Here are three books that assemble the best stories that have already won their respective awards.

The 1989 Nebula volume is the result of a vote by SFWA members in 1987, in a process described in Ben Bova's introduction, and which included votes on novels. The book presents 21 novellas, novelettes, and short stories, in approximately chronological order, with forewords by the authors. There are also essays about the top 10 placing novels. Ranking of the results are not given.

The 1992 Hugo volume is the result of a vote at the 50th World Science Fiction Convention to determine the favorite works in all categories of the Hugo Awards, not just the fiction categories. The book presents the top four short stories, top three novelettes, and top three novellas. Complete results and voting statistics for all categories are given at the end. The book is "presented" by Isaac Asimov, who died before the book was finished; though not credited on the cover, Charles Sheffield stepped in to provide a introductions to the book and to each story.

The 2004 Locus volume presents 18 stories that won Locus Awards from 1971 to 2003, as selected by editors Brown and Strahan: "We've gone through the thirty years of winners and picked what we think are the best."

No story appears in all three volumes; five stories, two by Ellison and one each by Le Guin, Martin, and Varley, appear in two volumes. With multiple stories, Harlan Ellison is reprinted 6 times in these three books, George R.R. Martin and James Tiptree, Jr., three times each.