Pre-Owned Starships Science Fiction Stories (Unknown) 0449201260 9780449201268

This is a pure, classic science fiction collection. I actually don't recall when I purchased this, but I think it was shortly after the collection first came out (1983). It recently caught my eye as I was unpacking my books for the new library and I set it aside to re-read it. Boy was it a pleasure to do so. This is an *excellent* collection of stories (13 in all) that run the gamut of genres and propulsion technologies. Most of the stories seem as if they were written between the mid-60s and the mid-70s, and as it typical with such collections there will be hits and misses depending on your personal preferences. My favorites were the more hard-science and/or action/adventure stories--"The Long Way Home" and "Far Centaurus" were particular standouts for me. Then of course there was the occasional dud--I absolutely didn't even understand "The Oceans are Wide". But that's okay--the *charm* in such a collection is that you don't have to like them all; if one's not working for you then you just move to the next one. I hope this collections returns to print status some day; it's an excellent one. Well recommended for anybody who's a fan of good, starship-oriented science fiction.