About the Book
Poul Anderson was one of the seminal figures of twentieth-century science fiction. Named a Grand Master by the Science Fiction Writers of America in 1997, he produced an enormous body of standalone novels and series fiction and was equally at home in the fields of heroic fantasy and hard SF. He was a meticulous craftsman and a gifted storyteller, and the impact of his finest work continues, undiminished, to this day.
Multiverse: Exploring Poul Anderson's Worlds is a rousing, all-original anthology that stands both as a significant achievement in its own right and as a heartfelt tribute to a remarkable writer--and equally remarkable man. A nicely balanced mixture of fiction and reminiscence, Multiverse contains more than a dozen stories and novellas by some of today's finest writers, along with moving reflections by, among others, Anderson's wife, Karen; his daughter, Astrid Anderson Bear; and his son-in-law, novelist and coeditor Greg Bear. Bear's introduction, "My Friend Poul," is particularly illuminating and insightful.
The fictional contributions comprise a kaleidoscopic array of imaginative responses to Anderson's many and varied fictional worlds. A few of the highlights include Nancy Kress' "Outmoded Things" and Terry Brooks' "The Fey of Cloudmoor," stories inspired by the Hugo Award-winning "The Queen of Air and Darkness"; a pair of truly wonderful Time Patrol stories, "A Slip in Time" by S. M. Stirling and "Christmas in Gondwanaland" by Robert Silverberg; Raymond E. Feist's Dominic Flandry adventure, "A Candle"; and a pair of very different homages to the classic fantasy novel, Three Hearts and Three Lions: "The Man Who Came Late" by Harry Turtledove and "Three Lilies and Three Leopards (And a Participation Ribbon in Science)" by Tad Williams. These stories, together with singular contributions by such significant figures as Larry Niven, Gregory Benford, and Eric Flint, add up to a memorable, highly personal anthology that lives up to the standards set by the late--and indisputably great--Poul Anderson.
About the Author :
Greg Bear is the author of more than thirty books of science fiction and fantasy, including Forerunner: Cryptum, Mariposa, Darwin's Radio, Eon, and Quantico. He is married to Astrid Anderson Bear and is the father of Erik and Alexandra. His works have been published internationally in over twenty languages. Bear has been called the "Best working writer of hard science fiction" by the Ultimate Encyclopedia of Science Fiction. Greg Bear is the author of more than thirty books of science fiction and fantasy, including Forerunner: Cryptum, Mariposa, Darwin's Radio, Eon, and Quantico. He is married to Astrid Anderson Bear and is the father of Erik and Alexandra. His works have been published internationally in over twenty languages. Bear has been called the "Best working writer of hard science fiction" by the Ultimate Encyclopedia of Science Fiction. Greg Bear is the author of more than thirty books of science fiction and fantasy, including Forerunner: Cryptum, Mariposa, Darwin's Radio, Eon, and Quantico. He is married to Astrid Anderson Bear and is the father of Erik and Alexandra. His works have been published internationally in over twenty languages. Bear has been called the "Best working writer of hard science fiction" by the Ultimate Encyclopedia of Science Fiction. Gardner Dozois, one of the most acclaimed editors in science fiction, has won the Hugo Award for Best Professional Editor fifteen times, as well as the Kate Wilhelm Solstice Award. He was the editor of Asimov's Science Fiction magazine for twenty years, is the editor of the Year's Best Science Fiction anthologies, and is coeditor of the Warriors anthologies, Songs of the Dying Earth, and many others. As a writer, Dozois twice won the Nebula Award for Best Short Story. He lives in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
Gardner Dozois, one of the most acclaimed editors in science fiction, has won the Hugo Award for Best Professional Editor fifteen times, as well as the Kate Wilhelm Solstice Award. He was the editor of Asimov's Science Fiction magazine for twenty years, is the editor of the Year's Best Science Fiction anthologies, and is coeditor of the Warriors anthologies, Songs of the Dying Earth, and many others. As a writer, Dozois twice won the Nebula Award for Best Short Story. He lives in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
Nancy Kress is the author of more than thirty books, including more than a dozen novels of science fiction and fantasy. Her novels have won two Hugo and six Nebula awards as well as the John W. Campbell Memorial Award for best science fiction novel. She lives in Seattle.
