The UCR Library is delighted to announce Dr. Phoenix Alexander will serve as the UCR Library’s new Jay Kay Klein and Doris Klein Science Fiction Librarian beginning August 1.  

As the Jay Kay Klein and Doris Klein Science Fiction Librarian, Dr. Alexander will be responsible for the development, stewardship, and promotion of the Eaton Collection of Science Fiction and Fantasy — one of the world's largest, richest, and deepest collections of science fiction, fantasy, horror, utopian literature, and related genres. 

Dr. Alexander currently serves as the Science Fiction Collections Librarian at the University of Liverpool, Special Collections and Archives where he manages the largest collection of cataloged science fiction in Europe. 

Prior to his work at the University of Liverpool, Phoenix completed his Ph.D. in the departments of English and African American Studies at Yale and worked as a curatorial assistant at Yale’s Beinecke Rare Book and Manuscript Library for three years, alongside his studies. 

Phoenix also is a scholar and writer of science fiction. His work has been published in The Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction, Beneath Ceaseless Skies, Black Static, Safundi: The Journal of South African and American Studies, and Science Fiction Studies. A full member of the Science Fiction Writers of America, his expertise in science fiction writing has allowed him to serve as a judge for the Arthur C. Clarke Award, an award given annually to the best science fiction novel first published in the United Kingdom.  

Dr. Alexander’s demonstrated expertise and passion for science fiction, as well as his commitment to social justice and including marginalized communities in his work, complements, and will continue to advance, the UCR Library’s commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion through the Eaton Collection. 

We invite the UCR community to join us in welcoming Phoenix to UCR when he arrives on August 1!