Christopher Anvil
Personal Information
Description
"Christopher Anvil" is a pseudonym used by author Harry C. Crosby (1922-2009). Harry Crosby's first published short story was "Cinderella, Inc.", which appeared in the December 1952 issue of Imagination. By 1956, he had adopted the pseudonym and was being published in Astounding Magazine. His first published book was The Day the Machines Stopped (1964). He is best known for his Federation of Humanity series, which he referred to as the Colonization Series before they were published as collections. Most of his published works are short stories, and he has also produced four novels.
Books
War games
Hallucination Orbit
Twelve science fiction stories which explore the complexities and limitations of the human mind as it responds to unusual situations, bizarre societies, and unorthodox problems. Includes a brief analysis of each story. It's a Good Life - short story by Jerome Bixby [The Sound Machine]( - short story by Roald Dahl Hallucination Orbit - novelette by J. T. McIntosh The Winner - short story by Donald E. Westlake A Rose by Other Name ... - short story by Christopher Anvil (variant of A Rose By Other Name 1959) The Man Who Never Forgot - short story by Robert Silverberg Runaround - novelette by Isaac Asimov Absalom - short story by Henry Kuttner and C. L. Moore [as by Henry Kuttner] Wings Out of Shadow - novelette by Fred Saberhagen In Case of Fire - short story by Randall Garrett What Friends Are For - short story by John Brunner The Drivers - short story by Edward W. Ludwig
Interstellar Patrol II
Vaughan Roberts and his two companions had been trapped on a crime-ridden, chaotic planet until they bamboozled the population with a gigantic hoax-which brought them to the attention of the Interstellar Patrol, who were looking for a few good con men, capable of ingenious improvisation and adept at playing dirty tricks on the bad guys. The new recruits acquited themselves admirably, so they naturally were given more tough nuts to crack, including: Flummoxing an alien empire which has taken a number of human prisoners as reconnaisance for an invasion. This has a personal aspect, since the prisoners are from the planet which Roberts tricked into reforming. ... Stopping a plan by not-so-good Samaritans who are pretending to cure a planetary plague-which they introduced to the planet-with a "miracle" drug which creates an addiction to the same drug, which the schemers will be glad to continue supplying for ever-increasing sums ... Not only rescuing some Patrol personnel taken hostage by fanatics who plan to execute them one at a time until their leader is released, but convincing other fanatics throughout the galaxy that the consequences of threatening anyone in the Patrol are too terrible even to think about. . . .. Making sure that the rightful heir to a planet's throne escapes from captivity and overthrows the usurper. This time there's a complication: Roberts may be falling for the ruler's beautiful sister. ... And much more. ...
Isaac Asimov Presents The Great SF Stories 25 (1963)
Fortress Ship - short story by Fred Saberhagen Not in the Literature - short story by Christopher Anvil The Totally Rich - novelette by John Brunner No Truce with Kings - novella by Poul Anderson New Folks' Home - novelette by Clifford D. Simak The Faces Outside - short story by Bruce McAllister Hot Planet - short story by Hal Clement The Pain Peddlers - short story by Robert Silverberg Turn Off the Sky - novelette by Ray Nelson They Don't Make Life Like They Used to - novelette by Alfred Bester Bernie the Faust - novelette by William Tenn A Rose for Ecclesiastes - novelette by Roger Zelazny If There Were No Benny Cemoli - novelette by Philip K. Dick
Isaac Asimov Presents The Great SF Stories 24 (1962)
