Gene Rodman Wolfe (May 7, 1931 – April 14, 2019) was an American

science fiction Science fiction (sometimes shortened to Sci-Fi or SF) is a genre of speculative fiction which typically deals with imaginative and futuristic concepts such as advanced science and technology, space exploration, time travel, parallel uni ...

and

fantasy Fantasy is a genre of speculative fiction involving magical elements, typically set in a fictional universe and sometimes inspired by mythology and folklore. Its roots are in oral traditions, which then became fantasy literature and d ...

writer. He was noted for his dense, allusive prose as well as the strong influence of his

Catholic The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

faith. He was a prolific

short story A short story is a piece of prose fiction that typically can be read in one sitting and focuses on a self-contained incident or series of linked incidents, with the intent of evoking a single effect or mood. The short story is one of the oldest ...

writer and novelist, and won many literary awards. Wolfe has been called "the Melville of science fiction", and was honored as a Grand Master by the

Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America The Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America, doing business as Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers Association, commonly known as SFWA ( or ) is a Non-profit organization, nonprofit 501(c)(3) organization of professional science fiction an ...

. Wolfe is best known for his ''

Book of the New Sun ''The Book of the New Sun'' (1980–1983) is a four volume, science fantasy novel written by the American author Gene Wolfe. It inaugurated the "Solar Cycle" that Wolfe continued by setting other works in the same universe (''The Urth of the N ...

'' series (four volumes, 1980–1983), the first part of his "Solar Cycle". In 1998, '' Locus'' magazine ranked it the third-best fantasy novel published before 1990 based on a poll of subscribers that considered it and several other series as single entries.

Personal life

Wolfe was born in New York City, the son of Mary Olivia () and Emerson Leroy Wolfe. He had

polio Poliomyelitis, commonly shortened to polio, is an infectious disease caused by the poliovirus. Approximately 70% of cases are asymptomatic; mild symptoms which can occur include sore throat and fever; in a proportion of cases more severe sy ...

as a small child. He and his family moved to Houston when he was 6, and he went to high school and college in

Texas Texas (, ; Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2020, it is the second-largest U.S. state by ...

, attending Lamar High School in Houston. While attending

Texas A&M University Texas A&M University (Texas A&M, A&M, or TAMU) is a public university, public, Land-grant university, land-grant, research university in College Station, Texas. It was founded in 1876 and became the flagship institution of the Texas A&M Unive ...

, he published his first speculative fiction in ''The Commentator,'' a student literary journal. Wolfe dropped out during his junior year and subsequently was drafted to fight in the

Korean War {{Infobox military conflict , conflict = Korean War , partof = the Cold War and the Korean conflict , image = Korean War Montage 2.png , image_size = 300px , caption = Clockwise from top:{ ...

.Autobiographical sketch
After returning to the United States, he earned a degree from the

University of Houston The University of Houston (UH) is a Public university, public research university in Houston, Texas. Founded in 1927, UH is a member of the University of Houston System and the List of universities in Texas by enrollment, university in Texas ...

and became an industrial engineer. He was a senior editor on the staff of the journal ''

Plant Engineering ''Plant Engineering'' () is a trade publication and web site owned by CFE Media. It covers the field of plant engineering and maintenance in both manufacturing and non-manufacturing industries. In April 2010, former owner Reed Business Informatio ...

'' for many years before retiring to write full-time, but his most famous professional engineering achievement is a contribution to the machine used to make

Pringles Pringles is an American brand of stackable potato-based crisps. Originally sold by Procter & Gamble (P&G) in 1968 and marketed as "Pringle's Newfangled Potato Chips", the brand was sold in 2012 to the current owner, Kellogg's. As of 2011, Pri ...

potato chips. Wolfe lived in

Barrington, Illinois Barrington is a village in Cook County and Lake County, Illinois, United States. The population was 10,722 at the 2020 census. A northwest suburb of Chicago, the area features wetlands, forest preserves, parks, and horse trails in a country- ...

, a suburb of

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = List of sovereign states, Count ...

