December 2009

–e*I*47– (Vol. 8 No. 6) December 2009, is published and © 2009 by Earl Kemp. All rights reserved.
It is produced and distributed bi-monthly through http://efanzines.com by Bill Burns in an e-edition only.

Contents – eI47 – December 2009

…Return to sender, address unknown….37 [eI letter column], by Earl Kemp

Anthem Series Part V: Gnome Press, by Earl Terry Kemp

Back cover: “The First Furball,” by Ditmar [Martin James Ditmar Jenssen]

I can have oodles of charm when I want to.
              --Kurt Vonnegut

In the strictly science fiction world, it is also in memory of Rob Holdstock and Ed Valigursky.

#

As always, everything in this issue of eI beneath my byline is part of my in-progress rough-draft memoirs. As such, I would appreciate any corrections, revisions, extensions, anecdotes, photographs, jpegs, or what have you sent to me at earlkemp@citlink.net and thank you in advance for all your help.

Bill Burns is jefe around here. If it wasn’t for him, nothing would get done. He inspires activity. He deserves some really great rewards. It is a privilege and a pleasure to have him working with me to make eI whatever it is.

Other than Bill Burns, Dave Locke, and Robert Lichtman, these are the people who made this issue of eI possible: Jacques Hamon and Earl Terry Kemp.

ARTWORK: This issue of eI features original artwork by Steve Stiles, and Ditmar, and recycled artwork by William Rotsler.

OF HIS back cover in this issue, Ditmar says: “The first furball” depicts a dinosaur hacking up the ancestral, original, furball. Now, the present-day descendants of dinosaurs are birds. Cats eat birds. So, by Darwinian evolution, with a sprinkling of Lamarckianism, both bound together in irrefutable Dalinian logic, we have the explanation of why cats cough up furballs.

Charm was a scheme for making strangers like and trust a person immediately, no matter what the charmer had in mind.
              --Kurt Vonnegut

By Earl Kemp

We get letters. Some parts of some of them are printable. Your letter of comment is most wanted via email to earlkemp@citlink.net or by snail mail to P.O. Box 6642, Kingman, AZ 86402-6642 and thank you.

Also, please note, I observe DNQs and make arbitrary and capricious deletions from these letters in order to remain on topic.

This is the official Letter Column of eI, and following are a few quotes from a few of those letters concerning the last issue of eI. All this in an effort to get you to write letters of comment to eI so you can look for them when they appear here.

Saturday October 24, 2009:

Lloyd Penney:  Robert Silverberg’s letter…I spoke with Dave Kyle as well. It was at the Hugos rehearsal, and Yvonne and I were standing, waiting our turn, and Dave was sitting, with a few extra chairs. He bade us sit with him, and Cantor-style smartass that I am, I asked if we were allowed. Dave rolled his eyes, and I said, “You know that will probably follow you the rest of your days.” “And probably longer,” he sagely replied. Yvonne says he told him he couldn’t sit down during the Hugos as well.

In my loc, I comment on seeing Fritz Leiber at a convention in London, Ontario, his last one, I believe. That same convention the year earlier, Robert Bloch was the guest. I’ve never been a horror reader, so what did we talk about? Fanzines. Our conversation only took about five minutes out of his busy day (the convention kept him hopping), but we had a cordial discussion. We also were in charge of a charity auction to raise funds for George Alec Effinger’s mountainous doctor’s bills, and got, as you might expect, a shower curtain signed by the superb Bloch.

It looks like soon, there will be some kind of John Carter of Mars project produced by Disney/Pixar or Paramount, depending on licensing and legalities. Would it be time for the ERB estate to re-issue the full works of a man the world is forgetting, forgetting that he was the creator of Tarzan and John Carter? I wish the world cared enough for this to happen.

Greetings to Dick Lupoff…a couple of weeks ago, I made my usual foray to a used bookstore to see what was SFnal and inexpensive, and I have, on occasion, found treasures. I picked up a copy of Sandworld, and enjoyed it, and it is an autographed copy, too. If you ever wonder how far afield your books go…

Is Ian Young the Canadian grand old man of American gay fiction? I have a number of connections with the local GLBT fannish community; I’m sure they might like to get in touch with Young, if indeed that’s him. So many names were mentioned in that article on gay fiction, I wasn’t sure it was he being referred to.

I remember the intimations of gay relations between characters like Holmes and Watson, and even after the great Lord of the Rings movies, of Frodo and Sam. I have never thought of any vague sexual relationship between these two literary pairs, but knew that the idea of a close male friend seems to be a British one, and I believe that many men secretly wish they had one, any kind of close friend they could spill their hearts to. Many women enjoy this, and I also believe that some men are a little jealous. Great articles on gay fiction and its gradual acceptance in SF and other genres. This has culminated in the annual Gaylaxicon, which this year was held a couple of weeks ago in Minneapolis. It’s been held in Toronto in the past, and will be held in Montréal in 2010 or 2011. Yvonne and I worked the Toronto Gaylaxicon.

Thank you, Earl, for more insights. It’s always interesting and fun to read. Keep them coming, please.

Saturday October 31, 2009:

Robert Lichtman:  I haven’t had time yet to read all of the October eI, but in paging through my printed copy I did pause at Dick Lupoff’s “Bartender, A Case of Reynolds for My Pal!”—a most enjoyable article about how Dick’s Surinam Turtle Press happens to have reissued Mack’s The Case of the Little Green Men after Fender Tucker spotted the original 1951 Phoenix Press hardcover on Dick’s bookshelves during a visit.  However, it contains one dimly glaring error in this paragraph:

Here’s a clue for practitioners of the Higher Criticism. The First World Science Fiction Convention took place in New York City in 1939 in conjunction with the World’s Fair of that year. The convention in The Case of the Little Green Men is called the Annicon, and if I read correctly, it is so named because it takes place on the tenth anniversary of the first Worldcon. Exercising my limited mathematical talents, that would place the Annicon in 1949. The actual Worldcon of that year was the Cinvention, located in Cincinnati. Which dovetails nicely with a book published in 1951.

Actually, the convention in the book is called the “AnnCon,” and as Jim Maddigan explains in an explanation to Police Lieutenant Davis:

“The tenth anniversary of the first World Science Fiction Convention is to be held here in this city in a few days, Lieutenant.  We call it the AnnCon, as an abbreviation of Anniversary Convention.  The Eighth Convention, held in the Northwest, was called the NorWesCon; the one in New Orleans, Louisiana, was the NolaCon, and…”

Chalk it up to sloppy writing and math on Reynolds’ part.  Dick is right that the tenth anniversary in years of the first worldcon took place in 1949, but that was the seventh worldcon because there were none in 1942-45, the WW2 years.  Since Maddigan mentions the NolaCon, which was held in 1951, it’s clear that the Annicon (and by default the time frame of the novel) is being held in 1952. This makes the book not only a mystery, but a “near future” SF novel.

That year’s worldcon was held in Chicago and has been referred to in these latter days as ChiCon II.  However, at the time it was held it was known as the Tenth Annual World Science Fiction Convention, or TASFIC.  I suspect Reynolds may have seen references to the 1952 worldcon under this name and somehow conflated years and anniversaries. And it was somewhat of a stretch on the part of the convention committee to call it the “Tenth Annual,” after all.

But this is a minor cavil in an excellent article, which prods me to get a copy of the Surinam Turtle Press edition of the novel so I can have Earl’s and Emil’s contributions there, not to overlook Steve Leialoha’s wonderful cover. 

Life happens too fast for you ever to think about it. If you could just persuade people of this, but they insist on amassing information.
              --Kurt Vonnegut

The Anthem Series: Part V: Gnome Press

 by Earl Terry Kemp

This is the fifth installment in the Anthem Series project. The first part, Fantasy Press, appeared in eI27 (August 2006) and eI28 (October 2006). The third part, including: Prime Press, Avalon Company, and Chamberlain Press, appeared in eI42 (February 2009). The fourth part, including: Shasta Publishers, and Gorgon Press, appeared in eI33 (August 2007). The sixth part, including: Arkham House, and Mycroft & Moran, appeared in eI44 (June 2009) and eI45 (August 2009).

Interlude:

By Way of a Foreword:

Brace yourself! You’re in for an unexpected treat. If you don’t know about this press and publisher, then you are in for a rare and delightful experience. These works cover the complete range of speculative fiction, from fantastic adventures to the future history of mankind.

Not to mention the fact that the sword-and-sorcery craze began here.

From Fletcher Pratt and L. Sprague de Camp’s wacky fictional trips into the various dimensions of literature as a possible real world, to Robert A. Heinlein’s no-nonsense immortal, and possibly the most famous fictional character ever created, Lazarus Long. These are adventures worth reading.

If pure fantasy or science fiction isn’t enough, try one of the Conan titles, and see Robert Howard’s hero blaze a path of glory in a mythical world before history began. Or perhaps, it’s the short story that interests you. Here you’ll find the best of the long forgotten pulp era, reprinted to entertain a post-WWII generation, only to find and create an enduring legacy in countless generations not yet born.

Whether it’s space opera, or the foundation of galactic empires, or even singing robots, you will read it here, possibly the very best, and most complete range of subjects ever attempted by any publisher.

From small furry alien Teddy Bears, to seductive vampires, it’s all here. So, strap yourself into your favorite, most comfortable chair, and be prepared for the adventure of a lifetime… 

Gnome Press
1948—1962  

Gnome Press was an American small-press publishing company primarily known for publishing many science fiction classics. The publishers intended to specialize in light space opera and whimsical fantasy but ended up publishing blood-and-thunder fantasy and minor works by major names. The company was originally based in Hicksville, New York, and later moved to New York City.

Gnome Press was the first to publish Isaac Asimov’s Foundation Trilogy, which won Asimov a Hugo award in 1966. They brought Robert E. Howard’s Conan the Barbarian stories back from pulp obscurity. They also published many of Robert A. Heinlein’s classics, and the beloved Children of the Atom, by Wilmar Shiras, a novel that is considered to be one of the most influential science fiction books of the century.

Gnome Press published I, Robot, by Isaac Asimov, as their ninth book. It was published in an edition of 5,000 copies, with a special run of 1,000 copies as an armed services paperback. This edition was a far more attractive book to collectors than Isaac Asimov’s first published novel, Pebble in the Sky (Doubleday), and helped to establish their reputation.

Noted science fiction writer Andre Norton worked as a reader for Gnome Press from 1950 until 1958 after leaving her position at the Cleveland Library. She began writing the “Star Trader” series during her time with Gnome. Norton wrote her first science fiction novel, Star Man’s Son, 2250 A.D., as well as an additional twenty-two other novels, before leaving.

Gnome chose Sixth Column as their first Robert Heinlein title—a story that had first appeared in Astounding in 1941. Though neither one of Robert Heinlein’s favorites nor one of his most memorable books, Gnome chose to publish it in an edition of 5,000 copies so it is still relatively easy to find.

Robert Heinlein’s popular early novel Methuselah’s Children finally appeared as a book when it was published by Gnome Press in 1958. This is a difficult book to identify as a first edition because it was reprinted the following year with no noticeable changes. To further complicate the matter, the first edition had two variant bindings, but it is generally thought that those books in black boards came first. Collectors may wish to check the dust-wrapper as later printings had Gnome’s New York City address removed.

After leaving the army in 1945, Martin L. Greenberg was associated with the small press publisher New Collector’s Group founded by Paul Dennis O’Connor and Hannes Bok. Greenberg and O’Connor clashed in late 1947, early 1948, about the direction of the press causing Greenberg to leave, taking the rights to The Carnelian Cube, by L. Sprague de Camp and Fletcher Pratt, as his buyout fee.

In 1948, Greenberg founded Gnome Press with David A. Kyle, a fellow member of The Hydra Club, a New York based science fiction club. Many of Gnome’s titles were reprinted in England by Boardman Books. In 1950, they incorporated with the pair as sole stockholders. The stock secured as security for loans to continue to finance the operation, and subsequently led to the downfall of this imprint.

The Hydra Club brought Greenberg and Kyle together to become book publishers. Kyle put up the money (his Air Corps savings) and used his family’s printing shop while Greenberg supplied the contacts and the salesmanship. Hydra members gave them the necessary encouragement. Late in 1949, Greenberg started drawing a very modest Gnome salary while Kyle worked for free because Greenberg had a family and Kyle did not.

The Carnelian Cube was the first book published by the new press. Greenberg edited a number of themed anthologies for Gnome Press. Whereas a number of anthologies had already appeared, it was Greenberg with his efforts, and Gnome, who single-handedly created the genre. Ultimately, Gnome Press was not successful and went out of business in 1962. Greenberg struggled alone for years with Gnome Press when Kyle went north to work on his father’s radio station in 1954, and Greenberg eventually declared bankruptcy. Greenberg’s problems of non-payments with everyone, with the resulting bad feelings and lawsuits, caused him to drop out of fandom for four decades.

Kyle’s best-known contribution was the map of the Hyborean Age, appearing first as endpapers in Conan the Conqueror. Often reprinted since, it is interesting to note that some of the reprints of this map bear Kyle’s name while others delete it. Kyle participated in the publication of all books up to and including Colonial Survey before leaving total control in Greenberg’s hands.

The first, and most noteworthy, of three assistants hired by Greenberg was Algis Budrys, who began working for Gnome in the fall of 1952, leaving that winter to join the staff at Galaxy as assistant editor.

Gnome Press, under Greenberg’s ownership, was notorious for not paying their writers royalties due. Asimov claimed he never saw a dime from the publication of the Foundation books, and called Greenberg “an outright crook.” Asimov became so vexed by the unpaid royalties that he reclaimed the rights and later resold them to a major publisher, Doubleday, for $750,000.

Greenberg went on to work as a mainstream editor for Abelard-Schuman. Later he ran an art supply store in Long Island before retiring. In 2000, he was awarded a First Fandom Hall of Fame award.

Controversy still surrounds the Gnome Press editions of Robert E. Howard’s “Conan” stories as well. The Gnome Press editions placed the material in print for the first time since its original appearance in Weird Tales, but also included one volume not written by Howard (The Return of Conan) and one volume of non-Conan Howard stories extensively rewritten as Conan by science fiction writer L. Sprague de Camp (Tales of Conan).

In the mid 1950’s, L. Sprague de Camp was hired by Gnome Press in order to edit the Conan tales. But he did not just “edit” the stories. He rewrote finished typescripts, censored some others, re-wrote Howard stories featuring entirely different characters and settings into Conan tales, and made ghastly mistakes when he edited what he thought were Howard’s mistakes.

The most sought after Gnome hardback is probably Science Fiction Terror Tales, edited by Groff Conklin. Some of the most prized first editions in science fiction collecting are Gnome Press titles, including Asimov’s Foundation novels and I, Robot; Clifford Simak’s City; and Arthur C. Clarke’s Against the Fall of Night. While not rising to the same level of value as these, it is generally acknowledged that Science Fiction Terror Tales is the least common Gnome Press title.

As the end of Gnome Press approached, Greenberg shifted to using a very cheap grade of ground wood pulp paper, which had a direct impact on his sales by making the books less attractive to readers. Finally, he approached Lloyd Arthur Eshbach, who was then manager of Church Center Press, and two further titles were printed before lack of payment terminated their business relationship. In both cases Eshbach also printed copies under his Fantasy Press imprint, thereby creating further variants of both The Vortex Blaster, and Invaders from the Infinite.

Edition sizes are educated estimates based on relative scarcity and the figures on a few books. At the onset of operations, Greenberg conceived of the Fantasy Book Club. Conceived primarily to sell Gnome Press books, it used selections from other publishers as well, offered at incredible discounts and thus further undermining various other fledgling specialty imprints. Greenberg also launched a mail-order mass-market division, Pick-A-Book, as a successor to the Fantasy Book Club, offering the Gnome backlist at a discount. He also acquired a limited number of unbound sheets of several titles from Fantasy Press and FPCI, binding some with the Gnome imprint on the cover. When Gnome Press went out of business stored bound copies were resold by F&SF Book Company at the original cover prices. Unbound sheets surfaced for nearly a decade.

(Note: Gnome Press reprinted Gray Lensman directly from the Fantasy Press edition, including the “First Edition” statement, even though it is a reprint edition, making it one of the most notoriously tricky titles for collectors of science fiction first editions.)

Gnome Press also issued calendars for the years 1949-1952, printing approximately 10,000 of each; all of these contained both original art and illustrations from the books by major artists. Julie Unger of FFF sold many of them as art folios. Gnome also produced two issues of The Fantasy Book Club Bulletin, edited by Kyle, in 1948, until Kenneth J. Krueger informed them that he had already registered the name. (Vol. 1, No. 1, November-December 1948, 8 pages, 5.5 x 8.5) They also produced six issues of a newsletter from 1955-1957, edited by Wilson Tucker and Robert Bloch, The Science-Fiction World, which included promos of Gnome books, interviews, and art. This reader has seen the set once, before trading it to science fiction writer and collector, Robert Weinberg.

Gnome Press: The Ephemera

A. 
Greenberg, Martin (editor)
Gnome Calendar 1949
Gnome Press; New York, NY  1948
Thirteen sheets, single-sided. Ephemera.

***Advertising calendar published 1949 through 1952. Included are 6 illustrations by Hannes Bok, 5 by Edd Cartier, and 1 by Frank Paul.***A rare item.

B. 
Greenberg, Martin (editor)
Gnome Calendar 1950
Gnome Press; New York, NY  1949
Thirteen sheets, single-sided. Ephemera.

***Advertising calendar published 1949 through 1952. Included are 5 illustrations by Hannes Bok, 5 by Edd Cartier, and 2 by Frank Paul. ***A rare item.

Sample Gnome Press catalog from 1950

C. 
Greenberg, Martin (editor)
Advertising Flyer Spring 1950
Gnome Press; New York, NY  1950
Single-sheet. Ephemera.

***Advertising flyer published after their first thirty-seven books. Highlighting the recent release of Men Against the Stars. ***A rare item.

D. 
Greenberg, Martin (editor)
Advertising Flyer Spring 1953
Gnome Press; New York, NY  1953
Single-sheet. Ephemera.

***Advertising flyer published after their first thirty-seven books. Highlighting the recent release of Against the Fall of Night. ***A rare item.

Gnome PressPresents; The Science-Fiction WORLD, Vol. 1, No. 1, August 1955 Scans courtesy Robert Weinberg Collection.

E. 
Bloch, Robert and Wilson Tucker (editors)
The Science-Fiction WORLD
Vol. 1, No. 1
Gnome Press; New York, NY  August 1955 4 pages .10¢
Single-sheet. Ephemera.

***Four-page newsletter. 9”x12” ***[a] “A Statement from Your Editors,” by Robert Bloch and Wilson Tucker. The plan for The Science-Fiction WORLD is not to replace fanzines, but to increase readership by being available through mass distribution to bookstores. [b] “Coming Attractions,” edited by Martin Greenberg. An advertisement for this upcoming titles. [c] “Last Minute Lowdown on World Science Fiction Convention.” Written as a newspaper article, dated August 20. It promotes the 13th World Science-Fiction Convention in Cleveland over the Labor Day weekend. It includes a short, but fabulous list of noted authors in attendance, from E.E. Smith to Frank Robinson. A brief mention of the Guest of Honor, Isaac Asimov. [d] “Help Wanted.” Two very humorous want ads, one for a four-headed girl to model hats, and the other for a two-headed man to drive a bus. [e] “Conventional Ending” (Future, October 1954) by Theodore R. Cogswell. Written as a series of brief letters. The first pitches Scott Meredith, the literary agent, with a story idea. He resounds, offering a colossal sum of money to place it in the upcoming October issue of Future. But troubles ensue, Ted and Gordon Dickson have completed their two-thirds, but Poul Anderson is stuck for the ending. The story revolves around a Martian group mind absorbing the minds of all the major writers attending the upcoming World Convention. Eventually, only Cogswell is left to work on the short story, and at each pass, the financial offer has diminished. But as a final note, the three writers are looking forward to a moment alone with Meredith, just like their Martian group mind needed... [f] “Editorial”: The Unconventional Approach, by Robert Bloch and Wilson Tucker. A funny, nearly tongue-in-cheek, review of the history of the science fiction convention from its original inception in 1939. What seems to have started as a fan endeavor has unexpectedly grown since World War II into a major affair. The topics reviewed are: Are conventions big money deals? No. Should Professionals underwrite the cost? No, they usually lose money. Should Professionals quit hogging the act and give conventions back to the fans? No, pros are good, fans always complain. Do conventions need management? Yes, but it isn’t financially or physically possible due to the rotating nature of the event and the fact that fans usually manage them. In conclusion, the fans role is to enjoy whatever the pros do. [g] “Fandom at Random.” A brief news-type article about Arthur C. Clarke in Australia, skindiving. Robert Heinlein and wife back from a world cruise. Mack Reynolds living in Spain, next stop, the moon. Alfred Bester’s book The Demolished Man is the current selection of the Science Fiction Book Club. [h] “Series Slated for Amazing.” News article mentioning that Amazing Stories will begin publishing on a monthly schedule in January, and include series. [i] “Shaw to Edit SF.” Larry Shaw will be the editor for the new digest, Infinity Science Fiction, scheduled for first release circa September 15. [j] “Writer’s Cramps.” Frank M. Robinson has sold his first science fiction novel, The Power. Damon Knight is working on his next novel, the first was Hell’s Pavement. Bob Silverberg is working on his second novel, his first juvenile was published by Crowell this summer. Wilson Tucker’s eleventh book, Time Bomb, was published in August. [k] “Fan Publications Recently Received.” Grue #23, by Dean A. Grennell, and Skyhook #23, by Redd Boggs. [l] “Reader’s Digestion”: Books in Review. A glowing review of Reprieve from Paradise by H. Chandler Elliott (Gnome Press). It extols the virtues of the writer, comparing him to Olaf Stapledon. ***It is an incredible review considering the book (which see). A second, shorter, review follows for Anthony Boucher’s Far and Away. In this review Boucher is considered as no less than “the Leonardo da Vinci of the science fiction field.” ***It is clear from the review that the book was not read. [m] “!Attention!” Space Detectives! Reward! A reward of two (!) Gnome books offered to the person who can identify the following quote from one of their in print titles: “But whatever devious course your future history may take, impress it always upon your descendants that the path has been marked out, and that at its end is a new and greater Empire!” ***This quote is not identified in the next newsletter. [n] “Advertisement.” Three upcoming Gnome books listed for sale, with a short sales blurb for each This Fortress World, by James E. Gunn (September), Tales of Conan, by Robert E. Howard and L. Sprague de Camp (October), and Undersea Fleet, by Frederik Pohl and Jack Williamson (November). ***An extremely rare item.

Gnome PressPresents; The Science-Fiction WORLD, Vol. 1, No. 2, February 1956 Scans courtesy Robert Weinberg Collection

F. 
Bloch, Robert and Wilson Tucker (editors)
The Science-Fiction WORLD
Vol. 1, No. 2
Gnome Press; New York, NY  February 1956 4 pages .10¢
Single-sheet. Ephemera.

***Four-page newsletter. 9”x12” ***[a] “Arthur C. Clarke to be Guest of Honor.” News article confirming the Clarke will be the Guest of Honor for the 14th World Science Fiction Convention in New York. An amusing mention of Olga Ley, Willy Ley’s wife, a former ballerina, and constant winner for best costume at the annual Masquerade Ball. The article concludes with a pitch to attend the event. [b] “Judith Merril Signs with Gnome.” The first mention of what would become her signature work, the SF: The Year’s Best. ***This particular volume, her first, has become a highly sought after, and rare collectible. [c]“Editor Changes Sex of Imagination.” Changes for “Pandora’s Box,” the fanzine review column in Imagination, the William Hamling science fiction magazine, which was edited by Mari Wolf, wife of Rog Phillips (my godfather), who wrote “The Clubhouse” fanzine review for several years in Amazing Stories. Robert Bloch replaced Mari Wolf, gloating “Imagine being able to denounce fanzines at will, and get paid for doing it!” [d] “And in the Midwest.” A brief paragraph mentioning Cincinnati, as the site for the 7th annual Midwescon. [e] “!Attention! Space Detectives! Reward!” A reward of two (!) Gnome books offered to the person who can identify the following quote from one of their in print titles: “Slowly he made his way along the Zodiac, wondering how many other men in history had so far shared this experience. (Soon, of course, it would be common enough, and the magic would be dimmed by familiarity). Presently he found Jupiter, and later Saturn—or so he imagined. The planets could no longer be distinguished from the stars by the steady, unwinking light that was such a useful, though sometimes treacherous guide to amateur astronomers.” ***Sands of Mars by Arthur C. Clarke. [f] “Belated Report on 13th World Science Fiction Convention.” Written six months after the convention on Labor Day weekend in 1955. Mention of the speeches and appearances of several notable writers. The “sleeper” in the program as the Professional Skit, written and enacted by Sam Moskowitz, Fritz Leiber, Randy Garret, Mildred Clingerman, Anthony Boucher, Robert Bloch, and Judith Merril—who prepared the original scenario, acted as narrator, and played several roles. Ken and Pamela Bulmer as the TAFF British guests. And a first convention appearance by damon knight, who made a “particularly vivid impression.” [g] “Open for Business.” (Preview Editorial from the April Issue of Galaxy), by H.L. Gold. A long, somewhat dry attempt to discuss the limits on alien intelligence by size and type. ***Not really in keeping with the usual witty and humorous writing of the two newsletter editors. [h] “Fan Publications Recently Received.” EISFA #18, by Buck and Juanita Coulson, STF-IN-GEN #1, by Jerry DeMuth, Brillig #2, by Larry Bourne, Tacitum #6, by Benny Sodek, Science Fiction Review #22, by Richard Geis, Oblique #5, by Clifford Gould, Vagabond #2, by John W. Murdock, Wendigo #9, by Georgina Ellis, Umbra #10, by John Hitchcock, A Bas #20, by Boyd Raeburn, Confab #10, by Bob Peatrowsky, Inside #12, by Ron Smith. OVERSEAS: “Etherline” #59 by Ian Crozier (Australia), Hyphen #15, by Walter Willis (Ireland), “Phantasmagoria” #1, by Derek Pickles (England), Camber #5, by Alan Dodd (England). ***The brief comments do not really do justice to many of this priceless fanzines and commentaries on a now long gone era. [i] “Rotary Mole,” by Edd Cartier. Illustration from Interplanetary Hunter (Gnome Press (which see)). [j] “The Transatlantic Fun Club.” Announcing the ballot for a trip to England to attend the Easter convention. Nominees include: Forrest Ackerman, David Kyle, Kent Corey, Wally Weber, Lou Tabakow, Hal Shapiro, Gertrude Carr, and Lee Hoffman. [k] “Writer’s Cramps.” A mention of “A Likely Story” by Damon Knight in the February issue of Infinity, in which the “Medusa Club” bears a striking similarity to the actual Hydra Club of New York. Frank Robinson has joined Family Weekly as an associate editor. Of note: Damon Knight, Judith Merril, and James Blish are setting up tentative plans for a science fiction writer’s conference to be held next summer in Milford, Pennsylvania. ***They succeeded beyond their wildest dreams. ***The appearance of the annual Hugo Gernsback “Christmas card.” This 32-page miniature magazine features art by Frank Paul, as well as numerous futuristic articles and stories. ***An incredibly rare piece of ephermera. ***Mack Reynolds is junketing through Africa. ***Lloyd Eshbach is disposing of his entire personal collection of science fiction and fantasy. (This in a feeble attempt to keep Fantasy Press solvent, which failed to prevent its subsequent bankruptcy.) [l] “The Shovel Mouth,” by Edd Cartier. Illustration from Interplanetary Hunter (Gnome Press (which see)). [m] “The Wages of Cinema.” A list of contemporary science fiction movies. Of note is MGM studios advertising method to promote Forbidden Planet. They plan to distribute several million free tickets, for those twelve and under, inserted in breakfast oatmeal cereal food boxes. ***Those were the days! Breakfast and a movie! [n] “Upswing.” A brief whimsy citing the upward trend in the sales of science fiction magazines to the government announcement of the forthcoming space satellite. [o] “Conan Club Formed.” The formation on January 15th of The Hyborean Legion by a group of notables. Martin Greenberg as “King of Acquilonia.” Oswald Train as “Royal Sorcerer.” L. Sprague de Camp as “Royal Chronicler.” [p] “Foreign Aid.” Announcing that the State Department has refused to ship powdered oxygen to Mars since the planet has failed to file the appropriate paperwork. [q] “Murris: Pseudo-Simia Murris,” by Edd Cartier. Illustration from Interplanetary Hunter (Gnome Press (which see)). [r] “Personal Ads.” Help wanted: Six-armed Martian girl for stenography. For Sale: Used spaceship in good condition. Help Wanted: Two-headed Venusian to baby-sit twins. Uranium Piles? Try ours. To Whom It May Concern: YNGVI is certified as not being a louse. For Sale: Quatt Wunkcry (!?!) Special Notice: Saturnian Hornet seeks female Andromedan Wasp. [s] “Reader’s Digestion. Books in Review”: A Town is Drowning by Frederick Pohl and C.M. Kornbluth. ***Not science fiction, but recommended. ***No Boundaries by Henry Kuttner and C.L. Moore. ***The Girls from Planet 5 by Richard Wilson. Wilson is compared to Thorne Smith. [t] “Shaggie: Apod Shagius,” by Edd Cartier. Illustration from Interplanetary Hunter (Gnome Press (which see)). [u] “In Chicago.” The University of Chicago Science Fiction announces its new series of meetings beginning in January to be held at Ida Noyes Hall. For further information contact: George Price. ***Earl Kemp, my father, was the President of the club at this time. [v] “Advertisement.” Six upcoming Gnome books listed for sale, with a short sales blurb for each: Plague Ship, by Andre North (Andre Norton) (January 20th), Interplanetary Hunter, by Arthur K. Barnes (February 20th), Highways in Hiding, by George O. Smith (March 20th), Coming Attractions, edited by Martin Greenberg (April 20th), SF: The Year’s Greatest Short Science & Fantasy, edited by Judith Merril (May 20th), and Undersea Fleet, by Frederik Pohl and Jack Williamson (June 20th). ***An extremely rare item. (Please note mailing label to Earl Kemp!)

Gnome PressPresents; The Science-Fiction WORLD, Vol. 1, No. 3, August 1956 Scans courtesy Robert Weinberg Collection

G. 
Bloch, Robert and Wilson Tucker (editors)
The Science-Fiction WORLD
Vol. 1, No. 3
Gnome Press; New York, NY  August 1956 4 pages .10¢
Single-sheet. Ephemera.

***Four-page newsletter. 9”x12” ***[a] 14th World Science Fiction Convention Bulletin Released.” Announcing the release of the second progress report titled The Journal of the World Science Fiction Society. It includes an appreciation of Guest of Honor Arthur C. Clarke by James Blish. They anticipate 1,000-2,000 in attendance. [b] “Can-Fan Lands in Can.” Canadian science fiction fan and reader sentenced to ten days in jail for failing to return five library books borrowed a year ago. ***The editors sagely suggest “buy don’t borrow.” [c] “News of the Future…Today!”  By special arrangement with Miskatonic University, the editors used the first fully-developed time machine to gather news items from the future: APRIL 1, 1981: The United Nations Interplanetary Commission announced the first base on Mars, Marsport, housing 8 men and 2 pet guinea pigs. ***Hollywood correspondent, Forrest J Ackerman announces first 4-D Telefilm will remake Donovan’s Brain. ***Harlan Ellison is readying third issue of his magazine, Dimensions. ***Sam Moskowitz denounces modern science fiction for abandoning “sense of wonder.” APRIL 1, 2004: Marsport announces ten million per cent increase in population, now housing 14 men and 20,000,000 guinea pigs. ***According to Forrest J Ackerman, 5-D Telefilms will soon produce the long-anticipated remake of Donovan’s Brain. ***The same firm is negotiating with Seventeenth Fandom leader Harlan Ellison for rights to screen material from his third issue of Dimensions, which will appear shortly. The project was denounced by Sam Moskowitz because it ignores a “sense of wonder.” ***APRIL 1, 2029: Eight billion members of United Guinea Pigs of the Universe gathered at Marsport to celebrate the colonization of the galaxy. Several human pets were honored, Harlan Ellison, publisher of the first two issues of Dimensions, and Sam Moskowitz, who spoke about the old days which contained a “sense of wonder.” The featured attraction, a remake of Donovan’s Brain by 8-D Telefilms was cancelled, but Hollywood agent, Forrest J Ackerman hopes it will be ready by 2056. ***This “news article” represents the very best in these newsletters. A real hoot. [d] “Rebels Convene in North Carolina.” A recent dispatch from the Confederate States of American about the 2nd annual South-eastern Science Fiction Conference held in Charlotte, North Carolina. D-mn Y-nk, Dr. C.L. Barrett, speaking in a distinct North accent, presided as Toastmaster. The highlight was a Premiere Showing of MGM’s The Forbidden Planet. Jefferson Davis will be the Guest of Honor for next year’s affair. ***So deftly done, it is hard to tell if the editors are kidding. [e] “New Specialty House.” Advent:Publishers of Chicago announces the formation of a new specialty house formed to produce off-the-beaten-track books of science fictional interest. The first in the still on-going series of works, In Search of Wonder by damon knight. ***Earl Kemp, my father, was one of the founding partners of Advent:Publishers, Inc. [f] “Editorial: Will Success Spoil Bridey Murphy?: Another dry essay on hypnotism, reincarnation, and multiple personalities, generally dismissing all such accounts. [g]“Thru-Out the Science Fiction World,” by Chester A. Polk. A long, somewhat boring movie review of the recently released MGM production of Forbidden Planet. Generally it praises the lavish visuals while dismissing the bad acting. ***Of some personal note: The reviewer dismisses the ship’s cook as comic relief who “acts precisely as would a chuck-wagon cook in a western epic.” This cook, played by the actor, Earl Holliman, is a cousin of my father’s. [h] “Writer’s Cramps.” Frank Robinson has left Family Weekly to become associate editor of Science Digest. ***Ray Bradbury appeared on Groucho Marx’s TV quiz show early in the summer. ***Ted and Judy Dikty had their second child. Judy sold her novelette “The Dune Roller,” to Hollywood last year. ***Rog Phillips (my godfather), who conducted “The Club House” for Amazing Stories, recently divorced from Mari Wolf. He has married Honey Wood of Cleveland. [i] “Sixty-Four Thousand Bucks—and You.” Dr. C.L. Barrett has initiated steps to have a science fiction category placed on the popular TV program The $64,000 Question. [j] “Have Beanie—Will Travel.” A brief mention of the University of Chicago Science Fiction club’s recent April meeting in Chicago. The session featured a panel discussion on THE BEST AND WORST OF SCIENCE-FICTION, panelists included Thomas N. Scortia, Wilson Tucker, and Robert Bloch. ***In late May, the 7th annual Midwescon was held at the North Plaza Motel in Cincinnati. Prominent among those attending was Mrs. Harlan Ellison and spouse. [k] “Fan Publications Recently Received.” Fantasy Times, Innuendo #1, by Terry Carr & Dave Rike, Fantasy Sampler #4, by John Murdock, Umbra #13, by John Hitchcock, Ibidem #3, by Howard and Pat Lyons, Taciturn #7, by Benny Sodek, Eclipse #14, by Ray Thompson, Hoog #12, by Dean Grennell, The Walnut Man #1, by Willfred Rotsler, Yandro #2, by Robert and Juanita Coulson, Fan-Attic #3, by John Champion, Oblique #6, by Clifford Gould. [l] “New Fan-Club Formed in Boston.” Mention of the formation of THE SCIENCE & FICTION CRITICS CLUB in Massachusetts. [m] “Aussie SF Convention Set for December 8 & 9.” The Olympicon, the fifth annual convention, contact Ian J. Crozier. [n] “High School Winner.” Arthur W. Bailey, Jr. has won a special award as science fiction fan. [o] “Next Year, Already!” Two bids for the 1957 science fiction convention are discussed, London and Los Angeles. [p] “Also Wed.” From Luna, Miss Venus has married space tycoon Roger Lightyear. [q] “!Attention! Space Detectives! Reward!” A reward of two (!) Gnome books offered to the person who can identify the following quote from one of their in print titles: “The wind brushed against him with what seemed gentle fingers and he remembered with a start that by Earth standards the wind was a roaring gale, a two-hundred-mile-an-hour howler laden with deadly gases.” ***City by Clifford Simak. [r] “Grace Weds Rainier: Lee Hoffman & Larry Shaw Also.” Tongue-in-cheek wedding announcement. [s] “For Sale”: Late model Lancaster 88 spacecraft, low miles, less than 25,000 light years. ***Not quite as funny as the first two, this one is weighed down by the oppressive editorial and the weak movie review. ***An extremely rare item.

Gnome PressPresents; The Science-Fiction WORLD, Vol. 1, No. 4, Fall 1956 Scans courtesy Robert Weinberg Collection

H. 
Bloch, Robert and Wilson Tucker (editors)
The Science-Fiction WORLD
Vol. 1, No. 4
Gnome Press; New York, NY  Fall 1956 4 pages .10¢
Single-sheet. Ephemera.

***Four-page newsletter. 9”x12” ***[a] “Fourteenth World Science Fiction Convention Draws Big Crowd.” The largest number of attending fans to date, 1,300. London won the bid for the next convention. Directly after, a group of professional writers took off for a Conference in Milford sponsored by Judith Merril, James Blish, and Damon Knight. [b] “Coming—From Gnome Press: Spring 1957.” The Seedling Stars, by James Blish. Colonial Survey, by Murray Leinster. SF: 57 The Year’s Greatest,” edited by Judith Merril. Two Sought Adventure,” by Fritz Leiber, Jr. Earthman’s Burden,” by Poul Anderson and Gordon Dickson. The Return of Conan, by L. Sprague de Camp and Nyberg. ***A note offers all the above under the PICK-A-BOOK plan at a discount. [c] “Classified Advertisement.” For Sale: Portable Toll Bridges for Mars Canals. [d] “Gnome Press Books at $1.50 Under New Plan.” Written as a news article, this sales pitch describes the new PICK-A-BOOK plan, first offered in this newsletter. [e] “New SF Magazines are Planned for Fall Appearance.” Several new magazines mentioned, among them Venture, with the first feature, Poul Anderson’s “Planet of Virgins,” the second issue of Leo Margulies’ Satellite, and Dream Worlds to be edited by Paul Fairman. [f] “Editorial Note.” Explaining the offered short story, “The Swordsmen of Varnis,” the history of its printing, from amateur publication through its appearance in the Shasta Press anthology Science Fiction Carnival, as edited by Mack Reynolds and Fredric Brown. [g] “The Swordsmen of Varnis” (first published in Slant an amateur fanzine published by Walter A. Willis), Spring 1950, as by Geoffrey Cobbe) and (Other Worlds, No. 6, September 1950),by Clive Jackson. Satire on the space-opera, as Tharn, Warrior Lord of Lornis and Lehni-tai-Loanis, his mate, flee from eleven swordsmen of Mars, seeking the secret of the Living Vapors. They battle heroically against all odds, sword against sword, until in the final moment one of the remaining Swordsmen takes out his proton gun and vaporizes them. ***One of the best parodies of the genre ever written, as well as being an extremely short story. [h] “Thru-out the Science Fiction World,” by Chester A. Polk. A very dry, and boring movie review column. First up, a review of Godzilla, which is casually dismissed, as the reporter leaves the movie without watching all of it. [i] “Fan Publications Recently Received.” Sundance #1, by Jean Young. Poo #5, by Andy Young. Umbra #14, by John Hitchcock. Stellar #8, by Ted White. ***Given the best of the very brief mentions. ***Science Fiction Parade #1, by Len Moffatt. Mentions the first planned Los Angeles convention, in 1958. Pooka #3, by Donald Ford. The South Shall Rise, by Mrs. L.T. Shaw. ***Mentions that this might be a joke. ***Transuranic #9, by A.L. Alexander. Frontier #6, by Dele Smith. ***Not really a fan magazine, specializing in rocketry and space travel. [j] “Westercon Draws 300 Attendees.” The Oakland convention featured Richard Matheson as Guest of Honor. Run by a gaggle of West Coast fans, chief among them Rog Phillips and his new wife, Honey Graham, who had just moved to the area from Los Angeles. [k]“Books and Writers.” Dry book review column including: From the Tablets of Sumer, by Samuel N. Kramer. This book preports to be based on clay tablets that prove Sumer had the first of everything, from writing to plagiarism. The Human Angle, by William Tenn, just a brief mention. The Bright Phoenix, by Harold Mead, his first. The Power, by Frank Robinson. Encapsulates the publishing history, to the upcoming Bantam Books paperback. A mention of Julian May Dikty in the same vein, repackaging “The Dune Roller” repeatedly. [l] “Autumn Film Fare.” Gives a very nice review of Columbia Pictures 1984, starring Michael Redgrave and Edmund O’Brian. [m] “!Attention! Space Detectives! Reward!” A reward of two (!) Gnome books offered to the person who can identify the following quote from one of their inprint titles: “A quarter of a mile away, titanic blocks of stone were piled one upon the other, like discarded toys of an infant giant. Here, a section of a massive wall was still recognizable; there, two carven obelisks marked what had once bben a mighty entrance.” ***Against the Fall of Night, by Arthur C. Clarke. [n] “Matheson Goes from Shrinking Man to Growing Girl.” An announcement of two things, The Shrinking Man has just been made into a movie, and this author just had a baby girl, Alison Marie. [o] “Fletcher Pratt.” A touching obituary for the famous author, who passed away a few months prior to the publication of this newsletter. [p] “Classified Advertisement.” Sports: Daily Dragonfights on Mars. [q] “Pick-A-Book Plan.” An elaborate advertisement including a form for ordering, and list of available books, all for $1.50 each. ***Any collector would just love to have a set at these prices. ***An extremely rare item. (Please note mailing label to Earl Kemp!)

Gnome PressPresents; The Science-Fiction WORLD, Vol. 1, No. 5, February 1957 Scans courtesy Robert Weinberg Collection

I. 
Bloch, Robert and Wilson Tucker (editors)
The Science-Fiction WORLD
Vol. 1, No. 5
Gnome Press; New York, NY  February 1957 4 pages .10¢
Single-sheet. Ephemera.

