Nebula Awards Twenty Six: Sfwa's Choices for the Best Science Fiction and Fantasy of the Year

In his brief, incisive introduction, Morrow declares that there's a mission to this latest collection in the Nebula series: to show that despite the prevalence of ``ready-to-run dungeons and . . . soulless space operas,'' the real heart of science fiction lies in the complex, artful, intellectually stimulating work the Nebula Awards honor each yearjust too wordy and hard to read as is? .ok now These selections, made from 1990 Nebula nominees, certainly back up Morrow's claim. Ursula K. Le Guin's ``The Snobies' Story'' is a challenging reflection on the nature of narrative in an observer-dependent universe, Terry Bisson's ``Bears Discover Fire'' a moving tale of wonder and death. Ted Chiang's rigorously imagined ``Tower of Babylon,'' Pat Murphy's apocalyptic yet optimistic ``Love and Sex Among the Invertebrates'' and Ian R. McLeod's quietly magical ``1/72nd Scale'' are powerful delights. With Joe Haldeman's triumphant, audacious alternate-worlds novella ``The Hemingway Hoax,'' these stories prove that science fiction can be as mature, thoughtful and affecting as any other fiction. Rounding out the book are two poems, an obituary, a tribute to Donald Wolheimto whom? , a survey of genre movies and an overly academic summary of the year in science fiction--but it is the fine stories that make this volume a treat. (May)