Virtual Unrealities: The Short Fiction of Alfred Bester

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Alfred Bester (1913-1987) was the author of two of science fiction's seminal works, The Demolished Man and The Stars My Destination. He also wrote some fast-moving, sizzling short stories that were very highly regarded; many of them are included in the 17 stories showcased in Virtual Realities; two were never before published. Highlights include "Disappearing Act," in which shell-shocked soldiers vanish from their hospital ward; "Hobson's Choice," in which a statistician uncovers a disturbing population trend in post-nuclear Kansas; "Time Is the Traitor," wherein powerful business people manipulate their most valuable consultant; and "The Devil Without Glasses," a conspiracy tale with an X-Files feel. The science fiction and literary classic "Fondly Fahrenheit" stars wealthy Vandaleur and his mad android who has an unfortunate habit of turning murderous when the temperature gets too hot... All reet!

Bester's use of the word girl and the occasional female as manipulating schemer are not in line with current sensibilities and may give readers pause, especially those accustomed to feminist improvements in modern SF. Nevertheless, these stories are a frenetic and delightful confection of SF from the mid-20th century. --Bonnie Bouman

Book Description

"Dazzlement and enchantment are Bester's methods. His stories never stand still a moment."
—Damon Knight, author of Why Do Birds

Alfred Bester took science fiction into hyperdrive, endowing it with a wit, speed, and narrative inventiveness that have inspired two generations of writers. And nowhere is Bester funnier, speedier, or more audacious than in these seventeen short stories—two of them previously unpublished—that have now been brought together in a single volume for the first time.

Read about the sweet-natured young man whose phenomenal good luck turns out to be disastrous for the rest of humanity. Find out why tourists are flocking to a hellish little town in a post-nuclear Kansas. Meet a warlock who practices on Park Avenue and whose potions comply with the Pure Food and Drug Act. Make a deal with the Devil—but not without calling your agent. Dazzling, effervescent, sexy, and sardonic, Virtual Unrealities is a historic collection from one of science fiction's true pathbreakers.

"Alfred Bester was one of the handful of writers who invented modern science fiction. "
—Harry Harrison

Customer Reviews:

Not memorable; read his early novels instead.......2006-08-06

Skewed, yet cliched, best describes the visions Bester unveils in these collected short stories. His characters inhabit worlds that are subtly perverse variants of the "Father Knows Best" 1950s mythology, and his tales typically end with a final sentence straight out of the "Twilight Zone." In fact, as I read the stories I was constantly reminded of Twilight Zone writer Charles Beaumont and his (better) collected short stories, The Howling Man. Bester's prose, laced with irony and sardonic humor, is often very fresh and almost contemporary, yet many of his themes are of the time in which they were written. Most unfortunately, the stories simply are not memorable. They make a light impression on the mind, engender a few chuckles or a furrowed brow, and then fade away.

My advice--read The Demolished Man, twice, and then read The Stars My Destination, twice. That's all the Bester you need.

A Great Collection of Bester's Popular Short SF Works.......2006-02-09

As you may have read, Alfred Bester's novels, The Demolished Man and The Stars My Destination (TSMD) are highly recommended for those that enjoy reading science fiction. If you're wanting to read more by Bester after that, a collection of his short stories is the next good place to go. His short to-the-point prose, storyline twists, and some similarities to the main character in TSMD are in his stories and Virtual Unrealities is a collection of his better shorter SF works. Not meaning to take food off the table of Amazon.com, but Bester's almost similar out-of-print short story collection Starlight is slightly better if you're interested in short 1-2 page backgrounds on each of the stories, plus two relatively brief articles on his writing career and one on Isaac Asimov. Starlight can be purchased used from sellers via Amazon (sometimes for as little as 1 cent excluding shipping!), and I'm sure Amazon gets some profit via the shipping and handling fees.