, with his wife Rosemary, where they raised four children. Wolfe also has three granddaughters. The Wolfes moved to

Peoria, Illinois Peoria ( ) is the county seat of Peoria County, Illinois, United States, and the largest city on the Illinois River. As of the 2020 census, the city had a population of 113,150. It is the principal city of the Peoria Metropolitan Area in Ce ...

in 2013. Wolfe underwent double bypass surgery on April 24, 2010. Wolfe also underwent cataract surgery on his right eye in early 2013. Wolfe's wife, Rosemary, died on December 14, 2013, after a series of illnesses, including

Alzheimer's disease Alzheimer's disease (AD) is a neurodegenerative disease that usually starts slowly and progressively worsens. It is the cause of 60–70% of cases of dementia. The most common early symptom is difficulty in remembering recent events. As ...

. Wolfe said, "There was a time when she did not remember my name or that we were married, but she still remembered that she loved me." Wolfe died at his Peoria home from

cardiovascular disease Cardiovascular disease (CVD) is a class of diseases that involve the heart or blood vessels. CVD includes coronary artery diseases (CAD) such as angina and myocardial infarction (commonly known as a heart attack). Other CVDs include stroke, hea ...

on April 14, 2019, at the age of 87.

Literary works

Wolfe's first published book was the

paperback original A paperback (softcover, softback) book is one with a thick paper or paperboard cover, and often held together with glue rather than stitches or staples. In contrast, hardcover (hardback) books are bound with cardboard covered with cloth, lea ...

novel ''Operation Ares'' (

Berkley Medallion Berkley Books is an imprint of the Penguin Group. History Berkley Books began as an independent company in 1955. It was founded as "Chic News Company" by Charles Byrne and Frederick Klein, who had worked for Avon; they quickly renamed it Berk ...

, 1970). He first received critical attention for ''The Fifth Head of Cerberus'' (

Scribner's Charles Scribner's Sons, or simply Scribner's or Scribner, is an American publisher based in New York City, known for publishing American authors including Henry James, Ernest Hemingway, F. Scott Fitzgerald, Kurt Vonnegut, Marjorie Kinnan Ra ...

, 1972), which examines "colonial mentality within an orthodox science fiction framework". It was published in German and French-language editions within the decade. His best-known and most highly regarded work is the multi-volume novel '' The Book of the New Sun''. Set in a bleak, distant future influenced by

Jack Vance John Holbrook Vance (August 28, 1916 – May 26, 2013) was an American mystery, fantasy, and science fiction writer. Though most of his work has been published under the name Jack Vance, he also wrote several mystery novels under pen names. ...

's ''

Dying Earth ''Dying Earth'' is a fantasy series by the American author Jack Vance, comprising four books originally published from 1950 to 1984. Some have been called picaresque. They vary from short story collections to a fix-up (novel created from olde ...

'' series, the story details the life of Severian, a journeyman torturer, exiled from his guild for showing compassion to one of the condemned. The novel is composed of the volumes ''The Shadow of the Torturer'' (1980), ''The Claw of the Conciliator'' (1981; winner of the

Nebula Award The Nebula Awards annually recognize the best works of science fiction or fantasy published in the United States. The awards are organized and awarded by the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America (SFWA), a nonprofit association of prof ...

for Best Novel), ''The Sword of the Lictor'' (1982), and ''The Citadel of the Autarch'' (1983). A coda, '' The Urth of the New Sun'' (1987), wraps up some loose ends but is generally considered a separate work. Several of Wolfe's essays about writing the ''Book of the New Sun'' series were published in ''

The Castle of the Otter ''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things already mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The'' is the m ...

'' (1982; the title refers to a misprint of the fourth book's title in '' Locus'' magazine). In 1984, Wolfe retired from his engineering position and was then able to devote more time to his writing. In the 1990s, Wolfe published two more works in the same universe as ''The Book of the New Sun''. The first, ''

The Book of the Long Sun ''The Book of the Long Sun'' (1993–1996) is a series of four science fantasy novels or one four-volume novel by the American author Gene Wolfe. It is set in the same universe as ''The Book of the New Sun'' series that Wolfe inaugurated in 1980, ...

'', consists of the novels ''Nightside the Long Sun'' (1993), ''Lake of the Long Sun'' (1994), ''Caldé of the Long Sun'' (1994), and ''Exodus From the Long Sun'' (1996). These books follow the priest of a small parish as he becomes wrapped up in political intrigue and revolution in his city-state. Wolfe then wrote a sequel, ''

The Book of the Short Sun ''The Book of the Short Sun'' (1999–2001) is a series of three science fantasy novels or one three-volume novel by the American author Gene Wolfe. It continues ''The Book of the Long Sun'' (1993–1996): they share a narrator and ''Short Sun'' ...

