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Geodesic Dreams: The Best Short Fiction of Gardner Dozois
Gardner Dozois's multifaceted, sharp-edged, surreal fiction has long been regarded among science fiction's finest offerings. The fourteen masterworks in this volume are unique and beautiful constructions whose images etch themselves indelibly in the reader's mind.
Contents
xi • Foreword (Geodesic Dreams: The Best Short Fiction of Gardner Dozois) • (1992) • essay by Robert Silverberg
1 • Morning Child • (1984) • shortstory by Gardner Dozois
9 • Dinner Party • (1984) • shortstory by Gardner Dozois
26 • Executive Clemency • (1981) • shortstory by Gardner Dozois and Jack C. Haldeman, II
44 • A Special Kind of Morning • (1971) • novelette by Gardner Dozois
88 • Down Among the Dead Men • (1982) • novelette by Gardner Dozois and Jack Dann
115 • Solace • (1989) • shortstory by Gardner Dozois
126 • Slow Dancing With Jesus • (1983) • shortstory by Gardner Dozois and Jack Dann
131 • The Peacemaker • (1983) • shortstory by Gardner Dozois
149 • One for the Road • (1982) • shortstory by Gardner Dozois
155 • Chains of the Sea • (1973) • novella by Gardner Dozois
216 • A Dream at Noonday • (1970) • shortstory by Gardner Dozois
230 • Disciples • (1981) • shortstory by Gardner Dozois
240 • Après Moi • (1990) • shortstory by Gardner Dozois
246 • A Kingdom by the Sea • (1972) • novelette by Gardner Dozois
Contents
xi • Foreword (Geodesic Dreams: The Best Short Fiction of Gardner Dozois) • (1992) • essay by Robert Silverberg
1 • Morning Child • (1984) • shortstory by Gardner Dozois
9 • Dinner Party • (1984) • shortstory by Gardner Dozois
26 • Executive Clemency • (1981) • shortstory by Gardner Dozois and Jack C. Haldeman, II
44 • A Special Kind of Morning • (1971) • novelette by Gardner Dozois
88 • Down Among the Dead Men • (1982) • novelette by Gardner Dozois and Jack Dann
115 • Solace • (1989) • shortstory by Gardner Dozois
126 • Slow Dancing With Jesus • (1983) • shortstory by Gardner Dozois and Jack Dann
131 • The Peacemaker • (1983) • shortstory by Gardner Dozois
149 • One for the Road • (1982) • shortstory by Gardner Dozois
155 • Chains of the Sea • (1973) • novella by Gardner Dozois
216 • A Dream at Noonday • (1970) • shortstory by Gardner Dozois
230 • Disciples • (1981) • shortstory by Gardner Dozois
240 • Après Moi • (1990) • shortstory by Gardner Dozois
246 • A Kingdom by the Sea • (1972) • novelette by Gardner Dozois
271 pages, Hardcover
First published August 15, 1992
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119 people want to read
About the author
Gardner Dozois
680 books355 followersGardner Raymond Dozois was an American science fiction author and editor. He was editor of Asimov's Science Fiction magazine from 1984 to 2004. He won multiple Hugo and Nebula awards, both as an editor and a writer of short fiction.
Wikipedia entry: Gardner Dozois
http://us.macmillan.com/author/gardne...
Wikipedia entry: Gardner Dozois
http://us.macmillan.com/author/gardne...
Ratings & Reviews
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Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews
June 25, 2024
Relatos muy personales, la mayoría ambientados en unos Estados Unidos post guerra nuclear u holocausto, donde se repite una lucha sin cuartel por seguir viviendo. La prosa de Dozois se toma su tiempo en desgranar la trama, generalmente vía metáforas lo consigue, y aunque a veces la misma historia no consiga prender, deja un buen sabor de boca al menos por el elegante armado. Hay que sobrellevar eso si el tono pesimista que impregna la mayoría de los cuentos, solazándose incluso con la suerte de algunos personajes.
Mi relato favorito, "El pacificador", sorprendente historia de un EEUU que vuelve a sus raíces atávicas post catástrofe, seguido de cerca por "Una mañana muy especial", historia llena de desenfadados recuerdos de un verdadero sobreviviente. Otros que me llamaron la atención fueron el irónico "Discípulos"; y "Entre los muertos", el cuento distinto, más cerca del terror que el resto.
Mi relato favorito, "El pacificador", sorprendente historia de un EEUU que vuelve a sus raíces atávicas post catástrofe, seguido de cerca por "Una mañana muy especial", historia llena de desenfadados recuerdos de un verdadero sobreviviente. Otros que me llamaron la atención fueron el irónico "Discípulos"; y "Entre los muertos", el cuento distinto, más cerca del terror que el resto.
May 27, 2009
An interesting collection of stories ranging in topic from global warming to the Holocaust to death in battle to the coming of aliens. "Slow Dancing with Jesus" might be my favorite here, and religion is definitely a recurring theme. The language is well-crafted and the stories inventive and edgy. It is interesting to me how easy it is for me to identify stories written in the 1980's, for their particular Late Cold War flavor, even when they're not about that at all.
