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Great Science-Fiction & Fantasy Works
Science-fiction & fantasy literature: a critical list with discussions.
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This is a brief discussion of Norman Spinrad and, of course, of some speculative-fiction books by Spinrad.
This discussion and list does not necessarily include every book by Spinrad: it includes only those books that I both know and like. Just as with the author list itself, omission of a particular item may mean I didn’t think highly enough of the omitted item, or it may simply mean that I have not yet sufficient familiarity with it. (In a very few cases, I have listed some books merely on the strength of my opinion of the author: all such books are clearly marked below, as throughout these lists, with a hash mark (#) before the title so you know what’s what.)
I don’t pretend that this discussion is a deep analysis. My intent is no more than to give you a rough idea of what kinds of tales Spinrad tells, how those tales are usually told, and what makes them and Spinrad worthy; in sum, to help you rank Norman Spinrad (and the works by Spinrad listed here) on your personal literary “to do” list.
A Few Words About Norman Spinrad
Regrettably, I have not yet had an opportunity to write an essay on this author, but the “Other Resources” section below will lead you to some information about the “Notable Books” listed farther down this page.
Spinrad’s own site is gone, and was always a mess anyway. He does still maintain a blog, Norman Spinrad at Large (which is also a visual mess). Of general critical analysis, there are only a few pages, but they are quite good. The first is the Spinrad, Norman entry at the estimable Encyclopedia of Science Fiction; the second is By Any Other Name: A Norman Spinrad Retrospectiveby Sean Kitching at The Quietus; next is Norman Spinrad at Worlds Without End; then there is an extensive profile by Gelan Strickland at the Templeton Gate site; and finally there is Iron and Chromium: Five Novels by Norman Spinrad by Alvaro Zinos-Amaro at the Los Angeles Review of Books.
An additional resource is a review by Ursula K. Le Guin of Spinrad’s curious novel The Iron Dream which is generally useful Spinrad criticism.
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