The Voices of Time and Other Stories

Published as a paperback original by Berkley Books in 1962, The Voices of Time and Other Stories is J. G. Ballard’s first collection of short fiction released in the United States. It gathers seven early stories that introduce many of his recurring concerns, including entropy, alienation, and environmental collapse. The  title story, “The Voices of Time” (1960), is a landmark work of cosmic despair centered on a narcoleptic scientist carving a mandala into a drained swimming pool. Another notable inclusion is “Deep End” (1961), a bleak ecological dystopia set on a parched Earth where the oceans have been drained to support the colonization of Mars, leaving the last sharks to be kept as pets.

This collection includes: “The Voices of Time” (1960), “The Sound-Sweep” (1960), “The Overloaded Man” (1961), “Zone of Terror” (1960), “Manhole 69” (1957), “The Waiting Grounds” (1959), and “Deep End” (1961).

Softcover. First Edition, Paperback Original. Berkley Medallion F607 ($0.50). Cover art by Richard Powers. New York: Berkley Medallion, 1962. #10582.
Fine.