Product Description
In the year 2301, guns are only museum pieces and benign telepaths sweep the minds of the populace to detect crimes before they happen.In 2301 murder is virtually impossible, but one man is about to change that...

Ben Reich, a psychopathic business magnate, has devised the ultimate scheme to eliminate the competition and destroy the order of his society.The Demolished Man is a masterpiece of imaginative suspense, set in a superbly imagined world in which everything has changed except the ancient instinct for murder.Amazon.com Review
In a world policed by telepaths, Ben Reich plans to commit acrime that hasn't been heard of in 70 years: murder.That's the onlyoption left for Reich, whose company is losing a 10-year deathstruggle with rival D'Courtney Enterprises.Terrorized in his dreamsby The Man With No Face and driven to the edge after D'Courtneyrefuses a merger offer, Reich murders his rival and bribes ahigh-ranking telepath to help him cover his tracks.But while policeprefect Lincoln Powell knows Reich is guilty, his telepath's knowledgeis a far cry from admissible evidence. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (88)

After viewing this item 7% of customers buy More than Human by Theodore Sturgeon...
...which is a shame, because More than Human has sophistication in its telepathy theme, whereas the Demolished Man is not really orders of magnitude above, let's say, Harry Harrison's simplistic prose.

Of course, if you are a modern reader, loving your Strosses and Reynoldses, believing implants are just around the corner, then telepathy should sound almost as obsolete as the Easter Island indigenes. In such a case, Demolished Man would basically be for you a cop VS villain story, with a little romance and not much else. It's a shame because in the very beginning, the hero (later turned villain) is confronted with a kafkaesque "man with no face", who just for a few pages lures you into believing the writer has discovered the alchemist's stone of the genre, a science story with deep characterization. Alas, no.

This is 2 stars, and don't get lured by that neon sign on the book's cover "the first ever winner of the Hugo Award". They probably had not calibrated the event enough by 1953, and the proof of this is Hugo 1954, where you have 3 real masterpieces, all in one year (Childhood's End, Caves of Steel, Fahrenheit 451).

"...Brilliant..."
Truly a brilliant work of fiction, Alfred Bester's "The Demolished Man" satisfies the need for a science fiction story with a unique sense of depth, while allowing accessibility for the reader of any genre. Absolutely remarkable, a must read!

Awesome Book!
I think I finished it in less than two weeks. I couldn't put it down! If you like stories concerning telepathy and extra sensorial perception, you definitely need to read this book.

ESP Peeping into the megalomanic's mind
A story of a megalomaniac rockefeller, his downfall, and of the telepathic policeman to catch him. A psychological mystery where ESP (extra sensory perception) is prevalent. The main character Reich is plagued by regular nightmares of 'The Man With No Face'. An esper psychiatrist, a 'peeper' and member of the Esper Guild cannot help with his suppressed memories. Reich corrupts a 1st class esper which -- by due to oath of the Guild -- is a one way ticked to demolishment of his ESP ability; to become deaf-mute if they ever find out the betrayal to block out other 1st class esper mind readers. In the end Reich falls in his psychotic pattern (the dream 'No Face') and must be stopped by all means.

Bester does a remarkable job of handling the ESP element in his characters, how they evade, and inner-talk without lip movement amongst themselves. What is it like to be shunned from ESP Guild and live as among "normal" people. And he shows what the psychosis is.

Five (5) stars. Written in 1951, the book won Hugo award 1953. Warning: don't expect the book to blow out your mind. Think it as "must read", like Asimov, to be educated in science fiction. The book is a classic futuristic telepathy story that is yet to be matched after its release. Vastly superior to Bester's other well known novel 'The Stars, My Destination' (1951) which is on scale 3 to 4.

Future Crime, Old Theme
What my fellow reviewers seem not to realize (I didn't read them all but the first dozen didn't mention it) is that this is a remake of Fyodor Dostoevsky's Crime and Punishment.It essentially turns on the cat-and-mouse dynamics of the murderer who wrongly believes that he has the courage to stand outside the flow of human kind and the detective who is enigmatic in his capacity to represent the banal morality that turns out to be deeper than that which would transcend it.

Like C&P, this work is often heavy handed, as was typical of mid-20th c. high-class sci fi.But it is inventive and prescient, as we move to a world in which brain scans can detect the increased oxygen consumption of the lying brain.It doesn't have the incredible tightness of Bester's masterpiece, The Stars My Destination.But some parts are wonderful--I won't give it away, but the jingle is worth pondering--and it is a reasonable place to explore fundamental questions of motivation, hurt, crime and repentance.

The strange ending involves a deepening of the relation between cat and mouse and it might at first seem implausible.The one thing you should know if you are a lawbreaker, it would seem, is that the cop is not your friend.Bester's reply isn't so much to question "who is really your friend" but who are "you"?Is a motivation you don't understand and don't want really part of you in the first place?If it could be removed like a growth from your body, wouldn't that be good?Wouldn't the person who did that be your truest friend, even if the you-minus-motive wasn't you at all? [44] ... Read more

Product Description
Such is the official verdict on Gully Foyle, unskilled space crewman.But Gully has managed to survive for 170 days in the airless purgatory of deep space after the wreck of his ship, and has escaped to Earth carrying a murderous grudge and a secret that could change the course of history.

The novel which in large part inspired both the cyberpunk movement of the 1980s and the science fiction New Wave of the 1960s, THE STARS MY DESTINATION has an unrivalled claim to be the most influential sf book of all time.Amazon.com Review
When it comes to pop culture, Alfred Bester (1913-1987) issomething of an unsung hero. He wrote radio scripts, screenplays, andcomic books (in which capacity he created the original Green LanternOath). But Bester is best known for his science-fictionnovels, and The Stars My Destination may be his finest creation. Firstpublished in 1956 (as Tiger! Tiger!), the novel revolves around a heronamed Gulliver Foyle, who teleports himself out of a tight spot andcreates a great deal of consternation in the process. With its slypotshotting at corporate skullduggery, The Stars My Destination seemsutterly contemporary, and has maintained its status as an undergroundclassic for forty years. (Bester fans should also note that Vintagehas reprinted The Demolished Man, which won the very first Hugo Awardin 1953.) ... Read more

Customer Reviews (244)

Burning Less than Bright
I have no doubt that this was a rather exceptional novel when it came out.In its role as a predecessor of cyberpunk, it's certainly noteworthy. But I feel it's more dated than even most of Asimov.The protagonist is supposed to be rather "evil" but he's really not.This is in part due to having to preclude his worse actions from the narrative (the 50's weren't so keen on rape and murder) but mostly due to the fact that Foyle's just not as bad as he wants to be.The POV shifts were handled clumsily and though Foyle doesn't have that interesting a character arc, most of the other characters are even more paper-thin.
This is worth reading for it's influence and it's not a bad book.It just doesn't hold up as a classic nor does it compare to the scope and ability of more modern works.