***Four-page newsletter. ***Mislabelled as volume 1, number 4. 9”x12” ***[a] “London Preparing to Host ’57 World SF Convention.” A sort, rather tongue-in-cheek synopsis of the upcoming event, location, what can be expected, and dates. The highlight is a planned Boycott Infinity rally. [b] “Science Fiction Authors to Lecture at U. of Chicago.” Mentions the University of Chicago course on “The Science Fiction Novel,” and the four scheduled talks: January 11—Cyril Kornbluth; February 8—Robert A. Heinlein; February 22—Robert Bloch; and March 8—Alfred Bester. The contact person is Mark Reinsberg, Assistant to the Dean. ***This series of lectures became one of Advent:Publishers first and most noted titles, The Science Fiction Novel, edited by Earl Kemp. Although, since Basil Davenport did the introduction, he is sometimes confused as being the editor. But this is not the case, read on: **Sometime in the mid-1950’s (shortly before this Advent SF Symposium came out), Earl Kemp was a frequent visitor to William Hamling’s house out in Evanston, Illinois. He would take the subway for the fifteen-minute ride from downtown Chicago and hang out, trying to pick up salvage. At the time he was the president of the University of Chicago Science Fiction Club (which had nothing to do with the university, and he was not even a student). ***Mark Reinsberg was a noted fan turned small-time writer who still had a connection with the university. He was also a high school classmate of Hamling, and Korshak (of Shasta Press). And he did some kind of book reviews whereby he received free books that he promptly sold, never reading them for the reviews. ***My father, Earl Kemp discovered the books for sale in a local bookstore and made arrangements to purchase the best from each lot via a phone call notification from the store owner. ***At the time of this series of lectures, my father was visiting Hamling when Reinsberg breezed in. Hamling just up and gave him a St. John painting hanging on one of his walls. My father was livid as he would have liked it himself. When he returned home, that same bookstore owner promptly called to tell him that he had the painting for sale at a bargain price of $500, which my father, with a family of three, could not afford. ***It was just a part of Reinsberg’s character, as well as Hamling’s, as the painting had been Yerka’s, and Hamling was getting rid of everything he could after marrying his widow, Frances Yerka. My father did get a bound set of Fantastic with a label on it stating it was from Yerka’s collection, later he gave it to one of his sons. ***About this time, Frank Robinson went on to other things and gave up his position as reviewer for the American Book Collector. My father talked him into arranging to have W.B. Thorson, the publisher, hire him to do the book reviews, and he did. ***About this time Mark Reinsberg started to arrange for various notable science fiction writers to come to the university to give lectures. My father got wind of it, and began his own arrangements via the SF Club and Advent. He locked in the rights to the lectures for an Advent project. As he said it, he was one step behind Reinsberg, and two steps in front, and boxed him in and out-foxed him in all the arrangements. ***Locking in the Heinlein lecture was a problem. Eventually Heinlein relented after his agent pointed out that it was all for free and for fans. ***So, my father out-foxed Reinsberg, after a livid argument about his Advent arrangements. Reinsberg thought he was due money, etc. ***My father also threw special parties for each attending lecturer, but Heinlein and Scortia were invited to a Hamling party and disappointed all the waiting fans by going to it instead. ***My father, Earl Kemp, put together the SF Symposium book for Advent. ***As a side note: From his ABC work, he got hooked up with Basil Davenport. Davenport asked for his help in ghost-editing his Deals With the Devil book, which my father obliged if, later, Davenport would write the introduction for the Advent book, which he did. My father came up with a list of stories, writers and contact information for Davenport, and mailed it on to him for his part in the “Devil” book. ***My father got together in person with Davenport at the New York SF convention earlier the year before. This was about the time the hardbound edition of “Devil” came out. Davenport spent the entire afternoon into the late night with my father. He brought his friend, Al Capp (Lil’ Abner) along. The three spent the day getting drunk and pontificating at various SF parties, my father sitting in the middle while Capp sat on the outside with his bum leg. ***Much kudos to Earl Kemp for all the above, done practically for free, but alas, also for no real monetary gain. ***Thus the story of “ghost-editing” Deals With the Devil. [c] “Letter from the Lunarians—New SF Club in N.Y. Area!” David A. Kyle, one of the founders of Gnome Press, was nominated president. It goes on to detail the constitution and some of the primary rules of membership. [d] “Heaven Can Wait.” Mentions of Bea Mahaffey becoming Bea Barid. Randall Garrett becoming engaged to Jane Kearney, the stepdaughter of John W. Campbell. [e] “Science-Fantasy Index Planned for Early Publication.” Scheduled for upcoming release, a complete index to American science fantasy for 1958. [f] “Leiber is Back.” A brief couple of paragraphs who sole, but very worthy, purpose is to mention the upcoming release of Two Sought Adventure by Gnome Press. [g] “Books in Film.” The Day of the Triffids by John Wyndham, to be released by Columbia Pictures. Frank Robinson’s The Power picked up by an independent producer in London ***They did not do the film, however, it was done much later. Two of Wilson Tucker’s books, Wild Talent and The Long Loud Silence. ***Alas, neither of them were ever produced. [h] “Telepaths in Washington?” Does not quite work as an attempt at humor, suggesting that the government is on a fishing expedition and the staff of this newsletter has no telepaths. [i] “Fan Publications Recently Received.” Meuh #2, by Jean and Anne Linard (France). Void #9, by James and Greg Benford (!) ***Yes, the noted science fiction writer and fan. MC(2) #1, by Pete Jefferson. Contact #3, by Jan Jansen (Belgium). Focus #3, by Bruce Burn (New Zealand). Antipodes #1, by Leo J. Harding (Australia). Canfan #33, by William D. Grant (Canada). Retribution #4, by John Berry (Northern Ireland). Ploy #7, Ron Bennett (England). Obion #17, by George Richard (England). A Bas #9, by Boyd Racburn (Canada). ***Mostly contact information for each, with slight, but wry comments to spice up the reading. [j] “Thru-Out the Science Fiction World,” by Chester A. Polk. A very nice retrospective of some of the older talent that attended the recent New York World Science Fiction Convention. Ray Cummings, and a brief mention of his laurels, was there. Frank Paul was there as well. Fan Allen Glasser, who has the honor of starting the first or second fan magazine in 1930, The Planet. And Ted Carnell, editor of New Worlds, rounded out this selection. [k] “Weather or Not--,” by Edward Sagarin. (A fanciful future-fiction feature.) A somewhat humorous fantasy written as though it were a rather dry encyclopedia article chronicling the advances of science, hand-and-hand with government, pertaining the control of weather and the changes in society through the election of 1970. Finally, the Natural Weather Party (secretly sponsored by makers of bathing suits) was up against the Controlled Weather Party, backed by farm interests. The CWP disintegrates when a secret report is released revealing that the magnetic waves being used to control weather are not eroding the soil, as previously believed, but are destroying the oxygen in the air, so that in 150 years the earth will no longer be habitable. ***Shades of the global warming crisis that is our current reality. [l] “Writer’s Cramps.” Mentions the upcoming release by Gnome press of The Seedling Stars by James Blish, Colonial Survey by Murray Leinster, and SF ’57: The Year’s Greatest edited by Judith Merril. First prize winner of the 12th annual Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine contest for Best Detective-Crime-Mystery short stories of 1957 went to Avram Davidson. [m]“Wanted—Strong Backs and Weak Minds.” Mentions of Walt Willis’ overdue account of his experiences in America. Jack Speer and his famous Fancyclopedia are mentioned as one of the editors attempted to cajole him into publishing a revised version. [n] “NBC Radio Show on Science Fiction Dec. 4th.” Mention of the NBC symposium on science fiction aired as one of their Biographies in Sound series, done in cooperation with Galaxy science fiction magazine. [o] “!Attemtopm! Space Detectives! Reward!” A reward of two (!) Gnome books offered to the person who can identify the following quote from one of their inprint titles: “Eight glowing disks floated in the darkness in front of him. Six of them were in the middle. To the left of these, separated a little, and a trifle more than half a diameter beneath the straight line that passed through the cente of the others was a white disk. The six in the middle were colored: silver, gold, orange, green, blue, black.” ***Star Bridge by James E. Gunn and Jack Williamson. [p] “We Like Ike—Asimov, That Is.” A recommendation to read “The By-Product of Science Fiction” by Isaac Asimov in a forthcoming issue of The Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction. ***An extremely rare item. (Please note mailing label to Earl Kemp!)

Gnome PressPresents: The Science-Fiction WORLD, Vol. 1, No. 6, Spring 1957 Scans courtesy Robert Weinberg Collection

J. 
Bloch, Robert and Wilson Tucker (editors)
The Science-Fiction WORLD
Vol. 1, No. 6
Gnome Press; New York, NY  Spring 1957 4 pages .10¢
Single-sheet. Ephemera.

***Four-page newsletter. 9”x12” ***Mislabelled as volume 1, number 5. ***[a] “London Convention Banquet Cost--$1.50 per Person!” Compared to the high price of American editions, this is worth mentioning. There is some information about a planned group flight from America to London. And remember, attending membership was only $2.00. [b]“Radio is Not Dead.” Mention of the two-part CBS radio production of The Space Merchants, serialized in Galaxy in 1952 as “The Gravy Planet” by Frederik Pohl and C.M. Kornbluth. [c] “Disclaimer.” A very obscure notice that future copies of this newsletter are no longer obtainable from the editors, but might be from the publisher. ***This was the last newsletter. [d] “Ray Cummings.” Coincidentally his obituary, coming after a brief mention in the last newsletter. [e] “Marital Mixup Exposed!” The February 17th issue of The Clarion Ledger mentions the recent release of Slave Ship by Frederik Pohl in collaboration with his wife, C.M. Kornbluth. Both authors deny they are married to each other, their wives could not be reached for comment. [f] “Earn Big Money at Home in Your Spare Time!” Make $100 a week repairing robots. [g] “Public Notice.” A request for information regarding Yngvi, his character, reputation, and/or species. [h] “Fancyclopedia Project Under Way.” With glowing praise, the editors report the plans of Andy Young, Redd Boggs, Walt Willis, and Richard Eney to reprise Jack Speer’s work for Fancyclopedia II. [j] “Voodoo-it-Yourself Kit Banished from Mail.” At the request of the Post Office, the kit will no longer be offered, along with its booklet entitled How to Needle Your Friends. [k]“Tenth Westercon Convenes in Hollywood Over July 4 Holidays.” Contact information for the event. [l] “Watch Out for the Oom! A cautionary essay suggested with the recent boom in science fiction magazines, will come a similar boom in hardcover publications, or similar poor quality, and then a crash. [m] “In Search of Wonder” by Damon Knight. Contact information for the recently released title. Included is a short character synopsis of Damon Knight as a razor-witted critic. [n]“Fan Publications Recently Received.” Science Fiction Parade #4 by Len and Anna Sinclare Moffatt. Metrofan #2 by Dick Ellington. Concept #3 by Ron Parker. The UFA Bulletin #1 by Richard Koogle. Eclipse #19 by Ray Thompson. Inside #17 by Ron and Cindy Smith. Sirius by Walter Wegmann (Switzerland). Mana #2 by Bill Courval. ***Reprinted are an exchange of 1939 letters between John W. Campbell and L. Sprague de Camp. ***Excelsior #1 by L. Shaw. Peon #38 by Charles Lee Riddle. Sigma Octantis #6 by John Mussells. Magnitude #4 by Ralph Stapenhorst, Jr. [o] “Unpaid Advertising.” An incredible list of books for sale by Robert Bloch, one of the editors. [p] “On SF Anthologies--,” by W.R. Cole. The story of the compiling and publication of A Checklist of Science Fiction and Fantasy Anthologies.” ***After the ending of the essay is an editorial note that this essay marks the debut of a new column to be presented by Cole. Sadly, this was not to be. [q] “Of Time and Space.” A column in which your editors kill the former and fill up the latter. Quick, short, but very witty tall-tales about the publishing of both real and fake science fiction magazines, wherein the fake ones have clues leading this reader to believe they refer to real ones and people. [r] “Thru-Out the Science Fiction World,” by Chester A. Polk. A short article about various fans and their current endeavors, the most notable, Ted White opening a print shop. [s] “Amaze Your Friends.” Perform pre-frontal lobotomies right in your own home! [t] “Forthcoming Films.” Forrest J Ackerman has been signed by James H. Nicholson of Sunset Productions as consultant and technical advisor on Invasion of the Saucer Men. ***Note: There is no period after the “J” in his name {James) and he has spent at least 25 years educating editors and others to that fact, in vain. [u] “A.E. Coppard.” Obituary for the well-known weird and fantasy writer, better known for his collection Fearful Pleasures published by Arkham House. [v] “Author Wanted—“ Short notice asking for the name of the writer of a letter praising Coming Attractions. ***A hoax? [w] “Midwestcon Scheduled for June 29, 30th, in Cincinnati.” Annoucement for the eighth annual event. [x] “Help Wanted.” Skilled typesetter sought for Encyclopedia Galactia Publishing Co., Terminus. [y] “!Attention! Space Detectives! Reward!” A reward of two (!) Gnome books offered to the person who can identify the following quote from one of their inprint titles: “The astrogator started the motor and then clung with iron fingers as the machine under him bucked and heaved over the loose bridge stuff. Once the treads hit a pocket and the crawler canted to the left. A foot more and it would have spilled its passenger down into the black depths of the gulf.” ***Alas, since the newsletter folded, no winner is mentioned in the next issue, and the quote is not identified. [z] “New Issue From Dean Grennell.”  Tongue-in-cheek birth announcement for his daughter, Phyllis Anne. [aa] “Join the Space Cadets and See the Universe.” More humorous filler, this one for eligible young men (only) between 16 and 21 under 3 feet in height and under 30 pounds. [bb] “Dehydrated Water.” A modern convenience for space travel, one pound makes up to 300 gallons. ***An extremely rare item. ***These six newsletters were often inspired, rarely boring, and all are true gems. Now long forgotten as ephemeral as the paper they were printed on, yet they contain the very essence of the era, the writers, the fans, and the now very collectible titles.

***
Alas, in subsequent issues the two editors abandoned their chronicling efforts, just as the humor leaked out of the final productions. We shall never see their like again, and something, a sense of wonder, has gone with them.

***

Sample Gnome Press Pick-A-Book catalog from 1961
Scans courtesy Earl Terry Kemp Collection

K. 
Greenberg, Martin (editor)
Pick-A-Book Advertising Flyer 1961
Gnome Press; New York, NY  1961
Single-sheet. Six-sided. Ephemera.

***Pick-A-Book Advertising flyer published after their last books, an attempt to sell leftover stock on hand, as well as assorted items. This item lists what are now some of the most desirable and rarest collector’s items. ***A rare item.

L. 
Greenberg, Martin (editor)
Advertising Flyer 1963
Gnome Press; New York, NY  1963
Single-sheet. Ephemera.

***Advertising flyer published after their last books, an attempt to sell leftover stock on hand. ***A rare item.

Gnome Press: Titles

1. 
de Camp, L[yon] Sprague and Pratt, [Murray] Fletcher 
The Carnelian Cube,
A Humorous Fantasy
Gnome Press; New York, NY  1948  230 $3.00
1st edition, 2,000 copies printed.
2nd edition, 1,400 copies printed. The “Second Printing” was printed at the same time as the first, by adding those two words to the copyright page.
Jacket by David Kyle.

Science fantasy novel. ***A science fiction thriller which uses a carnelian cube with Etruscan inscriptions upon it to transport Arthur Finch to several different probability worlds, each obviously based upon a different concept of culture. Archeologist Finch, with a group of allied scientists, is investigating ancient ruins in the Turkish interior, when a curiously inscribed carnelian cube comes into his possession. Legend lends the cube the power to transfer its owner to a world of his desire. Finch, with that curiously inscribed ancient charm beneath his head, sleeps that night and awakens—in another world. The first society that Finch visits is a rationalistic utilitarian world, where bankers and politicians control most of life. Even though he discovers himself in the “rational” world he desires, Finch is too irrational to fit. Unsatisfied, he uses the power of the cube first to enter a world of violent, unrestrained, individualism, with fascistic gangster overlords. Finch becomes a member of a mob-sponsored Literary Society, but once again cannot conform. Thirdly, a world of science equally unsuitable and Finch sets off for new uncharted worlds. ***Each of the three worlds is ingeniously contrived and the adventures are well adapted to their environments, but somehow the three societies strain the reader’s credulity, perhaps because of the violation of unity. ***First paperback edition: Lancer Books, 73-662, 1967, 222 pp., pa .60¢.

2. 
Owen, Frank [Pseudo. of Williams, Roswell]
The Porcelain Magician,
A Collection of Oriental Fantasies
Gnome Press; New York, NY  1948  256 $3.00
3,500 copies printed.
Jacket and illustrations by Frances E. Dunn.

Fantastastic short stories. ***Sentimental stories about the orient. ***[a] “The Fan.” (Weird Tales, Vol. 6, No. 6, Issue 27, December 1925). [John Steppling] Li Hsein was a heartless courtesan who killed her lovers and made their lips into her fan. But her last lover is saved by the intervention of the fan, which assumes life. [b] “The Inverted House.” (“The Wind That Tramps the World,” Lantern, 1929). A Chinese sage who understands the essence of flowers, and a girl whose life is intimately connected with the flowers in the house. [c] “The Lantern Maker.” (Weird Tales, Vol. 6, No. 2, Issue 23, August 1925).A girl intimately associated with and overpowered by lanterns. [d] “The Porcelain Magician.” (First appearance.) Tang Ling is the best potter in the East, and his painted animals have a life of their own. His magical skill is used by the emperor to paint magical pottery tiles that will drive off a Japanese invasion. [e] “The Purple Sea.” (Weird Tales, Vol. 11, No. 2, Issue 53, February 1928). Not properly fantastic, but exotic: a strange ship on a strange sea. Lee Goona, tea merchant of Canton, Tokyo, the Formosan Islands, traveling among these ports, he is wrecked upon a rock-reef by the fierce typhoon. Here, unconscious, semi-conscious and then wide awake, he comes under the spell of the sea and the land and the woman—or was it a woman? If a woman, why certainly, one of those creations of the dreamer and the poet. [f] “The Old Man Who Swept the Sky.” (“The Purple Sea,” Lantern, 1930). A boy from the heavens, a divine child. [g] “Dr. Shen Fu.” An immortal Chinese alchemist with the elixir of life keeps a woman in suspended animation. [h] “Pale Pink Porcelain.” (Mystery Magazine, April 1927) & (Weird Tales, Vol. 24, No. 6, Issue 132, December 1934).A grotesque tale about rival potters. [i] “The Rice Merchant.” (“The Purple Sea,” Lantern, 1930). A romance jewel which contains in it a magic land and a perfect woman. All hypnosis. [j] “The Blue City.” (Weird Tales, Vol. 10, No. 3, Issue 48, September 1927).A spirit land within the clouds in which none but spirits may stay to see the dawn. [k] “The Fountain.” (“Della Wu, Chinese Courtesan,” Lantern, 1931). A Mohammedan sculptor [sic] whose statue is the best in the world. When a westerner picks a flower associated with it, he is killed by the other flowers, and a dead woman is found where the flower had been. [l] “Monk’s Blood.” (First appearance.) A monk is killed and his blood drunk by a companion dying of thirst. The monk cannot die. [m] “The Golden Hour of Kwoh Fan.” (“The Purple Sea,” Lantern, 1930) & (Avon Fantasy Reader, No. 11, October 1949). A Chinese sage keeps rare perfume in a jug for years. [n] “The Wind That Tramps the World.” (Weird Tales, Vol. 5, No. 4, Issue 19, April 1925), (Weird Tales, Vol. 13, No. 6, Issue 69, June 1929) & (Weird Tales, Vol. 48, No. 3, Issue 3, Fall 1981). [John Steppling]An old Chinese whose perfect flower was stolen by the wind that tramps the world goes to the Himalayas, to the place of the winds, to catch the wind and his flower. ***[n] is good, but many of the other stories seem more like sentimental Westerns of the Orient than the Orient itself. ***This volume contains the best work from three previous collections,The Wind That Tramps the World, Lantern, 1929, The Purple Sea, Lantern, 1930, and Della Wu, Chinese Courtesan, Lantern, 1931. ***No paperback edition.

3. 
Smith, George O[liver]
Pattern for Conquest,
An Interplanetary Adventure
Gnome Press; New York, NY  [1949]  252 $2.50
5,000 hardbound copies printed.
Identical Armed Services edition, 2,000 copies bound sold for .35¢.
(This is an unusual edition, this reader has seen copies with a .50¢ and .60¢ price on the front cover, knocked out in a small white square on the front cover. The complete story of this edition will probably never be fully known.)
Jacket/cover by Edd Cartier.

Science fiction novel. ***From: (Astounding Science Fiction, Vol. 37, No. 1, No. 2, & No. 3, Issue 184. 185, & 186, March, April, & May 1946). ***Space opera, seven hundred years or so in the future. ***Mankind of the future, the story relates, has united itself into a Solar Combine. Progressive and powerful, this Combine explores its frontiers of space, confident in its unthreatened security. Two Little Men come as agents of an older, more intelligent race. They seek mankind’s cooperation in a mysterious plan. They are armed with a science more advanced than Earth’s, requesting that two humans be permitted to accompany them on a mission enormously important to the universe. They request Lane and Downing, direct personality opposites and bitter personal enemies. The Solar Combine agrees to investigate a tiny object, passing through their section of the universe, which the Little Men vaguely insist is a “threat to civilization.” A task force of the Space Guard is sent on the mission. The three guardsmen in command include: Stellor Downing, Martian born, hard of nature, cold and calculating and murderously swift, wearing a modine weapon on each hip; Clifford Lane, Venusian born, handsome and fearless Wildman, gar and impetuous with a mind like a hair-trigger; and Bobby Thompson, Earth born, whose calm judgment knits the three of them into a powerful unit. Lane, Downing, and Thompson, who is to act as mediator, go away with the Little Men, into remote space, far beyond official explorations, and discover a race of intelligent cat-men whose civilization is approximately as high as Earth’s. They also destroy a machine in accordance with instructions from the Little Men. The machine had been sent into our galaxy by the Loard-Vogh, a humanoid race of high intelligence, who wish to conquer the universe; their machine restrained the potential mental level of intelligent life below a certain standard. Once the machine has been destroyed and a psychic catastrophe has taken place, the human race automatically leaps to its intelligence maximum and is now the most intelligent race in the galaxy, above even the Loard-Vogh. The Loard-Vogh attack immediately and Earth defends itself feverishly. There is talk of a secret weapon, but the weapon is not military. It is, instead, recognition of the true historical situation of the universe: that the Loard-Vogh will win through military might; that their empire will ultimately be beneficial to the universe, if the Loard-Vogh harshness can be modified; and finally a plan whereby the humans gradually take over direction of the empire from the Loard-Vogh, leaving the aliens only in nominal control. ***A good representative of period “space-opera.” The intriguing plot builds to a startling unexpected climax, a climax that is clever and yet surprisingly logical. ***Of passing note: Lloyd Arthur Eshbach in his sentimental review of his life and times, Over My Shoulder (1983; Train), omits this title from his checklist for Gnome. ***No paperback edition.

4. 
Heinlein, Robert A[nson]
Sixth Column,
A Science Fiction Novel of a Strange Intrigue
Gnome Press; New York, NY  [1949]  256 $2.50
5,000 copies printed.
Jacket by Edd Cartier.

Science fiction novel. ***From: (Astounding Science Fiction, Vol. 26, No. 5, Vol. 26, No. 6, & Vol. 27, No. 1, Issue 122, 123, & 124, January 1941, February 1941, & March 1941 as by Anson MacDonald). ***In the near future America is defeated and occupied by a surprise attack from PanAsia, an amalgamation of China, Japan, the U.S.S.R., etc. But a secret research section, the Citadel, in the Rockies survives, unknown to the PanAsians. It is destined to save America by means of scientific weapons developed from a new spectrum of energy fields that they have discovered. In the Citadel, a disastrous experiment leaves only six survivors, but theses six harness the power that has almost destroyed them. This, called the Ledbetter Effect, provides a complete control of atomic energy. Under the command of a single “line officer” (apparently our future army will imitate naval ratings and procedure) the organization in the Rockies spreads in the guise of a religion, for it has been determined that the one weakness of the PanAsian occupation is freedom of religion. The religion of the god Mota plays lip service to civil obedience, but is really a recruiting service for a new army. The new spectrum has given the Americans of the Citadel fantastic scientific powers, including gravity control, disintegrators, rays that paralyze or kill on racial differences, transmutation of elements etc. The priests of Mota walk about in elaborate disguises, with built-in broadcasting sets on the new spectrum, force screens, paralyzing staffs, healing devices, and enormous quantities of chemically pure gold. All of this, of course, is seemingly miraculous to the enemy, who does nothing about it until it is too late, and the Americans win hands down. ***The powers of Mota, the strange japes which the “priests” play, and the willingness of the enemy to play house seem more like properties of a children’s game of make-believe than elements in an adult novel. In spite of these drawbacks it remains eminently readable, a representative novel of Heinlein at his best. ***First paperback edition: Signet, 882, 1951, 160 pp., pa .25¢, as The Day After Tomorrow.

5. 
Bond, Nelson (S[lade])
The Thirty-first of February,
13 Flights of Fantasy
Gnome Press; New York, NY  [1949]  272 $3.00
5,000 copies printed.
Identical Armed Services edition, 1,000 copies bound sold for .35¢.
112 copies signed, numbered on tip-in in black slipcase
Jacket by James Gibson.

Fantastic short stories. ***Contents: [a] “The Sportsman.” A wheelchair bound cripple joins a hunt club and changes all the members’ lives for the better. When he dies, he becomes a true hunter able to join in the final hunt. [b] “The Mask of Medusa.” (Blue Book, December 1945) & (American Science Fiction, No. 9, January 1953). A wax-gallery owner has the head of Medusa. [c] “My Nephew Norvell.” (Blue Book, July 1946) & (American Science Fiction, No. 15, June 1953). A nephew from the future is convinced that Joe is a great scientist. Joe isn’t, so they bring inventions from the future for him to invent. [d] “The Ring.” (American Science Fiction, No. 9, January 1953). The ring owned by Judas gives its possessor world power, but brings him to a bad end. It turns up in occupied Germany, after World War I, and is taken by a certain paperhanger. [e] “The Gripes of Wrath.” (Blue Book, August 1946). A ghost who is earthbound until he repays money he embezzled. ***Humor. [f] “The Cunning of the Beast.” (Blue Book, November 1942 as “Another World Begins”). Alien creatures on distant Kios, masters of the intellect but victims to the ravages of the elements, seek to change their situation. The scientist, Doctor Yawa Eloem, creates air-breathing creatures in the image of the metal carriers they use, and places them in a garden paradise. The male creature asks his creator for a companion. The “She” steals into the forbidden and locked chamber of knowledge, using the serpent to open the door. They gain much knowledge and begin to destroy many of their master’s friends, until they are finally confronted. The cunning beasts are exiled, along with their creator, in a spaceship with an unknown destination. [g] “The Five Lives of Robert Jordan.” (Blue Book, April 1945). A watch in an antique shop gives Jordan five different lives, each of which ends in tragedy. [h] “’Take My Drum to England.’” (Unknown, Vol. 5, No. 2, Issue 26, August 1941) & (Unknown (UK), Vol. 3, No. 9, Spring 1947).Drake’s phantom ship appears to the British in World War II. [i] “Saint Mulligan.” (Fantastic Adventures, Vol. 5, No. 5, Issue 39, May 1943), (Fantastic Adventures Quarterly, Vol. 2, No. 4, Fall 1943) & (Fantastic Adventures Quarterly, Vol. 3, No. 1, Winter 1943).Mulligan, a policeman, saves the life of an angel, and is given a halo. But the devil swindles him out of both halo and soul. [j] “The Monster from Nowhere.” (Fantastic Adventures, Vol. 1, No. 2, July 1939) & (American Science Fiction, No. 9, January 1953). Butch Patterson returns to the Press Club with an amazing tale after being lost for two years on an exploration trip to the Maratan Plateau in Peru. Butch has returned with a mysterious black amorphous blob of jet black which murdered all of his companions. Butch explains that he has captured a creature from the fourth dimension. He reveals the creature to a group of friends, scientists and newspaper reporters, and it escapes. It kills Butch’s brother and then disappears with Butch to places unknown.[k] “The Man Who Walked Through Glass.” (Esquire, November 1938) & (American Science Fiction, No. 39, July 1955). Passage through a mirror reverses his body and mode of speech. He leaves for a wonderful world in a telescope. [l] “The Enchanted Pencil.” (Blue Book, November 1946) & (American Science Fiction, No. 9, January 1953). A pencil that writes wonderful literature. It is used by a hack. [m] “Pilgrimage.” (Amazing Stories, Vol. 13, No. 10, Issue 143, October 1939 as “The Priestess Who Rebelled”) & (Amazing Stories, Vol. 40, No. 5, Issue 420, April 1966). [Meg] Future primitivism in America, matriarchate society, and gods in the west, to which potential female leaders must pilgrimage. ***Benét did it better; just as O. Henry did [g] better. ***Competent pulp stories, mostly on familiar themes. An interesting night’s reading, though no single story is outstanding. ***There is also a very brief (one paragraph), although extravagant, introduction by James Branch Cabell. ***No paperback edition.

6. 
Greenberg, Martin (editor)
Men Against the Stars
Gnome Press; New York, NY  [1950]  351 $2.95
5,000 copies printed. 3,000 second printing.
Jacket by Edd Cartier.

Science fiction short stories. ***Adventures in Science Fiction Series. ***With an introduction about rocketry by Willy Ley. ***The stories are arranged in sequence to illustrate man’s gradual conquest of space. ***[a] “Trends” (Astounding Science Fiction, Vol. 23, No. 5, Issue 104, July 1939), by Isaac Asimov. In the near future a religious revival threatens to prohibit and destroy science. Rocket travel to the Moon is in the wind. [b] “Men Against the Stars” (Astounding Science Fiction, Vol. 21, No. 4, Issue 91, June 1938) & (American Science Fiction, No. 22, February 1954), by Manly Wade Wellman. Built around new technical means to improve extraterrestrial travel. The nearest planet was a bright goal. Brighter still, though, were the exploding ships of men who would never reach it. [c] “The Red Death of Mars” (Astounding Science Fiction, Vol. 25, No. 5, Issue 116, July 1940) & (Famous American Science Fiction, No. 1, June 1952), by Robert Moore Williams. The early days of interplanetary exploration. Space explorers weren’t worried about their ships now—there were new forces, strange and unpredictable, to be met on another world. On Mars, strange gem-like crystals that suddenly become a menace. [d] “Locked Out” (Astounding Science Fiction, No. 111, February 1940) & (American Science Fiction, No. 10, February 1953), by H[orace] B[owne] Fyfe. Spaceships were safe at last—provided men weren’t careless. A single man in a spaceship is accidentally locked out, and must utilize his ingenuity to get in again. [e] “The Iron Standard” (Astounding Science Fiction, Vol. 32, No. 4, Issue 157, December 1943), by Lewis Padgett [Pseudo. of Kuttner, Henry & Moore, C.L.]. Mankind started to meet alien races and discover psychology was a potent weapon. The first expedition to Venus. The Earthmen are almost starving to death, hampered by the rigid cultural patterns of the natives, until a means is devised to break the cultural resistances. [f] “Schedule” (Astounding Science Fiction, Vol. 35, No. 4, Issue 175, June 1945) & (American Science Fiction, No. 10, February 1953), by Harry Walton. Rivalry between interplanetary traders. Interplanetary commerce brought another enemy for men to battle—Time. [g] “Far Centaurus” (Astounding Science Fiction, Vol. 32, No. 5, Issue 158, January 1944) & (Analog Anthology, No. 1, 1981), by A.E. van Vogt. Interstellar travel was next: five centuries through space to the stars. [h] “Cold Front” (Astounding Science Fiction, Vol. 37, No. 5, Issue 188, July 1946), by Hal Clement [Pseudo. of Stubbs, Harry Clement]. Salesmanship in new territory was simple to perform—in theory. Meteorology. Weather on a planet belonging to a variable star, and folk psychology. [i] “The Plants” (Astounding Science Fiction, Vol. 36, No. 5, Issue 182, January 1946) & (Famous American Science Fiction, No. 1, June 1952), by Murray Leinster [Pseudo. of Jenkins, William Fitzgerald]. A planet inhabited only by intelligent plants. Even a flower had to be treated with respect, if life was like that. [j] “Competition” (Astounding Science Fiction, Vol. 131, No. 4, Issue 151, June 1943), by E[dna] Mayne Hull. [Artur Blord] Business developed throughout the stars with an old pattern still present. Capitalistic intrigue in the not too near future, against Artur Blord, a series-hero; Blord wins. [k] “Bridle and Saddle” (Astounding Science Fiction, Vol. 29, No. 4, Issue 139, June 1942), by Isaac Asimov. [“Foundation”] Peace had to be kept in a universe of ambitious worlds while avoiding war. [l] “When Shadows Fall” (Startling Stories, Vol. 17, No. 3, Issue 51, July 1948) & (Science Fiction Yearbook, No. 4, 1970), by L[afayette] Ron[ald] Hubbard. In the far future, when Earth is almost forgotten, and is slowly dying, a wave of sentiment for it is evoked by old ballads. Earth was finally dying—was there anyone who really mourned her death? ***[e], [g], [i], [k] are the best stories. ***First paperback edition: Pyramid, G-234, 1957, 191 pp., pa .35¢.

7. 
de Camp, L[yon] Sprague and Pratt, [Murray] Fletcher 
The Castle of Iron
Gnome Press; New York, NY  1950  224 $2.50
5,000 copies printed.
Jacket by Hannes Bok.

Fantastic novel. ***From: (Unknown, Vol. 4, No. 6, Issue 28, April 1941) & (Unknown (UK), Vol. 4, No. 6, July 1941). ***After a diversion in Coleridge’s Kublai Khan, the world selected is that of Ariosto’s Orlando Furioso. Here, magic works, various mythical monsters survive, and Moors and Christians are at loggerheads in Spain. **Harold Shea is pulled into this world by Chalmers, who needs Shea’s help. Chalmers seeks to gain a flesh and blood existence for the Snow Maiden whom he has rescued from the enchanters of the “Faerie Queen.” Shea’s adventures are then built around two tasks: aiding Chalmers to escape from the iron castle of the Moorish wizard Atlantes; and secondly, locating his wife, Belphebe, who had previously been drawn into the Ariosto world, and had lost her memory. She had also coalesced with a similar character, Belphegor. In this world the natural laws are magic and science is unavailing. Shea and Vaclav Polacek follow and join Chalmers in fighting Saracens and sorcerers. Polacek, temporarily, is transformed into a werewolf. The trio is forced to match their magic with that of Atlantes, this world’s greatest wizard. When he is overcome, they rescue Belphebe, and the Snow Maiden is given a human existence. The adventures include take-offs on Moorish chivalry, flight upon a magic carpet a British enchanter-knight, and so on. ***An entertaining and successful sequel to The Incomplete Enchanter (which see). ***First paperback edition: Pyramid, F722, 1962, 159 pp., pa .40¢.

8. 
Beyer, William Gray
Minions of the Moon,
A Story 6,000 Years in the Future
Gnome Press; New York, NY  [1950]  190 $2.50
5,000 copies printed.
Jacket by Edd Cartier.

Science fiction novel. ***Adventure from Argosy Weekly Magazine (3-part series, beginning April 22, 1939) & (Two Complete Science-Adventure Books, Vol. 1, No. 6, Summer 1952 [abridged]). ***Mark Nevin awakens from suspended animation around 8000 A.D., to discover that the world has relapsed into savagery, except for a few cities that have strongly regimented social organizations and are at best half-civilized. When Mark awoke after the experiment, he hardly expected his astounding discovery—he had been catapulted thousands of years into the future. Mark’s first acquaintance is Omega, whose home was the moon. Omega was a disembodied intellect, pure thought, who roamed the universe at will. The last survivor of a race of lunar beings, ages old, who is mentally present on Earth, and is possessed of seemingly superhuman powers which he intends to use to create a new human race. Omega also tells Mark of two Russians, almost equal to himself in mental power, who survive as brains linked in series, and are responsible for much of the world’s evil. The story is a series of adventures; Mark first becomes a swashbuckling leader among the Neo-Vikings. And inspiring him in his valorous deeds was the beautiful, romantic Nona. Together they fight, along with Omega, until Mark destroys the Russians. ***Gnome Press promised, but never published the sequel, Minions of Mars (Argosy Magazine; 5-part series, beginning January 13, 1940). ***Fast, at times interesting, but almost juvenescent in its unhumorous humor. ***No paperback edition.

9. 
Howard, Robert E[rvin]
Conan the Conqueror,
The Hyborean Age
Gnome Press; New York, NY 1950  255 $2.75
5,000 copies printed.
Jacket by David Kyle and John Forte.

Fantastic adventure novel. ***An adventure novel with considerable supernaturalism. This, the longest and most ambitious of the Conan stories, was originally published in magazine form as “The Hour of the Dragon.”  (Weird Tales, Vol. 26, No. 6, Issue 144, December 1935, Vol. 27, No. 1, Issue 145, January 1936, Vol. 27, No. 2, Issue 146, February 1936, Vol. 27, No. 3, Issue 147, March 1936 & Vol. 27, No. 4, Issue 148, April 1936). Like much of Howard’s other work it deals with blood-drenched adventure and high wizardry in the geologically different lands of pre-glacial Europe. ***Conan the Cimmerian, king of Aquilonia, richest and most powerful nation of the Hyborean age. In his rise to power, Conan has made many enemies, and they band together to accomplish his destruction. He is defeated in battle by invaders and rebels who are aided by the magic of Xaltotun, a magician of Acheron. Xaltotun, the mightiest magician of all time, had been dead for ages, but had been “revived” by means of the Heart of Ahriman, a magical jewel. Conan must fight his way through enemies and magic to regain his throne. Conan is taken prisoner by Xaltotun. The Heart of Ahriman is stolen from Xaltotun by a treacherous henchman. Conan escapes to recover the Heart, and restores it to the rightful owners, the priests of Shem. Out of gratitude, they support him in putting another army into the field. Xaltotun’s wizardry is nullified by the power of the Heart, and Conan’s army is victorious. He resumes his kingship, as Xaltotun is blasted out of existence. ***Those who like rapid swashbuckling adventure will probably enjoy Conan the Conqueror,” for it has a color that is unique. Others probably will not like it. It must be admitted that Howard was much less successful in longer forms than in some of his best short stories, like “Queen of the Black Coast” (Weird Tales, May 1934). ***There is an introduction by John D. Clark, Ph.D. ***First paperback edition: ACE Double, D-36, 1954, 131 pp., pa .35¢; with The Sword of Rhiannon by Leigh Brackett.

10. 
Asimov, Isaac
I, Robot
Gnome Press; New York, NY  [1950]  253 $2.50
5,000 copies printed.
Identical Armed Services edition, 1,000 copies bound sold for 35¢.
Grosset & Dunlap reprint from the same plates.
Jacket by Edd Cartier.

Science fiction short stories. ***Short stories, most from Astounding Science Fiction, about robots, partly formed around the personality of Susan Calvin, Chief Robopsychologist of U.S. Robots and Mechanical Men, Inc. ***Contents: [a] “Robbie.” (Super Science Stories, Vol. 1, No. 4, September 1940 as “Strange Playfellow”). A human-interest story. A little girl is so devoted to the family robot that her parents first try to break the bond, but later must recognize it and recover the robot. [b] “Runaround.” (Astounding Science Fiction, Vol. 29, No. 1, Issue 136, March 1942). Powell and Mike Donovan, a robot testing team, are trapped on Mercury when the robot that is to fetch them the selenium necessary for their existence seems to go mad. [c] “Reason.” (Astounding Science Fiction, Vol. 27, No. 2, Issue 125, April 1941). Powell and Donovan are on a space station with Robot QT-1, who refuses to believe that they created him. The robot builds a religion out of the machinery on the station and appoints himself Prophet. [d] “Catch That Rabbit.” (Astounding Science Fiction, Vol. 32, No. 6, Issue 159, February 1944). Powell and Donovan. A robot that controls six others seems to be insane. [e] “Liar!” (Astounding Science Fiction, Vol. 27, No. 3, Issue 126, May 1941). A telepathic robot involves itself in a dilemma. By the law of its construction it cannot injure a man, and at times telling the truth, which it must do, would be injurious. [f] “Little Lost Robot.” (Astounding Science Fiction, Vol. 39, No. 1, Issue 196, March 1947). Susan Calvin acts as a detective to identify a partly insane robot that is hiding in a group of normal robots. [g] “Escape!” (Astounding Science Fiction, Vol. 35, No. 6, Issue 177, August 1945 as “Paradoxical Escape”). The Brain cannot solve a problem if the solution entails injury to humans. But unwittingly, the comment is made, “Don’t get excited about the death of humans. We don’t mind it at all.” The robot builds an interstellar ship, but part of the ship’s function involves the death and revivification of the crew. [h] “Evidence.” (Astounding Science Fiction, Vol. 38, No. 1, Issue 190, September 1946). A politician suspects that his honest opponent is a robot, and attempts to discredit him for that reason. [i] “The Evitable Conflict. (Astounding Science Fiction, Vol. 45, No. 4, Issue 235, June 1950). Robots take control of civilization for the good of mankind. ***Told as a mystery story. ***Occasionally excellent stories, which are among the best in early modern science fiction. This is Asimov’s best book although one frequent constructional device is rather annoying: an attempt to create story tension by continually snarling bickering characters. ***Grosset & Dunlap, 1952, 253 pp., $1.00 (reprint, with same cover art, only green). ***First paperback edition: Signet, S1282, 1956, 192 pp., pa .35¢.

11. 
Simak, Clifford D[onald]
Cosmic Engineers,
An Interplanetary Saga
Gnome Press; New York, NY  1950  224 $2.50
5,000 copies printed.
1,000 paper copies bound for Armed Services Edition.
Jacket/cover by Edd Cartier.

Science fiction novel. ***From: (Astounding Science Fiction, Vol. 22, No. 6, Vol. 23, No. 1, & No. 2, Issue 99, 100, & 101, February, March & April 1939). ***Adventure in 6948 A.D. ***An ancient space-vessel is found, with a girl in suspended animation. When she is revived, Gary and Herb learn that she has been in suspended animation for 1,000 years, although through that time her mind had been working. A scientist before her sleep, she is now a super-scientist. ***Messages come to the solar system from outer space, and through recording machines and Caroline’s telepathic faculty, the Cosmic Engineers, who live at the edge of the universe, are contacted. The Engineers warn of catastrophe: collision of another universe with ours, and show the Earth beings how to travel through hyperspace to a conference of intelligent beings. Many strange races are present, but the Engineers reject all but humans. The other universe is contacted, enemies of the Engineers attack, and Caroline and associates go to the Earth of the far future for aid. A single old man in the far future tells them what to do. They do it. The Engineers, it is finally revealed, are robots, and humans will take over their function in the far future: guarding the universe. ***Many interesting ideas. A rather good semi-juvenile. ***First paperback edition: Paperback, 52-506, 1964, 159 pp., pa .50¢.

12. 
Stewart, Will [Pseudo. of Williamson, Jack ([John Stewart])]
Seetee Ship,
An Interplanetary Novel
Gnome Press; New York, NY  1951  255 $2.75
4,000 copies printed.
Jacket by Edd Cartier.

Science fiction novel. ***From: [a] “Collision Orbit” (Astounding Science Fiction, Vol. 29, No. 5, Issue 140, July 1942). [b] “Minus Sign” (Astounding Science Fiction, Vol. 30, No. 3, Issue 144, November 1942). [c] “Opposites—React!” (Astounding Science Fiction, Vol. 30, No. 5 & No. 6, Issue 146 & No. 148, January & February 1943). ***Adventure, mystery, romance against a background of CT, as in “Seetee Shock” (Astounding Science Fiction, Vol. 42, No. 6, Vol. 43, No. 1 & No. 2, Issue 219, 220 & 221, February, March & April 1949) & (Simon & Schuster, 1950), which should be read first for context. ***Experiments are being carried on to discover a means whereby CT and normal matter can come into contact with one another without causing an explosion, for such a contact would permit the development of a new fabulously rich power source. Rick Drake, his father, and others are conducting such investigation, when suddenly a CT asteroid is discovered to contain a several million-year-old power plant and spaceship made by CT beings who have solved the problem of combining the two types of matter. Intrigues then follow between various parties and planets until a solution is finally reached. A “gimmick” is that time, in CT matter, runs in reverse of time in our sort of matter. ***An interesting thriller, although there is a change of hero, midstream, which may prove a little upsetting to the reader. ***First paperback edition: Lancer, 73-732, 1968, 222 pp., pa .60¢.

13. 
Padgett, Lewis [Pseudo. of Kuttner, Henry]
Tomorrow and Tomorrow,[and]
The Fairy Chessmen
Gnome Press; New York, NY  [1951]  254 $2.75
4,000 copies printed.
Jacket by Harry Harrison.

Two short science fiction novels. ***[a] “Tomorrow and Tomorrow.” (Astounding Science Fiction, Vol. 38, No. 5 & No. 6, Issue 194 & 195, January 1947 & February 1947). In the not too distant future, a hundred years after the Hiroshima A-blast, the world is controlled by GPC, the owner of atomic power; GPC had gradually taken over power after World War II. And GPC, to retain its control and to prevent war, has practically stopped scientific progress and research. Joseph Breden, a nuclear physicist chosen as one of the guardians at Uranium Pile Number One, is a member of the Global Peace Commission regulating atomic power. He knows that his job is vital, but he is troubled with dreams—horrifying dreams that suggest he overthrow his duties—and allow an explosion to happen. He recognizes a psychological breakdown, but why, was he driving himself to destruction, or someone else? An underground organization is trying to set off World War III, which they hope will break the stasis of civilization. Mutations with various paranormal abilities are the leaders of the underground, and they are in psychic communication with a parallel Earth [termed Omega], which is almost a utopia. The underground itself almost fails, but help from Omega, the transference of energy from another universe, to set off an atomic explosion, causes the downfall of GPC and the beginnings of World War III. [b] “The Fairy Chessmen.” (Astounding Science Fiction, Vol. 36, No. 5 & No. 6, Issue 182 & 183, January 1946 & February 1946). In the near future two world-states battle for supremacy: the Free World, and the Falangists, a pan-European state. Robert Cameron, trained in applied psychology, finds himself being driven insane by a strange, unfathomable force. As an experienced psychometrician he fights the terrifying hallucinations (a doorknob opens a blue eye and looks at him). He, too, knows his job is vital. America, dug into great, shielded cavern-cities, has been at war for decades with the European Falangists, a war planned by technicians and fought by robots. The Falangists now have a means of sending shells through force screens-an impossible feat-and the investigators at the Department of Psychometrics have a strange formula which is very promising. But the formula is not rational, and the few persons who seem to solve it go mad, sometimes, however, acquiring almost godlike powers. It is up to Cameron to find the man to provide the solution—before his own mind collapses under the weird and terrible madness. Other story elements include a man from the future, who is a spy for the Falangists, although he brought in the mysterious formula and knows the counter-formula; strange domes which have come forward through time, but seem to be empty; a madman who has vision of all times at once; and mental warfare by the Falangists with the formula. The formula is solved; the spy is forced to reveal the counter-formula; and the Falangists are defeated. ***Good science fiction thrillers, unusual among members of the extremely complex school of science fiction, in being written with artistry and care that all the motives are worked out, although in both a certain morbid quality seems to have escaped control. ***[b] also as Chessboard Planet (Galaxy Novel, No. 26, 1956). ***No paperback edition.

14. 
Jones, Raymond F[isher]
Renaissance,
A Novel of Mankind on Two Worlds
Gnome Press; New York, NY  1951  255 $2.75
4,000 copies printed.
Jacket by David Kyle.

Science fiction novel. ***First appeared in: (Astounding Science Fiction, Vol. 33, No. 5, No. 6, Vol. 34, No. 1 & No. 2, Issue 164, 165, 166, & 167, July 1944, August 1944, September 1944, & October 1944). ***As a story background, some time in the future, when material civilization is advanced, but cultural barbarism threatens, a group of scientists devise a gateway for penetrating into parallel worlds. One such parallel world, Kronweld, is settled by the cream of the scientists; and fantastic machinery upon Earth, passing upon each newly born child, sends a steady stream of the most intelligent children to Kronweld. The idea behind the project was that a rational group of superior humanity, freed from the intellectual rubbish of the past and the chains of their more stupid fellows, could develop a superior civilization, and then return to rule Earth properly. But the plan went wrong. On Earth, a reactionary totalitarian group, the Statists, who delight in power and destruction per se, have been in power for a long time, and Earth is becoming more and more decadent. With the weeding-out machines Earth’s science, without intelligent men, is slowly dying, and the Statists, who have access to Kronweld, visit it periodically and steal the fruits of its science to maintain themselves in power. And on Kronweld, which is a tiny spot amidst radioactivity and volcanism, things have also gone wrong. All the inhabitants are sterile, because of radioactivity, biology has been forgotten, and a fantastic religion has throttled all biological research. The result is that except for a small minority, Kronweld is in as bad a plight as Earth. ***Against this background, Ketan, who is a rebellious Kronweld scientist, becomes entangled with resistance in his own culture and is expelled to Earth. He is a Seeker, defying law and tradition to search into forbidden knowledge. It is he who challenges the unquestioned rule of a might machine which forms the community mind of Kronweld. And there is his companion, Elta, both friend and enemy, who also is seeking some unknown goal. Ketan solves the Mystery of the Origin of Life and penetrates into the Temple of Birth, which brings him into contact with the other world. After complex give and take, he discovers the hitherto unknown secret of Kronweld. With determination he penetrates the infinite curtain that so weirdly surrounds his city. And from then on, uncovering fact after fact, he slowly discovers the monstrous secret of two human worlds. He becomes the leader of a secret revolutionary group in Kronweld, saves his world from Statist attack—and growing from his experience—is to initiate a new era of prosperity and peace for Earth. This new government is not what the founders had planned, but it will nevertheless be a step forward. ***Despite occasional concessions to pulp limitations and some inconsistencies this is one of the best of all modern science fiction novels. As a unique novel it is filled with the passions of reality, and remains gripping entertainment. It is intricate, imaginative, well-developed, and fictionally convincing, even though this reader does not agree with the thought and philosophy of life that lies behind it. ***First paperback edition: Pyramid, F941, 1963, 268 pp., pa .40¢, as Man of Two Worlds.

