Perneńczycy mają problem — ich smoki się starzeją. Trwają więc dyskusje nad ochroną gatunku i w końcu zapada decyzja. Jeźdzcy wykradają jajo smoczycy Ramoth i umieszczają je w przeszlości, chcąc w ten sposób zapewnić sobie przetrwanie smoczego rodu. Nie wiedzą jednak, że podejmując się tego ryzykownego czynu, sprowadzają na siebie niebezpieczeństwo, które trudno było przewidzieć. W starciu z nowym problemem potrzebna będzie im i odwaga i spryt.

1969

Once again Pern was in danger. The air trembled with Threadfall, and the holds seethed with rebellion. The Wily young Piemur, his singing ended by a change of voice, was given a new assignment by the Master Harper. On a bold mission to the Southern Hold, he would learn the Oldtimers’ secret and help Pern rediscover it’s lost heritage.

To forestall the incursions of the dreadful Threads, the Pernese, with the ingenuity of their forgotten Terran forebears, developed a highly specialized variety of a life-form indigenous to their adopted planet. Such humans as had a high empathy rating and some innate telepathic ability were trained to use and preserve this unusual animal whose ability to teleport was of great value in the fierce struggle to keep Pern bare of Threads.The winged, tailed, and fiery-breathed dragons (named for the Earth legend they resembled), their dragonmen, a breed apart, and the menace they battled, created a whole new group of legends and myths.Once relieved of imminent danger, Pern settled into a more comfortable way of life. The descendants of heroes fell into disfavor, as the legends fell into disrepute.

Volume 1 of the Dragonriders of Pern

Volume 2 of the Dragonriders of Pern, 1971

Menolly arrived in triumph at the Harper Hall, aboard a bronze dragon. She had run away from home and lived in a cave, outrun the dread Threadfall, impressed nine fire lizards and written songs that pleased the Masterharper of Pern. But what was her future at the hall to be? It seemed she was always late or her fire lizards under foot, and why didn’t any of the other girls like her? Now that there was nothing to keep her from her beloved music and fire lizards, could Menolly learn to live among others, realize her talent and find her rightful place in the future of Pern?

Menolly, a young fisher’s daughter, had dreamed all her life of learning the Harper’s craft. When her stern father denied Menolly’s destiny, she fled Half Circle Hold just as Pern was struck again by the deadly danger of Threadfall, the killing ropes of death that fell from a nearby star. Taking shelter in a cave by the sea, Menolly made a miraculous discovery that insured her a new home among the master musicians of Pern’s Harper Hall.

From Star Trek to Star Wars, from Dune to Foundation, science fiction has a rich history of exploring the idea of vast intergalactic societies, and the challenges facing those living in or trying to manage such societies. The stories in Federations will continue that tradition. What are the social/religious/environmental/technological implications of living in such a vast society? What happens when expansionist tendencies on a galactic scale come into conflict with the indigenous peoples of other planets, of other races? And what of the issue of communicating across such distances, or the problems caused by relativistic travel? These are just some of the questions and issues that the stories in Federations will take on.

From Star Trek to Star Wars, from Dune to Foundation, science fiction has a rich history of exploring the idea of vast intergalactic societies, and the challenges facing those living in or trying to manage such societies. The stories in Federations will continue that tradition. What are the social/religious/environmental/technological implications of living in such a vast society? What happens when expansionist tendencies on a galactic scale come into conflict with the indigenous peoples of other planets, of other races? And what of the issue of communicating across such distances, or the problems caused by relativistic travel? These are just some of the questions and issues that the stories in Federations will take on.

La prima parte del “Volo di drago”.Vincitore del premio Hugo per il miglior romanzo breve in 1968.Nominato per il premio Nebula il miglior romanzo breve in 1968.

Lightspeed (www.lightspeedmagazine.com) is the critically-acclaimed, online science fiction magazine edited by bestselling anthologist John Joseph Adams. Lightspeed publishes all types of science fiction, from near-future, sociological soft sf, to far-future, star-spanning hard sf, and anything and everything in between. Each month, Lightspeed features a mix of originals and reprints, from a variety of authors - from the bestsellers and award-winners you already know to the best new voices you haven''t heard of yet. Now, in Lightspeed: Year One, you will find all of the fiction published in Lightspeed''s first year, from new stories such as Nebula Award finalists, Vylar Kaftan''s "I''m Alive, I Love You, I''ll See You in Reno" and "Arvies" by Adam-Troy Castro, and Carrie Vaughn''s Hugo Award-nominee "Amaryllis," to classic reprints by Stephen King, Ursula K. Le Guin, George R. R. Martin, and more.

