A good read. Fans of science fiction should consider this. The science fiction novel Galaxies Like Grains of Sand is a good one. It succeeds in asking concerns about our collective future based on our past and present circumstances, which is something that a surprising number of books in the category disappointingly fail to do. ( )

He aquí la historia de la humanidad desde un futuro muy cercano hasta los últimos días de nuestro universo. A lo largo de incontables milenios, episodios de la vida de seres humanos concretos sirven para mostrarnos cómo van cambiando el mundo y la gente, cómo los ciclos evolutivos e involutivos culturales y genéticos hacen su trabajo. Asistimos a guerras nucleares, a períodos de extrema escasez de alimentos, a la presencia asfixiante de todo tipo de máquinas, al ingreso de la Tierra en una sociedad galáctica mucho más avanzada que la nuestra y, finalmente, no sólo a la sustitución de la humanidad por una raza nueva, sino al reemplazo de nuestro gastado universo por un nuevo orden cósmico.

According to the introduction, this one started out as just another bunch of short stories. After the author's editor suggested that they be linked and made into a loose narrative, the book became a sort of history of the far future and a trip through deep time. The move was, I think, a good one, as it lends some needed structure to the proceedings, and Aldiss obviously enjoyed writing the connecting segments, which contain some deliciously purple prose. There are some interesting ideas here, including a language that exponentially increases humans' abilities and long-term conflicts between human and machine intelligences. Oddly enough, though, I enjoyed this one because it presents some accidental insight into the anxieties of the time it was written. There are some lively psychedelic settings to be found here, but the book is also full of Cold War-era fears. Visions of catastrophic nuclear conflict, environmental ruin, and societal entropy appear again and again. A nervous concern with vitality and masculinity runs through it, too. Aldiss seems to be digging through emotional stuff that seems close to the heart of a lot of pulp genres, which isn't necessarily a bad thing. Not a classic, but an interesting read nonetheless. ( )

Note from the ISFDB: "This edition reprints 8 of 11 stories from The Canopy of Time, but includes new connecting material."

Notable for the brief forewords, and for "Who Can Replace a Man?" (the third story in, representing the Robot Millennia). ( )

Indeholder "Author's Note", "Norman Spinrad: Introduction", "1. The War Millennia, Out of Reach", "2. The Sterile Millennia, All the World's Tears", "3. The Robot Millennia, Who Can Replace a Man?", "4. The Mingled Millennia, Blighted Profile", "5. The Dark Millennia, O Ishrail!", "6. The Star Millennia, Incentive", "7. The Mutant Millennia, Gene-Hive", "8. The Megalopolis Millennia, Secret of a Mighty City", "9. The Ultimate Millennia, Visiting Amoeba".

"Author's Note" handler om historiernes mishandlede skæbne og om at dette er den rigtige version og rækkefølge af dem. The Canopy of Time var en forlagsredaktørs version.
"Norman Spinrad: Introduction" handler om ???
"1. The War Millennia, Out of Reach" handler om ???
"2. The Sterile Millennia, All the World's Tears" handler om ???
"3. The Robot Millennia, Who Can Replace a Man?" handler om ???
"4. The Mingled Millennia, Blighted Profile" handler om ???
"5. The Dark Millennia, O Ishrail!" handler om ???
"6. The Star Millennia, Incentive" handler om ???
"7. The Mutant Millennia, Gene-Hive" handler om ???
"8. The Megalopolis Millennia, Secret of a Mighty City" handler om ???
"9. The Ultimate Millennia, Visiting Amoeba" handler om ???

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