Commentary – Page 7

Commentary: Philip K. Dick’s PUBLIC DOMAIN short stories, novelettes, and novellas

SFFaudio Commentary

PHILIP K. DICK (1928 -1982) explored personal, religious, sociological, political and philosophical themes in his Science Fiction and Fantasy short stories.

This post is a complete listing of every known Philip K. Dick short story published between 1952 and 1963. Many of them are in the public domain. The known PD titles are all listed. The unknown ones and the ones we aren’t sure about are listed too. My hope is that this list will help bring more of the public domain PHILIP K. DICK stories out into the open (and thus be turned into audiobooks).

Beside each story title I have made a series of notes and links:

First up is the original publication (mostly magazines, but there are a few anthologies). Next is the public domain status (if known). Then there is a link to the Wikipedia entry for the story (indicated by the “W”) when available. If the story is PD then I’ve provided a link to either the Project Gutenberg etext or the SickMyDuck equivalent (if PG doesn’t have it). Those links are represented as either “PG” or “SD”. If SFFaudio has posted about the story or podcast a discussion about it I’ve added a link and represented it as “SFF”. Finally, if there is a LibriVox audiobook version available I have added the links to the MP3 (or MP3s).

Update:
-I have added Internet Science Fiction Database links using the abbreviation ISFDB.
-I have added Copyright Office scans (when available) using the abbreviation COS.
-I have added Copyright Office data (when available) using the abbreviation COD.
-I have added scans of the original table of contents for each story using the abbreviation OTOC.

Update II:
Icons
<-Checked - PUBLIC DOMAIN

<-NEED MORE DATA

<-COMPILATION COPYRIGHT RENEWED

Update III:
Icon
<-checked - DETAILS MATCH

If you have any information about any of these stories that you think might help please comment or send me an email with the subject line “Philip K. Dick’s PUBLIC DOMAIN short stories, novelettes and novellas”.

Short stories, novelettes and novellas by Philip K. Dick (1952-1963):

Beyond Lies The Wub – Planet Stories, July 1952 – PUBLIC DOMAIN |W|SFF|PG|MP3|ISFDB|OTOC|

The Gun – Planet Stories, September 1952 – PUBLIC DOMAIN |W|SFF|PG|W|SFF|MP3|ISFDB|OTOC|PDF|

The Skull – If, September 1952 – PUBLIC DOMAIN |W|PG|SFF|MP3|ISFDB|OTOC|PDF|

The Little Movement – Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction, November 1952 |W|ISFDB|COS1|COS2|OTOC|

The Defenders – Galaxy Science Fiction, January 1953 – PUBLIC DOMAIN |W|SFF|ISFDB|PG|MP3|COS|OTOC|PDF|

Mr. Spaceship – Imagination, January 1953 – PUBLIC DOMAIN |W|PG|MP3|ISFDB|COS|OTOC|PDF|

Piper In The Woods – Imagination, February 1953 –PUBLIC DOMAIN |W|PG|SFF|MP3|ISFDB|COS|OTOC|PDF|

Roog – Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction, February 1953 – LIKELY PUBLIC DOMAIN – |W|SFF|ISFDB|COS|OTOC|

Second Variety – Space Science Fiction, May 1953 – PUBLIC DOMAIN |W|PG|SFF|MP3 Pt.1|MP3 Pt.2|ISFDB|COS|OTOC|PDF|

The Infinites – Planet Stories, May 1953 |W|ISFDB|COS|

The World She Wanted – Science Fiction Quarterly, May 1953 |ISFDB|COS|

The Eyes Have It – Science Fiction Stories, #1 (1953) – PUBLIC DOMAIN |PG|SFF|MP3|ISFDB|COS|OTOC|PDF|

Martians Come In Clouds – Fantastic Universe, June-July 1953 |ISFDB|COS|OTOC|

The Cosmic Poachers – Imagination, July 1953 |ISFDB|COS|OTOC|

The Variable Man – Space Science Fiction, July/Sept. 1953 – PUBLIC DOMAIN |W|PG|SFF|MP3 Pt.1|MP3 Pt.2|MP3 Pt.3|ISFDB|COS|OTOC|PDF|

The Impossible Planet – Imagination, October 1953 |ISFDB|COS|OTOC|

Some Kinds Of Life [as by Richard Phillipps] – Fantastic Universe, October-November 1953 |ISFDB|COS|OTOC|

The Hanging Stranger – Science Fiction Adventures, December 1953 – PUBLIC DOMAIN |SFF|ISFDB|COS|OTOC|PDF|

Project: Earth – Imagination, December 1953 |ISFDB|COS|OTOC|

Tony And The Beetles – Orbit, No. 2 (1953) – PUBLIC DOMAIN |SFF|ISFDB|COS|OTOC|PDF|

Jon’s World – Time To Come edited by August Dereleth (1954) |ISFDB|COS|OTOC|*other stories in this anthology were renewed [A00000135732]

Beyond The Door – Fantastic Universe, January 1954 – PUBLIC DOMAIN |PG|SFF|MP3|ISFDB|OTOC|PDF|

The Crystal Crypt – Planet Stories, January 1954 – PUBLIC DOMAIN |W|PG|SFF|MP3|ISFDB|OTOC|PDF|

Prize Ship – Thrilling Wonder Stories, Winter 1954 |W|ISFDB|OTOC|

*A Present For Pat – Startling Stories, January 1954 |ISFDB|OTOC|*other stories in Startling Stories, January 1954 were renewed separately [B00000449219] but not A Present For Pat

