New Maps of Hell

New Maps of Hell was written by Kingsley Amis and published in 1960.  The book is based on some lectures he gave at Princeton University on the topic of Science Fiction, and I really loved this book because it introduced me to writers like Clifford Simak and Frederick Pohl, and because it is a primer of sorts of pre-1960 sci-fi.

The whole book is great because he kicks it off with a little talk about addiction, and how those who appreciate sci-fi are far different from the addicts of sci-fi, who are also more prone to love jazz, and of how sci-fi and jazz music are not mass culture with a radical tinge (for 1960) and...and...and...

Kingsley Amis is an upper crust sort of writer, taught Literature at Oxford, and throws around the word "Chap" with a startling regularity.  Funny how such a stiff neck can get into prose like this:
(from "Of Missing Persons", by Unknown (an author yet to make his name), from "Good Housekeeping" magazine circa 1955):

     The first-person hero, Charlie Ewell, on recommendation from a stranger met in a bar, goes to a travel bureau and asks the man to help him to escape.  "From what?" the man asks.  Charlie hesitates; he's "never put it into words before."  Then:

     "From New York, I'd say.  And cities in general.  From worry.  And fear.  And the things I read in my newspapers.  From loneliness...From never doing what I really want to do or having much fun.  From selling my days just to stay alive.  From life itself--the way it is today, at least."  I looked straight at him and said softly, "From the world."

New Maps of Hell is a Classic; it's a shame that it's out-of-print.  Recommended without reservation if you can find a copy.