Alexei Panshin | |
|---|---|
| Born | (1940-08-14)August 14, 1940 Lansing, Michigan, U.S. |
| Died | August 21, 2022(2022-08-21) (aged 82) |
| Occupation | Novelist, critic |
| Genre | Science fiction |
| Years active | 1967–1991 |
| Notable works | Rite of Passage, The World Beyond the Hill |
| Notable awards | Nebula Award (1968) Hugo Award (1990) |
| Spouse | Cory Panshin |
Alexei Panshin (August 14, 1940 – August 21, 2022) was an American writer andscience fiction critic. He wrote several critical works and several novels, including the 1968Nebula Award–winning novelRite of Passage[1] and, with his wifeCory Panshin, the 1990Hugo Award–winning study of science fictionThe World Beyond the Hill.[2]
Panshin was born inLansing, Michigan, on August 14, 1940.[3] He died on August 21, 2022, at the age of 82.[4]
Panshin was the author of the Anthony Villiers series made up ofStar Well,The Thurb Revolution, andMasque World. A fourth volume, entitledThe Universal Pantograph,[5] never appeared, reputedly because of conflicts between the writer and his publisher. Of the Villiers series, noted SF writerSamuel R. Delany writes in the foreword ofStar Well:
It ... examines the proposition that the world is composed of small communities of mutual interest ... [Star Well] is a gallery of gamblers, duels and double-crosses, a minuet of manners and manners mangled; the machinery of the universe is speculated upon; inspector generals arrive to inspect it. And Anthony Villiers, gentleman par excellence, dashes through it all, buckling a swash or two, bungling a couple of others.
New Celebrations, an omnibus volume collecting the first three volumes, has appeared.
Panshin wrote a novel,Earth Magic with his wife,Cory Panshin. His works also include a short story collection,Farewell To Yesterday's Tomorrow.
Panshin published a study of the prominent American science fiction authorRobert A. Heinlein,Heinlein in Dimension.[6][1]
Most of this work was originally published infanzines, for which Panshin won the Best Fan Writer Hugo award in 1967. The writings were then published in book form by Advent. Panshin discusses reactions to this work on his websiteThe Abyss of Wonder.[7]
Panshin's general critical workSF in Dimension (1976) was also co-written with Cory Panshin, as was his lengthy theoretical-criticalThe World Beyond The Hill: Science Fiction and the Quest for Transcendence (1989), which received aHugo Award for Best Related Work. A number of Alexei Panshin's books (includingThe World Beyond the Hill) are being republished by Phoenix Pick, an imprint of Arc Manor Publishers.