The Golden Man – If, April 1954 – PUBLIC DOMAIN |W|SD|ISFDB|COS|OTOC|PDF|

Small Town – Amazing Stories, May 1954 – PUBLIC DOMAIN |SFF|ISFDB|COS|OTOC|PDF|

Survey Team – Fantastic Universe, May 1954 – PUBLIC DOMAIN |ISFDB|COS|PDF|

Sales Pitch – Future Science Fiction, June 1954 |W|ISFDB|COS|TOC|SFF|PDF|

The Turning Wheel – Science Fiction Stories, #2 1954 – PUBLIC DOMAIN |W|SD|ISFDB|COS|OTOC|SFF|PDF|

Time Pawn – Thrilling Wonder Stories, Summer 1954 – LIKELY PUBLIC DOMAIN – NEVER REPRINTED |ISFDB|COS|OTOC|

Breakfast At Twilight – Amazing Stories, July 1954 – PUBLIC DOMAIN |W|SD|ISFDB|COS|OTOC|

The Crawlers – Imagination, July 1954 |W|ISFDB|COS|OTOC|SFF|PDF|

Of Withered Apples – Cosmos Science Fiction and Fantasy Magazine, July 1954 |ISFDB|COS|OTOC|SFF|PDF|

Exhibit Piece – If, August 1954 PUBLIC DOMAIN |W|ISFDB|COS|OTOC|SFF|PDF|

Shell Game – Galaxy Science Fiction, September 1954 – PUBLIC DOMAIN |W|SD|ISFDB|COS|OTOC|SFF|PDF|

Adjustment Team – Orbit, No. 4, September-October 1954 – PUBLIC DOMAIN |W|SD|SFF1|SFF2|ISFDB|COS|OTOC|WIKISOURCE|PDF|

A World Of Talent – Galaxy Science Fiction, October 1954 |W|ISFDB|COS|OTOC|SFF|PDF|

Meddler – Future Science Fiction, October 1954 – PUBLIC DOMAIN |W|SD|ISFDB|COS|OTOC|SFF|PDF|

Souvenir – Fantastic Universe, October 1954 |ISFDB|COS|OTOC|SFF|PDF|

The Last Of The Masters – Orbit, No. 5, November-December 1954 – PUBLIC DOMAIN |W|SD|ISFDB|COS|OTOC|PDF|

Progeny – If, November 1954 – PUBLIC DOMAIN |ISFDB|COS|OTOC|SFF|PDF|

Upon The Dull Earth – Beyond Fantasy Fiction (#9) 1954 – PUBLIC DOMAIN |W|SFF|ISFDB|COS|OTOC|SFF|PDF|

Strange Eden – Imagination, December 1954 |W|ISFDB|COS|OTOC|SFF|PDF|

Foster, You’re Dead – Star Science Fiction Stories No. 3 (1955) – PUBLIC DOMAIN |W|ISFDB|COS|OTOC|SFF|PDF|

Human Is – Startling Stories, Winter 1955 – PUBLIC DOMAIN |W|ISFDB|COS|OTOC|SFF|PDF|

Captive Market – If, April 1955 |ISFDB|COS|OTOC|

The Hood Maker – Imagination, June 1955 |ISFDB|COS|OTOC|

Service Call – Science Fiction Stories, July 1955 |W|ISFDB|COS|

A Surface Raid – Fantastic Universe, July 1955 |ISFDB|COS|OTOC|

To Serve The Master – Imagination, February 1956 |ISFDB|COS|OTOC|

Vulcan’s Hammer – Future Science Fiction, #29 (April 1956) – |ISFDB|COS|OTOC|

Misadjustment – Science Fiction Quarterly, February 1957 |ISFDB|COS|OTOC|

Null-O – If, December 1958 |W|ISFDB|OTOC|

Explorers We – Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction, January 1959 |W|ISFDB|OTOC|

Recall Mechanism – If, July 1959 |W|ISFDB|OTOC|

War Game – Galaxy Magazine, December 1959 |ISFDB|OTOC|

Stand-By – Amazing Stories, October 1963 |ISFDB|COD|OTOC|

The Days of Perky Pat – Amazing Stories, December 1963 |W|ISFDB|COD|

Waterspider – If, January 1964 |ISFDB|COD|OTOC|

Oh To Be A Blobel – Galaxy, February 1964 |ISFDB|COD|OTOC|

Orpheus With Feet Of Clay – unknown issue of Escapade 1963? 1964? under the pseudonym Jack Dowland |ISFDB|

UPDATE:

Here are some scans of various tables of contents and acknowledgement pages that will verify the true first publication dates of some of the works above:

Table of contents for Imagination, July 1954 (includes The Crawlers by Philip K. Dick):

Table of contents for Science Fiction Stories No. 2 1954 (includes Turning Wheel by Philip K. Dick):

Table of contents and copyright page for Orbit Science Fiction No.4 (Sept-Oct 1954) (containing Adjustment Team):
Orbit Science Fiction No.4 Sept-Oct 1954 Table Of Contents

Table of contents for Cosmos Science Fiction And Fantasy, September 1953 (includes The Great C by Philip K. Dick):

Table of contents for Cosmos Science Fiction And Fantasy – July 1954 (includes Of Withered Apples by Philip K. Dick):

Acknowledgements page from I Hope I Shall Arrive Soon:
Acknowledgements page from I Hope I Shall Arrive Soon

Acknowledgements page from Invasion Of The Robots:
Acknowledgements page from Invasion Of The Robots

Acknowledgements page from The Best Of Philip K. Dick:
Acknowledgements page from The Best Of Philip K. Dick

Acknowledgements page from The Golden Man:
Acknowledgements page from The Golden Man

Acknowledgements page from The Preserving Machine:
Acknowledgements page from The Preserving Machine

Acknowledgements page from The Variable Man And Other Stories:
Acknowledgements page from The Variable Man And Other Stories

Acknowledgments page from Other Worlds, Other Times:
Acknowledgments page from Other Worlds, Other Times