'', composed of ''On Blue's Waters'' (1999), ''In Green's Jungles'' (2000), and ''Return to the Whorl'' (2001), dealing with colonists who have arrived on the sister planets Blue and Green. The four ''Sun'' works (''The Book of the New Sun'', ''The Urth of the New Sun'', ''The Book of the Long Sun'', and ''The Book of the Short Sun'') are often referred to collectively as the "Solar Cycle". Wolfe also wrote many stand-alone books. His first novel, ''

Operation Ares ''Operation Ares'' is a science fiction novel by American writer Gene Wolfe, published as a paperback original by Berkley Books in 1970. It was his first novel. While no later editions were issued in the United States, a hardcover edition was relea ...

'', was published by Berkley Books in 1970 and was unsuccessful. He subsequently wrote two novels held in particularly high esteem, ''

Peace Peace is a concept of societal friendship and harmony in the absence of hostility and violence. In a social sense, peace is commonly used to mean a lack of conflict (such as war) and freedom from fear of violence between individuals or groups. ...

'' and '' The Fifth Head of Cerberus''. The first is the seemingly-rambling narrative of Alden Dennis Weer, a man of many secrets who reviews his life under mysterious circumstances. ''The Fifth Head of Cerberus'' is either a collection of three novellas or a novel in three parts, dealing with colonialism, memory, and the nature of personal identity. The first story, which gives the book its name, was nominated for the Nebula Award for Best Novella.

Style

Wolfe's writing frequently relies on the first-person perspectives of

unreliable narrator An unreliable narrator is a narrator whose credibility is compromised. They can be found in fiction and film, and range from children to mature characters. The term was coined in 1961 by Wayne C. Booth in ''The Rhetoric of Fiction''. While unr ...

s. He said: "Real people really are unreliable narrators all the time, even if they try to be reliable narrators." The causes for the unreliability of his characters vary. Some are naive, as in ''Pandora by Holly Hollander'' or ''The Knight''; others are not particularly intelligent (''There Are Doors''); Severian, from ''The Book of the New Sun'', tells his story from perspective of his younger, ignorant self; and Latro of the ''Soldier'' series suffers from amnesia. Wolfe wrote in a letter, "My definition of a great story has nothing to do with 'a varied and interesting background.' It is: ''One that can be read with pleasure by a cultivated reader and reread with increasing pleasure.''" In that spirit, Wolfe also left subtle hints and lacunae that may never be explicitly referred to in the text. For example, a backyard full of morning glories is an intentional foreshadowing of events in ''Free Live Free'', but is apparent only to a reader with a horticultural background, and a story-within-the-story provides a clue to understanding ''Peace''. Wolfe's language can also be a subject of confusion for the new reader. In the appendix to ''The Shadow of the Torturer,'' he says:

In rendering this book—originally composed in a tongue that has not achieved existence—into English, I might easily have saved myself a great deal of labor by having recourse to invented terms; in no case have I done so. Thus in many instances I have been forced to replace yet undiscovered concepts by their closest twentieth-century equivalents. Such words as ''peltast'', ''androgyn'', and ''exultant'' are substitutions of this kind, and are intended to be suggestive rather than definitive.

This character of the fictional "translator" of his novel provides a certain insight into Wolfe's writing: all of his terms—'' fuligin'', '' carnifex'', '' thaumaturge'', and so on—are real words.

Reception

Although he was not a best-selling author, Wolfe is highly regarded by critics and fellow writers. He was often considered to be not only one of the greatest science fiction authors, but one of the best American writers regardless of genre. In 2003, award-winning science fiction author Michael Swanwick said: "Gene Wolfe is the greatest writer in the English language alive today. Let me repeat that: Gene Wolfe is the greatest writer in the English language alive today! I mean it.

