The Complete Short Stories: Volume 1

The Complete Short Stories: Volume 1
Adam Thirlwell

J. G. Ballard

First in a two volume collection of short stories by the acclaimed author of Empire of the Sun, Crash, Cocaine Nights and Super-Cannes.J.G. Ballard is firmly established as one of Britain’s most highly regarded and influential novelists. However, during his long career he was also a prolific writer of short stories, many of which show the germination of ideas he used in his longer fiction.This, the first book in a two-volume collection, offers a platform from which to view Ballard’s other works. Almost all of his novels had their seeds in short stories and this collection provides an extraordinary opportunity to trace the development of one of Britain’s most visionary writers.

J.G. BALLARD

The Complete Short Stories

VOLUME I

COPYRIGHT (#u0972758d-14ca-514c-ade3-7578748e8c30)

Fourth Estate

An imprint of HarperCollinsPublishers 77–85 Fulham Palace Road London W6 8JB 4thestate.co.uk (http://4thestate.co.uk)

This edition published by Fourth Estate in 2014

First published in Great Britain by Flamingo in 2001

This collection copyright © J. G. Ballard 2001

Most of the stories in this book previously appeared in the following collections:

The Voices of Time © J. G. Ballard 1963 The Terminal Beach © J. G. Ballard 1964

The right of J. G. Ballard to be identified as the author of this work has been asserted by him in accordance with the Copyright, Design and Patents Act 1988.

Introduction © Adam Thirlwell 2014

Interview © Vanora Bennett 2004

A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library.

This novel is entirely a work of fiction. The names, characters and incidents portrayed in it are the work of the author’s imagination. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, events or localities is entirely coincidental.

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HarperCollinsPublishers has made every reasonable effort to ensure that any picture content and written content in this e-book has been included or removed in accordance with the contractual and technological constraints in operation at the time of publication.

Cover by Stanley Donwood

Ebook Edition © MAY 2012 ISBN: 9780007369386

Version: 2014-08-16

CONTENTS

Cover (#ufac3f166-a3b7-5d99-af13-3e363ddae982)

Title Page (#u6f82c155-e8d8-52b6-aa11-de0568cbcfa5)

Copyright (#ue3d18d9d-d4ef-5e24-a49e-f83688d039c9)

Author’s Note (#ub4d33087-b090-5ed9-a692-cb1ed1b110a6)

Introduction by Adam Thirlwell (#udac8e126-ca6f-5d26-a973-29ae0004aac2)

Prima Belladonna (#u4acc6786-ccdb-5f88-a718-3058cc0e6f6e)

Escapement (#u7c033a08-fdfa-5bd9-8cf3-bb54ad20b085)

The Concentration City (#u3f85789b-20ec-59b0-9c41-ccd47e01d46a)

Venus Smiles (#u444f8fea-119d-5d38-935a-0ea3297a0e83)

Manhole 69 (#u8a15837a-375b-54e5-acba-394632e2d3ad)

Track 12 (#ub6e99787-6261-5523-a6e7-41faad72ee2a)

The Waiting Grounds (#ue5285515-ebb9-5960-8489-7484f7b8eb17)

Now: Zero (#u0a72e117-0c11-56ca-bd66-8132284d6466)

The Sound-Sweep (#uc37953ce-4d4d-5b73-971e-d4d677e7be32)

Zone of Terror (#litres_trial_promo)

Chronopolis (#litres_trial_promo)

The Voices of Time (#litres_trial_promo)

The Last World of Mr Goddard (#litres_trial_promo)

Studio 5, The Stars (#litres_trial_promo)

Deep End (#litres_trial_promo)

The Overloaded Man (#litres_trial_promo)

Mr F. is Mr F. (#litres_trial_promo)

Billennium (#litres_trial_promo)

The Gentle Assassin (#litres_trial_promo)

The Insane Ones (#litres_trial_promo)