Related Books
This page is of books neither written nor edited by Robert Silverberg, but related to him in some way. Mostly it's anthologies his stories appear in.
Contents:
Billed as "Three short novels of the American future."
This has got to be the major source for any information about science fiction, writers, themes, movies, and anything else you might want. The editors, who write most of the entries, are quite knowledgeable and reasonably fair, making judgments without being too biased. Their entry on Silverberg (written by Brian Stableford) contains the clearest explanation of the pseudonyms I have found. It's a bit pricey, but I picked up the soft-cover version at a discount store for 60% off (damaged copy). The 1995 edition contains substantial updates, corrections, and expansions from the 1993 edition.
Terry Carr asked these three writers to "effect a blending of the science-fiction genre with questions of transcendental experience."
Robert Silverberg's Time Tours #2. Second in the series started with The Robin Hood Ambush.
This is a stunning book of artwork by British painter Jim Burns, who has done most of Silverberg's cover illustrations since about 1980. In Silverberg's introduction to this book, he writes that Jim Burns "by some mysterious process of psychic tuning seems to have become the artist I was meant to have all along." There are beautiful reproductions of many Silverberg covers (without the print) including Gilgamesh the King, Downward to the Earth, Lord Valentine's Castle, and many others, including the different British covers. |
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This is a fascinating book for anyone interested in the craft of science fiction writing or that eternal question: Where do you get your ideas?
Ellison presented a series of evening classes in science fiction at UCLA in 1975, and for one of those classes he conceived this project. He would assemble some of the top writers of the genre, present them with a planet (Medea) designed by other top writers, and have them throw around ideas before an audience. Parts 3-6 above are the actual notes presented to the seminar participants. Part 7 is a transcription of the evening's discussion. Part 8 contains some of the written responses from audience members regarding the discussion. Part 9 contains some miscellaneous thoughts from the participants after the fact. Parts 10-20 are stories written to go along with the scenario. As it turns out, the stories are somewhat inconsistent about some aspects of the planet, but it was decided to leave them alone and present them as written.
Later, Silverberg would assemble a similar project (though without an audience!) called Murasaki.
From the cover blurb:
After long years of struggle, the fight for acceptance and equality is over. The mutant clans have fit themselves and their extraordinary talents into the mainstream of human society. But when peculiar phenomena begin in the New Mexican desert--"miracle" cures, supernatural rescues--the issue of mutancy rises once more to the forefront of human affairs. At the center of the conflict are three strong and vastly different personalities, three men who will guide the tides on human destiny--and ultimately the tides of evolutionary destiny as well:
Joachim Metzger--Leader of the mutant clans, desperate to keep the hard-won peace and prosperity his people have finally achieved.
Julian Akimura--The brilliant therapist who banished his twin brother, Rick, in the hopes of saving humanity from his unsurpassed mutant talents.
Rick Akimura--The long-sought supermutant, the promise of whose power has been the blinding force of mutant society for centuries--and whose coming is nothing that anyone could have foretold.
The fourth and final book of the Mutant series begun with The Mutant Season. Robert Silverberg wrote an Introduction.
From the cover blurb:
Spring comes to the mutant clans.
Now, in this sequel to Robert Silverberg and Karen Haber's The Mutant Season, the mutants begin to emerge from their long, hidden sleep. Slowly, quietly, they have slipped into the paths of ordinary life and become caught up in the everyday problems that face all of us, mutant or normal. One career is stalled. Another is threatened by the political need for a scapegoat. The clan must come together again.
Michael, trapped in a loveless marriage and facing the blame for a disaster in which he had no part.
Melanie, separated from clan and family, fighting to prove her worth in the world of normals.
Narlydda, using her fame and wealth as a blind for her mutant identity, trapped in an age of luxury.
Now, from nowhere comes a man who thrusts himself into all their lives--a man who might change the world. Is Victor Ashman the long-awaited, long-sought supermutant--the Mutant Prime? Before his frightening powers can turn the normal world against them all, the clan must find him, and--if necessary--stop him.
The second Mutant book, sequel to The Mutant Season, set some 15 years later. With an Introduction by Robert Silverberg.
