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A master at combining comedy with science fiction, author Douglas Adams has had great critical and commercial success with comic novels such as The Dirk Gently Holistic Detective Agency. His Hitchhiker's Trilogy consists of five volumes: The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy; The Restaurant at the End of the Universe; Life, the Universe and Everything; So Long, and Thanks for All the Fish; and Mostly Harmless. This is probably the funniest SF series ever written. Now if you�re a hoopy frood who knows where his towel is at, then you'll know what I�m talking about. If you're lost - then you need The Guide! [TOP]

Poul Anderson is one of science fiction's acknowledged masters. The winner of eight Hugos, three Nebulas, and the Gandalf Grand Master award, is best known for his space-opera style short stories. Anderson was born on the 25 of November, 1926. His SF writing career has spanned more than 50 years.[TOP]

During his lifetime, world-renowned author Isaac Asimov was called a "genius" (and was, in fact, a card-carrying member of the Mensa organization). His writing career spanned more than forty-five years and produced 477 published books of nearly every type of fiction and nonfiction.

Born in Russia in 1920, Isaac emigrated to New York in 1923. During his childhood, the boy could invariably be found at the local public library reading shelf by shelf. The "Good Doctor" began writing science fiction at the age of eleven. Doubleday published his first book-length work of science fiction, Pebble in the Sky, in 1950, and he branched out into nonfiction with a scientific textbook published in 1951. Since then, Asimov went on to write about almost every subject under the sun, ranging from math to physic, from the Bible to Shakespeare. Among those were the international bestseller Foundation's Edge, The Robots of Dawn, and Foundation and Earth.

In addition to winning numerous Hugo and Nebula Awards, Dr. Asimov was given a special Nebula Award, designating him a Grand Master of Science Fiction. Sadly, Isaac Asimov passed away on April 6, 1992. [TOP]

Marion Zimmer Bradley has written about a zillion novels, short stories, articles, recipes, etc. My favorite MZB series is Darkover. Fans are always arguing about the order in which these books should be read. Some like to read them in chronological time line order , while others read them in the order in which they were written. Personally, I recommend reading The Bloody Sun first and then going back and reading them in chronological order. The reason I recommend The Bloody Sun as a starting point is that the protagonist, Jeff Kerwin, arrives on the planet as ignorant as the first time reader. The journey that one takes along with Jeff Kerwin as he discovers the planet of Cottman IV is guaranteed to make one more Darkover fan. [TOP]

We absolutely love the writings of Lois McMaster Bujold! If you�ve never read a Miles Vorkosigan novel you are missing a treat. Never was there a more unlikely (and likeable) hero than this brittle boned dwarf. [TOP]

One of our favorite authors is Orson Scott Card. He has, to date, written about 30 books (give or take a few). News Flash! Turns out that "Ender's Game" is being made into a movie--and OSC is writing the screenplay. We don't know too many particulars yet, but stay tuned... Card's latest book: "Homebody" is due out February 1998. If you can't wait till then you can preview the first two chapters here. [TOP]

C.J. Cherryh is the author of an impressive number of books. She first achieved fame with a Hugo Award in 1981 for "Downbelow Station", a complex novel about the political struggle on a space station during a war between Earth and its rebellious interstellar colonies. [TOP]

Arthur C. Clarke's strong interest in the frontiers of science was evident early. He majored in physics and mathematics while at King's College. He was chairman of the British Interplanetary Society 1946-47, and again 1950-53.

Clarke is an author of apparent paradoxes. Although he is most closely identified with intellectual, technological, hard SF, he is strongly attracted to the metaphysical, and mystical. Not only was he a commentator on CBS TV for the 11,12 and 15 Apollo missions, but for many years he hosted The Mysterious World of Arthur C. Clarke, a paranormal Believe it or Not- style TV series.

Probably his best known work, 2001: A Space Odyssey, was originally written as a screenplay together with Stanley Kubrick. The novelization was written by Clarke alone only after the film had been made.