Table of contents and info for Virtual Unrealities:
Nov '97, 366pp. Collection of 16 stories and one fragment, one story and the fragment previously unpublished. Introduction by Robert Silverberg. ss: short story, nv: novelette.
* ix * Introduction * Robert Silverberg * in
* 3 * Disappearing Act * ss Star Science Fiction Stories #2, ed. Frederik Pohl, Ballantine, 1953
* 22 * Oddy and Id ["The Devil's Invention"] * ss Astounding Aug '50
* 38 * Star Light, Star Bright * ss F&SF Jul '53
* 56 * 5,271,009 * nv F&SF Mar '54
* 91 * Fondly Fahrenheit * nv F&SF Aug '54
* 112 * Hobson's Choice * ss F&SF Aug '52
* 127 * Of Time and Third Avenue * ss F&SF Oct '51
* 136 * Time Is the Traitor * nv F&SF Sep '53
* 159 * The Men Who Murdered Mohammed * ss F&SF Oct '58
* 173 * The Pi Man * ss Star Light, Star Bright, Berkley/Putnam, 1976; revised from F&SF Oct '59.
* 191 * They Don't Make Life Like They Used To * nv F&SF Oct '63
* 225 * Will You Wait? * ss F&SF Mar '59
* 233 * The Flowered Thundermug * nv The Dark Side of the Earth, Signet, 1964
* 273 * Adam and No Eve * ss Astounding Sep '41
* 287 * 3½ to Go * uw * [Unfinished Work?]
* 292 * Galatea Galante * nv Omni Apr '79
* 334 * The Devil Without Glasses * nv * [unpublished]

Good writing, poorly presented.......2005-08-03

The nice thing about this book is that it's pretty much the only way to get a good chunk of Bester's short fiction collected in one place. That said, the book itself suffers from serious problems. It seems that some time after the last copy editor looked it over, someone in the production process changed the book's type font. Since several of Bester's stories involve playful typesetting and/or characters that are outside the (current) normal set of symbols, a great deal of flavor was lost. One-quarter or one-half fractions replaced by square boxes, that type of thing. Too bad, because the publishers were obviously aiming for a product that you'd call nicer than the usual mass-market paperback. The screwy typeface errors mar that considerably.

A nice nostalgia trip for us old guys . . ........2002-05-15

Bester is one of those science fiction mainstays whom everyone of a certain age read back in the '50s and '60s, and who is almost totally unknown to younger readers who were raised on the Cyberpunks. But I have to admit that the settings and language and cultural furniture of most of these stories haven't worn very well, unlike the work of Heinlein or Clarke -- or even Bester's own classic novels, _The Demolished Man_ and _The Stars My Destination._ The "messages" in most of these pieces are also pretty trite, but that was never the point of reading Bester anyway. The man was a master of oddball style, eerie description, and droll dialogue, and you can have a really good time chuckling your way through "Will You Wait?" or appreciating the chill of "Fondly Fahrenheit," or picking out all the references in "The Flowered Thundermug."

Only some of Bester's best.......2002-01-27

Maybe, to my taste, Alfred Bester was better at book length (The Stars My Destination, Golem 100, The Demolished Man (an all-time favorite of mine)) than at short stories. Most of the stories here left me a bit cold except , of course, for "The Pi Man", Bester's best short story. In fact, unfortunately, I found many of them to be rewrites of the same concept - a cross between "be careful what you wish for", and "absolute power always goes wrong."

Virtual Unrealities Easel-Backed Poster: The Short Fiction of Alfred Bester

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Virtual Unrealities Easel-Backed Poster: The Short Fiction of Alfred Bester
Alfred Bester , and Robert Silverberg
Manufacturer: Vintage Contemporaries
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Calendar

Book Description

This book is intended primarily for learners who are beginning the study of the Greek Testament either without any previous acquaintance with the Greek language or with an acquaintance so imperfect that a renewed course of elementary instruction is needed. This revision, over seventy-five years since the first edition was published, retains much of the character and organization of the first edition while accommodating readers today who lack an understanding of Latin and grammar necessary for fully comprehending the original edition. For an introduction to the Greek Testament.

Customer Reviews:

I love learning Greek with Machen.......2007-09-13

I am pleased with the book. Machen provides excercises which are incredibly helpful in learning Greek. Each lesson is broken up effectively making it easy to follow. However, I found it necessary to receive instruction from a teacher along with each lesson.