Shakespeare William Shakespeare ( 26 April 1564 – 23 April 1616) was an English playwright, poet and actor. He is widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called England's nation ...

was a better stylist, Melville was more important to American letters, and

Charles Dickens Charles John Huffam Dickens (; 7 February 1812 – 9 June 1870) was an English writer and social critic. He created some of the world's best-known fictional characters and is regarded by many as the greatest novelist of the Victorian er ...

had a defter hand at creating characters. But among living writers, there is nobody who can even approach Gene Wolfe for brilliance of prose, clarity of thought, and depth in meaning." Among others, writers

Neil Gaiman Neil Richard MacKinnon GaimanBorn as Neil Richard Gaiman, with "MacKinnon" added on the occasion of his marriage to Amanda Palmer. ; ( Neil Richard Gaiman; born 10 November 1960) is an English author of short fiction, novels, comic books, gra ...

and Patrick O'Leary have credited Wolfe for inspiration. O'Leary has said: "Forget 'Speculative Fiction.' Gene Wolfe is the best writer alive. Period. And as Wolfe once said, 'All novels are fantasies. Some are more honest about it.' No comparison. Nobody – I mean nobody – comes close to what this artist does." O'Leary also wrote an extensive essay concerning the nature of Wolfe's artistry, entitled "If Ever A Wiz There Was", originally published in his collection ''Other Voices, Other Doors''.

Ursula K. Le Guin Ursula Kroeber Le Guin (; October 21, 1929 – January 22, 2018) was an American author best known for her works of speculative fiction, including science fiction works set in her Hainish universe, and the '' Earthsea'' fantasy series. She was ...

is frequently quoted on the jackets of Wolfe's books as having said "Wolfe is our Melville." Critic and science fiction writer

Harlan Ellison Harlan Jay Ellison (May 27, 1934 – June 28, 2018) was an American writer, known for his prolific and influential work in New Wave speculative fiction and for his outspoken, combative personality. Robert Bloch, the author of '' Psycho'' ...

, reviewing '' The Shadow of the Torturer'', wrote: "Gene Wolfe is engaged in the holy chore of writing every other author under the table. He is no less than one of the finest, most original writers in the world today. His work is singular, hypnotizing, startlingly above comparison. ''The Shadow of the Torturer'' breaks new ground in American literature and, as the first novel of a tetralogy, casts a fierce light on what will certainly be a lodestone landmark, his most stunning work to date. It is often said, but never more surely than this time: This book is not to be missed at peril of one's intellectual enrichment." Wolfe's fans regard him with considerable dedication, and one Internet mailing list (URTH, begun in November 1996) dedicated to his works amassed over ten years and thousands of pages of discussion and explication. Similarly, much analysis and exegesis has been published in fanzine and small-press form (e.g. ''Lexicon Urthus'' ). When asked the "Most overrated" and "Most underrated" authors,

Thomas M. Disch Thomas Michael Disch (February 2, 1940 – July 4, 2008) was an American science fiction author and poet. He won the Hugo Award for Best Related Book – previously called "Best Non-Fiction Book" – in 1999, and he had two other Hugo nominatio ...

identified

Isaac Asimov yi, יצחק אזימאװ , birth_date = , birth_place = Petrovichi, Russian SFSR , spouse = , relatives = , children = 2 , death_date = , death_place = Manhattan, New York City, U.S. , nationality = Russian (1920–1922)Soviet (192 ...

and Gene Wolfe, respectively, writing: "...all too many have already gone into a decline after carrying home some trophies. The one exception is Gene Wolfe...Between 1980 and 1982 he published ''The Book of the New Sun'', a tetralogy of couth, intelligence, and suavity that is also written in

VistaVision VistaVision is a higher resolution, widescreen variant of the 35 mm motion picture film format which was created by engineers at Paramount Pictures in 1954. Paramount never used anamorphic processes such as 2.55: 1, CinemaScope but refi ...

with Dolby Sound. Imagine a ''

Star Wars ''Star Wars'' is an American epic space opera multimedia franchise created by George Lucas, which began with the eponymous 1977 film and quickly became a worldwide pop-culture phenomenon. The franchise has been expanded into various film ...

''–style

space opera Space opera is a subgenre of science fiction that emphasizes space warfare, with use of melodramatic, risk-taking space adventures, relationships, and chivalric romance. Set mainly or entirely in outer space, it features technological and soc ...

penned by G. K. Chesterton in the throes of a religious conversion. Wolfe has continued in full diapason ever since, and a crossover success is long overdue."