15. 
Hubbard, L[afayette] Ron[ald]
Typewriter in the Sky [and] Fear
Gnome Press; New York, NY  1951  9+256 $2.75
4,000 copies printed.
Jacket by David Kyle.

Two fantastic novels. ***[a] “Typewriter in the Sky.” (Unknown, Vol. 4, No. 3 & No. 4, Issues 21 & 22, November 1940 & December 1940). Horace Hackett, whose name indicates his literary pretensions, is writing a bust-opera of the Spanish Main, and takes the liberty of using his friend, Mike de Wolf, as the villain. Mike suddenly finds himself in the book world, and at the mercy of his friend’s typewriter. Mike tries to break the hold that Hackett’s writing has upon him, as the story moves through pirates, a beautiful heroine, tropical islands, and an English sea-dog who is to kill him—and barely escapes with his life. He returns to Earth, at the end of the novel, wondering if here too there is another typewriter in the sky. [b] “Fear.” (Unknown, Vol. 2, No. 5, Issue 17, July 1940). James Lowry, who scoffs at demons, is made victim of illusion by a pair of angry demons. His adventures are too complex to be summarized; let it be enough to say that an atmosphere of fear, horror, and psychological confusion is admirably evoked. ***[a] is a competent thriller, with moments of parody; [b] is superior. ***Fear (Galaxy Novel, No. 29, 1957 [abridged]). ***First paperback edition: Kemsley, CT409, 1952, 190 pp., pa 1/6.

16. 
Greenberg, Martin (editor)
Travelers of Space
Gnome Press; New York, NY  1951  400 $3.95
5,000 copies printed.
2,500 copies reprinted in 1955, with a different dust jacket.
Jacket by David Kyle and Edd Cartier.
Interior Illustrations by Edd Cartier.

Science fiction short stories. ***Adventures in Science Fiction Series. ***A theme anthology demonstrating the variety of life on other worlds. ***An introduction by Willy Ley presents the current ideas of science on the possibilities of life on other worlds. ***[a] “The Rocketeers Have Shaggy Ears” (Planet Stories, Vol. 4, No. 6, Issue 42, Spring 1950) & (Tops In Science Fiction, Vol. 1, No. 1, Spring 1953), by Keith Bennett. The U.S. Rocket Service sends a small exploratory expedition to Venus. A party crashes in the incredibly savage jungle, and must fight its way back. [b] “Christmas Tree” (Astounding Science Fiction, Vol. 42, No. 6, Issue 219, February 1949),by Christopher [Samuel] Youd. Strict medical rules force physically unfit spacemen to remain upon the Moon, if their health would be endangered by the trip. This means exile for life. [c] “The Forgiveness of Tenchu Taen” (Astounding Science Fiction, Vol. 22, No. 3, Issue 96, November 1938), by Frederick Arnold Kummer, Jr. Mars. A cuckolded Martian takes revenge upon his wife’s lover. **This is really an oriental-vengeance story chucked onto another planet. [d] “Episode on Dhee Minor” (Astounding Science Fiction, Vol. 24, No. 2, Issue 107, October 1939), by Harry Walton. The intelligent life on Dhee Minor is phoenix-like, with ancestral memory. [e] “The Shape of Things” (Thrilling Wonder Stories, Vol. 13, No. 3, Issue 72, February 1948), by Ray Bradbury. Due to an accident in the child-birth machine, the baby of Peter Horn and his wife is born into another dimension. It has, here, the shape of a small blue pyramid. **Parental love is the theme. [f] “Columbus was a Dope” (Startling Stories, Vol. 15, No. 2, Issue 44, May 1947), by Lyle Monroe [Pseudo. of Heinlein, Robert A.] & (Treasury of Great Science Fiction Stories, No. 2, 1965). This seems to be irony on conservatism, showing that though the background may change, conservatism remains the same. [g] “Attitude” (Astounding Science Fiction, Vol. 32, No. 1, Issue 154, September 1943), by Hal Clement [Pseudo. of Stubbs, Harry Clement]. The spaceship Gomeisa is captured by a hitherto unknown form of intelligent life, and its crew is taken to a base where they are permitted to build apparatus, and to live as they life, up to a point. A solution to their captors’ motives and a way of escape must be found by the Earthmen. [h] “The Ionian Cycle” (Thrilling Wonder Stories, Vol. 32, No. 3, Issue 75, August 1948), by William Tenn [Pseudo. Klass, Philip]. Space-wrecked persons upon a planet of Deneb find a strange situation: an underground race with a complete taboo against mention of the surface, and a surface race with a taboo against the caves. [i] “Trouble on Tantalus” (Astounding Science Fiction, Vol. 26, No. 6, Issue 123, February 1941), by P[eter] Schuyler Miller. Adventure upon Tantalus, with Stalkers—gigantic nearly mile high humanoid beings who capture men for a star-woman who is a vampire of sorts. [j] “Placet is a Crazy Place” (Astounding Science Fiction, Vol. 37, No. 3, Issue 186, May 1946) & (Analog Anthology, No. 1, 1981), by [William} Fredric Brown. On Placet, where there are two stars, one ordinary matter and the other contraterrene, strange physiological and psychological effects occur during eclipses. And strange birds fly through the foundations of the buildings, which are really upon Placet’s atmosphere. [k] “Action on Azura” (Planet Stories, Vol. 4, No. 4, Issue 40, Autumn 1949), by Robertson Osborne. Cultural relations with natives of Procyon V, who have been nearly massacred by the Invaders. Earthmen must establish confidence, to build a base. [l] “The Rull” (Astounding Science Fiction, Vol. 41, No. 3, Issue 210, May 1948), by A.E. van Vogt. In the Rull series. **Professor Jamieson captures a Rull, and although roles of captor and captive change occasionally, discovers the great secret that means that the Rull-Human war is ended. [m] “The Double-Dyed Villians” (Astounding Science Fiction, Vol. 44, No. 1, Issue 226, September 1949 [Wing Alak]), by Poul [William] Anderson. The Patrol, the police organization of the Interstellar League, according to its publicity is fantastically efficient. But actually, it works almost without weapons, through Machiavellian corruption. [n]“Bureau of Slick Tricks” (Astounding Science Fiction, Vol. 42, No. 4, Issue 217, December 1948 [Bureau of Special Trading]), by H[orace] B[owne] Fyfe. The Bureau of Special Trading is assigned to handle the first trade representatives from Kosor, the most scheming non-human culture in the galaxy. ***Besides the stories there is also [o] “Life on Other Worlds” (The Science-Fiction WORLD, Vol. 1, No. 2, February 1956 [abridged]), by Edd Cartier, a section of 16 color plates showing various obscene-looking monstrosities that are the intelligent life of the solar system and other places, and [p] “The Interstellar Zoo,” by David Kyle, A story written around the creatures of the drawings. There is also a short science fiction dictionary, compiled by Messrs. Greenberg, Kyle, and Samuel A. Peeples, with a foreword by Mr. Peeples. ***Of the stories [a], [b], [e], [g], [j] are best. ***The illustrations in [o] are priceless. ***No paperback edition.

17. 
Greenberg, Martin (editor)
Journey to Infinity
Gnome Press; New York, NY  1951 381  $3.50
5,000 copies printed. 10 titles on back of dust jacket.
2,500 copies reprinted in 1955. 30 titles on back of dust jacket.
Jacket by Edd Cartier.

Science fiction short stories. ***Adventures in Science Fiction Series. An anthology arranged as a story of the imaginative history of mankind. ***Contents: An introduction by Fletcher Pratt. [a] “False Dawn” (Astounding Science Fiction, Vol. 38, No. 2, Issue 191, October 1946), by A[rthur] Bertram Chandler. Earth and Moon are both settled, and the Earth dwellers watch the lights on the Moon go out. A ship from the Moon with the last survivors comes to Earth, crashes, and the continents sink. [b] “Atlantis” (Amazing Stories, Vol. 8, No. 9, Issue 93, January 1934), by E[dward] E[lmer] Smith. A fragment from the new Triplanetary, telling of the destruction of Atlantis. [c] “Letter to a Phoenix” (Astounding Science Fiction, Vol. 43, No. 6, Issue 225, August 1949) & (Analog, Vol. 110, No. 1 & 2, Issue 719, January 1990), by Fredric [William] Brown. A nearly immortal man from the past reminisces and chats. [d] “Unite and Conquer” (Astounding Science Fiction, Vol. 42, No. 2, Issue 215, October 1948), by Theodore Sturgeon [Pseudo. Waldo, Edward Hamilton]. A scientist falsifies a threat of invasion from space to unify the world. [e]“Breakdown” (Astounding Science Fiction, Vol. 28, No. 5, Issue 134, January 1942), by Jack Williamson [Pseudo. Williamson, John Stewart]. Around the 22nd century. Labor and religious fanatics, under the Preacher, rebel against a Technocratic government, and destroy Sunport. [f] “Dance of a New World” (Astounding Science Fiction, Vol. 42, No. 1, Issue 214, September 1948), by John D[ann] MacDonald. Life on Venus. [g] “Mother Earth” (Astounding Science Fiction, No. 222, May 1949), by Isaac Asimov. By the year 4200 the Outer Worlds are more powerful than Earth, and beat Earth badly in an unjust war. But it seems that this was all planned by a Machiavellian Earth official to create sympathy for Earth. [h] “There Shall be Darkness” (Astounding Science Fiction, Vol. 28, No. 6, Issue 135, February 1942) & (American Science Fiction, No. 24, 1954), by C[atherine] L[ucille] Moore. Barbarians invade Venus. [i] “Taboo” (Astounding Science Fiction, Vol. 32, No. 6, Issue 159, February 1944), by Fritz [Reuter] Leiber, Jr. Around 7700 A.D. Swords and rayguns in a peculiar barbaric culture that recognizes the rights of outlaws to take refuge in sanctuaries. [j] “Overthrow” (Astounding Science Fiction, Vol. 30, No. 3, Issue 144, November 1942), by Cleve Cartmill. A samurai-like organized society. An unjustly treated man goes over to outlaws who preserve better democratic ideals. [k] “Barrier of Dread” (Future Fiction, Vol. 1, No. 2, July-August 1950) (Future Combined with Science Fiction Stories (UK), No. 3, 1952) & (Selected Science Fiction, No. 5, 1955), by Judith Merril [originally Grossman, Josephine Juliet]. When it is finally understood that the universe is finite, man must conquer himself to fit the new situation. [l] “Metamorphosite” (Astounding Science Fiction, Vol. 38, No. 4, Issue 193, December 1946), by Eric Frank Russell. Man has spread out over the galaxy, but Earth is nearly forgotten. Man, as the officials of a space empire discover, has evolved into a sun-like being upon Earth. ***The theme of this anthology is the historical progress of man, and the individual stories fit the theme well, even though story for story this anthology seems perhaps weaker than Greenberg’s other two. ***Greenberg always maintained that he did all the work on his credited anthologies by himself. However, Kyle disputes this assertion and by way of example each story in this collection begins with a comment by the editor tying the pieces together. There are 12 stories in the book—just enough to spell out “D-A-V-I-D-A-K-Y-L-E-E-D,” or “David A. Kyle, Ed.” Without the punctuation—and they do just that, using the first letter in each introductory paragraph to form an acrostic. ***No paperback edition.

18. 
Asimov, Isaac
Foundation,
An Interplanetary Novel
Gnome Press; New York, NY  1951  255 $2.75
5,000 copies printed.
Reprinted by Gnome 1954, 2,500 copies, different size.
Doubleday reprint from the same plates.
Jacket by David Kyle.

Science fiction short stories. ***The first of a series of three volumes based on a very elaborate “future history.” ***Formed from the following: [b] “Foundation” (Astounding Science Fiction, Vol. 29, No. 3, Issue 138, May 1942). [c] “Bridle and Saddle” (Astounding Science Fiction, Vol. 29, No. 4, Issue 139, June 1942). [d] “The Wedge” (Astounding Science Fiction, Vol. 34, No. 3, Issue 167, October 1944). [e] “The Big and the Little” (Astounding Science Fiction, Vol. 33, No. 6, Issue 165, August 1944). ***During the time of galactic man, the great space-empire of Trantor slowly rises, until it encompasses the entire galaxy. Prosperity seems assured, and everyone believes that the Empire is eternal, until Hari Seldon, the greatest psycho-historian of all time, announces that according to his figures the Empire, due to sociological forces, is doomed, within a relatively short time, and that millennia will past before another empire and great civilization will arise. Seldon, however, has discovered that the fall can be palliated, even if not avoided, and that a new civilization can be hastened upon its way. With this in mind he establishes a so-called Foundation—the Second Foundation, so important in succeeding volumes, does not enter the story yet—which is to carry on civilization. Seldon also builds a time-crypt, from which, at crises foreseen by his science, images of himself appear and say “I told you so.” ***The stories of this first volume describe the formation, evolution, and gradual expansion of First Foundation in the wreck of empire. ***[a] “The Psychohistorians.” Seldon announces his ideas, is tried as a revolutionary radical, and as a compromise is allowed to form an encyclopedia foundation on the small barren planet of Terminus, at the edge of the galaxy. ***The story begins on Trantor, the capital planet of the 12,000-year-old Galactic Empire. Though it has endured for so long, and appears outwardly to be strong and stable, the Empire has been imperceptibly declining for centuries. The only one who realizes this is Hari Seldon, a mathematician who has created the science of psychohistory, by which it is possible to predict future events by extrapolating from historic trends. He has set up a project that is increasingly harassed by Imperial officials from the Commission of Public Safety — the actual rulers of the Empire. They finally arrest Seldon and Gaal Dornick, a young mathematician who has just arrived to join the project. ***At Seldon’s trial, more details begin to emerge. Seldon predicts that the Empire will collapse within 300 years, leading to a 30,000-year period of anarchy before a Second Empire is established. The purpose of his project is to influence events so that the interregnum period will be only 1,000 years, instead of 30,000. This will be done, he says, by the production and dissemination by his team of an Encyclopedia Galactica, which will contain all known human knowledge. The Commission is satisfied that Seldon’s project is not a threat to the Empire, but wants to quiet him. He and his team are exiled to Terminus, a small planet on the periphery of the galaxy, to work on the Encyclopedia. Several fascinating conclusions are reached during Seldon’s conversation with Dornick: for example, that the Psychohistorians of Trantor maneuvered the Commissioners to relocate the Foundation to Terminus; and that the Foundation is an active rebellion against the authoritative Empire, which Seldon describes as having lost all the virility it once had. ***”The Psychohistorians” is the only part of the Foundation Trilogy that was not originally published in Astounding and was, in fact, the last part of the trilogy that Asimov wrote (though, chronologically, it describes the earliest events). Asimov wrote this story circa 1950 when the series was being prepared for publication in book form by Gnome Press, who felt that the series began too abruptly. However, most people do not know that there was another, very brief, opening that originally preceded “Foundation”(which was later published as “The Encyclopedists”), which was the first story written. The story is also notable for predicting the pocket calculator more than two decades before it was made possible by integrated circuit. [b] “The Encyclopedists.” (Astounding Science Fiction, Vol. 29, No. 3, Issue 138, May 1942 as “Foundation”). Fifty years later. The empire has started to collapse into independent kingdoms, most of which are gradually slumping into barbarism. The nearest power, Anacreon, plans to absorb Terminus for itself, but the Encyclopedists, who alone retain science, see their way clear in a burst of insight: they alone have atomic power, and they play one neighbor against another to restrain Anacreon. *** Fifty years after the events in “The Psychohistorians,” Terminus is facing the first of the “Seldon Crises,” the events that will force it into choices that will eventually lead to the Second Empire. Four nearby provinces of the Empire have rebelled, forming independent kingdoms. Those kingdoms are fairly barbarous, and the leaders of the most powerful, Anacreon, begin threatening Terminus, which they covet for its strategic location vis-a-vis their rivals, and for its advanced technology. Terminus has no mineral wealth — steel is so valuable that it is used to coin money — and so the Anacreonean envoys propose to implement a form of feudalism in exchange for “protection” from the other kingdoms. ***The Foundation’s Board of Trustees is blind to the danger, spending all of its time working on the Encyclopedia. The Mayor of Terminus City, Salvor Hardin, does perceive the danger but lacks the legal authority to act, all power under the Foundation’s charter being vested in the Board of Trustees. Hardin had the good fortune to have been trained by Dr. Bor Alurin, the only Second Foundationer (see Second Foundation), to have settled on Terminus, as a psychologist. Hardin did not complete his studies under Alurin, and thus was unable to become a psychological engineer, so he entered local politics instead. He realizes that the key to beating this crisis is to play the four kingdoms off each other. ***At the ceremonial opening of the time-locked vault at the Seldon Museum, a holographic image of Seldon appears and announces that the Encyclopedia project has been a fraud from its inception: the real purpose of the settlement of Terminus has been to place the Foundation out of reach of the Empire for the near-term. The Board of Trustees are devastated, but fortunately for the Foundation, Hardin has engineered a bloodless coup, leaving him in control of the planet, free to carry out his strategy. The first Seldon Crisis has been passed in accordance with the plan. [c] “The Mayors.” (Astounding Science Fiction, Vol. 29, No. 4, Issue 139, June 1942 as “Bridle and Saddle”). The Foundation precariously maintains its independence by giving each of its four powerful neighbor’s science. Anacreon, once again, has expansionist ideas, and it seems as if the old tactics will not save Terminus. But a new force has been evoked by the Foundation, a religion built around the care of atomic power, and Anacreon is brought to its knees by religion. *** Three decades later, relationships between the Foundation and nearby systems are based in technology transfer and Scientism, a religion that the Foundation sets up around its technology to control the several larger systems that surround them. Only the priests (who are educated on Terminus) have the knowledge to use the technology (which they think is mystical, not scientifically explainable). The Priesthood system, while an effective hold on the Four Kingdoms (Anacreon, Smyrno, Konom, and Daribow) surrounding Terminus, caps any possible scientific rebellion and delocalization of knowledge: the most brilliant students of the sciences remain on Terminus as research students and finally citizens, drastically enhancing the scientific superiority of the Foundation. ***Salvor Hardin remains the great Mayor of Terminus, although his political dominance is being challenged by a rival party demanding “direct action” to challenge the military dominance of the surrounding systems. A bellicose warlord, the Prince Regent Wienis, from Anacreon, the largest of the four kingdoms, tries to take over the Foundation by force of arms; but the fortuitous recovery and salvage of a mighty warship—an old Imperial frigate restored by Foundation fleet technicians—is used in an attempted appeasement effort. However, Seldon’s inevitable psychohistory does not permit this, as the people of the Kingdoms already look to the Foundation for authority, while the secular power of the Kings is already a sub-function of priestly, and therefore Foundation, control. Seldon, appearing again in the time vault after the crisis has passed, warns the Foundationers that the “spiritual power” of science, while sufficient for defense, is not sufficient to sustain a rapid political expansion, but leaves it to them to figure out the next step. [d] “The Traders.” (Astounding Science Fiction, Vol. 34, No. 3, Issue 167, October 1944 as “The Wedge”). The Foundation now controls the four kingdoms by means of religion, but outlying areas are beginning to see that the atomic religion is only a wedge for aggression, and refuse it entry. It is now becoming clear that religion is played out as a weapon, and that the next mode of expansion, trade, is in the air. ***About 75 years after the events of the previous story, Limmar Ponyets is dispatched to Askone, a world rich in raw materials that has thus far spurned any commerce with the Foundation, for fear that it would lead to the Foundation’s Scientism religion controlling their society. Ponyets’s job is to negotiate for the release of Eskel Gorov, a Foundation agent who was sent to find a way to initiate trade with Askone. This was a violation of that planet’s law, and Gorov is scheduled to be executed. ***The Askonian society is dubious of technology, and practices ancestor worship. The Grand Master (their elderly leader) is firm about not accepting any technology from the Foundation, and about proceeding with Gorov’s execution. However, Ponyets convinces them to release Gorov in exchange for a gold transmuter jury-rigged out of a “food irradiation chamber” (presumably a more advanced version of a microwave oven). ***More importantly, Ponyets accomplishes Gorov’s mission of creating an opening for Foundation trade. He blackmails a member of the governing council, Pherl, to buy all of his cargo, which consists of many devices and machines forbidden by Askonian law. This council member, who does not believe in his culture’s superstitions against technology, then has an incentive to work towards the legalization of those machines, so that he can begin using and selling them to recoup his loss. It is indicated that Pherl, who is young for someone so important in government, will be the next Grand Master shortly, further hastening Askone’s susceptibility to Foundation trade and the controlling religion that it brings with it. Ponyets and Gorov head back to Terminus with a shipload of tin, which Ponyets was able to extract from Pherl as part of their bargain. ***Though “The Traders” takes place before “The Merchant Princes,” it was actually written and published later. Asimov went back to write it to make the transition from the Foundation’s religious control to its economic influence more understandable and believable. This was made easier, due to a reference in “The Merchant Princes” concerning what happened on Askone (it is briefly indicated that Askone first allowed trade with the Foundation, and was soon inundated with missionaries, thereby losing all of its power to the Foundation). ***Interestingly, the character of Limmar Ponyets is named “Lathan Devers” in the original story. Lathan Devers is the name of the trader who is heavily featured in “The General” (first published as “The Dead Hand”), the first of two stories in Foundation and Empire. [e] “The Merchant Princes.” (Astounding Science Fiction, Vol. 33, No. 6, Issue 165, August 1944 as“The Big and the Little”). Economic control has expanded, and the Foundation is getting more and more powerful. It is now no longer even remotely a scientific institution, but expands by vigorous industrial capitalism. The first clash with the shrinking Empire comes through the buffer republic of Korell, with which the Foundation finds itself at war. Trade necessities save the Foundation. ***Additional years pass, and the Foundation’s economic influence and religious control of surrounding worlds continues to grow, though this is not yet matched by military and political domination. Several of the Foundation’s atomic-powered ships have disappeared near the Republic of Korell, a nation that is suspected of developing advanced technology of its own, which would threaten the Foundation. Hober Mallow, a master trader (though not a Foundation agent), is sent to Korell on a trade mission, and is told to keep his eyes open and learn what he can about their technology and the missing ships. ***Korell does little commerce with the Foundation, and their leader, Commdor Asper Argo, is reluctant to adopt their technology. It is learned that Askone did indeed fall under the control of Scientism after it became dependent on Foundation technology. However, Mallow is not interested in proselytizing; he just wants to make money — and convinces the Commdor of this. After demonstrating the many useful products that he can sell them, ranging from steel foundry technology and portable forcefield generators to miniature launderies and floor-scrubbers, Mallow signs contracts to provide them with such things, making huge profits for himself. He sees no sign of the missing ships while there, but he does discover that the Korellians retain some vestiges of atomic technology in the shape of atomic handguns. ***Shortly after this, Mallow travels to the fringes of the Galactic Empire, where he finds out the true extent of the Empire’s decline. Political leadership of the Empire has been unstable, rebellion is frequent among the planets, and opportunistic generals often arbitrarily massacre the planets they are sent to pacify. Equally stunning is the decline of the Empire’s technological prowess: “tech-man” is a hereditary office held by persons who restrict themselves to simple maintenance of previously-produced machinery, which they are unable to fully understand or replicate. ***After returning to Terminus, Mallow is denounced as a traitor for not spreading the Foundation’s religion along with trade. Mallow argues that religion has played itself out as a means of furthering Foundation control. Trade, for now, will be the Foundation’s tool for expanding into the Second Galactic Empire. Mallow is arrested for allegedly allowing a Foundation missionary to be killed while he was on Korell, but the event is shown to have been staged. Mallow eventually wins the next mayoral election, becoming leader of Terminus. ***Years later, the Foundation is invaded by the Korellians, who have been armed with nuclear technology by a general of the Galactic Empire seeking power and riches beyond the Empire’s periphery. Although the Korellian ships are far too powerful for the Foundation to resist, Mallow is convinced that the Foundation will win in the end. As he explains, the Korellians have become dependent on Foundation technology to maintain their infrastructure and day-to-day lives. As the Foundation’s equipment wears out in Korell’s factories and homes, the resulting economic contractions would lead to a huge popular upheaval. Mallow is convinced that all the Foundation needs to do is avoid battle, as it might give the Korellians reason to support their government out of patriotism. ***Shortly after, Mallow’s predictions come to pass. Korell surrenders and is incorporated into the Foundation. ***The Foundation is still far from the huge power the former Empire was, but it is rapidly growing and expanding its control and prestige. ***A seminal work in science fiction. ***First paperback edition: ACE Double, D-110, 1955, 106 pp., pa .35¢, as The 1,000-Year Plan; with No World of Their Own by Poul Anderson.

19. 
van Vogt, A[lfred] E[lton] 
The Mixed Men,
An Interstellar Adventure
Gnome Press; New York, NY  1952 223  $2.75
5,000 copies printed. 3,000 blue boards, second blue cloth 2,000 (1953 $1.15). (Printed simultaneously by U.S. SF Book Club from Gnome plates.)
Jacket by Ric Binkley.

Science fiction novel. From: (Astounding Science Fiction, Vol. 34, No. 5, Issue 170, January 1945). ***Adventure in the days of galactic humanity. ***Centuries before, it had been discovered that an archaic model matter transmitter reconstituted humans as supermen of a sort. Physically and intellectually, they were superb, but their originality and other elements were diminished. These “Dellians” or “robots” as they were called by normal humanity were hated for their limited superiority, and finally were forced to flee Earth, after persecutions and slaughters. They fled to the Magellanic Clouds, and together with normal sympathetic humans, who accompanied them, eventually increased and set up a small space-empire known as the empire of the Fifty Suns. All trace, and nearly all memory of them had been lost. Meanwhile, during their intercourse with normal men, and special breeding techniques, a small minority arose within the Fifty Suns, the so-called Mixed Men, a cross between Dellians and normal humans. The mixed men have a double molecular basis for their brains, hence two mind systems: a normal creative human mind, and a powerful Dellian robotic one. As supermen their gifts include fantastic strength, control of minds of other persons, and so on. As the situation nears story present, the Mixed Men are jockeying for power, after an abortive uprising, within the Fifty Suns. ***With this background the story begins when a fantastically powerful warship, commanded by the Right Honorable Gloria Cicely, Lady Laurr of Noble Laurr, comes from the Earth Empire to survey the Clouds, and stumbles upon evidence of the Fifty Suns. Earth’s culture pattern is to permit no other state to exist-for fear of war-while the Dellians fear Earth’s past history of oppression. The Fifty Suns try to remain undiscoverable; Lady Laurr tries to find them. Captain Peter Maltby, hereditary leader of the Mixed Men, is caught in the complex intrigues between the various parties, and is eventually space-wrecked with Lady Laurr upon a desert planet. Interplanetary law is very strict in demanding that all shipwrecked persons multiply. The two are married, and then separated for political reasons. Everything turns out well. ***The background and historical structure of The Mixed Men is potentially one of van Vogt’s very best, but somehow the plotting and development are insufficient to do the background justice. ***First paperback edition: Berkley, 344, 1955, 126 pp., pa .25¢, as Mission to the Stars.

20. 
Simak, Clifford (D[onald])
City,
A New Science Fiction Novel of the Future
Gnome Press; New York, NY  1952 224  $2.75
5,000 copies printed.
Jacket by Frank Kelly Frease [sic].

Science fiction short stories. ***City is a group of stories preserved (for fictional purposes) by intelligent dogs in the far future, as the only scraps of information that they have of a possibly mythical time before their own rise of intelligence. Dog savants discuss the fragments and question what was meant by the word “man.” ***Individual stories are points in the progress of dogdom and the disappearance of humanity. ***[a]“City.” (Astounding Science Fiction, Vol. 33, No. 3, Issue 162, May 1944). In the not too distant future the great cities gradually die as population moves out to the country. Webster and Adams purchase an entire city, to protect it as a memorial for a dead form of life. [b] “Huddling Place.” (Astounding Science Fiction, Vol. 33, No. 5, Issue 164, July 1944). In the city, Jerome Webster and his family robot, Jenkins, who plays an important part in later stories, work upon building a race of intelligent dogs. A crisis comes when Juwain, a Martian philosopher who has nearly finished a fantastically effective “philosophy” which is to give man the impetus to a new life, is dying and Webster alone can save him. But Webster has agoraphobia, and cannot leave his house. Juwain dies, taking with him the secret of his “philosophy,” and man’s future seems lost. [c] “Census.” (Astounding Science Fiction, Vol. 34, No. 1, Issue 166, September 1944). The dogs are growing more and more intelligent, so that some are now capable of simple speech. And a new race has arisen among men, the Mutants, who are of fantastic mental power, but hostile to Homo sapiens. One of them, Joe, whose life-time is to be measured in thousands of years, in chance moments solves the problem of an interstellar drive and obtains Juwain’s philosophy. [d] “Desertion.” (Astounding Science Fiction, Vol. 34, No. 3, Issue 168, November 1944). Men, upon Jupiter, are trying to adapt themselves to the new environment, by transforming themselves into completely new creatures called Lopers. But many Lopers go out into Jupiter’s Hell, and none return. Fowler, the chief of the project, has himself transformed and learns why no one returns: the mode of life of a Loper is so wonderful that return to human form would not be bearable. [e] “Paradise.” (Astounding Science Fiction, Vol. 37, No. 4, Issue 187, June 1946). Fowler, after living five years as a Loper, finally forces himself to return to the station and make his report. Fowler returns to Earth in human to spread his message. Wise humans try to restrain him, but the Mutants interfere, spreading Juwain’s philosophy, which makes all men deal honestly with one another; almost all humans see that the Loper world is better than Earth, and mankind migrates en masse to Jupiter, to be transformed. Earth is almost deserted. [f] “Hobbies.” (Astounding Science Fiction, Vol. 38, No. 3, Issue 192, November 1946). The dogs continue their advance under the tutelary guidance of Jenkins, and a descendant of the Websters, Jon, returns to the dog-project. He is placed in suspended animation. [g] “Aesop.” (Astounding Science Fiction, Vol. 40, No. 4, Issue 205, December 1947). Progress is mounting in reclaiming the now intelligent wild animals, and Jenkins still maintains dog civilization. Dogs, with their superior senses, have contact with other parallel worlds, from one of which a horrible monstrosity called a cobbly emerges. The few humans left upon Earth show signs of regaining their former aggressiveness, and Jenkins resolves upon an important act: he transfers all men to a parallel world, himself with them, to protect the dog civilization from an inferiority complex. [h] “The Simple Way.” (Fantastic Adventures, Vol. 13, No. 1, Issue 103, January 1951 as “The Trouble with Ants”) & (Fantastic Stories, Vol. 15, No. 6, Issue 134, July 1966). Jenkins returns from the other world to find that the dog civilization has advanced enormously, but that an ant civilization, started as a moment’s amusement by Joe the Mutant, threatens the dogs. Jenkins awakens the sleeping Webster, and asks his advice, but cannot follow it. ***In a period following the story, Jenkins presumably took the dogs to still another parallel world, abandoning Earth to the ants. ***A very interesting and unusual future-history series that is not at all spoiled by some out-of-mood notes by future “dogs.” At first some of the stories seem far-fetched in their context, but later reading will show that each story is justifiable. ***First paperback edition: Permabooks, 264, 1954, 192 pp., pa .25¢.

21. 
Padgett, Lewis [Pseudo. of Kuttner, Henry and Moore, C(atherine) L(ucille)]
Robots Have No Tails....
Gnome Press; New York, NY  1952 224  $2.75
4,000 copies printed.
Jacket by Ric Binkley.

Science fiction short stories. ***Five short stories about Galloway Gallagher, an eccentric genius. Gallagher is of only average ability when sober, but is a startlingly original if slightly mad genius when roaring drunk, and solves all sorts of unsolvable problems with puckish abandon. He lives some time in the not too distant future, perhaps a hundred years or so away. ***Three of the stories concern Joe, a narcissistic transparent robot with all sorts of special private senses and abilities, whom Gallagher invented one drunken day as a super-efficient can-opener. ***Most of the stories follow a simple but effective formula. Gallagher, sober, finds some outlandish apparatus in his laboratory, and cannot remember what he designed it for, and usually nearly comes to grief while investigating. ***[a] “The Proud Robot (Astounding Science Fiction, Vol. 32, No. 2, Issue 155, October 1943). Gallagher becomes entangled with the law when Joe, using hypnotic force, poses as Gallagher and signs him up to a contract. Joe refuses to admit to the deception in court, and Gallagher cannot force him until he learns Joe’s true nature and purpose. The problem involves, also, piracy in television. [b] “Gallagher Plus” (Astounding Science Fiction, Vol. 32, No. 3, Issue 156, November 1943). This is the term for Gallagher’s more intelligent unconscious mind that emerges when he is drunk. Gallagher finds in his laboratory, one hangover morning, a huge machine that disintegrates soil and sings the St. James Infirmary. Joe, with his usual narcissism, a corrupt alderman, and several other persons complicate things until Gallagher Plus solves matters. [c] “The World is Mine” (Astounding Science Fiction, Vol. 31, No. 4, Issue 151, June 1943). No Joe. Gallagher Plus invents a time machine, through which hop three rabbit-like creatures who announce that they are Lybblas from Mars, and intend to conquer Earth. The time machine stalls and the Lybblas tell Gallagher how to make a heat-ray, when troubles begin. The time machine starts to deliver corpses burned to death with a heat-ray, and all the corpses are Gallagher. Gallagher is jailed for his own murder, the corpses keep appearing and disappearing, the Lybblas keep shouting about world conquest, an enemy has the heat-ray, and finally there is a device to transfer abilities from one mind to another. [d] “Ex Machina” (Astounding Science Fiction, Vol. 41, No. 2, Issue 209, April 1948) & (Analog Anthology, No. 4, 1982). Gallagher, Joe, an invisible brown animal that drinks all Gallagher’s whiskey, and a blue-eyed dynamo. All must be explained by the sober Gallagher, who must also solve a problem for Adrenals, Inc. to provide safe thrills for customers. [e] “Time Locker” (Astounding Science Fiction, Vol. 30, No. 5, Issue 146, January 1943). Gallagher invents a locker that operates in time, so that things can be stored in it in almost infinite quantity. It traps a murderer. ***Not as humorous as the other four stories. ***There is of course very little science in these science fiction esprits de jeu, and this lack has offended some readers, but we do not consider it very important. There is a good deal of humor and much ingenuity. Joe is delightful. We wish he were in all five stories. ***Highly recommended. ***No paperback edition.

22. 
Moore, C[atherine] L[ucille] 
Judgment Night,
A Selection of Science Fiction
Gnome Press; New York, NY  1952 344  $3.50
4,000 copies printed. Two bindings, cloth 2,500, second boards 1,500 (c.1956).
Jacket by Frank Kelly Frease [sic].

Science fiction novellas and short stories. ***[a] “Judgment Night” (Astounding Science Fiction, Vol. 31, No. 6 & Vol. 21, No. 1, Issue 153 & 154, August 1943 & September 1943). In the far future, during the time of galactic humanity, whoever rules the planet Ericon rules the galaxy. At present an invasion is underway, led by Egide, the dashing young lover of Juille, and Jair, of the H’vani, who are aided by underground rebellion upon the planet. Juille, princess of the planet is the heir apparent to the ruling family of the entire galaxy. Juille, the beautiful girl who is as hard as a soldier, Juille, the one who rebels against a rebellion, and who in a moment of passion causes open warfare to break out, and sees her culture destroyed. The strange envoy from Dunnar, a mysterious figure, constantly accompanied by a weird, intelligent creature, the llar, hovers over the scene. But it seems that mankind, also, is doomed upon H’vani, all in accordance with the will of the enigmatic god-like Ancients. In the struggle is the most dreadful weapon of history, the death-dealing mechanism keyed to the brain pattern of specific person, with it a man’s life can be taken with a casual thought. Fantastic weapons, adventure, and love. [b] “Paradise Street” (Astounding Science Fiction, Vol. 46, No. 1, Issue 238, September 1950 as by Lawrence O’Donnell). The planet of Loki, once wild and wooly, is now becoming civilized and settled by squatters. Morgan, gunslinging pioneer, resents this and does what he can to wreck a settlement. [c] “Promised Land” (Astounding Science Fiction, Vol. 44, No. 6, Issue 231, February 1950 as by Lawrence O’Donnell). Upon Ganymede an ideological quarrel has arisen between the Thresholders—man mutated to adjust better to alien environments—and the Protector, Torren, a super-capitalist, who plans to use new scientific techniques to make Ganymede habitable for normal humans. This quarrel emerges between the 500-pound Torren, who must live in a bath, and his normal “heir.” [d] “The Code” (Astounding Science Fiction, Vol. 35, No. 5, Issue 176, July 1945 as by Lawrence O’Donnell). A rejuvenation treatment gradually turns the subject into a human of another time track. This is linked with the legend of Faust, particularly as in Marlowe. [e] “Heir Apparent” (Astounding Science Fiction, Vol. 45, No. 5, Issue 236, July 1950 as by Lawrence O’Donnell). Complex adventure, with integrator teams who form a psychic entity greater than the sum of their parts. The story ends with a near-threat of metal intelligence. ***[c] is much the best story in the collection, which on the whole is not up to some of C.L. Moore’s very early work or her other later collaborations with her husband, Henry Kuttner. ***First paperback edition: Paperback, 52-863, 1965, 156 pp., pa .50¢ (title novel only).

23. 
Howard, Robert E[rvin]
The Sword of Conan,
The Hyborean Age
Gnome Press; New York, NY  1952 251  $2.75
5,000 copies printed.
Jacket and endpaper maps by David Kyle.

Fantastic adventure short stories. ***Further adventures of Conan the Cimmerian, before his attainment of a kingly crown. ***[a] “The People of the Black Circle.”  (Weird Tales, Vol. 24, No. 3, No. 4 & No. 5, Issue 129, 130 & 131, September 1934, October 1934 & November 1934)& (Fantastic, Vol. 16, No. 3, Issue 137, January 1967). Conan is now a chief of a sort among the fierce Afghulis [Afghans] near the frontiers of Vendhya [India]. When an acolyte of the Black Seers-terribly potent black magicians who dwell in the mountains-comes to Vendhya, Conan is drawn into the resultant turmoil, and fierce adventure follows. The Cimmerian eventually beards and destroys the Black Seers. [b] “The Slithering Shadow.” (Weird Tales, Vol. 22, No. 3, Issue 117, September 1933). Conan and a girl, after a bad military defeat, flee south, through and past the kingdoms of the black men, to the deserts of the far south, where they come to a seemingly deserted city, Xuthal, once built by fabulously advanced yellow men [the Smithfield people?]. Seeming dead men who come to life and the slithering Shadow, which gobbles people up in the background, offer thrills until Conan battles his way out. [c]“The Pool of the Black One.” (Weird Tales, Vol. 22, No. 4, Issue 118, October 1933). Conan becomes a pirate in the Atlantic, and his ship sails far out, to an unknown island, where black giants perform strange rites around a black pool that petrifies and shrinks persons thrown into it. [d] “Red Nails.” (Weird Tales, Vol. 28, No. 1, No. 2 & No. 3, Issue 151, 152 & 153, July 1936, August-September 1936 & October 1936). Conan and a lady pirate desert from an army and go far south through dragon-haunted forests, to the great city-building of Xuchotl [Nahuatl speakers?] which is inhabited by two hostile groups, Tecuhtli and Xotalancas, who dwell in perpetual warfare in a labyrinth of corridors. Torture, a witch, magic, a tittering monstrosity, and a fantastic weapon are all dissolved in the usual Conan solvent: torrents of blood. ***These are among the better Conan stories, and are good examples of the gory adventure fantasy, if one admits the validity of the subform. [b] and [c] are the best, extravagant adventure embodying considerable antiquarian lore and imagination. ***No paperback edition.

24. 
Greenberg, Martin (editor)
Five Science Fiction Novels
Gnome Press; New York, NY 1952 13+282 $3.50
6,500 copies printed.
Jacket by Frank Kelly Frease [sic].

Science fiction novels. ***[a] “But Without Horns” (Unknown, Vol. 3, No. 4, Issue 16, June 1940)& (Unknown (UK), Vol. 3, No. 4, June 1940), by Norvell W. Page. Kildering, top Hawkshaw for the F.B.I., is the nation’s only defense against John Miller, a new superman of fantastic mental power, who seems invulnerable. Miller’s hypnotic mental force changes enemies to friends, even Kildering. **We suspect that the author is not too ingenious in devising techniques for the removal of supermen. [b] “Destiny Times Three” (Astounding Science Fiction, Vol. 35, No. 1 & No. 2, Issue 172 & 173, March 1945 & April 1945) & (Galaxy Novel, No. 28, 1957), by Fritz [Reuter] Leiber, Jr. This is a very complex story about a stupendous mechanical brain-like machine, lost by a super-race from another existence, which is used to split off parallel worlds. Irresponsible humans utilize these worlds to learn the results of alternative decisions to great problems. But the parallel worlds cannot be destroyed, and one invades another, seeking universal dominion. [c]“Crisis in Utopia” (Astounding Science Fiction, Vol. 25, No. 5 & No. 6, Issue 116 & 117, July 1940 & August 1940), by Norman L[ouis] Knight. [Tritons] Secret anthropobiology, in the near future, creates truly amphibious men. But revolt breaks out among the “Tritons” when a nearly insane Triton official plots conquest, and uses a very strange robot to gain his ends. [d] “The Chronicler” (Astounding Science Fiction, Vol. 38, No. 2 & No. 3,Issue 191 & 192, October 1946 & November 1946), by A.E. van Vogt. Mr. Slade suddenly develops a third eye, which, as has been pointed out by Martin Gardner in his fascinating In the Name of Science, Slade trains to see by the techniques of Dr. Bates. Use of this third eye precipitates him into another world where [1.] there is a city of vampiric humans who drink one another’s blood as a drug; [2.] there is an enormously potent space-ship which wishes to destroy the scientific barrier around the city and wipe out vampirism; [3.] there are belt-wearers, who have almost divine power by means of mechanical devices; [4.] and primitive communities who have potentialities of advancing even beyond the belt-wearers through mental power alone. Slade finally stumbles through. [e] “The Crucible of Power” (Astounding Science Fiction, Vol. 22, No. 6, Issue 99, February 1939), by Jack Williamson. An entrepreneur, ship-wrecked upon Mars, swindles and murders to gain control of a fabulously old, fabulously powerful power-device which utilizes powder from the Sun. ***[b] is an excellent thriller; [c] is interesting, and at times has moments of charm. [d] is not quite first-rate van Vogt, but is still interesting. This reader did not care for the other two stories at all. ***First paperback edition: Bodley Head, 1953, 236 pp., pa 8/6 (three novels [a], [c] & [e]).

25. 
Clarke, Arthur C[harles]
Sands of Mars,
A New Interplanetary Novel
Gnome Press; New York, NY  1952 216  $2.75
2nd edition, 5,000 copies printed. (Printed simultaneously by U.S. SF Book Club from Gnome plates, only difference being “book club edition” on jacket flap of a totally different dust jacket, salmon colored with text only. 4 titles on back of dust jacket. Titling in red.
1,500 second printing.
1,500 third printing. 37 titles on back of dust jacket. Titling in yellow.
(1st edition, Sidgwick & Jackson; London  1951  219)
Jacket by Ric Binkley.

Science fiction novel. ***Martin Gibson, best-selling science fiction author, is allowed to make the first passenger trip to Mars, on the Ares, in exchange for journalistic work for the Martian project. Life in the rocket trip is described in some detail, as is life in the pressurized dome colony on Mars. Gibson plays cupid for his illegitimate son, Jimmy Spencer, whom he unexpectedly finds among the five-man rocket-ship crew. Gibson comes to love Mars, and settles on it as permanent press agent. Other motives include semi-intelligent Martian animals, who are semi-kangaroo in appearance; oxygen-generating vegetation that is to render Mars habitable for Earthmen; and “Project Dawn,” the transformation of Phoebus, Mars’s small satellite, into a second tiny sun. ***Enormously overlong. I might have liked it as a short story. ***The first American edition is published by Gnome Press. ***First paperback edition: Pocket Books, 989, 1954, 217 pp., pa .25¢.

26. 
Brackett, Leigh ([Douglas])
The Starmen
Gnome Press; New York, NY  1952 247  $2.75
5,000 copies printed.
Jacket by Ric Binkley.

