Standard Candles

Last updated

First edition
(publ. Tachyon Publications)
Cover artist: Michael Dashow StandardCandles.jpg
First edition
(publ. Tachyon Publications)
Cover artist: Michael Dashow

Standard Candles is a compilation of science fiction short stories by American author Jack McDevitt, published in 1996. The sixteen stories in the anthology were originally published in various magazines from 1982 to 1996. The introduction is provided by Charles Sheffield.

Like many of the author's works, the title story is set at an astronomical observatory and refers to a star's absolute brightness, connecting that phenomenon with the relationship between two individuals in the story. No matter where one stands, the light radiates at the same level of intensity. ("Standard Candles", "Ellie", and "Cryptic")

Other stories in the collection deal with chess ("Black to Move" and "The Jersey Rifle"), time travel with unintended consequences ("Cruising Through Deuteronomy" and "Time Travelers Never Die"), and the beginnings of interplanetary exploration ("Translations from the Colosian", "Promises to Keep", and "To Hell with the Stars", the last an exposition of what may happen if humanity chooses to not enter space).

Contents


Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Book of Deuteronomy</span> Fifth book of the Torah and Christian Old Testament

Deuteronomy is the fifth and last book of the Torah, where it is called Devarim and the fifth book of the Christian Old Testament.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Torah</span> First five books of the Hebrew Bible

The Torah is the compilation of the first five books of the Hebrew Bible, namely the books of Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers and Deuteronomy. In that sense, Torah means the same as Pentateuch or the Five Books of Moses. It is also known in the Jewish tradition as the Written Torah. If meant for liturgic purposes, it takes the form of a Torah scroll. If in bound book form, it is called Chumash, and is usually printed with the rabbinic commentaries.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jack McDevitt</span> American science fiction author

Jack McDevitt is an American science fiction author whose novels frequently deal with attempts to make contact with alien races, and with archaeology or xenoarchaeology. Most of his books follow either superluminal pilot Priscilla "Hutch" Hutchins or galactic relic hunters Alex Benedict and Chase Kolpath. McDevitt has received numerous nominations for Hugo, Nebula, and John W. Campbell awards. Seeker won the 2006 Nebula Award for Best Novel.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">John Shirley</span> American novelist

John Shirley is an American writer, primarily of fantasy, science fiction, dark street fiction, westerns, and songwriting. He has also written one historical novel, a western about Wyatt Earp, Wyatt in Wichita, and one non-fiction book, Gurdjieff: An Introduction to His Life and Ideas. Shirley has written novels, short stories, TV scripts and screenplays—including The Crow—and has published over 84 books including 10 short-story collections. As a musician, Shirley has fronted his own bands and written lyrics for Blue Öyster Cult and others. His newest novels are Stormland and Axle Bust Creek.

<i>Sleepers</i> 1996 American film

Sleepers is a 1996 American legal crime drama film written, produced, and directed by Barry Levinson, and based on Lorenzo Carcaterra's 1995 book of the same name. The film stars Kevin Bacon, Jason Patric, Brad Pitt, Robert De Niro, Dustin Hoffman, Minnie Driver, Vittorio Gassman, Brad Renfro, Jeffrey Donovan, Terry Kinney, Joe Perrino, Geoffrey Wigdor, Jonathan Tucker and Billy Crudup. The title is a slang term for juveniles who serve sentences longer than nine months.

Easter Vigil, also called the Paschal Vigil or the Great Vigil of Easter, is a liturgy held in traditional Christian churches as the first official celebration of the Resurrection of Jesus. Historically, it is during this liturgy that people are baptized and that adult catechumens are received into full communion with the Church. It is held in the hours of darkness between sunset on Holy Saturday and sunrise on Easter Day – most commonly in the evening of Holy Saturday or midnight – and is the first celebration of Easter, days traditionally being considered to begin at sunset.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Alfred A. Knopf</span> American publishing house

Alfred A. Knopf, Inc. is an American publishing house that was founded by Alfred A. Knopf Sr. and Blanche Knopf in 1915. Blanche and Alfred traveled abroad regularly and were known for publishing European, Asian, and Latin American writers in addition to leading American literary trends. It was acquired by Random House in 1960, and is now part of the Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group division of Penguin Random House which is owned by the German conglomerate Bertelsmann. The Knopf publishing house is associated with its borzoi colophon, which was designed by co-founder Blanche Knopf in 1925.

