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Unlocking the Future: The Urban Imagination in Contemporary Chinese Science Fiction
by Luo XiaomingThe book highlights the urban imagination in contemporary Chinese science fiction, in order to assess the capacity of Chinese society to conceive of the future. The author argues that ‘the future’ is a set of directional and normative ideas that forms the basis of the entire social mobilization mechanism in China, while the capacity to imagine the future is likely to be produced in response to the present challenges. By discussing the urban space, the reconstruction of time, the infrastructure, and concepts of the urban-rural and civilization in contemporary Chinese science fiction, she demonstrates how contemporary Chinese sci-fi may offer potential solutions to ways of ‘unlocking’ the future. In addition, she also points out the limitations of Chinese society’s imaginative vision of the future. The book will be of interest to scholars and postgraduate students of modern Chinese literature, science fiction studies, urban studies or cultural studies.
Wise Follies
by Grace Wynne-JonesWhy waving goodbye to Mr Wonderful may be the wisest folly of all...Alice Evans has got a GSOH, GFCH (gas-fired central heating), a cat and a Mitsubishi colour portable. People have told her she can look pretty if she tries. She's thirty-eight and single, so will someone please pass the message on?What Alice thinks she needs is Mr Wonderful. A man like her pottery teacher, James Mitchel, who's warm and wise and gorgeous. But as one long, hot summer disappears with no sign of her snaring the man of her dreams, Alice is forced to consider the alternatives.Should she settle for Mr Mediocre, her dull but dependable ex boyfriend Eamon, and spend the rest of her days trying to like golf?Or could there be another way for a woman to ditch all the longing - and really start living her life?
The Dark Lord of Derkholm
by Diana Wynne JonesA hilarious adventure about a fantasy world in danger of destruction from that most vile of threats… tourism .Winner of the Mythopoeic Fantasy Award for Children’s Literature in 1999.
Deep Secret (Gollancz S. F. Ser.)
by Diana Wynne JonesA fantasy adventure about saving the universe one world at a time from Diana Wynne Jones. The companion novel to the bestselling The Merlin Conspiracy.
Freaky Families
by Diana Wynne JonesTwo quirky and hilarious stories from the bestselling Diana Wynne Jones. Two groups of children learn that while you can choose your friends, dealing with your family can make you wish you could choose a different one…
The Islands of Chaldea: The Islands Of Chaldea, A Tale Of Time City, The Homeward Bounders
by Diana Wynne JonesThe brand new and final novel from the magical pen of ‘the Godmother of Fantasy’, Diana Wynne Jones; co-authored with her sister Ursula Jones.
The Land of Ingary Trilogy (includes Howl’s Moving Castle)
by Diana Wynne JonesDiscover the the land of Ingary, where magic and adventure awaits… Howl’s Moving Castle is the first book in this spellbinding trilogy from ‘the Godmother of Fantasy’, Diana Wynne Jones.
The Merlin Conspiracy: Trick Or Treason? (Magids Ser. #2)
by Diana Wynne JonesA bestselling fantasy adventure about two teens from two very different worlds, who must work together to save the universe. The companion novel to the bestselling Deep Secret.
Vile Visitors
by Diana Wynne JonesTwo hilarious stories from the bestselling and well-loved author Diana Wynne Jones, about the worst visitors in the world coming to stay.
Year of the Griffin (Gollancz S. F. Ser. #2)
by Diana Wynne JonesA hilarious fantasy sequel to The Dark Lord of Derkholm, set at the University after the ‘fantasy world’ tours have stopped, and centred around 6 students (one a Griffin) and the bumbling new University Head Wizard. From the ‘Godmother of Fantasy’, Diana Wynne Jones.
Chocky (Penguin Modern Classics)
by John WyndhamMatthew's parents are worried. At eleven, he's much too old to have an imaginary friend, yet they find him talking to and arguing with a presence that even he admits is not physically there. This presence - Chocky - causes Matthew to ask difficult questions and say startling things: he speaks of complex mathematics and mocks human progress. Then, when Matthew does something incredible, it seems there is more than the imaginary about Chocky. Which is when others become interested and ask questions of their own: who is Chocky? And what could it want with an eleven-year-old boy?