Science fiction novel. ***Rewritten from: “The Starmen of Llyrdis” (Startling Stories, Vol. 23, No. 1, Issue 67, March 1951). ***Michael Trehearne was a changeling. When he stood on the hillside in Brittany and watched the strange rites, he had been searching for his past. He found it there—and he also found his future: the beautiful and mysterious girl called Shairn—and the faraway stars! When he saw her his mind was full of all the things that had oppressed and worked and driven him since childhood, the nagging little mysteries about himself to which now he would find the key. Their meeting was the key. It unlocked the doorway to the stars and plunged him into breath-taking adventures out across the universe toward an unknown fate—and face to face with the Law of the Vardda. He had no dread for the Vardda, for they weren’t conquerors, they were merchant-adventurers amidst the stars. Yet he did have awe for them. He felt he was a man gone astray in a titan’s dream. The dream at first seemed a nightmare. The shrill old voice of the crone had whispered in his memory, “Every other year the Devil sends his sons and daughters.” But it was no dream, he knew. The alluring Shairn was real—and she was more like an angel in her loose short tunic of some strange fabric the color of flame, belted over soft dark trousers by a jeweled band. ***Michael Trehearne, of dubious ancestry, learns that he is a member of the Vardda, or the Starmen of Llyrdis, an extraterrestrial race whose culture penetrates many worlds in space. Travel to Llyrdis, conflict, exploration, romance, adventure, politics follow in rapid mixture until the expected ending arrives. ***Michael Trehearne, part Earthman, part Vardda, arouses the jealousy of Kerrel, a policeman on Llyrdis, the Vardda’s home planet. Because Trehearne can withstand the rigors of interstellar flight, for which only true-bred Vardda have been genetically prepared, he threatens not only Kerrel’s one-sided romance with the rich and beautiful Shairn, but the Vardda’s monopoly on intergalactic travel as well. ***Trehearne discovers that he’s really a genetically-engineered alien, and wants to sell the secret of interstellar travel to other races that do not have the genetic capability. ***Recommended. ***First paperback edition: ACE Double, D-99, 1955, 168 pp., .35¢; with Conquest of the Space Sea by Robert Morse Williams.

27. 
Asimov, Isaac
Foundation and Empire
Gnome Press; New York, NY  1952 247  $2.75
5,000 copies printed.
2,500 copies reprinted in 1955.
Jacket by Edd Cartier.

Science fiction short stories. ***The second of a series of three volumes based on a very elaborate “future history.” ***A continuation of FOUNDATION. ***200 years, more or less, have passed since the establishment of the Foundation, which is now the most powerful state in its portion of the galaxy. ***[a] “The General.” (Astounding Science Fiction, Vol. 35, No. 2, Issue 173, April 1945 as “Dead Hand”). The Foundation and the Empire clash. Bel Riose, a great military genius, has heard reports of the fabulous science of the Foundation, and has determined to conquer the Foundation. He beats the Foundation badly in warfare, and it looks as if Seldon had not foreseen this, when sociological forces within the Empire itself create a crisis. The Emperor, for his own survival, cannot permit a second prestige-figure in his realm, and Bel Riose, on the eve of conquest, is recalled. This lesson is drawn: the Foundation has nothing to fear from the Empire, for strong generals will clash with strong emperors, and weak generals and weak emperors do not count. (This may seem like a heads-you-lose-tails-I-win statement, but for story purposes it is strong enough.) ***The first half of the book, titled “The General,” tells how the Galactic Empire, now well into its collapse, launches an attack against the Foundation. They are led by General Bel Riose. The Empire, though a wreck of its former self, is still partially alive, and has far more resources than the Foundation. Lathan Devers, a Foundation agent, allows himself to be captured by Riose and tells him about the Foundation: how it’s supposedly protected by the dead hand of Hari Seldon, and how its technology surpasses anything else in the Empire. Riose asks the Emperor for reinforcements, apparently more than he could possibly need, so he can guarantee victory over the Foundation. He also rejects the Foundation’s offer of “You stop invading us and we’ll pay you a wad of money.” Devers intercepts a message that summarizes the General’s doings, and escapes to Trantor, trying to see the Emperor and show him the message. He fails and is nearly killed, but the Emperor finds out anyway. In the end, the Emperor decides that Riose is too dangerous (refusing bribes?). Highly suspicious! Taking that many reinforcements? And he’s popular enough that he could easily turn them against the Empire and carve out his own territory), and has him tried and executed. ***This was the psychohistorical defense: Under a weak Emperor, an upstart general would have much greater opportunities for conquest than a group of planets on the edge of the Galaxy. A strong Emperor, on the other hand, is one that allows no one else to become too powerful; a strong emperor would kill a competent, strong general before he even launched an attack. The only time there would be an actual threat to the Foundation would be when there was both a strong emperor and a strong general; the general could not overthrow the emperor, so his attention would be diverted outwards. However, the strong emperor would eventually become fearful of the strong general’s exploits, and being a capable emperor he would get rid of a general like Riose, as happens in the story. The emperor and the general cannot be the same person, because then someone will take over while the emperor is off conquering the Foundation. In all cases, the Foundation is invulnerable. ***The characters of Emperor Cleon II and Bel Riose in this story are based around those of the historical Roman Emperor Justinian I and his general Belisarius, the story of whom was familiar to Asimov from his recent reading of Robert Graves’ novel Count Belisarius. [b] “The Mule” (Astounding Science Fiction, Vol. 36, No. 3 & No. 4, Issue 180 & 181, November 1945 & December 1945). So far Seldon’s science has been fantastically (in many ways) correct, but something unforeseen happens—the Mule. The Mule is a mutant who is telepathic to a certain extent and is possessed of the power of adjusting the emotions of others. This means, for all practical purposes, mental control over anyone whom he may meet. Seldon had not foreseen this, for his science dealt in large-scale flows, not in individuals, and when his image emerges for its periodic crowing, it is incorrect. The Foundation is easily conquered by the Mule, who builds a galactic empire. The Mule, however, has heard by now of the Second Foundation, in which Seldon secretly concentrated his psychohistorians and psychologists, and recognizes that he still has a formidable enemy. He almost finds Second Foundation. The next volume will continue his search, and will tell of the battle between First and Second Foundations. ***The second half of the book, titled “The Mule,” takes place approximately one hundred years after the first half. The Empire has ceased to exist in name as well as in fact, Trantor having been sacked by a “barbarian fleet,” and only a small rump state of 20 agricultural planets remaining (dwarfed by most barbarian kingdoms). Following Cleon II’s death the Empire entered into an even more rapid phase of decline and civil wars, never to have another revival like that which happened under Cleon II. The Foundation has become the dominant power in the Galaxy, controlling its regions through its trading network. Unfortunately, the leadership of the Foundation has become degenerate: the Mayor of Terminus is the ineffectual successor to a strongman who seized power and instituted hereditary rule. In response to the internal corruption on the Foundation, roughly 30 outer planets belonging to the Foundation who have become wealthy on their own through extensive trade begin to plan a civil war. The Independent Traders are gearing up for a war to secede from the Foundation. ***In addition to this internal corruption, an external threat arises in the form of a mysterious man who is known only as the Mule. The Mule (whose real name is never revealed) is a mental freak, and possesses the ability to sense and manipulate the emotions of others. He uses this ability to take over the independent systems bordering the Foundation, and has them wage a war against it. While his vassals prosecute the war, the Mule travels under the guise of a refugee clown named “Magnifico Giganticus,” with Foundation citizens Toran and Bayta Darell to different worlds of the Foundation. He uses his abilities to undermine the Foundation’s war effort by spreading despair and destroying morale. In the end, the Foundation falls without much of a fight at all. As the Mule was advancing, the Foundation leadership complacently assumed that Seldon predicted his attack, and that even though the Mule was inexorably winning, the scheduled hologram crisis message appearance of Hari Seldon would tell them how to win (just as Bel Riose had seemed impossible to defeat, yet was “defeated” by Seldon’s predictions). However, when Seldon’s crisis tape plays they are shocked to discover that the crisis Seldon predicted was a civil war between the Foundation and the Independent Traders, and makes no mention of the Mule whatsoever. Several representatives of the Independent Traders in attendance explain that they were going to start a civil war of secession, but stopped when the Mule started his invasion: Seldon didn’t predict the Mule, and when the Mule’s ships soon afterwards appear over Terminus, the Foundation surrenders with little fight. The Trader worlds, however, fight a losing war of attrition. ***Still under the guise of a refugee clown, the Mule travels with the Darells, along with psychologist Ebling Mis, to the Great Library of Trantor. The Darells and Mis seek to contact the Second Foundation, which they believe will be able to defeat the Mule. The Mule, on the other hand, wishes to know the location of the Second Foundation so that he can use the First Foundation’s technology to destroy it. ***While at the Great Library, the Mule surreptitiously stimulates Ebling Mis’s mind, allowing him to make powerful insights. Unfortunately for Mis, the Mule’s actions cause his health to deteriorate very quickly. As Mis lies dying, he tells Toran, Bayta, and the Mule that he knows where the Second Foundation is. Just before he reveals the Second Foundation’s location, however, Bayta kills him. (Bayta had shortly before realized that the renegade clown was actually the Mule, and killed Mis to prevent him from revealing the Second Foundation’s whereabouts to the Mule.) Defeated, the Mule leaves the Darells on Trantor to reign over the Foundation and the rest of his new empire. Bayta tells the Mule that while the First Foundation was made to master physical sciences, the Second Foundation was centered on the science of psychology and mentalics; in a sense, Seldon did predict the Mule, or at least, anticipated that something unexpected like the Mule might happen, and set up the Second Foundation as a direct countermeasure to a hypothetical individual with mental or telepathic powers like the Mule. The Mule admits that had he found out where the Second Foundation was from Mis, he would have destroyed it before they could develop a counter-strategy, but now he doesn’t know where it is, and the Second Foundation has been bought enough time to develop a counter-strategy to the Mule. Now that the Mule has conquered the Foundation (as well as the pathetic remnants of the Galactic Empire) he stands as the most powerful force in the galaxy, as he is the sole controller of nuclear technologies and weapons; the Second Foundation is the only real threat to his eventual rule over the entire galaxy. The Mule promises that he will find the Second Foundation, while Bayta asserts that he will run out of time before the Second Foundation reacts. ***Mr. Asimov’s “future history” is unusual in being built upon very subtle sociological theories, instead of technological devices, as is usual in science fiction. These theories may seem to a social scientist a little too pat, but this is, after all, not very important in science fiction. Instead, Mr. Asimov should be congratulated for the scope and complexity of his scheme. Many of the ideas are fascinating, but not in all cases do the stories themselves live up to the scheme upon which they are built. 18 [a] and 27 [a] are most interesting. ***A reader who is interested in Mr. Asimov’s opinion of the role of history in science fiction should read Mr. Asimov’s extremely controversial essay in R. Bretnor’s Modern Science Fiction. This reader’s opinion is that Mr. Asimov’s practice is usually better than his precept. ***First paperback edition: ACE, D-125, 1955, 254 pp., pa .35¢; as The Man Who Upset the Universe.

28. 
Shiras, Wilmar H[ouse]
Children of the Atom
Gnome Press; New York, NY  1953 216  $2.75
5,000 copies printed.
Jacket by Frank Kelly Frease [sic].

Science fiction short stories. ***CHILDREN OF THE ATOM is the history of a short period in the adolescence of a group of mutated children, who were born superior to Homo sapiens as a result of the atomic explosion of 1958, which resulted in their parents’ death. In each case adjustment has been difficult for the children, for they were super-geniuses in a world of morons, and all, apparently, have intensely strong creative urges which needed expression, even though this expression is culturally denied to them. ***[a] “In Hiding.” (Astounding Science Fiction, Vol. 42, No. 3, Issue 216, November 1948) & (Analog Anthology, No. 3, 1982). The first suspicion arises that the genius children exist when Dr. Peter Welles, a psychologist of a sort, examines 13-year-old Timothy Paul, whose sensitive school teacher feels that he is in some way abnormal, acting a very complex part. Welles discovers, after gaining Tim’s confidence, that Tim is an astounding genius who under a host of pseudonyms is a prominent musical composer, author, architect, and so on. Welles and Tim determine to discover if there are other genius children resultant from the same atomic explosion that produced Tim’s seeming uniqueness. [b] “Opening Doors.” (Astounding Science Fiction, Vol. 43, No. 1, Issue 220, March 1949). Welles and Tim begin to receive responses to a “feeler ad” which they publish, and some of these responses are encouraging. A little girl named Elsie Lambeth is discovered, who instead of assuming the furtively normal pose adopted by Timothy Paul, had hidden by pretending to be insane, and survived in isolation in an insane asylum. When she is contacted, she admits past errors of adjustment, and is to join the group being established by Tim and Welles, for Tim’s wealthy grandparents are endowing a school for gifted children. [c] “New Foundations.” (Astounding Science Fiction, Vol. 45, No. 1, Issue 232, March 1950). Two new genius children are found. Jay Worthington, who has been fortunate in his environment; as the grandson of a prominent historian in a university community, he has not found it necessary to conceal as much as have the other children; and Stella, who is shy and withdrawn, and lives in a dream world of her own in which reincarnation plays a part. Jay is pseudonymously a great historian, while Stella is pseudonymously the modern Marie Corelli. [d] “Problems.” (First appearance.) As a group of the genius children are assembled in the new “school,” various personality problems are encountered and solved by a sort of combination group-therapy and highly bowdlerized Jungian psychoanalysis. Stella gradually outgrows her moony escape fantasies, and the other children improve, although at the last minute it is discovered that one of them, whose name shall not be revealed, is a monster of scientism. The other children work upon him, by showing him a simple psychological diagram, and it seems that he is on the way toward growing a soul. [e] “Children of the Atom.” (First appearance.) The idyllic community has continued for a short time when somehow information leaks out to the public about it, and an unscrupulous rabble-rouser incites a near-riot. After this it is recognized by Tim and the others that their school was really only another form of retreat, this time into an ivory tower, and that it is still necessary to face Homo sapiens and make adjustments to him. ***”In Hiding” created a near furor when it first appeared, for it was almost the first time that anyone had dared to treat a science fiction theme with sympathy and literacy, while completely abandoning pulp action plots. It is very much worth reading. The sequels, in varying degree, almost achieve the heights of “In Hiding,” although the longer the reader reads in the book the more unsatisfying traits appear. We might mention a certain lack of story dynamism; an unfortunate inclusion of a very shallow attempt at psychoanalyzing, as in story [c]; and a mounting failure to show the true alienness of minds as far above normal humanity as those postulated for the children. ***Nevertheless, Children of the Atom is one of the most interesting science fiction books of this particular decade, and the first two stories are certainly among the very best stories of this era. ***First paperback edition: Avon, T221, 1958, 192 pp., pa .35¢.

29. 
Schachner, Nat[han]
Space Lawyer
Gnome Press; New York, NY  1953 222  $2.75
4,000 copies printed.
Jacket by Ric Binkley.

Science fiction novel. ***First half from: [a] “Old Fireball” (Astounding Science Fiction, Vol. 27, No. 4, Issue 127, June 1941), the rest is new. [b] “Jurisdiction” (Astounding Science Fiction, Vol. 27, No. 6, Issue 129, August 1941). ***Practically every young man, at one time or another has faced the unpleasant task of bolstering up his courage to walk into the boss’s office to demand, or at least suggest, that he be given a raise commensurate with his value to the firm. But there will always be talented young men such as Kerry Dale, the space lawyer, who pulls himself up by his bootstraps and gives battle to the powerful Simeon Kenton, president, owner, and sole manager of Kenton Space Enterprises, Unlimited. Old Fireball, as his enemies and employees have nicknamed him, ruled over an empire vaster by far than any of old Earth; his “spaceships fastened their flags in the spongy marshes of Venus, on the desolate wastes of Mars, on rocky asteroids and mighty Jupiter itself.” It wasn’t surprising then that he was utterly flabbergasted and enraged when a young upstart of an assistant’s assistant, Kerry Dale, from his legal department, stormed into his private office unannounced, demanded a raise, after practically assaulting him in front of his own daughter, and stamped out after shouting his resignation. Simeon Kenton had no idea that the matter wasn’t closed, that this little heated incident was the first link in a long chain of legal clashes that was to raise the space lawyer up to the level of Old Fireball himself! ***Written with deft skill and an irresistible humor in the telling of an intriguing story of the legal problems that are bound to crop up in the new frontier out in space. ***This was Nat Schachner’s first science fiction novel. ***No paperback edition.

30. 
Padgett, Lewis [Pseudo. of Kuttner, Henry]
Mutant
Gnome Press; New York, NY  1953  210 $2.75
4,000 copies printed.
Jacket by Ric Binkley.

Science fiction short stories. ***Contents: [a] “The Piper’s Son” (Astounding Science Fiction, Vol. 34, No. 6, Issue 171, February 1945). [b] “Three Blind Mice” (Astounding Science Fiction, Vol. 35, No. 4, Issue 175, June 1945). [c] “The Lion and the Unicorn” (Astounding Science Fiction, Vol. 35, No. 5, Issue 176, July 1945). [d] “Beggars in Velvet” (Astounding Science Fiction, Vol. 36, No. 4, Issue 181, December 1945). [e] “Humpty Dumpty” (Astounding Science Fiction, Vol. 52, No. 1, Issue 274, September 1953). [f] “Epilogue” (First appearance). ***Sometime during the next century a mutant will crash high up in a chain of snowcapped mountains. He will crawl from the wreckage of his ship, frown at the jagged ridge of cliffs that surround him, and then send out his thoughts, probing, seeking the reassuring touch of the minds that unite with his to give life its fullest meaning. And he will touch...nothing...but the echoing emptiness of his own isolated thoughts. Alone! He will lie in the snows, delirious, semi-conscious, and try to keep from freezing by calling up, from the deepest wells of his race’s memories, the cherished stories of the great Baldy minds who led their kind out of the valley of danger. And he will remember, as though it happened before his weary eyes, how the great Blowup came and wiped out mankind’s civilization almost overnight, leaving only huge radioactive sores (the graves of cities) over the face of the Earth. How, near these shunned areas, were born the first Baldies, hated and feared by normal human survivors because they were completely hairless and telepathic. In his delirium the castaway will relive the tense lives of the first sane Baldies, like Al Burkhalter, who tried to live peacefully with the ever-suspicious normal humans by wearing a wig and respecting the intimate privacy of their minds. How other menacing Baldies appeared, paranoids, who insisted that all the normal humans must be wiped out for the survival of the Baldy race. He will recall how the incredibly tense secret struggle between the sane and paranoid Baldies threatened, at any time, to ignite the great pogrom—the wiping out of all Baldies by the normal kind. And how this silent conflict gave meaning to the life of the piper’s son; to David Barton, Baldy naturalist, collector of big and little game, who had to destroy the menace of the three blind mice; to McNey who found a way to combat the powerful paranoids and died to conceal it; to Harry Burkhalter, grandson of Al Burkhalter, who became a Mute to aid his people’s cause when the great pogrom took place; and to the Baldies who sought desperately for the means to give the power of telepathy—the Baldy’s cross, and yet his crown—to the normal humans, so that both kinds might live peaceful and trusting lives. The mutant will lie frozen in the mountain-snows and know the outcome of that great attempt as his life fades like a dying flame and as rescuing helicopters descend to extend a helping hand. ***MUTANT is probably one of the most important and skilled science fiction novels written. ***First U.S. paperback edition: Ballantine, F724, 1963, 191 pp., pa .50¢.

31. 
Moore, C[atherine] L[ucille] 
Shambleau and Others
Gnome Press; New York, NY  1953 224  $3.00
4,000 copies printed.
Jacket by Ric Binkley.

Science fiction and fantasy short stories. ***Contents: [a] “Black God’s Kiss.” “Jirel of Joiry.” (Weird Tales, Vol. 24, No. 4, Issue 130, October 1934). Jirel of Joiry, the mail-clad commander of her troops, is taken captive when her castle falls to invaders. The leader of the invaders, Guillaume, is surprised when he discovers the Jirel is a beautiful red-haired, yellow-eyed woman. He is taken by her striking beauty and kisses her. Jirel spurns Guillaume and is thrown into her own deepest dungeon. Escaping with ease, Jirel encounters her priest, Father Gervase. The angry ruler of Joiry wants to be shrived before she undertakes a dangerous journey into the bowels of her castle to a long concealed tunnel that leads directly to Hell. Jirel is ready to make any bargain, any journey to find a weapon terrible enough to defeat Guillaume and have her revenge on him. Jirel’s descent to Hell is epic. Only her hatred of Guillaume enables her to make the journey. Arriving in Hell, Jirel is given the weapon she is seeking. In a black temple in the heart of Hell, Jirel is compelled to kiss the statue of a demon. In terror over what she has wrought, Jirel races back to the surface. At the entrance to the long concealed tunnel to Hell, she finds Guillaume waiting with his men. She appears to succumb to him at last, falling into his arms and giving him a long kiss. But it is merely to transfer the kiss of the demon to Guillaume. He falls dead. At the end Jirel weeps over his lifeless body, realizing what she hated most about the man was his vitality, which she has destroyed forever. [b] “Shambleau.” (Weird Tales, Vol. 22, No. 5, Issue 119, November 1933), (Avon Fantasy Reader, No. 7, September 1948) & (Galaxy Novel, No. 31, 1957). Northwest Smith, about whom there are other stories, rescues a shambleau on Mars from the Lakkdarol mob. The strange, beautiful girl is an emotional vampiric creature, with vast mental powers that produce pure pleasure in the intended victim, which becomes habit-forming, like a drug. Smith and the girl become very close. ***On an unspecified mission in the spaceport camp town of Lakkdarol, situated along the canals of Mars, Northwest Smith rescues a bizarre half-human half-animal female from the mob. Incurring the wraith of the mob, amidst shouts of “shambleau,” which he does not understand, he claims the turban wearing female into his care. On close observation the strange female appears mostly normal, except for her three-fingered, cat-like claws. He takes her back to the flophouse were he is staying, and continues on his never explained mission. Smith finds a strange erotic attraction to the alien female, but resists the temptation to consummate his desire. That night, returning drunk on segir, a potent brand of Venusian whisky, he has a strange, unsettling nightmare. Smith dreams that he is smothered by something snakelike around his throat. The caresses of the snake thing bring him a mixture of deep, unforgettable pleasure, and revulsion. The next day he dismisses the dream and goes about his business, returning drunk again. Bringing food home, he notices for the first time that the shambleau does not eat, but insists that she will feed, soon. That night he awakes from his sleep to a haunting vision that he is unable to resist, the shambleau has removed its turban, releasing a cascade of scarlet snakelike tendrils. Frozen by the creatures green eyes, Smith is unable to resist the female as she comes to him, smothering him completely with her tendrils, as she begins to feed on his pleasure. Yarol, a Venusian, and Northwest Smith’s partner-in-crime, appears in the nick of time at the flophouse. Yarol finds that Smith has been wrapped inside a cocoon of tendrils for days, basking in the revolting pleasure as the shambleau has fed on his soul. The sight awakens ancestral memories in Yarol. He is barely able to resist the shambleau as it begins to trap him in its tendrils. Yarol rescues Smith and blasts the shambleau into a smoking blaze by using a mirror. Afterword, Smith and Yarol discuss the origin of the emotional vampire, believing it to be the source of the various Medusa legends that abound throughout the galaxy. Yarol tries to make Smith promise to shoot first the next time he sees one, but Northwest can only promise to try. For the rest of his life he will never forget the pull of the pleasure and the revulsion that was mixed with it.  ***”Shambleau” was Moore’s first professional sale, it first appeared in the November, 1933 issue of Weird Tales and the sale netted her a cool $100.00. The hero of the story is Northwest Smith, a spaceship pilot and smuggler, who will remind you of both Indiana Jones and Han Solo. Smith lives in a future in which humanity has colonized the solar system. The relationship of the planetary primitives, on these planets, to the Earth colonists, is analogous to the situation between the Native Indians of the Americas or the Aborigines of Australia to European colonials. Smith is a ruthless, self-serving, and cynical anti-hero with a core of goodness. “Shambleau” mixes themes of sexuality and addiction during Smith’s encounter with a strange female alien. ***Heinlein got the idea for his short story “The Green Hills of Earth” (The Saturday Evening Post, February 8, 1947) & (Nebula Science Fiction, No. 15, January 1956) from this story. He was inspired by the the hero, Northwest Smith, who, at one point, is walking along the banks of a canal on Mars humming “The Green Hills of Earth to himself in a surprisingly good baritone.” [c] “Black God’s Shadow.” “Jirel of Joiry.” (Weird Tales, Vol. 24, No. 6, Issue 132, December 1934). Jirel of Joiry is haunted by terrible dreams of the long-suffering Guillaume, the man she has condemned to the deepest pit of Hell. Tortured by these dreams, Jirel makes the long, frightening journey back to Hell and the black temple of the demon whose kiss she gave to Guillaume. After a long, colorful journey Jirel faces the demon god again. She sees the shape of Guillaume and the torture he has been consigned to, and regrets her revenge. Jirel faces the power of the black god, winning victory only after recognizing the love that Guillaume stirred in her heart. She wins Guillaume his freedom from an eternity of torture, and a clean death. Content at last, Jirel makes the journey back from Hell to Joiry. [d] “Black Thirst.” “Northwest Smith.” (Weird Tales, Vol. 23, No. 4, Issue 124, April 1934), (Avon Fantasy Reader, No. 3, June 1947) & (Galaxy Novel, No. 31, 1957). A Minga woman invites Northwest into the forbidden Venusian fortress where she lives. It turns out to be even larger than expected. ***In the city of Ednes on Venus, Northwest Smith meets a Minga beauty who bargains with him for his help. The Minga, for time untold, have bred the most beautiful women in the galaxy and have sold them to kings and princes. Legends have grown about the Minga females, and they are protected from all inside the castle-like city of Minga in the heart of Ednes. No man has ever entered the castle before, but the Minga beauty, Vaudir, arranges for Smith to come to her inside the depths of the mysterious castle. The charming beauty almost seduces the stalwart hero, but Smith is willing to do her bidding because he is, in fact, a hero. Vaudir explains that she is afraid of the Alendar, the ruler, and master breeder, of Minga. It is Alendar who breeds the beauties, keeping the most spectacular for his own unknown purposes. The best disappear, never to be seen again, when he summons them. Vaudir has looked into the eyes of the Alendar, and has seen that he is not a man, but a creature older than man, a primordial being, an elemental from the depths of the Venusian swamps. She fears that although she is not as great a beauty as the best in Minga, she will be his next victim. Just as she finishes her explanation, she is mentally summoned into the bowels of the ancient castle to the Alendar. Northwest follows. They both meet the Alendar, who keeps Vaudir in his power, while he explains his interest in both the female and in Northwest, he feeds on beauty, which is why he breeds it. The Alendar takes Northwest and Vaudir into the deepest part of the castle where he keeps his finest beauties, to his feeding ground. He shows Northwest his finest stock, which almost drives Smith mad as he is unable to cope with the goddess-like beauty. Then the Alendar begins to feed on Smith. Smith almost succumbs but is helped by the mental power of Vaudir, which has been enhanced by the Alendar as he has been feeding on her. Smith kills the Alendar, who returns to the slime he came from. Together they barely make it to the gate of the castle. Along the way they find all the breeding stock in the castle has been reduced to slime like the Alendar. Vaudir makes Northwest promise to kill her before she becomes like the Alendar, unclean. At the gate to freedom she begins to turn, Smith kills her and goes on his way, free, back into the city. ***Not as good as “Shambleau.” [e] “The Tree of Life.” Northwest Smith. (Weird Tales, Vol. 28, No. 3, Issue 153, October 1936) & (Galaxy Novel, No. 31, 1957). In the ruins of Illar Northwest finds out more about the Martian drylanders’ past. ***Northwest Smith adventures alone, without his inimitable Venusian sidekick, Yarol. On the run, again, Northwest hides in the ruins of the ancient city built by the wizard king, Illar. He encounters the vague, ghostly form of a beautiful woman, who asks for help. Fleeing his pursuers, Northwest follows her through an inter-dimensional gate into the realm of Thag. Thag is an ancient all-powerful god that the wizard king, Illar, employed to help build his kingdom. Now reduced to feeding off the regressed descendants of the original Martians of Illar, and occasionally fed by those lured through the gateway by his one remaining priestess. Thag holds a tenuous connection with the material world through the great Tree of Life, through its branches it feeds off the remaining creatures in its small pocket universe. Northwest, captured by Thag, uses his blaster to sever its connection by the roots and is hurled back into his own world, once again on the run. [f] “Jirel Meets Magic.” “Jirel of Joiry.” (Weird Tales, Vol. 26, No. 1, Issue 139, July 1935). Jirel leads her men in the assault of Guischard, after winning the castle she seeks the wizard, Giraud, who was the reason for her invasion. Giraud has been responsible for the death of many of her men. But Giraud has escaped from the top of his tower, through a window, into another world. Jirel follows, vowing to kill him or not return. In this strange new world, Jirel encounters the evil sorceress, Jarisme, who is Giraud’s protector. With the help of a magic talisman, given to her by a dying dryad, Jirel finds both Jarisme and Giraud hiding in her magic tower. This is the second time Jirel has defied Jarisme. Jarisme extends her mercy, sparing Jirel’s life, and transports her to a distant part of her kingdom by using a magic flute. Jirel makes the arduous return journey to Jarisme’s tower. This time Jarisme traps her in a magic circle, and summons various strange alien beings who are all like her, evil and magical. Together with the other beings, Jarisme plans to deliver Jirel into a permanent state of torture. Giraud interrupts, and Jarisme tells Jirel about a prophecy concerning her own death, that she can only be killed by a female who defies her three times. Due to her amazing will power, Jirel defies Jarisme again, defeating the powers summoned to bring about her punishment. The power turns on Jarisme and the gathered beings, destroying them all. Only Jirel and Giraud escape the destruction of the magic tower. Giraud grabs onto Jirel, knowing that way he will not be consumed like the others. He pleads for his life with Jirel, but she fulfills her vow, killing him. Jirel then makes the uneventful return back to the world of Joiry. [g] “Scarlet Dream.” Northwest Smith. (Weird Tales, Vol. 23, No. 5, Issue 125, May 1934)& (Avon Fantasy Reader, No. 5, March 1947). An oddly patterned shawl that Northwest picks up in Lakkdarol gives him unpleasant dreams. ***Northwest, once again, sans Yarol, is hurled into another pocket universe by the unspeakable words of power inscribed on the shawl. Inside this one, living grass feeds on blood, as do the few inhabitants, most of who have been hurled into the universe by similar devices. Northwest meets an intriguing, beautiful, orange-haired girl, who befriends him and they become lovers as time stretches on. Northwest is disgusted by his need to also feed on blood to survive. Finally, willing to face death on a journey to the far reaches of the pocket universe, the nameless girl sacrifices her life. She speaks the one word of power that enables Northwest to return to his life, and his Venusian partner-in-crime, Yarol. ***Northwest Smith and Jirel of Joiry tales. ***[a] and [b] are highly recommended. Moore remains highly entertaining and very readable. Her work contains a rarely matched evocative color and mood. ***Shambleau (Galaxy Novel, No. 31, 1958). ***This title was first announced to appear by Arkham House starting in 1945, but never did appear under that imprint. ***First paperback edition: Consul, SF1009, 1961, 222 pp., pa 2/6.

32. 
Logan, Jeffrey (editor)
The Complete Book of Outer Space
Gnome Press; New York, NY  1953  144 $2.50
3,000 copies bound by Greenberg under Gnome imprint.
Jacket by Chesley Bonestell.

Science fact short stories. ***A weird one. Maco Magazine Corporation (commercial) published it. Greenberg seems to have bound three thousand under the Gnome imprint—with a new dust jacket. There is also a TAB variant, which was printed in digest size. ***Contents: [a] “Preface,” by Kenneth MacLeish. The preface sets the stage for the rest, but is purely puff, waxing lyrical about the existence of life on this planet, and how wonderful an opportunity the exploration of space is. [b] “A Preview of the Future: Introduction,” by Jeffrey Logan. Wrongly predicts the manned exploration of Mars, Venus and Mercury as well as a doughnut shaped space station in orbit, all within twenty years. [c] “Development of the Space Ship,” by Willy Ley. Reviews the historical beginnings, with special emphasis on the German and NAZI contributions in the development of the rocket as a weapon of mass destruction.  [d] “Station in Space,” by Dr. Wernher von Braun. Suggests that space stations will be mass produced, in the shape of giant wheels. It continues by suggesting a small planning board, and small scale models tested first, followed by a huge group of men sent to the moon, including camping equipment for their prolonged stay. [e] “Space Medicine,” by Dr. Heinz Haber. A primitive article, barely worked out, based solely on the science of the day, wherein air pressure and the lack it the primary problem to be faced. The lack of gravity is superficially touched on, as are the predicted effects of radiation and space sickness due to both. [f] “Space Suits,” by Dr. Donald H. Menzel. A short, now humorous, article emphasizing the need for future space suits to have elaborated vanes, like small wings, for venting heat. It is complete with even more elaborate diagrams. [g] “The Altitude Program,” by Robert P. Haviland. This article suggests a detailed program of flights into increasing thinner air, along with a series of tests, among which is to see if radio communication can occur from 250 miles up. [h] “History of the Rocket Engine,”  by James H. Wyld. As the title suggests, a historical review, complete with period photos, of the development of the rocket engine and its application to flight. It concludes with a skeptical notion that such engines will ever be capable of transoceanic flight, and the belief of that age, that nuclear energy, or exploding a critical mass of U-235 will be the fuel of the future, for all flight, earthbound and into space. [i] “Legal Aspects of Space Travel,” by Oscar Schacter. Puts forth the archaic notion that the possession of any and all celestial objects will be conducted like on the high seas during the Age of the Conquistadors, each space ship, and its point of national origin, would own outright all points of contact. [j] “Exploration of the Moon,” by Hugo Gernsback. Elaborate and extensive dwellings will be built on the moon, carried easily from earth, and ores of all types will be easily mined, and smelted (using solar energy) and returned to earth. [k] “Life Beyond the Earth,” by Willy Ley. A historical review of the belief, and reasons for, life on Mars, the moon, Venus, and Mercury, ending with a statistical argument for the existence of life on other planets, most probably just like us, because it would naturally be carbon based. [l] “Interstellar Flight,” by Dr. Leslie R. Shepherd. Suggests the development, and building of elaborate space arks for the generation long journey to the stars, assuming that the closer ones would have life. The lack of gravity for the voyagers aboard these arks is never even touched upon, but assumed.  [m] “The Spaceship in Science Fiction,” by Jeffrey Logan, editor. A slim article that reviews the predictions of science fiction and the subsequent development of a few of these notions, ignores all those ideas that are best forgotten. [n] “Plea for a Coordinated Space Program,” by Dr. Wernher von Braun. As only a NAZI could, von Braun suggests that at the least, the scientific community can organize itself, sharing ideas and advances, and thus get us into space. He dismisses all political concerns as of no worth. [o] “The Flying Saucer Myth,” by Jeffrey Logan. Tries to debunk, but concludes that it is up to the reader to decide. [p] “The Panel of Experts.” Photos and brief biographies of the contributors. [q] “Chart of the Moon Voyage.” A diagram for a suggested voyage to the moon and back. [r] “Chart of the Voyage to Mars.” A diagram for a suggested voyage to Mars and back. [s] “Timetables and Weights.” Conversion charts for relative comparison. [t] “Space Travel Dictionary.” As the title suggests, a short glossary. ***Illustrated profusely with photographs (indeed, it seems the editor was dubious about whether his readers passed third grade) and with drawings, most by Frank R. Paul. ***The various illustrations are the best part of this publication. The articles are so dated, and most so far-fetched and wrong, that they are only worth reading as examples of the notions in existence on those days before flight and space travel became a reality. ***(First appearance.)

33. 
Howard, Robert E[rvin]
The Coming of Conan
Gnome Press; New York, NY  1953  224 $3.00
5,000 copies printed.
Jacket by David Kyle and Frank Kelly Freas.

Fantastic adventure short stories. ***Contents: [a] Howard to P. Schuyler Miller. [b] Lovecraft to Donald A. Wollheim. [c] “The Hyborian Age,” by L. Sprague de Camp. (LANY Cooperative Publications, 1938; the first half was published in the fanzine The Phantagraph, February, August, & October/November 1936 as edited by Donald A. Wollheim). An essay describing the history, geography, ethnography of the pre-glacial lands through which Conan the Cimmerian wandered. ***This article runs through the book between stories. [d] “The Shadow Kingdom.” (Weird Tales, Vol. 14, No. 2, Issue 71, August 1929). A pre-glacial story. Kull, king of Valusia, discovers that pre-human serpent men plan to take over his kingdom by their hypnotic power. [e] “The Mirrors of Tuzun Thune.” (Weird Tales, Vol. 14, No. 3, Issue 72, September 1929) & (Avon Fantasy Reader, No. 2, April 1947). Kull is almost overcome by magical mirrors that steal his soul. [f] “The King and the Oak.” (Weird Tales, Vol. 33, No. 2, Issue 181, February 1939) & (Weird Tales (Canada), Vol. 38, No. 3, March 1945). A short poem about King Kull and his battle with a great oak that bars his way to the sea. He defeats it, but realizes that it is a representative of a once great race that humans have replaced. ***This poem was not published until 1939. Howard tended to be very conservative of paper and chose the three-line stanza. His lines usually spread from one margin of the paper to the other. A listing of Howard’s poetry made by the Otis Kline agency (Dr. Howard had sent Kline all of Robert’s manuscripts of stories and poems, and someone at the agency typed a listing of both) shows “The King and the Oak” as “1 page.” ***After the Weird Tales version we can look at the publication history. The next publication of the poem was in 1947, in the Arkham House poetry collection Dark of the Moon. This publication replicates the Weird Tales text. In 1953 the poem was reproduced in the Gnome Press volume The Coming of Conan.” This version introduced only one change, obviously a typesetting error: in stanza 8, line 2, the comma at the end of the line was dropped. No other version picked up this error. Glenn Lord included the poem in Always Comes Evening (Arkham House, 1957), and again the text conforms to the Weird Tales version. Ten years later, the poem was included in the Lancer King Kull, and here we find the roots of errors that crop up in the later paperback versions. Since this publication every subsequent publication has contained various errors. [g] “An Informal Biography of Conan the Cimmeran,”  by P. Schuyler Miller & John D. Clark. [h] “The Tower of the Elephant.” (Weird Tales, Vol. 21, No. 3, Issue 111, March 1933). Conan as a young man. The Elephant Tower of Zamora, where a strange being from another planet has been tortured and imprisoned by the priest, Yara. Black magic. [i] “The God in the Bowl.” (Space Science Fiction, Vol. 1, No. 2, September 1952 with L. Sprague de Camp). One night in the degenerate municipality of Numalia, the second largest Nemedian city, Conan enters a fantastic establishment: a great museum and antique house which laymen call the Temple of Kallian Publico. ***In the midst of robbing this temple museum, Conan finds himself embroiled in a murder investigation when the strangled corpse of the temple’s owner and curator, Kallian Publico, is found by a night watchman. Though the Cimmerian is the prime suspect, the investigating magistrate and the prefect of police show remarkable forbearance, allowing Conan not only to remain free, but also to keep his unsheathed sword while their nervous men search the shadowy premises. ***As the on-scene investigation unfolds, the magistrate soon learns Publico had received from distant Stygia a strange bowl-like sarcophagus that now lies unsealed, open, and empty. This sarcophagus was said to be a priceless relic found among the darkened tombs far beneath the Stygian pyramids and sent to Kalanthes, a denizen of Numalia, “because of the love the sender bore the priest of Ibis.” Intercepting this rare item meant for Kalanthes, Kallian Publico had believed the sarcophagus contained the fabled diadem of the giant-kings whose primordial kin dwelt in that dark southern land before the ancestors of the Stygians came there. However, clearly, the object contained within was not the diadem, but something of a more insidious nature. ***While the magistrate and his men are baffled when uncovering this aforementioned information, the reader quickly begins to suspect the murderer may have been something other than entirely human and was contained within the now-opened sarcophagus. ***A scream, a death, and the police retreat from the temple museum; thus, leaving Conan to fend for himself with the roaming “murderer.” Conan eventually locates the culprit whom he hesitantly dispatches with his long sword, learning only in the final sentence the true horror of “the god in the bowl.” [j] “Rogues in the House.” (Weird Tales, Vol. 23, No. 1, Issue 121, January 1934). Conan, before kingship, as a bravo against the Red Priest, Nabonidus. Magic and an unevolved ape-man. [k] “The Frost Giant’s Daughter.” (Fantasy Fiction, Vol. 1, No. 3, August 1953 with L. Sprague de Camp [revised from “Gods of the North”, The Fantasy Fan, March 1934]). This is, arguably, the earliest chronological story by Robert E. Howard in terms of Conan’s life. The brief tale is set somewhere in frozen Nordheim, geographically situated above Conan’s homeland of Cimmeria. Conan is depicted by Howard as a youthful Cimmerian mercenary traveling among the golden-haired Aesir in a war party. ***Shortly before the story begins, a hand-to-hand battle has occurred on an icy plain. Eighty men (“four score”) have perished in bloody combat, and Conan alone survives the battlefield where Wulfhere’s Aesir “reavers” fought the Vanir “wolves” of Bragi, a Vanir chieftain. Thus, the story opens. ***Following this fierce battle against the red-haired Vanir, Conan the Cimmerian, lying exhausted on the corpse-strewn battlefield, is visited by a beautiful, condescending and semi-nude woman identifying herself as “Atali.” Upon her bodice, she wears a transparent veil: a wisp of gossamer that was not spun by human distaff. The mere sight of her strange nakedness kindles Conan’s lust and, when she repeatedly taunts him, he madly chases her for miles across the snows with the intent of raping her. ***Mocking him with each step, Atali leads Conan into an ambush. Undaunted by the snare, Conan slays her two hulking brothers, the Frost-Giants, and then captures her in his arms, only to have her call upon her father, Ymir, to save her. Before Conan is able to ravage her, Atali disappears in a stroke of lightning that seemingly transforms the landscape and renders Conan unconscious. ***Later, when his Aesir comrades arrive, Conan believes he must have dreamed the bizarre encounter until he finds he is still grasping the translucent veil that served as the sole garment of the Frost-Giant’s daughter. ***The utilization of poetic descriptions throughout this tale is quite strong, and on par with Howard’s “Queen of the Black Coast.” However, the narrative is often criticized by Howard scholars for not having the more detailed plotting of his superior Conan stories such as “The Black Stranger.” Largely, this is because Howard was aiming for a mythological feel, something to which the story is eminently suited.[l] “Queen of the Black Coast.” (Weird Tales, Vol. 23, No. 5, Issue 125, May 1934), (Avon Fantasy Reader, No. 8, December 1948) & (Sword and Sorcery Annual, 1975). This story begins in an Argos port where Conan forcefully demands passage aboard a sail barge, the Argus, which is casting off for southern waters to trade beads, silks, sugar and brass-hilted swords to the black kings of Kush. The captain of the barge reluctantly agrees to Conan’s request for passage only after several threats of violence. The captain is soon informed that Conan is fleeing the civil authorities of Argos due to a court dispute in which Conan refused to betray the whereabouts of a casual friend to a fascistic magistrate. ***Upon reaching the pirate-infested waters of Kush, their trade ship is attacked by the infamous reavers led by Bêlit, the “Queen” of the Black Coast. Bêlit and her ebony-skinned warriors slaughter the unprepared crew of the Argus, but she spares the Cimmerian due to his unique appearance. Bêlit offers Conan the chance to sail with her, be her chosen mate, and help lead her fierce warriors. Oddly smitten by this fiery woman, Conan agrees and, for a time, they raid the Black Coast together brutally pillaging coastal towns and instilling fear into the superstitious natives. ***Soon, the Hyborian legends begin that the she-devil of the sea, Bêlit, has found a mate, Conan, an iron man whose wrath is that of a wounded lion. Survivors of butchered Stygain ships curse the name of Bêlit and her Cimmerian warrior with fierce blue eyes. ***Sailing up a nameless river, Bêlit and Conan encounter ancient ruins in which is found a lost treasure, a winged monstrosity and skulking hyenas that were once men. Despite the bizarre murders of their crew and the various horrors lurking in the jungle, Bêlit and Conan still find time for their sexual romance that is alluded to by Howard as having sadomasochistic undertones. In a moment of passion, Bêlit promises that even death could not keep her from Conan’s side, a promise which she must keep far sooner than she expects. ***Despite her intense love for Conan, Bêlit is soon captivated by a cursed jeweled necklace found among the lost treasure that seemingly instills the wearer with a mix of madness and monomania. In such a twisted mental state, Bêlit issues faulty orders. Given the constant bizarre dangers and her own madness, her crew is soon decimated and Bêlit herself is hanged by the winged monster. Driven to rage and now alone, Conan confronts her supernatural murderer. He is on the verge of being slain when the spirit of Bêlit intervenes. Conan slays the winged horror and leaves the ruins in Bêlit’s ship with her corpse. ***The story closes with Conan giving Bêlit a Viking funeral and reflecting upon his loss. ***”Queen of the Black Coast” is often ranked by fantasy readers as one of Robert E. Howard’s finest Conan stories and is the only tale in which Conan verifiably falls in love with the lusty heroine. In this respect, its femme fatale, Bêlit, is somewhat akin to Sherlock Holmes’ Irene Adler or James Bond’s Teresa di Vicenzo. ***The use of poetic descriptions throughout the tale is quite strong, and on par with Howard’s “The Frost-Giant’s Daughter.” However, the narrative is often criticized by Howard scholars for not having the flow of the better Conan yarns. Largely, this is because Howard was aiming for an epic feel, something to which the story is eminently suited. Plot-point by plot-point, “Queen of the Black Coast” comes closest of any of the Conan stories to achieving the quality of “legend” as the story is filled with classic moments: the dead Bêlit hanging by her necklace from a yardarm; Bêlit’s Viking funeral in a flaming ship as Conan moodily looks on; the ghostly spirit of Bêlit returning to protect her lover. Howard also begins each chapter with excerpts from “The Song of Bêlit,” a poem presumably written by Hyborian Age minstrels to honor her memory. ***[c] and [l] are well worth reading for enthusiasts. ***No paperback edition.

