- Paperback: 264 pages
- Publisher: Oxford Paperbacks (1 Nov 1994)
- Language English
- ISBN-10: 0192892444
- ISBN-13: 978-0192892447
- Product Dimensions: 19.6 x 14.7 x 2 cm
- Amazon Bestsellers Rank: 1,455,218 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- See Complete Table of Contents
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Product Description
Product Description
This work is an attempt to look beyond science fiction as a series of texts and authors, and to try to see it for what it is - a peculiarly 20th-century genre of literature, which tries to make sense of the changes which science and technology has brought to modern society. It is also a cultural phenomenon which had had a considerable impact upon the way in which people view the world and their place in it. The book traces science fiction from the 19th century, through the establishment of American domination of the field after 1945, to the large-scale industry which it has now become. It also examines the special pleasures experienced by the science fiction reader, and the way in which this has brought into existence a community of readers and writers. Edward James is the editor of "Foundation: The Review of Science Fiction" and the first volume of "The New Cambridge Medieval History".
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Customer Reviews
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews on Amazon.com (beta)
Amazon.com:
2 reviews
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful
A good short analysis and history of the genre
29 Dec 2003
Format:Hardcover
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I came across this book while browsing our county library system's online
catalog -- I'd never heard of it, or Mr. James, and from the pristine condition
of the library's copy, it hasn't attracted much local attention. Which is a
shame, since it's quite a good book. All this preliminary blather is because I
can't quite figure out how to review it.
I came across this book while browsing our county library system's online
catalog -- I'd never heard of it, or Mr. James, and from the pristine condition
of the library's copy, it hasn't attracted much local attention. Which is a
shame, since it's quite a good book. All this preliminary blather is because I
can't quite figure out how to review it.
Hmm. Well, it's good and I liked it (drumroll as your reviewer is
summarily ejected from the Professional Critics Bureau).
OK. Mr. James is a medievalist, a long-term SF reader and fan, and is the
editor of Foundation: The Review of Science Fiction, a UK academic
journal. He writes well, knows SF, doesn't drift off into lit-crit la-la land (or
at least not very often), and I learned some Neat Stuff and had a good time.
Better?
He writes that the book is "intended as an introduction to science fiction...
for those who know little about it." I can't imagine such a person reading
this book unless required to do so, and can only suppose that he was hoping
for textbook sales to college science-fiction classes. That such classes are now
pretty common is still mind-boggling, for me anyway.
So, if you like reading SF criticism, see if your library has a copy. Or -- heck --
live it up and drop a tenner at amazon.co.uk. I promise that Mr. James is at
least as amusing, and far more eloquent, than your present reviewer.
Happy reading!
Pete Tillman
Science Fiction History At Its Best
17 Nov 2009
Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase
Science Fiction has never been given its due as a "real" branch of literature. This book places this genre in the general literature context and has traced its development in a clear, succint way. This should be read by anyone who has an interest in the genre its history, development, etc. the book links science fiction leterature with TV, film, music,etc. It also examines science fiction as a lens to determine meaing in the the world. Excellent.
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