Table of contents from Amazing Stories May 1954 (includes Small Town by Philip K. Dick):

Table of contents from Fantastic Universe May 1954 (includes Survey Team by Philip K. Dick):

Table of contents from Fantastic Universe June – July 1953:
Table of Contents - Fantastic Universe, June - July 1953 - Martians Come In Clouds by Philip K. Dick

Table of contents from Future Science Fiction October 1954:

Table of contents from Amazing Stories, August September 1953 (includes The Commuter by Philip K. Dick):

Table of contents from Galaxy Science Fiction January 1953:

Table of contents from Galaxy Science Fiction October 1954:

Table of contents from Galaxy Science Fiction September 1954:

United States Copyright Catalog Entry for Registration Number RE0000190631:

Table of contents for IF, September 1952 (includes The Skull):
Table of contents from If September 1952 (includes The Skull)

Table of contents for IF, March 1955 (includes War Veteran):
Table of contents from IF - March 1955

Table of contents for Imagination July 1953 (includes The Cosmic Poachers):

Table of contents for Science Fiction Adventures Magazine December 1953 (includes The Hanging Stranger):

Table of contents for Science Fiction Adventures Magazine December 1953

Table of contents for Fantastic Universe’s June-July 1953 issue (includes Martians Come In Clouds by Philip K. Dick):

Table of contents for Fantastic Universe's June-July 1953 issue (includes Martians Come In Clouds by Philip K. Dick)

Table of contents for Future Science Fiction’s October 1954 issue (includes Meddler by Philip K. Dick):

Future Science Fiction October 1954 - table of Contents - includes Meddler by Philip K. Dick

Table of contents for the August 1963 Worlds of Tomorrow (includes All We Marsmen by Philip K. Dick – Part 1 of 3):

Worlds Of Tomorrow - August 1963 - Table Of Contents (All We Marsmen by Philip K. Dick - Part 1)

Table of contents for the October 1963 Worlds of Tomorrow (includes All We Marsmen by Philip K. Dick – Part 2 of 3):

Table of contents for the October 1963 Worlds of Tomorrow (includes All We Marsmen by Philip K. Dick - Part 2 of 3):

Table of contents for the December 1963 Worlds of Tomorrow (includes All We Marsmen by Philip K. Dick – Part 3 of 3):

Table of contents for the December 1963 Worlds of Tomorrow (includes All We Marsmen by Philip K. Dick - Part 3 of 3):

Table of contents for the December 1958 issue of Worlds Of If (includes Null-O by Philip K. Dick):

Table of contents for Worlds Of If April 1954 (includes The Golden Man by Philip K. Dick):

Table of contents for Worlds Of If – November 1954 (includes Progeny by Philip K. Dick):

Table of contents for If: Worlds Of Science Fiction – September 1953 (includes The Trouble With Bubbles by Philip K. Dick):

Table of contents for IF: Worlds Of Science Fiction – May 1954 (includes Prominent Author by Philip K. Dick):

Table of contents for Starling Stories Winter 1955 (includes Human Is by Philip K. Dick):

If Worlds Of Science Fiction, April 1955 – Table Of Contents (includes Captive Market by Philip K. Dick):

Fantastic Story Magazine, July 1953 – Table Of Contents (includes The Indefatigable Frog by Philip K. Dick):

Fantastic Universe October-November 1953 – Table Of Contents (includes Planet For Transients by Philip K. Dick and Some Kinds Of Life by Richard Phillipps [aka Philip K. Dick]):
Fantastic Universe October 1953 - Table Of Contents (includes Planet For Transients by Philip K. Dick)

Galaxy Science Fiction, December 1959 – Table Of Contents (Includes War Game by Philip K. Dick):

IF Worlds Of SF August 1954 Table Of Contents (includes Exhibit Piece by Philip K. Dick):

Galaxy Science Fiction November 1955 Table Of Contents (includes Autofac by Philip K. Dick):
Galaxy November 1955 - Table Of Contents - includes Autofac by Philip K. Dick

Galaxy Science Fiction December 1963 (includes If There Were No Benny Cemoli by Philip K. Dick):

Beyond Fantasy Fiction – Table Of Contents – September 1953 (includes The King Of The Elves by Philip K. Dick):
Beyond Fantasy Fiction - Table Of Contents - September 1953 (includes King Of The Elves)

Beyond Fiction Volume 2, Number 3, Issue #9 (1954) – Table Of Contents (includes Upon The Dull Earth by Philip K. Dick):
Beyond Fiction Volume 2 Number 3 Issue 9 - Table Of Contents (includes Upon The Dull Earth)

IF Worlds Of Science Fiction July 1959 – Table Of Contents (includes Recall Mechanism by Philip K. Dick):

Fantastic, February 1964 table of contents (includes Novelty Act by Philip K. Dick):

Fantasy Fiction, August 1953 – Table of contents (includes Out In The Garden by Philip K. Dick):
Fantasy Fiction, August 1953 - Table of contents (includes Out In The Garden by Philip K. Dick)

Startling Stories, Spring 1955 – Table of contents (includes Nanny by Philip K. Dick):

Planet Stories, January 1954 – Table of contents (includes The Crystal Crypt by Philip K. Dick):
Planet Stories, January 1954 - Table of contents (includes The Crystal Crypt by Philip K. Dick)

Planet Stories, September 1952 – Table of contents (includes The Gun by Philip K. Dick):

Star Science Fiction Stories No. 3 (includes Foster You’re Dead by Philip K. Dick):

Fantasy & Science Fiction, February 1953 -Table of contents (includes Roog by Philip K. Dick):

Imagination, December 1953 – Table of contents (includes Project: EARTH by Philip K. Dick):
Imagination, December 1953 - Table of contents (includes Project: EARTH by Philip K. Dick)

