Between Worlds

One of the great themes of science fiction is the exploration of other worlds in our galaxy and beyond. As Robert Silverberg writes in his introduction to Between Worlds, “an essentially infinite universe offers essentially infinite scope for the imagination.” Traveling distant realms of time and space, storytellers design vast interstellar and planetary landscapes, assemble alien anatomies and cultures, and grapple with astonishing new ideas — following the laws of science, of course.

For this volume — an SFBC creation — Silverberg asked some of today’s best sf writers to take a fresh look at this inexhaustible theme, and they came up with a collection of dazzlingly original tales. All the novellas here encapsulate the star-faring theme with an intriguing twist: characters in transit between worlds are undergoing internal transitions as well.

Contents:

Introduction (2004) • Robert Silverberg • ix
Between Worlds (2004) • Stephen Baxter • 1
The Wreck Of the Godspeed (2004) • James Patrick Kelly • 61
Shiva In Shadow (2004) • Nancy Kress • 123
The Colonel Returns To the Stars (2004) • Robert Silverberg • 179
Keepsakes (2004) • Mike Resnick • 245
Investments (2004) • Walter Jon Williams • 299