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Special Collections & Archives: Science Fiction Book Collectionaccredited archive service logo

SC&A includes manuscripts and archives, medieval to modern; early and finely printed books, and science fiction collections.

Book collection 

The book stock at Liverpool is mainly formed by the Science Fiction Foundation Library. It represents the largest catalogued collection of science fiction, fantasy, horror and related literary criticism in Europe, totalling over 35,000 books. Coverage is wide-ranging but particular strengths include:

 

Map of Great BritainBritish fiction

8500 works across all periods, from the earliest examples of speculative literature to the first science fiction writers and up to the present day. Our holdings are comprehensive for the works of H.G. Wells, Olaf Stapledon, Arthur C. Clarke, J.R.R. Tolkien, John Wyndham, Eric Frank Russell, John Brunner, Brian Aldiss, Ramsey Campbell, Stephen Baxter, Diana Wynne Jones, Terry Pratchett and Iain Banks. Writers from Australia and Canada also feature strongly.

 

Map of USAAmerican fiction

13,000 works covering the full range of American speculative fiction, from Edgar Allan Poe and Mark Twain to Isaac Asimov, Philip K. Dick, H.P. Lovecraft and present day writers such as Ursula K. Le Guin.

 

Map of Western EuropeWestern European fiction

1500 French science fiction novels, mostly from Fleuve Noir's Anticipation series and mainly by French writers. 1000 works in German, mostly translations of classic British and American science fiction. We also have 300 Italian and Spanish translations of classic works in English.

 

Map of Eastern EuropeEastern European fiction

2000 novels in Czech, Slovak, Polish, Russian, Romanian and Bulgarian. Our holdings consist of a mixture of translations and original works, many of which derive from the Soviet / Cold War era.

 

Image showing sci fi booksAnthologies

2500 anthologies of novellas and short stories of science fiction, fantasy and horror, primarily in English but also including material in many other European languages.

 

Image showing sci fi booksCritical works

Approximately 2500 critical works, including encyclopaedia, bibliographies, biographies and works of criticism on individual authors and all aspects of science fiction. We also have over 600 volumes of non-fiction connected to science fiction, e.g. space-flight, robotics and pseudo-science.

 

Image showing sci fi booksSearching for books

Records of all books in our collections are contained within Library Search. Each book is catalogued in detail, including full bibliographic details, subject headings and illustrators' names, to facilitate advanced searching. The contents of many anthologies have also been indexed in the catalogue, enabling searching of short stories by title.

 

Image showing sci fi booksDonations

In developing the collection, we are entirely dependent upon the generosity of publishers, writers and collectors. Our aim is to promote research into science fiction by providing access to and complementary research tools for as comprehensive a collection as possible. Please help us to fill gaps in the collection by contacting us if you have any relevant material to donate.