This site
is the only website completely devoted to the science fiction
of Cordwainer Smith. There are many interesting CS pages out there,
though, and a small selection is listed here.
When I
began this website in 2000, I spent a lot of time reviewing sites.
Now, I've decided to do what I do best —write—and let
Google and
all the rest provide current, accurate links to Cordwainer Smith
and other science fiction sites. You can also search the web (as
well as just this site) by using the SEARCH feature at the bottom
of most pages.
There are
more CS links on the scholarly corner page and the ezine archive
pages.
So here
are some links; if any don't work, I'd appreciate being told;
you can reach me via the contact page.
CORDWAINER SMITH LINKS
The University
of Kansas has a collection of Cordwainer Smith papers. Hereh's
the science
fiction page for the Department of Special
Collections... among the collections of SF authors' papers
are those of Cordwainer Smith. I couldn't find much online, but
this is at least an access point for scholars.
Cats,
cruelty and children: Idealism and morality in the Instrumentality
of Mankind is the title of a 1999 article by Angus McIntyre.
This article discusses Christianity, in a way that I resonate
with more than the Jordan one listed bellow. McIntyre writes,
"The Quaker interpretation of Christianity with its absence
of any priesthood to intercede between God and Man and its emphasis
on the personal and basic aspects of worship and morality rather
than an impersonal and hierarchical organization, is ideally suited
to Smith's view of Christianity and his overall moral programme."
He's commenting
on a character named Liana in The Colonel came back from the
Nothing-at-all, who was Quaker. Well, I became involved with
the Quakers during the Vietnam War though it wasn't till some
years after my father's death that I 'officially' became one myself.
Hmm... and I thought I was striking out on my own! I was accustomed
to comments I'd made at the breakfast table and many other details
of my life turning up in his stories, but I didn't know about
this reference.
The complete
article is at http://www.raingod.com/angus/Writing/Essays/Literary/Smith.htm
http://www.ulmus.net/ace/menus/ace_s5_c7_b0_d0_x.html
Alan C. Elms is the leading Cordwainer Smith scholar, and this
is his site, still under construction.. Includes a description
of the two main Smith/Linebarger archives
http://www.fanac.org/worldcon/AussieCon/w99-rpt.html#smith
An interesting summary by Evelyn C. Leeper of a presentation that
Alan Elms did on CS in Australia, at the 1999 Aussiecon Three.
(This summary is also available at one or two other sites you
may come across.)
http://members.tripod.com/templetongate/csmith.htm
Galen Strickland has written quite a lengthy piece, describing
the stories and the universe that CS created.
http://www.urbanophile.com/~arenn/sf/reviews/rediscovery-of-man.html
Here's a thoughtful review of the British Rediscovery of Man,
(which is exactly the same as the old Ballentine paperback, The
Best of Cordwainer Smith) speculating on CS's effects on other
writers and his roots.
http://www.visi.com/~contra_m/cm/features/cm02_cordwain.html
Christianity in the Fiction of Cordwainer Smith is an often-linked-to
article. Written in 1991, it's got interesting thoughts beyond
the title topic. (Some of the Arlington National Cemetery
bio comes word-for-word from it, or vice versa.) Towards the
end of the article, the author (James B. Jordan) does give away
most of the plot of Norstrilia.
Note April
2005: When I checked all my links, this one was not active.
I'm leaving the url on the site in case it reappears, but not
linking to it now since it isn't there.
http://ds.dial.pipex.com/l.j.hurst/nrstrlia.htm
A review of Norstrilia by someone who didn't find it all
that original.
http://public.logica.com/~stepneys/SF/dani/008.htm
Short review of CS's works. One comment: "Smith's stories are
imaginative enough to offer the sense of wonder which is so often
missing from the science fiction of authors who grew up reading
science fiction."
There are
archives at the Hoover Institution for my
father and his
father.
http://www.physics.adelaide.edu.au/~pmcgee/cwspov.htm
Here
is some interesting art based on Cordwainer Smith, done by Dr.
Paddy McGee, Dr. Paddy McGee, of the High-energy Astrophysics
Group, University of Adelaide, South Australia, Australia.
Art
of game and rat and dragon
Art
of underpeople
The Hitotsubashi University Library, http://www.lib.hit-u.ac.jp/
has constructed a page "Register of the Linebarger papers
held by the Hitotsubashi University Library"
http://www.lib.hit-u.ac.jp/service/tenji/linebarger/index.html
ABOUT CORDWAINER
SMITH IN SPANISH
The first
book-length study on Cordwainer Smith was published seventeen
years ago in Argentina: El Señor de la Tarde. Conjeturas en
torno de Cordwainer Smith (Lord of the Afternoon. Conjectures
on C.S.) by Pablo Capanna. Buenos Aires, Sudamericana, 1984; 303
pages.)
Pablo Capanna
is an Argentine philosopher and independent scholar, born in Italy.
