Non-Spoiler summary:

Foster is a young boy, who only wants one thing for his birthday: a nuclear bunker. Everyone else in the neighborhood has one, you see, except for him. His friends keep telling him he’s gonna die when the Reds drop the bomb. His teachers constantly scold him for failing his nuclear readiness exercises. On the TV, the Reds keep coming up with new, deadlier weapons every week.

Well, Foster’s had enough. He’s tired of being scared. He’s gonna do whatever it takes. He’s gonna scream, he’s gonna cry, he’s gonna cuss and plead, till he gets that bunker.

My thoughts while reading it:

‘What the hell, that’s no way to talk to a kid!’ ‘You shove that bunker where the sun don’t shine, Mrs Carlyle!’ ‘The Reds made a WHAT?’ ‘Dude, buy the damn bunker, it’s for your own safety!’ ‘Yaaaay!’ ‘Aaaawww’

The technical stuff:

• Word Count: 7,000 words
• Philip Kindred Dick (December 16, 1928 – March 2, 1982) was an American novelist, short story writer and essayist whose published work is almost entirely in the science fiction genre. Go check your dad’s old stash of scifi books. The best ones are probably written by this guy.

Where you can find it:

• In his collected works anthology The Father-Thing (available in every online bookstore worth its salt)
• This story is currently not available online. Which means you’re gonna have to buy it. And trust me, this is a sound investment

By-Line:
Konstantine Paradias is a short story science fiction and fantasy writer, who has his own blog, called Shapescapes. There you can find a free novel, called Stone Cold Countenance as well as a series of sci-fi comic book reviews. For comments, requests or plain old contact, you can find him at kosparadias@gmail.com

Do You Have Arachnophobia?

Are you afraid of spiders? If you are then don’t feel bad because I have an older brother who is terrified of them too! I must confess that after reading this story I became a little jumpy at the sight of them. It is a great read though – especially if you already dislike the little buggers!

Non-Spoiler Summary

The leader, the gaunt man and the little man are chasing 3 fugitives on horseback when they happen on a great, gray valley. Yeah, it is a little bit mysterious as well as creepy – but that doesn’t stop the from charging into it. It is when they are past the point of no return that they start to notice weird things – like the mad dog that completely ignores them, and the increasingly jittery horses. But once they see the strange haze-balls blowing down the valley they start to get concerned… but will it be too little too late? Hmm – yeah, probably!

Some Interesting Tidbits

• Word count: 4,153 (7 pages)
• Special thanks to the members of the Classic Science Fiction group – whose engaging discussion of this story made me want to read it!
• Did you know that H.G. Wells is often referred to as one of the “fathers of science fiction?” Yep. You can learn more about this classic science fiction author on Wikipedia.

Where To Find The Valley of Spiders

• This short story was can be read for free online at The Literature Network.
• "The Valley of Spiders" is also included in the anthology Great Tales of Horror & the Supernatural.

Craving More SF Stories Like This One?

If you liked "The Valley of Spiders" then you may also enjoy “The Monkey’s Paw” by W.W. Jacobs – about a family who discovers a magical talisman that grants 3 wishes.

Non-spoiler summary:

Ed Morris is a citizen of Earth, who works for an accounting firm on Ganymede. Every day, during his daily trans-solar commute, he is bombarded by animated billboards, radio and tv ads. When he has finally run this gauntlet, he reaches his home planet, only to be beset by swarms of robot salesmen, who pester him. Even at home, the barrage will not cease.

Ed Morris finally realizes he has had enough, so he pleads with his wife Molly to relocate to an extra-sola colony, where people live their lives in peace and quiet, ‘like they used to do in the 20^th century’. Molly won’t even consider it, when suddenly Ed’s worst nightmare comes to life, in the form of a Fully Automated Self-Regulating Android (Domestic use only).

What I think:

Opinions on Philip K. Dick’s tone of his work vary, but everyone can agree on one thing: the man writes like an angel; he is also terribly depressing. This story is both the best and the worst one in his anthology The Father-Thing (buy it now, it’s awesome). It’s the best because it actually addresses the contemporary problem of media saturation and the increasing aggressiveness of ad campaigns, which so far have intruded into every aspect of our lives. It’s also damn funny.

It’s the worst because of its ending. Its ending is, in fact, so depressing, that even Philip Dick apologizes for it at the end of the book.

Boring Technical Stuff:

• Word Count: 5,000
• Philip Kindred Dick (December 16, 1928 – March 2, 1982) was an American novelist, short story writer and essayist whose published work is almost entirely in the science fiction genre. His work is legion and I suggest you start as soon as possible, or you’ll die unfulfilled.

