With a new Introduction by the author and personal afterwords to each story- plus a special look at three of Willis' s unique public speeches- this is unquestionably the collection of the season, a book that every Connie Willis fan will treasure, and, to those unfamiliar with her work, the perfect introduction to one of the most accomplished and best-loved writers of our time. All ten of the stories gathered here are Hugo or Nebula award winners- some even have the distinction of winning both. From a near future mourning the extinction of dogs to an alternate history in which invading aliens were defeated by none other than Emily Dickinson from a madcap convention of bumbling quantum physicists in Hollywood to a London whose Underground has become a storehouse of intangible memories both foul and fair- here are the greatest stories of one of the greatest writers working in any genre today. Her smart, heartfelt fiction runs the gamut from screwball comedy to profound tragedy, combining dazzling plot twists, cutting-edge science, and unforgettable characters. Inducted into the Science Fiction Hall of Fame and recently awarded the title of Grand Master by the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America, Willis is still going strong. Flip and Pippa are both diminutive names for Phillipa.Few authors have had careers as successful as that of Connie Willis. In Willis's novel, the administrative assistant Flip likewise influences everyone, though not in a charming manner. Browning's work, which is explicitly mentioned in Willis's, tells the story of a cheerful girl named Pippa who in passing by folks in a village influences everyone to the good. Willis also creates a subtle reworking of Robert Browning's Pippa Passes. The scientists experiment with sheep, finding that their flocks are led by bellwethers, certain sheep which are "indistinguishable from the rest of the flock, only a little greedier, a little faster, a little hungrier." Analogously, fads are started by some persons among the crowd, who, even without realizing it, are a little ahead of the rest. Willis uses humor to come to an unsettling conclusion. Meanwhile, the employees struggle with chaos created by a self-centered administrative assistant.
In addition, the Management wants one of its employees to win the mysterious Niebnitz Research Grant (the fictitious award is very similar to the MacArthur Fellowship's Genius Grant). Foster is extensively researching and analysing fads, Hi-Tek itself is swept by management fads.
Her employer, Hi-Tek, wants to know how to predict fads, in order to take advantage of this knowledge and thus to possibly create one.
Sandra Foster, studies fads in Boulder, Colorado. It was nominated for the Nebula Award for Best Novel in 1997. Bellwether is a 1996 science fiction novel by Connie Willis.
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