but a narrative, showing compellingly how modern science fiction has roots in the fantastic-voyage tales of antiquity, and has been shaped by a dialectic between magic and materialism that dates back to the Reformation...Adam Roberts is already a proven author of high-quality science fiction. With 'History' he establishes himself as the most important critical voice in modern science fiction studies.' - Stephen Baxter, Current Vice President, The British Science Fiction Association and Author of Timelike Infinity and Voyage
'[A] refreshingly irreverent attempt to look at science fiction without blinkers.' - Strange Horizons
'The History of Science Fiction is a necessary and important book. It will get people talking, discussing and - dare I say it? - arguing about all manner of things relevant to science fiction, its history and its future.' - Green Man Review
'...the lasting impressions left by this History of Science Fiction are of the author's eye for detail, his understanding of the pervasiveness of the science fiction in contemporary culture, and his astonishing critical energy.' - Patrick Parrinder, The British Society for Literature and Science