A. E. van Vogt

A.E. van Vogt’s work earned him a reputation as a master of intricate, metaphysical space opera. His prose conveyed a striking sense of wonder with dreamlike conviction. He was one of the most popular authors of science fiction’s Golden Age.

Van Vogt became well known for abrupt complications of plot. Though often illogical, these sudden shifts of perspective, rationale, and scale are best considered similar to those of a dream. Grippingly void of constraints, the resulting “hard science fiction dreams” have convincingly haunted generations of children and adolescents.

His approach strongly influenced a generation of science fiction writers, especially Philip K. Dick, Charles L. Harness and Larry Niven. Van Vogt's space operas are at heart enacted dreams, articulating the symbolic needs and wishes of his readership.

Induction Year: 1996

SELECTED BIBLIOGRAPHY

Slan (1946)
The Voyage of the Space Beagle (1950)
The World of Null-A (1956)