Maureen Birnbaum, Barbarian Swordsperson

Last updated
Maureen Birnbaum,
Barbarian Swordsperson
Maureen Birnbaum, Barbarian Swordsperson.jpg
First edition (Swan Press, 1993)
Author George Alec Effinger
Illustrator
Cover artist
  • Peggy Ranson (1993)
  • Ken Kelly (1994)
Publisher
  • Swan Press (1993)
  • SFBC (1994)
Publication date
  • June 1993
  • August 1994
Media type
  • trade paper (1993)
  • hardcover (1994)
ISBN 1-883722-01-2 (1993)
1-56865-101-5 (1994)

Maureen Birnbaum, Barbarian Swordsperson is a 1993 story collection by George Alec Effinger, collecting all of his stories (up to 1993) about Maureen "Muffy" Birnbaum, a Jewish-American princess who is magically teleported to various fantasy and science fiction universes, and later recounts the tales to her best friend, "Bitsy" Spiegelman. Originally written on his own initiative, the character proved popular enough for Effinger to gain several requests from authors to have versions of their work visited by Muffy.

Contents

In addition to satirizing and spoofing the various themes, the stories had a feminist undertone, as Maureen dealt with the often sexist reactions of the inhabitants of the worlds she met, struggled to find the Martian prince she had fallen in love with, and contrasted her adventures with the life of Bitsy, a housewife with an increasingly unhappy marriage.

The collection had two editions: [1]

The hardcover reused the trade paper’s copyright page (i.e. date and illustration credit). The hardcover's jacket has the correct credit, and the correct date was advertised in Locus magazine. [3]

Contents

Details of included stories [4]
TitleStory parodiedOriginal publicationNotes
"A Few Words from Muffy Birnbaum's Most Passionate Admirer"this anthologyIntroduction by Mike Resnick
"Maureen Birnbaum, Barbarian Swordsperson" Barsoom Fantasy & Science Fiction , January 1982 
"Maureen Birnbaum at the Earth's Core" Pellucidar Fantasy & Science Fiction , February 1986 
"Maureen Birnbaum on the Art of War" Horseclans Friends of the Horseclans (1987) ISBN   0-451-14789-8
"Maureen Birnbaum After Dark""Nightfall" Foundation's Friends (1989) ISBN   0-312-93174-3
"Maureen Birnbaum Goes Shopynge" Robin Hood The Fantastic Adventures of Robin Hood (1991) ISBN   0-451-17053-9
"Maureen Birnbaum and the Saint Graal" Grail legend written for Grails: Visitations of the Night (1994) ISBN   0-451-45304-2
"Maureen Birnbaum and the Looming Awfulness" Cthulhu Mythos this anthology 
"Maureen Birnbaum's Lunar Adventure" feghoot science fiction convention program (1986)Revised for this anthology [5]

"Maureen Birnbaum on a Hot Tin Roof" (1994)

South from Midnight (1994), anthology edited by Richard Gilliam, Martin H. Greenberg, & Thomas R. Hanlon
Fantasy & Science Fiction (August 1996), edited by Kristine Kathryn Rusch

"Maureen Birnbaum in the MUD" (1995)

Chicks in Chainmail (1995), anthology edited by Esther Friesner
Chicks Ahoy (2010), anthology edited by Esther Friesner

"Maureen Birnbaum Pokes an Eye Out" (1996)

Don't Forget Your Spacesuit, Dear (1996), anthology edited by Jody Lynn Nye

Related Research Articles

George Alec Effinger was an American science fiction author, born in Cleveland, Ohio.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Elizabeth Moon</span> American science fiction and fantasy writer (born 1945)

Elizabeth Moon is an American science fiction and fantasy writer. Her other writing includes newspaper columns and opinion pieces. Her novel The Speed of Dark won the 2003 Nebula Award. Prior to her writing career, she served in the United States Marine Corps.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Esther Friesner</span> American novelist

Esther Mona Friesner-Stutzman, née Friesner is an American science fiction and fantasy author. She is also a poet and playwright. She is best known for her humorous style of writing, both in the titles and the works themselves. This humor allows her to discuss with broader audiences about issues like gender equality and social justice.

Muffy or Muffie is an American nickname and may refer to:

Starlight is a science fiction and fantasy series edited by Patrick Nielsen Hayden and published by Tor Books.

Robin Wayne Bailey is an American writer of speculative fiction, both fantasy and science fiction. He is a founder of the Science Fiction Hall of Fame (1996) and a past president of the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America.

Pulphouse Publishing was an American small press publisher based in Eugene, Oregon, and specializing in science fiction and fantasy. It was founded by Dean Wesley Smith and Kristine Kathryn Rusch in 1988. The press was active until 1996. Over that period, Pulphouse published 244 different titles.

<i>Chicks in Chainmail</i> 1995 anthology of fantasy stories edited by Esther Friesner

Chicks in Chainmail is an anthology of fantasy stories, edited by Esther Friesner, with a cover by Larry Elmore. It consists of works featuring female protagonists mostly written by female authors. It was first published in paperback by Baen Books in September 1995, with a hardcover edition following from Baen in conjunction with the Science Fiction Book Club in January 1996. It was the first of a number of similarly themed anthologies edited by Friesner.