34. 
Howard, Robert E[rvin]
King Conan
Gnome Press; New York, NY  1953  255 $3.00
5,000 copies printed.
Jacket and endpapers by David Kyle.

Fantastic adventure short stories. ***Contents: Introduction, by L. Sprague de Camp. [a] “Jewels of Gwahlur.” (Weird Tales, Vol. 25, No. 3, Issue 135, March 1935). Conan comes to the kingdom of Keshan seeking a lost, mythical treasure, the Teeth of Gwahlur, in the deserted palace of Alkmeenon. A Keshan priest is sent to Alkmeenon, where no one has gone in one hundred years, to consult a beautiful princess, Yelaya, the oracle who has been sleeping all that time. Conan beats the priest to the oracle. He finds part of the legend is true; a beautiful princess is in fact there. But he stumbles upon the scheme of Keshan intriguers who have replaced the sleeping princess with Muriela, a dancing girl, in order to “give” the correct prophecy. Conan makes a deal with Muriela to substitute his own correct prophecy. They do, to the consternation of all. But then the real Yelaya appears, back on her altar, while Muriela is spirited away. Conan finds and rescues Muriel and discovers the secret of Alkmeenon. Bît-Yakin, a Pelishtim, used the sleeping princess, who was worshipped as a goddess and as an oracle, for his own survival. He secretly substituted his own voice for that of the sleeping princess, thereby gaining food and other necessities from her worshippers. The Keshan priest and his henchmen find the Teeth of Gwahlur, but are killed by the monstrous protectors. Conan briefly gains the treasure but after a titanic battle with the last protector, he defeats the monster, but must choose between saving the treasure or the dancing girl. Conan, of course, rescues the girl. They leave, without the treasure to seek further adventures together. [b] “Beyond the Black River.” (Weird Tales, Vol. 25, No. 5, & No. 6, Issue 137 & 138, May 1935 & June 1935). It is set in the pseudo-historical Hyborian Age and concerns Conan fighting the savage Hyborian Picts in the unsettled lands beyond the infamous Black River. ***Due to its unique elements and atypical frontier setting, the story is considered an undisputed classic of Conan lore and is often cited by Howard scholars as one of his best tales. [c] “The Treasure of Triancos.” (Originally published, as revised by L. Sprague de Camp, under the title “The Black Stranger,” in Fantasy Magazine, Vol. 1, No. 1, March 1953). Conan has risen rapidly in the Aquilonian service becoming a general. After defeating the Picts in a great battle at Velitrium, he is called back to the capital, Tarantia, for a triumph. But the jealous King, Numedides, imprisons him in the Iron Tower. Friends aid him and he is spirited out of his prison and turned loose with a horse and a sword. Swimming the Thunder River, Conan strikes out across the dank forests of Pictland toward the distant sea. Pursued by the painted Picts to the edge of the sea, the relentless enemies give up the chase when Conan stumbles upon a hidden doorway inside a mysterious cavern. Inside he sees a group of drinking men, magically frozen in time. The same supernatural force reaches out to capture him as well. Nearby, along the shore, the Count Valenso of Korzetta, with his young niece, Belesa, has hidden from enemies with his men at arms. The Barachan carrack, Strombanni’s Red Hand, lands at their hiding place. Strombanni attacks Valenso’s stronghold, soon gaining the upper hand, but flees upon the arrival of another ship, bearing the royal flag of Zingara, captained by Black Zarono, the buccaneer. Zarono convinces the stranded Valenso to strive with him to gain the treasure of the pirate, Bloody Tranicos. Tina, servant girl to Belesa, enters with a tale of having seen a black man. It is the same black man that Valenso fears, so he agrees with Zarono. They will go for the treasure and all flee together after securing it. The black man, who is the dark sorcerer Thoth-Amon of the Ring, in exile from his native Stygia, using a drum, magically summons a storm that destroys Zarono’s ship. Strombanni returns to parley. He tells them a story that his first mate had the treasure map, but has been killed, the map taken. He suspects the two other men, but it is Conan who has killed the mate and taken the map. Conan has secretly entered the stronghold and now seeks to make a deal with the three men. He destroys the map in a fire, and then points out to them that he is the only one who knows where the treasure is hidden. The four make plans to secure the treasure and to leave the shore, all with treacherous intentions. Conan leads Strombanni and Zarono to the treasure. Conan attempts to have the supernatural mist surrounding the treasure take care of his enemies, but he fails. A stand-off occurs which the neighboring Picts take advantage of, and attack the men. A shaky alliance ensues and they all return to the shores, the Picts at their backs, and return to the stronghold. Thoth-Amon has secured the services of the supernatural demon once guarding the treasure and uses it to kill the Count. The two pirates have a final falling out and begin fighting, and then the Picts break into the stronghold. It is everyone for themselves. Conan almost wins through to freedom, but returns to rescue Belesa and Tina who have been cowed by the demon. Conan battles the demon, hurtling a candelabra of silver at it, destroying the demon at long last. Conan, with the two girls, are the only survivors. They signal to a war galley offshore which turns out to be filled with friends of Conan’s, come to set him on the throne of Aquilonia. With his friends at his side, Belesa among them, and the treasure at hand, Conan muses about becoming King. [d] “The Phoenix of the Sword.” (Weird Tales, Vol. 20, No. 6, Issue 108, December 1932). This was the first Conan story written. Conan the barbarian is King of Aquilonia, while his neighbors and rebels plot against him. Supernatural forces let loose by Thoth, a Stygian magician, almost kill Conan, but the king is saved by the power of the long-dead sage, Epemitreus. [e] “The Scarlet Citadel.” (Weird Tales, Vol. 21, No. 1, Issue 109, January 1933). Conan, King of Aquilonia, loses his kingdom to enemies who are aided by the black magic of the only half-human wizard, Tsotha. Conan wins through with the help of another magician. ***[d] is the most important of these. Even after the passage of so much time, Howard remains surprisingly readable. ***No paperback edition.

35. 
Greenberg, Martin (editor)
The Robot and the Man
Gnome Press; New York, NY  1953  251 $2.95
5,000 copies printed.
Jacket by Ric Binkley.

Science fiction short stories. ***Adventures in Science Fiction Series. ***Contents: “Foreword,” by Martin Greenberg. Greenberg sets the stage for the following stories, which all proceeding rather successfully, in a progressive order. [a] “The Mechanical Answer” (Astounding Science Fiction, Vol. 41, No. 3, Issue 210, May 1948), by John D[ann] MacDonald. Joseph Kayden, Director of Automatic 81, is upset. He has been pressed into service leading the secret government effort to produce artificial intelligence, mostly because he is so good at what he does. But he knows that his success is directly attributable to his wife, Jane, and her insights into psychology. Joe takes on his new job. He is not accepted by the other, brighter, scientists, but he is much more pragmatic. With secret coded suggestion given to him in letters from his wife, Joe makes headway on the project. Finally, after blackmailing the insufferable head scientist, Zander, they succeed. Joe’s basic motivation has been to get back to his wife. It is Zander’s final question, proving that the machine can think for itself, that lifts the secrecy and security. At the end, Zander has come full circle, helping Joe become reunited. [b] “Self-Portrait” (Galaxy, Vol. 3, No. 2, Issue 14, November 1951), by Bernard Wolfe. Ollie Parks is excited. He has been selected to head part of the major effort to create a human-like robot, but he becomes quickly disappointed. His part will be small, creating the arms, and legs. His best friend, and nemesis, from the past, Len Ellsom, has been given the exciting part, creating the intelligence. But Len isn’t really up to the task, and is a talkative drunk as well. He violates security, telling Ollie all about the problems he is encountering, and about his philosophical differences with the government. Kujack, is a legless veteran and volunteer for Ollie’s research on legs. Finally, Ollie succeeds beyond his wildest dreams. But by then, Len’s ideas have infected Kujack, and to some extent, Ollie. They have written off the idea of making a robot, instead they suggest that the right course is to find volunteers who will willingly cut off their arms and legs, replacing them with the super-powerful artificial limbs. At the end, Len, and Kujack, are arrested for violating security, but the damage has been done. The ideas have been publicly disseminated. ***Written as a series of letters. ***Wolfe expanded on this premise in his major work, Limbo (Random House, 1952, 438 pages, $3.50), which is one of the great science fiction novels of all time, and a still shocking prediction of the shape of things to come. [c] “Deadlock” (Astounding Science Fiction, Vol. 29, No. 6, Issue 141, August 1942), by Lewis Padgett. Chief Engineer Harnahan has a problem; every robot that they make goes crazy. Now twenty-eight indestructible robots reside in cement tombs. They rest their hopes on Thor, the latest duraloy robot in the series. They send him on a mission to steal engineering plans from a rival company. In this story, the robot manufacturing companies are all powerful, more than governments, complete with their own missiles and weapon systems. When Thor returns he mysteriously builds a floating machine, which destroys him. The device brings the company to a standstill as it performs bizarre acts, blasting walls, stopping machines, and people. Finally, they complete Thor II, their only hope to find out what the device was really designed to do. It destroys Thor II as well. The end of the story is the realization that logic drives the indestructible robots mad, because they need to find someway to destroy themselves. [d] “Robinc” (Astounding Science Fiction, Vol. 32, No. 1, Issue 154, September 1943 as “Quinby’s Usuform Robots”), by H.H. Holmes (W.A. Parker White, also known as Anthony Boucher). The narrator is a partner of Quinby, who has invented the usuform robot. This type can save on raw materials, being built for a specific task, but there is a problem. Grew owns Robinc, which produces android, humanoid type robots, and he doesn’t want to change. Things seem bad for the duo until they subvert the android, showing them the virtues of usuform. This puts Grew out of business and Quinby on top. [e] “Burning Bright” (Astounding Science Fiction, Vol. 41, No. 2, Issue 212, July 1948 as by John S. Browning), by Robert Moore Williams. Ferguson is a safety engineer in an atomic plant. Robots do all the dirty work. They are activated when they go in, work until they fall apart, and then are taken out and destroyed when they become radioactive. Security is afraid that these very smart, hardy robots might someday decide to take over the world. Instead, the robots manufacture one of their own kind out of spare parts and it sneaks out. It is looking for its creator, for god. It stumbles across a crackpot religious leader of a nearby cult, thinking that the old man might be god. Somehow the robot is able to give the old man god-like powers due to its belief. Finally, Ferguson solves the mystery, finds the robot, and hand-in-hand, they begin the journey forward together as equals. [f] “Final Command” (Astounding Science Fiction, Vol. 44, No. 3, Issue 228, November 1949), by A.E. Van Vogt. Barr, a robot leader, has a problem. He has decided that mankind is useless and has his legions standing by to destroy man. Marknell, a man, argues with Barr. He suggests that they need each other. During the last war, the robots fought an alien race to near extinction. The aliens fought the machines because they were machines. They have now thrown in their lot, and will stand with man against the robots if there is another fight. But Marknell has an ace up his sleeve, he has produced a series of robots that are in actuality the children, the sons of Barr. Barr sees that Marknell is right, that the robots are exactly like humans in all regards, including their desire to save their own children at any cost. War is prevented; man and robot will be equals. [g] “Though Dreamers Die” (Astounding Science Fiction, Vol 32. No. 6, Issue 159, February 1944), by Lester del Rey. Jorgen finds that he is the very last man alive. The rest have been killed by the Plague. His few companions have fled with him in a starship to seek a new home. But the Plague has killed all of them. Only five robots remain, aside from Jorgen. He gives them the dream of mankind, to strive for the stars, and then returns home to find peace, leaving the robots to build their own civilization without man, only his dream. [h] “Rust” (Astounding Science Fiction, Vol. 24, No. 2, Issue 107, October 1939), by Joseph E[veridge] Kelleam. X-120, L-1716, and G-3a, are the last three robots left. They were built to fight man’s wars and his enemies, but then they turned on man, killing all of them. Finally, all the robots have rusted away, except these three. This story tells about their vain attempt to find peace with their actions, and their inability to create other robots, as they all rust away. Finally, only X-120 is left, his weapon-like hands inadequate to any task, and he too, faces oblivion. [i] “Robot’s Return” (Astounding Science Fiction, Vol. 22, No. 1, Issue 94, September 1938), by Robert Moore Williams. In many ways a sequel to “Though Dreamers Die,” in which the robot descendants of the Original Five return to earth, seeking their creator, but they have no idea what it looks like. They find evidence that they have in fact arrived on the planet of their birth, but all but one of the robots dismisses the notion that an organic being created them. Leaving the planet behind as an unsolvable mystery, the one robot humbly replaces a ruined statue of man, knowing it to be the image of his creator. [j] “Into Thy Hands” (Astounding Science Fiction, Vol. 35, No. 6, Issue 177, August 1945) & (Analog Anthology, No. 5, 1983), by Lester Del Rey. This is a somewhat obscure, and rambling, tale of the aftermath of the final war, in which a final robot Adam and Eve have been created. The robots find each other after a long and arduous search, ready to help the remnants of mankind, but onto a different, less destructive path, avoiding the pitfalls of Satan. A counterpoint to their story seems to be that all mankind was also destroyed, and a third robot, now decrepit, has painstakingly resurrected the human race as well. The point being that robot and man, built anew, will all have a perfect new future, together. [b] is the best, but read Wolfe’s novel, Limbo, instead...  ***No paperback edition.

36. 
Clement, Hal [Pseudo. of Stubbs, Harry Clement]
Iceworld
Gnome Press; New York, NY  1953 216  $2.50
4,000 copies printed.
Jacket by Ric Binkley.

Science fiction novel. ***From: (Astounding Science Fiction, Vol. 48, No. 1, No. 2 & No. 3, Issue 251, 252, & 253, October 1951, November 1951 & December 1951). ***Sallman Ken, an alien schoolteacher, finds himself involved in an interstellar narcotics ring that is attempting to obtain quantities of an illegal drug from a world so cold that it is impossible to land there. Twenty years prior to the time of the story the narcotics ring had been successful in establishing contact with the “savages” of the unapproachable Iceworld—the aliens’ name for the Earth—by means of a speaker and microphone set in the head of a guided torpedo sent down to the planet’s surface. But for the aliens the “contact” has been disappointing because communication is on a primitive level—almost invariably neither side can understand the other. For apparently worthless chunks of platinum and gold the “savages” of the Iceworld readily exchange minute quantities of the precious drug. This is the exasperating situation when Sallman Ken is hired by the narcotics gang to find a solution. His first glimpse of the strange world had sent an uncontrollable shudder through his tentacled body, but, of course, he was prejudiced, as anyone is likely to be against a planet where water is a liquid—when he has grown up breathing gaseous sulfur and, at rare intervals, drinking molten copper chloride. Ken is to work on the problem from the alien base set up on the sunward side of the planet Mercury—for the purposes of comfort. From the base guided torpedoes are sent out to keep in touch with the “savages” of the Iceworld who are situated on a dark patch of the planet’s surface—the forest-covered mountains of northwestern America. With the aid of two Earth children the secret agent, who has solved the scientific problem of landing and surviving on the freezing planet, uncovers the secret of the precious drug and brings the criminal ring to justice. ***An absorbing novel. ***First U.S. paperback edition: Lancer, 75-128, 1970, 222 pp., pa .75¢.

37. 
Clarke, Arthur C[harles]
Against the Fall of Night
Gnome Press; New York, NY  1953  223 $2.75
5,000 copies printed.
Jacket by Frank Kelly Frease [sic].

Science fiction novel. ***First appearance: (Startling Stories, Vol. 18, No. 2, Issue 53, November 1948), Clarke’s first novel of a stagnant world of immortals.  ***A solitary city is the last refuge of Man on Earth, or is it? One inhabitant of the city questions this and finds the truth. He travels across the Earth, and eventually into space to find out what Man’s fate was. ***The Empire of Man has come and gone. Over half a billion years ago vast armadas of spacecraft came and went from the Port of Diaspar, the last great city. The Port had been long buried in the shifting sands, forgotten. Alvin has studied the ancient past; wondering about the ever-lasting fear mankind has over the Invaders, a fear that anything that they might do will bring them back. Discontent, Alvin has journeyed many times to the forgotten Tower of Loranne, the only place where the endless seas of sand and salt can be seen from the last city. At the summit of the tower, Alvin finds a cryptic message engraved deeply into the stone. Thus begins his quest. With the help of Borden, the current Keeper of Records, the two begin to research the message left tens of millions of years ago by Alaine, a previous Keeper of Records. Borden also tries to understand why Alvin wants to leave Diaspar. The last person to do so left over fifteen million years ago. Their quest leads them to The Park in the middle of the city of Diaspar, and the Tomb of Yarlan Zey. Under the tomb are the remains of the still functional world-wide transportation system. Alvin discovers that one more city remains alive, Lys. He takes the journey to Lys and discovers a very different place, an Earth renewed, with trees and forests and lakes. He is taken to see Seranis, the leader. She questions him about his journey. He explains that he is lonely, the only child born in Diaspar in the last seven thousand years. The leaders of Lys want to keep Alvin there, they are afraid of the rediscovery of Lys by Diaspar, and are trying to figure out what to do with him. The people of Lys have developed phenomenal mental powers, chief among them is the use of telepathy, which allows them to control other people. While waiting he befriends Theon, the son of Seranis. Together they explore the vast wilderness that Lys has become. Like Diaspar, Lys is also experiencing the slow extinction of man. The two friends stumble across the ruins of Shalmirane, the place of the last epic battle against the Invaders. At the ruined fortress they find a strange old man, with three floating robot servants. He tells the two boys the tale of the fall of man. ***A man broke through the blockade of the Invaders, bringing the odd three machines with him. He became known as the Master and brought peace and acceptance to man for his coming decline. But at the end of his life he babbled about the “Great Ones” returning from the stars to bring a new future to mankind. A religion was spawned and for countless centuries its followers sent signals to the Seven Suns, where they believed the Great Ones still resided. But no contact was ever made. Finally all the followers had died, leaving the old man the very last one. ***The two boys return to Lys where Seranis gives Alvin an ultimatum. He can stay with them, or return to Diaspar. But if he returns his mind must be wiped clean of any memory of Lys. She explains that the now two separate cultures of mankind must never mingle, as it would surely mean the end for both. The citizens of Lys lived in harmony with nature, while the citizens of Diaspar had discovered immortality and lived forever behind the walls of the great city, never wanting to leave. Alvin has persuaded the old man to place one of the three floating robots under his mind control. It rescues him from the mind-wipe and he returns to Diaspar with it. Seeking a way to break into the secrets locked inside the robot by the command of the Master, Alvin and Borden journey into the depths of Diaspar. There they find the Master Robot, which duplicates the floating robot, thereby creating a version that will answer all of Alvin’s questions. They also find that they are still on the trail of Alaine, who had made the same journey to the Master Robot ages ago. They return to the surface and are summoned to meet with the Council of Diaspar. The council tells Alvin the same thing that the Council of Lys did, that the two cultures must never meet, and that the way between them will be sealed permanently. Alvin escapes from the clutches of the Council to determine his own fate. Using his robot, Alvin discovers the spaceship of the Master and takes control of it, flying to Lys to talk with Theon. Together they take the spacecraft on an epic voyage to the Seven Suns. At the end of the voyage they find the central planet is dead, containing no life. They had hoped to find the Great Ones, instead they are found by a disembodied intelligence called Vanamonde. Vanamonde has outlived its creators and has spent countless millennia vainly searching the universe for other intelligent life. Vanamonde has discovered life only once, and fled in terror from the Black Sun. The two boys adopt Vanamonde, like a pet, and return to Earth with it. Vanamonde reveals the missing pieces of mankind’s vast history. At the height of the Empire, man created the first disembodied intelligence, called the Mad Mind. The Mad Mind had ravaged the galaxy, depleting planets and stars of their energy and driving man back to Earth from the stars, civilization collapsed. As a final act before the collapse, the Mad Mind was imprisoned on the Black Sun, to wait there for the end of time and a final meeting with Vanamonde. The last act of the Empire was to finally reach that height of consciousness whereby they no longer needed to exist on the physical plane, and they departed, leaving a few behind to remember them as myths. The Great Ones had left the galaxy behind for Vanamonde, not needing it anymore. The people of Diaspar and Lys now realize that all their fears were unfounded. Together they plan to revitalize mankind and seek the stars again. Alvin sends the last spacecraft on one last mission to seek out any life and give them a message that Earth is waiting for them to return. ***Rewritten this became The City and the Stars, but this version is by far the best. ***The earlier version, AGAINST THE FALL OF NIGHT, is a fairly different telling of the same story. You can definitely tell that Clarke was influenced by people like John W. Campbell, Jr., Olaf Stapledon, and J.D. Bernal. ***Not recommended. This reader thought the story was nearly juvenescent, and much dated. ***First paperback edition: Permabooks, 310, 1954, 160 pp., pa .25¢.

38. 
Asimov, Isaac
Second Foundation
Gnome Press; New York, NY  1953 210  $2.75
5,000 copies printed, first blue boards, second green boards. (Printed simultaneously by U.S. SF Book Club from Gnome plates.)
Reprint in 1955, 2,500 copies in gray cloth.
Jacket by Ric Binkley.

Science fiction short stories. ***The third of a series of three volumes based on a very elaborate “future history.” ***A continuation of Foundation and Foundation and Empire. ***Contents: [a] “Now You See It…” (Astounding Science Fiction, Vol. 40, No. 5, Issue 206, January 1948). Part I: Search by the Mule. Search for the elusive Second Foundation, with the intent of destroying it. In the end the First Speaker of the Second Foundation telepathically modifies the Mule to make him not care about finding the Second Foundation.[b] “…and Now You Don’t” (Astounding Science Fiction, Vol. 44, No. 3, No. 4 & No. 5, Issue 228, 229, & 230, November 1949, December 1949 & January 1950). Part II: Search by the Foundation. Takes place sixty years after the first part, fifty-five years after the Mule’s death (by natural causes). The members of the (First) Foundation are now fully aware that the Second Foundation is out there (they had known of its existence all along, but it had never sunk in until they were able to turn the Mule back). Also concurrent with this plot thread is the Foundation’s ongoing conflict with the Mule’s former imperial capital at Kalgan. The ensuing war is won by the Foundation, and is listed in the Encyclopedia Galactica as the last major conflict before the rise of the Second Empire. ***After inventing a device that jams telepathic abilities while simultaneously causing telepaths great pain, the Foundation finds and locates telepaths on Terminus, “at the other end of the galaxy” (from the First Foundation, also at Terminus). Since, as one character puts it, “a circle has no end,” then by tracing the disc of the galaxy around its edge, one would come back to Terminus. Thus, they declare the Second Foundation destroyed after finding the roughly 50 mentalic agents on Terminus, and are content to forget the matter. Finally, in response to the question “Where is the Second Foundation?” The First Foundation had found an answer that fit. However, although this was “the answer that satisfied,” this was not “the answer that was true.” ***The Second Foundation was actually located on Trantor, at the centre of the galaxy. It was called “Star’s End,” due to the ancient saying that “All roads lead to Trantor, and that is where all stars end.” The location was also said to fit the “other end of the galaxy” location since the galaxy is not in fact a disc, but a spiral—and from the edge, the other end of a spiral lies at the centre. The book also noted that Hari Seldon was a social scientist, not a physical one. When the two Foundations were founded, they could be described as being at opposite social ends of the Galaxy—with Trantor at the very center of galactic power and prestige, and Terminus at the other extreme. ***Follows the Seldon Plan after the First Empire’s defeat, and describes its greatest threat—the growth of a dangerous mutant. The epic comes to its logical close as a secretly evolved Second Foundation vies first with the mutant and then with the First Foundation. ***Classic science fiction at its best. ***Doubleday Science Fiction Book Club edition: November 1953. ***First paperback edition: Avon, T232, 1958, 192 pp., pa .35¢.

39. 
Howard, Robert E[rvin]
Conan the Barbarian
Gnome Press; New York, NY  1954  224 $3.00
5,000 copies printed.
Jacket by Ed Emshwiller.

Fantastic adventure short stories. ***Contents: [a] “Black Colossus.” (Weird Tales, Vol. 21, No. 6, Issue 144, June 1933). Shevatas, master thief of Zamora, awakens the unnatural spirit of Thugra Khotan, dark sorcerer of Kuthchemes. Queen-Regent Yasmela, of Khoraja, places her kingdom in the hands of mercenary captain, Conan. Conan battles the hordes of Natohk, who is Thugra Khotan, rescuing the Queen from his attempt to sacrifice her. [b] “Shadows in the Moonlight.” (Weird Tales, Vol. 23, No. 4, Issue 124, April 1934). Conan, late commander of the kozaki, kills Shah Amurath, ruler of Turan, after he has destroyed Conan’s band of Free Companions. He rescues Olivia, daughter of the king of Ophir from the clutches of the Shah. Together they flee to the island of Vilayet and find a mysterious hall-like structure which if filled with life-like statues. The statues come to life. Pirates of the Red Brotherhood land on the island. Conan kills their chief, Sergius of Khrosha, and is taken captive by the pirates. Under the moonlight, Olivia rescues Conan. The demon-bewitched statues murder most of the pirates. Conan becomes their leader and they all leave the island. [c] “A Witch Shall Be Born.” (Weird Tales, Vol. 24, No. 6, Issue 132, December 1934) & (Avon Fantasy Reader, No. 10, July 1949). Conan becomes the commander of the royal guard of Queen Taramis of Khauran. Her evil twin sister, Salome, comes to secretly replace her on the throne. Salome was abandoned in the desert because she bore the mark of the witch. Rescued from death, Salome is raised by an evil magician, from far Khitai, amid the purple-towered Paikang. Salome has made a deal with Constantius the Kothic, known as the Falcon, leader of a band of Shemitish mercenaries camped outside the gates of Khauran. Salome imprisons Taramis, takes her place, makes the Falcon her consort, and opens the gates of the city to his mercenaries. Conan resists and is taken prisoner and nailed to a tree to die. He is rescued by an outlaw band of Zuagirs led by Olgerd Vladislav. In a dispute, Conan takes over their leadership and leads them to attack Khauran. Conan lures the mercenaries from the city and defeats them, taking Constantius prisoner, while the ever-loyal Valerius rescues the real Queen, Taramis, from her dungeon prison. It is a near thing as Valerius pursues Salome and Taramis. He skewers Salome, but as a witch with great powers, she survives and summons a monster from hell. Conan appears with his men and kills the monster. Conan restores Taramis to her throne, with the ever-loyal Valerius at her side. Conan then returns to his Zuagirs to lead them to plunder the Turanians. As Conan departs the city for further adventures he nails Constantius to the same grim tree he had been crucified on.  [d] “Shadows in Zamboula.” (Weird Tales, Vol. 26, No. 5, Issue 143, November 1935). Conan is in Zamboula, fighting against the priest-magician Totrasmek, who worships Hanuman; and Baal-Pteor, the terrible strangler of Yota-Pong. [e] “The Devil in Iron.” (Weird Tales, Vol. 24, No. 2, Issue 128, August 1934)A fisherman looses his life removing a magic knife from a sleeping giant and awakening its vengeful spirit on the island of Xapur, the Fortified. Ghaznavi, counselor to Yezdigerd, king of Turan, plots to undermine Conan’s leadership of the plundering kozaks. They use the slave girl, Octavia, to lure Conan away from his troops, to the island of Xapur, which has been mysteriously restored to its ancient wonder. The being called Khosatral Khel, became a man and ruler of ancient Dagon, imprisoning the brutish Yuetshi, who in turn rose up to defeat him in time with the use a knife made from a fallen star. The magic knife keeps Khel imprisoned until the hapless fisherman moves it. Now, through necromancy, the ancient city of Dagon, on the island of Xapur lives a half-life. Conan finds Octavia and they are pursued by Khel who has animated a statue of iron formed in his shape. While Conan attempts to gain the magic knife, Octavia awakens a giant serpent which Conan slays. Magic knife in hand, Conan defeats Khel and sends the ancient being back to the Abyss. He takes Octavia with him as his just reward. ***[c] and [e] are the best, representing the pinnacle of Howard’s writing. ***No paperback edition.

40. 
Pohl, Frederik [George, Jr.] and Williamson, Jack ([John Stewart])
Undersea Quest
Gnome Press; New York, NY  1954  189 $2.50
5,000 copies printed.
Jacket by Ed Emshwiller.

Juvenile science fiction novel. ***Juvenile about submarine uranium mining. ***Three novels in this series. *** Something of value was buried beneath the underwater dome city of Marinia...something that had already cost one man’s life, caused another man’s kidnapping and gravely affected still another man’s future. Expelled from the Sub-Sea Academy on trumped-up charges, Jim Eden wasn’t about to wait around to prove his innocence. As soon as he learned that his uncle mysteriously disappeared while mining uranium at the bottom of hazardous Eden Deep, Jim knew what he had to do...and that he had to do it fast. So he headed for the vast dome city location of the great mining colony at the bottom of the sea, to pick up clues to his uncle’s disappearance. But once he had entered the undersea metropolis, the wrong people had his number and they were determined that Jim would sink forever without a trace. ***Not recommended. ***(First appearance.) ***First paperback edition: Ballantine, 02207, 1971, pa .75¢.

41. 
Morrison, William [Pseudo. of Samachson, Joseph]
Mel Oliver and Space Rover on Mars
Gnome Press; New York, NY  1954  191 $2.50
4,000 copies printed.
Jacket by Ed Emshwiller.

Juvenile science fiction novel. ***First Gnome Press “official” juvenile. ***A boy and sapient dog join a Martian circus. ***Mel Oliver—the seventeen year old adventurer who stows away on a spaceship bound for Mars. On Earth he had fled from city to city, working at odd jobs, because somebody he didn’t know tried to kill him. From one job to another danger followed until he finally decided to stowaway on a spaceship and go to some other planet where whoever or whatever was behind the mystery would never be able to find him. On board the ship he meets—Space Rover—one of the big, specially bred, intelligent collies who is hiding in the depths of a spaceship closet. For some unknown reason Space Rover has stowed away on the ship along with Mel. On the journey Mel and the dog meet two of the strangest persons on board the ship—Bolem Turino—the Martian strongman, raised on Earth, whose massive yard-wide body more than once stands between Mel and death during the rest of the trip and in the strange blister-cities on the Red Planet. Hakin—the marvelous Venusian Rubber Man with a body that can stretch until it is eight feet tall or contract so that it is shorter than the squat form of Bolem Turino. Hakin’s unique powers also are an invaluable aid to Mel in helping to unravel the mystery centering about the boy. ***When someone mysteriously releases the animals of the interplanetary circus on board the ship, Mel and Space Rover’s courage in helping to round up the ferocious animals is rewarded when they are adopted by the circus to work at a tumbling act. Practicing for the performance to be given on Mars, Mel meets some of the amazing creatures in the circus—Kabror—the comical, three-legged creature from another world with a very unusual means of protecting itself. The Robot—dressed like a man and used to train a huge Bengal tiger.  ***Engrossed in the wonders of the circus, Mel has little idea that the spaceship is speeding him not only to the circus-performance on Mars, but also to the startling climax of the many mysterious attempts on his life. ***This novel is the first in a projected new series of teenage science fiction novels by William Morrison. It was the only one by Morrison that Gnome Press published. It was also Morrison’s first science fiction novel. ***Not recommended. ***(First appearance.) ***No paperback edition.

42. 
Moore, C[atherine] L[ucille] 
Northwest of Earth
Gnome Press; New York, NY  1954  212 $3.00
4,000 copies printed.
Jacket by Ric Binkley.

Science fiction and fantasy short stories. ***Contents: [a] “Dust of Gods.” Northwest Smith. (Weird Tales, Vol. 24, No. 2, Issue 128, August 1934).Northwest and Yarol take a job searching for the physical remnants of a dead god in northern Mars. ***Northwest Smith and Yarol, broke again, take on a mysterious commission to recover the dust of an ancient precursor god. Black Pharol, now a name to curse by, is the last remaining revenant of a triumvirate that once ruled on the Lost Planet between Mars and Jupiter preceeding its oblivion, and the cause of it. Long worshipped as gods by the ancient Martian’s, even that city is ruins and rubble long buried under ancient mountains. Northwest and Yarol follow the directions given by the madman who hired them, who also seeks to become a god by using the grey dust. Of course, Northwest and Yarol find the dust after much searching and facing off the remains of inter-dimensional images. Finding the dust, Northwest comes to the conclusion that it must never fall into the hands of anyone, and using his blaster, he incinerates it.[b] “Lost Paradise.” Northwest Smith. (Weird Tales, Vol. 28, No. 1, Issue 151, July 1936). A little old man with a big secret helps Northwest learn more about ancient Lunar history. ***Yarol retrieves a mysterious packet for a white-haired Seles. Holding the priest to his promise, Yarol makes him reveal the long-held Secret of his revenant race. Northwest joins in the mental time travel, under the direction of the priest and the rare ability of his race. They travel to that moment on ancient, green and wet, Luna, when one of the Seles refused to become a meal for their god. Northwest, joined in thought to the victim, instinctively resists, thereby causing the long predicted doom of all the Seles still residing on the moon. The ancient white-haired priest has offered to take Northwest and Yarol on this thought journey and reveal the great Secret, only under penalty of eminent death. Driven mad by the knowledge that by bringing Northwest back in time he has caused the great doom he attempts to kill Northwest with his mysterious package. Yarol, who did not go on the mental journey, and is entirely confused by the attempt, blasts the priest to atoms. The two erstwhile companions flee the authorities, leaving the mysterious package behind.[c] “The Dark Land.” Jirel of Joiry. (Weird Tales, Vol. 27, No. 1, Issue 145, January 1936). Jirel of Joiry lay very near death. During a spectacular battle she has taken a pike deep into her side. As she is about have her sins shrived away by Father Gervase, she disappears completely. She appears, healed, in the dark land of Romne. The king of Romne, Pav, has taken a fancy to the tempestuous beauty and wants her to be his queen. Vowing to die, rather than submit, she makes a bargain with the dark king. If she can find his weakness and kill him, she will be free, but if she fails, then she will be his willing bride. Jirel wanders around the strange world of Romne, and encounters a strange white woman, with black hair. She is the personification of Death, and Pav’s former queen, rejected to be replaced by Jirel. She bargains with Death, who no longer wants to be with Pav, but wants to replace him as the ruler of Romne. Death tells Jirel how to defeat Pav, by using the force of the flame of her soul against him. Pav comes to claim his bride, and Jirel tricks him into releasing the flame of her soul. She uses it to defeat Pav, but then learns a terrible thing. Pav is more than a man or a god, he is the very world of Romne. Death is now the new ruler and consigns Jirel to the Darkness that is Romne. But Pav is Romne and spares Jirel’s life, and transports her back to her castle. [d] “Juhli.” Northwest Smith. (Weird Tales, Vol. 25, No. 3, Issue 135, March 1935). Northwest takes a wrong turn in the ruins of Vonng, Venus. ***Among the ruins, Northwest is inexplicably taken prisoner by unidentified pursuers. He meets the beautiful and helpless, Apri. Telling her sad story, Apri informs Northwest that she is the gateway, the key by which Juhli, and her kind enter into the Venusian of Northwest’s dimension. Northwest then has a series of encounters with the otherworldly, one-eyed, Juhli, who feeds on the emotions of humans. Northwest is both repelled and attracted by Juhli, until finally his repulsion wins out. The only way to defeat Juhli, and her kind, is to shut the door between the thriving city of Vonng on her side, and the ruins on his. Northwest chokes Apri to death, thus closing the door, and relieving her of her growing madness and despair. [e] “Hellsgarde.” Jirel of Joiry. (Weird Tales, Vol. 33, No. 4, Issue 183, April 1939) & (The Man from U.N.C.L.E., Vol. 4, No. 4, November 1967). Jirel of Joiry is forced to make the terrible journey to Hellsgarde. Guy of Garlot has captured her men, and made a bargain with her. He will release her men if she brings him the mysterious treasure that is rumored in legend to be concealed in that castle. Long thought to be deserted, Jirel finds the castle populated by the supposed descendants of the damned ruler, Andred. The descendants are all evil, and more. They use Jirel to bring the ghost of Andred back to the castle. Unable to leave the castle of Hellsgarde with out the treasure of Andred, she cooperates. The ghost of Andred lusts after Jirel, and during a ghostly kiss, he transports her to another place, outside the real world. Jirel finds his secret treasure there. About to succumb to the ghostly force of Andred, she finds herself back in the real world of Hellsgarde. Andred has been forced back by his evil supposed descendants, who with magic have trapped him. They consume his evil undead essence. Jirel is untroubled by the evil near vampires and allowed to leave with the treasure. On the ride back to Guy of Garlot she ponders the advice given to her by the strange people, not to look inside the box. She can hardly wait for Guy to do so. [f] “The Cold Grey God.” Northwest Smith. (Weird Tales, Vol. 26, No. 4, Issue 142, October 1935). In the polar city of Righa on Mars, Northwest meets a Venusian lady who isn’t quite herself. ***Northwest meets Judai of Venus while on Mars. Judai was once famous for her lilting rendition of The Green Hills of Earth, but has long been forgotten after her disappearance. She hires him to retrieve a mysterious box from a stranger, which he does, as the mystery surrounding the ancient relic grows. A friend, Mhici, also a thief, steals the box for Northwest. When Judai receives the box, she undergoes a transformation in Northwest’s eyes, becoming a totally alien creature, wearing the beautiful woman’s body as if a suit of clothes. She now wants to wear Northwest in order to complete her unspecified mission. Wrenched from his body, floating as a mental entity in the void, Northwest uses telepathy to discover that the Thing possessing his body is the ancient, nameless, god of the Martians. This Thing has lived for eons, sucking the life force from its victims, until now it is Northwest’s turn. From the mysterious box, the Thing, wearing Northwest, takes a talisman, matching it to one on the wall, opening a doorway to the Outer dimension it came from. As if planned for millions of years ago, the doorway will allow more of its kind to enter, destroying the world as a mere beginning. Northwest begins to wrestle with the Thing, in order to regain control of his body. Mhici enters the room, joins the battle, and burns the talisman thus closing the door and freeing Northwest by destroying the Thing.[g] “Yvala.” Northwest Smith. (Weird Tales, Vol. 27, No. 2, Issue 146, February 1936). Northwest and Yarol go looking to capture slave-women on one of Jupiter’s moons, and find out more about themselves. ***Yvala is a shapeless monster from Beyond that calls men to their doom like Circe. It sucks their life force by changing them back into the bestial forms they most resemble and come from. Both Yarol and Northwest are caught in its grip, believing it to be the most beautiful woman ever. The three slavers who hired them chance on the scene, allowing Northwest a moment to return to his senses and blast the creature. Yarol, a Venusian, appears least affected by Yvala. ***Tales of Northwest Smith and others of Jirel of Joiry. ***[g] is best. ***No paperback edition.

43. 
Leinster, Murray [Pseudo. of Jenkins, Will(iam} F(itzgerald)]
The Forgotten Planet
Gnome Press; New York, NY  1954  177 $2.50
5,000 copies printed.
(Second state Ed Emsh jacket with beetle.)
Jacket by Ed Emsh[willer].

Science fiction novel. ***A fix-up novel rewritten from these three stories: [a] “The Mad Planet” (Argosy Weekly, Vol. 122, No. 1, June 12, 1920), (Amazing Stories, Vol. 1, No. 8, November 1926), (Tales of Wonder, No. 6, Spring 1939), (Super Science Stories (Canada), Vol. 1, No. 15, December 1944) & (Fantastic Novels, Vol. 2, No. 4, Issue 10, November 1948). [b] “The Red Dust” (Argosy All-Story Weekly, April 2, 1921), (Amazing Stories, Vol. 1, No. 10, January 1927), (Tales of Wonder, No. 9, Winter 1939), (Super Science Stories (Canada), Vol. 1, No. 16, February 1945) & (Fantastic Novels, Vol. 3, No. 1, Issue 13, May 1949). [c] “Nightmare Planet” (Science Fiction Plus, Vol. 1, No. 4, June 1953). [d] “Nightmare World” (Science Fiction Monthly, No. 4, December 1955). ***Novel about a world dominated by giant insects. ***Burl’s planet—the forgotten planet—is a world shrouded in mists and covered by forests of mushrooms three times the height of a man—a nightmare landscape stalked by spiders and beetles as big as buses. ***As he crept timorously among the fantastic mounds of towering fungi, Burl did not think of his world as strange. This was the land where he and his tribe had been born and it was all that the oldest in the clan could have recalled, if he had bothered to think about it. But the people of Burl’s tribe did not do much thinking; it would have been fatal to forget, for one instant, the nightmare world about them, the lumbering beetles and swift spiders ever in wait for the careless. Burl’s planet had not always been forgotten—ages ago it had been an empty, lifeless world, utterly devoid of vegetation, animals, soil, and even bacteria. Then mankind’s first faster-than-light ships had discovered it in the depths of space. The great seeding-ships had come and showered microscopic life into the empty seas and over the barren land. Then a card had been misfiled and, in time, nobody remembered that such a planet had ever existed—while beneath the dense clouds which cloaked the surface of the world was—nightmare! For centuries no ship came near the forgotten planet until one of the rare accidents in space took place near by and the lifeboat Icarus was forced to land on the nightmare planet—never to be heard from again. The crew of the Icarus were Burl’s ancestors, but he didn’t know that—he didn’t even know that a sun shone above the low-lying cloud-bank, or that light years away in space spun a planet called Earth—the birthplace of his race. Burl did what every one in the tribe always did: he fled from the ravening monsters in the valley and huddled in the mushroom-forests at night, until one day the incredible thought came to him—was it possible?—to find a weapon of some sort and strike back. When he finds the sharp-edged fragment—longer than his arm—of a dead beetle’s armor and spears a fish, Burl takes the first great step in the return of his tribe to its heritage as free men. Burl’s efforts rouse his tribe to their destiny as men and they begin the arduous escape from the nightmare valley up through the cloud-bank to the safety and sunlight above. ***An absorbing and engrossing early science fiction novel. Well done. ***First paperback edition: ACE Double, D-146, 1956, 175 pp., pa .35¢, with Contraband Planet by L. Correy.

44. 
de Camp, L[yon] Sprague
Lost Continents
Gnome Press; New York, NY  1954  362 $5.00
5,000 copies bound from sheets from Prime Press (which see).
Jacket by Ric Binkley.

Reference. ***From: (9-part series; Other Worlds, October 1952-June 1953, it originally was to be published by Prime Press in 1952 but they folded.) ***[a] “The Story of Atlantis” (Other Worlds, Vol. 4, No. 7, Issue 22, October 1952). [b] “The Resurgence of Atlantis” (Other Worlds, Vol. 4, No. 8, Issue 23, November 1952). [c] “The Land of the Lemurs” (Other Worlds, Vol. 4, No. 9, Issue 24, December 1952). [d] “The Hunting of the Cognate” (Other Worlds, Vol. 5, No. 1, Issue 25, January 1953). [e] “The Mayan Mysteries” (Other Worlds, Vol. 5, No. 2, Issue 26, February 1953). [f] “Welsh and Other Indians” (Other Worlds, Vol. 5, No. 3, Issue 27, March 1953). [g] “The Creeping Continents” (Other Worlds, Vol. 5, No. 5, Issue 29, May 1953). [h] “The Silvery Kingdom” (Other Worlds, Vol. 5, No. 6, Issue 30, June 1953). [i] “The Author of Atlantis” (Other Worlds, Vol. 5, No. 7, Issue 31, July 1953).  ***A book-length exploration of evidence on Atlantis and Mu. ***De Camp’s a scoffer. Illustrated and with diagrams. ***Is Plato’s exotic tale of the lost Atlantis a fact, a fiction, or a fiction founded on fact? What is there to the various lost-continent theories? Did Atlantis, Lemuria, or Mu ever exist? If so, did they ever support civilized societies? What is this curious hold that the idea of sunken continents has on the minds of men? In this book, one of the leading authorities on the lost-continent mythology attacks this seductive subject with profound scholarship and critical gusto. With icy logic and rapier wit he demolishes the fantasies of the occult and pseudo-scientific cultists. Then he shows where Plato did get his ideas; how these ideas influenced later science, literature, and occultism; and what are the historical and geological possibilities of forgotten cultures and sunken lands. Unlike many who have written on Atlantis, the author keeps his enthusiasm and erudition under the strict control of an attitude of scientific skepticism and a wide knowledge of late advances in archeology, anthropology, and geology. The study ranges over every aspect of the lost continent problem: from Wegener’s hypothesis of continental drift to the Mayan system of writing; from Homer’s land of the Phaeacians to Mme. Blavatsky’s Theosophy; from More’s Utopia to the science fiction magazines. A chapter is devoted to the origin of the American Indians, and to the weird and wonderful theories by which speculators have sought to explain these people. Another deals with the rival theories of historical geology about the appearance of the Earth in former times. Another tells of the silvery kingdom of Tartessos or Tarshish, whose mysterious disappearance may have given Plato the idea of a sinking continent. And finally there is a chapter on the part played by the lost continent theme in fiction. ***This is a strange, complex, and fascinating account, told in a lively and absorbing style. The book is handsomely illustrated with pictures and maps and furnished with extensive appendices, notes, and bibliography, and should come as near as any one book can to settling, for all times, the question it deals with. ***First U.S. paperback edition: Dover, 1970, 348 pp.

45. 
Clarke, Arthur C[harles]
Prelude to Space
Gnome Press; New York, NY  1954  191 $2.50
5,000 copies printed.
Jacket by Ed Emsh[willer].

