Most histories of science fiction, even those by British writers, tend to look at the genre in overview and with a global perspective. That's understandable; the history of the genre since the 1920s has been tied up with the rise of popular written literature and culture in the USA. But the genre of SF in particular has strong roots in Britain, and British writers have been instrumental in producing some of the key works in both the fantasy and SF genres. So this short study is useful in taking a particularly British view.

This therefore means that the early history of SF in particular is not one of ghettoisation. Kincaid notes Aldiss' claim that 'Frankenstein' is "the first SF novel" and argues instead that the book has status as a "scientific romance" and is not really part of the history of the genre as such. Indeed, even if you take H.G. Wells as the progenitor of SF in Britain, the genre doesn't become a genre as such until well after the Second World War with the globalisation of American popular forms. Kincaid is quite exhaustive in looking at non-genre works of British SF, as well as highlighting the key works of British fantasy.

Having just acquired this book, it was interesting to read Kincaid's account of the "key writers to watch" at the time he was writing, in 1995. Nearly twenty years' hindsight makes for some interesting reflections. Whatever happened to Tanith Lee, Alison Sinclair or Colin Greenland? And two of the high-profile writers he mentions, Angela Carter and Iain M. Banks, are no longer with us. And interestingly, the same weekend as I acquired this book, a Sunday newspaper covered John Christopher in a regular feature along the lines of "the best writers you've never heard of".

Considering the authors and themes covered in this short book, it's interesting to consider the influence Britain has had, and still has, on the worlds of fantasy and science fiction. Even looking backward from twenty years further on, this book is a useful encapsulation of Britain's contribution to the genre so far. ( )

http://nhw.livejournal.com/460299.html

I found this useful as a contextualisation of a lot of the stuff I've already read and as a pointer for other writers I might enjoy -indeed, am surprised by the large number of writers singled out as significant who I haven't yet tried. Paul makes a lot of sweeping statements (Wells "perhaps the single most important writer in the history of science fiction", Aldiss "probably the most literarily varied and inventive writer since Wells") which I struggled with for a moment or two before deciding that I actually agree with him. One or two omissions - Dan Dare gets a mention, but no other comics, and I'd have thought 2000AD (and the Dave Gibbons Doctor Who strips) are significant in this. Also because of the concentration on the UK, Flann O'Brien is left out, but ianmcdonald is in. And when one chapter began with the deaths of Aldous Huxley and C.S. Lewis on the same day as John F. Kennedy, I was hoping that it might end with a reference to another significant event in the history of British sf the following day; but it didn't. Still, you can't really complain; 41 pages of text, and (particularly appreciated) a comprehensive reading list and index at the back. ( )