''Neutron Star'' is a collection of science fiction short stories by American writer
Larry Niven
Laurence van Cott Niven (; born April 30, 1938) is an American science fiction writer. His best-known works are '' Ringworld'' (1970), which received Hugo, Locus, Ditmar, and Nebula awards, and, with Jerry Pournelle, '' The Mote in God's E ...
, published in April 1968. The individual stories were published in ''
If'' and ''
Galaxy Science Fiction
''Galaxy Science Fiction'' was an American digest-size science fiction magazine, published in Boston from 1950 to 1980. It was founded by a French-Italian company, World Editions, which was looking to break into the American market. World Edit ...
'' in 1966–1967, under
Frederik Pohl
Frederik George Pohl Jr. (; November 26, 1919 – September 2, 2013) was an American science-fiction writer, editor, and fan, with a career spanning nearly 75 years—from his first published work, the 1937 poem "Elegy to a Dead Satellit ...
as editor.
Contents
The book contains the following eight stories:
*"
Neutron Star
A neutron star is the collapsed core of a massive supergiant star, which had a total mass of between 10 and 25 solar masses, possibly more if the star was especially metal-rich. Except for black holes and some hypothetical objects (e.g. w ...
"
*"A Relic of the Empire"
*"
At the Core "At the Core" is an English language science fiction short story by American writer Larry Niven, published in 1966. It is the second in the series of ''Known Space'' stories featuring crashlander Beowulf Shaeffer. The short story was originally publ ...
"
*"
The Soft Weapon
"The Soft Weapon" is a science fiction short story by the American writer Larry Niven, set in his ''Known Space'' universe. It was first published in the February 1967 issue of ''If (magazine), If''.- - -
The story introduces the character of N ...
"
*"
Flatlander"
*"The Ethics of Madness"
*"
The Handicapped
"The Handicapped" is a science fiction short story by Larry Niven, originally published in the December 1967 issue of ''Galaxy Science Fiction'' as "Handicap". Set in the ''Known Space'' universe, the story introduces the Grogs, the sessile but se ...
"
*"
Grendel
Grendel is a character in the Anglo-Saxon epic poem '' Beowulf'' (700–1000). He is one of the poem's three antagonists (along with his mother and the dragon), all aligned in opposition against the protagonist Beowulf. Grendel is feared by ...
"
All stories are set in Niven's
Known Space
Known Space is the fictional setting of about a dozen science fiction novels and several collections of short stories written by Larry Niven. It has also become a shared universe in the spin-off ''Man-Kzin Wars'' anthologies. The Internet Spe ...
universe.
Reception
Algis Budrys
Algirdas Jonas "Algis" Budrys (January 9, 1931 – June 9, 2008) was a Lithuanian-American science fiction author, editor, and critic. He was also known under the pen names Frank Mason, Alger Rome (in collaboration with Jerome Bixby), John ...
praised the collection, saying that it was evidence that "quality rises above fashion".
References
External links
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Fiction set around neutron stars
Short story collections by Larry Niven
1968 short story collections
Ballantine Books books
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