"The Insane Ones" by J. G. Ballard "Christmas Treason" by James White "Seven-Day Terror" by R. A. Lafferty "Kings Who Die" by Poul Anderson "The Man Who Made Friends with Electricity" by Fritz Leiber "Hang Head, Vandal!" by Mark Clifton "The Weather Man" by Theodore L. Thomas "Earthlings Go Home!" by Mack Reynolds "The Streets of Ashkelon" by Harry Harrison "When You Care, When You Love" by Theodore Sturgeon "The Ballad of Lost C'Mell" by Cordwainer Smith "Gadget vs. Trend" by Christopher Anvil "Roofs of Silver" by Gordon R. Dickson
Isaac Asimov's Science Fiction Treasury (The Future in Question / Space Mail)
Omnibus of anthologies The Future in Question and Space Mail The Future in Question The Nature of the Title - essay by Isaac Asimov What's It Like Out There? - novelette by Edmond Hamilton Who Can Replace a Man? - short story by Brian W. Aldiss What Have I Done? - short story by Mark Clifton Who's There? - short story by Arthur C. Clarke Can You Feel Anything When I Do This? - short story by Robert Sheckley Why? - short story by Robert Silverberg What's Become of Screwloose? - short story by Ron Goulart Houston, Houston, Do You Read? - novella by James Tiptree, Jr. Where Have You Been, Billy Boy, Billy Boy? - short story by Kate Wilhelm If All Men Were Brothers, Would You Let One Marry Your Sister? - novella by Theodore Sturgeon Will You Wait? - short story by Alfred Bester Who Goes There? - novella by John W. Campbell, Jr. An Eye for a What? - novelette by Damon Knight I Plinglot, Who You? - novelette by Frederik Pohl (variant of I Plinglot — Who You?) Will You Walk a Little Faster? - short story by William Tenn (variant of "Will You Walk a Little Faster") Who's in Charge Here? - short story by James Blish The Last Question - short story by Isaac Asimov Space Mail Introduction (Space Mail) - essay by Isaac Asimov I Never Ast No Favors - short story by C. M. Kornbluth Letter to Ellen - short story by Chan Davis One Rejection Too Many - short story by Patricia Nurse Space Opera - short story by Ray Russell The Invasion of the Terrible Titans - short story by William Sambrot (variant of Football Majors at Pacific U.) That Only a Mother - short story by Judith Merril Itch on the Bull Run - short story by Sharon Webb Letter to a Phoenix - short story by Fredric Brown Who's Cribbing? - short story by Jack Lewis Computers Don't Argue - short story by Gordon R. Dickson Letters from Laura - short story by Mildred Clingerman Dear Pen Pal - short story by A. E. van Vogt Damn Shame - short story by Dean R. Lambe The Trap - novelette by Howard Fast (variant of The First Men) Flowers for Algernon - novelette by Daniel Keyes The Second Kind of Loneliness - short story by George R. R. Martin The Lonely - short story by Judith Merril Secret Unattainable - novella by A. E. van Vogt After the Great Space War - short story by Barry N. Malzberg The Prisoner - novelette by Christopher Anvil Request for Proposal - short story by Anthony R. Lewis He Walked Around the Horses - novelette by H. Beam Piper The Power - short story by Murray Leinster
Isaac Asimov Presents The Great SF Stories 22 (1960)
Mariana - short story by Fritz Leiber The Day the Icicle Works Closed - novelette by Frederik Pohl The Fellow Who Married the Maxill Girl - novelette by Ward Moore Mine Own Ways - short story by Richard McKenna Make Mine Homogenized - novelette by Rick Raphael The Lady Who Sailed the Soul - novelette by Genevieve Linebarger and Paul Myron Anthony Linebarger [as by Cordwainer Smith] I Remember Babylon - short story by Arthur C. Clarke Chief - short story by Henry Slesar Mind Partner - novelette by Christopher Anvil The Handler - short story by Damon Knight The Voices of Time - novelette by J. G. Ballard
RX for chaos
Rx for Chaos is the seventh book in the Complete Christopher Anvil series. This collection contains twenty-two stories plus acknowledgements by the author. These stories were initially published between 1952-1994.
