Universe 3 is an anthology

Anthology

An anthology is a collection of literary works chosen by the compiler. It may be a collection of poems, short stories, plays, songs, or excerpts...

 of original science fiction

Science fiction

Science fiction is a genre of fiction dealing with imaginary but more or less plausible content such as future settings, futuristic science and technology, space travel, aliens, and paranormal abilities...

 short stories edited by Terry Carr

Terry Carr

Terry Gene Carr was a U.S. science fiction author, editor, and teacher.Terry Carr was born in Grants Pass, Oregon...

, the third volume in a series

Universe (anthology series)

Universe was a series of seventeen annual science fiction anthologies edited by Terry Carr. It was initially published in paperback by Ace Books , with subsequent volumes published in hardcover by Random House and Doubleday and paperback by Popular Library, Zebra Books and Tor, successively. The...

 of seventeen. It was first published in hardcover by Random House

Random House

Random House, Inc. is the largest general-interest trade book publisher in the world. It has been owned since 1998 by the German private media corporation Bertelsmann and has become the umbrella brand for Bertelsmann book publishing. Random House also has a movie production arm, Random House Films,...

 in 1973, with a Science Fiction Book Club edition following from the same publisher in November of the same year, a paperback edition from Popular Library

Popular Library

Popular Library was a New York paperback book company established in 1942 by Leo Margulies and Ned Pines, who at the time was a major pulp magazine, newspapers and magazine publishers...

 in January 1975, and a British hardcover edition from Dennis Dobson in October 1977.

The book collects seven novellas, novelettes and short stories by various science fiction authors, with an introduction by Carr.

Contents

• "Introduction" (Terry Carr
  Terry Carr
  Terry Gene Carr was a U.S. science fiction author, editor, and teacher.Terry Carr was born in Grants Pass, Oregon...
  
  )
• "The Death of Doctor Island" (Gene Wolfe
  Gene Wolfe
  Gene Wolfe is an American science fiction and fantasy writer. He is noted for his dense, allusive prose as well as the strong influence of his Catholic faith, to which he converted after marrying into the religion. He is a prolific short story writer and a novelist, and has won many awards in the...
  
  )
• "The Ghost Writer" (George Alec Effinger
  George Alec Effinger
  George Alec Effinger was an American science fiction author, born in 1947 in Cleveland, Ohio.-Writing career:...
  
  )
• "Many Mansions" (Robert Silverberg
  Robert Silverberg
  Robert Silverberg is an American author, best known for writing science fiction. He is a multiple nominee of the Hugo Award and a winner of the Nebula Award.-Early years:...
  
  )
• "Randy-Tandy Man" (Ross Rocklynne
  Ross Rocklynne
  Ross Rocklynne was the pen name used by Ross Louis Rocklin, an American science fiction author active in the Golden Age of Science Fiction....
  
  )
• "The World Is a Sphere" (Edgar Pangborn
  Edgar Pangborn
  Edgar Pangborn was an American mystery, historical, and science fiction author.-Life:Edgar Pangborn was born in New York City on February 25, 1909, to Harry Levi Pangborn, an attorney and dictionary editor, and Georgia Wood Pangborn, a noted writer of supernatural fiction...
  
  )
• "The Legend of Cougar Lou Landis" (Edward Bryant
  Edward Bryant
  Edward Winslow Bryant Jr. is a science fiction and horror writer sometimes associated with the Dangerous Visions series of anthologies that bolstered The New Wave....
  
  )
• "Free City Blues" (Gordon Eklund
  Gordon Eklund
  Gordon Eklund is a Nebula Award-winning, American science fiction author whose works include the "Lord Tedric" series and two of the earliest original novels based on the 1960s Star Trek TV series. He has written under the pen name Wendell Stewart, and in one instance under the name of the late E. E...
  
  )

Reception

Theodore Sturgeon

Theodore Sturgeon

Theodore Sturgeon was an American science fiction author.His most famous novel is More Than Human .-Biography:...

 reviewed the anthology favorably, citing Carr for selecting "literate and thought-provoking stor[ies] bearing a special texture."

Awards

The anthology placed third in the 1974 Locus Poll Award for Best Original Anthology

Locus Award

The Locus Award is a literary award established in 1971 and presented to winners of Locus magazine's annual readers' poll. Currently, the Locus Awards are presented at an annual banquet...

.

"The Death of Doctor Island" won the 1973 Nebula Award for Best Novella

Nebula Award for Best Novella

Winners of the Nebula Award for Best Novella. The stated year is that of publication; awards are given in the following year.-Winners and other nominees:-External links:**...

, was nominated for the 1974 Hugo Award for Best Novella

Hugo Award for Best Novella

The Hugo Awards are given every year by the World Science Fiction Society for the best science fiction or fantasy works and achievements of the previous year. The award is named after Hugo Gernsback, the founder of the pioneering science fiction magazine Amazing Stories, and was once officially...

, and placed first in the 1974 Locus Poll Award for Best Novella

Locus Award

The Locus Award is a literary award established in 1971 and presented to winners of Locus magazine's annual readers' poll. Currently, the Locus Awards are presented at an annual banquet...

.

"Many Mansions" placed eleventh in the 1974 Locus Poll Award for Best Short Fiction

Locus Award

The Locus Award is a literary award established in 1971 and presented to winners of Locus magazine's annual readers' poll. Currently, the Locus Awards are presented at an annual banquet...

.

"The World Is a Sphere" placed sixteenth in the 1974 Locus Poll Award for Best Short Fiction

Locus Award

The Locus Award is a literary award established in 1971 and presented to winners of Locus magazine's annual readers' poll. Currently, the Locus Awards are presented at an annual banquet...

.