Grand Space Opera
"Gully Foyle is my name"
Gulliver Foyle has been abandoned. An illiterate taught his name, his origin, his station, and his fate in mnemonic rhyme, he speaks in gutter tongue and is only fit for space duty. He finds himself adrift aboard the Nomad, a wrecked ship near the asteroid belt, confined to an airtight tool locker, dark and cold as a coffin. As soon as the oxygen or the supplies run out he is finished. A miracle occurs. The freighter Vorga swims by close enough to see Foyle's distress flares, but it continues on its way, heartlessly refusing his rescue. Foyle's joy becomes rage. "I kill you, Vorga!" He shouts into the void. "I kill you filthy!"
Foyle's fury energizes him. He manages to apply momentum to the wreck, releasing it to gravity's pull. By the time the ship is retrieved by the recidivist Scientific People, a tribe of primitives inhabiting a world constructed of salvaged spacecraft, Foyle is delirious with fever, clinging to life only by his lust for revenge. The Scientific People save him and signalize his ferocity by tattooing a tiger's features on Foyle's face.
Foyle steals a ship and escapes to Earth, where his attempt to destroy Vorga with a bomb fails and he is consigned to the Gouffre Martel, a labyrinthine underground hospital kept in permanent darkness.
"And Terra is my nation"
It is the 25th century. Every habitable corner of the solar system has been populated. The commercial cartels that dominate political affairs have divided interests between the Inner Planets and the Outer Satellites.. Warfare over material resources prosecutedby naval and army skirmishes and ruthless intelligence services has created refugees. Ungoverned scientific experiments have generated monsters and freaks.
A new form of personal transportation has revolutionized society. People have learned to "jaunte", to teleport themselves by sheer mental force to spatial coordinates they can visualize. Some are better at jaunting than others, with greater range and more aptitude for memorizing coordinates. All are aware that the Blue Jaunte, teleportation without visualization, is suicide.
Gully Foyle has become the object of a tug-of-war between Y'ang Yeovil of Inner Planets Intelligence and Dagenham Couriers, an elite group of special agents hired to break Foyle and tear from him his violent interest in the Vorga. But even the Gouffre Martel cannot hold Foyle. Aided by Jisbella McQueen, an inmate who contrives a bust-out with him, the pair plan to return to the Scientific People, where, Foyle has discovered due to a clumsy interrogation by Dagenham, the ship that had entombed him in space carried a cache of platinum bullion. Jiz loves Foyle and recognizes that he has much to learn if he expects to recover the lost bullion and wreak vengeance on Vorga. She educates him and arranges to bleach his tiger face tattoo pore by pore. The two stage an audacious raid on the Scientific People. Dagenham's courier's capture Jiz, but Foyle escapes to the Outer Satellites with the safe containing the platinum and twenty pounds of an unknown substance called PyrE.
"Deep space is my dwelling place"
Earth's privileged upper crust are excited when they hear that the New Year's party of cartel mogul Presteign of Presteign will be attended by millionaire parvenu Fourmyle of Ceres and his rollicking Four Mile Circus. At the event, Geoffrey Fourmyle charms everyone and is himself enchanted by the ice princess Olivia Presteign, albino daughter of the great Presteign, who is blind to all wavelengths in the electromagnetic spectrum except the infrared.
The attraction between Geoffrey and Olivia is as strong as the force that binds atomic nuclei. It is so inexorable that it nearly overwhelms the thrust of vengeance that powers Gulliver Foyle, who ruminates on its dangers in his experimental laboratory at the Four Mile Circus where he has been trying to crack PyrE.
Jiz McQueen had convinced Foyle that his greatest enemy was his own ignorance. Foyle has used the wealth from the platinum to fashion himself into the most formidable weapon ever devised, Fourmyle of Ceres. He absorbed culture and sophistication from hypno-training. He bribed surgeons from the Mars Commando Brigade to wire his body for combat that allows him to accelerate his perceptions and motor responses. He has learned from yogis to control his bowels and blood pressure so that his capillaries will not inadvertently light up his tiger tattoo scars under stress. He has blackmailed Robin Wednesbury, a telepath who can transmit thoughts but cannot receive them, into serving as his personal secretary.
"And death's my destination"
Foyle knows that Vorga was owned and operated by Presteign. His relentless quest is to discover who gave the order to refuse his rescue. To realize his goal, he will have to defy the most powerful clan in the Inner Planets while eluding the efforts of Dagenham and Y'ang Yeovil to trap him. But what shall he do about his love for Olivia Presteign?
Most important of all, Foyle has surmised that it was never the platinum that was the real treasure in Nomad's safe. What is PyrE? How is it the key to Foyle's destiny?
In 1954, Alfred Bester won the Hugo Award, science fiction's highest accolade, for his mind-twisting novel "The Demolished Man." In 1956, he published his dazzling space opera "The Stars My Destination."
The story hurtles along in hyperdrive, teeming with invention. Bester's writing is densely compressed - not a word is wasted. In a climactic scene, he introduces typographic effects to add visual dimension; prose passages attack the pages in arpeggiated stacks and swirling arrays.
The novel arrived in the shadow of the hydrogen bomb, when many marvels foreseen in speculative fiction - rockets, computers, television, fusion weapons - had become commonplace. In 1957, Sputnik would launch the Race For Space. Science fiction would soon turn introspective and more broadly international. Alfred Bester's two remarkable novels still glitter from the twilight of the genre's heroic age as unimpeachable classics.

Not Much of a Story Here
I'm sorry, but THE STARS MY DESTINATION is NOT one the greatest science fiction novels ever written.It may highly creative, and it may contain a lot ofbrilliant ideas, but it lacks an essential element that every great novel requires, which is a decent storyline.

THE STARS MY DESTINATION does not contain a coherent narrative.The main character jumps from place to place in a scattershot manner, often with little setup or explanation.In this book, Bester creates a fascinating vision of the future, but he zips through it at light-speed, never giving the reader adequate time to fully absorb all its details. As a result, this book is like flipping through a very dense textbook --more exhausting than enjoyable to read.

Further, THE STARS MY DESTINATION lacks likable characters with believable motivations.The main character, Foyle, is a thoroughly nasty character, a rapist, a criminal, someone whose basic motivations are quite dark.But even worse, he's really not that interesting -- he's ultimately a rather bland character, and the supporting characters aren't much better.

In short, I found THE STARS MY DESTINATION to be quite the letdown, esepcially given the hype.While this novel contains many smart and imaginative moments, it ultimately fails as a piece of storytelling.I would only recommend this novel to hardcore SF aficionados.

Rooting for the Bad Guy: Top 10 Greatest Sci-Fi Books
Foyle isn't your typical hero. In fact he's kind of a evil dude but you'll be rooting for him nonetheless as he exacts his revenge.

This is like Ayn Rand's "The Fountainhead" but set in space. There are just so many brilliant ideas written into this book about a thoroughly unapologetic character molding the world to his will.I picked up a copy of this book titled "Tiger! Tiger!" at a bookstore. What a treasure to find a author and futurist like Bester.

Did not stand the test of time
When I first read this book in 1967, I loved it. The writing was snappy, the main character was unique, the plot was engaging (it still is), and the concept of jaunting was enthralling.For the next forty-three years, The Stars My Destination remained in my mind as one of the best sci-fi books I had ever read. So when I picked it up again for a quick re-read before handing it over to my son, I expected the same thrill I'd had at age 15. Unfortunately, times had changed. It wasn't just the fact that the Cold War had ended, or that sci-fi had become more sophisticated as a genre.I had grown up. And with age, I had developed reasoning power.

The reality Alfred Bester created was one that was based on such a flawed premise that I found it nearly impossible to read this book a second time.Teleportation ("jaunting") was the basis for Bester's brave new world--one in which the instantaneous transport of individuals had caused complete social chaos. Leprosy, malaria and other diseases had been spread to northern climes by infected, travel-happy individuals. Theft had become rampant. Economies had collapsed, and morality now had to be defended with a nearly medieval zeal.As a future scenario, this was appealing. However, none of it makes the slightest bit of sense.

In Bester's world, jaunting could only be accomplished if the jaunter had a clear concept of where he was going. So how could lepers in tropical jungles jaunte to Greenland?And, even if they could, how would the instantaneous transportation of an individual cause the spread of disease? It is mass contact between people that contributes to epidemics, not isolated individuals. (Not to mention the fact that leprosy is not particularly communicable. This is also true for malaria, which needs the anopheles mosquito as a vector.) The same goes for economies. If one is limited to what one can carry, then goods would still have to be transported using conventional means. For that matter, an individual who wished to carry more than an overnight case would also have to travel by conventional means. Communications would not be affected. (It is so much more convenient to talk on a phone for five minutes than to have to get dressed and jaunte over to my mother's for what will surely be hours.)Thieves would only be able to jaunte to places they were familiar with, and could only leave with what they could carry. And one presumes that surveillance devices would still be able to identify them. As for morality, history has proven that where there is a will, there is a way.A man would have to be thoroughly familiar with his lady's boudoir before jaunting there. (Locking the lady up has never done anything to prevent the course of nature.)And, speaking of nature, how did jaunting produce widespread racial mixing? Instantaneous travel does not guarantee that babies will be made upon arrival. And, last but not least, how did jaunting end the balance of trade between planets? Teleportation over the distance of a thousand miles on any given planet surface would not have any effect on the balance of trade between planets. In fact, it would not affect anything.

Bester could have figured all of this out when he wrote the book in 1956.The question is: Why didn't he? The answer is that in that era, sci-fi was considered cheap pulp fiction. It wasn't supposed to make sense. It wasn't supposed to be logical, or well written. The characters were not supposed to be developed or even realistic.Sci-fi novels were basically glorified comic books meant for quick consumption by (mostly) male teenagers. In Bester's case, he did everything that was expected of the genre AND threw in a last-minute moral about ethics, nuclear holocaust, faith, social responsibility and religion. As I said, the Cold War is over, and these themes have been battered to death. Yet, at the time, they were new and fresh, so Bester's book perhaps deserved its fame.