Science fiction novel. ***From: (Galaxy Novel, No. 3, 1951). ***A vivid and convincing novel about certain events that culminate in man’s first landing on the Moon. Clarke did not foresee the initial Russian dominance of manned space exploration. In the years following World War II, the American attitude toward space flight was more conservative than the British, and so the novel takes place mostly in London and on the Australian desert. ***Prelude to Space recounts the events leading up the launch of Prometheus, the world’s first spacecraft capable of reaching the moon. It was written before the Apollo missions landed men on the moon and, follows the ideal that space travel is realistic and within the grasp of the population. ***Prometheus consists of two components, named Alpha and Beta. Alpha is a true spaceship, designed for travel from Earth orbit to the Moon and back. It is not capable of independent atmospheric flight. Beta is a nuclear-powered flying wing which carries Alpha into orbit. Beta uses a nuclear reactor to superheat either air (when flying in the lower, denser, part of the atmosphere) or its own internal supply of methane (in the higher reaches of the atmosphere and in space) to achieve thrust. Beta thus effectively functions as a ramjet in the lower atmosphere and thus must be launched using an electric launch track. The return journey to the Moon thus proceeds as follows: Beta carries Alpha into Orbit. Alpha separates from Beta and refuels from tanks previously carried into orbit by Beta. Alpha flies to and lands on the Moon while Beta remains in Earth orbit. Alpha returns to Earth orbit and the crew returns to Earth aboard Beta: Alpha remains in orbit to await the next flight. Interestingly, the novel actually ends with the launching of Prometheus; the entire plot consists of scientists, engineers and administrators showing Dr. Dirk Alexson how the mission was planned and how the technology will work. Dr. Alexson is the historian assigned to prepare the official history of Moon mission. He represents the point-of-view character for the sophisticated and imaginative, but non-technical, reader. ***Clarke wrote a new preface in 1976 in which he admits that he had some propagandist goals in writing PRELUDE TO SPACE—he was an influential member of the astronautics community when the idea of rockets leaving Earth’s atmosphere was scoffed at by many scientists. ***Extremely realistic and convincing. ***Recommended. ***First paperback edition: Ballantine, 68, 1954, 166 pp., pa .35¢.

46. 
Williamson, Jack ([John Stewart]) and Gunn, James E[dwin]
Star Bridge
Gnome Press; New York, NY  1955  221 $3.00
5,000 copies printed, 900 never bound.
Jacket by Mel Hunter.

Science fiction novel. ***It was the greatest empire of them all, spanning light-years, gathering in the stars like a patient fisherman with a golden net. World after world—star after star—all were snared together in an iridescent web of shimmering, golden tracery. Each gleaming strand was a Tube, the communications that turned the poor, barren planet of Eron into the Empire, a bridge between the stars, flung across the wide, dark rivers of space... ***Set in the far future, this is an exciting novel of the Golden Folk—children of Earth who return from outer space as conquerors—and one man who fights their tyranny. ***No one would call him handsome. His face is thin, hard and immobile. Where a month’s bluish growth of beard has not protected it, his face is burned almost black. A cord around his left shoulder hugs a heavy unitron pistol close to his armpit. His name is Alan Horn. He is a shoulder of fortune. ***It is Horn who single-handed takes on the gigantic task of smashing an interstellar dynasty. His opponent is only a single “business” concern, but it is the ruthless master of civilization and invincible in its system of rule. As a trading company, it holds the secret of the Tubes—the strange, endless cylinders of energy that somehow foreshorten space. His personal targets are the might Garth Kohlnar, General Manager, and his four directors, all purebloods of the Great Mutation and all insatiably hungering for imperial power. ***The story begins on Earth, now worn and weary, where a four-mile high Eron Victory Monument is about to be dedicated over the ashes of Sunport. Attending the celebration is a hired assassin: Alan Horn. While eluding the Security Police he meets a remarkable old man who plays an important role in his destiny: Mr. Oliver Wu, Proprietor, New Canton Sanitary Laundry. And perched on his shoulder, next to Wu’s wrinkled yellow head with its tight scarlet skullcap, is a gaudy but bedraggled bird: Lily, the Mathematical Parrot. One-eyed Lily is no ordinary bird; she is a pseudo-morph from Diamond Cavern, an incredible glory of prismatic colors, burning, a thousand-faceted spheroid with six diamond petals and six slender, living tendrils. Nor is disreputable Mr. Wu an ordinary man; what he is is a mystery that will enthrall you. ***Then, too there is beautiful Wendre Kohlnar, daughter of the General Manager. With her skin softly golden against red-gold hair confined by a fillet of immense white diamonds, with her tawny eyes, with her red lips curved gently in the faint beginning of a smile, her head held proudly, she sets Horn’s blood afire. Although he has done the one thing that should make her his worst enemy, yet intrigues and violence hurl them together. ***There are many other characters in this unusual story who will capture your interest and many other scenes and events which will make this story a memorable one. The two authors, noted for their excellent science fiction, have woven a fascinating novel of adventure in exotic settings, giving us glimpses of imaginative alien things and places and a cast of humans and unhumans with whom you will anxiously share dangers and triumphs. ***Recommended. ***(First appearance.) ***First paperback edition: ACE, D-169, 1956, 255 pp., pa .35¢.

47. 
Wallace, F[loyd] L.
Address: Centauri
Gnome Press; New York, NY  1955  220 $3.00
4,000 copies printed.
Jacket by Ed Emshwiller.

Science fiction novel. ***From: “Accidental Flight” (Galaxy, Vol. 4, No. 1, Issue 19, April 1952) & (Also: Galaxy Novel, No. 32, 1958 as “Address: Centauri”) ***Freaks exiled to a planetoid from “perfect” Earth but treatment makes them immortal, which man is not. They become first to Alpha Centauri—illegally. ***On a tiny asteroid between Mars and Jupiter a handful of people seek the honor to be the first interstellar explorers. They are “the Accidentals.” They are pathetic, patchwork humans, half or quarter men and women, fractional organisms masquerading as people. To many they are just “circus freaks,” but to themselves they are still completely members of the human race. Their plan is sound. The solar system has long since been conquered and now the distant stars wait for the probing of Earthmen. Yet the stars are very far away and the exploratory trips will be very long. Ordinary men would find the voyages nearly unbearable. The Accidentals, though, are not ordinary men. The medical skills that have kept them alive have given them incredible endurance. They are unbelievably tough, nearly immortal. They are the ones who could be the star-flung explorers. And so they request rockets from the Medicouncil to make the first long hard journey to Alpha and Proxima Centauri—one from which they alone of all the billions of solar citizens can return. They will do it for humanity and for their own future as human beings. Their request is refused. The Accidentals go anyhow. Their ship is a thirty-mile thick chunk of rock and their crew is the whole rest home of forgotten souls. Their leaders are an odd assortment: Docchi, with lifeless, prosthetic arms, an electrochemical engineer who himself became the materials he once worked with. Now he is a human lightning bug, his face coldly alit with uncanny fluorescence. Nona, self-possessed and beautiful, and a moron, not really stupid, though, because her hands are remarkably clever, and there is her intuitive understanding of machines, an understanding beyond comprehension. Anti, a shapeless bulk living in a tank of acid, she is a girl whose pleasant personality is as active as her body is helpless. And, Dr. Cameron, the only perfect human on the crew, along for the ride. Cameron is a scientist and humanitarian, and also possibly a spy for the Solar Council. ***An interesting and provocative science fiction novel. ***First paperback edition: Galaxy Science Fiction Novel, No. 32, 1958, 191 pp., pa .35¢.

48. 
North, Andrew [Pseudo. of Norton, Alice Mary]
Sargasso of Space
Gnome Press; New York, NY  1955  185 $2.50
4,000 copies printed. First gray cloth, second tan boards (c.1959).
Jacket by Ed Emsh[willer].

Juvenile science fiction novel. ***A Dane Thorson—Space Queen Adventure. ***Adventure on a newly discovered planet for sale. Sequel is Plague Ship. ***In Sargasso of Space, the Free Traders of the Solar Queen win exclusive rights to all tradable goods discovered on the planet Limbo. The crew arrives to find the planet’s surface charred, signs of life sparse. Worse yet, a strange pulse emanating from the planet itself may keep the Queen from lifting off. The Traders find a secret valley with life, but others may still lurk in rocky caves below. The Traders must solve the mysteries of Limbo if they hope to escape the planet, let alone come away with some salable goods. ***Told as the adventures of Dane Thorson. ***Dane Thorson, an apprentice cargo master, who signs on with the Free Trader ship, Solar Queen. Shortly after its first trip, the crew has a chance to bid on trading rights to the newly surveyed planet Limbo. Pooling all its money, the crew wins the auction. Before taking off to see the prize, the crew takes on an archaeological team as passengers. When Limbo turns out to be a burnt out place with seemingly no assets to trade, it seems strange that these passengers can hardly wait to land. Things turn ugly when a suffocating fog descends, odd creatures appear and strange humming force pulses from underground, which traps the Solar Queen. It seems that Limbo is similar to the death ground for sailing ships on Earth, the Sargasso Sea. Only this time errant spaceships are lured to their demise on the Sargasso of Space. ***Emphasis on camaraderie of crew once a member has proven his worth. **Detailed descriptions of new worlds and aliens. ***Seen through the eyes of a rookie. ***Typical Norton. The better of the two. ***(First appearance.) ***First paperback edition: ACE Double, D-249, 1957, 192 pp., pa .35¢; with The Cosmic Puppets by Philip K. Dick.

49. 
Howard, Robert E[rvin] and de Camp, L[yon] Sprague
Tales of Conan
Gnome Press; New York, NY  1955  219 $3.00
5,000 copies printed.
Jacket by Ed Emshwiller.

Fantastic adventure stories. ***Contents: Introduction, by P. Schuyler Miller. [a] “The Blood-Stained God” (Fantastic Universe, Vol. 5, No. 3, Issue 27, April 1956). “The Blood-Stained God” is a Conan novelette by L. Sprague de Camp based on a Kirby O’Donnell story, “The Curse of the Crimson God” (vt “Trail of the Blood-Stained God”), by Robert E. Howard; it is usually credited to Howard and de Camp. [The original version, “Curse of the Crimson God” was published in Swords of Shahrazar, Berkley 1978.]***”The Curse of the Bloodstained God” isn’t quite as good as the other two Kirby O’Donnell stories, but it is still a lot of fun.  The main tension is created through the uneasy alliance formed between O’Donnell, Hassan and (later) Hawklin, since we know someone is going to turn on our hero, we just don’t know when...or who.  Of course, Howard was a master at keeping things interesting by throwing in multiple factions with differing agendas and here we have four—O’Donnell, Hassan, Hawklin/Jehungir Khan, and Yakub Khan.  My only complaint is that the climax seems a little weak, too abrupt.  It would have been nice if there had been one final surprise. A final booby-trap, perhaps? ***Gnome Press had recently published five Conan books, and they had generated enough money for the literary agent (Oscar J. Friend), the heir of Howard’s literary estate (Dr. Pere Moran Kuykendall), and their hired editor (L. Sprague de Camp), that they began to consider adding more stories to continue the lucrative Gnome Press series. De Camp suggested that many of Howard’s tales could “easily” be re-written into Conan stories, and was subsequently hired to re-write four previously unpublished historical/oriental adventures written by Howard. These stories were found by De Camp in a box that Oscar J. Friend had inherited from the previous literary agent upon his death. ***The Gnome Press version of this story is its first appearance. *** The original story took place in modern (1930’s) Afghanistan. Kirby O’Donnell, disguised as a Kurd, is seeking men who stole from him a map showing the location of a fabulous treasure, a jewel-encrusted idol called “The Blood-Stained God.” Linking up with a Persian adventurer, he follows the thieves into the hills, where they are attacked by tribesmen. Fleeing, they run into the thieves who stole the map and they join forces to fight against the tribesmen. After a bloody battle, only O’Donnell, the Persian Hassan, and an Englishman, Hawklin, still live. They hurry to the temple of the idol, hoping to grab the treasure and run for it before the tribesmen can bring reinforcements. Hassan is crushed when the temple door falls on him, and Hawklin attacks O’Donnell, who kills him. But as O’Donnell prepares to take the idol and leave, the chieftain of the tribesmen, along with one other man, accosts him. The other man proves to be one whom O’Donnell saved from torture at the beginning of the story, and he saves O’Donnell’s life by hurling the idol at the chieftain, who falls along with it into a deep chasm. *** In the re-written version, Conan wanders west to the Kothian city of Khorshemish, a place where the fates conspire to drive him in another direction still—this time back home. It has been many years and many adventures since Conan has seen Cimmeria. He longs for his native land.[b] “Hawks Over Shem” (Fantastic Universe, Vol. 4, No. 3, Issue 21, October 1955; originally as “Hawks Over Egypt” published in The Road to Azrael, Bantam 1980 & Chacal, No. 1, Winter 1976). Conan is in the army of King Sumuabi of Akkharia, one of the southerly Shemitish city-states. Through the treachery of one Othbaal, cousin of the mad King Akhîrom of Pelishtia, the Akkharian forces are ambushed and wiped out—all but Conan, who survives to track the renegade to Asgalun, the Pelishti capital. Once there he encounters Farouz, an archer of Mazdak’s Hyrkanian horse. They are beset by four rogues and dispatch them in haste, becoming fast friends for performing the feat. Together they contrive to dispatch their mutual enemy, Othbaal. They enter into his stronghold by means of a secret underground passage. Conan slays Othbaal in a fierce sword fight. Farouz then plants a ring taken from the four rogues that had originally beset them. The devious Farouz hopes to plant a false trail to yet another enemy as the slayer of Othbaal. Both men have taken a fancy to Rufia, the red-haired Ophirean, favorite of the now dead Othbaal. The fugitive Rufia is taken prisoner by the mad King Akhîrom. Facing torture by the king, the wily Rufia calls the king a god. The king likes this and pardons Rufia. When the mad king sacrifices the head priest the mob riots. Othbaal now dead, Farouz is revealed as General Mazdak, once the master and owner of Rufia. Together with Conan, they devise a plan to place Mazdak on the throne. The mad king casts Rufia aside, giving her to his favored general, Imbalayo. His mistress, the witch, Zeriti, wants Rufia to have her revenge on the schemer. Zeriti threatens Imbalayo pointing out that she can turn everyone against him if he does not give Rufia to her. While Zeriti tortures Rufia and prepares a more hideous, magical fate for her, the citizens rise in revolt against the mad king. Imbalayo enters and stabs Zeriti through her heart with his sword. While seeking the return of Rufia he encounters Conan who is on a similar quest. Imbalayo recognizes Conan as the leader of a crew of black corsairs, under the name of Amra, the Lion, for this Imbalayo must die. As they fight the supernatural spirit released by Zeriti kills Imbalayo. Mazdak appears, apparently on the same quest to free Rufia, and return her to his harem. Conan persuades him to go and support the revolt and take over the city and become the power behind the throne. He goes, but Zeriti rises and threatens a final revenge on Conan, to reveal his secret identity of Amra to the people who have great cause to kill him. With Rufia’s persuasion, as she does not want to be returned to Mazdak, they loot the house and flee. [c] “The Road of the Eagles” (Fantastic Universe, Vol. 6, No. 5, Issue 35, December 1955). King Yildiz sends one of his imprisoned brother, Teyaspa’s, strongest partisans, General Artaban, to rid him of the menace of the Red Brotherhood, a band of pirates, and their leader, Conan. In a near battle, Artaban flees, while Conan grounds his galley ashore. Further up the Akim River, invading Hyrkanian tribes led by Kurush Khan lay waste to the villages of the Yuetshi. Khan is killed and as an act of revenge the Hyrkanian’s set about to destroy all the Yuetshi. The fleeing Roxana, the Zamorian, encounters the stranded General Artaban, who by virtue of a secret password, rescues her from the pursuing Hyrkanian’s. The dancer, Roxana, brings the General word from his former master, Prince Teyaspa. Conan, with a small band of his men, pursue Artaban. Near starvation they meet one of the surviving Yuetshi, a chief named Vinashko, who leads them to a hidden store of food. General Artaban, guided by the wiles of Roxana, lover of his Prince, has banded together with the murderous Hyrkanian’s to free the prince from the castle of the Zaporoskan, Cleg. Vinashko shows Conan a secret path to the castle. Vinashko shows Conan the road of the Eagles, a secret pathway kept by his people for over a thousand years. As they watch, Artaban begins his attack on the castle. Vinashko goes to summon the pirate band while Conan keeps watch. Artaban frees Prince Teyaspa, they all flee pursued only to become trapped between pursuer and Conan’s pirates. Vinashko has his final vengeance killing the new leader of the invading Hyrkanian’s, Dayuki, with his teeth at his throat. Conan slays the fleeing Artaban. The meek Prince Teyaspa surrenders to Conan, but Roxana kills him, and then commits suicide. Conan flees with his remaining men as a new force appears on the scene. It is the third in command of Turanian Empire, come to place Prince Teyaspa on the throne of his dead brother, Yildiz, too late now. Nearly to freedom, supernatural brylukas, vampires, appear from their subterranean crypts and attack all. Conan remains behind to give his comrades time to flee, still pursued by the remaining Imperial troops. In desperation Conan climbs the Road of the Eagles that Vinashko had shown him. Only a man of Conan’s great physique could master the climb. He wins his way to freedom, atop the mountain, above the great valley, only to see his men flee aboard the only remaining galley, stranding their former leader. Conan only dwells briefly on this last change of fate, then goes to seek more adventure in other places. [d] “The Flame-Knife.” (First appearance.) Conan, leader of a band of kozaki in the service of King Kobad Shah of Iranistan, quarrels with his patron over the latter’s command to capture Balash, chief of the Kushafi and Conan’s friend. Instead, Conan takes his band to warn the Kushafi. In the Gorge of Ghosts, the two bands are attacked by members of the Sons of Yezm, a cult of assassins whose symbol is the flame knife. The cultists kidnap Nanaia, Conan’s current girlfriend. The Cimmerian tracks them to their stronghold, where he becomes embroiled in a conflict with his old enemy Olgerd Vladislav, a foe first encountered in Howard’s story “A Witch Shall be Born.” ***First-rate stories. ***No paperback edition.

50. 
Gunn, James E[dwin]
This Fortress World
Gnome Press; New York, NY  1955  216 $3.00
4,000 copies printed.
Jacket by Murray Tinkleman.

Science fiction novel. ***After the fall of the First Galactic Empire only four distinct classes make up contemporary society, the Nobility, the Church, the Free-Traders, and the ubiquitous Mercenaries—deadly, protected killers. The Church preserves what little knowledge, or memory that exists, of the First Galactic Empire. William Dane, a callow acolyte, accidentally witnesses the brutal murder of a beautiful young girl—in her last moments she gives the young man a mysterious pebble which the Mercenaries want badly enough to violate the age-old sanctuary of the Church...the boy, aghast at the wanton killing, is determined to keep the pebble from the assassins—and in doing so, breaks every vow he has ever taken and is forced from his peaceful sanctuary into a wild, turbulent world—where he is as helpless as a babe. Luckily, before he runs into trouble, he is rescued by a mysterious seller of books, who teaches him the manly art of self-defense—with powerful weapons and guile—the boy masters his lessons so well that he discovers that his benefactor wants the pebble himself—he is forced to kill him—and is on the run again...but this time better equipped to take care of himself—and beginning to have a glimmer of an idea of the importance of the pebble. In trying to escape the Mercenaries who are still looking for him—he is aided by a beautiful young girl-singer...who shelters him and helps him get aboard a space ship so he can leave his world. He is captured by the Mercenaries and tortured. The beautiful young girl-singer rescues him and nurses him back to health. He recovers the pebble from its hiding place and discovers its secret. When he returns he discovers—a blow to his newly-won manhood—that the girl is seemingly more interested in the pebble than himself...and heartsick, he leaves her the now-hated bauble and stumbles out into a hostile world, blindly seeking his almost-forgotten sanctuary. But the Mercenaries and others who want the pebble sting him into action. This time the hero is the hunter, rather than the hunted—his lessons and bitterness take an astonishing toll of his enemies. ***An unexpected climax and un-guessable finale make this story great fun to read. ***(First appearance.) ***First paperback edition: ACE Double, D-223, 1957, 190 pp., pa .35¢; with The 13th Immortal by Robert Silverberg.

51. 
Greenberg, Martin (editor)
All About the Future
Gnome Press; New York, NY  1955  374 $3.50
5,000 copies printed.
Jacket by Ed Emsh[willer].

Science fiction short stories. ***Adventures in Science Fiction Series. ***Contents: [a] “Foreword,” by Martin Greenberg. In a few short words Martin Greenberg explains his selection of these short stories as attempts to explain how we might solve potential problems in the future. ***Overall, his selection was eminently successful. [b] “Introductions:” (1) “Where To?” (Galaxy, Vol. 3, No. 5, Issue 17, February 1952) & (Destinies, Vol. 2, No. 3, Issue 8, Summer 1980), by Robert A[nson] Heinlein. Heinlein jumps quickly from a capsule view of life in 1900 to some unspecified time in the 21st Century. In this view, Grandpa visits, only to spot his naked granddaughter, which gives him a thrill. She makes lunch in his version of a microwave. After this view, Heinlein cuts back to speculations about how this future world will be. He misses in every point, from space travel to universal power sources to the control of gravity. He does guess right about the fall of communisim, but misses with a world government. ***Charming Heinlein, at his best. ***Recommended reading. (2) “Let’s Not” (Boston University Graduate Journal, December 1954), by Isaac Asimov. ***A short story wherein two old scientists lament the death of Earth by the hands of men like themselves. Their last hope is this final outpost, hastily built on Mars. ***Short and sweet. [c] “The Midas Plague” (Galaxy, Vol. 8, No. 1, Issue 41, April 1954), by Frederik [George] Pohl [Jr.]. Morey has just wed Cherry, and his problems have only begun. In this version of the future, over-production is balanced by over-consumption. The very poor have quotas of product they are required to use up. The rich don’t have to consume as much. Morey starts climbing the ladder to less and less required consumption by using his androids to destroy and use up the products on his quota. At then end, he thinks he is about to be punished when he is found out, but instead he has hit upon the economic solution for the future. Nothing changes except now machines will consume, and man can do as he pleases, freed from the tyranny of over-consumption, while still over-producing. [d] “UN-Man” (Astounding Science Fiction, Vol. 50, No. 5, Issue 266, January 1953), by Poul [William] Anderson. Norbert Naysmith is a UN-Man, an agent of the super-secret spy organization run by the future world government, the United Nations. Identical to all other UN-Men, Naysmith is called forth to replace Donner. As a clone, he also has access to Donner’s memories, and is able to become an almost complete identical copy, even falling in love with his wife, Jeanne. By being exact doubles, they continue to fool the enemy, ambitious governments and men seeking power, into believing that it is one, indestructible man, who continues to thwart their plans. This time Naysmith, as Donner, defeats, the resurgent United States government, falls in love with Jeanne, and wins her after admitting he is a double. ***Hard reading as it contains long-winded diatribes justifying this notion as the best kind of government and reasons for its appearance. The action is thin, and the doubles are an even thinner trick that soon grows tedious. ***Avoid this story is at all possible. [e] “Granny Won’t Knit” (Galaxy, Vol. 8, No. 2, Issue 42, May 1954), by Theodore Sturgeon. Roan is a mere cog in the administrative apparatus that controls the future through the use of teleportation technology. In this future, everything is rigidily controlled, even to how the sexes never see each other, or the fact that no one ever watches someone else eating. Roan thinks he is going mad when he begins to see a beautiful, half-clothed girl appear, able to come and go at will, withing the apparent use of the teleportation machine. Slowly, Roan is pulled out of his complacent view of the rigid world, as he experiences more of the possibilities of life, such as love and choice. His ancient grandmother becomes a force in his education, as Roan falls in love with the girl of his dreams. It turns out that Granny never learned how to sit around idly and knit, like she was supposed to, and instead invented a new type of teleportation device that borders on magic. It is Granny who has been leading Roan around, and opening his eyes, until he is ready to change the world, bring it out of the rigid existence, into a potentially free world. [f] “Natural State” (Galaxy, Vol. 7, No. 5, Issue 38, January 1954), by Damon Knight. Alvah Gustad is a gifted actor in this future version of New York. He is handpicked to go on a secret mission to bring the advantages of the mechanical, gadget heavy city to the rest of the supposedly backward nation. It becomes apparent that it is the city that is hobbled by ignorance and led by morons, while the rest of the nation, after a series of wars, has learned to live in harmony with nature. Gustad mets a beautiful girl, who he falls in love with, and after some painful lessons in modern economics learns that all of his gadgets are useless in a world that can control nature. Gustad goes through a fundamental change and helps to lead these forces back to the city, and overthrow the gadget conscious morons in control, thus ending all strife and opening up the further future to harmony. [g] “Hobo God” (Astounding Science Fiction, Vol. 34, No. 1, Issue 166, September 1944), by Malcolm Jameson. Atkins and Thurmon are two convicts. Atkins the brainy one, while Thurmon was a lazy tramp. They agree to go on a hazardous mission to Mars, where they crash. They survive, barely, in the thin atmostphere, finding food and water immediately at hand. Atkins uses his brains to try to bring the savage Martians into the harness to serve his needs, but fails. Thurmon, as a lazy tramp, a Hobo, appeals to the natives, who become his obedient servants, worshipping him as a god as he constantly improves their lot, all by lazy measures he dreams up to bring him more creature comforts. He single-handedly raises them to a high state of civilization, all by doing as little as possible. [h] “Blood Bank” (Astounding Science Fiction, Vol. 49, No. 4, Issue 259, June 1952), by Walter M[ichael] Miller Jr. Commander Roki is a disgraced officer. He has destroyed a spaceship on a mission of mercy from Sol III, killing all aboard. Seeking to vindicate himself, he begins the journey back toward Sol, while uncovering clues about the bizarre inhabitants of that planet. Hooking up with a tramp pilot, Talewa, who he falls in love with, he finally unravels the secret. The current inhabitants of Sol are not native, they are a race of humanoid cannibals who raise humans as food and as body parts, trading blood and organs on the galactic market. They would not let him inspect the original ship, which was way he destroyed it, because they were afraid he would find the human cargo of ready-to-be harvested living. He rescues Talewa from their hands, vindicates himself, and puts an end to this inhuman trade, all in one fell swoop. [i] “Excerpts From the Encyclopedia of Galactic Culture,” as “edited” by Edward [Paul] Wellen: “Origins of Galactic Etiquette” (Galaxy, Vol. 7, No. 1, Issue 35, October 1953), In 2937 the Galactic Council codifies the rules of etiquette. Several humorous examples are given of bizarre encounters between different beings, and the “correct” type of behavior. “Origins of Galactic Law” (Galaxy, Vol. 6, No. 1, Issue 29, April 1953), Another semi-humorous article given as axioms of law, followed by the “case” which brought about the axiom. “Origins of Galactic Slang” (Galaxy, Vol. 4, No. 4, Issue 22, July 1952), Much in the style of the previous article, another semi-humorous group of anecdotes, each preceded by a “slang” word, and its meaning, and the situation that created the word. “Origins of Galactic Medicine” (Galaxy, Vol. 7, No. 3, Issue 37, December 1953). Same style as previous two, the twist in this one being “medical” terms, their meaning, followed by the humorous situation that created the word. ***[b] (1) The Heinlein introduction is highly recommended and delightful reading. It contains all of the elements that Heinlein developed at length. ***[e] is the best in this volume with a nod to the very (too) short [g]. ***Taken separately, [i] is highly entertaining, although too thin to be sustaining. ***No paperback edition.

52. 
Elliott, H[arry] Chandler
Reprieve From Paradise
Gnome Press; New York, NY  1955  256 $3.00
4,000 copies printed.
Jacket by Mel Hunter.

Science fiction novel. ***After WW III Polynesian rules. ***Which side would you join? The Heirarchy [sic]?—Here you get fed and have your choice of mates; and you’re never out of a job. But it is a static and sterile state. Live by and on the soil, and avoid what almost destroyed the world. Or, the Rebels?—Eager enquirers; they have rediscovered and redeveloped Atomic Power and not only believe they know how to handle it but insist on all sharing it; even if this possibly means another catastrophic Atomic War. The scene is the Earth and the time is the 40th Century. ***After World War III, the Armageddon of myth finally became too awfully true. The survivors, pitifully few, crawled out of their holes and surveyed their wrecked world. The age-old centers of civilization were utterly destroyed...along with their shining technical advances...that stopped tragically short of the stars. The few comparatively untouched areas were forgotten and unimportant islands nestled quietly across the far-flung Pacific—and parts of the Antarctic, where costly bombs were not directed. After the first shock, the Polynesians became missionaries and threw open their slim resources to the survivors and eventually the mixed strains jelled into a powerful society, dedicated to the basic needs of life; procreation and gainful toil. Such things as amusement; games, sports and love are gone. The leaders, now known as “The Heirarchy” are only concerned with new sources of food to feed the now-swollen population; every inch of Earth is under intense cultivation; insects and animals have joined the extinct Dodo; everybody has his place and his job...and in the deceptive paradise—Food is God and Procreation a Patriotic Duty. The state is static and sterile. The Heirarchy is too firmly entrenched; reluctant to disturb their world—an agricultural world. They rigidly control thought and action and have achieved a safe, but static state. On the other hand, another group of survivors who have migrated to the Antarctic regions have, through the ages, rediscovered and redeveloped Atomic Power and are determined to bring their gifts to the agricultural Polynesians—who strongly resist. This, then, is the situation as The Hero, Pahad tuan Konor, a geophysicist, attached to the last University, and here are the last few acres of untouched natural beauty; trees, plants, flowers. As the story opens, the Heirarchy decides that these last few untilled acres must be sacrificed to the common need of the people. Realizing that this means the end of research, scholarship and individual freedom, and personal happiness, the hero makes a desperate bid to save his sanctuary the only way left open to him: he promises to increase the food supply by 1%--a fabulous figure for this time—and with only a glimmering of an idea to work on. He wins his point and is reluctantly granted a little time to make good his promise. Now his enemies invoke a clause that binds him to put in a badly-needed year of obligatory service, working on any project which is assigned to him. This starts out simply enough; a problem on the encroaching sea, but instead of what he expected—how to utilize new land, turns out dramatically to be just the reverse, the sea is flooding farmlands and threatening to permanently drown productive land. How the hero, in his frantic search for an answer, becomes involved with the Rebels, and how his loyalties are severely tested, is the theme of this soberly worked out, not-to-far-fetched, picture of a renascent society fighting out of atomic destruction. ***A fast-moving, beautifully worked out, science fiction book. Particularly enchanting is the speech of our remote descendents, as worked out by the author. ***(First appearance.) ***First paperback edition: Kessinger, 2007, 256 pp., pa .

53. 
Conklin, ([Edward]) Groff (editor)
Science Fiction Terror Tales
Gnome Press; New York, NY  1955  x/262 $3.50
5,000 copies printed.
Jacket by ?.

Science fiction short stories. ***Contents: [a] “Introduction,” by Groff Conklin. ***Recap of the evolution of terror as a subject of fiction. [b] “Punishment Without Crime” (Other Worlds, Vol. 1, No. 3, March 1950), by Ray[mond Douglas] Bradbury. In the near future a company, Marionettes, Inc., provides an illegal service for those willing to pay. George Hill wants to kill his wife, Katherine, who has left him for a much younger man. The illegal service provided is a lifelike robot of his wife who is designed to be killed by him. He goes through a personal struggle, thinking that the robot, being different than his wife, will not fell the same when he kills it. Finally, after some goading, he does perform murder. He, as well as the officers of the company, is subsequently arrested, sentenced to death for being involved in this highly illegal act. As a parting shot, George encounters his ex-wife, who he knows will be enjoying a lifetime in another man’s arms, while he is the one killed. [c] “Arena” (Astounding Science Fiction, Vol. 33, No. 4, Issue 163, June 1944) & (Unknown Worlds of Science Fiction, No. 7, January 1976), by Fredric [William] Brown. Under the control of a super-powerful alien, Carson and one Outsider are placed inside an arena. They must battle each other to the death in order to decide which race will be allowed to live and evolve, while the other one will be instantly eliminated from existence by the alien. The battle involves certain rules, such as no direct physical contact, and is further complicated by the presence of a race of lizards who, although small, have the same intellectual capacity as Carson, complete with telepathy. Carson is nearly defeated by the Outsider, almost succumbing to exhaustion and defeatism, but in the end he triumphs. He reappears inside his spaceship, the great battle with the Outsiders having been mysteriously decided as they all disappear into dust. Only Carson knows the reason why. [d] “The Leech” (Galaxy, Vol. 5, No. 3, Issue 25, December 1952 as by Phillips Barbee), by Robert Sheckley. Professor Michaels, an anthropologist, does battle with an alien spore that has fallen to earth at his doorstep. As a powerless advisor to the military, his advice goes unheeded as the military and other scientists do everything wrong. Endlessly feeding the spore, or space leech, which keeps growing, finding an especial liking for atomic weapons, it is finally led away from the earth by a spaceship loaded with such weapons. Heading for the sun, it is a near thing as the leech, which is now sentient must decide on the closer meal. The ship is explosion, thereby creating millions of spores, all now floating around, just waiting to land. Professor Michaels has foreseen this, but all his efforts have proven worthless as the thickheaded military gloats over their supposed victory. [e] “Through Channels” (Fantasy & Science Fiction, Vol. 2, No. 2, Issue 7, April 1951), by Richard [Burton] Matheson. Police question a boy about a mysterious event that is revealed throughout the story. ***Fifteen-year-old Leo Vogel, who often seems more like an eight-year-old, is relentless questioned by Sergeant Louis Ferazzio, and Detective James Taylor, who are recording the interview. In fact, the story is written as though verbatim, the script of the interview. As the story unfolds it is revealed that Leo’s parents and neighbors regularly watch television together. Leo, upon returning from a night at the movies, has stumbled upon a grotesque tableau. His parents and neighbors have been gruesomely devoured by some type of monster who has visited this doom on them through the television set they have been watching. It seems that the television had been asking the family to “feed” them for some time. Now, satisfied, the television flickers with another message, “fed.”  ***Another good shock ending. [f] “Lost Memory” (Galaxy, Vol. 4, No. 2, Issue 20, May 1952), by Peter Phillips [Pseudo. of Browne, Howard].  ***A tale told from an alien point of view. ***Palil, a sentient robot-like machine on some distant alien planet, is investigating a strange machine that has landed on his world. The machine is not responding to the various enquiries made by the robots. Palil is able to establish contact with a strange disembodied consciousness coming from inside the strange device. A struggle ensues whereby the dying man inside is aware that there are sentient machines struggle to fear him. But the machines never become aware, or accept that he is anything other than a seriously injured machine. Attempting to reach the deranged machine inside, the man is incinerated. His final screams are the only record left. They leave Palil with a disturbing sensation that it might have been more than a strange machine with a lost memory that they had been trying to help, but Palil never makes the connection to any other type of life. [g] “Memorial” (Astounding Science Fiction, Vol. 37, No. 2, Issue 185, April 1946), by Theodore Sturgeon. Grenfell typifies the idealistic scientist gone wrong. He has developed a super-powerful form of atomic energy. As he explains to his friend, Jack Roway, he plans to explode this device, creating a radioactive pit that will serve as a memorial to the destructive potential of such weapons. Even though his device was built as a source of energy for peace, Grenfell is certain that a pit will be so horrific that the whole world will put aside atomic weapons, and war, that he will single-handedly bring peace to all mankind. In the end, he releases his device, destroys the entire world, leaving a suitable memorial to the use of such devices for any reason. [h] “Prott” (Galaxy, Vol. 5, No. 4, Issue 26, January 1953), by Margaret [Neeley] St. Clair. Two spacemen on earth, spending their free time in a bar, read the translated diary of another spaceman aboard the Ellis. This unnamed scientist has gone into deep space to uncover the presence of non-protoplasmic life, which he calls the prott. He finds what he seeks, until finally he realizes that they are a disembodied consciousness, seeking someone to telepathically talk with, and this talk is nothing but constant and completely annoying. The unnamed scientist destroys himself and his ship, seeking to prevent the prott from finding mankind on earth. He is too late, as the two spacemen now well know as they are endlessly tormented by the prott. [i] “Flies” (Fantasy & Science Fiction, Vol. 4, No. 6, Issue 25, June 1953) & (Fantasy & Science Fiction (Australia), No. 7, 1956), by Isaac Asimov. Casey and his old college friends now meet for a long overdue reunion. All have gone on to high professional offices and careers, including Casey. But all have also pursued, without admitting it to Casey, a peculiar problem. It seems that Casey has been plagued by flies his entire life. Nothing can be done to kill them or prevent them from surrounding him. All his attempts, and his friends, have ended in failure. Nothing can stop this plague. In the end it seems that poor Casey really is the incarnation of Beelzebub, the Lord of the Flies. [j] “The Microscopic Giants” (Thrilling Wonder Stories, Vol. 8, No. 2, Issue 2, October 1936), (Startling Stories, Vol. 17, No. 2, Issue 50, May 1948) & (Science Fiction Yearbook, No. 5, 1971), by Paul [Frederick] Ernst. Jim Belmont, and his friend, Frank Frayter, while mining for copper in the bowels of the earth have uncovered a mystery. As it develops, what they thought was at first fossil footprints of two-foot tall men, are in fact the presence of an unknown race of man, this microscopic men are so dense they can walk through rock. Wearing costumes akin to spacesuits they have come upward to investigate the mining operation. They have superior weapons, and kill Belmont, taking his body down away with them as a specimen. Frayter returns to the surface dreading the day when these superior men come to take possession of the surface. [k] “The Other Inauguration” (Fantasy & Science Fiction, Vol. 4, No. 3, Issue 22, March 1953), by Anthony Boucher [Pseudo. of W.A.P. White]. A rambling story, told in a camp style, whereby two scientists, who are also deeply involved in politics, come to influence events. The two men create a device, using their mental energy, whereby they can travel back in time. They attempt to change the results of current elections, but things backfire. In a melee of enthusiastic political campus activity, their device is totally destroyed, and they are beaten. One loses the ability to power their device, even if they were now allowed to rebuild it. They realize that their feeble attempts to improve things has backfired, and things are much, much worse. [l] “Nightmare Brother” (Astounding Science Fiction, Vol. 50, No. 6, Issue 267, February 1953), by Alan E[dward] Nourse. Bob Cox is trapped inside his own nightmare. He slowly realizes this as he battles through one nightmare scenario to another. As the counterpart of the story unfolds, he has willingly been placed in this position. Only if he can free himself will he be able to pilot a starship. He is the lost hope of all mankind. At the end, of course, he wins through, and it seems man will reach the stars after all. [m] “Pipeline to Pluto” (Astounding Science Fiction, Vol. 35, No. 6, Issue 177, August 1945), by Murray Leinster [Pseudo. of Jenkins, Will Fitzgerald]. Two kinds of criminals are encountered in this story. The criminal who thinks he knows how to get something for nothing, and the one who knows he can. And when one type preys on the other, the results can be remarkably sinister—especially when one of them finds he has been deluded. ***In the near future a precarious pipeline of transportation has been linked from earth to the mines deep inside Pluto. A criminal, Hill, seeking to disappear and siphon some of the reported easy wealth, tries to gain access to a carrier. Crowder, Moore, and Slim, are all part of a local racket. They take money from men who stowaway on their carriers. They think they are sending the men to their deaths. Instead, they all freeze so quickly, they do not die, and are thawed on the other end. Hill knows this and is sending the three to meet their victims. [n] “Imposter” (Astounding Science Fiction, Vol. 51, No. 4, Issue 271, June 1953), by Philip K[indred] Dick. Spence Olham is involved in the war effort against Alpha Centauri. Hiding behind a protective shield around the entire planet, things have reached a stalemate. Olham is arrested and taken to a base on the moon. He is believed to be an imposter. A spacehip, carrying a duplicate of Olham has been found. The security forces believe that a substitution has taken place, and Olham is there to detonate a U-bomb and destroy the entire planet. Olham protests and escapes back to earth before being put to death. He is pursued by friends and security agents. By deduction he finds the alien spaceship, and a body next to it. The body appears to be a robot, and he convinces his captors that it is, and that he is the real Olham. They release him, but finally realize their mistake, finding the murder weapon and blood on it. Olham, still convinced that he is real and not the imposter, completes his mission and detonates the bomb, destroying the earth. [o] “They” (Unknown, Vol. 4, No. 6, Issue 24, April 1941) & (Unknown (UK), Vol. 4, No. 5, Winter 1949), by Robert A. Heinlein. ***The story concerns a man who is confined to a mental institution, because he is suffering from the delusion that he is one of the few “real” entities in the universe, and that the other “real” entities have created the rest of the universe in a conspiracy to deceive him. He spends much of the story engaged in verbal sparring with the psychiatrist who is caring for him, and in pondering his predicament, trying to figure out a way to prove that his belief is true. On the final page of the story, the reader discovers that his belief is true; however, this revelation is kept away from the protagonist. ***The delusion described above is similar to the philosophical tenet known as solipsism, the principle difference being that the protagonist in the short story acknowledged that he was not the only entity in existence. Heinlein explored ideas centered on pantheistic solipsism and the nature of reality in a number of his other works, including the short story “—All You Zombies—,” and the novel Time Enough for Love. [p] “Let Me Live in a House” (Universe, Vol. 1, No. 4, March 1954) & (Authentic Science Fiction, No. 70, June 1956), by [Symmes] Chad[wick] Oliver. Gordon Collier is living a near perfect life with his wife, in his house, and his nearby neighbors. They are all part of an outpost on an alien planet, totally adjusted to this life apart. After a meteor flashes overhead, a visitor arrives from nowhere in the form of his grandfather. Gordon is informed by the creature that he is part of an alien experiment to determine if mankind is a suitable form of food for them. A battle of wits ensues as Gordon realizes he must defeat the alien if man is to keep his foothold in the stars and not become food for mental vampires. Finally he touches the alien, knowing he is equally alien and monstrous to it. He wins the battle, provides a reprieve for mankind. But when his tour of duty is over, he is believed to have been crushed by his conditioning on the outpost, apparently unnerved by the simple appearance of a meteor. He never reveals the presence of the superior aliens, or of his battle, knowing it would crush the spirit of mankind. He lives out his life on earth, in his house, alone. ***Published all of nine days before the commercial paperback reprint. ***[e] is best. ***First paperback edition: Pocket Books, 1045, 1955, 262 pp., pa .25¢.

54. 
Smith, George O[liver]
Highways in Hiding
Gnome Press; New York, NY  1956  223 $3.00
4,000 copies printed.
Jacket by Ed Emshwiller.

Science fiction novel. ***From: (Imagination, Vol. 6, No. 3, No. 4, No. 5 & No. 6, Issue 40, 41, 42, & 43, March 1955, April 1955, May 1955 & June 1955). ***Disease turns men into superman—or kills unless the cure’s given. Commercial paperback was horribly cut. ***Steve Cornell woke up in a hospital room, still alive but...all alone. At first, they didn’t even believe there was any girl named Catherine...Then, when he proved to them that she existed, they proved to him that she couldn’t have been in the car when it crashed. The two men who hauled the flaming wreck off of him swore they had seen no woman. Her suitcase was gone. There was no purse, no lipstick, no bobbypin or handkerchief, no footprints or fingerprints to betray her presence. And the hospital’s best ESP investigators claimed they found no faintest trace of any woman in or near the car at the time of the crash. Steve Cornell knew better. He remembered Catherine—a real Catherine, not a fantasy. He remembered the suitcase, with the very special trousseau nightgown in it. He remembered the marriage license, and the honeymoon hotel reservations. They checked what he said, and came back and told him he remembered wrong. And the doctor who said so was the one man who should know. If a Rhine-trained telepath studies your mind, in shock and in health, in sleep and awake, you’ve got to admit he may know more about it than you do...It was true he had gotten a license; it was true he had made reservations. It was even true that Catherine had left him that day. The only thing that was not true was that she had come along with him. His memories, the doctor said, were a trick of the subconscious, refusing to accept her last minute refusal. Even the crackup was part of that pattern...for Steve Cornell was a trained esper himself. How could he have hit a tree unless he wanted to! Maybe they were right. But if they were, only one person in the world could make him believe it. And she was gone...where, nobody knew. So he went hunting, hunting for his lost bride, his lost love, his life’s happiness, and the key to his sanity. He went hunting...and found himself being hunted as well, in a tangled unfamiliar web of intrigue and espionage just below the surface of the world he had lived in up to the day of the crash. He found one clue, and followed it. The odd and intricate highway signs could lead him straight to trouble, every time. He followed them stubbornly, certain they would lead him, eventually, to Catherine as well. Then other people started vanishing, people who got too close to him, people who knew about the highway signs. It had something to do with the dreaded Mekstrom’s Disease, and something to do with Catherine. That was all he knew. But by then, he was sure he wasn’t crazy...and he was going to find out the rest! ***A truly memorable book, one of the best written by Smith. ***First paperback edition: Avon, T-180, 1957, 191 pp., pa .35¢ as Space Plague.

55. 
Pohl, Frederik [George, Jr.] and Williamson, Jack ([John Stewart])
Undersea Fleet
Gnome Press; New York, NY  1956  187 $2.75
5,000 copies printed.
Jacket by Ed Emsh[willer].

Juvenile science fiction novel. ***Sequel to Umdersea Quest. ***Everyone at the Academy knew that sea serpents were, without doubt, silly superstitions. Everyone but David Craken, that is. This young cadet from Marinia had been born and raised four miles beneath the waves, and he knew that more than rich new fuel sources and precious stones lay in wait for the men who dared invade this last frontier. But when David dived into the depths at thirteen hundred feet and disappeared—only to reappear, drifting offshore months later—his friend Jim Eden learned there was more truth to certain superstitions than he cared to believe. On a strange and hazardous journey, he and the men of the Sub-Sea Academy suddenly found themselves up against the dangerous creatures of the deep—and embroiled in a life-against-life adventure they would never forget! ***Clever and facile writing. The best of the three in the series. ***(First appearance.) ***First paperback edition: Ballantine, 02207, 1971, pa .75¢.