He is the author of several books on science fiction, namely El
sentido de la ciencia ficción (The Meaning of science fiction,
1967), the first original essay on this subject in Spanish. Other
books of his are about Philip K. Dick, J.G.Ballard, J.R.R. Tolkien
and CS Lewis. El Señor de la Tarde attempted to build a frame
to understand great themes, such as Instrumentality, Underpeople
and Rediscovery of Man, relating them with some clues to the fascinating
personality of his author. If you can read Spanish and want to
buy a book (US$ 15 plus handling) e-mail him at pcapanna@123infovia.com.ar
BUT YOU MUST REMOVE THE 123 FROM HIS ADDRESS BEFORE USING IT.
He is working
on a revision.
ABOUT CORDWAINER
SMITH IN FRENCH
This
site includes information, a link towards a biographical article,and
towards French editions of my father's work, sometimes with a
scan of the cover, sometimes with the summary blurb.
http://home.nordnet.fr/~aleyssens/auteur/smithc.htm
is mainly a bibliography.
ABOUT CORDWAINER SMITH IN GERMAN
Here's a
site with a link to some information and a nicely done little
CS pamphlet in German that they sell.
GENERAL
SCIENCE FICTION SITES THAT INCLUDE CORDWAINER SMITH
New England
Science Fiction Association, www.nesfa.org,
has done a masterful job of publishing two hardcover books of
Cordwainer Smith's, the ones I sell here on the site. Based in
the Boston area, they have meetings as well as a publishing
wing which publishes a variety of old and new writers. It's
amazing what these people do as a volunteer organization.
Espana's
science fiction site is incredibly comprehensive, with (last time
I looked) 383 authors and 31 artists. Actually a collection of
what Espana calls "speculative fiction" to broaden the category
a bit, it's an amazing resource. The Cordwainer
Smith page has an illustration of the Best of Cordwainer Smith
front page, then other Smith links, a bio, and a bibliography.
(List pages for authors and artists on the site are titled Alpha
Ralpha Boulevard and The Gebiet... quiet CS references.)
I gotta love
an e-mail with the tag line "there is no higher life form than
a librarian," since I am a librarian myself. This particular e-mail
came from Librarian Andy Sawyer, of the Science
Fiction Foundation Collection at the University of Liverpool
Library. This is the research library of the Science Fiction Foundation
and is the largest resource of SF and SF-related material in the
UK. They offer a one-year MA in Science Fiction Studies. The page
where Andy listed CS has links to databases, indexes, and archival
sources, authors, artists, journals, magazines, publishers, webzines,
pages on what's happening in the SF world, miscellaneous information,
etc. One interesting topic is "relevant science-based pages."
(As for the tag line, Andy was quoting someone else.)
http://www.scifi.com/sfw/issue199/site.html
Scifi.com
chose this website as SF site of the week some time ago, and you
have to scroll down the page to find the article. Their site-wide
search engine returned a number of things for Cordwainer Smith.
The CS story
No,No, Not Rogov was included in an anthology called The
Ascent of Wonder: The Evolution of Hard Science Fiction (edited
by David G. Hartwell and Kathryn Cramer, Tor Books, 1994) There's
a website that's an interactive introduction to the book, and
it has some
remarks about the story and about CS.
OTHER SF
LINKS
Asimov's
is an excellent science fiction magazine. Cordwainer Smith gets
mentioned from time to time—sometimes in an article, and
sometimes in the stories themselves!
Locus
Magazine
has a lot to browse (and you can subscribe to their fine science
fiction magazine.) Don't miss their comprehensive links portal
at http://www.locusmag.com/Links/Portal.html
Looking for
an out-of-print CS title? Last time I was at abebooks.com,
I saw numerous listings for old magazines, anthologies, books
in French and German, as well as many old CS paperbacks. (I also
saw a copy of the NESFA Rediscovery of Man for $35, which
sells new for $25-- not everything is a bargain.) This is a great
resource for out-of-print bookbuying in general, being a database
of thousands of booksellers worldwide, though mostly in North
America. The listings describe the condition of the items, and
indicate where the seller is located.
The Science
Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America site provides information,
practical advice, and news about reading, writing, and publishing.
Over 1200 SF and fantasy writers, artists, editors, and allied
professionals are members. They present the annual Nebula Awards.
Includes a useful section on ergonomics for writers and editors.
More
than a thousand bibliographies of the best science fiction,
fantasy and horror authors, with author pictures, book covers,
etexts and links. Also a list of the most-visited 200 authors.
They included some rather surprising writers in the SF category.
(CS is included, not surprisingly.)
http://www.adherents.com/adh_sf.html
"Religious affiliation of the 50+ most famous Science Fiction/Fantasy
authors" including CS. The lists page, at http://www.adherents.com/lit/sf_lists.html,
has numerous SF lists and links. These are part of a mammoth
undertaking on spirituality and religion.
What's a Cordwainer?
This statue,
unveiled in London earlier this year, is one:
http://staffcentral.brighton.ac.uk/channel/march_02/sculpting.shtm
CONS
The World
Science Fiction Society makes the annual Hugo Awards and sets
up the annual Worldcons (World Science Fiction Conventions). You
can find out where upcoming Worldcons will be on this page, and
there are links to the pages for each con.
Potlatch
"Reading,
talking about, and writing science fiction is what Potlatch is
all about." It's an annual affair, in the Western US. "The
Rediscovery of Man" is their 2003 Book of Honor. Their website
is http://www.potlatch-sf.org/
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