Fortunately, the saga of Gully Foyle is still an engrossing read and my son will no doubt enjoy it. He will also appreciate the moral of the story. As for me, I will jaunte back to my time-worn classics, as befitting someone who is older and wiser. ... Read more

Product Description

Before his untimely death in 1987, Alfred Bester had established himself as one of the world's greatest science fiction writers. From radio to television, short fiction to full-length novels, he created a body of work that will be continued to be enjoyed by generations of readers for all time. Now, redemolished brings together, for the first time ever in one volume, the full range of his genius. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (5)

A Fine Introduction to Alfred Bester's Diverse Literary Range.....
Alfred Bester was certainly one of the finest 20th Century American science fiction writers, but his reputation isn't nearly as well known as it was when he died back in 1987. He's probably best known for his two great novels, "The Demolished Man", and "The Stars My Destination", published back in the 1950s, that were stylistically and conceptually unlike virtually anything else published in science fiction during that time. "Redemolished" is a fine collection of his fiction and nonfiction, demonstrating why Bester should still be remembered as one of our great writers of American science fiction; moreover, his nonfiction essays and interviews also show that Bester was quite often a funny writer and a fine literary stylist too. Most of the stories collected in this volume date from the 1940s and early 1950s; his most interesting tale, I think, is among the last, "The Four-Hour Fugue", which predates William Gibson's "Sprawl" series of cyberpunk short stories by only a few years (He is now acknowledged as an important early predecessor of the cyberpunk literary movement.). His nonfiction essays include a strong indictment on the quality of science fiction being published back in the early 1960s that he wrote as a reviewer for one of the major SF magazines ("A Diatribe Against Science Fiction"). Among his interviews are two hilarious ones devoted to film director John Huston and then comedian and playwright Woody Allen. Those unfamiliar with Bester's work will not find this particular volume entirely enlightening, except in emphasizing his broad range of interests, as seen from this vast collection of short stories, essays and magazine interviews. But I think loyal fans will appreciate reading this volume, since it offers some additional literary and personal aspects about Bester and his literary career which have been relatively unknown.

Essential reading for Bester fans - intriguing for anyone
For anyone who has read "The Demolished Man" or "The Stars my Destination" (aka "Tiger! Tiger!") Alfie Bester needs no introduction. His brand of science fiction is, as far as I know, unique in its sheer energy. In his blending of scientific ideas with eclectic cultural, psychological and philosophical background, Bester anticipated (by over 20 years) acclaimed writers like William Gibson and the cyberpunk school.

This book presents a lot of Bester's work that would otherwise be inaccessible. It packs ten stories, half a dozen articles, and interviews with John Huston, Rex Stout, Woody Allen, Isaac Asimov and Robert Heinlein into its 500-plus pages. Some of the writing is raw, but it is never dull or predictable, and for a fan it is fascinating to trace the evolution of Bester's style and read his own explanation of how and why he wrote that way.

Having seen this book in a public library, I borrowed it and devoured it over Christmas. Although I have read every page, I am now buying a copy. I am not willing to risk being unable to get hold of it again. Bester died in 1988, unfairly neglected, and this book is the closest anyone can get to meeting him.

Excellent Introduction to Alfred Bester
This book was my initial introduction to Alfred Bester and to Sci-Fi books in general.I could not put it down.I enjoyed all of the stories tremendously.The level of detail as well as the smooth flow impressed me.I'm now an avid Sci-Fi book fan, thanks to Alfred Bester.

Good but there is a problem.
I enjoyed the book.I will defer to the opinion of Besterholic as to how this fits in with other material by Bester; to me it seems to be enjoyable science fiction.

My primary motivation for writing this reviewing is that the book is actually flawed.The edition I have, which has the same cover as that displayed here, has been very poorly edited.There are numerous examples of misplaced punctuation, as well as lack of breaks between dialogue between two characters, etc.

I have never seen a book with so many obvious errors; the publishers really ought to fix it.(One almost suspects the typesetting was done with voice recognition software to save money, but without adequate follow-up editing.)

Besterholics
Redemolished is an eclectic collection of the late and great Alfred Bester's work. It is by no means his finest work, for that see The Demolished Man, The Stars My Destination and Virtual Realities. Redemolished is more for the die-hard Bester fans, who are glad to see work that has never been reprinted.

Sadly, much of this book hasn't been reprinted because it isn't very good. Several stories(and the bulk of the text) are made up of Bester's early attempts at science fiction from the 1940s, which don't stand up in comparison to his great work of the 1950s. I think that these stories deserve to be reprinted, but will appeal mainly to Bester fanatics. As one myself, I feel that ideally all of his stories from this first stint with science fiction should have been collected in a single, complete volume. Its good to see some, but this isn't what I was hoping for.

The balance of the text is made up of essays and interviews, many that I've seen before. Some good, some not so good.

For the casual Bester reader, this is not the volume you're looking for. For the really serious reader, this isn't it either--although the best you'll find available. ... Read more

Product Description

A band of immortals recruit a new member, the brilliant Cherokee physicist Sequoya Guess. Dr. Guess, with the group's help, gains control of Extro, the super-computer that controls all mechanical activity on Earth. They plan to rid Earth of political repression and to further Guess's researches-which may lead to a great leap in human evolution to produce a race of supermen. But Extro takes over Guess instead and turns malevolent. The task of the merry band suddenly becomes a fight in deadly earnest for the future of Earth. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (12)

A hot mess of sheer intoxication
"I tore down the Continental Shelf off the Bogue Bank while the pogo made periscope hops trying to track me.Endless plains of salt flats (music by Borodin here); mounds of salt where the new breed of prospector was sieving for rare earths; towers of venomous vapors on the eastern horizon where the pumping stations were sucking up more of the Atlantic and extracting deuterium for energy transfer.Most of the fossil fuels were gone; the sea level had been lowered by two feet; progress."

That's just the first paragraph of this completely insane book: breathless, delirious, practically collapsing from lack of oxygen in its rush to fill your head with its wild ideas.Before the first page is over, we've dove down to a secret hideaway under the salt flats to meet a time machine builder who goes by Herb Wells.Before the chapter's out, we'll have learned of Herb's doomed efforts to avert the tragic early deaths of Van Gogh, Mozart and poet Thomas Chatterton, but all that's strictly incidental to the plot.Our hero, such that he is, is Guig, the Grand Guignol, who murders men in failed attempts to make them immortal.The cast also includes Jacy, who you may better know as Christ, Jesus; and Hic-Haec-Hoc, a Neanderthal who's still kicking several millennia past his prime.

The reckless, wild, intoxicating prose, drunk on its own sheer invention, is peppered with obscure cultural references, chemical formulas, snatches of poetry and computer programming, bars of music, and letters to the editor.Any damn thing to get the point across: Bester was post-modern before anyone had a name for it.

And Bester isn't really writing science-fiction here: he's writing free-form experimental futuristic jazz, drenched in psychedelic insanity, bizarre factoids kiting on sheer imagination, riffing on his typewriter to a wild, weird beat that no one else on Earth can hear.

A lot of people dismiss this book saying it's a faint shadow of Bester's more famous novels, THE DEMOLISHED MAN and THE STARS MY DESTINATION.And frankly, they've got a point: those earlier works are more contained and controlled.This thing, frankly?It's kind of a mess.But it's a hot mess, dancing on table tops naked and ignoring all bounds of decent restraint.Later on, the lack of control would overtake the books in the shambling Frankenstein novels like GOLEM100 and THE DECEIVERS, the seams showing in the short stories and fragments Bester was stitching together, unable to maintain the jags of caffeinated energy characterizing his best books.Those later books still have moments of brilliance, but they are less than the sum of their parts.In this book, Bester is still on top of his game -- but maybe just barely.

Time has caught up to Bester's first book, the Hugo-winning THE DEMOLISHED MAN; its wild ideas have been nicked by mass market entertainment and its psychic cops have few surprises for readers. THE STARS MY DESTINATION is still ahead of the curve, and will always represent the peak of Bester's particular brand of magic.But THE COMPUTER CONNECTION is, arguably, his most wild, restless and joyous book.A lot of readers didn't know what to make of it 30+ years ago, and most won't now.

What it is isn't a novel at all, but a drug in ink form meant to be injected directly to the pineal gland.

The Computer Disconnection
Some quick facts:

This is not a "neglected, underrated gem".

This is not Alfred Bester at his best.

This is not a novel. In the technical sense of the word it is, but actually this one craves to be a comic storyline, KA-BOOM! and SPLORSH! waving to the poor reader from every page, every paragraph.

The last review on Amazon for the Computer Connection being more than 2 1/2 years ago clearly indicates this book is heading into oblivion. Let it rest there forever and if you really want to read something by Alfred Bester, try "The Stars My Destination", written in the 1950's but feeling much fresher and less dated.

