The Martian Chronicles: The Complete Edition

Dust jacket and interior illustrations by Edward Miller
Introductions by Joe Hill and John Scalzi
Afterwords by Richard Matheson and Marc Scott Zicree

Subterranean Press is reprinting one of their most requested titles. The Martian Chronicles: The Complete Edition wil be oversized, huge (at more than 750 pages), printed in black ink throughout, wtih a full color dust jacket and interior plates by Edward Miller.

In addition to the classic collection, the book contains an additional 23 short stories, as well as introductions and afterwords, listed below.

In the course of his long, illustrious career, Ray Bradbury has created some of the most memorable and enduring fiction of our time. While no one work can adequately represent the range and depth of his achievement, it may well be that The Martian Chronicles will come to stand as his most singular accomplishment. A visionary account of the first attempt to extend the human enterprise to another planet, this unique and resonant book is both a seminal work of science fiction and a permanent addition to modern popular culture.

The episodic saga begins during the “rocket summer” of 1999, when the first outbound ships depart for Mars, leaving the bleak Ohio winter behind. It ends, 27 years later, during a “million year picnic” which casts a harsh, reflective light on an entire civilization. 

Along the way, Bradbury introduces a gallery of distinctive characters, all of whom have powerful reasons for seeking a newer life. Some are actively escaping--from racism, from political and cultural repression, from the never-ending prospect of war. Some are actively searching--for adventure, for uncharted horizons, for a sense of spiritual renewal. Together, they create a frontier society as complex, varied, and tragically flawed as the one they left behind. 

The result is a work of philosophical humanism filled with memorable scenes and indelible images. 

• A wealthy settler builds a new “House of Usher” and wages bloody war against a dull and lifeless bureaucracy. 
• Translucent “fire balloons” offer intricate lessons in matters of the spirit. 
• A telepathic Martian helplessly absorbs the hopes, grief, and memories of the surrounding human populace. 
• A solitary survivor creates an automated family to help keep loneliness at bay. 

Moments like these offer something deeper and grander than simple entertainment. As the author pointedly reminds us: “It is good to renew one’s wonder.” The Martian Chronicles accomplishes this task with wit, grace, and unselfconscious artistry. It will doubtless continue to do so for generations to come. 

With more than 50 stories, essays, introductions and two full-length screenplays by Bradbury himself, The Martian Chronicles: the Complete Edition is a volume for the permanent shelf, one which chronicles the evolution of Bradbury’s Mars from the original classic volume and beyond. 

Table of Contents

• Meeting the Wizard by John Scalzi

Part One: The Martian Chronicles

• The Long Road to Mars by Ray Bradbury
• Green Town, Somewhere on Mars; Mars, Somewhere in Egypt. An Introduction by Ray Bradbury
• Rocket Summer
• Ylla
• The Summer Night
• The Earth Men
• The Taxpayer
• The Third Expedition
• —And the Moon Be Still as Bright
• The Settlers
• The Green Morning
• The Locusts
• Night Meeting
• The Shore
• The Fire Balloons
• Interim
• The Musicians
• The Wilderness
• The Naming of Names
• Usher II
• The Old Ones
• The Martian
• The Luggage Store
• The Off Season
• The Watchers
• The Silent Towns
• There Will Come Soft Rains
• The Million-Year Picnic

Part Two:

• How I Wrote My Book by Ray Bradbury (text version)

Part Three: The Other Martian Tales of Ray Bradbury

• Undiscovered Mars, Unseen Bradbury by Joe Hill
• The Lonely Ones
• The Exiles
• The One Who Waits
• The Disease
• Dead of Summer
• The Martian Ghosts
• Jemima True
• They All Had Grandfathers
• The Strawberry Window
• Way in the Middle of the Air
• The Other Foot
• The Wheel
• The Love Affair
• The Marriage
• The Visitor
• The Lost City of Mars
• Holiday
• Payment in Full
• The Messiah
• Night Call, Collect
• The Blue Bottle
• Dark They Were, and Golden Eyed
• Lost Mars: The Unpublished Martian Stories of Ray Bradbury by Marc Scott Zicree

Part Four: The Screenplays

• For Ray Bradbury by Richard Matheson
• The Martian Chronicles, 1963 Screenplay by Ray Bradbury
• The Martian Chronicle, 1997 Screenplay by Ray Bradbury

Second Printing limited to 750 cloth bound hardcover copies.

Signed copy (here is the story):  Subterranean purchased the last of the signature pages Ray set pen to for the original proposed limited edition of The Martian Chronicles: The Complete Edition. Roughly forty signed copies were distributed at random.  This was done as they shipped out their copies and we are currently in discussions with several customers about consigning their copies with us, so if you are interested in a signed copy, please keep an eye on this page.  Please do not e-mail asking as the only fair way to handle these consignment cop(ies) is to list them here as we receive them in our shop