GARTH OF IZAR: The legend of Captain Garth, the hero of Axanar, has spread throughout the Federation. His exploits are required reading at Starfleet Academy -- where he became a hero of a future legend, James T. Kirk... GARTH OF IZAR: Brutal injuries sustained on Antos IV forced the native Antosians to heal him by means of giving him their natural shape-changing abilities. But the cure proved worse than the disease, as Garth was driven insane... GARTH OF IZAR: His madness apparently cured at the rehab colony on Elba II, Captain Garth has returned to service to mediate a crisis on Antos IV, with the aid of Captain Kirk and the Starship Enterprise™. But has Garth truly put his insanity behind him, or will he renew his plans for conquest -- starting with the Antosians?

Captain Garth of Izar, hero of the battle of Axanar which helped secure the future of the Federation, was once a legendary Starfleet Captain whose exploits were required reading at Starfleet Academy. In the 2260s he suffered serious injuries in an incident on Antos IV. The inhabitants of Antos repaired his body by teaching him the art of cellular metamorphosis, but did not realise that his injuries had rendered him criminally insane. After ordering the destruction of Antos IV, Garth was committed to the Federation rehab colony on Elba II, where, in 2268, he overpowered his keepers, escaping with the aid of the cellular-metamorphosis process, mastery of which enabled him to take on the appearance of any person he wished. Before his eventual recapture he had proclaimed himself lord of the universe and attempted to commandeer the Starship Enterprise. Now cured of his insanity by new techniques of experimental medicine, Garth of Izar must rebuild his shattered life. The opportunity to do so is provided on a mission to solve a diplomatic crisis -- a crisis that requires Garth to return to the very planet that caused his insanity so many years ago.

Through four decades, five television series comprising over seven hundred episodes, ten feature films, and an animated series, fandom's thirst for more Star Trek stories has been unquenchable. From the earliest short-story adaptations by James Blish in the 1960s, followed by the first original Star Trek novels during the seventies, and on throughout the eighties, nineties, and into the twenty-first century, fiction has offered an unparalleled expansion of the rich Star Trek tapestry. But what is it that makes these books such a powerfully attractive creative outlet to some and a compelling way to experience the Star Trek mythos anew to others? Voyages of Imagination takes a look back on the first forty years of professionally published Star Trek fiction, revealing the personalities and sensibilities of many of the novels' imaginative contributors and offering an unprecedented glimpse into the creative processes, the growing pains, the risks, the innovations, the missteps, and the great strides taken in the books. Author Jeff Ayers has immersed himself in nearly six hundred books and interviewed more than three hundred authors and editors in order to compile this definitive guide to the history and evolution of an incomparable publishing phenomenon. Fully illustrated with the covers of every book included herein, Voyages of Imagination is indexed by title and author, features a comprehensive timeline, and is a must-have for every fan.

The Routledge Handbook of Star Trek offers a synoptic overview of Star Trek, its history, its influence, and the scholarly response to the franchise, as well as possibilities for further study. This volume aims to bridge the fields of science fiction and (trans)media studies, bringing together the many ways in which Star Trek franchising, fandom, storytelling, politics, history, and society have been represented. Seeking to propel further scholarly engagement, this Handbook offers new critical insights into the vast range of Star Trek texts, narrative strategies, audience responses, and theoretical themes and issues. This compilation includes both established and emerging scholars to foster a spirit of communal, trans-generational growth in the field and to present diversity to a traditional realm of science fiction studies.

Pamela Sargent's latest collection assembles 10 of her recent stories, including "Puss in D.C.," "Strawberry Birdies," and "A Smaller Government," showing why she's one of the most popular authors currently writing science fiction today. From the introduction by Eleanor Arnason: "Sargent has a quality usually associated with hard SF: a certain kind of intellectual rigor. With her, it carries through all of her work. She thinks things through. ... Notice, when you read this collection, how many different kinds of stories are here and notice the range of moods: the stories go from really funny to really dark, with a lot in between. ... I also want to mention Sargent's persistence. Writing is a hard life. Many good woman writers I admired in the 1970s, '80s and '90s have vanished. They stopped writing or stopped trying to sell their fiction or changed their names and moved to writing romance, gay romance, generic fantasy -- whatever they could sell. In one way or another, they were silenced. Sargent has kept doing thoughtful, serious fiction, dealing with the issues that interested her."

Arkham Asylum for the Criminally Insane is a staple of the Batman universe, evolving into a franchise comprised of comic books, graphic novels, video games, films, television series and more. The Arkham franchise, supposedly light-weight entertainment, has tackled weighty issues in contemporary psychiatry. Its plotlines reference clinical and ethical controversies that perplex even the most up-to-date professionals. The 25 essays in this collection explore the significance of Arkham's sinister psychiatrists, murderous mental patients, and unethical geneticists. It invites debates about the criminalization of the mentally ill, mental patients who move from defunct state hospitals into expanding prisons, madness versus badness, sociopathy versus psychosis, the "insanity defense" and more. Invoking literary figures from Lovecraft to Poe to Caligari, the 25 essays in this collection are a broad-ranging and thorough assessment of the franchise and its relationship to contemporary psychiatry.

From 'audet IX to Zytchin III, this book covers it all. This is the ultimate reference book for all Star Trek fans! Added to this edition are 128 new pages. This addendum highlights the latest episodes of Star Trek: Deep Space Nine®, Star Trek: Voyager® and the newest feature film, Star Trek: Insurrection™. The thousands of photos and hundreds of illustrations place the Star Trek universe at your fingertips. Planets and stars, weapons and ships, people and places are just part of the meticulous research and countless cross-reference that fill this book.