World's Best Science Fiction: 1969

A nightmarish view of a hospital of the future... a world that avoids over-population by eliminating sexual pleasure... a horrifying experiment in the effects of maximum population density...a vast university rigidly controlled by robots...an exploration of the possibilities of love between human and alien...the unanticipated drawbacks of the “planned city” of the future...the replacement of an entire human body destroyed in an accident ...a devastating glimpse of California “after the Flood”... These are only a few of the fascinating possibilities explored in the nineteen imaginative stories gathered in this omnibus volume of the finest science fiction writing of the past year. Among the authors represented are such masters of the art as Poul Anderson, Robert Sheckley, Brian W. Aldiss, Damon Knight, Colin Kapp, Kurt Von-negut, Jr., Fritz Leiber, R. A. Lafferty, H. H. Hollis, and many more. In addition, there is included the first U.S. publication of a new novella by Samuel R. Delany, Time Considered as a Helix of Semi-Precious Stones, a subtle and ingenious story about the breakdown of communication between individuals resulting from mass-media innovations! In their fifth edition, the editors have chosen a treasure trove of fabulous tales you’ll remember for years to come: stories of incomprehensible alien races, strange human mutations both physical and psychological, exciting adventures at the edge of the universe. It’s an annual anthology that has become an Event for science fiction fans everywhere.