Tag: Fantasy Press

THE RED PERI (1952) by Stanley G. Weinbaum

\"Weinbaum,

[L]ast time out, I had a look at one of the oldest and most valuable SF books in my collection, the original 1949 Fantasy Press US 1st Edition hardcover of A Martian Odyssey and Others, which contained a dozen of the best pieces of short fiction written by classic 1930\’s SF author Stanley G. Weinbaum. Now I\’m going to take a look at a second Weinbaum short fiction collection, The Red Peri, another US 1st Edition hardcover, also published by Fantasy Press, in 1952.

TITLE: THE RED PERI
AUTHOR: Stanley G. Weinbaum
COVER ARTIST: John T. Brooks
CATEGORY: Short Fiction
SUB-CATEGORY: Single-Author Collection
FORMAT: Hardback (with dustjacket), US 1st Edition, 270 pages
PUBLISHER: Fantasy Press, Reading, Pennsylvania, US, 1952.

Contents (8 stories):

  • \”The Red Peri\” (novella, Astounding Stories, November 1935)
  • \”Proteus Island\” (novella, Astounding Stories, August 1936)
  • \”Flight on Titan\” (novelette, Astounding Stories, January 1935)
  • \”Smothered Seas\” (novelette, Astounding Stories, January 1936)
  • \”Redemption Cairn\” (novelette, Astounding Stories, March 1936)
  • \”The Brink of Infinity\” (short story, Thrilling Wonder Stories, December 1936)
  • \”Shifting Seas\” (novelette, Amazing Stories, April 1937)
  • \”Revolution of 1950\” (novella, Amazing Stories, October-November 1938)

This one can be regarded as the companion collection to the earlier A Martian Odyssey and Others, and between them, they contain all but a couple of Weinbaum\’s entire short fiction output. There are fewer stories in this one – eight as opposed to twelve – but there are three novellas, four novelettes and only one short story in The Red Peri, whereas A Martian Odyssey and Others contained no novellas, eight novelettes and four short stories.

It\’s been a long, long time since I read this one, and my memories are understandably hazy. I do remember preferring A Martian Odyssey and Others to The Red Peri, as the earlier collection did contain more of Weinbaum\’s \”better\” stories. But this collection also contains several of his best longer-form stories. I distinctly remember enjoying both \”The Red Peri\” and \”Proteus Island\”, although my memories of the other stories range from extremely vague to non-existent.

Like A Martian Odyssey and Others, this 1st US hardcover edition of The Red Peri comes with the original dustjacket, showcasing some very nice art by John T. Brooks. As with the earlier collection, the dustjacket of this one is in remarkably good condition considering its age. A little frayed around the outside, but otherwise pretty intact.

Overall, The Red Peri is a very nice collection, and in great condition, considering the fact that it\’s almost sixty-five years old and has been around the block a bit. Along with A Martian Odyssey and Others, it\’s definitely one of the real treasures in my SF book collection.

THE RED PERI (1952) by Stanley G. Weinbaum

\"Weinbaum,

Last time out, I had a look at one of the oldest and most valuable SF books in my collection, the original 1949 Fantasy Press US 1st Edition hardcover of A Martian Odyssey and Others, which contained a dozen of the best pieces of short fiction written by classic 1930\’s SF author Stanley G. Weinbaum. Now I\’m going to take a look at a second Weinbaum short fiction collection, The Red Peri, another US 1st Edition hardcover, also published by Fantasy Press, in 1952.

TITLE: THE RED PERI
AUTHOR: Stanley G. Weinbaum
COVER ARTIST: John T. Brooks
CATEGORY: Short Fiction
SUB-CATEGORY: Single-Author Collection
FORMAT: Hardback (with dustjacket), US 1st Edition, 270 pages
PUBLISHER: Fantasy Press, Reading, Pennsylvania, US, 1952.

Contents (8 stories):

  • \”The Red Peri\” (novella, Astounding Stories, November 1935)
  • \”Proteus Island\” (novella, Astounding Stories, August 1936)
  • \”Flight on Titan\” (novelette, Astounding Stories, January 1935)
  • \”Smothered Seas\” (novelette, Astounding Stories, January 1936)
  • \”Redemption Cairn\” (novelette, Astounding Stories, March 1936)
  • \”The Brink of Infinity\” (short story, Thrilling Wonder Stories, December 1936)
  • \”Shifting Seas\” (novelette, Amazing Stories, April 1937)
  • \”Revolution of 1950\” (novella, Amazing Stories, October-November 1938)

This one can be regarded as the companion collection to the earlier A Martian Odyssey and Others, and between them, they contain all but a couple of Weinbaum\’s entire short fiction output. There are fewer stories in this one – eight as opposed to twelve – but there are three novellas, four novelettes and only one short story in The Red Peri, whereas A Martian Odyssey and Others contained no novellas, eight novelettes and four short stories.