From the cover blurb:
For hundreds of years, the mutants walked among us, concealing their dazzling psychic abilities, living in fear. With the coming of the 1990s, the mutants took their rightful place in normal human society in a storm of political upheaval. Now, as summer ripens for the mutant clans, the long struggle for equality nears its end. But the mutants' awesome talents--and their belief in the coming of a mutant messiah--still set them apart. The clans can join together in hope...but for how long?
Alanna, talented in her own right, but overshadowed by the brilliance of her mother, the world-renowned artist Narlydda.
Julian, the gifted graduate student, hoping to forge a link between medicine and mutant healing--and between himself and the beautiful researcher, Eva Seguy.
Rick, Julian's mercurial twin brother, whose lack of mutant talents is his burden...and his freedom.
Strange currents are flowing, and the entire world is about to change. Unthinkable and unspeakable powers are about to the released, powers that not even the massed mutants can control.
The third book of the Mutant series begun with The Mutant Season, continuing the saga to the next generation. Silverberg wrote an Introduction to the novel.
This is a "Crossroads Adventure" set on Silverberg's Majipoor, not a continuous story. It's sort of a combination of a role-playing game and an interactive novel in a book. The reader develops stats for the main character, the author sets up a situation, then the reader rolls dice to determine the outcome ("Roll 3 D6. If the roll is greater than Parras' Dexterity, turn to section 2. If the roll is less than his Dexterity, turn to section 3. If the roll is less than 6, turn to section 4.") Incidentally, the Introduction (by Silverberg) contains some interesting notes about Majipoor, including The Very Beginning of the Idea.
This is #82 in Greenwood's Contributions to the Study of Science Fiction and Fantasy series, one of two about Silverberg (the other is Robert Silverberg's Many Trapdoors). According to the publisher, "This book offers a broad study of Silverberg's growth as a writer and illuminates a career that still eludes easy assessment. Chapman not only explores Silverberg's works, but also illuminates the many factors that shaped the evolution of his works. What emerges is a complete picture of Silverberg and his craft."
See the publisher's site for more details.
This is #18 of the Starmont Reader's Guide series. It is the source of most of the biographical information I have. In addition, Clareson provides a critical review of all Silverberg's major works through 1982. It's out of print, but I've seen copies at libraries and used book stores fairly regularly. The publisher is/was:
Starmont House
PO Box 851
Mercer Island WA 98040 USA
This is #53 in Greenwood's Contributions to the Study of Science Fiction and Fantasy series, one of two about Silverberg (the other is The Road to Castle Mount). It includes essays by Thomas D. Clareson and a number of other writers on such topics as "An Ironic Deflation of the Superman Myth: Literary Influence and Science Fiction Tradition in Dying Inside".
See the publisher's site for more info.
From the cover blurb:
A new series from the mind of the three-time Hugo and five-time Nebula award-winning Robert Silverberg!
Robert Silverberg's Time Tours
In the next century, time travel is a tourist business...a very risky tourist business. Couriers can take travelers into any time they wish. But once there, they'd better not change history. The Time Patrol is watching, and those who meddle with the past may find themselves erased from it!
The Robin Hood Ambush
Three high-school friends, Bob, Will, and Allan head back to AD 1189 for a vacation. What starts out as a trip to see King Richard the Lion-Hearted turns into a dangerous adventure!
A corrupt twenty-first century Time Patrolman is altering history to build an evil empire during the time of Robin Hood. The three boys wish Robin Hood would appear to help--but they know he was only a myth. No one around them knows it, though! Arming themselves with longbows, quarterstaffs, and tales of Robin Hood, the threesome set out to battle the Time Patrolman's criminal scheme...and bring alive a legend from the past!
This is the first volume of a series of Young Adult books from Harper based on a concept of time travel rather like that in Up the Line. Unfortunately, the series didn't last long (Goosebumps it wasn't), and the books are very hard to come by these days.
There's a nice Afterword by Silverberg on the subject of time travel.
This anthology was created as a tribute to the late editor Terry Carr. All the stories were donated by their respective authors in memory of one who did much for the field of science fiction.
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We all knew that The War of the Worlds didn't tell half the story. After all, those nasty cylinders landed all over the globe, and Wells just told us about the ones in England. (And Orson Welles told us about one in New Jersey.) Here are some glimpses of how the rest of the world handled the invasion as seen through the eyes of a variety of people living at the time, a tribute in honor of the 100th anniversary of the original book.
Last updated October 21, 2002
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