I think the first duty of all art, including fiction of any kind, is to entertain. That is to say, to hold interest. No matter how worthy the message of something, if it's dull, you're just not communicating. — Poul Anderson Copy Share Image
“I’ve yet to see any problem, however complicated, which when you looked at it the right way didn’t become still more complicated.” — Poul Anderson Copy Share
Happier are all men than the dwellers in Faerie – or the gods, for that matter…Better a life like a falling star, bright across… — Poul Anderson Copy Share
He had seen too much of the cosmos to have any great faith in man's ability to understand it. — Poul Anderson Copy Share
“Happier are all men than the beings of faerie – or the gods, for that matter,’ he said. ‘Better a life like a falling… — Poul Anderson Copy Share
Colonization means potential immortality for the human genus. Man's safety on Earth was never great, and it dwindles hourly. Disarmament, even world government, will… — Poul Anderson Copy Share
“And if you were not trained, the lesser members of the galaxy that had become visible were so many as to drown the familiar… — Poul Anderson Copy Share
If we knew exactly what to expect throughout the Solar System, we would have no reason to explore it. — Poul Anderson Copy Share
“Survivor—under what conditions?” “Any conditions. Adaptability, toughness, quickness—those are the things that count most.” “I think kindness means a lot,” said Sheila timidly. “It’s… — Poul Anderson Copy Share
A fanatic's willingness to kill or be killed in the service of a cause cannot prove the rightness of that cause. — Poul Anderson Copy Share
“You simply do not understand the human condition,” said the robot. Hah! Do you think you do, you conceited hunk of animated tin?” Yes,… — Poul Anderson Copy Share
So much American science fiction is parochial -- not as true now as it was years ago, but the assumption is one culture in… — Poul Anderson Copy Share
Better a life like a falling star, brief bright across the dark, than the long, long waiting of the immortals, loveless and cheerlessly wise. — Poul Anderson Copy Share
“And the Milky Way belted heaven with ice and silver, and the Magellanic Clouds were not vague shimmers but roiling and glowing; and the… — Poul Anderson Copy Share
