WAR AND SPACE: SELECTED SHORT STORIES OF LESTER DEL REY, VOL. 1 (NESFA PRESS) / Cover art by John Picacio.
Del Rey was a seminal science fiction author and editor in the 1930′s through the 50′s. His short stories appeared in many of the leading sf magazines of the era, including John W. Campbell’s ASTOUNDING STORIES. Along with Robert Heinlein and Andre Norton, Campbell was one of a handful of early sf writers who also wrote stories targeted toward adolescent readers. He was awarded the 1990 Grand Master Award by the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America for lifetime achievement in science fiction and/or fantasy.
He and his wife Judy-Lynn Del Rey co-edited a line of books within the Ballantine publishing umbrella, and this imprint became what is known as Del Rey Books, one of the leading science fiction/fantasy publishing imprints in America.
For those unfamiliar with NESFA Press, this is a subsidiary of the New England Science Fiction Society and their books are very well made with great content. Lester may be generally forgotten but it will be good to read some of these quality stories again. And the cover art is pretty wonderful, John. Another winner to go on my stacks. Other cool new NESFA titles include a series of collected Roger Zelazny (4 of 6 volume out right now) and Poul Anderson (I think two are out). Texas SF fans should latch on to their two volumes of Chad Oliver short stories and one volume of novels, too.
NESFA Press does great work. And this cover is look fantastic.
And by “And this cover is look fantastic” I obviously mean “fantsic is cover look to is be”. :S
Thanks for the plug. I’m currently at work on the second volume, currently called Robots and Magic and slated for release at Boskone in February. It will contain another 34 stories, probably the best known of which is “Helen O’Loy.” It will also contain a lost story which was only printed once in a fanzine.
Between War and Space and Robots and Magic, these two volumes will be reprinting about two-thirds of the short fiction del Rey published.
(and on a personal note, there should not be a period after the H in my middle name).