The Immortals of Science Fiction

The Immortals of Science Fiction
by David Wingrove
Mayflower Books, 1980

'Immortals of Science Fiction' (113 pp) was published by Mayflower Books in 1980. It's a large (11 x 11 inches) trade paperback printed on high-quality paper. 

This is an odd title, one I don't remember encountering in the early 80s. It's primarily a book of sci-fi paintings commission to represent each of 10 'immortal' characters from (more or less) prominent sf novels. 

David Wingrove was, in 1980, primarily an sf critic; his monumental multi-volume Chung Kuo series was still 9 years in the future. For 'Immortals', he contributes the accompanying text, in which each of the Immortals is engaged in conversation by a anonymous Narrator.

'Immortals' is odd in that no attribution is given to any of the showcased paintings; instead, the book states that the 'Young Artists' supplied the artwork. The ISFDB indicates that the participating artists include stalwarts of UK sf art during the 70s: Les Edwards; Tony Roberts; Alan Craddock; Terry Oakes; Richard Clifton-Dey; Alan Daniels; and Stuart Hughes.

The 10 'Immortals' profiled in the book include Susan Calvin, from Asimov's 'Robots' novels; The Illustrated Man from Ray Bradbury's novel; Slippery Jim DiGriz from Harry Harrison's Stainless Steel Rat adventures; Oscar Gordon from Heinlein's Glory Road; Lewis Orne from Frank Herbert's The Godmakers; Esau Cairn from Robert E. Howard's Almuric; Winston Smith from 1984; Beowulf Schaeffer from Larry Niven's novels; Winston Roomford from Vonnegut's The Sirens of Titan; and Howard Lester from Colin Wilson's The Philosopher's Stone.

It's certainly an eclectic lineup, although I'm not sure whether it was a lineup dictated in large part by the ease of securing permissions from various publishing houses.

Wingrove's text accompaniments are by nature rather limited, and really don't do much more than give a capsule overview of each Immortal.

As far as the artworks go, well, they obviously are representative of the sci-fi art of the 70s, and stylistically have more in keeping with paperback covers than portraiture per se. They do succeed in presenting the Immortals in a manner faithful to their authors' visions, although not in  particularly imaginative or novel ways.

I cheerfully admit to never having read many of the of books showcased in 'Immortals', having considered the novels of Asimov, Heinlein, Vonnegut, Herbert, and Niven being among the less impressive works of the genre. 

So it is that I can't really recommend 'The Immortals of Science Fiction'  save only to those who are particularly interested in the works of Asimov, Heinlein, Vonnegut, Herbert, and Niven and would enjoy seeing the major characters of those authors rendered in color in large dimensions on the printed page.

Others who may be interested in this book are those who are determined collectors of the 11 x 11 illustrated sci-fi books that briefly flowered in the later 70s and early 80s, books like Harry Harrison's Great Balls of Fire, Mechanismo, and Planet Story. 'The Immortals of Science Fiction' will fit nicely on your shelf alongside those titles.