Dust of Far Suns [Mass Market Paperback]

Jack Vance (Author)

Product Details

• Mass Market Paperback: 160 pages
• Publisher: DAW; 1st edition (January 6, 1981)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0879975881
• ISBN-13: 978-0879975883
• Product Dimensions: 6.7 x 4.1 x 0.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 3.2 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,454,587 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Classic Science Fiction, March 16, 2005

By 

IMHO (Toronto, ON) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Dust of Far Suns (Mass Market Paperback)

I bought this book, titled Dust of Far Suns (originally titled Future Tense), about 20 years ago and it has sat on my shelf until recently when I had a sudden urge to read it. I do not read a lot of science fiction but it is still one of my favorite genres in fiction. This is my first Jack Vance book; I have not even read one of his novels. I was truly impressed and surprised by the range and quality of the four stories in this volume. They are:

(1) Dust of Far Suns (originally, Sail 25) (1962) - space cadets on a training trip into the Solar System get tested by an old master
(2) Dodkin's Job (1959) - a humorous look at a future bureaucracy with the protagonist discovering a surprising truth and turning a few tables on others and the system
(3) Ullward's Retreat (1958) - an incredibly crowded future earth where the natural environment is decimated, and replaced by images and preserved indoor specimens
(4) The Gift of Gab (1955) - a business venture on an alien planet's ocean results in an unsuspected response from one of the undersea life forms

All stories are excellent, but I particularly enjoyed the first and forth. Even though these stories are half a century old, this is (to me) what science fiction is all about. Good characterizations, great and readable plots, and believable scientific and technological extrapolation into the distant (or not-too-distant) future. (I believe that Vance worked in, or was educated in, geological or mining engineering and thus has a technological background, one which is very evident in the stories.) In only minor ways do these stories seem "dated"; they are a great read even in the 21st century. What I also liked is that the stories are not overdone or over-the-top in plot and action, and the small details of plot or character ring true.

If this is the quality of other short stories or novelettes that Mr. Vance has written, I cannot believe there is not a current Jack Vance collection of all his best stories. On the basis of this collection alone his name should be as revered and recognized for his S.F. short stories as are other classic-era S.F. authors; in fact, I like these stories better than any short stories I remember reading by Isaac Asimov (and I like Isaac Asimov for the most part). Very entertaining and highly recommended! By it used or hope for a reprint in the (not-too-distant) future.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Too bad it's out of print, April 20, 2003

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mrliteral - See all my reviews
(TOP 1000 REVIEWER)    (VINE VOICE)   

This review is from: Dust of Far Suns (Mass Market Paperback)

Jack Vance is one of the great science fiction authors, a writer who has focused on adventure rather than science and has produced more than his share of entertaining works. His stories may not be deep but they are always fun.

In this collection, Vance shows he is as adept with short stories as he is with novels. The first story deals with space travel cadets on a mission with their ofttimes cruel instructor. The second story is a humorous story of one man taking on a vast government bureaucracy; this is followed by a tale of an overpopulated Earth where a hundred square feet may be a vast estate and a man who acquires a whole alien continent on which to live. The final tale deals with aquatic miners contending with a dangerous sea creature.

All four stories are typical Vance, which is to say, great stuff. If you have the opportunity to pick this one up somewhere, you will have a nice treat.