The Demolished Man by
Alfred Bester
pbk out July 99
(Millenium)
at £6.99
Millennium Books has embarked upon a project deserving of applause and support. The SF Masterworks series is an attempt to put back into
print some of the best science fiction novels of the past seventy years. Published at the rate of two each month, the series has thus far included such gems as THE DEMOLISHED MAN and THE STARS MY DESTINATION by Alfred Bester, DO ANDROIDS DREAM OF ELECTRIC SHEEP by Philip K. Dick, I AM LEGEND by Richard Matheson, and novels by Zelazny, Wolfe and Delaney. Future offerings include talents like Vonnegut, Le Guin, Moorcock and Ballard.
Some of the books in the series might be seen as more "classic" than others, and the choices are no doubt influenced by what the publisher can affordably obtain the rights to (is Dick's MARTIAN TIME-SLIP really a more important work than THE MAN IN THE HIGH CASTLE?), but
quibbling about such things is half the fun of a "masterworks" list.
For example, while it's a fine piece of work, I've always thought Joe Haldeman's THE FOREVER WAR slightly overrated - but at least you can now buy a copy and decide for yourself. And while some of these titles were already easier to find than others, it is nice to be able to go out and get a clean, new copy of a book like I AM LEGEND, not to mention *any* kind of copy of work by dense-but-important Olaf Stapledon. The packaging of the editions is outwardly attractive -
oversized paperbacks, with bold new covers - though some of the books appear to be reprinted from old typesetting, some of which is a little tough on the eye. Still, better a slightly ungainly font than
no text at all. The SF Masterworks series offers the chance for readers to gain a quick education in classics of the genre, and is infinitely more deserving of your time and money than the latest hacked-out, media tie-in garbage that dominates science fiction
shelves.
(
Jay Russell
- one of the greatest talents the horror industry has produced for some time… (Black Tears))
The Demolished Man by
Alfred Bester