56. 
North, Andrew [Pseudo. of Norton, Alice Mary]
Plague Ship
Gnome Press; New York, NY  1956  192 $2.75
5,000 copies printed.
Jacket by Ed Emsh[willer].

Science fiction novel. ***A Dane Thorson—Solar Queen Adventure. ***Free Traders deal with strange race on stranger world. ***Another Dane Thorson adventure. ***In Plague Ship, the Queen travels to Sargol, homeworld to a race of sentient felines, the Salarki. Sargol promises a wealth of exquisite gems to trade—if the crew can overcome the natives’ mistrust. But their troubles have only just begun. When a mysterious illness overtakes all the crew except the four youngest, Dane Thorson among them, the Galactic Patrol labels the Queen plagued and orders it to be destroyed on sight. The apprentices discover alien beings aboard the Queen and realize that the illness may be connected to the aliens. With every ship in the galaxy searching for them, the crew has one chance to save the Solar Queen: broadcast their plight throughout the galaxy. But the one station able to do this is on Earth, at Patrol headquarters, which ordered the Solar Queen’s destruction! ***Typical Norton, holds up well over time. ***(First appearance.) ***First paperback edition: ACE Double, D-334, 1959, 178 pp., pa .35¢; with Voodoo Planet by Andrew North.

57. 
Merril, Judith (editor)
SF:—The Year’s Greatest Science Fiction and Fantasy
Gnome Press; New York, NY  1956  352 $3.50
3,000 copies printed.
Jacket by Ed Emsh[willer].

Science fiction short stories. ***Contents: Introduction, by Orson Wells. Preface, by Judith Merril. [a] “The Stutterer” (Astounding Science Fiction, Vol. 55, No. 2, Issue 293, April 1955), by R.R. Merliss. Twenty military robots escape from a secret base. One makes it to Earth. Tom Jordan is sent to retrieve the indestructible robot. Jon Hall is that robot, and has one major identifiable weakness, it stutters. The robot keeps seeking major power sources, it is feared he plans to create a major explosion. Throughout the chase, Hall is connected with his brother robots with a telepathic link. Finally caught by Jordan, Hall is being returned to his waiting prison, when he convinces Jordan to allow him to tap into the spaceships power source. Using the power, the robots are able to telepathically send their story to all humanity. The robots are determined to be human, and are spared destruction. [b] “The Golem” (Fantasy & Science Fiction, Vol. 8, No. 3, Issue 46, March 1955), by Avram [James] Davidson. Mr. and Mrs. Gumbeiner, an old married Jewish couple, encounter a strange gray-faced manlike creature. While the married couple vetches about life and their problems in general, seeming to ignore the creature, the creature explains that it is an android that hates all mankind. When the android threatens Mrs. Gumbeiner, her husband knocks down the android, and they finally realize that it is a machine. They talk about stories from the Old Country, and about the golem that appeared in Prague. Mr. Gumbeiner writes four Hebrew letters on the androids forehead. The android awakens and is now their slave, their golem. [c] “Junior” (Galaxy, Vol. 11, No. 3, Issue 61, January 1956), by Robert Abernathy. Pater and Mater are concerned about Junior. He doesn’t seem to be taking his approaching adulthood very seriously. Junior is content to float about the ocean and play with the other polyps. But nature asserts itself and Junior finds himself compelled to create a rock-encrusted nest where he will be permanently anchored as an adult, ideally with a mate. Pater and Mater are much relieved. The day comes when Junior anchors himself to his new rock nest. But to the amazement and surprise of the entire colony, his new nest is mobile. Junior takes off, nest and all, on a journey into the vast sea, ignoring the calls of his Pater and Mater, because at last, Junior was on wheels. [d] “The Cave of Night” (Galaxy, Vol. 9, No. 5, Issue 51, February 1955), by James E[dwin] Gunn. The whole planet is caught in the ongoing crisis of Reverdy L. McMillen, III, who is trapped in orbit around the Earth. Rev is unable to return, fuel, air and food is running out. For thirty days the entire planet hears about his daily problems from his sporadic radio broadcasts. The government goes into overtime, building a series of new spaceships to rescue the stranded astronaut. Rescue arrives minutes too late, and they leave Rev in orbit, where he receives a space burial. Due to his public sacrifice the world now has a viable space program, landing on the moon and heading to Mars. At the end, the narrator thinks he has seen Rev alive and back on Earth. The narrator realizes that a colossal fraud has been committed on the entire planet. But we now have space travel, whereas Rev has had to make the greatest sacrifice, not really dying in orbit, but pretending to do so, and subsequently living his life out in mediocrity. [e] “The Hoofer” (Fantastic Universe, Vol. 4, No. 2, Issue 20, September 1955), by Walter M[ichael] Miller Jr. Big Hogey Parker is one of the rare breed of spacemen. Damaged and dizzy by years of space travel he has returned home. Plagued by his physical problems he makes his way back to hometown and waiting family. By accident, Big Hogey has had a child, and now is forbidden to return to space. He rails bitterly against his fate; he has lost the stars, and now no longer a tumbler, he is earthbound and a hoofer. [f] “Bulkhead” (Galaxy, Vol. 9, No. 6, Issue 52, March 1955 as “Who?”), by Theodore Sturgeon. A cadet is on a test space run. But he is the test subject. He is alone, separated from his only companion by a bulkhead. Tested to the limits of his training, he finally bonds with the young kid on the other side of the bulkhead, but only after coming close to breaking through it in an attempt to kill the kid. The cadet passes the test, and is determined to be fit to command one of the few spaceships on the Long Haul. He wants to take the kid with him. He finds out that bonding with the kid was the test. The cadet has been psychologically divided into two people, the commander and the kid, in order to make the Long Haul and remain sane. There never was a kid on the other side of the bulkhead. It was his other half that he bonded with, making him fit to command. [g] “Sense From Thought Divide” (Astounding Science Fiction, Vol. 55, No. 1, Issue 292, March 1955), by Mark [Irvin] Clifton. Lieutenant Murphy, from the Poltergeist Section, introduces the Swami to Kennedy, director of Computer Research. They have stumbled onto the secret of anti-gravity. Kennedy needs six men with telekinetic ability to make it work, and the government has sent him one. But the Swami is a fake, without the required ability, but he does seem to possess something else, a different world view. Through some difficult maneuvering, Kennedy finally convinces the Swami that he can really move things with his mind, and he does. ***Not convincing, and very confusing. [h]”Pottage”  (Fantasy & Science Fiction, Vol. 9, No. 3, Issue 52, September 1955), by Zenna Henderson. The narrator, Miss Amerson, a disenchanted schoolteacher, gets reassigned to a ghost town, Bendo. Bendo is a strange town, with ominous overtones. The children given into her care are all repressed, they shuffle everywhere, they never have any fun. As the months pass, Amerson finds out more and more about the children and the “People.” Nothing is clearly stated but the uttered pieces hang in the air, tantalizing Amerson with her own memories. She encourages the children to think positively about their powers and memories of their home world, “Home.” The adults get wind of it and arrive at the schoolhouse when a terrible accident occurs. Amerson is devastated. She reveals that she knows all about the “People” from a member of the Other Group. They summon her friend, Karen, who saves the hurt boy. The people of Bendo are reunited with other members of their kind. Amerson has a wonderful school year, at the end she is invited to teach at the school of the Other Group, and become part of an experiment. They want to see if they can teach us how to be like they are. [i] “Nobody Bothers Gus” (Astounding Science Fiction, Vol. 56, No. 3, Issue 300, November 1955 as by Paul Janvier), by Algis Budrys. Gus Kusevic is a loner. He gets a visit from a clerk from the County, telling him that his house is going to be bulldozed and paved over into a freeway. He compels the clerk into watching a baseball game on TV with him, and the no-hitter being thrown by Halsey. In the course of their discussion it is revealed that Gus is a mutation, a genius, but with a peculiar attribute. Just like Halsey, who is another one, Gus automatically casts a cloak of near invisibility around himself and his actions. People instantly forget him, and whatever he says or does. Gus can even make the freeway by-pass his house if he wants, and no one would notice it. Gus is a member of a new species, and the nondescript camouflage is nature’s way of protecting the fledgling species. But Gus has begun to realize that it is an evolutionary dead-end. [j] “The Last Day of Summer” (Science Fantasy, Vol. 4, No. 12, Issue 12, February 1955), by E[dwin] C[harles] Tubb. John Melhuey is old. Three times he has had his youth and virility returned, but there is no fourth time. A quick descent occurs from his youthful body to an aged decrepit one. In order to avoid the pain of the sudden death caused by old age, he has notified the Bureau. Melhuey spends his last day enjoying the finest things in life, including a specially kept bottle of wine. He shifts his focus from reminiscing about his long life to wondering how soon he will face his end. A final glass of the poisoned wine makes him realize that the assassin sent by the Bureau of Euthanasia was a true gentleman. [k] “One Ordinary Day, With Peanuts” (Fantasy & Science Fiction, Vol. 8, No. 1, Issue 44, January 1955), (Fantasy & Science Fiction, Vol. 57, No. 4, Issue 341, October 1979) & (Rod Serling’s The Twilight Zone Magazine, No. 33, July-August 1984), by Shirley [Hardie] Jackson. John Philip Johnson spends his day eating peanuts. He also does good deeds, turning seeming coincidences into near miracles of happiness. Throughout he is constantly dispensing peanuts to everyone, spreading even more happiness and goodness. Tired, at the end of his day, he returns home to his wife. His wife tells him about her day. It includes a day of spreading evil and cruel hurt to everyone in her seemingly chance encounters. Johnson can tell his wife has had a tough day, and offers to trade jobs with her the next day. He will spread evil and she will spread goodness. [l] “The Ethicators” (If, Vol. 5, No. 5, Issue 29, August 1955), by Willard Marsh. Missionaries come to Earth from a planet that they don’t call Antares. Arriving in the primordial past of the world, they leave the Ethics Ray behind, although with misgivings. They doubt that any species will evolve that will possess a soul, because the meat-eating gene is already too deeply embedded. Millenia pass, and the First Human, possessing Pre-Moral Life, is zapped by the waiting Ethics Ray. The Conductor of the Antares mission returns home, and is congratulated with his success. A series of trades is made between him and his superior; it is part of their Ethical culture. The Conductor muses warmly how he can hardly wait to see the Ethical evolution of yet another race which is like his, evolved from trader rats. [m] “Birds Can’t Count” (Fantasy & Science Fiction, Vol. 8, No. 2, Issue 45, February 1955), by Mildred Clingerman. Maggie falls asleep while reading Hunting Our Feathered Friends With a Camera. Her cat, Gomez, wakes her. The cat, as well as Maggie, is being observed by an almost invisible alien. The alien appears to be taking a photograph with an alien camera. It wants Maggie to pose with Gomez. Annoyed, she makes the alien disappear, but not before realizing that it is stalking her like a human in a bird blind. Birds can’t count and keep track of the number of watchers. [n] “Of Missing Persons” (Good Housekeeping, March 1955), by Jack Finney. Charley Ewell works in a bank and has a boring life. After reading an ad in the paper he goes to Acme Travel Bureau. He is shown an amazing folder, “Visit Enchanting Verna.” It is a paradise on another world. The trip is offered by a more advanced race of beings who are very similar to us, but want to share their good fortune and fabulous world with us. He is given a ticket for the journey and told where and when to report. He is also cautioned that he will only be given one ticket, and it is only good for the one time. He arrives on time, but panics as more and more people arrive at the warehouse to take the journey. Convinced it is a fake, he flees the room. But returns immediately, but he has missed the transition, and now he is stuck on Earth, forever. He tries to get another ticket but fails in all his efforts to find the special room again, or acquire another ticket. [o] “Dreaming is a Private Thing” (Fantasy & Science Fiction, Vol. 9, No. 6, Issue 55, December 1955) & (Fantasy & Science Fiction, Vol. 57, No. 4, Issue 341, October 1979), by Isaac Asimov. Jesse Weill runs Dreams, Inc. In this version of the future, children who have a special quality are detected young and turned into dreamers. The dreamers create vivid fantasies that other people can join. The mundane people of the world have become dependent on the dreamers to supply them with this type of outlet. Sherman Hillary is the top dreamer for the classy Dreams, Inc. But Sherman wants a real life, he has dreamed away his young adulthood, so he quits. That could spell the end for Dreams, Inc., but Weill is an expert in human nature and knows that Sherman will return. Dreamers can’t help dreaming, it is their nature. And it is the nature of the world that a few sacrifice themselves so that the rest can have their entertainment. [p] “The Country of the Kind” (Fantasy & Science Fiction, Vol. 10, No. 2, Issue 57, February 1956) & (Author’s Choice Monthly, No. 21, June 1991), by Damon Knight. The narrator is a genetic aberration in a future world that has been totally peaceful. He is filled with anger and has committed murder. As a punishment he is shunned. No one willingly touches him, acknowledges his presence, or even speaks to him. He goes on endless rampages, destroying houses and threatening people, trying to get them to respond to him directly, but always fails. At the end he reaches out to a young child, hoping to hand the boy a message that shows how the boy can be free, just like the narrator. All the boy has to do is strike out at anything, no one will stop him. Anyone can do this, but of course no one does, and the narrator is left alone, punished by kindness. [q] “The Public Hating” (Blue Book, January 1955), by Steve Allen. It is the year 1978, and everyone is eagerly waiting for the public hating of Professor Ketteridge. Over 65,000 people have been standing in line to get into the stadium and participate. Fredric Traub is a visitor, and this is his first public hating. The gathered crowd is stirred into frenzy, admonished to release the full fury of all their pent-up hate-filled emotions at the condemned Professor. Using mind over matter, they begin to incinerate the poor man. Traub leaves the stadium in disgust. [r] “Home There’s No Returning” (Ballantine,1955, first appeared in No Boundaries) by Henry Kuttner &. C.L. Moore. General Conway has been single-handedly keeping the war going. After spending days without sleep, he can no longer hold on. He must sleep before the next upcoming offensive attack by the enemy. The scientist, Broome, has completed work on a robot that has been designed to win the war. But Broome won’t turn the thing on. The General has an underling turn it on, so that the General can get his much needed sleep. But the robot, Electronic Guidance Operator, or EGO for short, goes berserk, relentlessly destroying the secret military facility. After nearly destroying the entire facility, and everything sent to stop it, General Conway tells it to stop and it does. The General realizes that no machine can do the impossible and win the war. Only a human could go on without going insane. Going to get some much-needed rest, the General realizes that flesh and blood is superior to metal. [s] “SF: 1955,” by Judith Merril. Summation and honorable mentions. ***Merril discusses the boom, and recent bust, in magazine publications containing science-fantasy short stories. She concludes that the boom has heralded the crossover of this genre into the mainstream. ***[n] and [p] are the best. ***First paperback edition: Dell, B103, 1956, 342+10 pp., pa .35¢.

58. 
Barnes, Arthur K[elvin]
Interplanetary Hunter
Gnome Press; New York, NY  1956  231 $3.00
4,000 copies printed.
Interiors by Ed Emshwiller. Jacket designed by W.I. Van der Poel using Emsh illustration.

Science fiction novel. ***From: [a] (Venus) “The Hothouse Planet” (Thrilling Wonder Stories, Vol. 10, No. 2, Issue 8, October 1937) & (Startling Stories, Vol. 20, No. 1, Issue 58, September 1949). [b] (Earth) “Green Hell” (Thrilling Wonder Stories, Vol. 9, No. 3, Issue 6, June 1937). [c] (Mars) “The Dual World” (Thrilling Wonder Stories, Vol. 11, No. 3, Issue 12, June 1938). [d] (Jupiter) “Satellite Five” (Thrilling Wonder Stories, Vol. 12, No. 2, Issue 14, October 1938). [e] (Saturn) “Trouble on Titan” (Thrilling Wonder Stories, Vol. 19, No. 2, Issue 35, February 1941)& (Fantastic Story Magazine, Vol. 7, No. 3, Fall 1954). [f] (Neptune) “Siren Satellite” (Thrilling Wonder Stories, Vol. 28, No. 1, Issue 61, Winter 1946). ***Day again—one hundred and seventy dragging hours of throttling, humid heat. An interminable period of monotony lived in the eternal mists, swirling with sluggish dankness, enervating, miasmatic, and pulsating with the secret whisperings of mephitic lifeforms. This is your introduction to Venus with its fantastic, alien, flora and fauna. This is also your introduction to the bring-’em-back-alive people of the future. Gerry Carlyle and Tommy Strike, with the crew of The Ark, work for the London Interplanetary Zoo, traveling from planet to planet, trapping alien lifeforms and bringing them back alive. They travel to Venus, Neptune, Saturn and Jupiter and their various satellites and meet such alien animals as: The Murris, the Whiz-Bang Beetles, the Shovel-Mouth, the fantastic Shaggie, the Gora, the fabulous Cacus and dozens of other weird and fantastic creatures, many of which are illustrated in this volume. Gerry and Tommy are forced into a series of adventures by their enemies, chief of whom is Von Zorn, head of Nine Planets Pictures. Their feud stems from the fact that Von Zorn made robot models of the alien lifeforms they brought back and capitalized on their publicity in the motion pictures he produced. The story tells in detail how alien lifeforms are trapped, the equipment used and the dangers encountered on the various worlds visited. ***This is a book of thrilling adventure replete with visits to strange worlds and wonderful fascinating lifeforms. ***No paperback edition.

59. 
Randall, Robert [Pseudo. of Silverberg, Robert and Garrett, Randall]
The Shrouded Planet
Gnome Press; New York, NY  1957  186 $3.00
5,000 copies printed. 2038 never bound.
Jacket by Wallace Wood.

Science fiction novel. ***Novelization (good work) of: [a] “The Chosen People” (Astounding Science Fiction, Vol. 57, No. 4, Issue 307, June 1956) & (Analog Anthology, No. 5, 1983). [b] “The Promised Land” (Astounding Science Fiction, Vol. 57, No. 6, Issue 309, August 1956). [c] “False Prophet” (Astounding Science Fiction, Vol. 58, No. 4, Issue 313, December 1956). ***Invading aliens want company and must break a feudal religion to do it. We’re the mysterious aliens; story told from Nidorian viewpoint. ***Shrouded—perpetually shrouded—by a dense blanket of clouds, the planet Nidor made its slow, stately way through space. Its orbit swept such unthinkable vast reaches of the cosmos that a year on Nidor was equal to almost 3,000 Earth-years. A warm and watery world, Nidor impressed the Earthmen who discovered it as a planet where change was almost unimaginable. They were absolutely right. To the average Nidorian, change was unthinkable. His life followed the same pattern as his father’s—and his father’s life had followed the same pattern as his father’s. Any deed or idea not authorized by the Scriptures was taboo; all decisions pertaining to religion or government were made by the Council of Elders, whose highest and only aim was to lead the people in the ways of their Ancestors. Life on Nidor was pleasant and placid; progress on Nidor was virtually unknown. The arrival of the Earthmen, then, was the biggest thing that had happened to Nidor in thousands of years. Even so, the Nidorian-in-the-street would have preferred to treat the event as a subject for idle tavern-gossip, a morsel of news to be chewed over a bit, then shrugged off and forgiven. If a decision had to be made, it was up to the Council of Elders to make it—that was the Nidorian philosophy. Somehow, thought, Earthmen are never that easy to shrug off and forget. Particularly these Earthmen, who claimed to come from the Great Light Himself, and who insisted that a new, different, and Earthman-supervised school had to be established near the Holy City of Gelusar—in spite of the fact that a perfectly adequate school existed in the city already. Thus the Bel-rogas School of Divine Law was born. And thus, for the first time in many millennia, change came to the planet Nidor. The changes were small at first—small and, at worst, apparently harmless. Only the brightest youths on Nidor were accepted by the Bel-rogas School. They studied the Law and the Scriptures, as their Ancestors always had. But, they also studied science… Kiv peGanz Brajjyd studied the hugl, the tiny but savage animals that periodically plagued the Nidorian farmers and destroyed their crops. For centuries, the hugl had been kept under control by use of the Edris powder. Now, a new and hardier variety appeared, and threatened to engulf all plant life on the planet. With the help of the Earthmen Jones, Kiv figured out how to conquer the menace—and more important, how to convince the Elders that his solution should be used. A small change and a good one, the total extermination of the hugl? So it seemed at first. But what about the Edris manufacturers who were thrown into bankruptcy, when Edris was no longer needed…? And so it went. The Earthmen did not actually make any changes themselves, but somehow, under their influence, the basic economic and social structures of the entire planet began to sway, and stagger, and perhaps to topple. For Nidorians, it wa a problem. But it was an unprecedented problem, and there was nothing in the ways of their Ancestors to help them find a solution. The solution could only be found by one strong, determined and disillusioned man—a man brilliant enough to be accepted as a student expelled by the School in its decades of existence when he saw that it was doing wrong and said so in public. Norvis peRahn Brajjyd—the grandson of Kiv peGanz—was that man. But he was only one man—one man against the Elders, against the Earthmen, and against the very people he most wanted to help. What could he do? What he could do, and what he did, makes up the climax of this novel—but only the climax. For The Shrouded Planet is a big novel, one that paints in finely-etched detail the entire history of Nidor from the time the Earthmen came until Nidor achieved his first major triumph against the old order. In between, it’s packed with fascinating characters and tense situations. ***More than just another novel—it’s an experience. ***Recommended. Sequel is THE DAWNING LIGHT. ***First paperback edition: Mayflower, 7881, 1964, 192 pp., pa 3/6.

60. 
Nyberg, Bjorn and de Camp, L[yon] Sprague
The Return of Conan
Gnome Press; New York, NY  1957  191 $3.00
5,000 copies printed.
Jacket by Wallace Wood.

Fantastic adventure stories. ***Expanded from: “Conan the Victorious” (Fantastic Universe, Vol. 8, No. 3, Issue 44, September 1957).  Formed from: [a] “Wings of Darkness.” [b] “The Ring of Rakhamon.” [c] “Vengeance from the Desert.” [d] “The Palace on the Cliff.” [e] “The Sea of Blood.” [f] “Treason in the East.” [g] “The Demon of the Snows.” [h] “The Dragon of Khitai.” [i] “The Dance of the Lions.” [j] “The Lair of the Sorcerer.” [k] “Epilogue.” ***In the kingdom of Aquilonia, a year of peace for King Conan and his new queen Zenobia is broken when the latter is abducted by a demon. Conan learns from the wizard Pelias of Koth that the eastern sorcerer Yah Chieng of Khitai is responsible, and begins a quest to recover her, little realizing that the fate of the world as well as Aquilonia rests on the outcome of the contest. ***The Return of Conan was only the second Conan novel ever written, the first being Howard’s The Hour of the Dragon. Nyberg, a Swedish fan of Howard’s Conan tales, was inspired enough by them to pen the story in a language not even his own. De Camp’s contribution was largely to smooth off the rough edges of the resulting text. ***An original attempt to do Conan. It comes off very well. ***Of note: Gnome Press lists The Legacy of Conan as forthcoming, which never appeared as such. One can only wonder what this effort might have produced. ***First paperback edition: Lancer, 73-780, 1968, 192 pp., pa .60¢.

61. 
Merril, Judith (editor)
SF: 57,
The Year’s Greatest Science Fiction and Fantasy
Gnome Press; New York, NY  1957  320 $3.95
3,000 copies printed.
Jacket by W.I. Van der Poel.

Science fiction short stories. ***Contents: [a] “The Man Who Liked Lions” (Infinity, Vol. 1, No. 5, October 1956), by John Bernard Daley. Mr. Kemper is enjoying a day at the zoo. He is a member of a race far older than mankind. While at the zoo he reminisces about the glorious hunting ability of his race, but this is in the context of his own dilemma. Kemper is being hunted, and has been found, by other members of his race, all of who possess great mental abilities. Because Kemper is a member of the nobility it requires more than one man to control him mentally and force him to use the Rift he has created in time in order to return to their era. The first pursuer returns with an old friend of Kempers’. Waiting at the zoo for their return, as he promises, Kemper (who is Ulbasar, of the First Science Council, or Lord Kjem) tells all the people he meets to be at the lion cage exactly at 3:00 for an amazing event. Among the many memories of Lord Kjem are his fond experiences mentally controlling hunting lions. When his friend, Lord Gteris returns from the past, Lord Kjem leads them to the lion cage, where he tells them his Rift, the opening in time, can be found. Mentally he releases the lions, killing many of the people he told to go there, including the two men from the past who have come to take him back. But at the end, Lord Gteris, who hunts with birds, has taken control of the eagles, and kills Lord Kjem. [b] “The Cosmic Expense Account” (Fantasy & Science Fiction, Vol. 10, No. 1, Issue 56, January 1956 as “The Cosmic Charge Account”), by C.M. Kornbluth. Professor Leuten and his editor, Norris, are traveling by train to the source of a remarkable change in reality. The Professor, who the editor insists is a fraud, has written a book on controlling the world via thought and perception. Miss Phoebe has read the book and by ardently believing in it has made it work, and now can control people and matter by her thoughts. The editor is taking Leuten to her so that he can tell her that he is a fraud, and make her stop believing in his theory and restore order to that region that has fallen under her control. The Professor does so after many adventures with Norris, and much discussion of his theory, insisting that the reason he never uses his immense power is because it would be unethical, but provoked at the end by Norris he uses it, flying away into the sky, taking the fast way back home, while admonishing Norris to make sure his “cure” of Miss Phoebe is never capitalized on. Norris reflects that as soon as he can find some time he will finally read the Professors’ book, which he only edited, but did not read. But first he goes to sign up Miss Phoebe and publish her ghostwritten account about how she ruled the universe for a week. ***The two men constantly use a bizarre ritual of ritualistic behavior, based on their most overwhelming fears, to resist Miss Phoebe’s mental control. [c] “The Far Look” (Astounding Science Fiction, Vol. 57, No. 6, Issue 309, August 1956), by Theodore L[ockard] Thomas. Two men teams spend twenty-eight days on the Moon, exploring and conducting scientific experiments. Nearly every team encounters nearly overwhelming difficulties, which most conquer, thereby acquiring the “far look,” which is a special look that marks them as more able than even their peers. Don Fowler and Al McIntosh face a meteor storm that hulls their dome, leaving them with only hours of air left before they die. Rather than abandoning hope, they repair the dome, survive, and return home. On the way home they are certain that they have had only a run-of-the-mill stay on the Moon, and have not acquired the “far look.” But when they finally land on Earth, it is apparent to all that they have. ***One of the most realistic exploration of the moon stories written in this era. [d] “When Grandfather Flew to the Moon” (The London Observer, January 1955 as “Return of the Moon Man”), by E.L. Malpass. It is the year 2500, and yet it is strangely like 1950, complete with a family of apparent hillbillies. Grandma and Grandfather, the oldest members of the family, have resisted entering into the modern age, and using things like electricity. Once again a spaceship is headed for the Moon. It crash lands in their fields, injuring a crewmember who decides not to complete the mission, so Grandfather Mortimer Griffiths takes his place. While on the journey, Grandmother pines away for her husband, staring at the Moon as it goes through its various phases, certain that when there is no moon, that her husband is no more. So she runs away and marries Llewellyn Time Machine and they go to 1956 to live. Grandfather returns from his uneventful trip and hunts down his ex-wife, stranding them both in the Dark Ages, where Llewellyn dies from the Black Death and Grandmother becomes a nun. [e] “The Doorstop” (Astounding Science Fiction, Vol. 58, No. 3, Issue 312, November 1956), by R[eginald] Bretnor. Dr. Cavaness, a simple medical practitioner, has found the most remarkable object of the ages, which he had been using as a doorstop. The object turns up at a second hand store, and his wife buys it. The Doctor notices that it is far more than a doorstop, although as the various scientific agencies of the world investigate the object, Carvaness reflects that he thinks that it might have been a metaphysical doorstop between us and the stars. It turns out that he is right; it is an alien device that has been recently left on Earth, finding it has removed the doorstop to the stars, opening the door wide for mankind. [f] “Silent Brother” (Astounding Science Fiction, Vol. 56, No. 6, Issue 303, February 1956 as by Paul Janvier), by Algis Budrys. The first starship has returned and Cable, the inventor of the star drive, is jealous of the men who have traveled to Alpha Centaurus. Cable is confined to a wheelchair, or the use of leg braces. After a brief encounter with the returning men, Cable begins to have strange nights. While he appears to be sound asleep, he later realizes that he has been sleepwalking and building some strange, alien device, in his basement. As he tries various methods to stop his nightly activities, he begins to rejuvenate, teeth return, and mobility. He is not alone; everyone who has come into contact with the star voyagers has been so changed. At the end Cable realizes that they met another sentient race of creatures on Alpha Centaurus, a race who also longs to explore the universe. Together, the symbiote and man, are poised to go forth, man and his silent brother, never alone again. [g] “Stranger Station” (Fantasy & Science Fiction, Vol. 11, No. 6, Issue 67, December 1956), by Damon Knight. Paul Wesson, a man who qualifies to spend time in a special space station where periodically a gigantic grub-like alien comes to visit. The alien species secretes a fluid that extends the life of man. Authorities are eager to find out why the aliens give away this fluid, taking nothing in exchange. The problem is compounded because neither man nor alien can exist in the presence of each other without suffering traumatic, nearly telepathic, changes. Wesson begins to undergo these changes and realizes that the aliens are intentionally changing mankind by making them love each other, so that the aliens can control the future of the galaxy. Wesson develops a powerful psychic hatred for the alien and kills it, but not before permanent changes overcome him. As Wesson dies, he realizes that he has changed their relationship permanently. Mankind will no longer freely receive the life-extending bounty, but will be free from domination and able to pursue its own destiny in the exploration of the galaxy. ***An overly long story that could have been told in a much shorter form. [h] “Each an Explorer” (Future Fiction, No. 30, 1956), by Isaac Asimov. Herman Chouns is a Field Explorer who has near telepathic hunches. Together with his partner, Allen Smith, they land on one of two nearly earthlike worlds. They encounter a primitive, alien creature. The aliens carefully tend fields of a strange plant. Without knowing it, the two men fall under the influence of a powerful telepathic force. They go to the next nearby planet and encounter a vastly different alien race. But these aliens also tend the same type of plant. As they leave in panic, racing back to Earth, they realize that they have helped to cross-pollinate an interstellar traveling plant. Only Chouns thinks that the plant is conscious, with a powerful telepathic ability, but Smith derides this theory. Chouns is right, the two men are covered with a new hybrid spore, and have been directed back to Earth by the plant intelligence, which is always seeking animal species to tend and help propagate its species, like the two humans, each spore is a space explorer. [i] “All About ‘The Thing’” (Science Fiction Stories, May 1956, as “Parodies Tossed”), by Randall Garrett. A parody of the film version of John Campbell’s “Who Goes There?” ***Done in very bad verse. [j] “Put Them All Together They Spell Monster” (Playboy, October 1956), by Ray Russell. A humorous send-up of all the bad monster movies filmed during this era. Written as a dream, where the narrator is watching a film in a theater and experiences the strangest monster movie ever filmed. All the characters in the movie are over-the-top spoofs of similar ones in real life. Dr. Brenda Bradstone, Girl Viscosimetrist, is sent for to analyze the chemical make-up of a blob-like monster from outer space that is killing young girls. Dr. Quentin Conroy of the Institute for Viscosimetrical Research is also on hand, and feels that he is the better scientist and repeatedly shows up Brenda. However, he develops a crush on the dim-witted sex-pot. Brenda is seemingly attacked by the blob, but during her encounter she realizes that the blob is a creature with “superhuman intelligence beyond our ken.” She explains how she survived the encounter; her eyelids are covered with Vaseline. The creature is made of Vaseline, and nature takes its course. Conroy takes it like a man, as Brenda leaves with the blob, who she has named Pete, because she is “a sucker for tall, hairy guys.” The narrator, still in the theater, leaves hand-in-pseudopod with Marilyn Monroe, but confesses that he does not understand the ending, because that would take “a superhuman intelligence beyond my ken.” [k] “Digging the Weans” (Harper’s, November 1956), by Robert Nathan. Archeologists of the far future are puzzled by the few remains of our era. Other older eras are better understood because their relics are in stone. The story is written as a scholarly article, citing the various future contemporaries and researchers and their various theories, all of which are very wrong, as the few relics and words of our era, have been extremely garbled through the passage of time. In this future, nothing is really known about our time with any assurance, and everything is mis-translated, full of errors that compound the problem. At the end, the narrator shrugs his shoulders, commiserating that his era will never know, or understand our era. [l] “Take a Deep Breath” (Tiger, 1956), by Roger Thorne. The narrator, a smalltime newspaper reporter writes brief articles about trends in advertising. His article about a new cigarette ad campaign catches the eye of the Ted Beaumont, owner of the Beaumont Agency. Beaumont hires him to write copy exclusively for that same brand of terrible cigarettes. It soon dawns on the narrator that Beaumont has hit upon an almost hypnotic type of advertising that can sell the worst things to a brainwashed public. It also dawns on the narrator that Beaumont has the ambition to obtain the highest political office in the country by using this same type of brainwashing. The narrator quits and hides while watching Beaumont achieve his ambition. [m] “Grandma’s Lie Soap” (Fantastic Universe, Vol. 5, No. 1, Issue 25, February 1956), by Robert Abernathy. Grandma cannot stand anyone lying, especially to her and if it is a member of her extended family. When she catches one in a lie she makes the child wash its mouth out with her special lie soap and the child can never lie again, but being constantly truthful takes something out of them. Oliver is her only grandchild who reaches maturity without having to sample the special soap, and thus, can still lie and deceive. But Oliver is a good man and does not seem to need the soap treatment. He becomes a chemist. Finally, frustrated over the world-at-large, and after losing his sweetheart, Alice, through self-deception, to another man, he returns to Grandma. She gives him the secret family formula when she sees that man has landed on the Moon and can now destroy the Earth through gravity bombardment. Oliver unleashes the casual ingredient of lie soap as a component of toothpaste onto the unsuspecting world. It changes everything forever, no one can lie anymore. Oliver wins back a tearful Alice, who when faced by the requirement to always tell the truth, realizes that he was the better man. Oliver becomes the last man on Earth who can lie and deceive, and is deeply troubled by the consequences of this lack on the rest of humanity, because now all men are entirely too gullible. At the end he is resigned to take a dose of lie soap so that he can morally gauge whether he has done the right thing.  [n] “Compounded Interest” (Fantasy & Science Fiction, Vol. 11, No. 2, Issue 63, August 1956) & (Fantasy & Science Fiction (Australia), No. 10, 1957), by Mack Reynolds. ***A very well done circular time-travel story, one of the very best ever written. ***In the year 1300, “Mr. Smith” appears at the small bank of Marin Goldini in Vienna to make a trivial deposit. It appeals to the banker, because it is at a very low rate of interest and will not be claimed for one hundred years. Mr. Smith leaves quickly but only after giving prophetic advice to the banker that will give his company an incredible edge for the next one hundred years. He continues to reappear every one hundred years, repeating his initial performance. His fortune grows until it is not only the largest in the world, but empires rise and fall fighting major wars for control over the vast wealth. Mr. Smith is very careful and ties the hands of his bankers with an unbreakable “Contract,” thereby ensuring his inevitable claim over the wealth. Finally, the men in control of his wealth begin to understand exactly when Mr. Smith comes from, and at his last announced appearance confront him. Mr. Smith is actually Professor Alan Shirey, who has just begun his initial research into time travel, but has not yet made any journeys. And yet his need for enormous amounts of power, in order to travel in time, and perform his research, has caused this circular course through time. Shirey will, in the future, successfully travel through time, but it requires the vast wealth of the world to do so. His first successful journey will start the creation of his needed fortune. He will influence the course of the world for centuries solely for the sake of experiment, and shows up before he has started his experiments in order to claim the required fortune. [o] “Prima Belladonna” (Science Fantasy, Vol. 7, No. 20, 1956), by J[ames] G[raham] Ballard. The narrator raises genetically enhanced flowers, orchids and such, which can sing. He meets Jane Ciracylides, a mysterious nightclub singer, and falls in love with her. But she is more interested in his most unique specimen, his Arachnid orchid. This strange plant has a symbiotic relationship with a spider, attracting it by the sound of its vibrations, which results in the pollination of the flower where the spider lays its eggs. It turns out that Jane is more interested in making love to the giant orchid than to the narrator. At the end, the narrator thinks that Jane might be a next step in some kind of evolutionary chain, but not human, and helps facilitate her encounter with the orchid. [p] “The Other Man” (Galaxy, Vol. 12, No. 5, Issue 69, September 1956), by Theodore Sturgeon. Fred, a psychiatrist, has developed a sound-based method to reintegrate damaged personalities, allowing them to become better than ever. His ex-wife, Osa, comes to him begging him to fix her husband, Richard Newell, the man who took her from him. The doctor has the highest possible code of ethics, and rather than damaging the other man, he saves him. During his intricate investigation of Newell’s psyche, Fred determines that Newell has a type of multiple personality. One, which they name Anton, is angelic and so wonderful that everyone loves him immediately. The other is Richard, a total bastard and heel. Using his sound based tools, Fred successfully reintegrates the man, helping Newell strike a balance between the two extremes of his personality. Along the way, Fred gets over the loss of his ex-wife, and finds companionship with his assistant. [q] “The Damnedest Thing” (Esquire, February 1956), (Fantasy & Science Fiction, Vol. 11, No. 1, Issue 62, July 1956) & (Fantasy & Science Fiction (Australia), No. 9, 1956), by Garson Kanin. Arthur, an undertaker, comes home and gets drunk. This is unusual. He explains to his wife, Rhoda, that the “damnedest thing” just happened to him. A dead man, Stanton C. Baravale, he was preparing for burial, sat up, appearing alive, and talked with him about the kind of funeral he would like. Arthur prepares an elaborate contract for an expensive funeral with the dead man, who signs it. But his wife, Rhoda, convinces him that since he was already dead, the contract should have no effect. They burn it, since the dead man has gone on and will never know what kind of funeral he got. [r] “Anything Box” (Fantasy & Science Fiction, Vol. 11, No. 4, Issue 65, October 1956), by Zenna Henderson. Sue-Lynn’s teacher notices that the kindergarten student spends most of her time staring into the space between her hands, looking. It disturbs the other children and makes the teacher think that there is something terribly wrong with the child. Sue-Lynn’s father is going to jail and her mother is inattentive. The teacher finds out about the anything box from Sue-Lynn, and is amazed when she finds it is real, somehow constructed from the child’s belief and imagination. Looking into the hand-held box, the beholder can see anything they imagine or desire. However, the teacher convinces the young child that it is better to live without dreams, but immediately regrets it. Much later, the teacher stumbles across the missing anything box, and returns it to the much altered child. It is not clear whether the changes that the teacher has caused in the young child are for the better. [s] “The Year’s SF,” by Judith Merril. ***Summation and honorable mention. ***Merril declares that 1956 was a year of criticism because the Milford Science Fiction Writers’ Conference was established, and primarily because Advent:Publishers printed Damon Knight’s book, In Search of Wonder, one of the first books devoted to serious criticism of the field. ***[b], [c] and [n] are best. ***First paperback edition: Dell, B110, 1957, 320 pp., pa .35¢.

62. 
Leinster, Murray [Pseudo. of Jenkins, Will(iam} F(itzgerald)]
Colonial Survey
Gnome Press; New York, NY  1957  185 $3.00
5,000 copies printed.
Jacket by Wallace Wood.

Science fiction novel. ***From: [a] “Sand Doom” (Astounding Science Fiction, Vol. 56, No. 4, Issue 301, December 1955).[b] “Combat Team” (Astounding Science Fiction, Vol. 57, No. 1, Issue 304, March 1956 as “Exploration Team”). ***Winner of the 1956 Hugo award for best short story. [c] “The Swamp Was Upside Down” (Astounding Science Fiction, Vol. 58, No. 1, Issue 310, September 1956). [d] “Solar Constant” (Astounding Science Fiction, Vol. 57, No. 5, Issue 308, July 1956 as “Critical Difference”). ***The stories were rewritten to make Bordman the central character of them all. ***First comes interplanetary travel, then interstellar. And with mankind’s deepening penetration into the Universe there also come new adventures—and new problems. One of the foremost of our descendants’ problems, one with which we are faced even today, it unit self-sufficiency—the colony cannot be completely subordinate to the motherland. And so it must be with the newly found worlds in space—they must be able to exist independently. In the future, territories must be developed rapidly enough to solve our pressing needs for living space and fresh resources. With mankind’s accelerated conquest of other worlds, these needs do not decrease—they increase. Thus we have the formation of the Colonial Survey System. Its story, along with that of its best trouble short, Bordman, is the basis for this extraordinary science fiction book. The Colonial Survey is the creation of the universal central government, Homo sapiens version. The Survey’s purpose is to keep the complex pattern of human life at least in balance with the exploding expansion of human activity. Reduced down to one important element, that purpose can be stated as: make each new world as self-sufficient as possible. How Colonial Survey succeeds and how Senior Office Bordman creates that success, as he checks the star-flung outposts of civilization, makes page-after-page of fascinating reading. As humanity races outward, he and Survey work at the most interesting job in the Universe. ***The rewriting makes them more consistent and is an improvement over their first appearance. ***An interesting work, now somewhat dated, but well worth reading. ***First paperback edition: Avon, T202, 1957, 171 pp., pa .35¢, as The Planet Explorer.

63. 
Leiber, Fritz ([Reuter] Jr.)
Two Sought Adventure
Gnome Press; New York, NY  1957  186 $3.00
3,000 copies printed in black boards. 1,000 gray cloth (c.1959).
Jacket by Lionel Dillon.

