The Space Opera Renaissance

Just finished reading this monster, (940-plus pages), and all I can say is "Wow!" After 50-plus years of reading SF I would have thought at least one of these stories would be a re-read. No way! They were all new to me and I give a big, "two thumbs UP" for nearly every one. The editors are to be commended for an excellent job with their introductions to the stories and lots of eclectic info on the authors. I honestly can't remember reading another anthology with such a majority of very good stories. If you are new to SF and wish to know about the various definitions of the term 'space opera', or, if you are an old hand, like me, and wish to dine on a sumptious buffet of the sub-genre stretching from it's very beginnings to the present, this book should not be overlooked. I just ordered the editor's companion volume "The Hard SF Renaissance" based solely on the quality of the stories included in this volume.

I'm working my way through the Hartwell & Cramer SPACE OPERA RENAISSANCE anthology, and finding it well-done and to my taste -- I think it's Hartwell's best BIG review-anthology yet. Truly a doorstop: 940+ pages!, with a surprisingly large number of new-to-me stories. Space Opera, as Hartwell points out in his nicely-done introductory essay and story notes, is a flexible concept. And when you get to New Space Opera, or Widescreen Baroque Space Opera -- well, no one really knows what these are. Really, space opera is what Hartwell (or whoever) points to when he says "space opera"... Anyway, take a look at this juicy lineup: (my faves are starred*) Introduction: *How Shlt became Shinola, Definition & Redefinition of Space Opera, by Hartwell & Cramer I. Redefined Writers "The Star Stealers" by Edmond Hamilton "The Prince of Space" by Jack Williamson "Enchantress of Venus" by Leigh Brackett *"The Swordsmen of Varnis" by Clive Jackson II. Draftees (1960s) ***"The Game of Rat & Dragon" by Cordwainer Smith "Empire Star" by Samuel R. Delany "Zirn Left Unguarded, the Jenjik Palace in Flames, Jon Westerly Dead" by Robert Sheckley III. Transitions/Redefiners (late 1970s to late 1980s) *"Temptation" by David Brin "Ranks of Bronze" by David Drake *"Weatherman" by Lois McMaster Bujold "A Gift from the Culture" by Iain M. Banks IV. Volunteers:Revisionaries (early 90s) *"Orphans of the Helix" by Dan Simmons "The Well Wishers" by Colin Greenland *"Escape Route" by Peter Hamilton "Ms Midshipwoman Harrington" by David Weber "Aurora in Four Voices" by Catherine Asaro **"Ring Rats" by R. Garcia y Robertson *"The Death of Captain Future" by Allen Steele V. Mixed Signals/ Mixed Categories (to the late 1990s) *"A Worm in the Well" by Gregory Benford **"The Survivor" by Donald Kingsbury "Fools Errand" by Sarah Zettel "The Shobies Story" by Ursula K. Le Guin "The Remoras" by Robert Reed "Recording Angel" by Paul McAuley "The Great Game" by Steven Baxter "Lost Sorceress of the Silent Citadel" by Michael Moorcock "Space Opera" by Michael Kandel VI. Next Wave (21st Century) "Grist" by Tony Daniel "The Movements of her Eyes" by Scott Westerfeld *"Spirey and the Queen" by Alastair Reynolds *"Bear Trap" by Charles Stross "Guest Law" by John C. Wright Some story comments: "The Game of Rat & Dragon" (1955) by Cordwainer Smith. My favorite Smith classic, which is to say one of the best SF shorts ever, Hasn't dated one bit in a half-century. Meow! Dan Simmons' "Orphans of the Helix" (1999, _Far Horizons_), is a tasty, atmospheric and thoroughly space-operatic travel-adventure, set in the Hyperian Cantos universe. Pure travelogue and goshwow, mind --allegedly, this started life as a TV treatment. Would have made a nice show, if the SFX turned out well.... There's a new-to-me David Brin short: "Temptation" (1999), Streaker dolphins in Jijo's ocean. Quite a nice one, and reminds me of the good bits in the Jijo books -- like the sheer audacity of (literally) s

As someone whose own work has been describe as intelligent space opera, I love this book just for the statment on the dust jacket that: Space Opera, once a derisive term for cheap pulp adventure, has come to mean something more in modern SF: compelling adventure stories told against a broad canvas and written to the highest level of skill. Indeed, it can be argued that the "new space opera" is one of the defining streams of modern SF. I confess I thought it was more of an academic analysis than an anthology when I bought it, but now I'm looking forward to the sampling of works from different times and tangents, instead. There is an element of academic analysis, as well, in the introduction.

Presents stories from the entire history of space opera (although heavily biased toward more recent stories), with scholarly comments on each entry and a long, informative introduction. A good selection of enjoyable stories from some of the major writers of the form (although Vernor Vinge is inexplicably absent). The copyediting is uneven in spots, with missing or misspelled words.

In the Introduction to this superb anthology, space opera was coined by Bob Tucker in 1941: "In these hectic days of phrase coning, we offer one. Westerns are called "horse operas," the morning housewife tear-jerkers are called "soap operas." For the hacky, grinding, stinking, outworn space ship yarn, or world saving for that matter, we offer space opera." By 1959 the connotation remained "A hack science fiction story, a dressed up western" as noted by Fancyclopedia II. By the 1960s space opera was considered dead. Yet today it is alive, well, and highly regarded as its reputation changed as "sh*t became Shinola". This terrific compilation pays tribute to space opera tales from various decades starting with a delightful Edmond Hamilton tale from 1929 to a Stephen Baxter contribution from 2003; the entries showcase the evolution and make an analytical argument that even cheap pulp fiction in outer space can be well written. The break out by decades is as follows: 1920s - 1; 1930s - 1; 1940s - 1; 1950s - 2; 1960s - 1; 1970s - 1; 1980s - 3; 1990s - 16; 2000s - 6. Though the spread is heavily the 1990s (half the entries) with some readers fascinated with the sub-genre roots wanting more of the older entries, the contributions are from a who's who, who come through with superb tales. This is must reading for science fiction short story fans. Harriet Klausner