Destination: Universe! is a surprisingly good collection of stories by A. E. van Vogt. I first read it in my mid-teens, and it made a big impression on me; when I rediscovered it forty years later, it was with real delight. His stories bridge the Gernsback era of science fiction to the Campbell era; they could be utterly memorable, and in Destination: Universe they were. They express feelings and moments that stayed with me for decades. His later bad habit of cannibalizing his own earlier work shadowed his overall reputation in my eyes, but the fact remains that when he was good, he was very good indeed. Although all of the stories are excellent, "The Monster" and "A Can of Paint" are particularly memorable. ( )

Far Centaurus - 5/5
The Monster - 3/5
Dormant - 2/5
The Enchanted Village - 3/5
A Can of Paint - 4/5
Defence - 2/5
The Rulers - 4/5
Dear Pen Pal - 3/5
The Sound - 3/5
The Search - 3/5 ( )

This book is a collection of ten short science fiction stories by A.E. van Volt. Each story is a stand-alone story and can be read in any order. I was not very familiar with van Volt’s writing and did not know any of these stories but I enjoyed them very much. Each story was very different from each other and very creative. I found it to be a great introduction to van Volt’s fiction. ( )