It was Mr. Hubbard's trendsetting work in this field from 1938 to 1950, particularly, that not only helped to expand the scope and imaginative boundaries of science fiction and fantasy but indelibly established him as one of the founders of what continues to be regarded as the genre's Golden Age.

His culminating works of science fiction-Battlefield Earth and the ten-volume Mission Earth series-blazed new paths in the landscape of modern speculative literature.

Widely honored recipient of Italy's Tetradramma D'Oro Award and a special Gutenburg Award, among other significant literary honors, Battlefield Earth has already been translated into twenty-six languages and easily ranks as the biggest single-volume science fiction novel, at 1,066 pages and nearly 430,000 words, in the history of the genre.

The Mission Earth dekalogy has been equally acclaimed, winning the Cosmos 2000 Award from French readers and the coveted Nova Science Fiction Award from Italy's National Committee for Science Fiction and Fantasy. In a span of just twenty-three months, each of its ten volumes became New York Times bestsellers-a feat unequaled in publishing history.

L. Ron Hubbard's literary output ultimately encompassed more than 260 published novels, novelettes, short stories and screenplays in every genre.

For more information on his extensive writing career, visit the website of L. Ron Hubbard's literary agency, Author Services, Inc.

Mr. Hubbard passed away in 1986, but his literary legacy lives on indelibly in works that continue to reverberate down through generations and millions of readers, making him one of the most widely read and highly acclaimed writers of our time.