Amazing Stories, July 1954 – Table of contents (includes Breakfast At Twilight by Philip K. Dick):
Amazing July 1954 - Table of contents (includes Breakfast At Twilight by Philip K. Dick)

Galaxy, February 1964 – Table of contents (includes Oh To Be A Blobel by Philip K. Dick):
Galaxy, February 1964 - Table of contents (Oh To Be A Blobel by Philip K. Dick)

Orbit, No.2 – Table of contents (includes Tony And The Beetles by Philip K. Dick):
Orbit, No.2, Table of contents (includes Tony And The Beetles by Philip K. Dick)

Galaxy Science Fiction, October 1954 – Table of contents (includes A World Of Talent by Philip K. Dick):

Galaxy Science Fiction, June 1953 – Table of contents (includes Colony by Philip K. Dick):

RE0000562527 – renewals of All We Marsmen, Stand By, What’ll We Do With Ragland Park?, The Days Of Perky Pat, If There Were No Benny Cemoli, Oh To Be A Blobel, Waterspider, and Novelty Act:
RE0000562527 - renewals of All We Marsmen, Stand By, What'll We Do With Ragland Park?, The Days Of Perky Pat, If There Were No Benny Cemoli, Oh To Be A Blobel, Waterspider, and Novelty Act

Planet Stories, July 1952 – Table Of Contents (includes Beyond Lies The Wub by Philip K. Dick):
Planet Stories, July 1952 - Table Of Contents (includes Beyond Lies The Wub by Philip K. Dick)

Imagination, February 1953 – Table Of Contents (includes Piper In The Woods by Philip K. Dick):
Imagination, February 1953 - table of contents (includes Piper In The Woods by Philip K. Dick)

Fantasy & Science Fiction, January 1959 – Table Of Contents (includes Explorers We by Philip K. Dick):

Fantasy & Science Fiction, December 1954 – table of contents (includes The Father-Thing by Philip K. Dick):

Fantasy & Science Fiction, November 1952 – table of contents (includes The Little Movement by Philip K. Dick):

Thrilling Wonder Stories, Summer 1954 – table of contents (includes Time Pawn by Philip K. Dick):

Imaginative Tales, November 1955 – table of contents (includes Psi-Man Heal My Child! by Philip K. Dick):

Fantasy & Science Fiction, June 1953 – table of contents (includes The Preserving Machine by Philip K. Dick):

If, August 1955 – table of contents (includes The Mold Of Yancy by Philip K. Dick):
If, August 1955 - Table Of Contents - (includes The Mold Of Yancy by Philip K. Dick)

If, September 1959 – table of contents (includes Fair Game by Philip K. Dick):
If, September 1959 - table of contents (includes Fair Game by Philip K. Dick)

If, January 1954 – table of contents (includes Waterspider by Philip K. Dick):
If, January 1954 - table of contents (includes Waterspider by Philip K. Dick)

Amazing Stories, November 1963 – table of contents (includes What’ll We Do With Ragland Park? by Philip K. Dick)

Amazing Stories, October 1963 – table of contents (includes Stand-By by Philip K. Dick):

Science Fiction Stories, #1 (1953) – table of contents (includes The Eyes Have It by Philip K. Dick):

Science Fiction Quarterly, February 1957 – table of contents (includes Misadjustment by Philip K. Dick):

Fantasy & Science Fiction, July 1953 – table of contents (includes Expendable by Philip K. Dick):

Startling Stories, January 1954 – table of contents (includes A Present For Pat by Philip K. Dick):

Space Science Fiction, May 1953 – table of contents (includes Second Variety by Philip K. Dick):

Fantastic Universe, January 1954 – table of contents (includes Beyond The Door by Philip K. Dick):

ORBIT Science Fiction No. 5 – Table of contents (includes The Last Of The Masters by Philip K. Dick):
ORBIT Science Fiction No. 5 - Table of contents (includes The Last Of The Masters by Philip K. Dick)

Imagination, January 1953 – table of contents (includes Mr. Spaceship by Philip K. Dick):
Imagination, January 1953 - table of contents (includes Mr. Spaceship by Philip K. Dick)

Space Science Fiction, September 1953 – table of contents (includes The Variable Man by Philip K. Dick):

Imagination, June 1953 – table of contents (includes Paycheck by Philip K. Dick):
Imagination, June 1953 - table of contents (includes Paycheck by Philip K. Dick)

Imagination, December 1954 – table of contents (includes Strange Eden by Philip K. Dick):
Imagination, December 1954 - table of contents (includes Strange Eden by Philip K. Dick)

Imagination, February 1956 – table of contents (includes To Serve The Master by Philip K. Dick):
Imagination, February 1956 - table of contents (includes To Serve The Master by Philip K. Dick)

Imagination, July 1955 – table of contents (includes The Chromium Fence by Philip K. Dick):
Imagination, July 1955 - table of contents (includes The Chromium Fence by Philip K. Dick)

Imagination, June 1955 – table of contents (includes The Hood Maker by Philip K. Dick):
Imagination, June 1955 - table of contents (includes The Hood Maker by Philip K. Dick)

Science Fiction Stories, January 1957 – table of contents (includes The Unreconstructed M by Philip K. Dick):

Imagination, October 1953 – table of contents (includes The Impossible Planet by Philip K. Dick):
Imagination, October 1953 - table of contents (includes The Impossible Planet by Philip K. Dick)

Fantasy Fiction, June 1953 – table of contents (includes The Cookie Lady by Philip K. Dick):
Fantasy Fiction, June 1953 - table of contents (includes The Cookie Lady by Philip K. Dick)

Astounding, June 1953 – table of contents (includes Impostor by Philip K. Dick):
Astounding, June 1953 - table of contents (includes Impostor by Philip K. Dick)