This is the one. Get it........2007-06-22

I started Greek with this book and went on to major in Greek. Machen's systematic presentation of grammar is as clear and approachable as you'd want it to be. I've been away from Greek for decades and after spending my career teaching Latin, I've returned to this little book and found it invigorating as I relearn what I once knew so well. I own other Greek grammars, but Machen's is really all I need. If you buy this--and I highly recommend it--get Thompson's workbook too. As a combination they can't be beat. Thompson, by the way, provides excellent additional review and practice material that makes a difficult language more accessible.

New Testament made Easy.......2006-08-31

This is a great textbook for anyone who has never studied Greek and needs to have an understanding of the languages for New Testament studies. The chapters are short and easy to understand and the exercises are well paced.

a true classic.......2006-08-02

I am partial to Machen because I first learned Greek with his book, but the more I use this text to teach Greek to others, the more impressed I become. The genius is the organization and the exercises. No grammar does a better job of systematically leading one through Greek and the exercises are wonderful at reenforcing the vocabulary and paradigms. This book is great for reviewing or refreshing Greek and is perfect for teaching children, again because of the exercises.
Machen's writing style is succinct if not eliptical, and this is the polar opposite to Mounce's user-friendly, wordy text, but its nice that it is small and you don't need a separate workbook. I would recommend that you buy both Machen and Mounce. The only reason I give it four stars is that no grammar is perfect and you really need to work through several. Machen is also to be honored for defending the faith against liberalism and he belongs in every Greco-phile's library.

Agreement!.......2006-03-04

I have to voice agreement with those who praise this as the best introduction but I wonder how much of our love for the book is because it has sat on our desks for so many years and along with our Liddell and Scott is the first place we go to check something!

Study Guide for J. Gresham Machen's New Testament Greek for Beginners

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Satisfied customer
Study Guide Simplifies Understanding
Thanks, Thompson!

Study Guide for J. Gresham Machen's New Testament Greek for Beginners
David L. Thompson , and Thompson
Manufacturer: Prentice Hall
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 0024206504

Customer Reviews:

Satisfied customer.......2006-11-10

This book is exactly what I wanted - a clear and concise primer for Biblical Greek grammar.

Study Guide Simplifies Understanding.......2006-08-31

The study guide is a great help in grasoning the information from the text. Howver, it does take a little time to coordinate the textbook to the workbook.

Thanks, Thompson!.......2001-11-29

This is an old tried-and-true classic. The typeface is ugly, but the information is accurate and lucid. Rule page references and further discussions of the rules is very helpful. It is impossible to give all permutations of each translation, but where practical, Thompson makes notes on variations in the way a sentence can be translated. I have used it for years for myself and for my students.

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New Testament Greek for Beginners
J. Gresham Machen
Manufacturer: Macmillan Co.
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
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ASIN: B000FG7EIU

Learn to read the Greek New Testament: An approach to New Testament Greek based on linguistic principles : comprising a beginner's course, an intermediate ... paradigms fully indexed and cross-referenced

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An Out of Print Book that should be Reprinted.

Learn to read the Greek New Testament: An approach to New Testament Greek based on linguistic principles : comprising a beginner's course, an intermediate ... paradigms fully indexed and cross-referenced
Ward Powers
Manufacturer: Eerdmans Pub
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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ASIN: 0802835783

Customer Reviews:

An Out of Print Book that should be Reprinted........1998-01-03

A koine greek text book that is a must have.One of the few text that respects the subtle differences between classical,koine and modern Greek.Even the distinction between eis,pros and apo, that many text overlook.Now out of print but once my offical required grammatical text for my students.

Average customer rating:

Delivers less than it promises

A Practical Workbook to J. Gresham Machen's New Testament Greek for Beginners
Hobert K. Farrell
Manufacturer: Wipf & Stock Publishers
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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New Testament Greek for Beginners (2nd Edition)

Study Guide for J. Gresham Machen's New Testament Greek for Beginners

Biblical Greek (Zondervan Get an A! Study Guides)

The Greek New Testament: Bonded Leather

Basics of Biblical Greek Workbook

ASIN: 159244301X

Customer Reviews:

Delivers less than it promises.......2007-06-26

The one star rating reflects my severe disappointment with this workbook.

