The Beginnings of Greatness

The Collected Stories of Arthur C. Clarke (2000) – Several dozen short stories that span the career of the iconic author. Clarke’s style can be seen to develop over the course of the stories which range from some silly stories to some of the “Tales From the White Hart” to 1949’s “The Sentinel” (which would become “2001: A Space Odyssey” on the big screen) to his Nebula award-winning story “A Meeting With Medusa” from 1972. Plenty to enjoy for Clarke fans, and plenty to explore for those who don’t know the work of this pivotal science fiction author.

Why I Liked It – A wonderful collection by one of my most influential authors in science fiction.

I’ve mentioned before that once I moved out of my “juvenile science fiction” phase (if the term is new to you, there is an older category of sci-fi aimed at younger readers with simplified science and storylines. For me, this was largely the Tom Swift series), I moved almost immediately to the classic works of the Golden Age of Science Fiction. That’s roughly from the mid-1930s to roughly the mid-1950s. At the top of the list among authors, you’ll find Robert A. Heinlein, Isaac Asimov, and Arthur C. Clarke. From there I grew into both stories from the “pulp era” that preceded it, and the
“New Wave” era that followed it.

Clarke was the most cerebral of the three “big names” for me. His stories felt the most visionary, outlining a future that became the present within my lifetime. That doesn’t mean he couldn’t be silly and fun. If the idea of science, mysteries, and a bit of fun in a pub sounds like a good time, I recommend any of his “Tales From the White Hart”. At the other end are stories like “Sentinel,” which he later co-wrote as the script for a pivotal science fiction movie you may know, “2001: A Space Odyssey”. Like most of that generation, he started as a short-story writer. No one took science fiction seriously; critics categorized it as “genre fiction” and ignored it. There remains some portion of this attitude among “serious writers” into the 21^st century. There’s far too much great writing in the genres for me to give this opinion much weight. All the greats delve deep into the questions of morality, mortality, freedom, and more.

This collection consists of short works spanning the author’s entire career. Consequently, the quality of the storytelling varies. Some of the early stuff are displays of an author still finding his rhythm. That still leaves plenty to enjoy. My first reaction is to say this would be a great introduction for a young reader or anyone just exploring science fiction. There are two smallish caveats to that. First, the varied polish levels of the storytelling. Even for a long-time fan, I found some stories “less-than”. Feel free to skim past; there’s plenty to explore. That is also my second caveat. There is a LOT here. The upside is that these are short stories and novellas. When you reach a saturation point, you can set the book down without fear of trying to pick up the thread of the story later on. When you return, it will be a whole new story.

Many reasons to pick up the book. Many alternative universes to explore.

Rating – *** Worth A Look