A long while back, around the turn of the century, I read a "short" story (about 150-200 pages) in an old science fiction anthology; the book was from the early 60's. The story was entitled "Tiger! Tiger!"
It was perhaps the greatest science fiction story I have ever read. Maybe Enders Game is better, but maybe not. We'll call it a tie.
Anyway, I've since been obsessed with finding a copy of the thing, but have had no luck; I checked all the anthologies and everything and NOTHING. I was getting irritated by the whole ordeal. Had I imagined it? I couldn't have imagined it because this dude I used to work with lent me the book...
A few months back someone was talking about a Stephen King book where the term "jaunting" is used. This term, "jaunting" was all over the book I read and I assumed that it was the origin. Needless to say I did a little wiki-research and read that he credited the term 'jaunt' to a book by Albert Bester called "The Stars My Destination". I Wiki'd The Stars... and found that it is an older story that used to be called Tiger! Tiger!
Yaaaaay! I was so excited I about shit my pants.
But I'm glad that I didn't shit my pants, and not just because that's gross; but also because it would have been some premature pant-shitting. I searched tons of science fiction anthologies, even went to used book stores and libraries; but to no avail. I could not find it anywhere.
Then, yesterday; while I was at Barnes and Noble, I decided to check for Bester in the novels section. There it was on the shelf, published as a short novel. The Stars My Destination.
That time I did shit my pants. Clean up in the science fiction section.
If you haven't read it, go do so. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Stars_My_Destination