It\’s been a long, long time since I read this one, and my memories are understandably hazy. I do remember preferring A Martian Odyssey and Others to The Red Peri, as the earlier collection did contain more of Weinbaum\’s \”better\” stories. But this collection also contains several of his best longer-form stories. I distinctly remember enjoying both \”The Red Peri\” and \”Proteus Island\”, although my memories of the other stories range from extremely vague to non-existent.

Like A Martian Odyssey and Others, this 1st US hardcover edition of The Red Peri comes with the original dustjacket, showcasing some very nice art by John T. Brooks. As with the earlier collection, the dustjacket of this one is in remarkably good condition considering its age. A little frayed around the outside, but otherwise pretty intact.

Overall, The Red Peri is a very nice collection, and in great condition, considering the fact that it\’s almost sixty-five years old and has been around the block a bit. Along with A Martian Odyssey and Others, it\’s definitely one of the real treasures in my SF book collection.

A MARTIAN ODYSSEY AND OTHERS by Stanley G. Weinbaum

\"A

[T]his time out, I\’m going to take a brief look at one of the oldest and most valuable SF books in my collection, the earliest collection of short fiction by classic 1930\’s SF author Stanley G. Weinbaum. I bought this book a long time ago from a UK used book dealer, must\’ve been thirty-five years ago or more, way back when I was just becoming an obsessive book collector for the first time. It actually came as part of Weinbaum two-book set by the same publisher, Fantasy Press, the other book being The Red Peri, another collection of Weinbaum\’s short fiction, which will also be the subject of the blog post after this one.

TITLE: A MARTIAN ODYSSEY AND OTHERS
AUTHOR: Stanley G. Weinbaum
COVER ARTIST: A. J. Donnell
CATEGORY: Short Fiction
SUB-CATEGORY: Single-Author Collection
FORMAT: Hardback (with dustjacket), US 1st Edition, 289 pages
PUBLISHER: Fantasy Press, Reading, Pennsylvania, US, 1949.

Contents (12 stories):

  • \”A Martian Odyssey\” (novelette, Wonder Stories, July 1934)
  • \”Valley of Dreams\” (novelette, Wonder Stories, November 1934)
  • \”The Adaptive Ultimate\” (novelette, Astounding Stories, November 1935)
  • \”The Mad Moon\” (novelette, Astounding Stories, December 1935)
  • \”The Worlds of If\” (short story, Wonder Stories, August 1935)
  • \”The Ideal\” (novelette, Wonder Stories, September 1935)
  • \”The Point of View\” (short story, Wonder Stories, February 1936)
  • \”Pygmalion\’s Spectacles\” (short story, Wonder Stories, June 1935)
  • \”Parasite Planet\” (novelette, Astounding Stories, February 1935)
  • \”The Lotus Eaters\” (novelette, Astounding Stories, April 1935)
  • \”The Planet of Doubt\” (novelette, Astounding Stories, October 1935)
  • \”The Circle of Zero\” (short story, Thrilling Wonder Stories, August 1936)

This collection is notable for containing Weinbaum\’s most famous short story, \”A Martian Odyssey\” and its sequel, \”Valley of Dreams\”. There are also a few other good ones, including \”Parasite Planet\” and its sequel \”The Lotus Eaters\”, \”The Mad Moon\”, \”The Worlds of If\” and \”The Adaptive Ultimate\”. \”The Adaptive Ultimate\” has also been (if you\’ll pardon the pun) adapted to film, television and radio a number of times over the years.

Overall, A Martian Odyssey and Others contains most of the best of Weinbaum\’s short fiction, and, combined with the eight stories in The Red Peri contains almost all of the short fiction that Weinbaum wrote, with the exception of a handful of stories.

The dustjacket is in pretty good condition, considering its age, showcasing some lovely artwork by A. J. Donnell. As an aside, the edition that I have also bears a very interesting hand-written inscription/dedication on the front inside page. The inscription goes as follows:

\”FROM SCIENTI-CLAUS 1955
FOR ALF GREGORY\’S HG WELLSIANS
IN RESPECT OF THE MEMORY
OF THE GREATEST*
OF THEM ALL.

