Cities in Flight
Encyclopedia
Cities in Flight is an omnibus volume of four novels written by James Blish
, originally published between 1955 and 1962, which became known over time collectively as the 'Okie
' novels. The novels feature entire cities that are able to fly through space using an anti-gravity device, the spindizzy
. They cover a span of time of many hundred years, from a very near future to the end of the universe. 'Earthman, Come Home' was a winner of a Retro Hugo Award
in 2004 for Best Novelette.
, at its peak during the time of writing.
Reviewing a later edition, the Hartford Courant described the novel as "a skillful mixture of human reality and technological fantasy."
) which has begun travelling in space. The development of the anti-gravity (spindizzy
) drives has now enabled very large objects to be enclosed and moved using gravity manipulation. Thus, for instance, mining factories together with associated towns can be moved to bodies of ore, not only on Earth but also amongst the planets in local space. Many of these 'Okie' cities are rejecting Earth jurisdiction, making interstellar journeys, and operating a trading economy out of reach of the Earth authorities. After many adventures Chris eventually becomes a resident of New York, now a major 'Okie' city under its charismatic mayor John Amalfi, being elevated to the newly-created position of city manager due to having a unique, problem-solving skill-set identified by the City Fathers, which are supercomputers who regulate the day-to-day life of the flying city.
drive system on a planet and its use to defend the Earth against an attack from an alien culture living around the Vega star system. Eventually New York is installed on this planet, which is projected out of the Milky Way galaxy towards the Greater Magellanic Cloud, where it encounters a gang of renegade traders who have enslaved the local population. Reviewer Groff Conklin
praised it as "a real, honest, pure, gee-whiz space opera."
/big bang
. It will be possible to modify the future development of the universes which will emerge from this singularity, and Amalfi directs the 'New Earth' residents to compete with the alien culture (the Web of Hercules) in order to prevent their manipulation of the future of the universe.
As with the other books, a detailed description of the technologies used is provided, including cosmological calculus. While there are some continuity slips, the series presents a unified story of humanity's expansion across the galaxy, and the birth of a new universe.
James Blish
James Benjamin Blish was an American author of fantasy and science fiction. Blish also wrote literary criticism of science fiction using the pen-name William Atheling, Jr.-Biography:...
, originally published between 1955 and 1962, which became known over time collectively as the 'Okie
Okie
Okie is a term dating from as early as 1907, originally denoting a resident or native of Oklahoma. It is derived from the name of the state, similar to Texan or Tex for someone from Texas, or Arkie or Arkansawyer for a native of Arkansas....
' novels. The novels feature entire cities that are able to fly through space using an anti-gravity device, the spindizzy
Spindizzy
The Dillon-Wagoner Graviton Polarity Generator, known colloquially as the spindizzy is a fictitious anti-gravity device imagined by James Blish for his series Cities in Flight...
. They cover a span of time of many hundred years, from a very near future to the end of the universe. 'Earthman, Come Home' was a winner of a Retro Hugo Award
Hugo Award
The Hugo Awards are given annually for the best science fiction or fantasy works and achievements of the previous year. The award is named after Hugo Gernsback, the founder of the pioneering science fiction magazine Amazing Stories, and was officially named the Science Fiction Achievement Awards...
in 2004 for Best Novelette.
They Shall Have Stars
They Shall Have Stars (1956) (also published under the title Year 2018!) describes the political and social conditions in the near future when several major technologies are developed which change society radically. These are 'anti-agathic' drugs, which defer or prevent aging, and the development of gravity manipulation, which leads to 'faster-than-light' spaceship drives. During this period the Western democratic government model becomes ever more intolerant, eventually resembling the Soviet model very closely. A principal protagonist of this book, Alaska's US Senator Bliss Wagoner, is eventually executed by an oppressive regime, but not before he has made the technologies which allow mankind to escape their home planet available to all. The book is notable for the detailed way in which it handles technology, providing a mathematical explanation of the principles behind the anti-gravity drive, and illustrations of chemical bonding for reactions in the Ice IV material which is used to build a fixed point 'bridge' on the surface of Jupiter during the drive testing. Politically, the book clearly expresses a strong opposition to McCarthyismMcCarthyism
McCarthyism is the practice of making accusations of disloyalty, subversion, or treason without proper regard for evidence. The term has its origins in the period in the United States known as the Second Red Scare, lasting roughly from the late 1940s to the late 1950s and characterized by...
