Ten thrilling and intriguing tales of space travel, war, and alien encounters from the multiple Hugo Award-winning Grand Master of Science Fiction.   From Frank Herbert's Dune to Isaac Asimov's Foundation series to Philip K. Dick's stories of bizarre visions of a dystopian future, the latter half of the twentieth century produced some of the finest examples of speculative fiction ever published. Yet no science fiction author was more highly regarded than Grand Master Clifford D. Simak, winner of numerous honors, including the Hugo and Nebula Awards and a Bram Stoker Award for Lifetime Achievement.   This magnificent compendium of stories, written during science fiction's golden age, highlights Simak at his very best, combining ingenious concepts with his trademark humanism and exploring strange visitations, remarkable technologies, and humankind's destiny in the possible worlds of tomorrow. Whether it's an irascible old man's discovery of a very unusual skunk that puts him at odds with the US Air Force, a county agent's strange bond with the sentient alien flora he discovers growing in his garden, the problems a small town faces when its children mature too rapidly thanks to babysitters from another galaxy, or the gift a lonely farmer receives in exchange for aiding a dying visitor from another world, the events detailed in Simak's poignant and beautiful tales will thrill, shock, amuse, and astonish in equal measure.   One of the genre's premier literary artists, Simak explores time travel and time engines; examines the rituals and superstitions of galactic travelers who have long forgotten their ultimate purpose; and even takes fascinating detours through World War II and the wild American West in a wondrous anthology that no science fiction fan should be without.