How I Stopped Wanting to be a Writer.
After reading this book, I threw in the towel as far as dreaming about becoming a SF writer.This book is Perfect, there is no way it can be beaten or even approached by any other SF writing (except, perhaps, TSMD and TDM). (Well, TSMD)
I loved mostly the cultural bits, the language, the in your face advertising (we are halfway there now) the drugs, firewater and all the inevitable extrapolations of 20th century lifestyles.
I can not really say much more without spoiling a bit.I'm going to get a copy and rerereread it now.
Oh, by the way, there IS an immortal caveman, a nicety I think few authors of 'immortal people' tales would have thought of.

Psychedelic Screwball Comedy
Though the always over-the-top Harlan Ellison does a fantastic job in the introduction of convincing you that this boook is the equal of Bester's greats, 'The Demolished Man' and 'The Stars My Destination', it isn't quite in that class.

Don't let that put you off, however. The Computer Connection packs in more wacky offbeat ideas in a single book than most writers have in a lifetime, and it is all done at a breakneck velocity fast enough to pass the likes of Michael Marshall Smith in the slow lane (and that's no insult to Smith).

The plot revolves around a small and select group of people made immortal through a particularly traumatic death - the narrator was roasted in a volcano, for example. The immortals take identities based on historical figures, which reflect their abilities and interests - there is a Christ, an Indian rajah and so on. Bester's depiction of immortals has only been bettered by Michael Moorcock in 'Dancers at the End of Time'. In seeking to expand their number, they accidently enable a powerful computer, Extro, to take over the candidate, the brilliant Cherokee physicist, Sequoya Guess. Extro then proceeds to use Guess to carry out its plans to rid the world of humans. Not only that, but there appear to be a traitor amongst the immortals themselves.

This review can hardly do any sort of justice to the utterly bizarre world that Bester has created, a world where giant pogo-sticks appear to be a major form of transport. As Ellison says, it's like a classic Hollywood screwball commedy (only forced through a giant psychedelic sieve). The only problem with this kind of commedy is that it is difficult to sustain over novel length, and Bester doesn't quite manage it; the book runs out of steam some time before the end. Still a must-read for any fan of New Wave (or any other) SF.

Pure SF, Pure Action, Pure Fun!
It's a wonder nobody ever thought of filming Bester's books, for they have an effect much similar to that of a good movie - they rock you in your chair. Decades before anyone thought of the term "Cyberpunk", Bester already had his own view of the future, which happens to be very similar to the present - our present, the future present, even Bester's present. That is, of course, no accident, for Bester never forgets he's dealing with people, not machines - a fact which doesn't prevent the book from being filled with action, fun, (weird) technology, immortal people (among them an original neanderthal), an eccentric alien, and even some more conventional SF elements, such as The Mad Professor and a Time Machine.
Brilliant dialogues, thrilling action, unforgettable characters... In short - don't forget to get your hands on that one as soon as possible. I'm sure you won't forget to thank me for that advice... ... Read more

Product Description
When his lover is kidnapped by the evil Duke of Death, Rogue Winter, King of the Maori Commandos searches the solar system for her and uncovers evidence of an unlimited energy source in the underground torture chambers of Triton.Amazon.com Review
Way back in the 1950s, Alfred Bester established himself as one of the greats of SF with a number of dazzling short stories and two major novels: The Demolished Man (1953) and The Stars My Destination (1956, also known as Tiger! Tiger!), both much reprinted. The Deceivers, his final SF novel, appeared in 1981.

It's a colorful, whimsical romp that plays entertainingly with themes from Bester's peak years, though without his old driving, compelling savagery. Hero Rogue Winter is a "Synergist," acutely sensitive to the world's patterns: in one set-piece sequence he follows an intuitive trail from 12 drummers drumming in a street parade to the goal of a (metaphorical) partridge in a pear tree. Winter is also heir-apparent to the Maori Mafia, which controls much of the Solar System's crime, but he must single-handedly battle the dread mammoths of Ganymede to earn his crown. Meanwhile, he has fallen helplessly in love with a sexy nonhuman shapeshifter from Titan, making him vulnerable to minions of the insidious Manchu Duke of Death, who plans to smash the syndicate that's smuggling the priceless miracle fuel Meta from the heavily defended mines of Saturn's Chinese/Japanese-dominated moon Triton.

Bester crams this wild farrago of a narrative with wisecracks, junk science, circus glamor, odd catch phrases, bits of self-conscious cleverness and excess, Chinese esoterica like the Mirror-and-Listen Mystery, and his trademark typographic tricks. Amusing candyfloss nonsense; quite readable, but definitely not in the same league as his 1950s classics. --David Langford, Amazon.co.uk ... Read more

Customer Reviews (12)

2.5 Stars - Great set up but a moderately done ending
I liked the set up to this one but in the end it devolved into an odd gangster novel.The big ideas were not there in the end and the tying up of loose ends were gobbly gook. Nevertheless the potential and charm were there making this a solid B novel.My expectations were quite high and thus the 2.5 star rating.

fun pulp
Although not the caliber of his early works such as "The Demolished Man", or "The Stars my Destination", this makes for an enjoyable summertime read, perhaps in the "Pulp" variety ... a little sex, and lots of action. There are a few of the old Bester touches, such as spacing of text on the page, and an animal called an "Astroboar" that was breed for no fat, but escaped and evolved into a mammoth like creature. As a plot it may not be very compelling, but there a few humorous twists such as a circus street parade, and a pet cat that reads people's psychic dots. The occasional illustrations add to the pulp appeal (and Bester began in the 1940's writing for comics).

Over-written and self-indulgent
I've previously read a few of Bester's stories. THE STARS MY DESTINATION, THE DEMOLISHED MAN, and some of the shorter pieces...I thoroughly enjoyed them all, with STARS probably being my overall favorite.

THE DECEIVERS was written later in his career, and it's my belief that THE DECEIVERS is one long in-joke, filled with cryptic goodies and extremes which probably only Bester and his closest supporters took any real enjoyment in. My feeling is THE DECEIVERS was much less written for the audience at large, and much more written for an aged author who was trying to keep himself entertained.

On one level, the text seems to be written with great ease and intricacy, but at what expense? It's a campy, oblique love story set in an elaborately expanded solar system, with tricky gibberish and painful future slang tossed in. I feel like Bester must've had an absolute blast writing this book. And in the process, I think he alienated the more casual reader.

I read it. I finished it. I can't say that I enjoyed it. In fact, there were a few moments where I asked myself, "Why am I reading this?" Libraries were invented for books like this one.

THE DECEIVERS is a very deliberate work of fiction, but more valuable as a performed effort of an accomplished afficianado than as accessible entertainment for the masses.

A homage to pulp sci-fi that went to far
Rouge Winter, hair to the Maori crown, battles the minions of the evil Duke of Manchoo across the solar system. Sounds campy? intentionally so. But Bester has succeeded too much and this book became more than a homage to the pulp days - it IS pulp.

Nothing new, but the old is damn good
I don't have too much to say about this book, except that it is deffinately worth reading. I've seen most of the concepts preseted in this book (chemically altered super genius, shapeshifting aliens, human/alien marriages, etc.) but everything a new twist, a special touch that makes this a fun and interesting read. It only took me a day to read, so one doesn't have to commit much time or effort to this book. For that reason, I'd recommend this book to anyone, not just fans of Bester or sci-fi in general. ... Read more

Product Description
"Dazzlement and enchantment are Bester's methods. His stories never stand still a moment."
--Damon Knight, author of Why Do Birds

Alfred Bester took science fiction into hyperdrive, endowing it with a wit, speed, and narrative inventiveness that have inspired two generations of writers. And nowhere is Bester funnier, speedier, or more audacious than in these seventeen short stories--two of them previously unpublished--that have now been brought together in a single volume for the first time.

Read about the sweet-natured young man whose phenomenal good luck turns out to be disastrous for the rest of humanity. Find out why tourists are flocking to a hellish little town in a post-nuclear Kansas. Meet a warlock who practices on Park Avenue and whose potions comply with the Pure Food and Drug Act. Make a deal with the Devil--but not without calling your agent. Dazzling, effervescent, sexy, and sardonic, Virtual Unrealities is a historic collection from one of science fiction's true pathbreakers.

