I spent ten years looking for my copy - if you get one of your own, treasure it! The stories within are excellent and can truly touch lives and change hearts. Spider teaches us there's hope in the world.

This is the only book to be remaindered before it got on the shelves. The story is in Melancholy Elephants, which is this book with some extra stories, so if you can't fnd this one. grab Elephants. A truly mind altering experience from word one. By the way, my two copies are packed in nitrogen and safe, so there will always exist a copy for the LOC. A better book of Spider's doesn't exist.

I spent ten years looking for my copy - if you get one of your own, treasure it! The stories within are excellent and can truly touch lives and change hearts. Spider teaches us there's hope in the world.

This was an excellent book. At first it doesn't seem like a sci-fi book, but when you get to the third chapter it gets very interesting. I love sci-fi, but this topped all that I've read in a long time. If you like sci-fi you'll love this. If you dont't your going to love this

Hilarious; but only if you have odd taste. i would suggest trying some of Robinson's other work such as Stardance if you're in the mood for true scifi. Callahan is a time traveler that runs a bar in long island. punning only allowed on days that end in -y. a little off color at times but never raunchy. I love it.

I have always enjoyed Spider Robinson's work, ever since a friend introduced me to his short story "Meloncholy Elephants" years ago. And now that story, and others, are reprinted in this spectacular hardbound edition.
Personl favorites include the title story (and the slight twist at the ending), Rubber Soul (a lyrical delight), Meloncholy Elephants (still a favorite), and Orphans of Eden, which is not quite as the publishers review puts it, wherein a character based on Spider is played. It's Spider, darn it.

You can find these stories in other places if you look, but it's nice to have them in hardcover, and this IS a fine edition. The cover is slick, and the same under the dustjacket.

This book is a 1990 Ronin Publishing reissue of Stephen Gaskin's 1980 _Amazing Dope Tales_. The good news: in 1999, Ronin republished it under its original title, with a new introduction by Spider Robinson. If you want to buy it new, look for it under its other title (and see my review of it for further information).

This is one of the most charming children's books I've read in ages. I bought one copy for my neice and another for my god-daughter. The author is really gifted.

Isra the Butterfly is a delightful and charming book for children ages four to eight. Isra is young, but wants to play with her older sisters and wants to leave Butterfly Land so that she can venture out into the outside world. Warned by her mother and under the supervision of her sisters, she's still convinced that she can move her wings quickly enough to escape any danger. Unfortunately, she's not as quick as she believes and is caught and taken to Show and Tell.

Young-Robinson has given us a careful blend of adventure for the children as well as lessons on obeying parents. I loved this book and would definitely recommend it to others. Finley's illustrations are an added bonus to this book and beautifully portray Isra, her family, and the children in the outside world.

Reviewed by Tee C. Royal...

This is a thoroughly delightful little tale of Isra the Butterfly and her desire to see the world where boys and girls live. Isra gets her wish, has a great adventure and gets a wonderful lesson about the importance of family and home. This is a book to read while curled in a comfortable chair with your child. A great story with a sweet, wonderful butterfly as the main character. Your child will love it.

These were the stories that kick-started Robinson's writing career. Originally appearing in Analog, they met such a warm reception and requests for more that Spider was almost forced to oblige, even though these stories have only a bare minimum of that 'hard science' feel that is the normal requisite for stories in that magazine.

The reason these stories got that kind of reception is simply that they deserved it. All happen within the confines of Callahan's bar, a most congenial place that people seem to find just when they need it, for the patrons of this bar are always willing to listen to and help anyone who truly needs it. Fully loaded with humanity even when dealing with aliens out to destroy our world or turn us into their own private feed cattle, these stories are tightly plotted, filled with recognizable people from just down the street, and just wacky enough to engage both your interest and your funny bone. Just to add icing to the cake, most of these stories are also loaded with puns (most especially in those stories that occur on Tuesday night, officially designated PunDay), some of them quite good and original, and guaranteed to raise a groan or two. And then there is Tall Tales Night, where some really, really tall ones get told just as sidelights to the main story.

The stories I liked the best in this collection were "The Time Traveler" which is science fiction only by courtesy, but is a riveting story that may have you reaching for your handkerchief, and "The Law of Conservation of Pain" where science fiction mixes with the world of music in a most painful and joyous manner. These are two of the longest stories here, and Robinson does seem to do better at this length. Some of the shorter length stories, such as "The Centipede Dilemma", depend too much on a single gimmick or idea to be fully satisfying, but the overall level of this collection is very high. And once you have tasted the flavor of Callahan's bar, you'll more than likely wish you had one just like it around your neighborhood. Alas, the supply of Callahans is very limited, but at least you can read more about this fascinating place in all the other Callahan books Spider has published over the years.