Harry Turtledove, known as the "Master of Alternative History," is the Hugo and Nebula Award-winning author of a number of bestselling series and standalone novels. He received his PhD from UCLA in Byzantine history and worked as a technical writer for the Los Angeles County Office of Education before becoming a full-time fiction writer. He also served as the treasurer of the Science Fiction Writers of America. He has written a number of successful series, including the Crosstime Traffic series, the Darkness series, and the Worldwar I Colonization series, among others. His standalone works include Ruled Brittania, Every Inch a King, Conan of Venarium, Household Gods, and Justinian.
S. M. Stirling is the author of science fiction and fantasy fiction, including three stand-alone novels and many novels in eight series, as well as novels in five more series in which he collaborated with Anne McCaffrey, Jerry Pournell, and David Drake, among others.
C. J. Cherryh planned to write since the age of ten. When she was older, she learned to use a typewriter while triple-majoring in Classics, Latin, and Greek. With more than seventy books to her credit, and the winner of three Hugo Awards, she is one of the most prolific and highly respected authors in the science fiction field. Cherryh has been named a Damon Knight Memorial Grand Master by the Science Fiction Writers of America.
Stephen Baxter is an acclaimed, multiple award-winning author whose many books include the Xeelee Sequence series, the Time Odyssey trilogy (written with Arthur C. Clarke), and The Time Ships, a sequel to H. G. Wells's classic The Time Machine. He lives in England.
Eric Flint is a modern master of alternate history fiction, with three million books in print. He is the author and creator of the bestselling Ring of Fire series, starting with the novel 1632. He was for many years a labor union activist. He lives near Chicago, Illinois.
Terry Brooks has thrilled readers for decades with his powers of imagination and storytelling. He is the author of more than thirty books, most of which have been New York Times bestsellers. He is a recipient of the 2017 World Fantasy Association's Life Achievement Award. His novels Running with the Demon and A Knight of the Word were chosen by the Rocky Mountain News as two of the best fantasy novels of the twentieth century.
Robert Silverberg's career stretches back to the pulps and his output is amazing by any standard. He is a multiple winner of both Hugo and Nebula Awards, a member of the Science Fiction and Fantasy Hall of Fame, and was named a Grand Master of Science Fiction in 2004 by the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America. He has attended every Hugo Awards ceremony since the inaugural event in 1953. His major works include The Book of Skulls, The Alien Years, The World Inside, Nightfall and The Positronic Man with Isaac Asimov, Nightwings, and the seven Majipoor Cycle books, as well as numerous anthologies.
David Brin is a scientist, speaker, technical consultant, and winner of the Freedom of Speech Award. His novels--including Earth, The Postman, Startide Rising, and Kiln People--have been New York Times bestsellers, winning multiple Hugo, Nebula, and other awards. He lives near San Diego, California.
Jerry Pournelle (1933-2017) was an American science fiction writer, essayist, and journalist who contributed for many years to the computer magazine Byte. He wrote the popular Janissaries and CoDominium series and was the coauthor of several bestselling science fiction novels, including Lucifer's Hammer, The Mote in God's Eye, and the New York Times bestseller Footfall. He had advanced degrees in engineering, political science, statistics, and psychology and, in addition to his career as a fiction writer, had for many years written columns on both politics and technology.
Raymond E. Feist is the New York Times and Times of London bestselling author of more than two dozen novels, including Magician, Silverthorn, and A Darkness at Sethanon, the three novels comprising the Riftwar Saga, the first series in the Arc that has become known as the Riftwar Cycle. A Southern Californian by birth and a San Diegan by choice, he was educated at the University of California-San Diego, where he received his BA in communication arts with honors in 1977.
Larry Niven is the New York Times bestselling and multiple Hugo, Locus, and Nebula Award-winning author of science fiction short stories and novels, including the Ringworld series and The Burning City, as well as many other science fiction masterpieces.
