Orphan Star is a 1977 novel by science fiction writer Alan Dean Foster. The novel, which is part of the Pip and Flinx series, follows orphan Flinx on his journey to discover his parentage. He is accompanied, of course, by his trusted miniature dragon, Pip. Along the way, he is joined by a mysterious insect woman named Sylzenzuzex.
Alan Dean Foster is a prolific writer who has published more than 70 novels, including The End of the Matter (a Pip and Flinx novel) and Midworld. In addition to his original work, Foster has published numerous licensed novels, including novelizations of Star Trek, Star Wars, and Alien films. Foster also worked on the Dinotopia series.
This cover is from the first printing of the novel, which was one of the first books published under Ballantine’s Del Ray imprint. The colorful cover art was painted by Darrell Sweet, a Hugo-nominated artist who produced more than 3,000 images over the course of his career. He is best known for creating covers for The Wheel of Time series.
In addition to his science fiction and fantasy book covers, Sweet regularly painted covers for westerns. He was heavily inspired by Golden age artists and enjoyed painting images of the American frontier. His art was featured on many fantasy calendars, including The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings calendars released in the 1970s.
In the 1990s, Sweet created a