J. Grant Thiessen
Encyclopedia
J. Grant Thiessen is a Canadian
bibliographer and bookseller (Pandora's Books, BookIT Enterprises). He has worked primarily in the area of science fiction
. His bibliographic fanzine, Science Fiction Collector, has been collected into three hardbound volumes from Pandora's Books, and copies of all of the issues are still available from that source.
The most frequently referenced work from these volumes is the guide to the Ace Books
sf doubles; books bound dos-à-dos
. The non-double sf, fantasy, and horror titles were also listed. This bibliography appeared in the first issue of Science Fiction Collector. Other paperback publishers whose output is documented by Thiessen includes Ballantine Books
, Monarch Books
, Curtis Books, and Lancer Books
. The volumes also contain individual author biographies; authors covered include James H. Schmitz
, Jack Williamson
, E. C. Tubb, A. E. van Vogt
, and Charles L. Harness
.
Thiessen also published "The Tanelorn Archives", a bibliography of Michael Moorcock
, and has made many contributions to bibliographic reference works, magazines, and price guides, as well as producing several hundred book catalogs.
He was born in 1947 in Winnipeg
, Manitoba
, Canada. He acquired his CMA (Certified Management Accountant) degree in 1973. In 1977, he formally incorporated as Pandora's Books Ltd.
In 1995, Pandora's Books was an early retail entry on the internet, and still operates their website to this day.
He is now a bookseller and software developer, under the company name BookIT Enterprises Inc.
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
bibliographer and bookseller (Pandora's Books, BookIT Enterprises). He has worked primarily in the area of science fiction
Science fiction
Science fiction is a genre of fiction dealing with imaginary but more or less plausible content such as future settings, futuristic science and technology, space travel, aliens, and paranormal abilities...
. His bibliographic fanzine, Science Fiction Collector, has been collected into three hardbound volumes from Pandora's Books, and copies of all of the issues are still available from that source.
The most frequently referenced work from these volumes is the guide to the Ace Books
Ace Books
Ace Books is the oldest active specialty publisher of science fiction and fantasy books. The company was founded in New York City in 1952 by Aaron A. Wyn, and began as a genre publisher of mysteries and westerns...
sf doubles; books bound dos-à-dos
Dos-à-dos binding
In bookbinding, a dos-à-dos binding is a binding structure in which two separate books are bound together such that the fore edge of one is adjacent to the spine of the other, with a shared lower board between them serving as the back cover of both...
. The non-double sf, fantasy, and horror titles were also listed. This bibliography appeared in the first issue of Science Fiction Collector. Other paperback publishers whose output is documented by Thiessen includes Ballantine Books
Ballantine Books
Ballantine Books is a major book publisher located in the United States, founded in 1952 by Ian Ballantine with his wife, Betty Ballantine. It was acquired by Random House in 1973, which in turn was acquired by Bertelsmann AG in 1998 and remains part of that company today. Ballantine's logo is a...
, Monarch Books
Monarch Books
Monarch Books were an American publishing firm in the late 1950s/early 1960s which specialised in pulp novels. They were based in Derby, Connecticut....
, Curtis Books, and Lancer Books
Lancer Books
Lancer Books was a series of paperback books published from 1961 through 1973 by Irwin Stein and Walter Zacharius. While it published stories of a number of genres, it was noted most for its science fiction and fantasy, particularly its series of Robert E. Howard's Conan the Barbarian tales, the...
. The volumes also contain individual author biographies; authors covered include James H. Schmitz
James H. Schmitz
James Henry Schmitz was an American writer born in Hamburg, Germany of American parents.- Life :Aside from two years at business school in Chicago, Schmitz lived in Germany until 1938, leaving before World War II broke out in Europe in 1939.During World War II, Schmitz served as an aerial...
, Jack Williamson
Jack Williamson
John Stewart Williamson , who wrote as Jack Williamson was a U.S. writer often referred to as the "Dean of Science Fiction" following the death in 1988 of Robert A...
, E. C. Tubb, A. E. van Vogt
A. E. van Vogt
Alfred Elton van Vogt was a Canadian-born science fiction author regarded by some as one of the most popular and complex science fiction writers of the mid-twentieth century: the "Golden Age" of the genre....
, and Charles L. Harness
Charles L. Harness
Charles Leonard Harness was an American science fiction writer. He was born in Colorado City, Texas and grew up just outside it, then later in Fort Worth. He earned degrees in chemistry and law, and worked as a patent attorney in Connecticut and Washington, DC from 1947 to 1981...
.
Thiessen also published "The Tanelorn Archives", a bibliography of Michael Moorcock
Michael Moorcock
Michael John Moorcock is an English writer, primarily of science fiction and fantasy, who has also published a number of literary novels....
, and has made many contributions to bibliographic reference works, magazines, and price guides, as well as producing several hundred book catalogs.
He was born in 1947 in Winnipeg
Winnipeg
Winnipeg is the capital and largest city of Manitoba, Canada, and is the primary municipality of the Winnipeg Capital Region, with more than half of Manitoba's population. It is located near the longitudinal centre of North America, at the confluence of the Red and Assiniboine Rivers .The name...
, Manitoba
Manitoba
Manitoba is a Canadian prairie province with an area of . The province has over 110,000 lakes and has a largely continental climate because of its flat topography. Agriculture, mostly concentrated in the fertile southern and western parts of the province, is vital to the province's economy; other...
, Canada. He acquired his CMA (Certified Management Accountant) degree in 1973. In 1977, he formally incorporated as Pandora's Books Ltd.
In 1995, Pandora's Books was an early retail entry on the internet, and still operates their website to this day.
He is now a bookseller and software developer, under the company name BookIT Enterprises Inc.