Fantastic Universe, October 1954 – table of contents (includes Souvenir by Philip K. Dick):

Fantastic Universe, July 1955 – table of contents (includes A Surface Raid by Philip K. Dick):

Fantastic Universe, January 1956 – table of contents (includes The Minority Report by Philip K. Dick):

Amazing, December 1953 – January 1954 – table of contents (includes The Builder by Philip K. Dick):
Amazing, December 1953 - January 1954 - table of contents (includes The Builder by Philip K. Dick)

Time To Come edited by August Dereleth (1954) (includes Jon’s World by Philip K. Dick):
Time To Come (1954) - includes Jon's World by Philip K. Dick

Future Science Fiction No. 29 (1956) – table of contents (includes Vulcan’s Hammer by Philip K. Dick):

Satellite Science Fiction, October 1956 – table of contents (includes Pay For The Printer by Philip K. Dick):

Satellite Science Fiction, December 1956 – table of contents (includes A Glass Of Darkness by Philip K. Dick):

Future Science Fiction, June 1954 – table of contents (includes Sales Pitch by Philip K. Dick):

Planet Stories, May 1954 – table of contents (includes James P. Crow by Philip K. Dick):
Planet Stories, May 1954 - table of contents (includes James P. Crow by Philip K. Dick)

Thrilling Wonder Stories, Winter 1954 – table of contents (includes Prize Ship by Philip K. Dick):

Posted by Jesse Willis

Recent Arrivals/Commentary: Blackstone Audio – Anderson, Powers, Matheson, Kress and Heinlein

SFFaudio Recent Arrivals

We all know that old idiom – “don’t judge a book by its cover” – we all know it is a metaphor, that it isn’t supposed to be literal. In fact, to take it literally is to actually misunderstand the point of it.

But books, the literary things that they are, ARE of course pre-judged based on their covers. We decide whether we want to buy, borrow or steal them, rightly or wrongly, because of their covers. Here’s a great set of covers. I judge these covers as actually looking like really good reads based on their covers. The author names being clearly legible help me, the titles and font being legible and clever help me, but it is the images that are the most visceral component of helping me decide which book is to be picked up, and which is to be ignored.

Take this one. This is the kind of cover that makes you say: “That is fucking cool! Lemme see it for a second.” Then you gaze at it for a while, flip it over, read the back and buy it.

Harvest Of Stars
By Poul Anderson; Read by Tom Weiner
15 CDs – Approx. 17.9 Hours [UNABRIDGED]
Publisher: Blackstone Audio
Published: August 1, 2011
ISBN: 9781441788986
Earth lies crushed in the grip of totalitarianism. To save her planet, Kyra Davis is sent on a mission to liberate the last bastion of freedom and to rescue its legendary leader. Her bold adventure will sweep her from Earth’s rebel enclaves to the decadent court of an exotic lunar colony.

I like the cover on this one too. Its creepy and ethereal. The blood and the textual shadow make it look like a ghost or vampire story. Without actually telling me the story it still gives me a real sense of what the book might be like (whether that’s accurate or not). This is an affective cover.

The Stress Of Her Regard
By Tim Powers; Read by Simon Vance
14 CDs – Approx. 16.7 Hours [UNABRIDGED]
Publisher: Blackstone Audio
Published: May 1, 2011
ISBN: 9781441757180
When Michael Crawford discovers his bride brutally murdered in their wedding bed, he is forced to flee not only to prove his innocence but to avoid the deadly embrace of a vampire who has claimed him as her true bridegroom. Joining forces with Byron, Keats, and Shelley in a desperate journey that crisscrosses Europe, Crawford desperately seeks his freedom from this vengeful lover who haunts his dreams and will not rest until she destroys all that he cherishes. Told in the guise of a secret history, this tale of passion and terror brilliantly evokes the nineteenth century. The chilling horror and adventure blend to create a riveting romantic fantasy.

Image and color and font work much better than color and font alone. We get the “shadow on the sun” of the title, along with an actual shadow on the sun (which is maybe a raven or a hawk). I’m not much for abstract, but the boughs in a fiery orange could be fire or leaves or both. It’s much better than just color and font. This cover is both striking and mysterious.

Shadow On The Sun
By Richard Matheson; Read by Mark Bramhall
5 CDs – Approx. 5.6 Hours
Publisher: Blackstone Audio
Published: July 1, 2011
ISBN: 9781441739957
Southwest Arizona, a century ago — An uneasy truce exists between the remote frontier community of Picture City and the neighboring Apaches. That delicate peace is shredded when the bodies of two white men are found hideously mutilated. The angry townspeople are certain the “savages” have broken the treaty, but Billjohn Finley, the local Indian agent, fears that darker, more unholy forces may be at work. There’s a tall, dark stranger in town, who rode in wearing the dead men’s clothes. A stranger who may not be entirely human.

In this case the image is actually a visual allusion to the cover of The Great Gatsby (and other covers). The foreground framing invites us in, as through a doorway, to go down into the valley where lies that city, a mesa metropolis – and all the while the stars above are watching. The only criticism I have here is that while the font is good there is a repeat on the “E” (and the “S”) – that’s slightly distracting.

Steal Across The Sky
By Nancy Kress; Read by Kate Reading
9 CDs – Approx. 10.5 Hours [UNABRIDGED]
Publisher: Blackstone Audio
Published: July 1, 2011
ISBN: 9781441792402
The aliens appeared one day, built a base on the moon, and put an ad on the Internet: “We are an alien race you may call the Atoners. Ten thousand years ago we wronged humanity profoundly. We cannot undo what has been done, but we wish humanity to understand it. Therefore we request twenty-one volunteers to visit seven planets to Witness for us. We will convey each volunteer there and back in complete safety. Volunteers must speak English. Send requests for electronic applications to [email protected].” At first, everyone thought it was a joke. But it wasn’t. This is the story of three of those volunteers and what they found on Kular A and Kular B.

