Star Trek: Strange New Worlds IX (Bk. 9) [Paperback]

Dean Wesley Smith (Editor), Elisa J. Kassin (Editor), Paula M. Block (Editor), Scott Pearson (Contributor)

Book Description

Series: Star Trek Strange New Worlds | Publication Date: August 22, 2006

The tales featured in Strange New Worlds rocket readers across the length and breadth of Federation time and space, from Captain Jonathan Archer's first exploration of the galaxy on board the very first Starship Enterprise through to Captain Picard's tenure on the USS Enterprise 1701-D -- and beyond. Here you can read a fresh and original take on Captain Benjamin Sisko's role on Deep Space Nine, Captain Kathryn Janeway's homeward journey with the crew of the Starship Voyager, Captain Archer's encounters with the Xindi -- and many more ports of call along the way.

Strange New Worlds 9 includes stories from all five Star Trek incarnations:

Star Trek: The Original Series

Star Trek: The Next Generation

Star Trek: Deep Space Nine

Star Trek: Voyager

and Star Trek: Enterprise

This year’s contributors include John Coffren, David DeLee, Steven Costa, Jeremy Yoder, Paul C. Tseng, Jim Johnson, Scott Pearson, Jeff D. Jaques, Emily P. Bloch, Gerri Leen, Mike McDevitt, Ryan M. Williams, Susan S. McCrackin, Russ Crossley, Catherine E. Pike, Allison Cain, A. Rhea King, Ben Guilfoy, Randy Tatano, Kenneth E. Carper, Kevin Lauderdale, Marc Carson, R. S. Belcher.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Dean Wesley Smith is the author of over 30 Star Trek novels either solo or written jointly with Kristine Kathryn Rusch. He has edited all nine volumes of the Star Trek Strange New Worlds short story anthologies and lives in Eugene, Oregon.

Excerpt. © Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved.

Introduction

Dean Wesley Smith

After I turned in my selections of wonderful stories for Elisa and Paula to judge for this year's anthology, Elisa and I were discussing ideas for my introduction. She suggested that maybe I should talk about the fortieth anniversary of Star Trek: The Original Series.

My initial reaction was: Forty years? Wow. That's fantastic!

Then a second thought came to mind. That's not possible. I'm not that old.

But I am. I can recall every Friday evening during my high school years. I would always be home to watch Star Trek. (Okay, that should give you a pretty good idea of what my social life was like when I was a teenager, but let's not go there.) Suffice it to say, Star Trek was an important element in my life during those years.

In hindsight, I realize that the reason I would insist on watching the show every week was clear: I didn't like being where I was during those high school years. What kid really does? Star Trek gave me an escape, in much the same fashion as the shelves and shelves of Andre Norton, Edgar Rice Burroughs, and Robert Heinlein books in my basement bedroom. Star Trek and all of those other books took me out of that house -- out of that teenage life that everybody hates -- to strange new places, distant planets, and awesome adventures. Science fiction, with its wonderful worlds, futures, and messages of hope, was what I turned to for a few hours of not thinking about the world around me. More importantly, though, it let me believe that a better future was possible.

Remember the world in which Star Trek was born? The cities of this country were going up in flames, and bombs were going off so often that only the regional ones were reported. Martin Luther King, Jr., and Bobby Kennedy were shot. Nixon was elected to his first term. And the war just kept getting bigger and bigger. I believed from almost the moment I understood what Vietnam was about that I would be drafted, when I got out of high school. To me, it also meant that I would eventually be shot at and maybe killed.

That I would be drafted in the fall of 1969 seemed inevitable. It was a fact that all guys thought about a great deal in those days. We didn't talk about it much, though. It was just too scary to talk about.

I was one of those who didn't believe the war was right, but I also didn't believe in copping out by cutting and running. So there I was, stuck in a life I didn't much like, with a future of war and likely death facing me.

So, you can see why I made it home every Friday night to watch the original Star Trek. And I have a pretty good memory of writing a letter when they tried to cancel the show in 1968.

I can't imagine what I would have thought if some time traveler had walked up to me during those years and said, "In forty years, you will have managed to stay out of Vietnam. You will have written over twenty Star Trek novels, edited several Star Trek anthologies for new writers, and written a few Star Trek scripts." I'm sure I would have just laughed. Being a part, even a minor part, of such a unique show would never have crossed my mind in 1966.

