Barron, Neil 1934-
(Richard Neil Barron)

PERSONAL:

Born March 23, 1934, in Hollywood, CA; son of James C. (in sales) and Dorothy Barron; married Dorothy Weiss, 1966 (marriage ended); married Carolyn Witsell, August 19, 1978; children: Craig R., Felicia A. Education: University of California, Riverside, A.B., 1961; University of California, Berkeley, M.L.S., 1964. Hobbies and other interests: Reading, music, travel.

ADDRESSES:

Home and office—231 N. College Dr., Apt. B4, Santa Maria, CA 93454.

CAREER:

U.S. Peace Corps, Washington, DC, worked at libraries in Lahore, Tando Jam, and Peshawar, Pakistan, 1962-63; Queens Borough Public Library, Jamaica, NY, librarian, 1964-65; Columbia University, New York, NY, assistant to associate director of libraries and manager of chemistry library, 1965-67; California State University, Sacramento, assistant librarian for technical services, 1967-70; Baker & Taylor Co., Somerville, NJ, coordinator of library services, 1970-72; University of South Florida, Tampa, assistant director for technical services, 1972-73, and for educational and other sales, 1973-88, manager of consulting engineers' technical library, 1989-96; San Diego City Library, San Diego, CA, reference librarian, 1996-2003. San Diego County Library, reference librarian, 1996-2003; Gemological Institute of America, inter-library loan librarian, 1999-2003. Military service: U.S. Army, 1954-56; served in Germany.

MEMBER:

Science Fiction Research Association.

AWARDS, HONORS:

Outstanding Reference Book citation, American Library Association and Choice, 1976, for Anatomy of Wonder; Hugo Award nominations, World Science Fiction Society, and Locus for best work of nonfiction, both 1981 and 1987, both for second and third editions of Anatomy of Wonder; Pilgrim Award, Science Fiction Research Association, 1982, for distinguished contributions to the study of science fiction; World SF President's Award, 1989, for independence of thought in science fiction.

WRITINGS:

(Editor) Anatomy of Wonder: Science Fiction, R.R. Bowker (New Providence, NJ), 1976, 2nd edition published as Anatomy of Wonder: A Critical Guide to Science Fiction, 1981, 5th edition, Libraries Unlimited (Westport, CT), 2004.

(Editor) Horror Literature: A Reader's Guide, Garland Publishing (New York, NY), 1990.

(Editor) Fantasy Literature: A Reader's Guide, Garland Publishing (New York, NY), 1990.

(Editor) What Do I Read Next?, Volume 1, Thomson Gale (Detroit, MI), 1991.

What Fantastic Fiction Do I Read Next?: A Reader's Guide to Recent Fantasy, Horror, and Science Fiction, Thomson Gale (Detroit, MI), 1998, 2nd edition, 1999.

(Editor) Fantasy and Horror: A Critical and Historical Guide to Literature, Illustration, Film, TV, Radio, and the Internet, Scarecrow Press (Lanham, MD), 1999.

Contributor to books, including Science Fiction: Education for Tomorrow, edited by Jack Williamson, Owlswick, 1980, World Book Encyclopedia, 1989—, and Encyclopedia Americana, 1999—. Contributor of articles and reviews to newspapers and magazines, including Choice. Science Fiction and Fantasy Book Review, editor, 1979-80, and 1981-83, book review editor, 1984-85.

SIDELIGHTS:

Neil Barron once told CA: "My interests in fantastic fiction date from the late 1940s, although I read little of it today. My guides were prepared for anyone desiring to read the best, better or historically important works in their respective fields and to recognize that the best work is fully equal to the best of traditional fiction, a statement still viewed with suspicion by most critics."