The Man Who Fell to Earth: The Best of the SF Masterworks

Description

Thomas Jerome Newton is an extraterrestrial from the planet Anthea, which has been devastated by a series of nuclear wars, and whose inhabitants are twice as intelligent as human beings. When he lands on Earth - in Kentucky, disguised as a human - it's with the intention of saving his own people from extinction. Newton patents some very advanced Anthean technology, which he uses to amass a fortune. He begins to build a spaceship to help the last 300 Antheans migrate to Earth. Meanwhile, Nathan Bryce, a chemistry professor in Iowa, is intrigued by some of the new products Newton's company brings to the market, and already suspects Newton of being an alien. As Bryce and the FBI close in, Newton finds his own clarity and sense of purpose diminishing. Inspiring adaptations starring David Bowie and Chiwetel Ejiofor, The Man Who Fell To Earth brought Walter Tevis wide recognition and critical acclaim. It was nominated for the Hugo award, and the 1976 film was nominated for the Nebula, Saturn and Hugo awards. 'Beautiful science fiction' - New York Times 'This is one of the finest science fiction novels of its period' - J.R. Dunn 'Tevis writes . . . with power and poetry and tension' - Washington Post Welcome to The Best Of The Masterworks: a selection of the finest in science fiction

Walter Tevis was an American novelist and short story writer. Whilst a student at the University of Kentucky, Tevis worked in a pool hall and published a story about the game for an English class. He would later revisit his love for pool in the novels THE HUSTLER (1959) and THE COLOR OF MONEY (1984), both of which would be adapted into multiple award-winning films starring Paul Newman. Among his other works, THE MAN WHO FELL TO EARTH (1963) and MOCKINGBIRD (1980) are considered masterpieces of science fiction. Tevis died in 1984.

Beautiful science fiction...(Newton) acquires a moving, tragic force as the stranger, caught and destroyed in a strange land... The story of an extraterrestrial visitor from another planet is designed mainly to say something about life on this one * NEW YORK TIMES * An utterly realistic novel about an alien human on Earth ... realistic enough to become a metaphor for something inside us all, some existential aloneness -- Norman Spinrad Tevis writes ... with power and poetry and tension * WASHINGTON POST * One of the finest science fiction novels of its period -- J R Dunn, author of Full Tide of Night