Star Maker

Widely regarded as one of the true classics of science fiction, Star Maker is a poetic and deeply philosophical work. The story details the mental journey of an unnamed narrator who is transported not only to other worlds but also other galaxies and parallel universes, until he eventually becomes part of the "cosmic mind." First published in 1937, Olaf Stapledon's descriptions of alien life are a political commentary on human life in the turbulent inter-war years. The book challenges preconceived notions of intelligence and awareness, and ultimately argues for a broadened perspective that would free us from culturally ingrained thought and our inevitable anthropomorphism. This is the first scholarly edition of a book that influenced such writers as C.S. Lewis and Arthur C. Clarke and which Jorge Luis Borges called "a prodigious novel."

OLAF STAPLEDON (1886-1950) served as Lecturer in Psychology and Philosophy at Liverpool University. PATRICK A. MCCARTHY is Professor of English at the University of Miami, author of Olaf Stapledon (1982) and editor of The Legacy of Olaf Stapledon (1989). FREEMAN J. DYSON is Professor of Physics, Emeritus, at the Institute for Advanced Studies in Princeton, NJ. He conceived the Dyson Sphere, has designed nuclear reactors and writes on the relationship of science to literature and theology.