The Collected Stories of Arthur C. Clarke

4.6 4.6 out of 5 stars | 2,107 ratings

Price: 34.96

Last update: 12-18-2024


About this item

Author of the Hugo and Nebula Award-winning novels Rendezvous with Rama and The Fountains of Paradise along with such memorable novels as Childhood's End, Sir Arthur C. Clarke was - with Isaac Asimov and Robert A. Heinlein - one of the writers who defined the classic era of science fiction. From early work like "Rescue Party" and "The Lion of Comarre" through classic stories including "The Star", "Earthlight", "The Nine Billion Names of God", and "The Sentinel" (kernel of the later novel and movie 2001: A Space Odyssey), all the way to later work like "A Meeting with Medusa" and "The Hammer of God", this comprehensive short story collection encapsulates one of the great science fiction careers of all time.


Top reviews from the United States

  • Thomas Wikman
    5.0 out of 5 stars Many and strange are the Universes that drift like bubbles in the foam upon the River of time
    Reviewed in the United States on April 23, 2008
    "Many and strange are the Universes that drift like bubbles in the foam upon the River of time. Some - a very few - move against or athwart its current; and fewer still are those that lie forever beyond its reach, knowing nothing of the future or the past. Shervane's tiny cosmos was not one of these; its strangeness was of a different order." Thus begins the "Wall of darkness" the 16th of the stories in this collection of 104 Science Fiction short stories written by Arthur C. Clarke.

    Briefly; the Wall of darkness is a story about a wealthy young man who lives on a world always turning the same face towards its star, the great sun of Trilorne. On this world there was a region too hot for life called the Fire lands, a narrow belt that was inhabitable, and also the cold shadow lands surrounding the equator. Located at the equator was "The wall of darkness" a gigantic tall black impenetrable wall. It was not known whether it was created by the maker of stars or by some ancient civilization, but Shervane set out to explore it. What he found was almost beyond comprehension and still it elegantly explained the time and space structure of our own Universe, and maybe the time and space structure of any possible material Universe. As is stated; "Shervane's world was the last and the strangest jest of the Maker of the Stars". I always found this short story to be the most fascinating short story I have ever read, and one of the best manifestations of the Genius of Arthur C. Clarke.

    This is a nearly complete collection of all of A. Clarke's short stories collected into one book. Naturally it contains some awesome gems like; The lion of Comarre, The Sentinel, The Wall of darkness, The Nine Billion Names of God, The Man Who Ploughed the Sea, The Songs of Distant Earth, A Meeting With Medusa, The Hammer of God, etc. Some of these stories were later turned into novels. There were some editorial mistakes in the book but they did not ruin my reading experiences.

    Unlike the typical run of the mill space ship, star trek, star wars, sort of Science Fiction stories, these stories cover a lot of ground. From Tibetan monks trying to find God's real name using computers, to the discovery of 2 billion years old machines, encounters with gigantic jellyfish/balloon like creatures in Jupiters atmosphere, to quirky and humor filled space walk accidents.

    What I like about Arthur C. Clarke is that he does not waste his great imagination on the impossible or highly implausible. For example, time travel stories (back in time) are as boring as they are implausible (or impossible). In the comment section I will list all the stories in this collection. Perhaps you will recognize your favorite.
  • wbraud
    5.0 out of 5 stars A very thorough collection
    Reviewed in the United States on October 29, 2024
    Though not containing any of Clarke's full length novels, this thorough collection covers the broad and fascinating range of his works in short story lengths. It's a long read, but an enjoyable dive into a broad range of styles and topics. Highly recommend.
  • Jeffrey Copeland
    4.0 out of 5 stars a great collection
    Reviewed in the United States on June 23, 2024
    I grew up reading Clarke, and it's wonderful to have all his short fiction in one place. It's a small shame that the proofreading wasn't better: the egregious typos in, for example, "I Remember Babylon," take some of the joy out of revisiting old friends.
  • Glenn Nelson
    5.0 out of 5 stars Superb collection by superb classic sci-fi author
    Reviewed in the United States on April 27, 2022
    This is apparently a complete collection of Arthur C. Clarke's short stories, beginning with his first in 1932. I read some of these in the 1960s and 70s. I am amazed to find that they are truly good. Short stories are often difficult to end, but these stories always end in a satisifying way; surprise endings sometimes, but not gimmicks. Unlike other contemporary "greats" of his day, such as Asimov and Heinlein, there is very little sexism and the writing is mature and not juvenile. Also Clarke was a scientist and engineer and many of these tales have a ring of reality to them.
    Clarke also enjoyed some humor and there are many short stories featuring Harry Purvis, principally from the book "Tales from the White Hart". Fun, but too many.
    We all know that Clarke wrote "2001: A Space Odyssey", based on the short story "The Sentinel", but so many stories in this collection are better.
  • Ross
    5.0 out of 5 stars Best collection
    Reviewed in the United States on May 8, 2024
    I enjoyed every one of these stories. Each was entertaining as well as providing basic physics facts to fit each story as it was told. I enjoyed them immensely. I am quite sure you will also.
  • Kindle Customer
    5.0 out of 5 stars If you like Clark.
    Reviewed in the United States on August 2, 2024
    Good stuff!!
  • James Elfers
    3.0 out of 5 stars The BEST and the WORST
    Reviewed in the United States on June 7, 2019
    I was a devoted fan of Arthur C. Clarke when he was alive. I've read many of the stories here before, but a fair number of them were new to me. In simple terms this collection contains both the best that Clarke produced an an awful lot of dreck. On the one hand, since this collection is arranged chronologically, you can see him become a more skilled and facile writer with time. On the other hand, a lot of his early stuff is either not very good or seriously dated. I find that reading this in small doses is preferable to trying to consume too much at once. The introductions are often interesting. In many ways, it is "An English Gentleman Goes To Outer Space." There are almost no women, few minorities, and Brits and Yanks predominate. They don't write 'em like that anymore, and that is mostly a good thing. Virtually every story has a neat or original idea. Clarke was a supreme idea man. His work, especially his later, mature stuff has a philosophical resonance that stays with the reader long after the story itself has faded. He also has a rather dry and very British sense of humor. Many of his predictions came true. Of all the big three authors found and nurtured by John Campbell, Jr. (with Asimov, and Heinline), Clarke came the closest to predicting what the twenty-first century we now inhabit would be like. Other conceits, such as astronauts smoking cigarettes on deep space missions, are a definite product of their times. There is a spy in one story who eludes discovery on one of the moons of Mars. Once the heat is off he takes a cigarette break! I'd really like to know the technical how's and what's of that procedure as he is currently wearing a spacesuit! Those are minor quibbles however. This collection is a must for either fans of Clarke or aficionados of early science fiction.
  • John C. Oldenburg
    4.0 out of 5 stars Later Writings Better Than The Earlier
    Reviewed in the United States on July 2, 2024
    The earlier stories tended to end with a twist, often unpleasant. The later ones exhibited more emotional depth whose exploration was the purpose of the story.

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