The Year's Greatest Science Fiction & Fantasy 4

INTRODUCTION by Judith Merril

You’ve heard the one about the old egghead (slightly cracked, but not quite addled yet) who’s got this gorgeous girl assistant, and this formula (or Frankenstein, or maybe a giant ant). Anyhow, the old boy means well, but he just can’t stop himself. (One more experiment! he says each time, and then I’ll quit.) And he would have sure enough destroyed the world if the young reporter (or engineer, or Marine lieutenant) didn’t bust in the door and marry the poor girl just in time.

Well, maybe I got it a little mixed up, but you know the one I mean. What I wanted to say was . . . you won’t find it here.

The name of this book is SF.

SF is an abbreviation for Science Fiction (or Science Fantasy). Science Fantasy (or Science Fiction) is really an abbreviation too. Here are some of the things it stands for. . . .

S is for Science, Space, Satellites, Starships, and Solar exploring; also for Semantics and Sociology, Satire, Spoofing, Suspense, and good old Serendipity. (But not Spelling, without which I could have added Psychology, Civilizations, and Psi without parentheses.)

F is for Fantasy, Fiction and Fable, Folklore, Fairy-tale and Farce; also for Fission and Fusion; for Firmament, Fireball, Future and Forecast; for Fate and Free-will; Figuring, Fact-seeking, and Fancy-free.

Mix well. The result is SF, or Speculative Fun...

Happy reading.

—J. M.