This huge collection of short stories by one of science fiction's most beloved and popular writers is sure to please his millions of fans. Keeper of Dreams contains 22 stories written since 1990. From the opening science fiction tale, "The Elephants of Poznan," we see the hand of a master at work making a familiar idea new, strange, and wonderful. "Angles" takes a sideways look at alternate universes. "Geriatric Ward" is published here for the first time; it was originally written for the legendary Last Dangerous Visions . Keeper of Dreams contains science fiction, fantasy, and several of Card's mainstream fiction works. Included are two tales from the Alvin Maker universe, "Grinning Man" and "The Yazoo Queen." In addition to the stories, this book features new introductions by Orson Scott Card for each story, with commentary on his life and work. With the earlier Maps in a Mirror , this collection is a definitive retrospective of the short fiction career of the writer that the Houston Post called "the best writer science fiction has to offer." Adult/High School—The prolific Card published one short story collection, Maps in a Mirror: The Short Fiction of Orson Scott Card (Tor, 1990), which supposedly included all of the short fiction he was willing to share. But apparently there are now a lot more selections, as demonstrated by this hefty volume. This compilation, composed of science fiction, fantasy, literary tales, and Mormon stories contains no clunkers. There is some truly innovative and wonderful storytelling here. Card's ability to create believable characters that readers come to care about remains his strongest selling point. Sometimes those characters happen into other worlds, as in "Space Boy" and "Dust." Other times they stay firmly grounded in this one, yet their stories give a new and different perspective on life. Teens who enjoy Card's earlier work, who like short stories, or who are just looking for a new world to lose themselves in can't go wrong here. Standout stories include "Space Boy," "Homeless in Hell," "Inventing Lovers on the Phone," and "50 WPM." Short essays give the origins of the individual selections.— Charli Osborne, Oxford Public Library, MI Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. The state of short fiction in fantasy and sf has changed since Card’s earlier collection, Maps in a Mirror (1990). His cogent introduction suggests that the change hasn’t been for the better. But Card is one of those writers equally comfortable with any length of form, and so here is “Elephants of Poznan,” originally published in a Polish sf magazine; “Inventing Lovers on the Phone,” a fantasy story written for Stars (2003), an anthology inspired by the songs of Janis Ian; “50 WPM,” from In the Shadow of the Wall (2002), an anthology of stories responding to the Vietnam Wall; and two original novellas from the Hatrack River (i.e., Alvin Maker) saga, arguably the single finest work of American fantasy to date. The book’s last section contains stories reflecting Card’s Mormon faith and his broader awareness of religion as an influence on literature, history, and the world. None of these stories shows any diminution in Card’s mastery of language, pacing, and characterization. --Roland Green “This hefty, definitive collection contains all of Card's short fiction… A series of introductions and afterwords offering Card's thoughts on his life and his writing are as absorbing as the stories.” ― Publishers Weekly on Maps In A Mirror “The award-winning author of Ender's Game , Speaker for the Dead , and the "Alvin Maker" series demonstrates his talent for shorter fiction in this collection of 46 stories that range from fantasy and sf to horror and theological speculation...Detailed introductions and afterwords reveal insights into the thought processes of one of the genre's most convincing storytellers. An important volume.” ― Library Journal on Maps In A Mirror Orson Scott Card is best known for his science fiction novel Ender's Game and its many sequels that expand the Ender Universe into the far future and the near past. Those books are organized into the Ender Saga, which chronicles the life of Ender Wiggin; the Shadow Series, which follows on the novel Ender's Shadow and is set on Earth; and the Formic Wars series, written with co-author Aaron Johnston, which tells of the terrible first contact between humans and the alien "Buggers." Card has been a working writer since the 1970s. Beginning with dozens of plays and musical comedies produced in the 1960s and 70s, Card's first published fiction appeared in 1977--the short story "Gert Fram" in the July issue of The Ensign , and the novelette version of "Ender's Game" in the August issue of Analog . The novel-length version of Ender's Game , published in 1984 and continuously in print since then, became the basis of the 2013 film, starring Asa Butterfield, Harrison Ford, Ben K