Yippee! I love this great Not-so-SciFi series, and I just started to read it a week ago! The second book rocks too! A great blend of humor, SciFi, and fiction. :-)

I first came across the stories of Spider Robinson's Callahan's Crosstime Saloon while on deployment in the navy. What an eye opener! Talk about something that will grab your imagination and happily drag you into its world. After I finished the first book, I had to find them all. Still can't find off the wall at Callahans but am perseveering. The first thing I thought when I read the time traveler and the descripions of the bar owner, Mike Callahan, and the patrons was that this was what would happen if Cheers did an outer limits type episode. ANd I was hooked!

I've been reading this book at the same time as playing the computer game Callahan's Crosstime Saloon (now being blown-out for about $10). The game certainly feels like Spider actually wrote it and provides great visuals to make the many characters in the books more memorable. The stories themselves are all worth reading. My only complaint is some are a bit far-fetched. I have nothing against being far-fetched since most science-fiction is, however the best SF is able to make you "suspend your disbelief". Robinson is not always successful in this. However, the reason for reading these stories is the clever dialog and great writing. The plot often takes a back seat and that's my only complaint. Overall, this summer has been memorable for me as I've spent the past few months reading this book and playing the game. I have several more months to look forward to it as well since the game is so long. One last compliment: I've bought this book for my friends.

I first read "The Guy with the Eyes" 25 years ago, when it came out in Analog. It is the definitive story to illustrate Survivor Guilt, and is well worth the price of the book alone. If you are trying to understand a friend suffering from PTSD, read this story. It will teach you more than a dozen textbooks on the subject...and that's just the first story. There's 20 or more stories in this book, each one is eminently enjoyable, and each one has a valuable point to teach you about life. I have passed the Callahan's books to all of my friends, and even people that don't like SF, will enjoy Callahan's. A friend of mine has only read five non-fiction books in the last 10 years - all of them were in the Callahan's Universe. Put it another way - I rarely buy hardcover books - they're too expensive and bulky. But if I see Spider Robinson as the author, I'll gladly fork over the cash, because I can't stand to wait the 6-8 months for it to come out in paperback. And I'll probably buy it in paperback, because when I'm on the road, re-reading a Spider Robinson story is often better than picking up some of the over-priced schlock populating Airport Bookshelves.

This is a colection of the Callahan stories, from the night Micky Finn first walked into Callahan's to the explosive (ouch) climax years later. It does not contain the post-Callahan stories of Mary's Place, or the para-Callahan stories of Lady Sally, both of which I hope will be available in simular editions. Spider Robinson is sometimes called the sucessor to Robert A. Heinlein, a fact that he says he finds humbling and somewhat suprising. This book contains his earliest work, the stuff he won the Campbell award for, and many that were Hugo quality even though none of them actually won. If you are not familiar with Spider (his legal name by the way), this is a great introduction to a great writer. If you know Spider but not Callahan, be prepared for a much lighter touch than the rest of his work. If you know Callahan, you'll be as happy as I am to have these stories in one book. In any event, buy this, pour a glass of you favorite, enjoy, and make a toast when you're through!

Find and buy a copy of this book, if you think of yourself as human: it is one of the few places to find a copy of "The Man Who Traveled in Elephants" AND "Our Lady's Juggler" - both essential reading, even if they're the only fantasy you ever read. The former tale is the story Heinlein was proudest of, and the latter is his choice as the best least-reprinted story - and no other English translation of Anatole France's little gem is worth the paper it's printed on. Find this book and buy a copy. The other stories in it are fine, but the last two are worth the price of admission all by themselves.

A long time fan of spider's this is the book i turn to for that point in time when somrthing new is too much and callahan's too punny.

BEST OF ALL POSSIBLE WORLDS (Ace Books, Science Fiction, 1980) by Spider Robinson.

Here is why this book is so exceptional.

Spider Robinson picked his favorite short stories from each of his favorite authors - not the most popular or the ones with the most awards, just the best according to him, the ones he really loved.

He then wrote an introduction for each one of these stories, explaining, in his refreshing style, who the writer is, why he picked this particular story and how did the author reacted to his choice. Yes - and that's how this book develops a parallel anthology - he also contacted each of the authors and asked each one of them to pick one of their favorite stories by someone else and write an introduction for it.

When asked to handle this project by Jim Baen, Ace's science fiction editor, Spider Robinson recalls, in the foreword, how he "was drooling" at the idea and said "My favorite stories plus my favorite writers' favorite stories ? Christ, that sounds like the best of all possible worlds." "Yeah," (said Baen) "that's my working title."

This book is a gem. It starts with Larry Niven's "Inconstant Moon" and follows with Niven's choice "Spud and Cochise" by Oliver La Farge - an unforgettable "western that blooms into fantasy, compelling awe, laughter and belief."