Gregory Benford is a professor of physics and astronomy at the University of California, Irvine. A Woodrow Wilson Fellow and a member of Phi Beta Kappa, he received the Lord Prize for contributions to science in 1995 and the Asimov Memorial Award for popularizing science in 2007. He has written numerous works of science fiction, receiving a Nebula Award and a John W. Campbell Memorial Award for his novel Timescape.
Tad Williams is a California-based fantasy superstar. His genre-creating (and genre-busting) books have sold tens of millions worldwide. His works include the worlds of Otherland, Shadowmarch, and Osten Ard--including the Memory, Sorrow, and Thorn, and The Last King of Osten Ard series--as well as standalone novels Tailchaser's Song and The War of the Flowers. His considerable output of epic fantasy, science fiction, urban fantasy, comics, and more have strongly influenced a generation of writers. Tad and his family live in the Santa Cruz mountains in a suitably strange and beautiful house. He can be found at tadwilliams.com or on Twitter at @tadwilliams.
Jim Manchester is a retired English and theater teacher in Rhode Island. He has directed and acted in many theatrical productions over the years and has done voice-over work in the Providence area. Jim resides in the lovely seaport town of Bristol, Rhode Island.
Richard Powers has published thirteen novels. He is a MacArthur Fellow and received the National Book Award. He won the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction for The Overstory, and Bewilderment was shortlisted for the Booker Prize.
Charlotte Anne Dore is a member of SAG/AFTRA and AEA. She works in theater and film around New England. She played Elizabeth Hopkins in The American Experience and was a gorilla puppeteer in Zookeeper. She runs the award-winning Rosalita's Puppets. As a storyteller, she has worked for Ghost and Gravestones ghost tour and Read Boston, a summer reading program.
Stephen R. Thorne, winner of multiple AudioFile Earphones Awards for narration, is a professional actor and member of the resident acting company at Providence's esteemed Trinity Repertory Company, where he has played Hamlet, Henry V, and Tom Joad.
Susan Boyce is the award-winning narrator of over 140 audiobooks. She performs in variety theater, is one half of the song-and-dance team of Jones & Boyce, and holds a degree in theater and biology. She can be heard in phone trees, in computer games, and as the voice of the pink "Care Bear." She lives in St. Augustine, Florida, and summers in Greenville, Maine.
Shaun Grindell, actor and Earphones Award-winning narrator, was born and raised in Southampton, England. His training includes the Calland School of Speech and Drama and the Lee Strasberg Theatre and Film Institute in London. He has been seen on stage in London and Las Vegas.
Rebecca Mitchell is a performance artist and classically trained vocalist, as well as a professional host, emcee, and personality. Her natural flair for the dramatic, coupled with her love of being in the studio, brought her to the world of narrating in 2013.
Charlie Thurston is an experienced audiobook narrator, actor, and playwright who has received numerous Earphones Awards for his work. He has appeared on Law and Order: SVU, and his voice can be heard in audiobooks such as The Oracle Year, Southernmost, The Terranauts, and The Unfinished Life of Addison Stone.
Angela Brazil is an AudioFile Earphones Award-winning narrator and a professional actor who is proud to be a long-standing member of the Resident Acting Company at Trinity Repertory Company. She also teaches at the Brown/Trinity Conservatory.
Rachel Dulude is a costume technician at Trinity Rep. She earned a BA from Plymouth State University in acting. Rachel has performed in productions with the Wilbury Group and at Barker Playhouse in Providence and in the US premiere of Anne Boleyn at the Gamm Theatre in Pawtucket, Rhode Island. She is a member of Providence's Improv Jones.
Barry Press has been an active professional actor, director, and teacher for over thirty-five years. He has performed off Broadway and at numerous regional theaters from Alaska to Florida. He is founder and artistic director of Living Literature, a Rhode Island-based literacy program.
Mark Peckham is an actor and director based in Rhode Island. In addition to working with Trinity Rep, Virginia Stage Co., and many Boston-area theaters, he was the voice of Joseph Smith in the award-winning PBS documentary American Prophet with Gregory Peck.
Review :
"Editors Dozois and Bear present seventeen heartfelt tributes to Anderson, including biographical observations, by friends and family, and fiction by respected longtime writers."
-- "Publishers Weekly"