Chocky (Puffin Bks.)
by John WyndhamMatthew's parents are worried. At eleven, he's much too old to have an imaginary friend, yet they find him talking to and arguing with a presence that even he admits is not physically there. This presence - Chocky - causes Matthew to ask difficult questions and say startling things: he speaks of complex mathematics and mocks human progress. Then, when Matthew does something incredible, it seems there is more than the imaginary about Chocky. Which is when others become interested and ask questions of their own: who is Chocky? And what could it want with an eleven-year-old boy? A story of innocence and alien contact, Chocky is a sinister tale of manipulation and experimentation from afar.
The Chrysalids (Penguin Decades Ser.)
by John WyndhamFROM THE CLASSIC SCI-FI WRITER AND AUTHOR OF THE DAY OF THE TRIFFIDS A disturbing post-nuclear apocalypse story of genetic mutation that explores the lengths the intolerant will go to keep themselves pure.David Strorm's father doesn't approve of Angus Morton's unusually large horses, calling them blasphemies against nature. Little does he realise that his son, his niece Rosalind and their friends, have their own secret aberration which would label them as mutants.But as David and Rosalind grow older, it becomes more difficult to conceal their differences from the village elders. Soon they face a choice: wait for eventual discovery - or flee to the terrifying and mutable Badlands . . .'An outstanding success' New York Times'Perfect timing, astringent humour. . . one of the few authors whose compulsive readability is a compliment to the intelligence' Spectator'Remains fresh and disturbing in an entirely unexpected way' Guardian
The Day of the Triffids (Penguin Modern Classics #Vol. 10)
by John Wyndham'One of those books that haunts you for the rest of your life' Sunday TimesWhen a freak cosmic event renders most of the Earth's population blind, Bill Masen is one of the lucky few to retain his sight. The London he walks is crammed with groups of men and women needing help, some ready to prey on those who can still see. But another menace stalks blind and sighted alike. With nobody to stop their spread the Triffids, mobile plants with lethal stingers and carnivorous appetites, seem set to take control.The Day of the Triffids is perhaps the most famous catastrophe novel of the twentieth century and its startling imagery of desolate streets and lurching, lethal plant life retains its power to haunt today.
Jizzle
by John WyndhamA collection of short stories from the master author of THE DAY OF THE TRIFFIDS and THE MIDWICH CUCKOOS.Giselle is a very talented monkey, although she goes by the name Jizzle. She can draw incredible portraits, as lifelike as can be. But Jizzle isn't just a camera. Jizzle has feelings. And Jizzle can take revenge, when she wants . . .This collection combines fantasy, science fiction, and horror to delight, astound and unsettle you.STORIES INCLUDED:"Jizzle""Technical Slip""A Present from Brunswick""Chinese Puzzle""Esmeralda""How Do I Do?""Una""Affair of the Heart""Confidence Trick""The Wheel""Look Natural, Please!""Perforce to Dream""Reservation Deferred""Heaven Scent""More Spinned Against"
The Kraken Wakes: Classic Science Fiction
by John WyndhamIt started with fireballs raining down from the sky and crashing into the oceansdeeps. Then ships began sinking mysteriously and later sea tanks emerged from the deeps to claim people . . . For journalists Mike and Phyllis Watson, what at first appears to be a curiosity becomes a global calamity. Helpless, they watch as humanity struggles to survive now that water - one of the compounds upon which life depends is turned against them. Finally, sea levels begin their inexorable rise . . . The Kraken Wakes is a brilliant novel of how humankind responds to the threat of its own extinction and, ultimately, asks what we are prepared to do in order to survive.
The Midwich Cuckoos: Classic Science Fiction (Fast Track Classics Ser.)
by John WyndhamIn the sleepy English village of Midwich, a mysterious silver object appears and all the inhabitants fall unconscious. A day later the object is gone and everyone awakens unharmed – except that all the women in the village are discovered to be pregnant.The resultant children of Midwich do not belong to their parents: all are blonde, all are golden eyed. They grow up too fast and their minds exhibit frightening abilities that give them control over others and brings them into conflict with the villagers just as a chilling realisation dawns on the world outside . . . The Midwich Cuckoos is the classic tale of aliens in our midst, exploring how we respond when confronted by those who are innately superior to us in every conceivable way.
The Outward Urge (Golden Age Masterworks)
by John WyndhamThe 'outward urge' was a factor in the Troon inheritance. Successive generations of Troons, looking up at the stars, heard the siren voices that called them out into Space. And, as the frontiers of Space receded, there was usually one Troon, if not more, out there, helping to push them back.In an age in which what goes up need not necessarily come down, the likely adventures of the Conquistadors of Space are every bit as exciting as any world menaced by triffids.
