Hands-down, the best reference book of the science fiction genre is The Encyclopedia of Science Fiction by John Clute, Peter Nicholls, et. al. Nothing is as comprehensive. It is, however, a bit out of date: more than 10 years! That is about to change.
2007 will see the publication of a vastly updated (50% more content) third edition of The Encyclopedia of Science Fiction. The new edition will only be available online via annual subscription but will offer monthly updates by Clute, Nicolls and David Langford.
I hope this is reasonably priced. The 2nd edition is one I refer to quite often. It's a fun read for any sf fan.
[Source: Locus Magazine 9/05 issue]
Comments (3)
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Posted by John DeNardo at Saturday September 10, 2005 at 6:02 PM
© Saturday September 10, 2005 at 6:02 PM SF Signal
For any type of encyclopedia type thing I would turn to wikipedia.org because that's probably the most up-to-date source of info -- in fact, here's what I just found...
Posted by Peter on Saturday September 10, 2005 at 8:59 PM at 8:59 PM
Thanks for another poorly-named link, Pete! You know, all it takes is two seconds to save us the click (or mouse-over). Not that I mind. Your contributions usually speak for themselves. 
Yes, I agree, Wikipedia is a great resource. It does, however, lack critical insight and opinion (as it should). The Encyclopedia is written by experts in the field and I suspect would carry more weight than Wiki entries that can be altered by...well...you. 
Posted by John on Saturday September 10, 2005 at 10:20 PM at 10:20 PM
Does anyone know if the third edition will ever be made available? The few references I've seen concerning it are all several years old. Clute's site mentions the "ongoing online Encyclopedia of Science Fiction", but his link simply points to a page of general info that hasn't changed in years. Just curious!
Posted by Huw on Sunday May 17, 2009 at 7:00 AM at 7:00 AM