First of all, I bought it under the assumption that it would have numerous exercises for the student along the lines of the workbook for Wheelock's Latin. However, most of the workbook consists of paradigms - a completed paradigm on one side of a page, and blank paradigms for the student to fill in on the other side of the page. For the most part, that's it. Notably lacking are any extra Greek sentences for the student to translate! Other than saving some time by providing paradigms in a ready-to-photocopy format, neither the student nor the instructor will find much benefit from this workbook.

Second, this workbook applies to the older, first edition of Machen. The fact that it completes incomplete paradigms in the first edition has been largely rendered moot by the superb second edition of Machen (updated by Dan McCartney). The second edition also expands the number of sentences to translate, both Greek-to-English and English-to-Greek. Ironically, this workbook was copyrighted in August, 2003, and a mere two months later, in October, 2003, the second edition of Machen came out. Unfortunately, the author did not seem to know that the second edition was coming out.

Third, the back cover says that the workbook "provides a comprehensive review in the Appendix for use during second year translation and additional grammatical study." However, these objectives can just as easily be achieved by using a laminated Greek grammar study guide and the student's own collected and collated notes and flash cards. I find no use for the large Appendix at all.

In summary, the workbook's complete lack of additional prepared sentences for translation, the general lack of study materials and exercises beyond paradigms, its out-datedness, and its superfluousness earn one, lonesome star. With all due respect to the author, however useful it was for him, it has been of no use to me.

A Beginner's Guide to New Testament Exegesis: Taking the Fear Out of Critical Method

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Exegetical Method done realistically and skillfully!
Exegesis- a Life Long Adventure
The Guide We've All Been Waiting For
Taking Off, Putting On

A Beginner's Guide to New Testament Exegesis: Taking the Fear Out of Critical Method
Richard J. Erickson
Manufacturer: InterVarsity Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 0830827714

Book Description

Let's face it. Just the word exegesis puts some of us on edge. We are excited about learning to interpret the Bible, but the thought of exegetical method evokes a chill. Some textbooks on exegesis do nothing to overcome these apprehensions. The language is dense. The concepts are hard. And the expectations are way too high. However, the skills that we need to learn are ones that a minister of the gospel will use every week. Exegesis provides the process for listening, for hearing the biblical text as if you were an ordinary intelligent person listening to a letter from Paul or a Gospel of Mark in first-century Corinth or Ephesus or Antioch. This book by Richard Erickson will help you learn this skill. Thoroughly accessible to students, it clearly introduces the essential methods of interpreting the New Testament, giving students a solid grasp of basic skills while encouraging practice and holding out manageable goals and expectations. Numerous helps and illustrations clarify, summarize and illuminate the principles. And a wealth of exercises tied to each chapter are available on the web. This is a book distinguished not so much by what it covers as by how: it removes the "fear factor" of exegesis. There are many guides to New Testament exegesis, but this one is the most accessible--and fun!

Customer Reviews:

Exegetical Method done realistically and skillfully!.......2006-02-17

Rich Erickson has provided beginning students of Exegetical Method a more digestible way of understanding how to unlock what was divinely inspired in the New Testament. His book invites a beginning exegete into this complex method of study yet through his step by step process takes the fear out of learning the techniques required to thouroughly exegete passages of scripture. His creative writing style not only is humorous at times but some of his analogies help the beginner remember valuable techniques of exegesis. He also masterfully takes the beginning exegete from feelings of trepidation to feelings that exegeting scripture is a journey that requires each of us to relax and continue on. It is not simply something we do once and put the books away after a class is over, it is something we do for a life time if we want to grasp the divine-human intention of scripture.

