From School Library Journal
Grade 9 Up–This clear but sometimes dry work offers both insight and criticism. In all, there are 400 entries on themes (apes, cities, dinosaurs, evil, imaginary worlds, inventions, mirrors, plagues and diseases, time travel), and 200 on specific works (
Animal Farm, Babylon 5,
Dune, Rendezvous with Rama, Star Trek,
Buffy the Vampire Slayer,
Xena). A Guide to Related Topics and alphabetical lists of classics by theme aid access. The pithy and informative entries cover a lot of ground for both film and print formats in about two pages. Each one includes an overview paragraph; a survey of the theme with references to books, films, and possibly television shows; a brief discussion of the topic or classic under consideration; and a bibliography. Don DAmmassas
Encyclopedia of Science Fiction (Facts On File, 2005) covers some of the same ground but with a complementary emphasis on authors oeuvres and individual characters. With its excellent organization and cross-referencing, concise entries, and detailed index,
The Greenwood Encyclopedia will be of interest to fans or students of these genres.
–John Palmer, Bryan & College Station Library System, Bryan, TX Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
Science fiction and fantasy literature spark the imagination. This source captures some of that spark by providing a scholarly discussion of themes and classic works in both sci-fi and fantasy literature. Volumes 1 and 2 cover 400 themes, such as
Alternate history, Dystopia, Elder races, and
Sexuality. Themes include types of characters, recurring settings, types of narrative patterns, and abstract concepts. The alphabetically arranged entries are generally two pages long, and each includes a quotation, a brief overview, a survey of works related to the theme, a short discussion, and a bibliography. Volume 3 has entries for 200 influential books, movies, and TV shows, from Mary Shelley's
Frankenstein to
Star Trek: Enterprise. These entries contain a quote, a summary, a discussion of the work, and a bibliography. Plentiful cross-references refer readers from works to themes and back. For example, the entry for the 1993 film
King Kong references the thematic entries
Island, Map, and
Monster, to name just a few. Content is current enough for a mention of the 2005
King Kong remake.
The entries were written by distinguished contributors from the U.S., the UK, and Canada. The discussion sections of the entries are interesting and illuminating and might offer some new insights even for knowledgeable fans. Most of the bibliographies list at least eight titles, both older and more recent books and articles. A more general bibliography is found in volume 3. Each volume opens with an "Alphabetical List of Themes," an "Alphabetical List of Classic Works," and a "Guide to Related Topics," which sorts thematic entries under broad topics and works under type ("Books," "Films," Television Series"). The index is not comprehensive. For example, J. K. Rowling is mentioned in numerous entries but has a single reference in the index, referring the reader to a page in the entry for Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone. There is no index entry for Philip Pullman, though several sentences are devoted to him in the entry Christianity.
Because The Greenwood Encyclopedia of Science Fiction and Fantasy covers both genres, it is difficult to compare it to other works, such as Scarecrow's Historical Dictionary of Fantasy Literature. Written in a way that will be accessible to high-school, college, and adult readers, especially fans, it is recommended for public and academic libraries. Jack O'Gorman
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved
