Customer Reviews

The Ascent of Wonder: The Evolution of Hard SF

5 star:		(6)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

If you're a fan of hard science fiction, you need to own "The Ascent of Wonder: The Evolution of Hard SF." Period. Even if you have, as I do, a large collection of hardcover and paperback science fiction books that collectively contain many of the stories reprinted in this volume, you still need it.

As you might expect, many of the stories are from the "Golden Age" of the 1940's and `50's: you'll find classics such as Hal Clement's "Proof" (1942), James Blish's "Surface Tension" (1952) and Tom Godwin's haunting "The Cold Equations" (1954). Representing later years are such riveting tales as Theodore L. Thomas' "The Weather Man" (1962), Bob Shaw's "Light of Other Days" (1966) and Donald Kingsbury's "To Bring In the Steel" (1978). The 67 stories in "The Ascent of Wonder" make up a fantastic smorgasbord of the best hard science fiction of all time. But wait, there's more...there are three essays, totaling about 30 pages, on hard science fiction, written by editors David G. Hartwell and Kathryn Kramer and noted author Gregory Benford. Each story also contains a relatively short (half a page or so) but exceptionally insightful introduction. These alone make "The Ascent of Wonder" worth having.

With 990 pages of small, dense type, this volume is big and heavy. But even if you have to put an extra brace on your bookshelf to hold the weight, you should buy it. Quite simply, there is no better compilation of the imaginative, speculative, science-based stories that form the genre's "visionary core."

This book presents a massive collection of excellent "hard" science fiction stories. (The precise definition of "hard" s-f is left as an exercise to the alert reader.) While the stories are unimpeachable, the introductions and section headings written by the editors range from merely dull to painful. Buy the book, love the book, read the stories, skip the editorial matter.

This weighty tome, is absolutely packed with some of the definitive stories of hard science fiction. The introductions to the stories illustrate the trends from the late 19th century to today. Although there is an annoying misuse of the word 'affect' for 'effect', the story reviews are illuminating as to the great authors and their stories. To have read this book is to have gained an overview of the evolution science fiction, to see where it all came from, to see the stories that started the subgenres, to know what IS the core of SF, hard SF.

I found some great stories here that were new to me. It's a good collection of stories but there are a number of well-written stories here that are not Hard Science Fiction. The title is misleading. The editors seem to have no sympathy with the genre. In their introductions to the stories they seem to sneer at the whole genre from their elevated literary viewpoint. They are entitled to their opinions, but then, why did they do this collection? I suppose a collection entitled "A Gentle Introduction to the Better Sort of Science Fiction by Those Who Know Better Than You", or "Science Fiction that You Don't Need to be Embarrassed to Show your English-major Friends", wouldn't have much of a market. The snobbery and put-downs are really annoying.

So, as has been suggested, skip the editorial commentary, let the stories speak for themselves.

"The Ascent of Wonder" should be on the shelf of any reader, and especially any writer, of science fiction. There are enough stories packed inside to keep any fan, new or old, drifting through the myriad universes that some of the best minds in the genre could concieve.

David Hartwell and Kathryn Cramer are experienced science fiction anthologists, well-known for their annual "Year's Best SF" collections. In this themed anthology, they trace the development of "hard science fiction" through 1994. In three separate introductions by Gregory Benford, Cramer, and then Hartwell, this subgenre is defined and redefined. Fascinating stuff.

Then come the stories, sixty-seven of them. Each is introduced by a tightly-written, part-page description of the author's life, beliefs, and other written works. There are some very good stories here. I'll list five that I liked very much. Your top five may well be different.

Tom Godwin's "The Cold Equations" illustrates the danger of taking along just enough of everything--air, fuel, mass--on a space trip. There is always the unexpected.

Poul Anderson's "Kyrie" demonstrates how love can last forever--and we find this not the least bit comforting.

In James Blish's "Surface Tension" the main characters are marooned in an alien world and must overcome obstacles and opposition to build the ship that can rise above their world into the unknown. Will their ancient metal records help them or hold them back?

Arthur C. Clark takes "The Longest Science Fiction Story Ever Told" and strips it down to its essentials.

Isaac Asimov serves up perhaps the longest short-short science fiction story ever told as he slowly builds the tension while we wait for a supercomputer's answer to "The Last Question."

At nearly a thousand pages, this collection requires some serious reading commitment. If you like good science fiction, it's worth it. These stories are all worth reading and most bring the sense of wonder characteristic of good, imaginative writing. True to their hard SF tradition, the authors don't "fake" the science one bit more than is necessary.

Excellent!!!! WELL worth the money. I've been slowly chipping away at it for over a year now. You really get alot of book for the money here, and most of the stories are very interesting. The editor's notes/prefaces are also very good and informative, I've learned alot about the genre. Don't even try to get it from the library, you have to buy it to savor it in stages. Good luck, it's a mind-blower!

This is a monster collection. Also a very impressive anthology, as it weighs in at a 3.81 story average. This is after over SIXTY stories, that have been put together to illustrate different styles of hard SF story and story telling, put together in three sections.