"Alfred Bester was one of the handful of writers who invented modern science fiction. "
--Harry HarrisonAmazon.com Review
Alfred Bester (1913-1987) was the author of two of science fiction'sseminal works, TheDemolished Man and The Stars My Destination.He also wrote some fast-moving, sizzling short stories that were veryhighly regarded; many of them are included in the 17 stories showcased in Virtual Realities; two were never before published. Highlightsinclude "Disappearing Act," in which shell-shocked soldiers vanish fromtheir hospital ward; "Hobson's Choice," in which a statistician uncovers adisturbing population trend in post-nuclear Kansas; "Time Is the Traitor,"wherein powerful business people manipulate their most valuable consultant;and "The Devil Without Glasses," a conspiracy tale with an X-Filesfeel. The science fiction and literary classic "FondlyFahrenheit" stars wealthy Vandaleur and his mad android who has anunfortunate habit of turning murderous when the temperature gets too hot...All reet!

Bester's use of the word girl and the occasional female as manipulatingschemer are not in line with current sensibilities and may give readerspause, especially those accustomed to feminist improvements in modern SF.Nevertheless, these stories are a frenetic and delightful confection of SFfrom the mid-20th century.--Bonnie Bouman ... Read more

Customer Reviews (20)

The Best Of Bester
A good used paperback copy, ably handled by the seller.I'm in a rest home and this works for me. Easier than the library, and paperbacks are better for reading in bed.I buy a lot of these through Amazon.

Amazingly Entertaining
The Bester short stories collected here make for truly amazing reading.They are placed under the "science fiction" heading in part because that is what Bester is best known for, but they are anything but "standard" sci-fi.Some are whimsical, some are adventurous, some are grim, and all are thoroughly original.Bester's lightning prose is also a delight: witty, stylized and innovative without being forced or showy for its own sake.As Silverberg says in the introduction, anyone who has not read Bester's shorter work (or, for that matter, his two tour de force sci-fi novels, The Demolished Man and The Stars My Destination) are in for a treat.

Alfred Bester was one of the best
Read some of the Bester stories when they came out. Books and magazines from that era have decayed, so delighted to find a modern reprint. Consider "5,271,009" to be a great cautionary tale for young adults. Worked for me, anyway. Can't think of him without hearing "Tension, apprehension and dissention have begun" from "The Demolished Man."

Not memorable; read his early novels instead
Skewed, yet cliched, best describes the visions Bester unveils in these collected short stories. His characters inhabit worlds that are subtly perverse variants of the "Father Knows Best" 1950s mythology, and his tales typically end with a final sentence straight out of the "Twilight Zone." In fact, as I read the stories I was constantly reminded of Twilight Zone writer Charles Beaumont and his (better) collected short stories, The Howling Man. Bester's prose, laced with irony and sardonic humor, is often very fresh and almost contemporary, yet many of his themes are of the time in which they were written. Most unfortunately, the stories simply are not memorable. They make a light impression on the mind, engender a few chuckles or a furrowed brow, and then fade away.

My advice--read The Demolished Man, twice, and then read The Stars My Destination, twice.That's all the Bester you need.

A Great Collection of Bester's Popular Short SF Works
As you may have read, Alfred Bester's novels, The Demolished Man and The Stars My Destination (TSMD) are highly recommended for those that enjoy reading science fiction.If you're wanting to read more by Bester after that, a collection of his short stories is the next good place to go.His short to-the-point prose, storyline twists, and some similarities to the main character in TSMD are in his stories and Virtual Unrealities is a collection of his better shorter SF works.Not meaning to take food off the table of Amazon.com, but Bester's almost similar out-of-print short story collection Starlight is slightly better if you're interested in short 1-2 page backgrounds on each of the stories, plus two relatively brief articles on his writing career and one on Isaac Asimov. Starlight can be purchased used from sellers via Amazon (sometimes for as little as 1 cent excluding shipping!), and I'm sure Amazon gets some profit via the shipping and handling fees.

Table of contents and info for Virtual Unrealities:
Nov '97, 366pp.Collection of 16 stories and one fragment, one story and the fragment previously unpublished. Introduction by Robert Silverberg.ss: short story, nv: novelette.
* ix * Introduction * Robert Silverberg * in
* 3 * Disappearing Act * ss Star Science Fiction Stories #2, ed. Frederik Pohl, Ballantine, 1953
* 22 * Oddy and Id ["The Devil's Invention"] * ss Astounding Aug '50
* 38 * Star Light, Star Bright * ss F&SF Jul '53
* 56 * 5,271,009 * nv F&SF Mar '54
* 91 * Fondly Fahrenheit * nv F&SF Aug '54
* 112 * Hobson's Choice * ss F&SF Aug '52
* 127 * Of Time and Third Avenue * ss F&SF Oct '51
* 136 * Time Is the Traitor * nv F&SF Sep '53
* 159 * The Men Who Murdered Mohammed * ss F&SF Oct '58
* 173 * The Pi Man * ss Star Light, Star Bright, Berkley/Putnam, 1976; revised from F&SF Oct '59.
* 191 * They Don't Make Life Like They Used To * nv F&SF Oct '63
* 225 * Will You Wait? * ss F&SF Mar '59
* 233 * The Flowered Thundermug * nv The Dark Side of the Earth, Signet, 1964
* 273 * Adam and No Eve * ss Astounding Sep '41
* 287 * 3½ to Go * uw * [Unfinished Work?]
* 292 * Galatea Galante * nv Omni Apr '79
* 334 * The Devil Without Glasses * nv * [unpublished] ... Read more

Product Description
Alfred Bester, author ofthe classic science fiction novels "The Demolished Man" and "The Stars My Destination," also penned this "lost" mainstream novel. "Who He?" is a lunatic variety show.one that started out as a panel quiz show and ended as comedy. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

a bester book
Alfred Bester at his (usual) best. Different from his other books, and ending with a surprise. The only critic I have of Bester is that he didn't write enough books for us to read.

Bester is the Best
Alfred Bester is my favorite author and it was a surprise to see that I had not heard of this book. It was a joy to read, Bester once again has a man destroy himself in this beautifully writen book. If you are reading this review you most likely have read Bester before, this book does not disappoint! One thing to take note of is that this book was once called "The Rat Race". (Why only 4 stars? I feel 5 stars are for books that are perfect and a life changing experience. I have yet to read such a book but Bester is the only 4 star author I have ever read.) ... Read more

Product Description
Half finished upon Bester's death, and completed by Zelazny, "Psychoshop" envisions a commercial establishment that attracts customers ranging from Edgar Allan Poe to a sorcerer intent on fabricating the Beast of Revelations.Amazon.com Review
This is a posthumous collaboration by two of SF's greatest writers, Alfred Bester and Roger Zelazny.Bester had completed half of the manuscriptbefore his death in 1987, and then Zelazny finished it off before his ownpassing in 1995.In his introduction to this strange mix, Greg Bear callsthe work an improvisational duet, and he is, as usual, right on the mark.This isn't so much a coherent novel as a story passed between twoof the genre's more stylish writers.Fans looking for The Demolished Man orNine Princes inAmber will be disappointed. Instead, what they'll find is the taleof Alf Noir, a reporter who travels to Rome where he finds a 3,000-year-oldshop that trades in the strange dealings of the mind. Not only is the shopnot what it seems, but its proprietor, Adam Maser, is not what he seems. And soon Alf will come to realize that there is something unusual about himselfas well. --Craig E. Engler ... Read more

Customer Reviews (9)

Pure insanity, but would have been better if finished by A.B
This book is like almost any work of Phillip K. Dick...incredibly insane, but as hard to stop reading as it is to stop smoking... The problem is that I just keep getting this nagging feeling that the book would have been better if Alfred's insanity would've finished it...instead, you can clearly tell Zelazny's parts because they're just too sane--I'd have liked for Alfred's insanity to culminate in the incredible ending that it already has.

There's an explenation...
The book deserves ofcourse 5 stars ,but since each of the giants wrote better on his own - let there be four.

It's almost blesphemy ,but I think the book would have come out better if Bester would be alive to finish it on his own. Not that the late Zelazny ruined it or something ,it's just that opposite to a few other reviewers ,I could tell when Bester stops and Zelazny takes over. It's not a bad change ,bad there's a change. of pace .of style. of plot direction.

As it came out at last ,it's a wonderfully written ,humoristic (not really FUNNY but light-hearted) ,with that Bester quality of PKD chaos ,but not as gloomy ,and zelazny's action ,and a number of sub-plots converging at the last possible point. Overall one of the best half-light reads i've had.(half-light 'cause Bester's style is more heavy ,but not domminant).

Very recommended.

