H. Beam Piper

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H. Beam Piper bigraphy, stories - Science - Other

H. Beam Piper : biography

1904 – 1964

Henry Beam Piper (March 23, 1904 – c. November 6, 1964) was an American science fiction author. He wrote many short stories and several novels. He is best known for his extensive Terro-Human Future History series of stories and a shorter series of "Paratime" alternate history tales.

He wrote under the name H. Beam Piper. Another source gives his name as "Horace Beam Piper" and a different date of death.Carr, John F., H. Beam Piper: A Biography, McFarland, 2008 ISBN 978-0-7864-3375-9, p.10. According to Carr, during his lifetime Piper claimed the "H." stood for "Horace" and the son of Piper’s good friend, Ferd Coleman, claimed it stood for Herbert. His gravestone says "Henry Beam Piper". Piper himself may have been the source of part of the confusion; he told people the H stood for Horace, encouraging the assumption that he used the initial because he disliked his name. On a copy of "Little Fuzzy" given to Charles O. Piper, Beam’s cousin and executor, he wrote "To Charles from Henry."

Published works

Terro-Human Future History

Federation series

  • Ullr Uprising (1952) ISBN 0-441-84292-5 (refers to the 1983 edition)
  • Four-Day Planet (1961) ISBN 0-441-24891-8 (refers to the 1981 edition: Four-Day Planet/Lone Star planet)
  • The Cosmic Computer (1963, originally Junkyard Planet) ISBN 0-441-11759-7 (refers to the 1983 edition.) Based on the short story "Graveyard of Dreams", published in Galaxy Magazine February 1958.
  • Space Viking (1963) ISBN 0-441-77784-8 (refers to the 1983 edition)
  • Federation (1981) ISBN 0-441-23191-8
  • Empire, (1981) ISBN 0-441-20557-7 (refers to the May 1983 Mass Market Paperback Ed.)

Fuzzy series

  1. Little Fuzzy (1962) ISBN 0-441-48498-0,
  2. Fuzzy Sapiens (1964, originally The Other Human Race) ISBN 0-441-26196-5
  3. Fuzzies and Other People (1984) ISBN 0-441-26176-0

Two sequels to the first two Fuzzy novels have been written by other authors: Fuzzy Bones (1981) by William Tuning ISBN 0-441-26181-7, and Golden Dream: A Fuzzy Odyssey (1982) by Ardath Mayhar ISBN 0-441-29726-9. Both books were contradicted by the eventual discovery and publishing of the manuscript of Piper’s Fuzzies and Other People ISBN 0-441-26176-0. A new volume in the series, Fuzzy Ergo Sum ISBN 978-0-937912-11-9 by Wolfgang Diehr, was published on March 23, 2011 by Pequod Press. A novel titled Fuzzy Nation ISBN 978-0-7653-2854-0 by John Scalzi was published on May 10, 2011 with the blessing of the H. Beam Piper estate. This is not a sequel, but a re-boot or re-imagining of the original Little Fuzzy.

Collection

  • The Complete Fuzzy (1998) ISBN 0-441-00581-0 (pbk.)–collecting Little Fuzzy, Fuzzy Sapiens, and Fuzzies and other People.
  • The Fuzzy Papers (September 1980) ISBN 0-441-26193-0 (pbk.) –collecting Little Fuzzy and Fuzzy Sapiens.
  • The Fuzzy Papers’ ‘ (?) ISBN ? (hdbk.)–collecting Little Fuzzy and Fuzzy Sapiens.

Paratime

  • Paratime (1981) ISBN 0-441-65169-0
  • The Complete Paratime (2001) ISBN 0-441-00801-1
  • Lord Kalvan of Otherwhen (1965, reprinted 1984), ISBN 0-441-49055-7, was followed by the sequels Great Kings’ War (1985) by Roland J. Green and John F. Carr, ISBN 0-441-30200-9, and Kalvan Kingmaker and Siege at Tarr-Hostigos and The Fireseed Wars by Carr alone. Another sequel called The Gunpowder God was published in 2011.
  • Short stories: "Last Enemy"; "Time Crime" in two parts; "Temple Trouble"; "Police Operation"; and according to some, "Genesis". "He Walked Around The Horses" is referenced in "Police Operation" so that is a sidebar story to the series.
  • In 2010 Time Crime was expanded by John F. Carr. The 3rd Part of the expansion links "Time and Time Again" into the Story Line and thus the Series.