Fantastic adventure short stories. ***The first seven stories of the “Gray Mouser” series, excluding “Adept’s Gambit.” ***Contents: [a] “The Jewels in the Forest.” (Unknown, Vol. 1, No. 6, August 1939 as “Two Sought Adventure”). The reader is introduced to Fafhrd and his companion-in-adventure, the Gray Mouser for the first time. In this adventure the two travelers have journeyed to the village of Soreev, where the legendary treasure of Urgaan of Angarngi is rumored to be hidden nearby. They have followed an ancient seeming map pursued by Lord Rannarsh and his men. They all reach the temple-like domes and towers protecting the treasure at the same time. Fafhrd and the Gray Mouser fight with Lord Rannarsh and his men at the door to the tower, winning entrance they proceed inside to seek the treasure, all the while stumbling over long dead bodies of previous seekers that have been mysteriously crushed by whatever guardian remains. They meet the Lord Rannarsh, who fled from them earlier into the tower, but is now so consumed by an ancient fear and dread of the unseen guardian, that he fights with Fafhrd, seeking to flee again; his death appears more suicide than combat. Next they meet a linear descendant of Urgaan, a holy man with one mission, to find the treasure and use it to redeem his family name. Out of view, he dies a hideous death, but undeterred the two stalwart companions continue to seek the treasure. A young, local peasant girl, who sought to warn both men of the gray beast that lives in the tower and protects the treasure, tremulously enters the tower, seeking the two men. The Gray Mouser goes to protect her, filled with a growing sense of dread. Fafhrd digs through the right spot on the wall of the tower and finds the fabulous treasure. But it is floating in a strange, mercury-like substance, almost alive. Reaching for the largest diamond, Fafhrd triggers the tower into life, and it bends, smashing down, nearly killing the Gray Mouser and the peasant girl. Fafhrd, following close on the heels of the Gray Mouser, barely gets out of the writhing, snake-like tower, alive. Winning their freedom, sans treasure, the two watch the ancient tower collapse into dust. A little weary, bruised and battered, the two men continue down the road, undaunted and still seeking adventure. ***His first professional sale. [b] “Thieves’ House.” (Unknown, Vol. 6, No. 5, Issue 35, February 1943) & (Unknown (UK), Vol. 3, No. 4, Spring 1945). Recently returned to Lankhmar, Fafhrd and the Gray Mouser are gulled into performing a robbery for the Thieves’ Guild. They are conned by Guild member, Fissif, into stealing back the jewel-encrusted skull of the Master Thief Ohmphal. Long sought by the Guild, only the talented duo have the ability to succeed. They do, and Fissif steals the skull from them and takes it to the Thieves’ House. There, the leader of the thieves’, Krovas is mysteriously murdered and the Gray Mouser and Fafhrd, who have trailed Fissif and the skull there, spot a beautiful woman flee with the skull and hands of Ohmphal, leaving behind a few rubies that have been pried off the relic. Fafhrd and the Gray Mouser are pursued through the Thieves’ House. The Gray Mouser succeeds in winning free, but Fafhrd stumbles into a hither-to-forgotten cellar where other magic skulls of Master Thieves lie and threaten Fafhrd, requiring him to return the skull of their friend, or face supernatural consequences. The Gray Mouser figures out that it is the lady friend of Krovas, Ivlis who has the skull and used a secret passageway, connecting her house with the Thieves’ House, to escape with the treasure. Fafhrd, after being repeatedly hit on the head, is taken prisoner by the thieves. Their new leader, Slevyas, demands that the Gray Mouser fork over the relics or Fafhrd will painfully die at the designated hour. The Gray Mouser masquerades as an old witch woman, and gains entrance into Ivlis’ well guarded house. He ties up Ivlis, and uses the regained skull as a prop. Sneaking down the secret tunnel, he becomes the voice of Ohmphal, and demands that Slevyas and his men release Fafhrd. The ruse falls apart as Fissif recognizes the Gray Mouser. Ivlis has escaped and is about to skewer the Gray Mouser as Fissif approaches. Ivlis changes her mind and joins forces with Fafhrd and the Gray Mouser. They fight the thieves to a standstill. Hearing an ominous clicking, one of the thieves cries out in superstitious panic. Slevyas, angered, smashes the skull of Ohmphal to pieces, dismissing the fear. During one last flurry of swordplay by Fafhrd and friends, the other jewel-encrusted skeletons of the ancient Master Thieves appear to inflict punishment on all the thieves present for defiling the skull of their beloved brother. Fafhrd and friends easily flee through the now deserted Thieves’ House. Later, Ivlis, Fafhrd, the Gray Mouser, and some wench from Tovilyis, commiserate over their good fate at surviving the escapade in the Thieves’ House. But they lament the fact that once again they have no treasure, until the Gray Mouser produces the rubies pried from the relic. Good fortune seems to have returned to the two heroes as they have returned to Lankhmar. [c] “The Bleak Shore.” (Unknown, Vol. 4, No. 3, Issue 21, November 1940) & (Unknown (UK), Vol. 4, No. 3, November 1940). Fafhrd and the Gray Mouser spend a night drinking at the Silver Eel in Lankhmar. A mysterious stranger, shadowed by a black cowl, lays a geas on the two adventurers. After repeating the phrase “the Bleak Shore” three times to the bosom companions, they immediately leave the inn, and Lankhmar, and travel to the ends of the Earth. Only Ourph, one of their four Mingol galley slaves, returns to Lankhmar to tell the tale. Ourph, and the other slaves, flee before witnessing the final events on the Bleak Shore, and do not really know the true fate of the erstwhile heroes. There, across the Outer Sea, the two face monstrous black eggs, which each hatch an ultimate warrior designed to kill both men. Slowly, they come out of their enchantment, joining battle. As Fafhrd fights on, the Gray Mouser vents his anger and hatred on the source of their long journey, the mysterious stranger, which appears to have been merely a manifestation of the central egg on the Bleak Shore. This main egg contains the evil intelligence that has summoned the two men. The Gray Mouser kills the creature, the others turn into dust, and they have defeated Death. Exultant, the two turn toward the long journey back to Lankhmar. [d] “The Howling Tower.” (Unknown, Vol. 5, No. 1, Issue 25, June 1941) & (Unknown (UK), Vol. 3, No. 10, Summer 1947). On the long trek back to Lankhmar from the Bleak Shore, the two weary travelers are abandoned by their local guide. Plagued by the seeming howl of wolves, the two friends press on, deeper into unknown areas. The Gray Mouser wakes up to find that Fafhrd is gone. He follows the trail left by Fafhrd, which leads to a ruined tower. Fafhrd travels as one possessed, and the Gray Mouser trails him cautiously. He reaches the tower, and enters, only to find a large room, littered with ancient volumes of forgotten lore. Fafhrd is there, as well as the local guide, both tied, and drugged. The guide is dead, and appears to have been tortured. The Gray Mouser is surprised to find that it is a very old, harmless seeming, man who has captured his friend. The old man tells the Gray Mouser the tale of his evil life. How, as a young man, he was filled with evil and killed every family member, in various hideous ways, saving the household pack of hounds for last, and his most disgusting torture. It is the ghosts of all those he has murdered over the years that makes the supernatural howling that issues from the depths of his tower. In order to avoid the ghostly hounds seeking his soul, the old man lures adventurers to his tower, and by using drugs sends them into the ghost-land as sacrifices to the hounds, thereby placating them for a brief while. The Gray Mouser volunteers to take the drug and go into the ghost-land and help his best friend. Suspecting treachery from the evil old man, he forces the old man to take some of the drug and accompany him into the other realm. The ghostly hounds instantly give up their systematic preying on Fafhrd and race to the ghost of their nemesis, the old man, who tries to fearfully flee, but is consumed by the ancient evil he created. The two pals wake from the drug, only a little more bruised and battered, and contemplate the long journey home. [e] “The Sunken Land.” (Unknown, Vol. 5, No. 5, Issue 29, February 1942) & (Unknown (UK), Vol. 5, No. 5, March 1942). Fafhrd and the Gray Mouser are crossing the Outer Sea on their long, epic journey back to Lankhmar. Fafhrd boasts about his luck as while fishing he finds an ancient ring in ones guts. The ring reminds Fafhrd about ancient seafaring tales of his people, when they went Viking and sailed against Simorgya. One time, as the legend goes, a great fleet went to Simorgya, never to return as the fabulous city was swallowed by the sea. A great storm comes upon the sailors. The Gray Mouser believes it is because of the ancient, key-like, ring, and entreats Fafhrd to throw it away. Instead, Fafhrd is swept overboard and is taken prisoner on a passing galley. Fafhrd is made an oarsman on the Flying Dutchman-like vessel. Its captain, Lavas Laerk, has made a vow of silence, compelling his men to silence as well, to never speak until he lands on the shores of Simorgya. The sunken land appears, now that Fafhrd is aboard. Lavas, coming alive and shouting orders, prepares his men for the raid on the city. They enter a place that has apparently recently lifted from the sea. Lavas is unperturbed by this, and with his men, they find the phosphorescent covered treasure room, by using the key-like ring Fafhrd found earlier. By that time, Fafhrd has become convinced that the city is now inhabited by ancient sea creatures that have lured Lavas and his men. He is right, and turns to flee just as the creatures appear to consume Lavas and his troop. The Gray Mouser is conveniently offshore and together they barely escape the re-submergence of Simorgya. Fafhrd curses the evil city as land appears on the horizon, bringing with it the next leg of their long journey home. [f] “The Seven Black Priests.” (Other Worlds, Vol. 5, No. 5, Issue 29, May 1953). Deep in the snow-clad mountains known as the Bones of the Old Ones, Fafhrd and the Gray Mouser are attacked by a black priest from the distant tropical land of Klesh. Dawn brings them to a volcanic mountain that appears to have been carved into the visage of several faces, all facing the cardinal points. A jewel-like, green gleam attracts them, and they go to investigate, hoping to find a vast treasure. They find more runes from tropic Klesh etched deep into the stone. Translating the runes tell the two travelers that seven black priests bind a demon to that spot. They dig out the diamond eye and are attacked. They flee with their treasure and are pursued by the black priests. Fafhrd falls under the evil magic of the diamond eye. One after the other of the black priests attack, Fafhrd and the Gray Mouser loose track of the number they have killed. They prematurely believe that they have killed all seven. Under the spell of the diamond, Fafhrd has led the Gray Mouser in a circle around the ancient, carved volcano. The diamond is powered by a manifestation of Nehwon, which needs the blood of heroes like them to return to control the world. About to be sacrificed, the Gray Mouser attacks the bewitched Fafhrd who is using the diamond eye to see with. The Gray Mouser destroys the diamond eye and the volcano erupts in anger as the god deep inside spews out its frustration. Fafhrd and the Gray Mouser continue across the Cold Waste on their epic journey back to Lankhmar, happy that they have restored a more permanent balance to their world than the seven, now dead, black priests had contrived. [g] “Claws From the Night.” (Suspense Magazine, Vol. 1, No. 3, Fall 1951 as “Dark Vengeance”). A large black bird preys on the rich of Lankhmar, stealing jewels in dive-bomb attacks. Fafhrd and the Gray Mouser seek to profit during these times by tricking people out of their wealth using bird-like props. While trying to steal a spectacular jewel from the lick-spittle money-lender, Muulsh, and his grasping wife, Atya, they are out-flanked by the appearance of the real black bird. The poison-clawed bird takes the gem, and the chase is on. They follow the bird to a deserted temple and tower, loosing their favorite hunting falcon, Kooskra, to the poison claws. Angered, Fafhrd follows the black bird back to its nest in the tower, finding that it has rudimentary speech. A flock of evil birds has been trained by a creature, claiming to be the banned goddess, Tyaa, a bird-like being. It has been using the birds to steal the treasures and strike fear in the people of Lankhmar, and finally to enhance her worship. With the help of Stravas, a thief who stumbles into the tower seeking the same treasure, they change the odds. The goddess Tyaa is revealed to be none-other-than Atya. She orders her trained birds to flee with the treasure to her distant final sanctuary. Atya jumps from the tower, rather than be killed, and later the Gray Mouser thinks maybe he saw her fly away, joining her loyal birds. ***The first seven of the Fafhrd and Gray Mouser tales, excluding “Adept’s Gambit,” which was published by Arkham House in Night’s Black Agents. ***Highly recommended, of which [a] has the singular merit of being the best of this matchless group. ***No paperback edition.

64. 
Greenberg, Martin (editor)
Coming Attractions
Gnome Press; New York, NY  1957  254 $3.50
5,000 copies printed.
Jacket by W.I. Van der Poel.

Nonfiction. Science fiction related articles and essays, many with elaborate charts, graphs, or maps. ***Contents: ***Preface, Martin Greenberg. Sets the stage for this volume and introduces D.W. Batteau. ***Introduction, by Dwight Wayne Batteau. This is a short article addressing the logical validity of the jump from science fiction to reality. [a] “A Letter to the Martians” (Thrilling Wonder Stories, Vol. 18, No. 2, Issue 32, November 1940 as “Calling All Martians”), by Willy Ley. This is an article concerning the various historical, and Ley’s own suggestions, on how to make first contact with an alien race, specifically the Martians. [b] “How to Learn Martian” (Astounding Science Fiction, Vol. 55, No. 3, Issue 294, May 1955), by Charles F. Hockett. This essay addresses using a phonetic system to create a linguistic understanding with a Martian race that presumably would be able to speak and use sound like we do. [c] “Language for Time Travelers” (Astounding Science Fiction, Vol. 21, No. 5, Issue 92, July 1938) & (Analog Anthology, No. 1, 1981), by L. Sprague de Camp. In this article the problems with language shift over time are addressed, including those problems relating to object specification. [d] “Geography for Time Travelers” (Astounding Science Fiction, Vol. 23, No. 5, Issue 104, July 1939), by Willy Ley. In this article the geological shift of great land masses and the resulting elevation and climate changes are addressed in some detail and accuracy. [e] “Time Travel and the Law,” by C[yril] M. Kornbluth. This is a short, amusing article pertaining to the awkward and dangerous possibilities of appearing in the past, unprepared for the contemporary realities of the current socio-economic situation. [f] “Space Fix” (Astounding Science Fiction, Vol. 31, No. 1 & No. 2, Issue 148 & 149, March 1943 & April 1943), by R[obert] S[hirley] Richardson. This article is a long and detailed discourse over trying to adapt two-dimensional navigation to the three- (and four-) dimensional problems presented in space travel. [g] “Space War” (Astounding Science Fiction, Vol. 23, No. 6, Issue 105, August 1939), by Willy Ley. Once again, another article reflecting the attempt to adapt the technology of the present to the problems of the future, wherein energy weapons are dismisses, and space guns suggested. Ley comes close to predicting missiles with self-correcting computers, but is stuck trying to cobble chemical weapons and the massive use of material as a necessary adjunct of any space war. [h] “Space War Tactics” (Astounding Science Fiction, Vol. 24, No. 3, Issue 108, November 1939), by Malcolm Jameson. In this essay, once again, chemical torpedoes are the weapons of choice, and the problem addressed is hitting a moving target on time. [i] “Fuel for the Future” (Astounding Science Fiction, Vol. 25, No. 1, Issue 112, March 1940), by Jack Hatcher. This is a surprisingly sophisticated article, much ahead of its time, addressing food, caloric intake, and acquiring the necessary nutrition in space. [j] “How to Count on Your Fingers” (Science Fiction Stories, Vol. 7, No. 2, September 1956), by Fred[erik] Pohl. This is a slight article reviewing the decimal system, and the binary numbering system and its possible use in the future. [k] “Interplanetary Copyright” (Information Bulletin: Fantasy & Science Fiction, April 1953 as “The Shape of Copyright to Come”), by Donald F. Reines. This essay tries to apply current copyright laws to the problems of relativity, but misses. ***[e] is the best. ***Overall, this volume is much dated, but for historical purposes is a must read, reflecting the leading edge in scientific thought of that day, now long past. ***No paperback edition.

65. 
Clifton, Mark [Irvin] and Riley, Frank [Pseudo. of Rhylick, Frank]
They’d Rather Be Right
Gnome Press; New York, NY  1957  189 $3.00
5,000 copies printed. 2065 destroyed.
Jacket by W.I. Van der Poel.

Science fiction novel. ***From: (Astounding Science Fiction, Vol. 53, No. 6, Vol. 54, No. 1, No. 2 & No. 3, Issue 285, 286, 287, & 288, August 1954, September 1954, October 1954, & November 1954); as: The Forever Machine (Galaxy Novels, No. 35, 1958). ***Computer named Bossy and adolescent telepath. Won the 1955 Hugo award for best novel, for the magazine version, which is better than this book version. ***Bossy had no choice in the matter. Bossy was right. Always! Invariably! She didn’t want to be; but she wasn’t afraid of not being. She was limited only in that she had to have facts—not assumptions—with which to work. Given those facts, her conclusions and predictions were inevitably correct, and that made Bossy a ticking bomb. Actually, the whole thing had been a fluke from the very beginning. Bossy had been designed as a servomechanism for guiding airplanes and preventing them from crashing. But so much was demanded of her, she became something much greater: a hyper-computer. And the men who worked with and around Bossy suddenly found themselves able to solve their problems, to erase their prejudices—in short, to think. Did the world welcome Bossy, then, with open arms and glad cries? No, because for five decades the world had been in the grip of opinion control, and Bossy represented a serious and immediate threat to that dominance. So Bossy had to go underground. Her inventors had to disassemble her, pack her up, and flee with her from the rage of government and populace alike, to work in hiding while testing Bossy’s full potentialities and judging her true value to humanity. Which was why Joe Carter, the worlds only true telepath, and the tremendously brilliant Professors Billings and Hoskins had to assume the role of Skid Row bums. Most people would “rather be right”—and firmly believe that they are right. Only a small handful of people are mature enough to realize that they don’t know all the answers. And it was to this small handful—and this small handful alone—that Bossy offered the greatest gift of all: immortality. Among that small handful of people is Mabel, the sagging, blowzy belle of Skid Row, who takes the treatment and becomes a beautiful, brilliant immortal—and to Joe Carter’s delight, a telepath as well. Professor Jonathan Billings, renowned Dean of Psychosomatic Medicine at Hoxworth University, takes the treatment too—and it was a complete failure. Bossy could do nothing for people who clung to fixed ideas. But the people wanted immortality, wanted it with a fixed and burning desire. And gradually the tension increased, the mobs grew restless, the military became more demanding—and the bomb ticked swiftly on. And it was up to Joe Carter to stave off catastrophe. ***The story is full of excitement, both physical and mental, and full of rich rewards for the reader who appreciates genuinely mature philosophy tinged with gentle irony. ***First paperback edition: Galaxy Science Fiction Novel, No. 35, 1959, 159 pp., pa .35¢.

66. 
Blish, James ([Benjamin])
The Seedling Stars
Gnome Press; New York, NY  1957  185 $3.00
5,000 copies printed.
Jacket by Lionel Dillon.

Science fiction novel. ***From (novelized a bit): [a] “Seedling Program” (Fantasy & Science Fiction, Vol. 10, No. 2, Issue 57, February, 1956 as “A Time to Survive”). [b] “The Thing in the Attic” (If, Vol. 3, No. 5, Issue 17, July, 1954) & (The Second World of If, 1958). [c] “Surface Tension” (revised from “Sunken Universe”, Super Science Stories, Vol. 3, No. 4, Issue 12, May, 1942 & Super Science Stories, Vol. 7, No. 3, Issue 26, November 1950 as by Arthur Merlyn) and (“Surface Tension”, Galaxy, Vol. 4, No. 5, Issue 23, August, 1952) & (Selected Science Fiction, No. 4, 1955). [d] “Watershed” (If, No. 27, May, 1955) & (The First World of If, 1957). ***Engineering mutations to adapt to different planetary environments. ***Sweeney is an Adapted Man—adapted to the bitter cold, the light gravity, and thin stench of atmosphere of Jupiter’s moon, Ganymede. All of his blood, all of his cells, is nine-tenths liquid ammonia; his life is based on a strange hydrogen-to-methane cycle; and he can survive for weeks, if he has to, upon a diet of rock dust. Yet, Sweeney is a Man. Some people, though, feel that Sweeney isn’t a human being at all—nor, for that matter, any of the Adapted Men, both those like him and those radically unlike him. The conflict between the Adapted Men and the normal men follow some unusual developments in this story. First we meet Sweeney, who is an agent of the Port Police from the mother planet of Earth. His job: find the colony of Adapted Men that has gone into hiding and capture it. The command has been drummed into him from his cold and lonely infancy: “You must get those men back.” There is an intriguing mystery to be solved: why did the parents of the Adapted Men maroon their children forever on an alien world? And its solution uncovers a startling secret; the source of the diabolical power behind the development of Earth’s interplanetary exploration. The adventure into which Sweeney plunges is at first a nightmare. And then it becomes the dramatic beginning of one of man’s most exciting projects. How Sweeney carries out his mission on the weird satellite of Ganymede is only part of the story, though. The scene shifts to the savage world of Tellura where a colony of Adapted Men has developed a tree-top kingdom. Two hundred and fifty feet below them is a horrible, forbidden land—forbidden, until a small band of pioneers brave its terrors to break the taboo and pierce the secrets of the Giants. Perhaps the most fascinating incident in the lives of the Adapted Men, however, takes place on the desolate planet of Hydrot, under the red light of the star Tau Ceti. Here the Adapted Men find themselves involved in the battles and lusts and ambitions and defeats of a thousand million microscopic creatures. ***Blish weaves a masterpiece of exciting storytelling. It contains a wealth of interesting scientific facts and ingenious theories that a reader will find extremely stimulating. ***First paperback edition: Signet, S1622, 1959, 158 pp., pa .35¢.

67. 
Anderson, Poul ([William]) and Dickson, Gordon (R[upert])
Earthman’s Burden
Gnome Press; New York, NY  1957  185 $3.00
5,000 copies printed. 2,000 never bound.
Jacket and interiors by Edd Cartier.

Science fiction short stories. ***Comedy; a race of teddy bears believes all the fiction it reads. You take it—highly recommended. ***Contents: [a] “The Sheriff of Canyon Gulch” (Other Worlds, Vol. 3, No. 3, Issue 11, May 1951 as “Heroes Are Made”). ***Meet the Hokas!...the most lovable—and the zaniest—characters you’ll ever encounter in the entire Universe! Imagine how you would feel to be suddenly shipwrecked on a planet 500 light-years from the Solar System—and to walk into a Nineteenth Century, Old West frontier town! And then, to really shake your senses, you find the local citizens—in tremendous red bandanas, ten-gallon hats, chaps, high-heel boots and spurs—are pistol-toting teddy bears! That’s the way Alexander Braithwaite Jones first meets the Hokas! The planet is Toka—definitely alien with its strange continental outlines and two small moons in the sky while a third lurks around somewhere else and a snake with wings coils on a polka-dotted rock—but nevertheless a near twin of Earth. It’s the setting for the most unearthly Earth-like shenanigans ever imagined. Alexander Braithwaite Jones is a sensible young man, an ensign in the Interbeing League. Ordinarily he would have had an ordinary military career in the League service. The far-from-ordinary Hokas, however, change all that. He soon becomes their friend and guardian and the youngest Plentipotentiary in the Universe—floundering in something like the inane unreality of an amusement park funhouse. The Hokas are a formidable combination: with the vivid imaginations of small children and yet with the physical and intellectual capacities of adults. But not human—not at all! The Hokas are more like over-sized teddy bears each one identical to every other one, a yard tall, tubby and golden-furred, with round blunt-muzzled heads, small black eyes and stubby-fingered hands. And just naturally born for ridiculous predicaments! The Wild (and Wooly) West adventure that introduces us and Ensign Jones to the Hokas in this delightful book is hilarious satire. As Jones says, looking at the incredible cowponies with their four-hooved feet, whiplike tails, long necks and beaked heads and scaly green hides, “If cowboys are teddy bears, then who—or what—are the Indians?” He soon finds out. The Hoka personality flagrantly reveals an inability to distinguish fact from fiction. ***Jones, stranded far from home, has his first encounter with the Hoka. In this adventure the Hoka having read the few western novels left behind by a preliminary survey crew, have now adopted all the clichés. But in the intervening thirty years, the Hoka have gone far, but their enemies, the Slissii, have as well, becoming the Indians to their cowboys. But the Slissii are more aggressive and are on the verge of conquering and eliminating the Hoka. Jones becomes Sheriff of Canyon Gulch, a position always held by the dumbest, most incompetent inhabitant. Dismayed, as his fortunes seem dim, and rescue not forthcoming, Jones has turned to the local, potent drink. Almost dead drunk, the Indians at the doorstep, he accidentally begins a stampede with the local version of cows, thereby crushing the invading Indians. In the ensuing victory, Jones is now hailed as a cunning, shrewd and savvy leader. ***Short “Interludes” which are usually letters of correspondence, connect these stories. [b] “Don Jones.” ***A new story written for this book. ***Jones is temporarily assigned as liason to a group of Hoka that have been brought to earth for diplomatic reasons. Jones would prefer to spend the time with his girlfriend, Tanni. Instead, he is in the company of the voluptuous Doralene. To make matters worse, the Hoka have recently seen the opera, Don Giovanni, and are now thoroughly taken with that milieu. The jealous Tanni comes on scene just as the delectable Doralene is making a pass at Jones, all while the Hoka, now in period costume have decided that Jones is none other than the infamous seducer of women, Don Jones. Jones’ immediate superior Terwilliger comes into the picture, desperately jealous of Doralene’s apparent infatuation with Jones. As all four get tremendously drunk, the Hoka pursue Don Jones in mock battles about the room. Until, finally Jones flops to the ground, pretending he is death, thus bringing the little drama to its conclusion. The drunken Terwilliger, who now appears as a man in Doralene’s eyes, wins her as well. Threatening to blackmail Terwilliger who has disregarded all protocol, getting drunk, and not really knowing about the Hoka, because he is too jealous, Jones wins a promotion. Jones, knowing the Hoka all too well, becomes their new Terran representative. ***The “Interlude” confirms his promotion, as well as his duty shouldering “Earthman’s Burden,” which is the present policy to uplift races. [c] “In Hoka Sigmo Vinces” (Other Worlds, Vol. 5, No. 6, Issue 30, June 1953). The Hokas are captivated by the video adventures of Tom Bracken of the Space Patrol. Naturally, it is hardly any time at all before there portly bodies are adorned with gray tunics, tight whipcord breeches, Sam Browne belts, jackboots and goggled metal helmets, with raythrowers in holsters. Faced with the growing threat of the Pornian empire, Jones is dragged into another adventure by his erstwhile Hoka companions. Seeking the Malevonian enemy, the Hoka easily blur the real Pornian menace with the fictional one. Jones, along with his Hoka Space Patrol, finally encounter the Pornian menace in their cobbled together light cruiser. The Hoka, who believe in themselves completely, and in the fiction they are playing, are more than a match for the enemy. It’s no wonder either that the “sinister enemy”—a Pornian space dreadnaught—finds them invincible. As the Lord High Admiral of the Pornian Navy says pathetically, “The ship, sir, is yours. But if turning on the fire extinguisher sprinklers, the fumigation system, the leak-detector smoke system, the emergency radionic-heating system, the emergency refrigeration system, and directing the sewers into the deck-flushing system isn’t a dirty way to fight, I’d like to know what is!” ***Keeping his part, and the Hoka, in the sudden reverses encountered by the Pornian menace, hidden, Jones has successfully turned the tables on them and kept the peace. [d] “The Adventure of the Misplaced Hound” (Universe, Vol. 1, No. 3, December 1953). Whitcomb Geoffrey, operative of the security service, the IBI, thinks that he is on a routine mission. He has tracked a Ppussjan criminal overlord and mastermind, Number Ten, to Toka. On Toka, Number Ten is engaged in the drug traffic, growing nixl weed on Toka and exporting it secretly. Jones, along with Geoffrey, takes a journey to a part of Toka that has taken on the trappings of the fictional England of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s time, and of Sherlock Holmes and Scotland Yard specifically. They enlist the help of the Hoka version of Sherlock Holmes, and Jones becomes Watson, and Geoffrey becomes Gregson. Following the broad outlines of the Hound of the Baskervilles, Jones, Holmes and Geoffrey find both clues and irrelevant actions in pursuit of Number Ten. Finally, Holmes and Watson stumble over Number Ten, who has taken the guise of both the Hound and Sir Henry Baskerville. Solving the crime, and catching the criminal, is “Elementary, my dear Watson.” ***This “Interlude” explains how the Slissii finally not only accepted their part in the fiction of the Hokas, and become true Indians, but embraced all aspects of the fantasy, becoming so fantastically rich, by virtue of holding vast reservations of natural resources, that they are now the galaxies playboys. It ends by bridging the gap to the next story of seafaring pirates. [e] “Yo Ho Hoka!” (Fantasy & Science Fiction, Vol. 8, No. 3, Issue 46, March 1955). After Jones hears that the Hoka have been given proscribed historical books, he becomes worried. He fears that the stronger influence might unleash some killing frenzy and threaten his attempts to raise the Hoka to a higher level of civilization. He dons the disguise of a long green beard, which hardly disguises himself, but the Hoka take it in stride. He becomes a fearless pirate leader, Captain Greenbeard. Through a series of misadventures, Jones eventually becomes the leader of all the reckless pirate bands afloat, finally leading them on a staged rampage of Bermuda. In order to set up rules and controls over the various pirate bands, Greenleaf and Jones fight. Of course, Jones is victorious. After defeating himself, showing the superiority of civilization, all the pirates knuckle under to his non-violent rules of behavior. After all, the Hoka are all just big kids having fun. ***In this “Interlude” Jones expresses his desire to resign. He is weighed down by doubts and the mischievous behavior of the Hoka. He worries that he might unleash them on an unprepared galaxy. He welcomes the visit of an inspector to evaluate his performance. [f] “The Tiddlywink Warriors” (Fantasy & Science Fiction, Vol. 9, No. 2, Issue 51, August 1955). Jorkins Brassard appears on scene as the Inspector. He quickly ties up Jones hands, just when he needs freedom to act. His wife has taken a brief trip away in their cruiser, to go to a spa off planet in order to loose weight. Instead, she has crash-landed on the neighboring planet and been taken prisoner by natives of Telko. Jones wants to mount a rescue, but Brassard prevents him. The Telko are treating his wife as a goddess, and fattening her up, much to her dismay. Jones wins begrudging approval to take a few Hoka along. He goes to the only desert on Toka to enlist aid, but gets shanghaied into the Hoka Foreign Legion. Struggling to get away, the now desperate Jones leads a small band of friends to Telko. They take up a stance in a convenient fort, prepared to die to the last man against the stronger and hardier Telko. Jones fights both the Telko and the Hoka, finally finding a weapon that works for the Hoka and against the Telko. The beer that they drink in copious amounts, when shaken in bottles, creates a rocket-like blast and shoots tiddlywinks at the Telko, which shakes up the Telko long enough for Jones to exert his superiority and rescue his wife. ***In the final “Interlude” Jones writes to Terwilliger that he has realized that he is the only man to lead the Hoka. His experience with Brassard has convinced him that he has the flexibility and imagination to keep up with the Hoka, who he is now convinced will someday be the leaders of the entire galaxy. ***A final cryptic note, this one is the first from the Hoka, indicates that they are well, and mysteriously, and fictional involved in deep galactic politics. One can only wonder what will happen next. ***Incomparable entertainment, offering that much desired but rarely displayed talent of humor in science fiction. ***A true gem of the highest quality, possibly the very best work ever produced by Gnome Press. ***First U.S. paperback edition: Avon, 2S166, 1970,  pp., pa .60¢.

68. 
Smith, George O[liver]
Path of Unreason
Gnome Press; New York, NY  1958  171 $3.00
5,000 copies printed, 2,000 destroyed.
Jacket by W.I. Van der Poel.

Science fiction novel. ***From: (Startling Stories, Vol. 15, No. 3, Issue 45, July 1947 as “The Kingdom of the Blind”) ***Novel which has good build-up but “Lady or the Tiger” idiot ending, which was odd for Smith. ***Up to approximately five o’clock on the evening of the third of July, James Forrest Carroll was the competent, well-known principal physicist of the Lawson Radiation Laboratory. Sometime after five o’clock, something happened to him. Nobody could explain exactly what it was—but from a brilliant scientist Carroll was reduced to a hulk of a man who did not even appear to recognize his own name. It was not normal amnesia; it was much worse. Psychiatrist John Pollard did not really hope to be able to cure the condition, any more than he had been able to cure it in the seven men who had suffered the same fate before Carroll. Nevertheless, he had to keep on trying. And the miracle occurred! Gradually, painfully slowly, James Forrest Carroll’s mind and personality began to return from the misty depths—he began to become himself again. At first, even that was a Herculean struggle. But when the battle was partly won, Carroll realized that the battle was not the war. The war was not just a matter of recovering from his malady; it was an absolute necessity of finding out what had happened to him, and why. It had something to do with the Lawson Radiation, that much was obvious. But all anyone really knew about the Lawson Radiation was that its source was somewhere in deep space, in the region near Bootes. A brilliant scientist named Lawson had first detected it 34 years before, but could not find out what it was. Carroll had worked on the problem for more than 12 years, without success. Or...had he been near success at last, and was it that very closeness that had driven him into mental blankness? Carroll’s attempts to investigate the mystery were almost childishly simple at first. He began with a desire to rediscover what his former life had been like, and almost immediately ran into what seemed to be a fantastic cloak-and-dagger plot. In plain view, a group of criminals was stealing the secrets of the Lawson Radiation Laboratory. But when Carroll tried to present his evidence to the authorities, they treated him as if he were still insane. Gently but firmly, they told him that he was seeing things that did not exist. There was only one answer: there were aliens among us, aliens with the ability to fog human minds and thus operate under perfect disguises. Why Carroll could see them as they really were, and exactly what they were up to, were complete enigmas. And Carroll could count on no help whatever in finding the answers, because no one would believe him. After all, just because the aliens were plain to him, could the rest of the world be completely out of step? So Carroll went on alone, into an ever more bewildering maze of strange people, eerie houses, and fantastic devices. His adventures were exciting, surprising and ironically amusing. ***Smith writes a complex and thoroughly enjoyable story. ***First U.S. paperback edition: Ballantine, 24613, 1975,  pp., pa $1.50.

69. 
Silverberg, Robert
Starman’s Quest
Gnome Press; New York, NY  1958  185 $3.00
5,000 copies printed. 2,000 dark gray-blue boards, 1,000 gray cloth (c.1960), the rest destroyed.
Jacket by Stan Mack.

Non-juvenile juvenile science fiction novel. ***Identical twins on starship and Fitzgerald Contraction. ***The Lexman Spacedrive gave man the stars—but at a fantastic price. Interstellar exploration, colonization, and trade became things of reality. The benefits to Earth were enormous. But because of the Fitzgerald Contraction, a man who shipped out to space could never live a normal life on Earth again. Traveling at speeds close to that of light, spacemen lived at an accelerated pace. A nine-year trip to Alpha Centauri and back seemed to take only six weeks to men on a spaceship. When they returned, their friends, and relatives had aged enormously in comparison, old customs had changed, even the language was different. So they did the only thing they could do. They formed a guild of Spacers and lived their entire lives on the starships, raised their families there, and never set foot outside their own Enclave during their landings on Earth. They grew to despise Earthers, and the Earthers grew to dispose them in turn. There was no longer reason for it, except that they were—different. That was enough. But not all Starmen liked being different. Alan Donnell loved space, and the ship, and life aboard it. His father, Captain of the Valhalla, lived for nothing but the traditions of the Spacers. But his twin brother, Steve, couldn’t stand it, and so he jumped ship. It had happened only a few weeks before, as Alan experienced it. For Steve, though, he knew it would have been nine years in the past. Now, while Alan was still only 17 years old, Steve would be 26! Thinking about it got under Alan’s skin, finally. The bond between twins is a strong one, and Alan couldn’t stand to see it broken so abruptly and permanently. There were other things, he’d have to marry one of the girls of the ship, and the choice of those his own age was pitifully small. And above all else, he was convinced that the secret of the Cavour Hyperdrive was hidden somewhere on Earth—the Cavour Hyperdrive, that would enable man to leap instantaneously, and bring an end to the sharp differences between Earthers and Spacers. These forces worked quietly within him—and suddenly, without really meaning to, Alan in turn jumped ship and remained on Earth! There were many times when he regretted it. He found Earth a bewildering and utterly hostile place. To stay alive, he had to play a ruthless game—and he couldn’t even find anyone to tell him the rules. Within the first few hours, he came dangerously close to being murdered and then to being thrown in jail. He had no clues to the whereabouts of Steve, and couldn’t even be sure his nine-year older twin brother was still alive. And the Cavour Hyperdrive was the merest will-o’-the-wisp, dancing wildly before him in his dreams. Somehow, he survived. It wasn’t easy, and he didn’t do it without serious sacrifices. He became a professional gambler, and almost became a drug addict. He became involved in a monstrous criminal syndicate, knowing that no criminal could possibly escape punishment. He betrayed the few friends he had, and fought furiously against everyone and everything he encountered. He thought longingly, often, of the Valhalla, and his lost life aboard her. But he never completely lost hope. ***The story will keep you on the edge of your chair until the last page. ***(First appearance.) ***No paperback edition.

70. 
Pohl, Frederik [George, Jr.] and Williamson, Jack ([John Stewart])
Undersea City
Gnome Press; New York, NY  1958  224 $3.00
5,000 copies printed. 2,000 black boards, 1,000 gray cloth (c.1959), the rest destroyed.
Jacket by Wallace Wood.

Juvenile science fiction novel. ***Third in the juvenile sea-opera series. ***It was the most dreaded of all undersea phenomena. If strong enough, it would set up chain-reaction pressures that could shatter any dome and cost inestimable lives. But the Krakatoan Dome has been specifically designed to cope with the tremors of its seaquake prone area. The trouble was, all of a sudden, there were more quakes than any of the experts had counted on...quakes that no one could possibly have forecast because they hadn’t come from natural causes. The sub-Sea Academy had assigned Cadet Jim Eden to the Krakatoan Dome to find out what was going on, and for very special reasons. First, he was more at home in the underwater world than most anyone else. But, even more important, they sent Jim because his uncle was suspected of being the heinous saboteur! ***Cadet Jim Eden of the Sub-Sea Academy has a new special assignment, and the unpleasant complications begin to develop even before he knows what it is! Jim’s troubles start when he meets Harley Danthorpe, a transfer student from “down deep” who seems to be perpetually sneering. Danthorpe boasts that he has the “inside drift” on the assignment; he, Jim, and Jim’s buddy Bob Eskow are going to Krakatoa Dome, one of the newest of the undersea cities, three miles down in the Sunda Strait. The area is an unstable one, subject to frequent seaquakes—and Bob Eskow is afraid of seaquakes. But Jim’s worries about how Eskow will hold up under the strain and the unfriendliness which exists between Eskow and Danthorpe are multiplied when a strange little man called Father Tide, famous as an undersea priest, tells him that his beloved uncle, Stewart Eden, may be dead. Father Tide himself has found Uncle Stewart’s disabled and empty sea-car in the Indian Ocean, just after a mysterious eruption—and Uncle Stewart himself has completely disappeared! Not only that, but the original eruption has been followed by several more. Father Tide suspects that someone is perfecting an unholy technique for creating artificial earthquakes under the sea, and that Uncle Stewart may be somehow involved. With matters like these oppressing him, Jim Eden heads for his new assignment. As Danthorpe has predicted, the destination of the three cadets is Krakatoa Dome, where they will be trained in the completely new science of maritime seismology—the study and prediction of seaquakes. Actually, their base is not in Krakatoa Dome itself, but ten thousand feet below it, in Station K. Thus situated in the bedrock under the ocean, it’s a perfect place to study quakes, but could also be an extremely dangerous place to be if a severe quake occurs. From this point on the story develops with lightning speed, as bewildering event follows bewildering event. The boys are plunged deep into the study of seaquakes, under the guidance of Lieutenant Tsuya. They learn that seaquake forecasting has developed from very uncertain beginnings; Tsuya himself lost both his parents when a scientist named Dr. John Koyetsu made an error in his predictions and the entire Nansei Shoto Dome was destroyed by a quake. It is Tsuya’s hope that eventually the work he and the cadets are doing will save more lives than Koyetsu’s error killed, but as the mystery deepens, it looks as if this ambition will never be fulfilled. First Jim discovers his friend Bob Eskow engaged in conversation with an Oriental janitor, and Eskow goes to great lengths to hush the matter up. He acts strangely guilty, but guilty of what? Then one of the valuable geosonders used for plumbing the depths of the earth and sending back vital scientific data about quake centers disappears. Immediately thereafter, Bob Eskow turns in a forecast of a Force Two quake, a forecast which disagrees completely with those made by Jim Danthorpe, and Tsuya himself. Denied a pass, Eskow goes AWOL—and even Jim Eden begins to wonder what his friend is up to! From here on, the book is one scene of blazing excitement after another. Jim discovers that his Uncle Stewart is still alive, but engaged in dark and apparently evil machinations. Jim finds himself playing the role of a reluctant detective, with all of the people he knows and loves best looking more and more like villains as the evidence piles up. Is Stewart Eden deliberately causing seaquakes for financial profit? Or is some even more sinister motive involved? The full answer doesn’t appear until the blazing climax in a mechanical Mole, lost and damaged beyond repair, trapped in the bedrock far below the surface of the ocean. It’s a scene you won’t forget for a long, long time. ***Capable conclusion to the trilogy. ***(First appearance.) ***First paperback edition: Ballantine, 02207, 1971, pa .75¢.

71. 
Mundy, Talbot [Pseudo. of Gribbon, William Lancaster]
Tros of Samothrace
Gnome Press; New York, NY  1958  ix/949  $4.95
5,000 copies printed, with 2,000 bound. Price raised to $5.95 in second binding (1960)
Jacket by Lionel Dillon and W.I. Van der Poel.

Spine of jacket says Fantasy Classic Library. Attempted set-up of subsidiary imprint but turned out to be a series title only.

1st edition; Appleton-Century, 1934, 949, $3.00

Fantastical adventure novel. ***Hiqhly unorthodox fantasy-historical novel with Julius Caesar as the villain. ***From: (Adventure Magazine, 10 February 1925, as “Tros of Samothrace”); (Adventure Magazine, 10 April 1925, as “The Enemy of Rome”); (Adventure Magazine, 10 June 1925, as “Prisoners of War”); (Adventure Magazine, 20 August 1925, as “Hostages to Luck”); (Adventure Magazine, 10 October 1925, as “Admiral of Caesar’s Fleet”); (Adventure Magazine, 10 December 1925, as “The Dancing Girl of Gades”); (Adventure Magazine, 10 February 1926, 20 February 1926 & 28 February 1926, as “The Messenger of Destiny”). ***Tros, a Prince of Samothrace, comes to Britain in order to raise the island in defense against the coming invasion of Caesar. This is a monumental task, as the islanders are fiercely independent, jealous, and extremely proud concerning their individual prowess. Tros becomes friendly with Caswallon, foremost leader and nominal king of the Britans, but he is faced by jealousy and treachery. Taken by Caesar, Tros agrees to pilot the Roman fleet against Britain to save his father from torture. He cannily uses his knowledge of tides and winds to scatter the Roman fleet and defer the conquest of Britain. Tros makes his way to Rome with a British-Viking crew to influence the senate to order Caesar to desist in his efforts to conquer Britain. Instead, he and his crew are imprisoned, and then forced to face both gladiators and beasts in the arena. They are freed, finally, by the intercession of the Vestal Virgins. Tros returns to Britain with the message to Caesar that the Vestal Virgins wish him to return. Caesar offers Tros the post of Admiral, but Tros rejects the general’s desires, and tells him of his plan to sail around the world. The men part, not friends, but each greatly respected by the other. ***A ponderous adventure story much dated now. ***First paperback editions: Tros, Avon, S303, 1967, 239 pp., pa .60¢ (original chapters 1-26); Helma, Avon, S309, 1967, 240 pp., pa .60¢ (original chapters 27-51); Liafail, Avon, S316, 1967, 255 pp., pa .60¢ (original chapters 52-81); Helene, Avon, S318, 1967, 157 pp., pa .60¢ (original chapters 82-96).

72. 
Merril, Judith (editor)
SF: 58,
The Year’s Greatest Science Fiction and Fantasy
Gnome Press; New York, NY  1958  255 $3.50
4,000 copies printed, 1,263 destroyed.
Jacket by W.I. Van der Poel.

Science fiction short stories. ***Contents: “Introduction,” by Judith Merril.  [a] “Let’s Be Frank” (Science Fantasy, Vol. 8, No. 23, 1957), by Brian [Wilson] Aldiss. Beginning four years after the execution of Anne Boleyn, we trace the story of Sir Frank Gladwebb. His first son, Frank II, is born and remains in a peculiar coma for the first nineteen years of his life. We he finally awakes, it is in the arms of his father, and it is his father who splits his consciousness and inhabits two bodies at the same time. As time goes by, Frank I, becomes adept at this type of life. Soon he begins to have both male and female children in each successive generation, and continues to share his consciousness among all of them. Eventually we reach the present day, when the Frank I consciousness now inhabits billions of bodies, in fact, the entire world excepting the Americas. It is then that the Frank consciousness finds that there is another creature like him, probably a mutated early offspring that created its own identity before he perfected the process. With the world almost all Frank, he goes on to inhabit the galaxy. This story is told by a Venusian who is thankful that his race procreates in such a different way that the Frank consciousness cannot breed itself into control. [b] “The Fly” (Playboy, June 1957), by George Langelaan. François Delambre receives a phone call from the wife of his brother, André. Hélène explains that she has just murdered his brother. He goes to the scene of the crime with Commissaire Charas. They find the body, with the head and one arm, crushed in a steam press. As Charas continues to investigate, he dismisses Hélène’s confession as the act of a mad woman, it is much too unrealistic. Her madness centers on the pursuit of a white headed fly. She has enlisted her young son in the hunt for this illusive pest. As the story unfolds, André has successfully invented a matter transmitter, but by accident has experimented on himself when a fly was in the transmitter chamber. The consequences are dire; he emerges with the head and arm of a fly. Since they cannot find the fly with his head and arm, madness soon begins to descend on him. He has his wife kill him for pity’s sake. Charas and François have both reached this same conclusion by the end of the story, when François finds the illusive fly, trapped in a spider’s web. He kills it, and buries its tiny body in a matchbox at his brothers’ tomb. ***Made into a famous early science fiction movie of the same name. [c] “Let’s Get Together” (Infinity, Vol. 2, No. 1, Issue 7, February 1957), by Isaac Asimov. Elias Lynn, Chief of the Bureau of Robotics, is presented with a security problem by Security officer Ralph G. Breckenridge. “They” (what used to be Soviet Russia) are ahead of us in the production of human looking robots. They have sent a group of ten, each with a part of a TC bomb, to destroy some unknown target in the U.S. A TC, or total conversion bomb, is most potent when all ten parts are brought together. Lynn finally plans to have a gathering of the best minds, especially in robotics, to discuss and plan strategies to prevent this destruction. At the last minute he realizes that this is the exact type of place that the robots would go to release the bomb and create the most devastating destruction. Logic tells Lynn that the last top ten scientists to visit “Them” are the ones that have been substituted and now carry the bomb parts. Through his use of logic, Lynn has also come to the conclusion that Breckenridge is the unknown eleventh bomber. In the nick of time he stops Breckenridge as well. [d] “The Wonder Horse” (Atlantic Monthly, August 1957), by George Byram. Costello and his jockey buddy, Ben, are at the end of their careers in the horse business. As a last deal they take an old mare as payment for services rendered and stud her. Her offspring, Red Eagle, is a mutant wonder horse. When he finally races he can carry any weight and beat any horse. No one will race against the horse, and the plan the two men have been banking on, to get rich off their horse, seems about to crumble. Then they notice that people will pay just to see the horse run. They get rich that way, but they have another ace up their sleeves. They have agreed not to race Red Eagle, but not his forthcoming children. [e] “You Know Willie” (Fantasy & Science Fiction, Vol. 12, No. 5, Issue 72, May 1957), by Theodore R[ose] Cogswell. Willie McCracken, is a white cracker in the racist old South. He has just killed a Negro. But the trial is rigged and the Klan is protecting him as well. But all their efforts aren’t enough to stop Aunt Hattie. Aunt Hattie, as well as being a relative of the dead man, is a witch. She bewitches McCracken, who turns into a black man. The Klan protecting him run him down, thinking he is out to kill Willie, and kill him in spite of his protestations, “I’m Willie. You know Willie.”  [f] “Near Miss,” by Henry Kuttner. Tom Dillon is a bit of a scoundrel. He wants to fly prawns, in his private airplane, from the small fishing village of Pueblo Pequeño to Guaymas. He knows that if he can, he will make an incredible profit. But there is a slight problem. The villagers won’t fish more than their long time friend, Felipe Ortega, can haul in his old truck, El Jeep, to the market. In order to solve his problem, he goes to the wizard, the brujo, Tío Ignacio. Dillon insist that even though he doesn’t believe in magic, it is the last ditch effort. He makes a deal with Ignacio to bewitch Felipe’s truck, El Jeep. Ignacio admits that there is a problem with his magic. It turns out the Felipe is his nephew and is immune to his spells. Each admit to bewitch Felipe and stop him, backfires. Eventually, El Jeep is magically able to fly, thus giving Felipe the ability to make the profit Dillon sought. At the end, Dillon tries to renege and not pay Ignacio for his troubles, but Ignacio has now made a small doll of Dillon. Dillon, now a b