ACE SF K-Series Singles Image Library
There are few ACE K-series singles that I have found that fall into
the genre of Science Fiction or Fantasy. However, the few that exist are
quite interesting.
K-110 HANS
HELLMUT KIRST The Seventh Day (c. 1957 Germany; 1959 English
translation; 1st thus; ACE star edition; listed as "complete and
unabridged")
Alternate
cover for The Seventh Day (probably a later printing,
but no copyright data) with the snipe (block overprint material placed
on cover art)
"Berlin - The Crisis That Sets Off World War III"
A novel concerning the week prior to World War III.
K-154 GEORGE
R. STEWART Earth Abides
(c.1949; 1962; 1st ACE printing and PBO)
K-154
(back cover)
The painting is by ROBERT ABBETT who is well known for his
BALLANTINE BOOK covers including the first editions of EDGAR RICE
BURROUGHS Mars series. He was also a major artist at ACE and other
publishers of 1950's genre paperbacks. The art is painted on illustration
board and is framed in a black metal frame to the size of 26.25 X 19.25".
The mat opening is just over 18.5 X 10.5". The painting is not signed but
is credited to ABBETT in the book SCIENCE FICTION OF THE 20th CENTURY
by FRANK W. ROBINSON (see quote below).
An
alternative
preliminary version done for the art director at ACE BOOKS. This
additional painting is painted on a 8.5 X 5 & 3/8" of illustration
board which is double matted to a size of 10 X 8".
The ACE paperback version of the book carries the date of
1949 on the copyright page but the paperback price guide dates it as being
published in 1962. The original hardback release of the book was in 1949.
Much has been written about this particular novel and its
importance. From SCIENCE FICTION OF THE 20th CENTURY, AN ILLUSTRATED
HISTORY by FRANK M. ROBINSON published in 1999 by Collector's Press.
On page 166 there is a quotethat is directly under a reproduction of the
cover of ACE K-154. The caption reads: GEORGE R. STEWART 1949 ROBERT
ABBETT under which is the quote "One of the earliest post holocaust
novels. In this case, most of America has been depopulated by by a
plague - Earth Abides
concerns the attempts to rebuild civilization."
From SCIENCE FICTION ENCYCLOPEDIA edited by Peter
Nicholls: On page 291 in the "Holocaust and After" section -- "In
mature versions of the post holocaust story there is usually an
emotional resonance developed from a tension between loss and gain. With
the simplicities of the new order not wholly compensating for the
half-remembered glories and comforts of the past. This is the case with
GEORGE STEWART's EARTH ABIDES (1949), and may explain why,
despite its occasionally fulsome prose, it has attained a classic status
with 2 generations of readers."
From the SCI-FI ENCYCLOPEDIA in the section on
GEORGE R. STEWART on page 874 it reads "..he is best known among
Science Fiction readers for EARTH ABIDES (1949), which tells of
the struggle to survive and rebuild after a virus plague has wiped out
most of humanity; one of the finest of all disaster novels in SF, it is
generally acknowledged to be a classic of the genre. It was the first
winner of the International Fantasy Award."
From the ULTIMATE GUIDE TO SCIENCE FICTION by DAVID
PRINGLE on page 100: "EARTH ABIDES, 1949 - Novel by GEORGE R.
STEWART (USA). A plague wipes out most of humanity. In California, a man
tries to rebuild society meeting with both success and failure.
Wonderfully described and ecologically aware, this is one of the best of
all 'disaster stories.' Profoundly moving. International Fantasy Award
Winner."
Last update 17 November 2021
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