Autho r of 2001: A Space Odyssey , Childhood's End , The City a nd the Stars , a nd the Hugo a nd Nebula Award-winning Rendezvous with Rama , Arthur C. Clarke is the most celebrated science fiction autho r alive. He is—with H. G. Wells, Isaac Asimov, a nd Robert A. Heinlein—one of the writers who define science fiction in our time. Now Clarke has cooperated in the preparation of a massive, definitive edition of his collected sho r ter wo r ks. fr om early wo r k like ",Rescue Party", a nd ",The Lion of Comarre,", through classics like ",The Star,", ",Earthlight,", ",The Nine Billion Names of God,", a nd ",The Sentinel", (kernel of the later novel, a nd movie, 2001: A Space Odyssey ), all the way to later wo r k like ",A Meeting with Medusa", a nd ",The Hammer of God,", this immense volume encapsulates one of the great SF careers of all time.