Plan for Chaos: Classic Science Fiction
by John WyndhamIn a city that could well be New York, a series of identical women are found dead in suspicious circumstances. Magazine photographer Johnny Farthing, who is reporting on the suspected murders, is chilled to discover that his fiancée looks identical to the victims too - and then she disappears. As his investigations spiral beyond his control, he finds himself at the heart of a sinister plot that uses cloning to revive the Nazi vision of a world-powerful master race...Part detective noir, part dystopic thriller, Plan for Chaos reveals the legendary science fiction novelist grappling with some of his most urgent and personal themes.
The Secret People
by John Wyndham'The Sun Bird was beginning to travel fast, close to the edge of the whirlpool. They could look right down into the hollow of spinning water' While flying over Africa's New Sea, a water project in the heart of the Sahara desert, Mark Sunnet's rocket plane crashes and is sucked through a hole in the desert floor into a strange, cavernous new world.There, he and his partner Margaret encounter the survivors of an ancient race of underground dwellers whose whole existence is now threatened. Captured and forced to live with other prisoners taken from the surface, the pair know that they must escape before the waters above drown them all . . .The Secret People, published in 1935, is John Wyndham's first novel.'Perhaps the best writer of science fiction England has ever produced' Stephen King
Sleepers of Mars
by John WyndhamStories from the darkness of space, and the planets around us . . .This collection of short stories from legendary author John Wyndham takes us around the planets around Earth and the civilisations which might exist there. Is it as simple as Us vs Them, or are there things that humans do not understand yet?This collection contains:- Sleepers of Mars- Worlds to Barter- Invisible Monster- The Man from Earth- The Third Vibrator
Stowaway to Mars
by John Wyndham'It was a desert. A vista of reddish rocks and drifted sand, arid and hot, extending to the limits of their view. A dreary waste upon which nothing moved or grew . . .'For British pilot Dale Curtance the Keuntz Prize - to be awarded to the first person to take a spaceship to another planet and back - is the ultimate challenge. Not only has he to build a ship to survive the journey, assemble a top-notch crew and choose a destination, he's also got to beat the Russians and Americans.Soon the GLORIA MUNDI blasts off from Salisbury Plain, bound for Mars. There's only one problem - a stowaway called Joan. Not only does her presence wreck calculations and threaten the mission, but her tale suggests that Mars may be a more dangerous destination than they ever expected. 'Perhaps the best writer of science fiction England has ever produced' Stephen King
Trouble with Lichen: Classic Science Fiction
by John WyndhamFrancis Saxover and Diana Brackley, two scientists investigating a rare lichen, discover it has a remarkable property: it retards the aging process. Francis, realising the implications for the world of an ever-youthful, wealthy elite, wants to keep it secret, but Diana sees an opportunity to overturn the male status quo by using the lichen to inspire a feminist revolution.As each scientist wrestles with the implications and practicalities of exploiting the discovery, the world comes ever closer to learning the truth . . . Trouble With Lichen is a scintillating story of the power wielded by science in our lives and asks how much trust should we place in those we appoint to be its guardians?
The Wanderers of Time
by John WyndhamA collection of science fiction short stories from the master author of THE DAY OF THE TRIFFIDS and THE MIDWICH CUCKOOS.In 1941, Roy Sabre's girlfriend Betty mysteriously disappears. Ten years later he has constructed a time-machine and his first trip is to go back to find her. But his arrival is observed and his machine attacked and damaged as it departs - instead of returning to 1951, it travels to the far future where mankind has disappeared and the Earth is under the control of machines controlled by insects. Roy finds that several other time-travellers, due to damage and malfunction, have been cast forward to the same time . . . Stories included:- "Wanderers of Time"- "Derelict of Space"- "Child of Power"- "The Last Lunarians"- "The Puff-ball Menace"
After Worlds Collide (Gateway Essentials)
by Philip Wylie Edwin BalmerEarth is destroyed in a collision with the rogue planet Bronson Alpha, with about a year of warning enabling a small group of survivors to build a spacecraft and escape to the rogue planet's moon. Continuing the story of When Worlds Collide, the novel tells of the survivors' progress on their new world, Bronson Beta, and their conflict with other groups of survivors.