''Hyperborea'' is a collection of

fantasy Fantasy is a genre of speculative fiction involving Magic (supernatural), magical elements, typically set in a fictional universe and sometimes inspired by mythology and folklore. Its roots are in oral traditions, which then became fantasy ...

short stories by

Clark Ashton Smith Clark Ashton Smith (January 13, 1893 – August 14, 1961) was an American writer and artist. He achieved early local recognition, largely through the enthusiasm of George Sterling, for traditional verse in the vein of Algernon Charles Swinburne ...

, edited by

Lin Carter Linwood Vrooman Carter (June 9, 1930 – February 7, 1988) was an American author of science fiction and fantasy, as well as an editor, poet and critic. He usually wrote as Lin Carter; known pseudonyms include H. P. Lowcraft (for an H. P. L ...

. It was first published in paperback by

Ballantine Books Ballantine Books is a major book publisher located in the United States, founded in 1952 by Ian Ballantine with his wife, Betty Ballantine. It was acquired by Random House in 1973, which in turn was acquired by Bertelsmann in 1998 and remains ...

as the twenty-ninth volume of its Ballantine Adult Fantasy series in April 1971. It was the second themed collection of Smith's works assembled by Carter for the series. The stories were originally published in various fantasy magazines from the 1930s to the 1950s, notably '' Weird Tales''.

Summary

The book collects one prose poem and ten tales of the author's Hyperborean cycle, set on a prehistoric lost northern continent Smith named for the

mythological Myth is a folklore genre consisting of narratives that play a fundamental role in a society, such as foundational tales or origin myths. Since "myth" is widely used to imply that a story is not objectively true, the identification of a narrat ...

land of Hyperborea, with an introduction and map by Carter. One story from the sequence, the fragment "The House of Haon-Dor," is omitted. The editor also includes in the collection four additional tales of Smith's from what he took to be a similar but more fragmentary sequence of stories.

*"Introduction" (

) *''Hyperborea'' :*"The Muse of Hyperborea" (prose poem) :*"The Seven Geases" :*"The Weird of Avoosl Wuthoqquan" :*"The White Sybil" :*"

The Testament of Athammaus "The Testament of Athammaus" is a short story by American writer Clark Ashton Smith, part of his Hyperborean cycle. It was published in the October 1932 issue of ''Weird Tales''. Publication history According to '' Emperor of Dreams: A Clark Asht ...

" :*"The Coming of the White Worm" :*"Ubbo-Sathla" :*"

The Door to Saturn Clark Ashton Smith (January 13, 1893 – August 14, 1961) was an American writer and artist. He achieved early local recognition, largely through the enthusiasm of George Sterling, for traditional verse in the vein of Swinburne. As a poet, Smi ...

" :*"The Ice-Demon" :*"

The Tale of Satampra Zeiros "The Tale of Satampra Zeiros" is a short story written in 1929 by American author Clark Ashton Smith as part of his Hyperborean cycle, and first published in the November 1931 issue of ''Weird Tales''. It is the story in which Smith created the Ct ...

" :*"The Theft of the Thirty-Nine Girdles" *''The World's Rim'' :*"

The Abominations of Yondo ''The Abominations of Yondo'' is a collection of fantasy, horror and science fiction short stories by American writer Clark Ashton Smith. It was released in 1960 and was the author's fourth collection of stories published by Arkham House. It w ...

" :*"The Desolation of Soom" :*"The Passing of Aphrodite" :*"The Memnons of the Night" (prose poem) *"Notes on the Commoriom Myth-Cycle", by

Reception

L. Sprague de Camp Lyon Sprague de Camp (; November 27, 1907 – November 6, 2000) was an American writer of science fiction, fantasy and non-fiction. In a career spanning 60 years, he wrote over 100 books, including novels and works of non-fiction, including biog ...

in ''Amra'' favoured the collection with "There has never been anyone like CAS."

Fritz Leiber Fritz Reuter Leiber Jr. ( ; December 24, 1910 – September 5, 1992) was an American writer of fantasy, horror, and science fiction. He was also a poet, actor in theater and films, playwright, and chess expert. With writers such as Robert ...

in '' Whispers'' critiqued "I do not fault Smith for using such words as "nefarious" and "cacodaemonic," and for sometimes using three words where one might do." Robert FitzOsbert in ''Luna Monthly'' said "''Hyperborea'', with all of Smith's work, is Dunsanean in vision, Lovecraftian in its brooding, even sinister atmosphere, almost Howard-like in evoking entire fantasy worlds more through patient cultivation of epic myth than through sterile pseudo-science that marks the worst of today's efforts in this genre."

Notes

1971 short story collections Fantasy short story collections by Clark Ashton Smith Ballantine Books books Fiction set in prehistory Hyperborea {{1970s-fantasy-story-collection-stub

Summary

Contents

Reception

Notes