About thirteen years ago, my wife and I got the chance to join in creating some of this wonderful universe, and we jumped at it. Writing under the name Sandy Schofield, we wrote Star Trek: Deep Space Nine: The Big Game. Suddenly, I was a Star Trek writer. And it's such a high for me that I get to give new writers out there the same chance.

In nine volumes, there have been almost two hundred new Star Trek stories. Over one hundred different writers have joined in inventing Star Trek, the Next Generation, Deep Space Nine, Voyager, and Enterprise. I'm sure every one of them, since they are all fans, can talk about the influence Star Trek, in every incarnation, had in their lives, just as I can. The shows, now shown in syndication, continue to influence future generations as well.

With the world becoming a little rougher than it has been the last few decades, we now need the wonderful vision of the future that Star Trek brings us even more. We need the escape, the hope, and the belief that mankind goes forward.

At the moment, we only have the books and games that can bring Star Trek and its hope and vision to all of us. You hold it in your hand. You are the cutting edge of Star Trek -- written by the fans, people like you and me, who love this universe almost more than our real one.

For forty exceptional years, Star Trek has given us all a look ahead, a wonderful escape into a great universe. So sit back, turn off the news, and let a few of your fellow fans take you away on twenty-three wonderful trips into the future. You won't want to come home.

Product Details

• Paperback: 400 pages
• Publisher: Pocket Books/Star Trek (August 22, 2006)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1416520481
• ISBN-13: 978-1416520481
• Product Dimensions: 8.4 x 5.6 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 12.8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #773,034 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

9 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Better than I expected!, September 12, 2006

By 

D. Fisher (Washington state) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Star Trek: Strange New Worlds IX (Bk. 9) (Paperback)

For some reason, I find SNW 9 to be much better than last year's anthology. The stories, on the whole, read much better and are beginning to add in small details from certain series like the DS9 relaunch and The Lost Era. Although, I am at a loss to explain this year's tribble motif. Here is a story-by-story review by grouping:

Star Trek: The Original Series
"Gone Native" by John Coffren: A short, humorous follow-up to the episode "By Any Other Name" - if anyone was curious. It's always interesting to see what people come up with for characters that only appear once in a series.
"A Bad Day for Koloth" by David DeLee: Tribble story #1. So, what happens after the tribbles show up on Koloth's ship after "The Trouble With Tribbles"? Well, first of all, they can't go back home because they are carrying "dangerous contaminants," for starters... A fun read that bridges the Koloth in TOS and the one we meet in DS9 later.
"Book of Fulfillment" by Steven Costa: This was one of my favorites in the book. While I don't think it corresponds to any specific episode, it is a fantastic story with a great twist at the end.
"The Smallest Choices" by Jeremy Yoder: I thought this one should have been a prizewinner. It is definitely my favorite in TOS section. It is a great follow-up to "Amok Time" and brings back the original Star Trek ice queen, T'Pring.

Star Trek: The Next Generation
"Staying the Course" by Paul C. Tseng: I'm not quite sure why this didn't end up in the "Speculations" category, but I liked the story a lot. Worf's last line leaves nothing to the imagination as to what will happen next, which satisfies the reader immensely.
"Home Soil" by Jim Johnson: Data on Earth during the Breen attack. This wasn't my favorite; it was a little too reminiscent of the Dominion War anthology story "Eleven Hours Out" which had Picard and Troi on Earth during the Breen attack.
"Terra Tonight" by Scott Pearson: I liked the TNG-era Scotty portrayal, which ran very true to form, right down to Scotty thinking that a xenopaleontologist should consider an engineering career.
"Solace in Bloom" by Jeff D. Jacques: The Breen and Vorta portrayals were dead-on, as was the weaving in of the small story of Picard's old friend and his science project. Easily my favorite of TNG stories.

