secret weapons factory; Astro and fellow robots are stranded on the moon only to discover a valley full of diamonds...but they are not alone, and the diamonds are not unguarded; Astro becomes trapped in the twentieth century after a child prodigy's time machine breaks down; and Professor Ochanomizu and Astro Boy are caught up in a movement to overthrow a dictator who has a machine capable of producing human clones...and a force of evil robots to defend it!This volume contains the following stories: Robot Land Ivan the Fool A Day to Remember Ghost Manufacturing Machine
Astro Boy Volume 9
by Osamu TezukaOsama Tezuka's Astro Boy is the all-time, 100,000 horsepower champion of classic all-ages robot action! Available for the first time in America, these tales are as exciting, touching, and hilarious as when Tezuka crafted them almost half a century ago! In this volume: Astro Boy tries to foil a mad scientist's plot to use a robotic Cleopatra to recreate the ancient kingdom of Egypt; Astro tries to solve the mystery of a young ghost appearing on 3D TVs; and Astro joins with the robot Cobalt in a race against time to stop a lost H-Bomb from devastating Japan!
Astroball Free-4-All (AstroKids #8)
by Robert ElmerBook 8 of AstroKids. Named captain of his AstroBall team, Mir must first learn to play the game -- and he doesn't have much time the tournament is coming up. To what lengths will he go to win?