The Collected Stories of Arthur C. Clarke MP3 CD – Unabridged, October 25, 2016

"Many and strange are the Universes that drift like bubbles in the foam upon the River of time. Some - a very few - move against or athwart its current; and fewer still are those that lie forever beyond its reach, knowing nothing of the future or the past. Shervane's tiny cosmos was not one of these; its strangeness was of a different order." Thus begins the "Wall of darkness" the 16th of the stories in this collection of 104 Science Fiction short stories written by Arthur C. Clarke.Briefly; the Wall of darkness is a story about a wealthy young man who lives on a world always turning the same face towards its star, the great sun of Trilorne. On this world there was a region too hot for life called the Fire lands, a narrow belt that was inhabitable, and also the cold shadow lands surrounding the equator. Located at the equator was "The wall of darkness" a gigantic tall black impenetrable wall. It was not known whether it was created by the maker of stars or by some ancient civilization, but Shervane set out to explore it. What he found was almost beyond comprehension and still it elegantly explained the time and space structure of our own Universe, and maybe the time and space structure of any possible material Universe. As is stated; "Shervane's world was the last and the strangest jest of the Maker of the Stars". I always found this short story to be the most fascinating short story I have ever read, and one of the best manifestations of the Genius of Arthur C. Clarke.This is a nearly complete collection of all of A. Clarke's short stories collected into one book. Naturally it contains some awesome gems like; The lion of Comarre, The Sentinel, The Wall of darkness, The Nine Billion Names of God, The Man Who Ploughed the Sea, The Songs of Distant Earth, A Meeting With Medusa, The Hammer of God, etc. Some of these stories were later turned into novels. There were some editorial mistakes in the book but they did not ruin my reading experiences.Unlike the typical run of the mill space ship, star trek, star wars, sort of Science Fiction stories, these stories cover a lot of ground. From Tibetan monks trying to find God's real name using computers, to the discovery of 2 billion years old machines, encounters with gigantic jellyfish/balloon like creatures in Jupiters atmosphere, to quirky and humor filled space walk accidents.What I like about Arthur C. Clarke is that he does not waste his great imagination on the impossible or highly implausible. For example, time travel stories (back in time) are as boring as they are implausible (or impossible). In the comment section I will list all the stories in this collection. Perhaps you will recognize your favorite.

The writings of Arthur C. Clarke are sheer genius, and this comprehensive collection of his short fiction is a true gem. My favorite Clarke works are here - "The Star," "All the Time in the World," "The Nine Billion Names of God" - as well as early short stories that were later incorporated into "2001: A Space Odyssey" and "Childhood's End." A welcome collection to any library that will give you countless hours of reading pleasure over the years.Mark Pearce - Pushcart Prize nominated author of "Tobias and the Isle of Justice," "Specimens Under Glass," and "Asylum."

Whenever I take a a trip, this book is in my carry on. If I lose interest in whatever else I have to read, I know I can lose myself in this wonderful collection of classic science fiction.Clarke entertains you, makes you think, makes you laugh, and above all instills that "Sense of Wonder" that only the masters of this genre can. Some of the stories are very short, a few are novella length. Clarke's science is always sound, but good sf, like any good literature, is about people, not gadgets. The gadgets are there to create the scene, but it's the people who are the story.Why not 5 stars? Two reasons:- More typographical errors than the man deserved. There should have been more proofreading before printing this.- Still no ebook edition in most of the world. (Yes, there is an epub edition available only in Australia, but what about the rest of the planet?)Open the book to any page. Find the beginning of the next story. Start reading. Enjoy.I envy anyone who has never read Clarke before, picking this up for the first time.

For the most part, these, all be it, exhaustive group of short stories And novellas were very well grouped together and quite an interesting and enjoyable reading experience. I say experience because, when approaching a set of 'set' of stories that are over 900 pages in length, that is a feat! This is a RECOMMENDED read for any science fiction buff; especially an Arthur C. Clarke fan ! !

This is apparently a complete collection of Arthur C. Clarke's short stories, beginning with his first in 1932. I read some of these in the 1960s and 70s. I am amazed to find that they are truly good. Short stories are often difficult to end, but these stories always end in a satisifying way; surprise endings sometimes, but not gimmicks. Unlike other contemporary "greats" of his day, such as Asimov and Heinlein, there is very little sexism and the writing is mature and not juvenile. Also Clarke was a scientist and engineer and many of these tales have a ring of reality to them.Clarke also enjoyed some humor and there are many short stories featuring Harry Purvis, principally from the book "Tales from the White Hart". Fun, but too many.We all know that Clarke wrote "2001: A Space Odyssey", based on the short story "The Sentinel", but so many stories in this collection are better.

Well worth the time.I thoroughly enjoyed this collectionA great read from start to finish.Highly recommend this book for all SF fans

Spetacular stories!

Many of the early stories are from before anyone had been into space, never mind set foot on the moon or anywhere else. He got some things wrong, but many things right. He imagined the future before it happened and this is an essential read.

The ultimate collection of his short stories. Must read for all Sci-Fi and Clarke fans. Including those that turned into novels, like 2001.

Great collection of science fiction stories by the original Master of the genre