Michael Dirda Michael Dirda (born 1948) is a book critic for the '' Washington Post''. He has been a Fulbright Fellow and won a Pulitzer Prize in 1993. Career Having studied at Oberlin College for his undergraduate degree in 1970, Dirda took an M.A. in 1974 ...

included Wolfe's ''Book of the New Sun'' in his "Science Fiction Reading List", writing: "If

Proust Valentin Louis Georges Eugène Marcel Proust (; ; 10 July 1871 – 18 November 1922) was a French novelist, critic, and essayist who wrote the monumental novel '' In Search of Lost Time'' (''À la recherche du temps perdu''; with the previous ...

, while listening to late Beethoven string quartets, wrote '' I, Claudius'' and set it in the future, the result might resemble this measured, autumnal masterpiece." Early in his writing career, Wolfe exchanged correspondence with J. R. R. Tolkien.

Awards

Wolfe won the World Fantasy Award for Life Achievement in 1996, a judged award at the annual

World Fantasy Convention The World Fantasy Convention is an annual convention of professionals, collectors, and others interested in the field of fantasy. The World Fantasy Awards are presented at the event. Other features include an art show, a dealer's room, and an ...

. He was inducted by the Science Fiction Hall of Fame in 2007. The

named him its 29th SFWA Grand Master in December 2012; the annual Damon Knight Memorial Grand Master Award was presented to Wolfe during Nebula Awards weekend, May 16–19, 2013."Damon Knight Memorial Grand Master"
. Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America (SFWA). Retrieved 2013-04-03. He was Guest of Honor at the

1985 World Science Fiction Convention The 43rd World Science Fiction Convention (Worldcon), also known as Aussiecon Two, was held on 22–26 August 1985 at the Southern Cross, Victoria, and Sheraton Hotels in Melbourne, Australia. The convention was chaired by David Grigg. Partic ...

and he received the 1989

Edward E. Smith Memorial Award The Edward E. Smith Memorial Award for Imaginative Fiction, or Skylark, annually recognizes someone for lifetime contributions to science fiction, "both through work in the field and by exemplifying the personal qualities which made the late 'Doc' ...

(or "Skylark") at the New England convention Boskone. In March 2012 he was presented with the first Chicago Literary Hall of Fame Fuller Award, for outstanding contribution to literature by a Chicago author. After his death, Wolfe was inducted into the Chicago Literary Hall of Fame in a ceremony on September 21, 2021. Wolfe was the first Fuller Award recipient to be inducted; and though he was part of the 2019 class, the ceremony to honor him did not occur until 2021. He also won many awards for individual works: Wolfe also amassed a long list of nominations in years when he did not win, including sixteen Nebula award nominations and eight

Hugo Award The Hugo Award is an annual literary award for the best science fiction or fantasy works and achievements of the previous year, given at the World Science Fiction Convention and chosen by its members. The Hugo is widely considered the premier ...

nominations.

Works

This is a partial list of works by Wolfe, focusing on those which won awards.

Novels

*'' The Book of the New Sun'' **'' The Shadow of the Torturer'' (1980) BSFA Award & World Fantasy Award winner, 1981; Nebula Award and John W. Campbell Award nominee, 1981 **'' The Claw of the Conciliator'' (1981) Nebula and Locus Fantasy winner, 1982; Hugo and World Fantasy Awards nominated, 1982 **'' The Sword of the Lictor'' (1982) Locus Fantasy and BFS Winner, 1983; Nebula and BSFA Awards nominee, 1982 Hugo and World Fantasy Awards nominee, 1983 **''

The Citadel of the Autarch ''The Citadel of the Autarch'' is a science fantasy novel by American writer Gene Wolfe, first released in 1983. It is the fourth and final volume in the four-volume series ''The Book of the New Sun''. Plot introduction Unlike the first books i ...

'' (1983) John W. Campbell award winner, Nebula and BSFA nominee, 1984; Locus Fantasy nominee, 1983 *''

Free Live Free ''Free Live Free'' is a novel by American writer Gene Wolfe, first published in 1984. Plot Mr. Free has a house which is slated for demolition. He puts an ad in a newspaper advertising free living quarters to anyone who helps him find a myste ...