Star Trek: Deep Space Nine
"Shadowed Allies" by Emily P. Bloch: Kira has to confront someone who wants to test her commitment to Odo. A good read, and a believable story, too.
"Living on the Edge of Existence" by Gerri Leen: Or, Curzon Dax crashes the afterlife in the Celestial Temple. A really amusing, yet poignant story that shows what Sisko has been up to since the end of the series (and before he gets back to Bajor, if you've read the relaunch).
The Last Tree on Ferenginar: A Ferengi Fable From the Future" by Mike McDevitt: This was my favorite story in the whole anthology! Why didn't this one win a prize? A future Ferengi tells the story of how Leeta tried to save the last tree while Rom dithered, Zek grumbled, Ishka looked at the bottom line, Quark plotted, and Ro kept Quark in line. It was the only story that had me laughing out loud, right down to the money-meld.
"The Tribbles' Pagh" by Ryan M. Williams: Tribble story #2. It takes place right after "Trials and Tribble-ations," with Kira trying to figure out how to keep Bajor from being overrun with the furry pests. A cute story.

Star Trek: Voyager
"Choices" (second-prize winner) by Susan S. McCrackin: A combination first-contact story with a medical drama. I liked this story, but it was a bit too formulaic to be a prizewinner, in my opinion.
"Unconventional Cures" by Russ Crossley: Tribble story #3. Told from the perspective of The Doctor, very short and though promising, didn't really translate into a gripping story.
"Maturation" by Catherine E. Pike: My favorite Voyager story. Another take on the assimilation of Annika Hansen, and how her identity is systematically torn apart until she becomes Seven of Nine. I thought this one definitely could have been a prizewinner.

Star Trek: Enterprise
"Rounding a Corner Already Turned" by Allison Cain: An ironic twist to the minds-switching-bodies phenomena. Funny, but predictable.
"Mother Nature's Little Reminders" by A. Rhea King: A traumatic experience from Trip's childhood saves the crew. A lot less formulaic than the author's last story in SNW 8, which is a nice change.
"Mestral" (third-prize winner) by Ben Guilfoy: I liked this story, but how many times can the same one be re-told? A clever weaving-in of Mestral into a portion of the "First Contact" story, but it directly contradicts events depicted in "The Sundered."

Speculations
"Remembering the Future" by Randy Tatano: Kirk gets to go back and save Edith Keeler after he dies, thus creating the "correct" timeline. But if you don't like this post-death Kirk story, you may like...
"Rocket Man" by Kenneth E. Carper: In this story, Kirk is resurrected by Gary Seven and his group, and given a second chance to make a difference.
"The Rules of War" by Kevin Lauderdale: An ancestor of Archer's tries to strike a deal with Augments during the Eugenics Wars, with an officer named Green asking, what if the ideas are not all wrong? Hmmm...
"The Immortality Blues" by Marc Carlson: The man we eventually know as Flint tries his best to go along with the flow of Earth's history, taking a few matters into his own hands every now and then. It has nice touches of the Lost Era and other material woven in, which makes it a pleasant read for the hard-core Trekkie.
"Orphans" (grand prize winner) by R.S. Belcher: It has all the right elements - Section 31, the Guardian of Forever, and just the right protagonist from TNG series to make it clear why this one was the grand prize winner.

Here's to next year!

4.0 out of 5 stars Star Trek short stories, July 19, 2010

By 

Christopher P. Obert (Massachusetts) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Star Trek: Strange New Worlds IX (Bk. 9) (Paperback)

This book collects 23 short stories written by Star Trek fans themselves. It is the ninth in the series. The book has stories based on each of the major Star Trek TV shows. I found all to be good stories with a few that were really good. This series is no longer in print and I find that is unfortunate, some really good material came out of the run. Not to mention all of the Star Trek fans whose dream came true...to be a published Star Trek author!!!

5.0 out of 5 stars Another great book of short stories!, May 9, 2007

By 

sharonella "sharonella" (Massachusetts, USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Star Trek: Strange New Worlds IX (Bk. 9) (Paperback)

If you are already a Star Trek fan, you will love this book! If you're not, you probably shouldn't bother. Knowledge of the "Star Trek" universe is definitely a plus when reading this book, or any of the others in the Strange New Worlds series. These books are compilations of short stories written by non-professional writers who have won an annual contest to have their stories published in this book. (Instructions & rules to enter for next year's book are included. It's a requirement that all contestants not have more than 3 published works, including their current submission.) I've read all the books in this series & have enjoyed and can recommend them all. And, since they're all short stories unrelated to each other, you don't have to have read the previous books to read this one, nor have read any other Star Trek fiction. It's a great way to get your "feet wet" in the world of Star Trek fiction. The fact that these are short stories means you can read a whole story or two in a smaller amount of time than you would need to read a whole book.