A very nice blend
This book blended the two author's styles nicely.It was a lot of fun onthe second read, trying to pick which part was written by whom.The fightscenes were pure Zelazny.Wonderfully crafted by a skilled fencer &Aikidoist.

Psychoshop
This book is very fast pased and gets interesting from page one. The characters are not what you expect. And eveery time you see them in a newlight

Good, thought provoking book
I picked this book up because I thought the title and the cover seemed pretty interesting.Once I started reading I couldn't stop, which is rare for me because I prefere TV.Yet i sat there for a few long sessions andfinished the book.I think the books views and their meddlings in historyare very well thought out.The plot twists are superb and the fight sceneis fantastic.I really enjoied this book. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (3)

This Bester anthology wraps serious existential themes in a breezy style
I picked this book up along with Bester's _The Stars My Destination._
I only bought the _Starburst_ anthology because I wanted to read more from Bester. I was not prepared to be blown away by his entertaining and breezy writing style. Yet Bester's topics are for adults, not grownup children.
Thematically, each story is so different from the next. Bester, although didactic in a philosophical sense, writes some very serious themes such as which choices go into making one a mature, existential human being.
I was simply enchanted by his ability to take a simple story, one after another, and weave such complex themes of the human condition into them!
This man understood mankind, he understood self-delusion, and he understood the vice of wishful thinking. That is "Hobson's Choice." Such a profound thinker as Bester should not be underestimated. The insight just sneaks up on you! All in a tale of a simple statistician and time travel...
True, "Travel Diary" is clever but ultimately inane and condescending, but it is still a valid critique of a cultural type that may have been rampant in the early 50's, the "Ugly American." Perhaps a few readers read themselves into this mindset and feel uncomfortable. Who knows?
"Fondly Fahrenheit," an android story, told in a brief twenty pages is as good in its exploration of insanity and the criminal "split personality" as the Hitchcock/Bloch film "Psycho."
"Starcomber" involves the existential yet "simple" element of choice. Prepare to have yourself examined.
At some level, I suspect that reading--and thinking about--this anthology is as good as 6 months of psychoanalysis.
Definitely science fiction for grownups.

Half Good Stuff, Half Filler
I got this book second-hand based on the review below. I had not read any of Alfread Bester's work previously. The first five short stories in Starburst are pretty good, but the rest, which take up the second half of the book, are filler. I would suggest going with a different collection of short stories as Starburst is a pretty mediocre collection and didn't give me the impression that Bester was a particularly good short story writer.

Amazing!
I've read a lot of short stories...from Vonnegut to Kafka, H.G. Wells to Neil Gaiman. But none of those remotely compare to what you'll find in Bester's short stories. His stories are all fast-paced, and he gets his meaning across. He doesn't have to put in a lot of nonsense just to take up space. If his story is three pages long, so be it! He doesn't add another 15 pages just for the sake of having a long story. If he gets his message across, he ends his story. I think a lot of authors nowadays should take note! But just in terms of science-fiction, it's easy to see why Bester has had so much influence on the sci-fi community. His ideas are so awesome. He was like so many other science-fiction authors: ahead of his time! What I like most about his short stories is how we get a glimpse of characters that appear in Bester's larger works. For instance, some of the characters from "The Stars My Destination" appear in some of these short stories. I just think it adds to the fun.

I can't even say a coherent statement about this book, and I apologize. I'm just still in shock. I think that if you like science-fiction, Alfred Bester in particular, or just like to read, you NEED to read at least one of Bester's short stories. After that, you'll be hooked. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (8)

How to hook somebody on Sci-fi
This is simply the finest Sci-Fi book ever written.I agree there may be better authors, depending on choice (Heinlein, Niven, Asimov, etc.), but this book is the pinnacle of achievement.
My poor wife has been subjected to my nerdy sci-fi ways, but I made a convert out of her when I read this book aloud.It reads like poetry, sounds like war, looks like armageddon.

And for anyone who thinks this is your typical book: think again. Gully Foyle is one man you NEVER want to cross.

gully foyle
Iread the novel first and then the graphic novel, in the early 70's.The graphic novel was written and drawn by the Pitt brothers ( from Australia , I believe).The Pitt brothers had a Russ Manning visual style. The story itself is timeless , Edmond Dantes in outer space. I don't understand why this graphic novel got out of print.copyright,ownership squabbles. The modern day equivalent of Gully Foyle is John Riddick, in the film Pitch Black.

Absolutely the best of Bester
I first found the graphic adaptation of Alfred Bester's "The Stars, My Destination" in the late seventies in a second-hand bookstore in Naples, Florida... I sat on the floor and read it from cover to cover, paid.50 for it and started my quest to find Vol 2... only to find it had neverbeen printed...This was one of the first (maybe THE first) graphicnovels, a cross between comic a book and a novel, with brightly coloredpanels but complex plot lines and dialog... and no one has come close toits achievement...Gully's single minded drive towards his fate, coupledwith his total confusion about who and what he was, along with his completeignorance of his potential inspired me to strive beyond my imaginedlimitations... I identified with his suprise at accomplishing acts otherssaid were impossible... and his ability to immediately take advantage ofthese discoveries... his escape from the frypan to the fire... a hero forall time, Gully is "The Man"... when the movie is made, I willwatch it with my son, as he is another Gully, and maybe he will find thesame desire to reach beyond this to what is unimagined but more thanpossible... ps. I forgave my ex for cheating on me, for wrecking the cars,for getting rid of my dog, but she can burn in hell for tearing up the onlycopy of this book I have ever seen.

the stars my destination
To anyone who has ever read a truely fascinating work of fiction, and still can recall all the emotions which that novel stirred deep within their soul, thenthey are the lucky few who know how much I enjoyed thisbook.I could literally not put it down and I was completely enveloped inevery aspect of the novel.It fascinated me how compelled Gully was tofulfill his destiny, no matter what the odds.I would reccomend this bookto anyone who has even the slightest interest in science-fiction. For thoseof you who are not sci-fi fans, this book could change your mind in aninstant.I can honestly say that this book is one of the best books I'veever read in all my life, and I am an avid reader.Believe me, if you readonly one book ever again, make it this one.You will realize things aboutyourself that you never even considered, and also walk away being able tosay that you read one of the greatest sci-fi books of all time.

The Stars His Destination
One of the finest novels of any genre I have read, The_Stars_My_Destination, or Tiger,_Tiger! as it was originally titled, is the best single work of science fiction master Alfred Bester, author ofmany short stories I have also been fortunate enough to enjoy.Fans of thecomic book works Batman:_The_Dark_Knight_Returns by Frank Miller, and thelegendary Watchmen by Alan Moore will delight in this most twisted,vitriolic, and gut crushing revenge quest of the novel's protagonist GullyFoyle, described by Bester early in the book as a stereotypical mantransformed into an "infernal machine", with (to him) goodreason.This novel is the culmination, in my opinion, of all the othershining moments in Bester's career, which singly are not to beunderestimated, incorporating Bester's gathered insights from his numerousfields of study. Brilliantly written and consistently captivating, it's anovel that will make you jump in your seat, and a must for the sciencefiction afficionado and enthusiasts of great novels of all genres alike. ... Read more

Product Description
One hundred and seventy days adrift in the fathomless black frost of space, Gulliver Foyle, Mechanic's Mate 3rd Class, is at the end of his tether. But Gulliver doesn't know that he's the 24th century's most valuable commodity. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

If you are unfamiliar with "Tiger! Tiger!".......
....try re-reading "The Stars My Destination." You might find that this is indeed the same novel under it's original (and better fitting) title. Apropos of the original title, I believe that any connoisseur should attempt to get their hands on the novel as it was meant to be conveyed. So, "book snobs" unite, and pick up "Tiger! Tiger!" Both Gully Foyle and Edmond Dantes will commend you. ... Read more

Product Description
The Nebula Awards are voted on, and presented by, active members of the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America, Inc. (or SWFA)—and the Grand Master Award is given by the SWFA to a living author for a lifetime's achievement in science fiction and/or fantasy.

Frederik Pohl, one of the world's finest SF authors and editors, has been authorized to edit an anthology in three large-format volumes featuring substantial selections of the work of all the first fifteen Grand Masters. These are the seminal writers within the modern SF field, those whose works are of dominant importance and lasting influence.

Volume Two, presenting the second five writers to receive the award, offers fiction by Andre Norton, Arthur C. Clarke, Isaac Asimov, Alfred Bester, and Ray Bradbury.
... Read more

Customer Reviews (3)

Great for kids who love art and monster trucks
This is the first book I've bought for my son that he really loves.He adores all things monster trucks and is very artistic.Highly recommend for kids like mine.