March 15, 2025
I primarily know and think of Dozois as an amazing editor (of magazines, of anthologies), but he did have a writing career, even if he was never as prolific as some of his peers. This collection from 1992 contains 14 of his short stories. One thing I have to say surprised me--he is grim in these stories! Over half the stories take place in a near-apocalyptic or post-apocalyptic setting, and nearly every one of them has a somewhat grim ending (directly or by implication). I have to admit that I never thought of Dozois as a big ole bummer, haha. I could be wrong, though, since I haven't read the stories that weren't collected here.
That's not to say I hated the book or anything (I didn't!), but I like a bit more variety from story collections. Dozois was also apparently fond of collaborating with other authors, as he does so in three of the stories here (one with Jack C. Haldeman II and two with Jack Dann). I was struck at several points thinking about how a story of his, even if I liked it, didn't always quite hit the mark. One example is "Solace" (1989), which takes a long time to build up to "point" of the story, but it just felt like a weaker version of Philip K. Dick's "We Can Remember It for You Wholesale" from over 20 years earlier, without the humor.
That said, my favorite story was probably Dozois & Dann's "Down Among the Dead Men," a vampire story set inside a German concentration camp during WWII. It's well plotted, well done, and the ending fits. A couple others I really liked were the opening story "Morning Child" (once I realized what's going on, it really hit me--and it's such a good metaphor beyond the surface level, too) and "A Special Kind of Morning" (a rather rambly beginning, but once the 'war' story locks in, it locks in).
In addition to the stories above, though, one thing I noticed was how many stories touched on children and growing up. One of the things I've realized as both nostalgia for my own childhood and as a parent of a young kid just how much I like reading those kinds of things, especially if paired with a good child's voice--"Chains of the Sea" had several things I didn't like about it, but I thought Tommy's life and perspective was one of the strongest things about it. "Après Moi" and ""Slow Dancing with Jesus" also had nice engaging young voices. ("The Peacemaker" almost had this, but the weirdness of its premise negated a lot of it.)
That's not to say I hated the book or anything (I didn't!), but I like a bit more variety from story collections. Dozois was also apparently fond of collaborating with other authors, as he does so in three of the stories here (one with Jack C. Haldeman II and two with Jack Dann). I was struck at several points thinking about how a story of his, even if I liked it, didn't always quite hit the mark. One example is "Solace" (1989), which takes a long time to build up to "point" of the story, but it just felt like a weaker version of Philip K. Dick's "We Can Remember It for You Wholesale" from over 20 years earlier, without the humor.
That said, my favorite story was probably Dozois & Dann's "Down Among the Dead Men," a vampire story set inside a German concentration camp during WWII. It's well plotted, well done, and the ending fits. A couple others I really liked were the opening story "Morning Child" (once I realized what's going on, it really hit me--and it's such a good metaphor beyond the surface level, too) and "A Special Kind of Morning" (a rather rambly beginning, but once the 'war' story locks in, it locks in).
In addition to the stories above, though, one thing I noticed was how many stories touched on children and growing up. One of the things I've realized as both nostalgia for my own childhood and as a parent of a young kid just how much I like reading those kinds of things, especially if paired with a good child's voice--"Chains of the Sea" had several things I didn't like about it, but I thought Tommy's life and perspective was one of the strongest things about it. "Après Moi" and ""Slow Dancing with Jesus" also had nice engaging young voices. ("The Peacemaker" almost had this, but the weirdness of its premise negated a lot of it.)
July 31, 2011
A really excellent collection lent to me by one of my favorite neighborhood baristas (proving it's often good luck to befriend your local baristas!). The stories are so good, and Dozois has won a Nebula, so I'm surprised he's not better known. His take on what the personality of the President might be like post-apocalypse is a clever blend of comic and horrific, and his vampire tale, "Down Among the Dead Men," written with Jack Dann, proves that it's not so much vampires that are horrific but the location of where they feed that makes all the difference in a truly horrific vampire tale. If you love weird tales, read this book.
May 26, 2012
Dozois is a wonderful prose writer, and this book is a joy in that respect alone. But the book loses a star because in some of these stories, the prose is frankly better than the ideas. That said, the collection includes some simply wonderful marriages of ideas and writing, particularly the chilling 'Down Among The Dead Men' (cowritten with Jack Dann) and the startlingly original 'Chains Of The Sea', both of which are five-star stories by any measure.
February 21, 2019
4/10. Antología de relatos cortos de este señor que no me gustó mucho aunque, como en toda recopilación, aparece alguna joyita.
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June 24, 2021Just got it to read ' Chains of the Sea ' ( concepts relevant to the current developing situation, but a terrible story )
April 29, 2025
A solid package of very well-crafted stories, a few sadly dated, some eerily prescient, some timeless ("A Special Kind of Morning" is a case in point). The man had skills and taste to spare.
September 12, 2011
Too few people know that in additional to being one of the best editors in the field, Gardner Dozois is also an incredible short story writer. I happened upon a copy of this book at my local library and was sucked in by a previously unknown master of speculative fiction.
Give yourself a rare treat and pick up this collection wherever you can find it.
Give yourself a rare treat and pick up this collection wherever you can find it.
May 17, 2007
Dozois shows he can write in this smart collection of stories.
November 9, 2008
So far, I think he's one of the best short story writers
i've read, so far. and I've only read two stories.
i've read, so far. and I've only read two stories.
Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews