When Worlds Collide (Bison Frontiers of Imagination) [Paperback]

Philip Wylie (Author), Edwin Balmer (Author), John Varley (Introduction)

Book Description

Series: Bison Frontiers of Imagination | Publication Date: October 1, 1999

A runaway planet hurtles toward the earth. As it draws near, massive tidal waves, earthquakes, and volcanic eruptions wrack our planet, devastating continents, drowning cities, and wiping out millions. In central North America, a team of scientists race to build a spacecraft powerful enough to escape the doomed earth. Their greatest threat, they soon discover, comes not from the skies but from other humans.

 

A crackling plot and sizzling, cataclysmic vision have made When Worlds Collide one of the most popular and influential end-of-the-world novels of all time. This Bison Frontiers of Imagination edition features the original story and its sequel, After Worlds Collide.

Editorial Reviews

From Library Journal

The concept of Earth being struck by a large body from space has been a popular plot in several recent films. This 1932 volume, however, was possibly the first to present that scenario. Here, humankind races to complete a spacecraft--an airborne ark--that will carry an assortment of people to begin the population over again as a rogue planet on a collision course with Earth speeds toward a cataclysmic end.
Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Review

" ... a rattling good old-fashioned story of world-cataclysm and the exploration of a new planet."--interzone, february 2000

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Product Details

• Paperback: 379 pages
• Publisher: Bison Books; First edition (October 1, 1999)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0803298145
• ISBN-13: 978-0803298149
• Product Dimensions: 8 x 5.4 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 13.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (59 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #226,424 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

33 of 33 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The REAL Armageddon, May 6, 2002

By 

Ryk E. Spoor "Author, Gamer, Geek God" (Troy, NY USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: When Worlds Collide (Bison Frontiers of Imagination) (Paperback)

I discovered this one when I was in 5th grade. Buying it now, 30 years later, I was worried that it just wouldn't hold up. To my delight, it stands up to the test of time magnificently.

We've seen movies and TV specials in the past few years on the impact of some cosmic body with Earth (Deep Impact, Armageddon, Meteor). Balmer and Wylie did it decades ago, and did it on a scale and with an attention to (then-current) detail that's still staggeringly convincing, if dated, today.

Written before WWII (1933 and 34), When Worlds Collide features the destruction of the Earth in the most complete manner possible, and focuses on the efforts of a few people to find a way to escape that destruction. The manner in which they do so is brilliantly thought out and detailed, the progressive deterioration of both society and of the Earth itself is heartwrenchingly chronicled, and the final flight from the doomed planet is a classic. Yes, we have super-science, purple prose, and sometimes overly-simplistic characters (not to mention outdated concepts), but this is an example of the Golden Age that can still stand on its own. It DEFINED the disaster novel, and set the bar so high that few who came after even dared attempt the grand scale that Balmer and Wylie achieved. The sequel has its own charm, a combination of aftermath and exploration, with some eerie scenes that still give me a bit of the creeps to read.

27 of 27 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Clearing up some confusion..., January 23, 2005

By 

Mark Wilsonwood (Grapevine, TX) - See all my reviews

This review is from: When Worlds Collide (Bison Frontiers of Imagination) (Paperback)

Many of the earlier reviews on this site call for a reissue of the sequel, "After Worlds Collide". Please note: BOTH STORIES, "When Worlds Collide" and "After Worlds Collide", are contained in this paperback version. The title is misleading because it only includes "When..." -- but both stories are there.
Other reviewers have correctlly noted that there are some scientific inaccuracies, and some 1930s political and social views that seem out of place today. Who cares?! This is a wonderful story. In part 1, the authors concoct an excellent apocalyptic scenario. And in part 2, their conception of the alien planet is brilliant.
This is a very well-told yarn.

12 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars WHEN WORLDS COLLIDE by Philip Wylie and Edwin Balmer, July 19, 2001

By 

L. Dequesada (JAMAICA,, NY United States) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: When Worlds Collide (Bison Frontiers of Imagination) (Paperback)

Probably the best science fiction story of all times! A "gas giant" planet about the size of Uranus was dragged away from its original orbit around its sun in a distant solar system by a passing star, perhaps millions of years ago. Also dragged away was the gigantic planet's satellite, an earthlike planet. The two bodies retain their original orbital influence and wonder for eons, frozen in the absolute zero of space, until they come close enough to our solar system and are pulled in, attracted by the gravity of our own sun, their speeds increased several times in their endless travel through space. Star gazers soon discover that at least one of the newly discovered bodies will collide with and destroy the earth. Upon being discovered by a South African astronomer Professor Bronson, the two bodies are named by scientists after its discoverer. The larger one, the gaseous "Bronson Alpha", will destroy the earth, so a Noah's Ark rocket is built at a franctic pace to provide escape of 100 chosen would be travelers, so they can start a new life in Alpha's companion, the earthlike "Bronson Beta" which will replace the Earth in its orbital position. Time is of essence in this classic sci-fi thriller which should be remade by Hollywood in state or the art computerized special effects and sound!