Isaac Asimov's Wonderful Worlds of Science Fiction 5 - Tin stars
Into the Shop - short story by Ron Goulart Cloak of Anarchy - novelette by Larry Niven The King's Legions - novelette by Christopher Anvil Finger of Fate - short story by Edward Wellen Arm of the Law - short story by Harry Harrison Voiceover - novelette by Edward Wellen The Fastest Draw - short story by Larry Eisenberg Mirror Image - short story by Isaac Asimov Brillo - novelette by Ben Bova and Harlan Ellison The Powers of Observation - short story by Harry Harrison Faithfully Yours - short story by Lou Tabakow Safe Harbor - novelette by Donald Wismer Examination Day - short story by Henry Slesar The Cruel Equations - short story by Robert Sheckley Animal Lover - novella by Stephen R. Donaldson
The Steel, the Mist, and the Blazing Sun
The Steel, the Mist, and the Blazing Sun (1980) is a post-apocalypse novel. Two hundred years previously, the USA and the Soviet Union had bombarded each other with nuclear weapons. In addition, the USA had created another weapon in orbit that is still active. Arakal is the elective king of the Wesdem O'Cracys (or at least the east coast of America). As mentioned by another reviewer, in a previous story -- published in Analog as "Ideology Counts" -- Arakal and his command group have repeatedly defeated the Russian Ground Forces in America. He has also bloodlessly annexed the adjacent Russian colony and thereby acquired all the armed vessels of the Russian High Seas fleet. In this novel, Arakal is now trying to reunify the various O'Cracy countries. He has already allied with the people of New Kebeck (Quebec). He would like to contact the west coast of America, but the lingering radioactivity is too high and the craters are too overlapping for passage. Therefore, he is planning to take back the European O'Cracys -- Old Brunswick (Britain) and Old Kebeck (France) -- from Russia; he is not yet aware of the former status of West Germany in the Old O'Cracys. Unfortunately for Arakal, Russia has built an espionage apparatus -- called "S" for Security -- that extends even to the former Russian colony in America. S has listening devices in many places and agents almost everywhere. When the colony was annexed, S began to listen to American conversations in that area. As Arakal and 36,000 of his troop head to Europe in the captured Russian ships, S-One -- the head of S -- learns of their plans almost as fast as they are made. When they reach France, a pretty nurse (provided by S) joins the Americans to vamp her way to Arakal. Then groups of partisans mysteriously begin to appear in the American camp. Meanwhile, American engineers are exploring an Old American facility that is well preserved, although personnel therein were killed by radiation during the nuclear holocaust. It is a treasure trove of old records. Moreover, it contains two protective containers and within each is a strange vessel that looks like a hovercraft. The novel rapidly coalesces into a conflict between Arakal and S-One. The Russians have overwhelming superiority in weapons and troops, but the Americans have questioning minds. Time and again, Arakal does not make an expected decision, but instead takes another path. Although the author does not write blood and gut stories, this novel does have moments of violent action. Nonetheless, the story focuses on the impressions of the protagonist rather than the violence per se. It definitely puts the reader in the character's mind during such moments. Although this novel is outdated, it presents some interesting ideas... Of course, any new publication of this work should include the missing prequel. Highly recommended for Anvil fans and for anyone who enjoys tales of supreme command and straight thinking.
Starships
The Longest Voyage - essay by Isaac Asimov The Burning of the Brain - short story by Cordwainer Smith Home the Hard Way - novelette by Richard McKenna Potential - short story by Robert Sheckley Bill for Delivery - short story by Christopher Anvil Story of a Curse - short story by Doris Pitkin Buck The Oceans Are Wide - novella by Frank M. Robinson Far Centaurus - short story by A. E. van Vogt The Ship Who Sang - novelette by Anne McCaffrey Avoidance Situation - novelette by James McConnell Chance Encounter - short story by A. Bertram Chandler Allamagoosa - short story by Eric Frank Russell Founding Father - short story by Isaac Asimov Wings Out of Shadow - novelette by Fred Saberhagen