Alexei Panshin

An excellent companion to Alexei Panshin's novels, FAREWELL TO YESTERDAY'S TOMORROW collects twelve of his best stories, the last a novella written in collaboration with his wife, Cory. From the universe of the Nebula Award-winning RITE OF PASSAGE, where the hegemony of advanced ships over primitive worlds engenders complex moral dilemmas, to the first manned exploration of Neptune, to the interstellar quest of a fair lady and a noble beastman to find a home, these engaging fantasies turn the idea of SF as escape on its head, dramatizing how technology may give new expression to empathy and self-sacrifice but never replace them. In the afterword from which the collection takes its title, and which the Panshins updated in 2001, they sum up the vision that makes science fiction relevant and important to us all.

In 1990, Alexei and Cory Panshin's massive history of science fiction, THE WORLD BEYOND THE HILL, won the Hugo award in competition with books by Arthur C. Clarke, Ursula LeGuin, and Harlan Ellison. Isaac Asimov called it, “The best, the BEST, history of science fiction I have ever read.” Exploring the genre from its roots in the Romantic Period to the late 20th century, the Panshins make the case for science fiction as modern mythology. Renowned literary critic Northrup Frye stated, "I learned a great deal from THE WORLD BEYOND THE HILL."

After the destruction of Earth, humanity has established itself precariously among a hundred planets. Between them roam the vast Ships, doling out scientific knowledge in exchange for raw materials. On one of the Ships lives Mia Havero. Belligerent soccer player, intrepid explorer of ventilation shafts, Mia tests all the boundaries of her insulated world. She will soon be tested in turn. At the age of fourteen all Ship children must endure a month unaided in the wilds of a colony world, and although Mia has learned much through formal study, about philosophy, economics, and the business of survival, she will find that her most vital lessons are the ones she must teach herself. Published originally in 1968, Alexei Panshin's Nebula Award-winning classic has lost none of its relevance, with its keen exploration of societal stagnation and the resilience of youth.

A loint of paw / Isaac Asimov -- The advent on Channel Twelve / C.M. Kornbluth -- Plaything / Larry Niven -- The misfortune cookie / Charles E. Fritch -- I wish I may, I wish I might / Bill Pronzini -- FTA / George R.R. Martin -- Trace / Jerome Bixby -- The ingenious patriot / Ambrose Bierce -- Zoo / Edward D. Hoch -- The destiny of Milton Gomrath / Alexei Panshin -- The devil and the trombone / Martin Gardner -- Upstart / Steven Utley -- How it all went / Gregory Benford -- Harry Protagonist, brain-drainer / Richard Wilson -- Peeping Tommy / Robert F. Young -- Starting from scratch / Robert Sheckley -- Corrida / Roger Zelazny -- Shall the dust praise thee? / Damon Knight -- Bug-getter / R. Bretnor -- The deadly mission of Phineas Snodgrass / Frederik Pohl -- Fire sale / Laurence M. Janifer -- Safe at any speed / Larry Niven -- The masks / James Blish -- Innocence / Joanna Russ -- Kin / Richard Wilson -- The long night / Ray Russell -- Sanity clause / Edward Wellen -- If at first you don't succeed, to hell with it! / Charles E. Fritch -- The question / Laurence M. Janifer and Donald E. Westlake -- The perfect woman / Robert Sheckley -- The system / Ben Bova -- Exile to hell / Isaac Asimov -- Inaugural / Barry N. Malzberg and Bill Pronzini -- Martha / Fred Saberhagen -- Kindergarten / Fritz Leiber -- Landscape with sphinxes / Karen Anderson -- The happiest day of your life / Bob Shaw -- The worlds of Monty Willson / William F. Nolan -- Punch / Frederik Pohl -- Doctor / Henry Slesar -- The man from when / Dannie Plachta -- Crying willow / Edward Rager -- January 1975 / Barry N. Malzberg -- Mail supremacy / Hayford Peirce -- Mistake / Larry Niven -- Half-baked publisher's delight / Jeffrey S. Hudson and Issac Asimov -- Far from home / Walter S. Tevis Swords of Ifthan / James Sutherland -- Argent blood / Joe L. Hensley -- Collector's fever / Roger Zelazny -- Sign at the end of the universe / Duane Ackerson -- Stubborn / Stephen Goldin -- The re-creation / Robert E. Toomey, Jr. -- The better man / Ray Russell -- Oom / Martin Gardner -- Merchant / Henry Slesar -- Don't fence me in / Richard Wilson -- The die-hard / Alfred Bester -- The first / Anthony Boucher -- Eripmav / Damon Knight -- Feeding time / Robert Sheckley -- The voice from the curious cube / Nelson Bond -- I'm going to get you / F.M. Busby -- The room / Ray Russell -- Dry spell / Bill Pronzini -- Bohassian learns / William Rotsler -- Star bride / Anthony Boucher -- Latest feature / Maggie Nadler -- Chief / Henry Slesar -- After you've stood on the log at the centre of the universe, what is there left to do? / Grant Carrington -- Maid to measure / Damon Knight -- Eyes do more than see / Isaac Asimov -- Thang / Martin Gardner -- How now purple cow / Bill Pronzini -- Revival meeting / Dannie Plachta -- Prototaph / Keith Laumer -- The rocket of 1955 / C.M. Kornbluth -- Science fiction for telepaths / E. Michael Blake -- Kindergarten / James E. Gunn -- A little knowledge / Paul Dellinger -- A cup of hemlock / Lee Killough -- Present perfect / Thomas F. Monteleone -- A lot to learn / Robert T. Kurosaka -- The amphibious cavalry gap / James E. Thompson -- Not counting bridges / Robert L. Fish -- The man inside / Bruce McAllister -- The Mars stone / Paul Bond -- Source material / Mildred Downey Broxon -- The compleat consummators / Alan E. Nourse -- Examination day / Henry Slesar -- The sky's an oyster; the stars are pearls / Dave Bischoff -- The man who could turn back the clock / Ralph Milne Farley -- Patent rights / Daniel A. Darlington -- Alien cornucopia / Walt Liebscher -- The last paradox / Edward D. Hoch -- Course of empire / Richard Wilson -- Synchronicity / James E. Thompson -- Sweet dreams, Melissa / Stephen Goldin -- The man on top / R. Bretnor -- Rejection slip / K.W. MacAnn.

Sun - essay by Isaac Asimov The Weather on the Sun - novelette by Theodore L. Thomas Mercury - essay by Isaac Asimov Brightside Crossing - novelette by Alan E. Nourse Venus - essay by Isaac Asimov Prospector's Special - novelette by Robert Sheckley Earth - essay by Isaac Asimov Waterclap - novelette by Isaac Asimov Mars - essay by Isaac Asimov Hop-Friend - short story by Terry Carr Asteroids - essay by Isaac Asimov Barnacle Bull - short story by Poul Anderson Jupiter - essay by Isaac Asimov Bridge - novelette by James Blish Saturn - essay by Isaac Asimov Saturn Rising - short story by Arthur C. Clarke Uranus - essay by Isaac Asimov The Snowbank Orbit - short story by Fritz Leiber Neptune - essay by Isaac Asimov One Sunday in Neptune - short story by Alexei Panshin Pluto - essay by Isaac Asimov Wait It Out - short story by Larry Niven Nikita Eisenhower Jones - novelette by Robert F. Young Comets - essay by Isaac Asimov The Comet, the Cairn and the Capsule - short story by Duncan Lunan (variant of Comet, Cairn and Capsule) Notes About the Authors (The Science Fictional Solar System) - essay by uncredited