Exegesis- a Life Long Adventure.......2005-12-09

Rich Erickson's book does a fantastic job of bringing the task of biblical exegesis within the grasp of even beginning biblical scholars. The tools and skills of biblical exegesis are presented in a thorough manner with many encouragements and suggestions along the way to bite off only what you can chew. Exegesis is an exciting, lifelong journey he says! Don't be discouraged by what you CAN'T do, celebrate what you CAN and be amazed at the insights you gain!

The Guide We've All Been Waiting For.......2005-11-18

As one who has taught New Testament courses for over 20 years now, I am so grateful to Rich Erickson for writing this book. This is the guide that all of us, teachers and students, have been waiting for someone to write. I have no doubt it will become the standard guide to New Testament interpretation and exegesis for years to come. It is amazingly comprehensive and very thorough BUT at the same time it is written in a conversational style that is engaging and communicates clearly and simply with its reader. Thanks Rich for writing a book that I will use in my classes and recommend over and over again to all my friends and students.

Taking Off, Putting On.......2005-11-09

Rich Erickson is one of those wonderfully creative writers whose work might easily have given Michael Crichton a run for his money had he chosen to invest his life in that world. Thank God he didn't! Instead of choosing fiction, Rich has chosen to invest his life in truth, to help ministry students learn how to read and interpret the Word of God. As a disciple, he understands what's at stake in mastering this discipline. As a pastor, he knows how deep the fear can go in the heart of the beginner. As a teacher, he knows how challenging it can be to overcome these fears long enough to learn something unavoidably, irrevocably "foreign." Hammered out in the classroom over decades, A Beginner's Guide to New Testament Exegesis may be the best tool available to help students learn how to take off their fears long enough to put on the Word.

Beginner's Grammar of the Greek New Testament

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Beginner's Grammar of the Greek New Testament
William Hershey Davis
Manufacturer: Harper & Bros
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
ASIN: B000FFYNAS

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Beginners Grammar of the Greek New Testament
William Hersey Davis
Manufacturer: Harper San Francisco
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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ASIN: 0060617101

Book Description

1923. From the Preface: The book is a beginner's book. It is the result of classroom experience of many years. The need and preparation of a beginner's class in Greek has determined the method and order of presentation. The Greek of the New Testament is the Koine of the first century A.D. It is presented as such in this book. The historical development of the Greek language has been kept in mind.

A Beginner's Reader-Grammar for New Testament Greek

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A Beginner's Reader-Grammar for New Testament Greek
Ernest Cadman Colwell
Manufacturer: HarperCollins
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

ASIN: 0060615303

Book Description

A Beginner's Reader-Grammar for New Testament Greek has two parts: a concise grammar and a series of readings. The included readings are based on the actual content of the Greek New Testament but constructed to begin easy and lead the student through basic vocabulary and grammar. The authors have abandoned the method that takes the student through a progression of grammar lessons, each concluding with a few sentences for translation. Rather, after learning the alphabet and the pronunciation of Greek words, the student begins immediately to read text, learning to find needed information in standard reference tools.

A Beginner's New Testament Greek Grammar

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Kubo's Greek Grammar Clear as Glass

A Beginner's New Testament Greek Grammar
Sakae Kubo
Manufacturer: University Press of America
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 0819107611

Book Description

A college level text written to complement the author's widely used "Readers Greek/English Lexicon of the New Testament." Readings are graduated and are provided every few chapters to confirm vocabulary and grammar development. Vocabulary is arranged according to frequency, while emphasis is placed on recognition of individual forms rather than on entire paradigms.

Customer Reviews:

Kubo's Greek Grammar Clear as Glass.......2001-01-07

I have studied Attic and Homeric Greek for years and can testify that most of the teaching texts go in for obtuse explanations, little review, and pretty difficult and pedantic exercises. I expected the same as I was looking at Koine Greek texts. I was delighted to find a different pictiure when I looked at Kubo's text. After the inital price shock for a paperback (which, by the way, should be covered with contact paper quickly) I found clear explanations, illustrations through use of rewritten passages of Scripture, additional practice sentences, orderly paradigms - in short, everything a beginner needs to know in order to gain a solid ability to read the New Testament in Greek. It is also a great preparation for the Reader's Greek-English Lexicon. Give the man five stars!

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