There is commentary on each author and their manner of writing and career in general.

The editor also gives a different style grouping at the end, if you decide to look at it this way. A 1000 page tome basically that is a must have for those interested in the subject.

Ascent of Wonder : Nine Lives - Ursula K. Le Guin
Ascent of Wonder : Light of Other Days - Bob Shaw
Ascent of Wonder : Rappaccini's Daughter - Nathaniel Hawthorne
Ascent of Wonder : The Star - Arthur C. Clarke
Ascent of Wonder : Proof - Hal Clement
Ascent of Wonder : It's Great to Be Back - Robert A. Heinlein
Ascent of Wonder : Procreation - Gene Wolfe
Ascent of Wonder : Mimsy Were the Borogoves - Henry Kuttner and C. L. Moore
Ascent of Wonder : Davy Jones' Ambassador - Raymond Z. Gallun
Ascent of Wonder : The Life and Times of Multivac - Isaac Asimov
Ascent of Wonder : The Singing Diamond - Robert L. Forward
Ascent of Wonder : Down and Out on Ellfive Prime - Dean Ing
Ascent of Wonder : Send Me a Kiss By Wire - Hilbert Schenck
Ascent of Wonder : The Xi Effect - Philip Latham
Ascent of Wonder : A Descent into the Maelstrom - Edgar Allan Poe
Ascent of Wonder : Exposures - Gregory Benford
Ascent of Wonder : The Planners - Kate Wilhelm
Ascent of Wonder : Beep - James Blish
Ascent of Wonder : Drode's Equations - Richard Grant
Ascent of Wonder : The Weather Man - Theodore L. Thomas
Ascent of Wonder : Transit of Earth - Arthur C. Clarke
Ascent of Wonder : Prima Belladonna - J. G. Ballard
Ascent of Wonder : To Bring in the Steel - Donald M. Kingsbury
Ascent of Wonder : Gomez - C. M. Kornbluth
Ascent of Wonder : Waterclap - Isaac Asimov
Ascent of Wonder : Weyr Search - Anne McCaffrey
Ascent of Wonder : Message Found in a Copy of Flatland - Rudy Rucker
Ascent of Wonder : The Cold Equations - Tom Godwin
Ascent of Wonder : The Land Ironclads - H. G. Wells
Ascent of Wonder : The Hole Man - Larry Niven
Ascent of Wonder : Atomic Power - John W. Campbell
Ascent of Wonder : Stop Evolution in Its Tracks - John T. Sladek
Ascent of Wonder : The Hungry Guinea Pig - Miles J. Breuer
Ascent of Wonder : The Very Slow Time Machine - Ian Watson
Ascent of Wonder : The Beautiful and the Sublime - Bruce Sterling
Ascent of Wonder : The Author of the Acacia Seeds - Ursula K. Le Guin
Ascent of Wonder : Heat of Fusion - John M. Ford
Ascent of Wonder : Dolphin's Way - Gordon R. Dickson
Ascent of Wonder : All the Hues of Hell - Gene Wolfe
Ascent of Wonder : Occam's Scalpel - Theodore Sturgeon
Ascent of Wonder : giANTS - Edward Bryant
Ascent of Wonder : Time Fuze - Randall Garrett
Ascent of Wonder : Desertion - Clifford D. Simak
Ascent of Wonder : Kyrie - Poul Anderson
Ascent of Wonder : The Person from Porlock - Raymond F. Jones
Ascent of Wonder : Day Million - Frederik Pohl
Ascent of Wonder : The Cage of Sand - J. G. Ballard
Ascent of Wonder : The Psychologist Who Wouldn't Do Awful Things to Rats - James Tiptree Jr.
Ascent of Wonder : In the Year 2889 - Jules Verne
Ascent of Wonder : Surface Tension - James Blish
Ascent of Wonder : No No Not Rogov! - Cordwainer Smith
Ascent of Wonder : In a Petri Dish Upstairs - George Turner
Ascent of Wonder : With the Night Mail - Rudyard Kipling
Ascent of Wonder : The Longest Science-Fiction Story Ever Told - Arthur C. Clarke
Ascent of Wonder : The Pi Man - Alfred Bester
Ascent of Wonder : Relativistic Effects - Gregory Benford
Ascent of Wonder : Making Light - James P. Hogan
Ascent of Wonder : The Last Question - Isaac Asimov
Ascent of Wonder : The Indefatigable Frog - Philip K. Dick
Ascent of Wonder : Chromatic Aberration - John M. Ford
Ascent of Wonder : The Snowball Effect - Katherine MacLean
Ascent of Wonder : The Morphology of the Kirkham Wreck - Hilbert Schenck
Ascent of Wonder : Tangents - Greg Bear
Ascent of Wonder : Johnny Mnemonic - William Gibson
Ascent of Wonder : What Continues What Fails... - David Brin
Ascent of Wonder : Mammy Morgan Played the Organ; Her Daddy Beat the Drum - Michael F. Flynn
Ascent of Wonder : Bookworm Run! - Vernor Vinge


Clonepacks come in tens.