Good for exposure...
...to older authors.If you read Gardner Dozois' anthology, you get a lot of the new writers, but this is where I first read some of Bester's work--great stuff.

Nice sampler for a beginning SF reader.
I'm the first to review this book. Hope this will be helpful to would be buyers.
This book is not very interesting for an advanced SF reader. Why?
Writers featured in this book are Asimov, Bester, Bradbury, Clarke and Norton. Good and popular writers, but their work is still very easy to come by. Want stories of Asimov? Buy his two-volume collection. Same for Bradbury, who has a very nice one-volume collection, and for Clarke and Bester. The stories in this anthology will tell you that these writers deserve to have a single-author collection on your bookshelves. Why buy stories you already own?
For starters then. Buy this book. Some stories in here are classics, others are mere filler. They point out to you their writers' vision. Still, it's your decision. The truth: There are better anthologies out there.
Whatever your decision, do check out the first item in this series. It's somewhat better.
I appreciate this series. A good Idea. You won't throw your money away. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (6)

The best of Bester!
This book is a compilation of two collections "The Light Fantastic" and "Star Light, Star Bright"; containing short stories published from 1941 (Adam and No Eve) to 1973 (Something up there likes me), as well as a piece on Isaac Asimov. Bester was one of the original innovators, helping to bring science fiction out of the pulp fiction days, and always mixing in a little human psychology.Bester witnessed the rebirth of science fiction along with Campbell, Heinlein and Van Vogt, and contributed to early" Astonishing stories". The introductions all give insight to both Bester and science fiction publishing: with antidotes of competing with Robert Heinlein and Harlan Ellison. He also answers the question "Why did I stop writing science fiction?". My favorite introduction begins with "I'm a quasi-existentialist" and precedes a superb existentialist story "Hell is Forever". "Star Light, Star bright" is also a favorite, with the key character being just eleven years old.

A Great Collection of Bester's Popular Short SF Works
As you may have read, Alfred Bester's novels, The Demolished Man and The Stars My Destination (TSMD) are highly recommended for those that enjoy reading science fiction.If you're wanting to read more by Bester after that, a collection of his short stories is the next good place to go.His short to-the-point prose, storyline twists, and some similarities to the main character in TSMD are in his stories and Starlight is a collection of his better shorter SF works.Although Starlight is presently out of print, it can be purchased used by sellers via Amazon, sometimes for as little as 1 cent excluding shipping fees!

Starlight is slightly better than Virtual Unrealities in that each story is accompanied by a short description on the story.Starlight excludes Will You Wait?, The Flowered Thundermug, 3½ to Go, Galatea Galante, The Devil Without Glasses, BUT includes Ms. Found in a Champagne Bottle, Comment on "Fondly Fahrenheit", Four-Hour Fugue, Hell Is Forever, Isaac Asimov, Something Up There Likes Me, and My Affair with Science Fiction.Hell Is Forever, which is included only in this collection out of the two, was written incredibly in 1942, but the characters are just as relevant and realistic today in their selfishness as then.In this incredible story, one of the characters asks a powerful entity the impossible unrealistic request of answering the secret of the universe and to yet keep it from being answered as to maintain its mystique and incredibly, and unbelievably, Bester does just that in the story.

Note that there are different reviews between the Starlight hardcopy and the Starlight paperback Amazon reviews.

Table of contents and info for Starlight:
1976, 452pp.Combination of two previously published collections from 1976.Collection of 16 stories and three articles. ss: short story, nv: novelette, na: novella, ar: article.
* * from book: The Light Fantastic * ed. Alfred Bester * co Berkley/Putnam, 1976
* * 5,271,009 * nv F&SF Mar 1954
* * Ms. Found in a Champagne Bottle * ss Status, 1968
* * Fondly Fahrenheit * nv F&SF Aug 1954
* * Comment on "Fondly Fahrenheit" * ar
* * The Four-Hour Fugue * ss Analog Jun 1974 (`75 Hugo ss finalist), used in Golem^100?
* * The Men Who Murdered Mohammed * ss F&SF Oct 1958(`59 Hugo ss finalist)
* * Disappearing Act * ss Star Science Fiction Stories #2, ed. Frederik Pohl, Ballantine, 1953
* * Hell Is Forever * na Unknown Aug 1942
* * from book: Star Light, Star Bright * ed. Alfred Bester * co Berkley/Putnam, 1976
* * Adam and No Eve * ss Astounding Sep 1941
* * Time Is the Traitor * nv F&SF Sep 1953
* * Oddy and Id ["The Devil's Invention"] * ss Astounding Aug 1950
* * Hobson's Choice * ss F&SF Aug '52 1952
* * Star Light, Star Bright * ss F&SF Jul 1953
* * They Don't Make Life Like They Used To * nv F&SF Oct 1963
* * Of Time and Third Avenue * ss F&SF Oct 1951
* * Isaac Asimov * iv Publishers Weekly Apr 17 '72
* * The Pi Man * ss Star Light, Star Bright, Berkley/Putnam, 1976; revised from F&SF Oct '59 (`60Hfinal)
* * Something Up There Likes Me * nv Astounding, ed. Harry Harrison, Random, 1973
* * My Affair with Science Fiction * ar Nova 4, ed. Harry Harrison, Walker, 1974

Behold Bester's Brain
After your mind has been blown by Bester's two immortal novels, The Demolished Man and The Stars My Destination (both infinitely recommended), this is the place to collect most of the rest of his known works in science fiction. Unlike the more recent reissued short story collections, this volume is worth tracking down because of Bester's introductions to each of the stories, not to mention the inclusion of his bare-bones autobiography "My Affair with Science Fiction." These essays shed much-needed light on Bester's personality and writing style, which you would be justified in being quite curious about based on his novels. We learn that one of his basic writing methods was to unapologetically lay waste to tired and played out SF stereotypes, creating works that are incredibly inventive, imaginative, and sometimes downright bizarre; and always with bodacious dialogue, offbeat settings, and unsettling themes.

As for the short stories themselves, there is one misstep here – "The Four-Hour Fugue" which is merely excerpted from the late-period Bester novel Golem^100 (or is an early version of one section of the book), and hence doesn’t make much sense in short form. But otherwise, the stories here are uniformly mind-boggling. Bester twists the time travel concept in remarkable ways in the hysterical "The Men Who Murdered Mohammed" and the unsettling "Hobson's Choice," and wildly distorts the last-man-on-Earth motif in "Adam and No Eve" and "They Don't Make Life Like They Used To." Another very noteworthy tale here is the sneakily disturbing "Disappearing Act," which has strong anti-war themes that are distressingly relevant today, more than fifty years after it was written. Bester spent most of his career writing in other fields, but his small amount of classic science fiction demands to be discovered by adventurous and free-thinking readers everywhere. [~doomsdayer520~]

The most interesting of the Bester collections
What sets *Starlight* apart from *Virtual Unrealities* and *Re-Demolished* is simply the voice of non-Sci-Fi Bester.The introductions and anecdotes preceding each story is a fascinating look into the writer's craft and the mind of a lifelong (though more talented than most) dilletante.

This is really the only opportunity left to us in (somewhat widely) available print to see Bester when he's not spinning wildly inventive fiction or fantasy.While one can still find *My Affair With Science Fiction* re-printed here and there, where else are we going to find the source material for the characters of "Hell is Forever" or Bester's personal opinion of Dillenger?

Perhaps *Re-Demolished* provides us with a wider spectrum of Bester's works (there are a few pieces there with NO ties to science fiction), but in *Starlight* we get glorious flashes of Bester away from the fantasy: occasional glimpses of libaries, foreign lands, fishing trips, and television studios.

Alfred Bester was a prodigious 20th-century talent, and *Starlight* allows us to get as close to a conversation with him as possible.

Rest in peace, Alfie.