Lightspeed (www.lightspeedmagazine.com) is the critically-acclaimed, online science fiction magazine edited by bestselling anthologist John Joseph Adams. Lightspeed publishes all types of science fiction, from near-future, sociological soft sf, to far-future, star-spanning hard sf, and anything and everything in between. Each month, Lightspeed features a mix of originals and reprints, from a variety of authors—from the bestsellers and award-winners you already know to the best new voices you haven't heard of yet. Now, in Lightspeed: Year One, you will find all of the fiction published in Lightspeed's first year, from new stories such as Nebula Award finalists, Vylar Kaftan’s “I’m Alive, I Love You, I’ll See You in Reno” and “Arvies” by Adam-Troy Castro, and Carrie Vaughn’s Hugo Award-nominee “Amaryllis,” to classic reprints by Stephen King, Ursula K. Le Guin, George R. R. Martin, and more.

Moreta, młoda władczyni Fortu Weyr, udaje się na Zgromadzenie organizowane w Warowni Ruatha zarządzanej przez Lorda Alessana. Jednak radosny nastrój hucznych uroczystości przerywa tajemnicza zaraza, która najpierw dziesiątkuję biegusy, lecz wkrótce zabija także ludzi. Cały Pern znajduje się w śmiertelnym niebezpieczeństwie. Moreta podejmuje heroiczną próbę powstrzymania epidemii…

Explosive and provocative battles fought across the boundaries of time and space—and on the frontiers of the human mind.Science fiction's finest have yielded this definitive collection featuring stories of warfare, victory, conquest, heroism, and overwhelming odds. These are scenarios few have ever dared to contemplate, and they include:-"Superiority": Arthur C. Clarke presents an intergalactic war in which one side's own advanced weaponry may actually lead to its ultimate defeat.-"Dragonrider": A tale of Anne McCaffrey's Dragonriders of Pern, in which magic tips the scales of survival.-"Second Variety": Philip K. Dick, author of the short story that became the movie Blade Runner, reaches new heights of terror with his post apocalyptic vision of the future.-"The Night of the Vampyres": A chilling ultimatum of atomic proportions begins a countdown to disaster in George R. R. Martin's gripping drama.-"Hero": Joe Haldeman's short story that led to his classic of interstellar combat, The Forever War.-"Ender's Game": The short story that gave birth to Orson Scott Card's masterpiece of military science fiction.. . . as well as stories from Poul Anderson, Gregory Benford, C. J. Cherryh, David Drake, Cordwainer Smith, Harry Turtledove and Walter John Williams.Guaranteed to spark the imagination and thrill the soul, these thirteen science fiction gems cast a stark light on our dreams and our darkest fears—truly among the finest tales of the 20th century.

The tale of an ambitious young girl struck down by an alien disease who straps on a spaceship and continues her archeological searches among the stars.Selected by the New York Public Library for their 1993 Books for the Teen Age list of the year's best YA books."A perfect combination of SF, adventure, and romance...." Starred review in Kliatt.

Volume 3 of the Dragonriders of Pern

La trilogia dei «Dragonieri di Pern», di cui «Volo di Drago» è la prima parte, è uno dei più interessanti cicli narrativi che la fantascienza ha prodotto in questi ultimi anni nel suo sforzo di rinnovamento interno, tematico e stilistico; è il tentativo ad ampio respiro di creare «ex novo» una mitologia complessa e coordinata, che non sia un semplice adattamento di mitologie «terrestri».Esso è dovuto ad un nome nuovo, lanciato da John Campbell sulle pagine di «Analog», Anne McCaffrey, che si rivela scrittrice sensibile, originale e dalle notevoli doti letterarie. Sia i lettori che i critici statunitensi hanno testimoniato illoro apprezzamento per quest’opera, i cui diversi capitoli sono apparsi in più riprese sulle riviste di Campbell: i primi assegnando il Premio Hugo 1968 per il miglior romanzo breve alla parte iniziale del romanzo; i secondi il Premio Nebula 1969 per la stessa categoria all’ultima parte di esso. Anne McCaffrey è stata così la prima donna a vincere i due massimi premi fantascientifici americani.