4 out of 5


A sad story of a use for 'slow glass' technology that traps light for an extended period of time.

3 out of 5


Chastity death touch defence.

3.5 out of 5


Jesuit crewing for amusement finds supernova technology treasure cache is Star of Bethlehem reference point.

3.5 out of 5


ET space chemistry tale.

4 out of 5


Groundhogs too dumb for lunar couple.

4 out of 5


Microverse maker.

4.5 out of 5


A technology discovery is beyond the adults, but definitely not the children, with unforeseen results.

4.5 out of 5


Busted bathysphere first contact prison escape passenger.

3.5 out of 5


Supercomputer overlord subservience breaking point.

4 out of 5


Asteroid music and metal from micros

4 out of 5


Drifters and grifters dragooned due to space station rain problem.

3.5 out of 5


Giant squid shagging.

4.5 out of 5


Spectrum shrinking supremely serious.

4 out of 5


Sea storm spinning around survival.

3.5 out of 5


Astronomical observations.

3 out of 5


Monkey brain business.

3 out of 5


Spook space tricks and tech of time communication.

4 out of 5


Mathematical understanding.

3.5 out of 5


Meterological political power struggles.

4 out of 5


Marsnaut's useful ending.

3.5 out of 5


Mutant girl, plant music, big spider.

3 out of 5


Whore governess troubleshooter happiness hire finds out space can be interesting.

4.5 out of 5


Unified field theory discovery lost in hormone wash, perhaps.

4 out of 5


Outer space undersea visit has terrorist plan. Extemporaneous Jupiter project plan convinces laser wielder to desist.

4 out of 5


Teleportin' time-shiftin' meteor shootin' dragon recruitin'.

4.5 out of 5


Lower down stranding.

3.5 out of 5


Kid is a waste of oxygen.

5 out of 5


Give tanks a try.

3.5 out of 5


Quantum black hole is ridiculous overkill.

3.5 out of 5


Gravity busted = very bad.

4 out of 5


Creationists are boring nerds.

3.5 out of 5


Pet. Very large.

3 out of 5


Step back before forward.

4 out of 5


Copying what a dragonfly does is rather complex.

3.5 out of 5


Lower order communication.

3.5 out of 5


Irradiated recollections.

4 out of 5


Interspecies communication has much wider importance.

5 out of 5


Physical ambiguity.

4 out of 5


People alteration protection.

3 out of 5


Bigger mutants the solution.

4 out of 5


Supralight supernova situation.

4.5 out of 5


Altered man mission adds a mutt.

4.5 out of 5


Supernova human alien telepathic communication ending prolonged.

4 out of 5


Alien scientific interference.

5 out of 5


Stored love.

3.5 out of 5


Cape Kennedy beached red.

4 out of 5


People experiments maybe more fun.

3.5 out of 5


Future seems like the same old, if you are there.

3 out of 5


Mini water men fancy space travel.

3.5 out of 5


Soviet science couple's brain needle journey.

4 out of 5


Orbital-Earthworm relationships and differences with brainwashing meltdown muscular mayhem.

4 out of 5


Postal progress still has the odd issue.

4 out of 5


Recursive rejection.

4 out of 5


Prose patterns.

3 out of 5


Jury rigged for continuing speed perhaps pointless.

4 out of 5


World project.

3.5 out of 5


Immortal humans breed too fast for the universe.

4 out of 5


Zeno even immune to amphibian Atom.

3.5 out of 5


Colors and war.

3 out of 5


Sociology maybe can do something.

3 out of 5


Chrononauts sea save.

3.5 out of 5


Tesseract visions.

3.5 out of 5


Memory boy, samurai girl, cyborg dolphin hook up.

4 out of 5


Black hole and baby making.

4 out of 5


Ghost physics.

4 out of 5


Chimp gets computer brain, leaves because he prefers sf and Tarzan to history.

4 out of 5

Perhaps the best of its kind, "The Ascent of Wonder" is quite large, but full of thoughtful and thought-provoking stories, all based in scientific fact (or widely accepted supposition). Clearly these stories are all fiction, playing out ideas that science has created and extending them into the realm of the "what-if?" I was immensely impressed by the range of authors, dates of pubication -- ranging from 1800's pioneers Verne, Wells, and Kipling through to modern-day masters such as Clarke, Dick, Gibson, and Benford -- and variety of stories. Truly a fine example of the growth of Science Fiction through history. A must-read for those interested in the exploration of science and the future.

This is a massive and ambitious work. High quality and a lot for the money. I felt somewhat deceived by the title though. Many of the stories seem to define Hard Science Fiction by illustrating an exception to the rules. The editors seem to have gone out of their way to include nontypical examples and surprise us with authors that we didn't expect. H.G.Wells? OK. Rudyard Kipling? I don't think so. J.G.Ballard. Not really. At least, not MY definition. See my list: The Scientist/Engineer/Inventor Hero in Science Fiction