'' (1984) BSFA nominee, 1985; Nebula nominee, 1986 *'' The Urth of the New Sun'' (1987) Hugo, Nebula, and Locus SF Awards nominee, 1988 *The ''Soldier'' series **''

Soldier of the Mist ''Soldier of the Mist'' is a 1986 historical fantasy novel by American writer Gene Wolfe, published by Gollancz in the UK and then Tor Books in the US. It has two sequels: '' Soldier of Arete'' (1989) and '' Soldier of Sidon'' (2006). ''Soldier ...

'' (1986) Locus Fantasy winner, WFA nominee, 1987; Nebula nominee 1988 **''

Soldier of Arete ''Soldier of Arete'' is a 1989 fantasy novel by American writer Gene Wolfe, published by Tor Books Tor Books is the primary imprint of Tor Publishing Group (previously Tom Doherty Associates), a publishing company based in New York City. I ...

'' (1989) Locus Fantasy and WFA nominee, 1990 **''

Soldier of Sidon ''Soldier of Sidon'' is a 2006 fantasy novel by American writer Gene Wolfe. It is the third part of the Soldier (or Latro) series of books, with two preceding novels, '' Soldier of the Mist'' (1986) and '' Soldier of Arete'' (1989).'' Soldier o ...

'' (2006) World Fantasy Award winner, Locus Fantasy Award nominee, 2007 *''

There Are Doors ''There Are Doors'' is a speculative fiction novel by American writer Gene Wolfe, published in 1988. The narrative follows a department store salesman as he tries to track down his short-lived girlfriend. The title alludes to gateways between tw ...

'' (1988) Locus Fantasy nominee, 1989 *''

'' **''Nightside the Long Sun'' (1993) Nebula nominee, 1994 **''Lake of the Long Sun'' (1994) **''Caldé of the Long Sun'' (1994) Nebula nominee, 1996 **''Exodus From the Long Sun'' (1996) *''

'' **''On Blue's Waters'' (1999) **''In Green's Jungles'' (2000) Locus SF nominee, 2001 **''Return to the Whorl'' (2001) Locus SF nominee, 2002 *''

The Wizard Knight ''The Wizard Knight'' is a series of epistolary novels written by fantasy and science fiction author Gene Wolfe. It chronicles the journey of Able of the High Heart, an American boy transported to a magical world and supernaturally aged to adu ...

'' **'' The Knight'' (2004) Nebula nominee, 2005 **''The Wizard'' (2004) Locus Fantasy and World Fantasy Award nominated, 2005 *''

Pirate Freedom ''Pirate Freedom'' (2007) is a fantasy novel by Gene Wolfe about a young man who is transported back in time and becomes a pirate. Setting The majority of the book is set in the Caribbean and nearby regions during the "Golden Age of Piracy". It ...

'' (2007) Locus Fantasy Award nominee, 2008 *''An Evil Guest'' (2008) *''

The Sorcerer's House ''The Sorcerer's House'' is a 2010 epistolary fantasy novel by Gene Wolfe. It was published by Tor Books.Home Fires'' (2011) *''

The Land Across ''The Land Across'' is a fantasy novel by Gene Wolfe published in 2013 by Tor Books. Synopsis Grafton is a travel writer who decides to write the first ever travel guide to "the land beyond the mountains", an otherwise-unnamed Eastern European nat ...

'' (2013) *'' A Borrowed Man'' (2015) *''Interlibrary Loan'' (2020)

Story collections

* ''

The Island of Doctor Death and Other Stories and Other Stories ''The Island of Doctor Death and Other Stories and Other Stories'' is a short story collection by American science fiction author Gene Wolfe. The title story of the collection is "The Island of Doctor Death and Other Stories", which recounts t ...

'' (1980) (The title story is "The Island of Doctor Death and Other Stories". Among others, the collection also includes "The Death of Dr. Island" and "The Doctor of Death Island". "The Death of Dr. Island" won the

for Best Novella.) * ''

Gene Wolfe's Book of Days ''Gene Wolfe's Book of Days'' is a short story collection by American science fiction author Gene Wolfe published in 1981 by Doubleday. The stories within the collection are each paired with a holiday within the calendar year that is thematica ...