By the 1960s most of Arthur C. Clarke's creative energies had turned to writing non-fiction books and articles, many of them about undersea exploring; he was an enthusiastic skin-diver himself, one reason for his move to Sri Lanka in 1956. Arthur C. Clarke has been honored many times for his writing talents, garnering the coveted Hugo Award as well as the International Fantasy Award. Now, the British Crown has seen fit to bestow upon him the honor of knighthood. [TOP]

Charles DeLint is an author (and artist) who expertly blends fantasy with modern urban life. DeLint describes his writing as "fantasy for people who don't normally read fantasy". I highly recommend every single one of his books. Charles' latest novel Trader is out in hardcover now. Buy it. Read it. Ask for more...
Coming in Feb. 1998 -- Someplace to be Flying , a novel set in Newford. [TOP]

amateur

Susan M. Garrett an awful lot of self published "fan fiction" that is no less enjoyable nor less well written for all of its "amateur"

One of the leading science fiction writers of the twentieth century was Robert Heinlein. Probably the main theme in his work is the liberation of the individual from the limiting mores and customs of his culture. If we learn to see our culture from an outside perspective, we can break free and critically examine the values and beliefs that were imprinted upon us as defenseless children. Then we can choose what to keep, what to discard, and what to adopt instead. This is Robert Heinlein's vision of a free individual- the architect of one's own soul. [TOP]

"The Wheel of Time turns, and Ages come and pass, leaving memories that become legend. Legend fades to myth, and even myth is long forgotten when the Age that gave it birth comes again. In one Age, called the Third Age by some, an Age yet to come, an Age long past, a wind rose up among brown-thicketed hills in Cairhien. The wind was not the beginning. There are neither beginnings nor endings to the turning of the Wheel of Time. But it was a beginning."

Thus begins The Wheel of Time -- a series of fantasy novels written by Robert Jordan. It's an epic adventure that depicts the eternal struggle of good vs. evil. I resisted reading this series for years-- and am I glad I did. Not because the books are bad--au contraire--they are wonderful. But if I had started reading when the first book was released I think I would have lost my mind waiting for the rest to be published. There are currently seven novels in the series, and it is still growing. If you are into sprawling fantasy adventures, then these books are for you. But beware! If you have a weak back, don�t try to bring them home all at once... [TOP]

One of the best SF literary magazines we've ever come across is Locus. They are a terrific source of information on new releases, domestic as well as international. Their reviews are consise and generally we agree with them. They are also a great place to get just about the most complete listing of conventions worldwide! [TOP]

What can one say about JRR Tolkien that has not already been said? He is one of the most written about authors, both in and out of the fantasy genre. The Lord of the Rings remains the benchmark epic fantasy against which all others are judged. It all started more than 60 years ago when Prof. Tolkien, while grading a student's essay, scribbled on the back of the paper: "In a hole in the ground there lived a hobbit." [TOP]

Wild Cards is an anthology series written by an assemblage of today's science fiction writers. Their attempt was to create a realistic world which incorporates the "super powers" found in comic books, and to look at both their effect on the last fifty years of history, and history's effect on them. The primary catalyst for this is the fictional xenovirus Takis-A, better known as the Wild card Virus. The first volume begins with the story of the initial release of the virus over Manhattan soon after the end of World War Two, and the storyline continues up to the present.
So far, there are 15(!) volumes in the series, and I have not been disappointed yet. I highly recommend them! Some of the novels are really more of a mosaic of inter-related short stories, while others are more traditionally put together. Technically you can read them in any order, but I recommend keeping the chronology intact. [TOP]

I must admit that my first attraction toRoger Zelazny started with his Amber series, but I soon found that the rest of his writing is just as enjoyable. He may come last on our alphabetical bookshelf--but not in our affections! Roger was a very accessible author, always willing to make time for his fans. [TOP]

One very cool site that I've come across in my cyber-travels is SFSITE. It is a great spot to see what's new in SF & Fantasy books, films and television. [TOP]

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