The Best of Stephen R. Donaldson!?

[danlo]

www.locusmag.com/Resources/ForthcomingBooks.html This list was published in June's Locus magazine, while I know some funky entries seep into lists like these, yet it's interesting to note a book called "The Best of Stephen R. Donaldson" is due for release in January. Fact or BS? The publisher is not one of SRD's regulars, that's for sure. Fortunately AATE is on the list for October release...

[aliantha]

That's just bizarre. I can't believe SRD would pull himself away from The Last Dark in order to put together a greatest hits album (so to speak).

Danlo, maybe you should submit a GI question about it.

[wayfriend]

Newly Acquired — THE BEST OF STEPHEN R. DONALDSON and THE NEUTRONIUM ALCHEMIST by Peter F. Hamilton

We’ve just reached agreement to publish a 200,000 word collection of Stephen R. Donaldson’s best tales, taken from his two out-of-print collections, Daughter of Regals and Reave the Just. We’ll be reading all of his short fiction over the next month and then consulting with Mr. Donaldson to select the stories, the artwork, and design the book. He’ll be involved every step of the way, making this an essential volume for his legion of fans.

In addition to the Stephen R. Donaldson collection, we’ve reached agreement to publish a signed limited edition of The Neutronium Alchemist, the second volume of Peter F. Hamilton’s mammoth Night’s Dawn Trilogy. Look for more information on both titles soon.

Posted on Thursday, February 11th, 2010 at 4:08 am. [link]

Why would reprints of stories we already have be a must for fans?

[danlo]

Weird...maybe Romeo knows something about this...

[aliantha]

Newly Acquired — THE BEST OF STEPHEN R. DONALDSON and THE NEUTRONIUM ALCHEMIST by Peter F. Hamilton

We’ve just reached agreement to publish a 200,000 word collection of Stephen R. Donaldson’s best tales, taken from his two out-of-print collections, Daughter of Regals and Reave the Just. We’ll be reading all of his short fiction over the next month and then consulting with Mr. Donaldson to select the stories, the artwork, and design the book. He’ll be involved every step of the way, making this an essential volume for his legion of fans.

In addition to the Stephen R. Donaldson collection, we’ve reached agreement to publish a signed limited edition of The Neutronium Alchemist, the second volume of Peter F. Hamilton’s mammoth Night’s Dawn Trilogy. Look for more information on both titles soon.

Posted on Thursday, February 11th, 2010 at 4:08 am. [link]

Why would reprints of stories we already have be a must for fans?

Because otherwise the publisher won't make much money...

[Dread Poet Jethro]

I fear publishers
Will say poor reprint sales mean
SRD passé

[Romeo]

This is the first I've heard of it. But he doesn't really pass any deals by me - just chapters.

[Avatar]

Got RtJ & DoR. *shrug*

What we need is a series set in the world of The Killing Stroke.

--A

[Orlion]

I wish they would have waited until after The Last Dark, since Donaldson tends to write short stories after a major series. That way, even if the book treads familiar ground, we'd have a coiple new ones I didn't know his short story collections were out of print. Particularly DoR.

[Avatar]

Think that went out of print before RtJ did. At least, my RtJ was published in '98, while my DoR was published in 84.

--A

[Orlion]

They re-released DoR when they released the "gold ring" trilogy edition of TCoTC.

[Rigel]

He's only got two short story collections, and the new book is the "best of" them...

Is this really a good idea? I love the idea of new issues with new artwork, but

1) Why not give him a few more years to add to the collection?

2) How the **** are you going to pick the "best of" from those works, considering how sharply divided his fans are on the issue?

[Seareach]

So, I've heard these publishers do beautiful editions of books...so it'll be a kinda deluxe kinda beautiful-thingy-publication (don'tcha love my descriptions! )

Anyhooowww...that's apparently the deal.

Personally I'd have preferred to wait...at least until we got at least one new story to go in this edition (which I doubt will happen).

Given the fact both books are currently out of print it's nice some of the stories will be back in print.

[Jussi]

Here is the blurb from Amazon.com:

Although best known for such epic accomplishments as the ongoing Chronicles of Thomas Covenant and the multi-volume Gap Cycle, Stephen R. Donaldson has also written some of the most distinctive short fiction of recent decades. This generous collection brings together much of the best of that shorter work and provides an ideal showcase for its author's depth, versatility, and consummate literary artistry.

Included here are eleven stories and novellas that run the gamut from horror (The Conqueror Worm) to high fantasy (Daughter of Regals), from contemporary spiritual drama (Unworthy of the Angel) to action-oriented SF (Animal Lover), together with such uncategorizable gems as The Killing Stroke, with its unique combination of magic and martial arts, and The Woman Who Loved Pigs, an astonishing account of personal transformation and long-delayed revenge.

In settings that range from the deeply familiar to the wholly imagined, The Best of Stephen R. Donaldson offers a gallery of tales that have the resonance and moral complexity of compact novels. Beneath their often-gaudy surfaces, they show us very real people who confront, and sometimes overcome, extreme adversity, who struggle to find balance and harmony in an inherently chaotic universe. Each story is the clear product of a master storyteller. Each demands and rewards repeated readings. Together, they form one of the cornerstone volumes of modern fantasy, a book that will be read and treasured by Donaldson's many fans, and by anyone who values imaginative literature at its finest.

[Cameraman Jenn]

Damn, they should have included a dvd of eps 39 and 40 of FBH with the book. He's brilliant in those.

[Jussi]

Tabel of contents:

* The Daughter of Regals
* Mythological Beast
* Animal Lover
* Unworthy of the Angel
* The Conqueror Worm
* Ser Visal’s Tale
*
* Reave the Just
* The Woman Who Loved Pigs
* The Kings of Tarshish Shall Bring Gifts
* Penance
* The Killing Stroke

[aliantha]

Thanks, Jussi!

(I see they didn't include Gilden-Fire. )

[Seareach]

The cover....

[I'm Murrin]

What's interesting is that Daughter of Regals is back in print now, anyway, which kinda cuts into one of this volume's selling points...

[dlbpharmd]

The cover....

What a strange cover.