<i>Did You Say Chicks?!</i>

Did You Say Chicks?! is an anthology of fantasy stories, edited by Esther Friesner, with a cover by Larry Elmore. It consists of works featuring female protagonists by (mostly) female authors. It was first published in paperback by Baen Books in February 1998. It was the second of a number of similarly themed anthologies edited by Friesner.

<i>Chicks n Chained Males</i>

Chicks 'n Chained Males is an anthology of fantasy stories, edited by Esther Friesner with the assistance of Martin H. Greenberg, with a cover by Larry Elmore. It consists of works featuring female protagonists by (mostly) female authors. It was first published in paperback by Baen Books in May 1999. It was the third of a number of similarly themed anthologies edited by Friesner.

<i>The Chick Is in the Mail</i> Fantasy anthology book by Esther Friesner

The Chick Is in the Mail is an anthology of fantasy stories, edited by Esther Friesner with the assistance of Martin H. Greenberg, with a cover by Larry Elmore. It consists of works featuring female protagonists by (mostly) female authors. It was first published in paperback by Baen Books in October 2000; a hardcover edition was issued the same year. It was the fourth of a number of similarly themed anthologies edited by Friesner.

<i>Turn the Other Chick</i>

Turn the Other Chick is an anthology of fantasy stories, edited by Esther Friesner, with a cover by Mitch Foust. It consists of works featuring female protagonists by (mostly) female authors. It was first published in hardcover by Baen Books in November 2004; a paperback edition followed in March 2006. It was the fifth of a series of similarly themed anthologies edited by Friesner..

<i>Magical Beginnings</i>

Magical Beginnings is an anthology of fantasy short stories edited by Steven H. Silver and Martin H. Greenberg, first published in paperback by DAW Books in February 2003. It is a compilation of the first published stories of sixteen prominent authors in the genre, and features introductions to the stories provided by the authors of those stories. Magical Beginnings was the second of three similarly-themed anthologies, its companions being Wondrous Beginnings and Horrible Beginnings, compiling the first published stories of authors writing in the science fiction and horror genres, respectively. The series follows the example of the earlier First Flight: Maiden Voyages in Space and Time, edited by Damon Knight and First Voyages, edited by Damon Knight, Martin H. Greenberg and Joseph D. Olander, which focused on science fiction authors only and did not include individual introductions.

<i>That Is Not Dead</i> Horror stories by Darrell Schweitzer

That is Not Dead: Tales of the Cthulhu Mythos Through the Centuries is an anthology of original horror short stories edited by Darrell Schweitzer. It was first published in hardcover by PS Publishing in February 2015. It shares a title with That is Not Dead: The Black Magic & Occult Stories, a short story collection by August Derleth published in 2009. In both instances, the title is derived from a couplet by H. P. Lovecraft attributed to his fictional "mad poet" Abdul Alhazred: "That is not dead which can eternal lie, / And with strange aeons even death may die."

<i>Chicks and Balances</i>

Chicks and Balances is an anthology of fantasy stories, edited by Esther Friesner and John Helfers, with a cover by Tom Wood. It consists of works featuring female protagonists by (mostly) female authors. It was first published in trade paperback and e-book form by Baen Books in July 2015. It was the sixth of a series of similarly themed anthologies, the first five of which were edited by Friesner alone.

<i>Heroes in Training</i> Anthology of fantasy stories

Heroes in Training is an anthology of fantasy stories, edited by Martin H. Greenberg and Jim C. Hines. It was first published in paperback by DAW Books in September 2007.

<i>Modern Classics of Fantasy</i>

Modern Classics of Fantasy is an anthology of fantasy short works edited by American writer Gardner Dozois. It was first published in hardcover by St. Martin's Griffin in January 1997, which also issued a trade paperback edition in November of the same year and an ebook edition in October 2014. A Science Fiction Book Club edition appeared in March 1997.

<i>Nebula Awards 32</i> Anthology of science fiction short works

Nebula Awards 32 is an anthology of science fiction short works edited by Jack Dann. It was first published in hardcover and trade paperback by Harcourt Brace in April 1998.

<i>Nebula Awards 31</i>

Nebula Awards 31 is an anthology of science fiction short works edited by Pamela Sargent, the third of three successive volumes under her editorship. It was first published in hardcover and trade paperback by Harcourt Brace in April 1997, and reprinted in trade paperback in July 1999.

"A Birthday" is a 1995 science fiction short story by American writer Esther Friesner, about abortion. It was first published in the Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction.

References

  1. Maureen Birnbaum, Barbarian Swordsperson title listing at the Internet Speculative Fiction Database
  2. Maureen Birnbaum, Barbarian Swordsperson: The Complete Stories publication contents at the Internet Speculative Fiction Database
  3. 1 2 Maureen Birnbaum, Barbarian Swordsperson publication contents at the Internet Speculative Fiction Database
  4. Maureen Birnbaum series listing at the Internet Speculative Fiction Database
  5. Johnson, R. "Maureen Birmbaum's Lunar Adventure, 1986 version". ERBzine. Bill Hillman.