The next one is "Need" by Theodore Sturgeon - my own favorite - and Sturgeon then picked "Hop-Friend" by Terry Carr. Following that, we have The Duel Scene from William Goldman's "The Princess Bride" and Goldman picked Robert Sheckley's "Seventh Victim". The next one is Dean Ing's "Portions Of This Program..." who then chose "They Bite" by Anthony Boucher.

Spider Robinson's last pick is an exquisitely touching story by Robert A. Heinlein (his introduction is a wonderful read in itself), "The Man Who Traveled in Elephants" which recreates magically a Fellini-like atmosphere combined with the All American, mid century charm of Capra's "It's A Wonderful Life". Not only is this story surprisingly unHeinlein but Heinlein's own pick is another surprise, a sweetly naive and religious story by Anatole France "Our Lady's Juggler" very aptly translated by Spider Robinson himself (who was turned off by the two translations which were available at the time).

This anthology is not really an anthology as we know it. Spider Robinson's world - past and present - is revealed throughout and we also get a glimpse into the worlds of his favorite writers as they candidly recall their reactions to their favorite stories. It is, in the best sense of the word, a Collection, one which touches the heart and caresses the mind. In that sense and so many others, it is Unique.

I bought the novella version in bookform because I heard the author's career was on the skids. Sounds strange, but I've found that many of the authors I like aren't well appreciated. Anyway this was pretty good, if somewhat more artsy than I usually like. In fact few male authors write artsy so it was interesting. It is good at being optimistic without being cloying. It isn't the best thing I've ever read, but it is better than a lot of the stuff that's popular. In some ways it reminded me of "A Rose for Ecclesiastes" by Roger Zelazny, but I think Zelazny's story is probably a bit better. This is pretty good nevertheless, & although I rarely say this if there were a market for artsy science fiction movies I could see this being adapted. It has some nice imagery and I'd like to see who'd play whom. Well enjoy it.

Come prepared for this book with a large box of tissues; those who find they don't need them while reading this book aren't really human. Spider and his wife Jeanne have created something here that is quite rare in the realms of science fiction, a true mating of music and dance with a story that could only be told within the non-confines of this field.

Charlie Armstead, former premier dancer who now makes his living as an audio-visual man for dance companies, meets Sharon Drummond, a young lady who has dedicated her life to being the best dancer possible. But Sharon, though incredibly excellent at her craft, can't get accepted by any dance company because she is physically too big. Charlie, seeing her dance, and knowing the problem she faces, tries to help by going independent with her, helping her define her own type of dance and properly filming it, but nothing works.

Here in this early section of the book, however, we are treated to the impossible: a description in words of music and dance that actually makes you see and hear the dance. This may be one of the most difficult feats of writing that I have ever read, to translate art forms from the totally different realm of the audio-visual into such a readable, coherent, mental painting that puts you right in the dance studio. And along the way, the Robinson's characters come to life, to where you can feel the triumphs and disappointments, the sweat and exhaustion, the exhilaration and despair of this pair.

Up to here, the story could have been told as normal fiction, but now comes the first of the elements that transform this from the world of everyday to the world of the future, as Sharon conceives the idea of doing her unique form of dance in free-fall at an orbiting space station. We watch as she adapts to the new environment, and modifies her dance to take advantage of its properties, and slowly we begin to see her creations as message, as a unique channel of communication.

This channel of communication forms one of the lynch-pins of the plot, and the Robinsons do an excellent job of melding their characters with both this item and the very plausible impediments that Sharon and Charlie must overcome. The conclusion to the first section of this book will shatter you; most of your tissue box will be depleted here. But there's much more, a logical yet surprising continuation that allows for a good exposition of the book's theme of the community of not just man, but a community of mind.

Excellent in almost every aspect, the first section of this book deservedly won both the 1977 Nebula and 1978 Hugo Novella awards. In this expansion to full book length it lost none of its power, and allowed for both greater character development and a vision of the future of mankind that speaks to the reader in an impossible to ignore voice. Keep your last tissue for the last line; you'll need it.

It shouldn't be suprising, really--when you put together a fine science fiction writer with a talented choreographer/dancer, both of whom happen to be both empathic and married to each other, how could you not come up with excellent work? Still, it's astonishing just HOW good this work is, as well as how well it's stood up to the two decades + since it was written. I first read this book as a young teenager; recently re-reading it after earning a dance degree. I'm glad to report that the story has an added depth now, not just in terms of dance, but in terms of the role of the arts in our culture. Pre-NEA meltdown, pre-digital media, Spider and Jeanne identified both the problems that come when the human aesthetic expands itself and many potential solutions.

Did I mention it's a rollicking good read? Intrigue, suspense, incredible choreography mixed with the vastness of space (hell, just being able to pull those off in a verbal medium is enough to deserve the awards this book has earned), it's all there. Yeah, it's out of print for now--but that won't last, as the present catches up with this particular future. So grab it now, so they can continue the good fight!