Spectrum V: A Fifth Science Fiction Anthology

Spectrum 5 was the fifth and final book of an annual anthology series that ran from 1961 to 1966. This, the 1966 edition, contains 8 stories of varied length that were first published between 1952-1958. 7 of the stories first appeared in Astounding Science Fiction Magazine, (and certainly bear the

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John W Campbell imprint) and one (Student Body) in Galaxy Science Fiction Magazine. Noted British author and critic Kingsley Amis co-edited all 5 books in the series. He co-writes a spirited essay to open this collection which is oddly entertaining as he rails against other critics and also instructs the reader as to why science fiction is what it is, and isn't, and barely touches on the stories in this anthology. So why were these particular stories collected here? Who knows. Not I.

The included material is (adapted from ISFDB):
9 • Introduction (1966) • essay by Kingsley Amis and Robert Conquest
15 • Student Body • (1953) • novelette by F. L. Wallace
39 • Crucifixus Etiam • (1953) • short story by Walter M. Miller
61 • Noise Level • (1952) • novelette by Raymond F. Jones
107 • Grandpa • The Hub • (1955) • novelette by James H. Schmitz
134 • Mother of Invention • (1953) • novella by Tom Godwin
195 • The Far Look • (1956) • novelette by Theodore L. Thomas
229 • Big Sword • (1958) • novelette by Paul Ash (Pauline Ashwell)
276 • Commencement Night • (1953) • novelette by Richard Ashby

So, 60-65 years on, are these stories still enjoyable and worth the read? I'd say yes and no. The stories vary in interest and some were pretty boring. The first story is a very '50s old-fashioned exploration team type story, but the anthology picks up briefly with Walter Miller's Mars tale 'Crucifixius Etiam'. I probably would have enjoyed this book more if I read it in 1968. Even then, with stuff like Dangerous Visions cutting new ground back then these stories would have felt old-fashioned. I did enjoy James Schmitz's story "Grandpa". I may have read that one long ago. It is set either on the same world as his novel "The Demon Breed" or one very much like it. Nice alien water ecology story. Similarly, I think it was the interesting alien ecology as well as good characters that pulled me into Pauline Ashwell's "Big Sword".

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