, at its peak during the time of writing.
Reviewing a later edition, the Hartford Courant described the novel as "a skillful mixture of human reality and technological fantasy."
A Life for the Stars
A Life for the Stars (1962) describes the adventures of a young farm boy Chris, co-opted into an Earth city (Scranton, PennsylvaniaScranton, Pennsylvania
Scranton is a city in the northeastern part of Pennsylvania, United States. It is the county seat of Lackawanna County and the largest principal city in the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre metropolitan area. Scranton had a population of 76,089 in 2010, according to the U.S...
) which has begun travelling in space. The development of the anti-gravity (spindizzy
Spindizzy
The Dillon-Wagoner Graviton Polarity Generator, known colloquially as the spindizzy is a fictitious anti-gravity device imagined by James Blish for his series Cities in Flight...
) drives has now enabled very large objects to be enclosed and moved using gravity manipulation. Thus, for instance, mining factories together with associated towns can be moved to bodies of ore, not only on Earth but also amongst the planets in local space. Many of these 'Okie' cities are rejecting Earth jurisdiction, making interstellar journeys, and operating a trading economy out of reach of the Earth authorities. After many adventures Chris eventually becomes a resident of New York, now a major 'Okie' city under its charismatic mayor John Amalfi, being elevated to the newly-created position of city manager due to having a unique, problem-solving skill-set identified by the City Fathers, which are supercomputers who regulate the day-to-day life of the flying city.
Earthman, Come Home
Earthman, Come Home (1955, G. P. Putnam's Sons, New York) is the longest book in the series, describing the many adventures of New York under Amalfi, culminating in the installation of a spindizzySpindizzy
The Dillon-Wagoner Graviton Polarity Generator, known colloquially as the spindizzy is a fictitious anti-gravity device imagined by James Blish for his series Cities in Flight...
drive system on a planet and its use to defend the Earth against an attack from an alien culture living around the Vega star system. Eventually New York is installed on this planet, which is projected out of the Milky Way galaxy towards the Greater Magellanic Cloud, where it encounters a gang of renegade traders who have enslaved the local population. Reviewer Groff Conklin
Groff Conklin
Edward Groff Conklin was a leading science fiction anthologist. He edited 40 anthologies of science fiction, one of mystery stories , wrote books on home improvement and was a freelance writer on scientific subjects as well as a published poet...
praised it as "a real, honest, pure, gee-whiz space opera."
A Clash of Cymbals/The Triumph of Time
A Clash of Cymbals (published in the US as The Triumph of Time) (1959) follows the passage of Amalfi and the 'New Earth' planet undertaking the first ever inter-galactic transit. In the less relativistically-distorted space between the two galaxies evidence of a collision between two universes is detected, a matter-anti-matter collision which reveals the cyclic nature of reality. An alien culture is also investigating this phenomenon, which will shortly accelerate to engulf all galactic space, in other words, the universe will end in a big crunchBig Crunch
In physical cosmology, the Big Crunch is one possible scenario for the ultimate fate of the universe, in which the metric expansion of space eventually reverses and the universe recollapses, ultimately ending as a black hole singularity.- Overview :...
/big bang
Big Bang
The Big Bang theory is the prevailing cosmological model that explains the early development of the Universe. According to the Big Bang theory, the Universe was once in an extremely hot and dense state which expanded rapidly. This rapid expansion caused the young Universe to cool and resulted in...
. It will be possible to modify the future development of the universes which will emerge from this singularity, and Amalfi directs the 'New Earth' residents to compete with the alien culture (the Web of Hercules) in order to prevent their manipulation of the future of the universe.
As with the other books, a detailed description of the technologies used is provided, including cosmological calculus. While there are some continuity slips, the series presents a unified story of humanity's expansion across the galaxy, and the birth of a new universe.