Crown of Stars

A race of octopoid Aliens visits Earth to restore man's dying beliefs., with spaceships containing the very gods themselves. In the future the rich are allowed a four week holiday - into their own futures. A soldier wounded at the front finds his memories too terrifying to live with once his government-approved drugs are withdrawn. A young girl is convinced that Mother-Earth is male and dedicates her life to consummating her love for him. God is dead and the Devil makes an offer for the real estate of heaven... These dark visions of the future by James Tiptree Jr., the pen-name of Alice Sheldon, are a vivid, sometimes frightening foretelling of what may happen. Newer stories together with those previously uncollected show Tiptree's masterful ability to entertain and disturb. Contents: 1. Second Going (1987) 2. Our Resident Djinn (1986) 3. Morality Meat (1985) 4. All This and Heaven Too (1985) 5. Yanqui Doodle (1987) 6. Come Live with Me (1988) 7. Last Night and Every Night (1970) 8. Backward, Turn Backward (1988) 9. The Earth Doth Like a Snake Renew (1988) 10. In Midst of Life (1987)