The second collection (volume two of three) of Algis Budrys's celebrated review columns for The Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction, covering the years 1983 to 1986. Budrys won a Locus Award for his similar collection Benchmarks: Galaxy Bookshelf (1985) and a Pilgrim Award for lifetime achievement in science fiction and fantasy criticism.
Tim Powers, multiple award-winning sf/fantasy novelist, writes: "As well as one of the best writers in our field, Algis Budrys was the best writer about our field. These essays are much more than reviews -- altogether they're a deeply perceptive history of science fiction literature."