'' (1981) * ''

Storeys from the Old Hotel ''Storeys from the Old Hotel'' is a short story collection by American science fiction author Gene Wolfe published in 1988. It won the World Fantasy Award for Best Collection. In the introduction, Wolfe describes the stories within the collectio ...

'' (1988) (winner of the

World Fantasy Award The World Fantasy Awards are a set of awards given each year for the best fantasy fiction published during the previous calendar year. Organized and overseen by the World Fantasy Convention, the awards are given each year at the eponymous ann ...

for best collection) * ''Endangered Species'' (1989) * ''Castle of Days'' (1995) * ''Strange Travelers'' (2001) * ''

Innocents Aboard ''Innocents Aboard'' is a short story collection by American science fiction and fantasy author Gene Wolfe published in 2004. The stories are primarily fantasy or horror, not science-fiction. The title is an homage to Mark Twain's first book, ' ...

'' (2005) * ''

Starwater Strains ''Starwater Strains'' is a collection of short stories by American writer Gene Wolfe. While his previous collection, ''Innocents Aboard'', contained fantasy and horror stories, this one largely consists of science fiction Science fiction ...

'' (2006) * ''The Best of Gene Wolfe'' (2010)

Books about Gene Wolfe

*''Gene Wolfe (Starmont Reader's Guide, 29)'': Joan Gordon (Borgo Press, 1986, ; reprinted as a Special Publication of the Monterey Bay Aquarium Foundation, 2008, ), an annotated bibliography and criticism on Wolfe's science fiction and non-fiction writing *''The Wizard Knight Companion: A Lexicon for Gene Wolfe's The Knight and The Wizard'': Michael Andre-Driussi (Sirius Fiction, 2009, ), a dictionary of words and names from Wolfe's Wizard Knight novels *''Lexicon Urthus'': Michael Andre-Druissi (Sirius Fiction, 1994, ), a dictionary of the archaic words used by Wolfe in ''The Book of the New Sun'' *''The Long and the Short of It: More Essays on the Fiction of Gene Wolfe'': Robert Borski (iUniverse, Inc., 2006, ) *''Solar Labyrinth: Exploring Gene Wolfe's "Book of the New Sun"'': Robert Borski (iUniverse, Inc., 2004, ) *''Attending Daedalus: Gene Wolfe, Artifice, and the Reader'': Peter Wright (Liverpool University Press, 2003, ): Study of ''The Book of the New Sun'' and ''The Urth of the New Sun'' *''Shadows of the New Sun: Wolfe on Writing / Writers on Wolfe'': Peter Wright (Liverpool University Press, 2007, ) *''Strokes'': John Clute (Serconia Press, 1988, ) *''Gene Wolfe: An annotated bibliography and criticism on Wolfe's science fiction and non-fiction writing'': Joan Gordon (Borgo Press, 2008, ) * ''Gate of Horn, Book of Silk: A Guide to Gene Wolfe's The Book of the Long Sun and The Book of the Short Sun'': Michael Andre-Driussi (Sirius Fiction, 2012, ) * ''Shadows of the New Sun'', an anthology of stories by other authors which are all explicitly based on Wolfe stories (TOR Books, 2013) * ''Between Light and Shadow: An Exploration of the Fiction of Gene Wolfe, 1951-1986'': Marc Aramini (Castalia House, 2015, ASIN B011YTDGY2), a comprehensive literary analysis of Wolfe's fiction from 1951 to 1986, volume 1 of 2.

Film adaptations

* ''The Death of Doctor Island'', 35 mm short, 2008.

Explanatory notes

References

External links

* * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Wolfe, Gene 1931 births 2019 deaths 20th-century American male writers 20th-century American novelists 20th-century American short story writers 21st-century American male writers 21st-century American novelists 21st-century American short story writers American fantasy writers American male novelists American male short story writers American Roman Catholics American science fiction writers Constructed language creators Converts to Roman Catholicism Lamar High School (Houston, Texas) alumni Nebula Award winners Novelists from New York (state) Novelists from Texas People with polio Postmodern writers Rhysling Award for Best Long Poem winners Roman Catholic writers Science Fiction Hall of Fame inductees SFWA Grand Masters Texas A&M University alumni University of Houston alumni Weird fiction writers World Fantasy Award-winning writers Writers from Houston Writers from New York City Catholics from Texas