<i>Tomorrow</i> series Series of young adult novels by John Marsden

The Tomorrow series is a series of seven young adult invasion novels written by Australian writer John Marsden, detailing the invasion and occupation of Australia by a foreign power. The novels are related from the first-person perspective by Ellie Linton, a teenage girl, who is part of a small band of teenagers waging a guerrilla war on the enemy soldiers in the region around their fictional home town of Wirrawee. The name of the series is derived from the title of the first book, Tomorrow, When the War Began.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Karin Fossum</span> Norwegian writer

Karin Fossum is a Norwegian author of crime fiction, often referred to as the "Norwegian queen of crime".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Vasilisa the Beautiful</span> Russian folk tale

Vasilisa the Beautiful or Vasilisa the Fair is a Russian fairy tale collected by Alexander Afanasyev in Narodnye russkie skazki.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Devarim (parashah)</span> 44th weekly Torah portion in the annual Jewish cycle of Torah reading

Devarim is the 44th weekly Torah portion in the annual Jewish cycle of Torah reading and the first in the Book of Deuteronomy. It comprises Deuteronomy 1:1–3:22. The parashah recounts how Moses appointed chiefs, the episode of the Twelve Spies, encounters with the Edomites and Ammonites, the conquest of Sihon and Og, and the assignment of land for the tribes of Reuben, Gad, and Manasseh.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Eikev</span>

Eikev, Ekev, Ekeb, Aikev, or Eqeb is the 46th weekly Torah portion in the annual Jewish cycle of Torah reading and the third in the Book of Deuteronomy. It comprises Deuteronomy 7:12–11:25. The parashah tells of the blessings of obedience to God, the dangers of forgetting God, and directions for taking the Land of Israel. Moses recalls the making and re-making of the Tablets of Stone, the incident of the Golden Calf, Aaron's death, the Levites' duties, and exhortations to serve God.

Demi the Demoness Comics character

Demi the Demoness is a fictional, humorous, erotic comics character whose fantasy adventures have been published since 1992. Demi was created by SS Crompton. Demi has appeared in numerous comics crossovers with other characters, including Shaundra, Captain Fortune, Mauvette, Vampirooni, Cassiopeia the Witch, Djustine, Crimson Gash, and adult film stars Tracey Adams, Tabitha Stevens, Deja Sin, and Bonnie Michaels.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Godfather Death</span> German fairy tale

"Godfather Death" is a German fairy tale collected by the Brothers Grimm and first published in 1812. It is a tale of Aarne-Thompson type 332.

<i>Tomorrow, When the War Began</i> 1993 novel by John Marsden

Tomorrow, When the War Began is the first book in the Tomorrow series by John Marsden. It was published in 1993, and is a young adult invasion novel, detailing a high-intensity invasion and occupation of Australia by a foreign power. The novel is told in first person perspective by the main character, a teenage girl named Ellie Linton, who is part of a small band of teenagers waging a guerrilla war on the enemy garrison in their fictional home town of Wirrawee.

<i>The Roar</i> 2008 novel by Emma Clayton

The Roar is a 2008 post-apocalyptic novel for children by British author Emma Clayton. It was published by Chicken House Publishing.

<i>The Dead of Night</i> (novel) 1994 novel by John Marsden

The Dead of the Night, also published as The Dead of Night, is the second book in the Tomorrow series by John Marsden. It is a young adult invasion literature novel, detailing the occupation of Australia by an unnamed foreign power. It continues the story started in Tomorrow, When the War Began. The novel is told in the first person perspective by the main character, a teenage girl named Ellie Linton, who is part of a small band of teenagers waging a guerrilla war on the enemy in their fictional home town of Wirrawee.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">The Bible and violence</span> The Bible and violence

The Hebrew Bible and the New Testament both contain narratives, poems, and instructions which describe, encourage, command, condemn, reward, punish and regulate violent actions by God, individuals, groups, governments, and nation-states. Among the violent acts included are war, human sacrifice, animal sacrifice, murder, rape, genocide, and criminal punishment. The texts have a history of interpretation within the Abrahamic religions and Western culture that includes both justification of and opposition to acts of violence.

Jack Reacher is a series of novels, novellas and short stories by British author Jim Grant under the pen name Lee Child. As of January, 2022, the series includes 26 books and a short story collection. The book series chronicles the adventures of Jack Reacher, former major in the United States Army Military Police Corps, as he roams the United States taking odd jobs and investigating suspicious and frequently dangerous situations. The Reacher series has maintained a schedule of one per year, except for 2010, when two were published.