''Out of Space and Time'' is a collection of

fantasy Fantasy is a genre of speculative fiction involving 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 literature and d ...

, horror and

science fiction Science fiction (sometimes shortened to Sci-Fi or SF) is a genre of speculative fiction which typically deals with imaginative and futuristic concepts such as advanced science and technology, space exploration, time travel, parallel uni ...

short stories A short story is a piece of prose fiction that typically can be read in one sitting and focuses on a self-contained incident or series of linked incidents, with the intent of evoking a single effect or mood. The short story is one of the oldest t ...

by American writer Clark Ashton Smith. It was released in

1942 Events Below, the events of World War II have the "WWII" prefix. January * January 1 – WWII: The Declaration by United Nations is signed by China, the United Kingdom, the United States, the Soviet Union, and 22 other nations, in w ...

and was the third book published by

Arkham House Arkham House is an American publishing house specializing in weird fiction. It was founded in Sauk City, Wisconsin, in 1939 by August Derleth and Donald Wandrei to publish hardcover collections of H. P. Lovecraft's best works, which had ...

. 1,054 copies were printed. A British hardcover appeared from

Neville Spearman Neville Spearman Armstrong (20 October 1913 – September 2008) was a British soldier, literary agent, and publisher. In the 1940s and early 1950s he was in partnerships with others, then from 1955 he operated his own publishing company called Ne ...

in 1971, with a two-volume paperback reprint following from

Panther Books Panther Books Ltd was a British publishing house especially active in the 1950s and 1960s, specialising in paperback fiction. It was established in May 1952 by Hamilton's Ltd and titles carried the line "A Panther Book" or "Panther Science Ficti ...

in 1974. Bison Books issued a trade paperback edition in 2006. The stories for this volume were selected by the author and were considered by him to be his best fantasy and horror stories to date. The collection contains stories from Smith's major story cycles of Averoigne,

Hyperborea In Greek mythology, the Hyperboreans ( grc, Ὑπερβόρε(ι)οι, ; la, Hyperborei) were a mythical people who lived in the far northern part of the known world. Their name appears to derive from the Greek , "beyond Boreas" (the God of ...

, Poseidonis, and

Zothique ''Zothique'' is a collection of fantasy short stories by Clark Ashton Smith, edited by Lin Carter. It was first published in paperback by Ballantine Books as the sixteenth volume of its Ballantine Adult Fantasy series in June 1970. It was the firs ...

. Smith had wanted to call the collection "The End of the Story and Other Stories", but acceded to Derleth's suggestion, an allusion to

Edgar Allan Poe Edgar Allan Poe (; Edgar Poe; January 19, 1809 – October 7, 1849) was an American writer, poet, editor, and literary critic. Poe is best known for his poetry and short stories, particularly his tales of mystery and the macabre. He is wid ...

's "Dream-Land".

''Out of Space and Time'' contains the following tales: * "Clark Ashton Smith: Master of Fantasy", by

August Derleth August William Derleth (February 24, 1909 – July 4, 1971) was an American writer and anthologist. Though best remembered as the first book publisher of the writings of H. P. Lovecraft, and for his own contributions to the Cthulhu Mythos and th ...

Donald Wandrei Donald Albert Wandrei (20 April 1908 – 15 October 1987)Minnesota Death Certificates Index
. ...

*"The End of the Story" *"A Rendezvous in Averoigne" * " A Night in Malnéant" * "The City of the Singing Flame" *"The Uncharted Isle" * "The Second Interment" *"The Double Shadow" *"The Chain of Aforgomon" * " The Dark Eidolon" * " The Last Hieroglyph" *" Sadastor" *" The Death of Ilalotha" * "

The Return of the Sorcerer "The Return of the Sorcerer" is a horror short story by American writer Clark Ashton Smith, first published in '' Strange Tales of Mystery and Terror'' in September 1931. The story ties into H. P. Lovecraft's Cthulhu Mythos due to its references ...

" * " The Testament of Athammaus" * "The Weird of Avoosl Wuthoqquan" * "Ubbo-Sathla" *"The Monster of Prophecy" * "The Vaults of Yoh-Vombis" *"From the Crypts of Memory" *"The Shadows"

Reprints

*Jersey, UK: Neville Spearman, 1971. *St. Albans, UK: Panther, 1974 (2 vols.). *Lincoln, NE: Bison, 2006.

Reception

Writing in'' Unknown Worlds'',

Anthony Boucher William Anthony Parker White (August 21, 1911 – April 29, 1968), better known by his pen name Anthony Boucher (), was an American author, critic, and editor who wrote several classic mystery novels, short stories, science fiction, and radio d ...

described the collection as "four hundred pages of magnificent reading", praising Smith as "a poet and a craftsman hohas produced by far the best work in the Lovecraft tradition". ''

New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...

'' reviewer Louise Maunsell Field noted that while most of Smith's stories were "overelaborated and far too wordy", the author had "an active, fertile imagination", concluding that the collection would please " aders who delight in fantasy and witchcraft"."Tales of Horror", '' New York Times Book Review'', August 9, 1942, p.14.

References

Sources

* * * {{Works of Clark Ashton Smith 1942 short story collections Fantasy short story collections Science fiction short story collections by Clark Ashton Smith Arkham House books

Contents

Reprints

Reception

See also

References

Sources