About this title: Famine, death, war, and pestilence: the four horsemen of the Apocalypse, the harbingers of Armageddon - these are our guides through the Wastelands...From the Book of "Revelations to The Road Warrior"; from "A Canticle for Leibowitz to The Road", storytellers have long imagined the end of the world, weaving tales of catastrophe, chaos, and calamity. Gathering together the best post-apocalyptic literature of the last two decades from many of today's most renowned authors of speculative fiction, including George R.R. Martin, Gene Wolfe, Orson Scott Card, Carol Emshwiller, Jonathan Lethem, ...
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Description: Good. 2008-Paperback----Used-Good-Hall Street Books proudly ships from Brooklyn, NY. All orders are processed and shipped within 24 hours, M-F. 100% money back No-Worry guarantee with expedited delivery and delivery confirmation available. read more
Binding: Softcover
Publisher: Nightshade Book
Date Published: 2008-01-01
ISBN-13:9781597801058ISBN:1597801054
Description: NEW. Softcover. From an inventory that is 100% brand-new, 100% direct from the publishers' distribution channel. We carry NO pre-owned, NO remaindered. We pack in CARDBOARD to ensure the pristine quality is maintained. (Bubble-wrap alone is NOT sufficient to protect from USPS equipment. ) Guaranteed brand-NEW, protected with CARDBOARD, your satisfaction is guaranteed. BKLUVID: 9781597801058. read more
Edition: Reprint
Binding: Paperback
Publisher: NIGHT SHADE BOOKS
Date Published: 2008
ISBN-13:9781597801058ISBN:1597801054
Description: New. Famine, Death, War, and Pestilence: The Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse, the harbingers of Armageddon-these are our guides through the Wastelands...From the Book of Revelations to The Road Warrior; from A Canticle for Leibowitz to The Road, storyt... read more
"A very successful collection. Most of the stories were good and a few were exceptional. Many expected famous names from sci-fi make an appearance, but there's enough new and lesser-known authors present that I'm pleased to have some new works to check out.
"The End of the World as We Know It" by Dale Bailey was my favorite out of the anthology. At first glance, it's humorous, casual tone belies the emotional depth of the piece. Works on many, many levels.
Stephen King's "End of the Whole Mess" is another winner and a good choice for the first story. I've long argued that King as it his best when writing short works.
"The People of Sand and Slag" is so disturbing that I wish it were possible for me to un-read it, but that doesn't lessen how impressive this story is. In fact, if anything, that solidifies the author as a force to be reckoned with."
"Fantastic short stories with great introductions. Favorites: * Speech Sounds - Octavia E. Butler * And the Deep Blue Sea - Elizabeth Bear * Judgment Passed - Jerry Oltion * When Sysadmins Ruled the World - Cory Doctorow * Dark, Dark were the Tunnels - George R.R. Martin * How We Got in Town and Out Again - Jonathan Lethem
Only a one that was too much and not something i needed to read. Otherwise all of the stories had some value and most a resurgence in me for current life liking."
"Wastelands: Stories of the Apocalypse is a collection of 22 short stories with a common theme of what life is like for those that survive the apocalypse. Most of the stories were originally published during this decade. However, a few are from the 70s and 80s. My favorite stories include: "The End of the Hole Mess" first published in 1986 by Steven King; "When Sysadmins Ruled the Earth" published in 2006 by Cory Doctorow; and "Mute" published in 2002 by Gene Wolfe. John Joseph Adams, editor, has included an excellent bibliography listing 113 works of post-apocalyptic fiction for further exploration of the sub-genre."
"A nice mix of short stories dealing with the Apocalypse. Most end on a depressing note.
My favorites were:
- Salvage by Orson Scott Card - About Mormons on living on the Great Salt Lake that has flooded Salt Lake City. I have always found Scott Card stories easy to visualize.
- The People of Sand and Slag by Paolo Bacigalupi - Another story that I easy visualized. The forward states the thrust of the story perfectly: "Set in the far-future, featuring characters barely recognizable as humans, that considers and comments on humanity, technological progress and our love for the simple solution to the complex problem."
- Judgment Passed by Jerry Oltion - Despite my disagreement with his views on religion, I enjoyed this story in which a space crew returns to the earth after the rapture.
- Inertia by Nancy Kress - Reminded me of District 9, but the good part, the first half, not the summer blockbuster part.
- And the Deep Blue Sea by Elizabeth Bear - For whatever reason I like post apocalyptic literature that deals with desolate wastelands.
- The End of the World as We Know it by Dale Bailey - Perhaps my favorite in the collection. Funny, thought provoking and sobering.
A couple of paragraphs from the book that I liked, both in forwards before the story:
"Buckell says that post-apocalyptic SF is often a way of doing literary penance for all our imagined or real modern sins."
Dale Bailey - "We don't need the destruction of entire cities to know what it's like to survive a catastrophe. Whenever we lose someone we love deeply we experience the end of the world as we know it. The central idea of the story is not merely that the apocalypse is coming, but that it's coming for you. And there's nothing you can do to avoid it.""
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