''The 1977 Annual World's Best SF'' is an

anthology In book publishing, an anthology is a collection of literary works chosen by the compiler; it may be a collection of plays, poems, short stories, songs or excerpts by different authors. In genre fiction, the term ''anthology'' typically categ ...

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 unive ...

short stories edited by

Donald A. Wollheim Donald Allen Wollheim (October 1, 1914 – November 2, 1990) was an American science fiction editor, publisher, writer, and fan. As an author, he published under his own name as well as under pseudonyms, including David Grinnell, Martin Pearso ...

and

Arthur W. Saha Arthur William Saha (October 31, 1923 – November 19, 1999) was an American speculative fiction editor and anthologist, closely associated with publisher Donald A. Wollheim. Life Saha was the son of William and Henrikka Saha, a Finnish-Ameri ...

, the sixth volume in a series of nineteen. It was first published in paperback by DAW Books in May 1977, followed by a hardcover edition issued in September of the same year by the same publisher as a selection of the Science Fiction Book Club. For the hardcover edition the original cover art of

Jack Gaughan John Brian Francis "Jack" Gaughan, pronounced like 'gone' (September 24, 1930 – July 21, 1985) was an American science fiction artist and illustrator who won the Hugo Award several times. Working primarily with Donald A. Wollheim at Ace Books, ...

was replaced by a new cover painting by Richard V. Corben. The paperback edition was reissued by DAW in 1983 under the variant title ''Wollheim's World's Best SF: Series Six'', this time with cover art by Bernal. A British hardcover edition was published by

Dennis Dobson Dennis Dobson (1919 – 1978)Lewis Foreman, Susan Foreman''London: A Musical Gazetteer'' Yale University Press, 2005, p. 327. was a British book publisher who was the eponymous founder of a small but respected company in London. Background Set up ...

in November 1979 under the variant title ''The World's Best SF 4''. The book collects ten novellas, novelettes and short stories by various science fiction authors, with an introduction by Wollheim. The stories were previously published in 1976 in the magazines ''

Galaxy A galaxy is a system of stars, stellar remnants, interstellar gas, dust, dark matter, bound together by gravity. The word is derived from the Greek ' (), literally 'milky', a reference to the Milky Way galaxy that contains the Solar System. ...

'', ''

The Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction ''The Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction'' (usually referred to as ''F&SF'') is a U.S. fantasy and science fiction magazine first published in 1949 by Mystery House, a subsidiary of Lawrence Spivak's Mercury Press. Editors Anthony Boucher a ...

'', and '' Amazing Science Fiction'', the anthologies '' Andromeda 1'', '' Stellar No 2'', '' New Worlds 10'', and '' Aurora: Beyond Equality'', and the collection '' The Custodians and Other Stories''.

*"Introduction" (

) *"Appearance of Life" (

Brian W. Aldiss Brian Wilson Aldiss (; 18 August 1925 – 19 August 2017) was an English writer, artist, and anthology editor, best known for science fiction novels and short stories. His byline reads either Brian W. Aldiss or simply Brian Aldiss, except for ...

) *"Overdrawn at the Memory Bank" (

John Varley John Varley may refer to: * John Varley (canal engineer) (1740–1809), English canal engineer * John Varley (painter) (1778–1842), English painter and astrologer * John Varley (author) (born 1947), American science fiction author * John Silvest ...

) *"Those Good Old Days of Liquid Fuel" (

Michael G. Coney Michael Greatrex Coney (28 September 1932 - 4 November 2005) was a British science fiction writer, best known for his novel ''Hello Summer, Goodbye.'' Life Coney was born in Birmingham, England, on 28 September 1932. As an adult, he worked as ...

) *"The Hertford Manuscript" (

Richard Cowper John Middleton Murry Jr. (9 May 1926 – 31 March 2002) was an English writer who used the names Colin Murry and Richard Cowper. Early life Murry was the son of the writer John Middleton Murry and his second wife, Violet Le Maistre. His mother c ...

) *"Natural Advantage" ( Lester del Rey) *" The Bicentennial Man" (

Isaac Asimov yi, יצחק אזימאװ , birth_date = , birth_place = Petrovichi, Russian SFSR , spouse = , relatives = , children = 2 , death_date = , death_place = Manhattan, New York City, U.S. , nationality = Russian (1920–1922)Soviet (192 ...

) *"The Cabinet of Oliver Naylor" (

Barrington J. Bayley Barrington J. Bayley (9 April 1937 – 14 October 2008) was an English science fiction writer. Biography Bayley was born in Birmingham and educated in Newport, Shropshire. He worked a number of jobs before joining the Royal Air Force during 1 ...

) *"My Boat" ( Joanna Russ) *"Houston, Houston, Do You Read?" (

James Tiptree, Jr. Alice Bradley Sheldon (born Alice Hastings Bradley; August 24, 1915 – May 19, 1987) was an American science fiction and fantasy author better known as James Tiptree, Jr., a pen name she used from 1967 to her death. It was not publicly known ...

) *"I See You" ( Damon Knight)

Awards

"Appearance of Life" placed tenth in the 1977 Locus Poll Award for Best Short Story. "Overdrawn at the Memory Bank" placed tenth in the 1977 Locus Poll Award for Best Novelette. "The Hertford Manuscript" placed fifth in the 1977 Locus Poll Award for Best Novelette. "The Bicentennial Man" won the 1976 Nebula Award for Best Novelette and the 1977

Hugo Award for Best Novelette The Hugo Award for Best Novelette is one of the Hugo Awards given each year for science fiction or fantasy stories published or translated into English during the previous calendar year. The novelette award is available for works of fiction of ...

, and placed first in the 1977 Locus Poll Award for Best Novelette. "Houston, Houston, Do You Read?" won the 1976

Nebula Award for Best Novella The Nebula Award for Best Novella is given each year by the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America (SFWA) for science fiction or fantasy novellas. A work of fiction is defined by the organization as a novella if it is between 17,500 and 40 ...

and the 1977 Hugo Award for Best Novella, and placed third in the 1977 Locus Poll Award for Best Novella. "I See You" was nominated for the 1977

Hugo Award for Best Short Story The Hugo Award for Best Short Story is one of the Hugo Awards given each year for science fiction or fantasy stories published or translated into English during the previous calendar year. The short story award is available for works of fiction of ...

and placed second in the 1977 Locus Poll Award for Best Short Story.

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:1977 Annual World's Best SF, The 1977 anthologies

1977 Events January * January 8 – Three bombs explode in Moscow within 37 minutes, killing seven. The bombings are attributed to an Armenian separatist group. * January 10 – Mount Nyiragongo erupts in eastern Zaire (now the Democratic R ...

DAW Books books

Contents

Awards

External links