Kontis, Alethea 1976(?)-

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Kontis, Alethea 1976(?)-

PERSONAL:

Born c. 1976, in Burlington, VT. Education: University of South Carolina, B.S., 1996.

ADDRESSES:

Home—Murfreesboro, TN. E-mail—[email protected].

CAREER:

Worked in a bookstore and in the Smyrna, TN, public library; Ingram Book Company, currently a buyer; founder of Nyx Books (a small press).

WRITINGS:

(Editor, with Steven Savile) Elemental: The Tsunami Relief Anthology: Stories of Science Fiction and Fantasy, introduction by Arthur C. Clarke, Tor (New York, NY), 2006.

Alpha Oops! The Day Z Went First (picture book), illustrated by Bob Kolar, Candlewick Press (Cambridge, MA), 2006.

Contributing editor to Apex Science Fiction and Horror Digest and its Web site; contributor of short fiction to periodicals, including Realms of Fantasy and Orson Scott Card's Intergalactic Medicine Show.

SIDELIGHTS:

Alethea Kontis is a writer and editor whose first book, as editor with Steven Savile, is Elemental: The Tsunami Relief Anthology: Stories of Science Fiction and Fantasy. The profits from this anthology, which features an introduction by Arthur C. Clarke, who lost his diving school in Sri Lanka to the 2004 tragedy, are given to the Save the Children Tsunami Relief Fund. The twenty-three authors who donated their writing include David Gerrold, Brian Herbert, Kevin J. Anderson, Larry Niven, Brian Aldiss, Avid Drake, Adam Roberts, Esther M. Friesner, Jacqueline Carey, Juliet Marillier, Sharon Shinn, Martha Wells, Joe Haldeman, William Dietz, Syne Mitchell, Stel Pavlou, and Lynn Flewelling. The cover art was donated by illustrator Michael Whelan. The stories range from militaristic science fiction to faerie fantasy and include a story of alien abduction and another based on the legend of King Arthur. A Kirkus Reviews contributor wrote that "there is hardly a letdown in the bunch," adding: "Overall, the rising stars outshine the superstars." The opening story by Gerrold, "Report from the Near Future: Crystallization," is about the collapse of the Los Angeles traffic system. Stories from the top names include a "Dune" story by Herbert and Anderson and a tiger tale by Aldiss.

Kontis next wrote an alphabet book for young children that is unique because it does not follow the sequence of letters. Alpha Oops! The Day Z Went First introduces children to the letters out of order, beginning with the letter Z and ending in A. This approach will appeal to children whose last names end with letters near the end of the alphabet, critics felt. A Publishers Weekly reviewer wrote: "This inventive story delivers a gentle message for kids and adults alike … [that] it's fun to shake things up every now and then."

BIOGRAPHICAL AND CRITICAL SOURCES:

PERIODICALS

Booklist, April 1, 2006, Carl Hays, review of Elemental: The Tsunami Relief Anthology: Stories of Science Fiction and Fantasy, p. 28; September 1, 2006, Carolyn Phelan, review of Alpha Oops!: The Day Z Went First, p. 137.

Kirkus Reviews, March 1, 2006, review of Elemental, p. 214.

Library Journal, April 15, 2006, Jackie Cassada, review of Elemental, p. 70.

Publishers Weekly, April 10, 2006, review of Elemental, p. 50; August 21, 2006, review of Alpha Oops!, p. 67.

School Library Journal, September, 2006, Mary Elam, review of Alpha Oops!, p. 176.