This one feels like it was made quickly (by a skilled artist) mostly out of stock images. The pocket-watch and the radioactive hazard trefoil give you a couple of tips as to the plot (time travel and nuclear war), but there’s also the Sam Browne belt equipped figure (with double braces) walking into what looks like an African Savannah – it all makes you want to open it up and see where that dude is going.

Farnham’s Freehold
By Robert A. Heinlein; Read by Tom Weiner
8 CDs – Approx. 9.3 Hours [UNABRIDGED]
Publisher: Blackstone Audio
Published: June 5, 2011
ISBN: 9781441791702
Hugh Farnham is a practical, self-made man, and when he sees the clouds of nuclear war gathering, he builds a bomb shelter under his house, hoping for peace and preparing for war. But when the apocalypse comes, something happens that he did not expect. A thermonuclear blast tears apart the fabric of time and hurls his shelter into a world with no sign of other human beings. Farnham and his family have barely settled down to the backbreaking business of low-tech survival when they find that they are not alone after all. The same nuclear war that catapaulted Farnham two thousand years into the future has destroyed all civilization in the northern hemisphere, leaving Africans as the dominant surviving people. In the new world order, Farnham and his family, being members of the race that nearly destroyed the world, are fit only to be slaves. After surviving a nuclear war, Farnham has no intention of being anyone’s slave, but the tyrannical power of the Chosen race reaches throughout the world. Even if he manages to escape, where can he run to?

Posted by Jesse Willis

Commentary: The Raven by Edgar Allan Poe

The Raven

The Raven by Edgar Allan Poe – |MP3| (read by Anne Cheng)

ONCE upon a midnight dreary, while I pondered, weak and weary,
Over many a quaint and curious volume of forgotten lore—
While I nodded, nearly napping, suddenly there came a tapping,
As of some one gently rapping, rapping at my chamber door.
“ ’Tis some visitor,” I muttered, “tapping at my chamber door—
Only this and nothing more.”

Ah, distinctly I remember it was in the bleak December,
And each separate dying ember wrought its ghost upon the floor.
Eagerly I wished the morrow;—vainly I had sought to borrow
From my books surcease of sorrow—sorrow for the lost Lenore—
For the rare and radiant maiden whom the angels name Lenore—
Nameless here for evermore.

And the silken sad uncertain rustling of each purple curtain
Thrilled me—filled me with fantastic terrors never felt before;
So that now, to still the beating of my heart, I stood repeating
“ ’Tis some visitor entreating entrance at my chamber door—
Some late visitor entreating entrance at my chamber door;
This it is and nothing more.”

Presently my soul grew stronger; hesitating then no longer,
“Sir,” said I, “or Madam, truly your forgiveness I implore;
But the fact is I was napping, and so gently you came rapping,
And so faintly you came tapping, tapping at my chamber door,
That I scarce was sure I heard you”—here I opened wide the door;—
Darkness there and nothing more.

Deep into that darkness peering, long I stood there wondering, fearing,
Doubting, dreaming dreams no mortals ever dared to dream before;
But the silence was unbroken, and the stillness gave no token,
And the only word there spoken was the whispered word, “Lenore!”
This I whispered, and an echo murmured back the word, “Lenore!”—
Merely this and nothing more.

Back into the chamber turning, all my soul within me burning,
Soon again I heard a tapping something louder than before.
“Surely,” said I, “surely that is something at my window lattice;
Let me see, then, what thereat is, and this mystery explore—
Let my heart be still a moment, and this mystery explore;—
’Tis the wind and nothing more.”

Open here I flung the shutter, when, with many a flirt and flutter,
In there stepped a stately Raven of the saintly days of yore.
Not the least obeisance made he; not a minute stopped or stayed he,
But, with mien of lord or lady, perched above my chamber door—
Perched upon a bust of Pallas just above my chamber door—
Perched, and sat, and nothing more.

Then this ebony bird beguiling my sad fancy into smiling,
By the grave and stern decorum of the countenance it wore,
“Though thy crest be shorn and shaven, thou,” I said, “art sure no craven,
Ghastly grim and ancient Raven wandering from the Nightly shore—
Tell me what thy lordly name is on the Night’s Plutonian shore!”
Quoth the Raven, “Nevermore.”

Much I marvelled this ungainly fowl to hear discourse so plainly,
Though its answer little meaning—little relevancy bore;
For we cannot help agreeing that no living human being
Ever yet was blessed with seeing bird above his chamber door—
Bird or beast upon the sculptured bust above his chamber door,
With such name as “Nevermore.”

But the Raven, sitting lonely on that placid bust, spoke only
That one word, as if his soul in that one word he did outpour.
Nothing further then he uttered; not a feather then he fluttered—
Till I scarcely more than muttered: “Other friends have flown before—
On the morrow he will leave me, as my Hopes have flown before.”
Then the bird said, “Nevermore.”

Startled at the stillness broken by reply so aptly spoken,
“Doubtless,” said I, “what it utters is its only stock and store,
Caught from some unhappy master whom unmerciful Disaster
Followed fast and followed faster till his songs one burden bore—
Till the dirges of his Hope that melancholy burden bore
Of ‘Never—nevermore.’ ”

But the Raven still beguiling all my sad soul into smiling,
Straight I wheeled a cushioned seat in front of bird and bust and door;
Then, upon the velvet sinking, I betook myself to linking
Fancy unto fancy, thinking what this ominous bird of yore—
What this grim, ungainly, ghastly, gaunt, and ominous bird of yore
Meant in croaking “Nevermore.”

