From Publishers Weekly
With stories that run the gamut from alternate history to strange admixtures of SF and fantasy to bizarrely inexplicable worlds, and with authors ranging from big names to first-timers, Hugo-winner Dozois shows off the dazzling range of the genre in his annual compendium. Several authors deal with the loneliness of humans in the galaxy. In William Barton's "Off on a Starship," young Wally accidentally leaves Earth on an automated spaceship, only to discover that there are no other people out there—and when he finally comes home, it's not as a boy but as a god. Walter Jon Williams's bittersweet "The Green Leopard Plague" explores the economic and social consequences of conquering world hunger. Geoff Ryman's timely "Birth Days" follows a gay researcher as he finds a way to "cure" homosexuality, with unexpected results. Other standout stories include Kage Baker's rollicking "Welcome to Olympus, Mr. Hearst," where the Company takes on Hearst, and loses; and Michael Swanwick's fantastic "King Dragon," where the dragon's lackey strikes back. This hefty tome has enough content for a summer of reading, and the range of stories indicates that SF still doesn't know the meaning of the word "boundaries." Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

From Booklist
The most prestigious of the several best-of-the-year fantasy and sf anthologies never fails to enchant and to showcase sf's leading edge. In it, high-quality contributions by a generous cross section of veterans, rising stars, and newcomers--29 authors in all-- constitute a balanced mixture of ideas and voices. In William Barton's "Off on a Starship," a 1960s-era adolescent and fan of B-grade space opera is swept onto a bona fide flying saucer, with unexpected results. Newcomer Jack Skillingstead contributes an electrifying tale about an astronaut exploring other worlds by robotic proxy; his emotions are stripped away in the process. The genre's humorous side is represented by Paul Di Filippo's jocular tale of household objects becoming too artificially intelligent for their own good, and Michael Swanwick explores the border between fantasy and sf in "King Dragon," in which dragons rule the skies above England, albeit with a little help from rocket-powered technology. As usual, the ample volume includes summations of the year's sf activities and Dozois' informative story introductions. Indispensable for every library's sf collection. Carl Hays
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

Book Description
The stories in this collection imaginatively take readers far across the universe, into the very core of their beings, to the realm of the Gods, and to the moment just after now. Included are the works of masters of the form and the bright new talents of tomorrow. This book is a valuable resource in addition to serving as the single best place in the universe to find stories that stir the imagination and the heart.


About the Author
Gardner Dozois has won the Hugo Award for Best Editor twelve times and has won the Locus Award for best anthology multiple times (including this year for the 19th edition). The editor of Asimov's SF magazine since 1985, he lives in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

FROM OUR EDITORS

The Barnes & Noble Review
If the stories included in the 21st annual Year's Best Science Fiction -- selected by editor extraordinaire Gardner Dozois -- are any indication, the genre of science fiction is still alive and kicking. With brilliant short works by John Varley, Vernor Vinge, Harry Turtledove, Charles Stross, Kage Baker, and Geoff Ryman, this annual anthology is -- once again -- required reading.

Noteworthy stories include William Barton's "Off on a Starship," which takes a nostalgic look at 20th-century science fiction through the eyes of a 16-year-old boy living in the 1960s who hitches a ride on an automated starship and meets an accommodating robot that (ahem!) enlightens him and alters the way he looks at himself -- and the multiverse; and "The Green Leopard Plague" by Walter Jon Williams, about a philosopher who, after much contemplation, irrevocably changes the world's economy by unleashing rogue biotech that ends starvation forever (by turning human skin green and giving those affected the ability to photosynthesize!). "The Ice" by Stephen Popkes chronicles the legal and psychological implications of a clone of hockey legend Gordie Howe, and Terry Bisson's provocative "Dear Abbey" follows a duo of radical environmentalist time travelers as they try to save humankind from itself!

Aside from the 29 outstanding stories included, this shelf-bending collection also features a comprehensive summation of the state of science fiction in the year 2003 (28 pages long!) by Dozois that is on its own worth the price of the book. Paul Goat Allen

FROM THE PUBLISHER

The stories in this collection imaginatively take readers far across the universe, into the very core of their beings, to the realm of the Gods, and to the moment just after now. Included are the works of masters of the form and the bright new talents of tomorrow. This book is a valuable resource in addition to serving as the single best place in the universe to find stories that stir the imagination and the heart.

FROM THE CRITICS

Publishers Weekly