First publication for 'Recall Mechanism', If, July 1959
4/5 (Very Good)
“In the privacy of his living room, he sat dully examining a series of reports on carrot mutations.”
Paul Sharp files reports on what to rebuild in the swathes of H-bomb blasted California landscape for the Division of War Destruction Salvage… Continue reading
Here are my favorite films and books I reviewed this year. They are all highly recommended…
Brian Aldiss, Non-stop (variant title, Starship), (1958)
Starship is a top-notch 1950s work: fast, action-packed, thoughtful, Continue reading
(Jerome Podwil’s cover for the 1965 edition)
3.25/5 (Above Average)
A few minutes surfing the inter-webs reveals that this 1950s sci-fi work by Poul Anderson arouses some controversy. People looking for Anderson’s pulp-infused sprawling Continue reading
3.75/5 (Good)
They Shall Have Stars (1956) is the first of James Blish’s famous Cities in Flight novels (note: the series was not released according to its internal chronology — the third volume, Earthman Come Home was published first in 1955). Continue reading
4.75/5 (Very Good)
A generation ship! Science run amok! A brilliant work from the late 50s which must be read! Brian Aldiss’ Non-Stop (published in the U.S. as Starship) is a relentlessly dark science fiction novel written in response to Robert Heinlein’s revolutionary yet ultimately unsatisfying Orphans of Continue reading
This collection contains three 1950s short stories/novelettes expanded and modified from their original magazine form for this volume. Although two of the Continue reading
4.5/10 (Bad BUT historically important for the sci-fi genre)
Although there are enough plot holes for glaciers and an assortment of national landmarks and buildings to waltz through, Arch Oboler’s Five (1951) is an underrated and historically important sci-fi Continue reading
3/5 (Average)
Winner of the Hugo Award for Best Novel in 1956
I’ve never been blown away by Heinlein — twenty-five Heinlein novels later, the trend continues (well, I must admit, The Moon is a Harsh Mistress was very good). Supposedly deserving of the Continue reading
2/5 (Poor)
For Philip K. Dick, ‘The Builder’ is not one of his better stories — nor is close to the best of his early 1950s works (‘The Preserving Machine’). A man (with the aid of his son) despite the continuous Continue reading
Science Fiction and Other Suspect Ruminations 