This I sat engaged in guessing, but no syllable expressing
To the fowl whose fiery eyes now burned into my bosom’s core;
This and more I sat divining, with my head at ease reclining
On the cushion’s velvet lining that the lamp-light gloated o’er,
But whose velvet violet lining with the lamp-light gloating o’er
She shall press, ah, nevermore!

Then, methought, the air grew denser, perfumed from an unseen censer
Swung by Seraphim whose foot-falls tinkled on the tufted floor.
“Wretch,” I cried, “thy God hath lent thee—by these angels he hath sent thee
Respite—respite and nepenthe from thy memories of Lenore!
Quaff, oh quaff this kind nepenthe and forget this lost Lenore!”
Quoth the Raven, “Nevermore.”

“Prophet!” said I, “thing of evil!—prophet still, if bird or devil!—
Whether Tempter sent, or whether tempest tossed thee here ashore,
Desolate, yet all undaunted, on this desert land enchanted—
On this home by Horror haunted—tell me truly, I implore—
Is there—is there balm in Gilead?—tell me—tell me, I implore!”
Quoth the Raven, “Nevermore.”

“Prophet!” said I, “thing of evil!—prophet still, if bird or devil!
By that Heaven that bends above us—by that God we both adore—
Tell this soul with sorrow laden if, within the distant Aidenn,
It shall clasp a sainted maiden whom the angels name Lenore—
Clasp a rare and radiant maiden whom the angels name Lenore.”
Quoth the Raven, “Nevermore.”

“Be that word our sign of parting, bird or fiend!” I shrieked, upstarting—
“Get thee back into the tempest and the Night’s Plutonian shore!
Leave no black plume as a token of that lie thy soul hath spoken!
Leave my loneliness unbroken!—quit the bust above my door!
Take thy beak from out my heart, and take thy form from off my door!”
Quoth the Raven, “Nevermore.”

And the Raven, never flitting, still is sitting, still is sitting
On the pallid bust of Pallas just above my chamber door;
And his eyes have all the seeming of a demon’s that is dreaming,
And the lamp-light o’er him streaming throws his shadow on the floor;
And my soul from out that shadow that lies floating on the floor
Shall be lifted—nevermore

Upon The Bust Of Pallas - Edouard Manet

Edmund C. Steadman, in the introduction to Gustave Doré’s 1884 illustrated edition of The Raven, argues that while The Raven may not be Edgar Allan Poe’s best work that it is certainty “his representative poem” in part because it deals with his major theme: “the irretrievable loss of an idolized and beautiful woman.” And to my ears it certainly is a “treasure of mankind.” But, because of its length and accessibility, I think it is capable of being appreciated by even the roughest of barbarian hearts.

And why is that?

I’d suggest that the supernatural element, or the ambiguity of such, helps a lot. Ghosts, gods and demons are easy entry points.

Think of it as a more palatable forerunner to paranormal romance. Perhaps this kind of literature is best called “Dark Romanticism.”

From Wikipedia:

Dark Romanticism (often conflated with Gothicism or called American Romanticism) is a literary subgenre. It has been suggested that Dark Romantics present individuals as prone to sin and self-destruction, not as inherently possessing divinity and wisdom. G.R. Thompson describes this disagreement, stating “the Dark Romantics adapted images of anthropomorphized evil in the form of Satan, devils, ghosts, werewolves, vampires, and ghouls.” For these Dark Romantics, the natural world is dark, decaying, and mysterious; when it does reveal truth to man, its revelations are evil and hellish.

Now dark romanticism may just sound like a more literary description of paranormal romance, minus the mention of a myriad of tattoos, but its authors tackled tough subjects like the pointlessness of a loveless existence in a world without an afterlife. In a way that’s an inversion of paranormal romance.

So on that happy note, and bearing in mind the generally accepted saw that “Life is stranger than fiction”, my question for your barbarian heart is slightly different:

Is real life more horrific than fiction?

Poe’s answer in The Raven, I think, is that it is and by a wide margin.

I’m fairly confident that a wholly naturalistic interpretation of why The Raven quoth “nevermore” can be found in the lines (62-65):

“Doubtless,” said I, “what it utters is its only stock and store,
Caught from some unhappy master, whom unmerciful Disaster
Followed fast and followed faster till his songs one burden bore—
Till the dirges of his Hope the melancholy burden bore

And if it is true that the titular raven is not supernaturally prophetic, and its speech no more than mere mimicry, is the message it brings to the unnamed narrator at all lessened by a naturalistic interpretation?

I thought not.

Plutonian Shore - GUSTAVE DORÉ

A Stately Raven Of The Saintly Days Of Yore - GUSTAVE DORÉ

Upon The Bust Of Pallas - GUSTAVE DORÉ

Shall Be Lifted Nevermore - GUSTAVE DORÉ

Classics Illustrated biography of Edgar Allan Poe

[via LibriVox and Gutenberg.org]

Posted by Jesse Willis

The sound of Robert A. Heinlein’s voice

SFFaudio Commentary

Something has been bothering me. It’s been bothering me for years actually.

One commenter, a long time ago, brought it to my attention, wondered if there was a recording of Robert A. Heinlein’s voice out there, somewhere.

I’m thinking Heinlein on tape is just incredibly rare.

I actually have a lot of H.G. Wells’ voice on audio. Why do we have so little Heinlein?

I’ve heard a couple of very brief clips of Heinlein speaking, but honestly they are really just pathetic.

Apparently, Heinlein did commentary during the Apollo 11 landing. I can’t find that online.