*HGW: 1886-1946\”

It\’s an extremely sobering thought that, at the publication date of this book (1949), the Great Man (H.G. Wells) had only been dead a mere three years. 🙁

It looks like this book was bought as a Christmas gift for someone, and this dedication is a tribute to a H.G. Wells fan group active in the UK, possibly in the late-1940s and the 1950s. At least that\’s the assumption that I\’m making from this. I know that it\’s a long shot, as we\’re talking more than sixty years ago here, and this group may or may not have been anything more than a small local fan group. But does anybody out there have any information on an old UK-based SF/HG Wells fan group by the name of ALF GREGORY\’S HG WELLSIANS? If so, I\’d be very appreciative if you\’d let me know the details.

A MARTIAN ODYSSEY AND OTHERS (1949) by Stanley G. Weinbaum

\"A

This time out, I\’m going to take a brief look at one of the oldest and most valuable SF books in my collection, the earliest collection of short fiction by classic 1930\’s SF author Stanley G. Weinbaum. I bought this book a long time ago from a UK used book dealer, must\’ve been thirty-five years ago or more, way back when I was just becoming an obsessive book collector for the first time. It actually came as part of Weinbaum two-book set by the same publisher, Fantasy Press, the other book being The Red Peri, another collection of Weinbaum\’s short fiction, which will also be the subject of the blog post after this one.

TITLE: A MARTIAN ODYSSEY AND OTHERS
AUTHOR: Stanley G. Weinbaum
COVER ARTIST: A. J. Donnell
CATEGORY: Short Fiction
SUB-CATEGORY: Single-Author Collection
FORMAT: Hardback (with dustjacket), US 1st Edition, 289 pages
PUBLISHER: Fantasy Press, Reading, Pennsylvania, US, 1949.

Contents (12 stories):

  • \”A Martian Odyssey\” (novelette, Wonder Stories, July 1934)
  • \”Valley of Dreams\” (novelette, Wonder Stories, November 1934)
  • \”The Adaptive Ultimate\” (novelette, Astounding Stories, November 1935)
  • \”The Mad Moon\” (novelette, Astounding Stories, December 1935)
  • \”The Worlds of If\” (short story, Wonder Stories, August 1935)
  • \”The Ideal\” (novelette, Wonder Stories, September 1935)
  • \”The Point of View\” (short story, Wonder Stories, February 1936)
  • \”Pygmalion\’s Spectacles\” (short story, Wonder Stories, June 1935)
  • \”Parasite Planet\” (novelette, Astounding Stories, February 1935)
  • \”The Lotus Eaters\” (novelette, Astounding Stories, April 1935)
  • \”The Planet of Doubt\” (novelette, Astounding Stories, October 1935)
  • \”The Circle of Zero\” (short story, Thrilling Wonder Stories, August 1936)

This collection is notable for containing Weinbaum\’s most famous short story, \”A Martian Odyssey\” and its sequel, \”Valley of Dreams\”. There are also a few other good ones, including \”Parasite Planet\” and its sequel \”The Lotus Eaters\”, \”The Mad Moon\”, \”The Worlds of If\” and \”The Adaptive Ultimate\”. \”The Adaptive Ultimate\” has also been (if you\’ll pardon the pun) adapted to film, television and radio a number of times over the years.

Overall, A Martian Odyssey and Others contains most of the best of Weinbaum\’s short fiction, and, combined with the eight stories in The Red Peri contains almost all of the short fiction that Weinbaum wrote, with the exception of a handful of stories.

The dustjacket is in pretty good condition, considering its age, showcasing some lovely artwork by A. J. Donnell. As an aside, the edition that I have also bears a very interesting hand-written inscription/dedication on the front inside page. The inscription goes as follows:

\”FROM SCIENTI-CLAUS 1955
FOR ALF GREGORY\’S HG WELLSIANS
IN RESPECT OF THE MEMORY
OF THE GREATEST*
OF THEM ALL.

*HGW: 1886-1946\”

It\’s an extremely sobering thought that, at the publication date of this book (1949), the Great Man (H.G. Wells) had only been dead a mere three years. 🙁

It looks like this book was bought as a Christmas gift for someone, and this dedication is a tribute to a H.G. Wells fan group active in the UK, possibly in the late-1940s and the 1950s. At least that\’s the assumption that I\’m making from this. I know that it\’s a long shot, as we\’re talking more than sixty years ago here, and this group may or may not have been anything more than a small local fan group. But does anybody out there have any information on an old UK-based SF/HG Wells fan group by the name of ALF GREGORY\’S HG WELLSIANS? If so, I\’d be very appreciative if you\’d let me know the details.