Help with short story text

johnfromoz · 02:04 AM

I've been trying to gather a few of my favourite short stories, read years ago. There's one I can't find anywhere, and it looks like I may have once had it in either a now-lost anthology or in a pulp magazine long gone.

"Flowers for Algernon" was written by Daniel Keyes , who later expanded the story into a novel of the same name. The short story won a Hugo Award in 1960 (or 1959, sources vary), and the novel was awarded a Nebula Award in 1966. It has been produced as a stage play, as a telemovie "The Two Worlds of Charlie Gordon," (starring Cliff Robertson) in 1961, and as a feature movie, “Charley” in 1968, with Cliff Robertson again in the title role.

The tale addresses the ethical issues relating to the disabled. According to Wikipedia, “Although the book has often been challenged for removal from libraries in the US and Canada, sometimes successfully, it is regularly taught in schools around the world”.

I believe one candidate for my reading may have been “The Science Fiction Hall of Fame, Volume One, 1929-1964”, a 1970 collection of short sci-fi stories , edited by Robert Silverberg. I haven't been able to find a copy.

If anyone happens to have a copy of the short story (not the novel) which might be scannable I'd like to catch up with this one!

Thanks in advance if anyone is able to help.

Kitty · 12-07-2009, 03:38 AM

I headed right to the website of Powell's City of Books, my favorite bookstore in the world. It takes up an entire city block in downtown Portland (you were within a few blocks of Powell's when you visited here, John.) Powell's has an immense, ever-changing selection of used books.

And voila ...

A used trade paper copy of "Science Fiction Hall of Fame, Volume One", edited by Robert Silverberg, selling for $12.50 US dollars. They have it available in other versions as well:

http://www.powells.com/biblio/17-9780765305374-0

Powell's does a lot of business by mail order, and they are extremely reputable and reliable. They ship internationally, and take payment by PayPal as well as credit cards.

johnfromoz · 11:52 PM

What, and we never went there??? I must plan another holiday.

Thanks, that's probably solved my problem. I knew I could trust this forum to deliver!

Funny thing, I was watching a movie last week with Tommy Lee Jones and Benicio Del Toro (Hunted, I think was the name) and there was a sequence along the Willamette (Sp?) and a lot I recognised. Even got a lead on convenient public toilets (apparently in the base of the Hawthorne Bridge). Should anyone ever ask!

With luck, that lead (on the book, not the toilets) will solve my problem. I'm also getting back into a little writing myself, only to find the first short story I planned is going to be bigger than Harry Potter and half it is writing itself. Good for the exercise though.

Thanks again!

EDIT: Placed an order with Powell's - impressed. That site's going in my favourites!

johnfromoz · 01-03-2010, 11:47 PM

To round this off, the volume I was after arrived today at last (our local mail strike delayed it I think), from Powells, all the way over in Portland. A mint edition too. It's packed with my favourite SF short stories I read decades ago. Thanks Kitty!

Kitty · 01-04-2010, 05:50 AM

Excellent!

Their official name is "Powell's City of Books", and there's a reason for that. The store covers an entire city block and is several floors tall. You could spend days in there and still not see everything they have.

**Azhria** · 01-04-2010, 08:39 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Kitty

Excellent!

Their official name is "Powell's City of Books", and there's a reason for that. The store covers an entire city block and is several floors tall. You could spend days in there and still not see everything they have.

Sounds like heaven to me! Incidently, Kitty, I've reopened the Book Lovers Forum again - unfortunately I couldn't get access to the backup after my old host screwed up so had to start again