Cultural Breaks

Twelve science fiction tales collected from the prolific career of the Hugo Award–winning author of the Helliconia trilogy.

“Brian Aldiss is a master of the form.” —The Guardian

Nominated for the Locus Award for Best Collection

In this dynamic collection, Science Fiction Grandmaster Brian W. Aldiss bridges fantasy and reality as he offers up some remarkable tales sure to enthrall fans both old and new . . .

A mobile cinema breaks down in Patagonia and transforms a local family’s life forever. An enormous head appears in the sky, forcing civilization to ponder its significance. A train passenger struggles to read his book while a fellow traveler interrupts him with a tale stranger than fiction. A boy discovers what happens when he doesn’t hibernate for winter like the rest of humanity. A man captures everything he says on a digital recorder as an exercise in personal humility. An English teashop awaits you at the end of civilization . . .

Aldiss came to prominence during the New Wave period of science fiction, known for experiments with form and content. His refusal to confine himself to any one style and his interest in a wide variety of subjects earned him praise in the St. James Guide to Science Fiction as “the most significant English writer of science fiction since H. G. Wells.” First published in 2005, Cultural Breaks spans four decades of Aldiss’s long and distinguished career, and makes it clear that he never stopped exploring.