Bester's Best
Most of the short stories in thi s volume are also reprinted in "Virtual Unrealities" but, if you can find this volume, it is much better because of the introductions and essays that Bester wrote. They help to create the feeling that you actually know the man. The storiesthemselves are among ht ebest science fiction short stories that I haveever read. ... Read more

Product Description
A chronology, study, annotated bibliography of Bester's works, both within and outside of the science fiction genre. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Could have use more polishing
Only devoted fans of Alfred Bester's science fiction and fantasy will be enthralled with this book, a collection of largely forgettable stories and other odds and ends.The book wisely opens with a bang - the powerfully moving "Adam and No Eve" which describes the fate of the driven scientific visionary who becomes the last man on Earth.In an unusual twist, the intrepid explorer's determination to reach for the stars instigates an ecological catastrophe that renders the whole planet uninhabitable.Bester gets maximum mileage from his skill at writing prose that is heavy with violence and pain in this paean to a lost world.This kind of story is not for everyone, of course, but it's easily the best piece in this collection.Of the remaining stories, the more memorable are those that feature aberrant personalities, like the not-quite lovable kooks in "They Don't Make Life Like They Used To" and the frightening but fascinating lunatic who calls himself "The Pi Man".In a lighter vein, "Something Up There Likes Me" shows us the proud parents of an intelligent satellite and how their loving "son" affects their lives, as well as those of everyone on the planet. Included in the collection are three stories about time travel: the psychologically-based "Time Is the Traitor" fizzles despite some strong characterizations, "Hobson's Choice" suggests that one can never be happy outside one's own milieu, and "Of Time and Third Avenue" is a thoroughly forgettable yarn about an almanac from the future.The theme behind each of these stories is that time travel is a dead end to be avoided.Bester seems to think that better results can be obtained by mental control over external events, as with the genius in "Star Light, Star Bright", although he points out the dangers of such powers in "Oddy and Id".His interview with sci-fi legend Isaac Asimov is far too short to be memorable, and the autobiographical essay "My Affair with Science Fiction" may be interesting to Bester's fans, but isn't especially notable in itself.Few of these stories are scientific enough to show their age (although most of them are over 40 years old), but the ideas espoused in this collection seem to somehow fall a little short.Bester is surely a very talented writer, but too many of these stories have a half-finished quality that begs for another re-write, as though most of the story were written before he'd worked out the ending, and then once finished, he didn't have time to go back and fit the first half to the second.In any case, only "Adam and No Eve" really merits a recommendation.The rest of this book can be skipped without any major loss. ... Read more

Product Description
Regina and her bee-ladies, bored members of the elite, while away the idle hours by playing at conjuring the Devil - a game which leads to horrifying consequences. Alfred Bester's other novels include "Tiger, Tiger", "Extro" and "The Demolished Man". ... Read more

Customer Reviews (5)

Senseeing and Seesensing
This old book doesn't quite have the immortal greatness of Bester's two masterpieces, The Stars My Destination and The Demolished Man. Those two classics deserve to be rediscovered due to their sheer relentless weirdness and Bester's very strange and vivid imagination. After one has digested those two novels, Golem^100 becomes a little easier to handle, though that weirdness is still there in spades. This one does have Bester's most fully-realized and well-crafted characters, as these unique personalities try to battle an interdimensional demon by trying to travel to its world, through the use of weird drugs and esoteric rituals. Bester does incredible things with human (and inhuman) psychology here, as mind expansion starts to cross the lines between psychic realms and even between good and evil. The illustrated portions of the novel, highlighting trips to these dark realms, could be better artistically, but this is a very audacious method of visual storytelling. Note that this book does have some scenes of horrendous brutality and degradation that could be a turn-off for some readers, and a few sections written in stream-of-consciousness or hipster slang are getting pretty dated. But this is another case of Bester's truly cracked and bizarre imagination, and his very small number of novels places him far above sci-fi writers who have written dozens and dozens. But sometimes you really have to wonder what this guy was on... [~doomsdayer520~]

Good, but too stylistic for the sake of it..
With too much time on their hands, a group of well to do ladies conspire to summon the devil. This they unknowingly do, unleashing a chain of unlikely and gruesome murders. During the outbreak of the murders the perfume designer, Blaise Shima, who has an extraordinary sensitivity to odours, is drawn in by way of the strong smell of death that is coincidental with the creature / Golem that the ladies have set loose.

Police investigator, Subador Ind'dni is baffled by the killings but learns the truth when he is eventually confronted by the strange goings on between Blaise Shima and the Psychodynamicist, Gretchen Nunn, who has been employed by Blaise Shima's employers to discover why their top perfume designer is acting oddly.

Attempts to destroy the Golem appear to have succeded, but Gretchen Nunn is ultimately a replacement to the ladies that instigated the problem, and Subador Indin'dni becomes the Golem.

Much of this book is very similar to Iain M Banks' material, a couple of sections pretty much a precursor to sections of Use of Weapons and Against a Dark Background. The opening chapter is similar to John Updike's, The Witches of Eastwick. Overall, Golem 100 was a straightforward read apart from a few parts toward the final pages, which were a bit tiresome and which can be skimmed through. A section in which a number of murders were taking place was awkwardly handled: the break from Suabador Indin'dni to a sequence ofmurders and back again, taking a page or two to figure out what the intended effect was supposed to be, since it was a stylistic divergence from the preceding text.

All of the illustrations worked okay, but were sometimes a little confusing because they were either post or pre sync to the text.

In general, Golem 100 is a well put together piece of work all the links well thought through and convincing. The satirical aspect of the book was - I'm afraid to say -dependant upon events that I've forgotten the relevance of, making this aspect of the book little more than slightly comedic. Doubtless there are others, who will be better informed than myself, and more appreciative of Alfred Bester's intentions...

Put the book down, throw it away, get it out of your life.
That's it - throw it far from you, and back slowly away from it. Easy does it - you don't want to arouse its ire, for it could surely suck us all into the giant, gaping hole that is _Golem 100_.

Seldom have I ever tipped my head sideways in that confused puppy look more often than I did whilst reading this book - it is, and I'm positive it's supposed to be this way, full of non-sequitors and jump cuts which make absolutely no sense. Couple that with the bizarre drawings, and the completely nonsensical ending, and you've got a recipe for a migraine right there. There wasn't much of anything about this book that was entertaining - a few bits were intriguing, but it was not by any means "enjoyable." I picked it up because I was curious about Bester's writing, and I stuck through it til the end, just in case there was some hugely clever way he wrapped it all up and made it sensical. Alas, none was there.

I don't believe there are words to describe this book fully - you'd have to have an all-senses lexicon to do the hideousness justice. Y'know, something that could pull in visual, auditory, and olfactory input, in addition to a paragraph or so of the book's text, all in one assaultive packet of data.

Very rarely do I ever think, "sweet mother, _there's_ time I won't ever get back" after reading a book, even a bad one. I'm of the opinion that everything I read enriches me, in one way or another. This one? No way. No enrichment here. I want my time back!!! I mean, I would rather poke myself in the eye with a sharp stick (repeatedly!) than have to read this horrible piece of trash again.

I keep it on-hand just to remind me of how awful it is, just in case (after a few more years pass) I ever think "Gee, maybe I should reread that again in case I missed something." I tell you, I assuredly did miss something, because nothing could suck that hard, but you know what? I don't care! I never want to see the inside of that book again! In fact, I have stapled a photograph of myself pulling my hair out inside the cover, just in case I ever do pick it up.

So, to review: Run away! Put it down! Put it through the shredder! For the love of Mike, DON'T READ IT! Don't waste the time!! Honestly!!!!!!

Dark, twisted foray into the world of the subconcious
This book represents all of Bester's trademarks - psychology. twisted humor, fast action, eccentric characters - taken to the extreme. The book is about a group of bored rich houswifes who dabble in magic to avert tedium and manage, without their knowing, to actually summon a demon. A small group of misfits - BLaise Shima, a scent expert, Gretchen Nunn, a detective, and Inspector Ind'dni, hunt for the source of the Demon who terrorizes the city.
The Science in this science fiction book is psychology, mainly Jungian psychoanalysis. In this book the world of the collective subconcious comes to life.
The world in Golem^100 is the sort of demented corporate-run future described in Bester's earlier work, The Computer Connection. Here it's described in even darker tones.
There's a lot of dark humor in Golem^100, and some of it may not be to everyone's liking - if you're offended by necrophilia jokes don't read this book. If you can stomach some VERY graphic violence (with innards all over the place), twisted humor and a plot that involves mutants, demons and radioactive drugs, read this book. While not a masterwork, it's a very original, inventive, thrilling read.

Fun read, but inconsistent and repulsive.
This is the first Bester book I have read - I've always disliked the juxtaposition of humor and horror, so there is much for me to dislike in Golem100.Quick synopsis: Several horrible murders occur in New York of 2175, and 3 dissimilar personalites come together to try to find theculprit.Golem100 occasionally succeeds as a detective/crime novel, and Ifound it hard to put down.It is NOT science fiction - it's more of ahallucinogenic-psycho-drama set in the future.Some of the stylisticdevices are very inventive.I've heard that this book is hard to fathom -I didn't find it a difficult read, but be prepared to have your intellecttaxed.It's basically a pornographic version of "FantasicPlanet". ... Read more