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Of All Possible Worlds

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Of All Possible Worlds
First edition
AuthorWilliam Tenn
Cover artistRichard M. Powers
LanguageEnglish
GenreScience fiction
PublisherBallantine Books
Publication date
1955
Media typePrint (paperback)
Pages160

Of All Possible Worlds is a collection of science fiction stories by American writer William Tenn. It was published in hardcover by Ballantine Books in 1955, with a cover by Richard Powers. Ballantine issued paperback editions in 1955, 1960, and 1968; a British hardcover appeared in 1956 with a paperback following in 1963.[1] It was Tenn's first collection.

Contents

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"Me, Myself, and I" was originally bylined "Kenneth Putnam".[2]

Reception

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Anthony Boucher praised the collection, saying it "do[es] not include a dull line" and declaring it "less than firstrate only by Tenn's own high standards", noting then Tenn had "wisely" decided to exclude several of his best stories, which were already easy to find in anthologies.[3] P. Schuyler Miller, reported that Of All Possible Worlds was "superior entertainment" from "one of the few [sf] writers to handle humor deftly."[4]

Aldiss and Wingrove declared Of All Possible Worlds to be Tenn's "best collection," singling out "The Liberation of Earth" as "Tenn's most satisfying and durable satire."[5]

References

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  1. ^ ISFDB publication history
  2. ^ Index to Science Fiction Anthologies and Collections
  3. ^ "Recommended Reading," F&SF, June 1955, p.76.
  4. ^ Miller, P. Schuyler. "The Reference Library," Astounding Science-Fiction, September 1955, p.148.
  5. ^ Aldiss & Wingrove, Trillion Year Spree, Victor Gollancz, 1986, p.294