Böcker i Outspoken Authors-serien

Having stormed mainstream literature from the outskirts, Lethem has won a readership both wide and deep, all of whom appreciate his literary excellence, his mordant but compassionate humor, and the cultish attentiveness of his SF origins. He has earned the right to tread anywhere, and his many admirers are ready to follow.This collection compiles his intensely personal thoughts on the most interesting and deplorable topics in post-postmodern America. It moves from original new fiction to insights on popular culture, cult and canonical authors, and problematic people.Plus…“David Bowman and the Furry-Girl School of American Fiction” is a personal true adventure, as Lethem tries (with the help of a seeming expert) to elbow his way into literary respectability. “The Collapsing Frontier” and “In Mugwump Four” are fictions mapping ominous new realms. “Calvino’s 'Lightness' and the Feral Child of History” is an intimate encounter with a legendary author. In “My Year of Reading Lemmishly” and “Snowden in the Labyrinth” he explores courage, art, and the search for truth, with wildly different results.And Featuring: Our usual Outspoken Interview, in which Lethem reveals the secret subtext of his books, how he spent his MacArthur award money, and how a Toyota he owned was used in the robbery of a fast-food restaurant.

Wry, dark humor burnishes visionary SF in these often prophetic, sometimes troubling, but always fascinating tales that combine and masterfully conflate the disparate worlds of corporate tech and literary art.';After the Thaw' is a hi-tech take on an ancient idea: immortality. ';Terrible Trudy on the Lam' based on actual events, is a modern fable about a zoo escape, a private eye, a vaudeville act and keeping your mouth shut. ';Night Shift at NanoGobblers,' written for a NASA website, is about asteroid-altering AIs and their world-weary earthbound handlers. ';Transitions' deals with jet lag when your flight is decades late. Gunn's long-awaited third collection is rounded out by incisive and affectionate portraits of her SF colleagues, mentors, and friends, beginning with Ursula Le Guin. All illuminated of course by our artfully intimate interview.

';Arctic Sky' tells of a young climate activist who discovers her own courage in the frozen depths of a Russian prison. ';Palimpsest' is set on a bionic (living)space station that launches explorers into the farthest reaches of Time and Space. In ';The Room on the Roof' an ancient culture meets modern mysteries with unexpected results. Our non-fiction title piece, ';Utopias of the Third Kind,' is a first look at actual utopias that are responding to our looming dystopian nightmare. ';Hunger' is a short story that finds both understanding and forgiveness for humankind's original sin. Our Outspoken Interview and a bibliography round out this new collection.

The title story, 'Fire.', written especially for this volume, is a harrowing post-apocalyptic adventure in a world threatened by global conflagration. 'The Woman Men Couldn't See' is an expansion of Hand's acclaimed critical assessment of author Alice Sheldon. Another non-fiction piece, 'Beyond Belief,' recounts her difficult passage from alienated teen to serious artist. Also included are 'Kronia', a poignant time-travel romance, and 'The Saffron Gatherers', two of Hand's favourite and less familiar stories. Plus: a bibliography and an Outspoken Interview with Hand.