Here’s all the online audio of Heinlein that I know about so far:

Robert Heinlein comments on the political motives behind his stories. |Zipped WAV File|

13 Seconds of Robert A. Heinlein speaking about the Apollo 11 moon landing. |Zipped WAV File|

Two sentences of Robert A. Heinlein on Stranger In A Strange Land |FLASH|

Here’s a YouTube biography of RAH (set to the tune of Battlefield 1942):

And while we wait for your replies, (my flimsy excuse), I present the Battlefield 2 intro sequence:

Satellite coming down in 3, 2, 1…

UPDATE:

Check out this wonderful video a 1949 group interview from the set of Destination Moon! Robert A. Heinlein is there, on set, as he served as a technical adviser.

Heinlein appears at about 5 minutes into Part 1. He reappears again, briefly, at the end of Part 3.

Update II:

Robert A. Heinlein’s “This I Believe” |MP3|

[immeasurable thanks to Bill Mullins, Robert, Bill Higgins and CrowTRobot1313]

Posted by Jesse Willis

Commentary: The Stainless Steel Rat audiobooks

SFFaudio Commentary

BRILLIANCE AUDIO - The Stainless Steel Rat SERIES

I’m not a fan of series, normally, but I’m utterly enthralled by this one. More than fifty years in the writing The Stainless Steel Rat series is completely available, for the first time, as series of audiobooks from Brilliance Audio.

James Bolivar diGriz (aka Slippery Jim diGriz) is the protagonist of the series and the titular Stainless Steel Rat of the title. He’s an anti-hero you’ll be wholly in favour of. He’s slick and quick and fast with a quip as he tells his own tale, in first person (past tense), like an adventurer out of some long forgotten future age.

As the first novel, The Stainless Steel Rat |READ OUR REVIEW|, begins diGriz is a low down and completely immaculate criminal, an uncatchable super-thief and con-man who has earned his name for never being caught. But before too long he’s soon baited, corralled, and ensnared by an insidious interstellar agency that’s been tracking the resourceful rodent and means to draft him!

By the end of the first story-arc the reluctant recruit has settled down (and married) the psychopathic arch-criminal that he’d been chasing after. Then, moonlighting on his extended honeymoon (the next couple books), he proceeds to traipse across both time and space as an interstellar (and inter-epoch) troubleshooter.

You’d think it’d be hard for diGriz to play good guy, but this galahad in grey steel still has his fun. In fact, he funds all of his galactic gallivanting by good old fashioned bank robbery! And when not actually in the act of larceny he never fails to luxuriate in the finest of hotels (or the finest cave of his own construction). Soon he’s snuffing out a intragalactic coup-d’etat, getting grief from his honey and back to stealing all of his boss’s finest cigars right before existence ends. Then it is all: ‘Quick give me a copy of your mind, and yours too, and all those weapons there and this equipment there! I’ve got to travel back in time to a planet called “Dirt” to prevent all this nothing from happening.’

Amazingly, the stories just work. The universe which Harry Harrison has created is one in which anything that can be imagined exists. There’s mind wiping, personality reconstruction, sleep gas grenades, mind and memory transfer, immortality, gravity belts, atomic compressor tools, faster than light travel and robots robots robots everywhere! Harrision invents the tech for the Rat to play with but never fully describes it. And so it never seems old-fashioned, becomes all the more plausible and you can just go with the action. The characters are fresh and perky with personality. The plots, which are grandiose but never very central to the immediate action, serve to provide scene after scene of hilarious problem and ingenious solution for the wily Stainless Steel rodent to navigate. The novels aren’t long, and make for great fun between heavier books by the likes of H.G. Wells and Joe Haldeman.

To me, narrator Phil Gigante has become Slippery Jim diGriz. He’s playful, full of accents for all the colourful characters and he pitches every scene just how it should be – fun, funny and fast.

If you’re looking for a series that won’t let you down, you’ve got to try this one. I’m absolutely loving it!

Posted by Jesse Willis

Commentary: Where are all the Ted Chiang audiobooks?

SFFaudio Commentary

Ted Chiang (portrait by Arturo Villarrubia)

Ted Chiang, perhaps the greatest living Science Fiction writer, has very little of his excellent fiction (a dozen stories, novellettes and novellas) available in the audio format. That is a bitter, bitter shame. It is my hope this post will help change that.

Lamentably, no Ted Chiang audiobooks have ever been commercially released. There are, however, several podcast sources for readings and the BBC commissioned an unabridged recording of Understand (which has been occasionally rebroadcast).

Below is a chart detailing all of Ted Chiang’s published fiction.

Audio (YES/NO): – Title: – Original Publication: – MP3: – Audio Publisher: – Notes:

– Tower Of Babylon – Omni, November 1990 – novelette
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– Division By Zero – Full Spectrum 3 (1991) – short story

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– Understand – Isaac Asimov’s Science Fiction Magazine, August 1991 – BBC Radio 7 – occasionally rebroadcast on BBCR7, read by Rashan Stone, novelette

_______________

– Story Of Your Life – Starlight 2, (1998) – novella

_______________

– The Evolution Of Human Science (aka Catching Crumbs From The Table) – Nature, June 1, 2000 – short story

_______________

– Seventy-Two Letters – Vanishing Acts (2000) – novella

_______________

– Hell Is The Absence Of God – Starlight 3 (2001) – |MP3| – Podcastle – read by James Trimarco, bad sound quality, novelette

_______________

– Liking What You See: A Documentary – Stories of Your Life and Others (2002) – novelette

_______________

– What’s Expected Of Us – Nature, July 5, 2005 – |MP3| – StarShip Sofa – read by Julie Davis, short story

_______________

– The Merchant And The Alchemist’s Gate – Subterranean Press (2007) – StarShip Sofa – |MP3| – read by J.J. Campanella, novelette

_______________

– Exhalation – Eclipse 2, 2008 – |MP3| or |MP3| – StarShip Sofa / Escape Pod – read by Ray Sizemore, short story

_______________

– The Lifecycle of Software Objects – Subterranean Press (2010) – novella

_______________

Posted by Jesse Willis