It’s hard to believe that I’ve been writing a Friday’s Forgotten Books just about every Friday since Patti Abbott invited me to join her online group back in 2009. My first Friday’s Forgotten Books featured Theodore Sturgeon’s The Dreaming Jewels (you can read the review here). For the past 12 years I’ve been presenting Science Fiction, Fantasy, Mystery, and Horror books in celebration of the great writers we all love. For this #600 review, I thought I’d choose a classic SF anthology from 1953, Crossroads of Time with a great Richard Powers cover.
Many of my favorite SF writers are here: Murray Leinster, Clifford D. Simak, Fritz Leiber, F. L. Wallace, and Chad Oliver. Notice that Groff Conklin included two women SF writers, Margaret St. Clair and Katherine MacLean, a rare event for anthologies from the early 1950s. I hope you’re enjoying my reviews and the great books from The Kelley Collection! Thank you for your participation and feedback over all these years! GRADE: A
TABLE OF CONTENTS:
Introduction by Groff Conklin
“Assumption Unjustified” by Hal Clement (Astounding Science Fiction, October 1946)
“The Eagles Gather” by Joseph E. Kelleam (Astounding Science-Fiction, April 1942)
“The Queen’s Astrologer” by Murray Leinster (Thrilling Wonder Stories, October 1949)
“Derm Fool” by Theodore Sturgeon (Unknown Fantasy Fiction, March 1940)
“Courtesy” by Clifford D. Simak (Astounding Science Fiction, August 1951)
“Secret” by Lee Cahn (Astounding Science Fiction, January 1953)
“Thirsty God” by Margaret St. Clair (The Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction, March 1953)
“The Mutant’s Brother” by Fritz Leiber (Astounding Science-Fiction, August 1943)
“Student Body” by F. L. Wallace (Galaxy Science Fiction, March 1953)
“Made in U.S.A.” by J. T. McIntosh (Galaxy Science Fiction, April 1953)
“Technical Advisor” by Chad Oliver (The Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction, February 1953)
“Feedback” by Katherine MacLean (Astounding Science Fiction, July 1951)
“The Cave” by P. Schuyler Miller (Astounding Science-Fiction, January 1943)
“Vocation” by George O. Smith (Astounding Science Fiction, April 1945)
“The Time Decelerator” by A. Macfadyen, Jr. (Astounding Stories, July 1936)
“Zen” by Jerome Bixby (Galaxy Science Fiction, October 1952)
“Let There Be Light” by H. B. Fyfe (If, November 1952)
“The Brain” by Norbert Wiener (Technical Engineering News, April 1952)