Where you can find this story:

• In his collected works anthology The Father-Thing (available in every online bookstore worth its salt)
• This story is currently not available online. Which means you’re gonna have to buy it. And trust me, this is a sound investment

By-Line:

Konstantine Paradias is a short story science fiction and fantasy writer, who has his own blog, called Shapescapes (shapescapes). For comments or plain old contact, you can find him at kosparadias@gmail.com

Born of Man and Woman, a 1950 short story by Richard Matheson, is about a young child, apparently a monstrosity, who is kept chained in the basement by its parents and frequently beaten.

Non-spoiler summary

This extremely short story is told by the main protagonist, the young child himself, in the form of a personal diary written in broken English. It gives us a brief look into the every day life of an abused child who really doesn’t know what it is to be a child. He is kept chained in the basement by his parents, and frequently beaten. Nevertheless, he remains curious. He is able to pull his chain out of the wall and is able to observe what happens outside, in the real world, through a little basement window.

At one point during the story, the child relates an incident where his young sister (which he refers to as a “little mother”) comes to see him in the basement with her pet. When the pet smells him and attacks him, he crushes it to death.

The last journal entry takes place after a beating from his father. As the child is going over the events in his mind, we learn that he knocked the stick from his father’s hand and made some noises. Then, he begins to ponder over some tactics to use if his parents do not treat him better in the future.

My thoughts on this story

• The first few sentences of the story are intriguing; I found myself hooked right away.
• Matheson brilliantly depicted the passing of days in his story, from a child’s viewpoint, by using unique analogies, such as “This day it had water falling from upstairs” and “This day it had goldness in the upstairs.”
• The last sentences of the diary, along with the fact that he bleeds green blood, provide a clear hint as to why this short story belongs to the science fiction genre.

Interesting tidbits

• Word count: 1,239
• This short story was written by Matheson when he was in his early twenties. It was his first professional sale. It became the title piece in his first short story collection published in 1954.
• “Born of Man and Woman” was nominated for a 1951 Retro Hugo Award in the Best Short Story category.
• Famous author Stephen King said that Richard Matheson influenced him the most as a writer.

Where to find the story

• This short story was first published in 1950 in The Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction.
• It was also published in Richard Matheson’s first short collection, Born of Man and Woman (1954).
• You can also find it in The Science Fiction Hall of Fame, Vol. 1: 1929-1964.

Author bio and blog

Martin Dugas is a civil engineer. Fluent in both English and French, he writes in both languages. He is a science fiction junkie and blogs at http://martindugas.wordpress.com.

One Dream Job Coming Right Up!

This story evokes a setting that I would die for: being one of the first explorers on a newly discovered planet! Honestly, how cool would that be? It would be rough, but it would still be my dream life. This is a very cool story with descriptions that reminded me of both Hyperion and Chasm City – and that is a good thing indeed!

Non-Spoiler Summary

Cord is a teen-aged boy with the Colonial Team on the outback world of Sutang. There is a lot of work to do and very few people to do it, which is why Cord often gets in trouble for doing some exploring on his own. In fact, Cord’s local leader wants to send him back to his home world, but Cord doesn’t like that idea at all. Lucky for him the Planetary Regent is coming to visit, and she wants Cord to accompany them while riding a local life form. This is Cord’s big chance to impress the people who control his destiny – but can he be both chivalrous and safe at the same time? He is about to find out… because a big test is heading his way!

Some Interesting Tidbits

• Word count: 8,935 (15 pages)
• Special thanks to Tinkoo at Variety SF for recommending this great story!

Where To Find Grandpa

• This short story was first published in the February 1955 edition of Astounding Science Fiction.
• You can read a free online version of “Grandpa” at Baen eBooks.
• It is also included in the anthology Explorers: SF Adventures to Far Horizons.

Craving More SF Stories Like This One?

If you liked “Grandpa” then you may also enjoy “The World That Couldn’t Be” by Clifford D. Simak – about a farmer who tries to save his crops by hunting a very dangerous alien beast.

Who Needs Friends Anyway?

I think that I have always imagined that aliens, when we finally meet them, will tend to be aggressive and hostile – not at all peaceful and lovey-dovey. I don’t know, that’s just my feeling. However, here is a story where humans have become very peaceful, and what’s more is that they expect aliens to be peaceful too! Well, you can probably guess how that’s going to turn out, huh?

Non-Spoiler Summary

The crew of a Kzinti war ship has just discovered a new and relatively weak species: humans. They study them slowly and try to decide if they should attack or not. Meanwhile, the crew of the Human ship is trying to make peaceful first contact, but there are just a few things that don’t seem right to the captain, so he makes a desperate decision which could either help or further endanger all those aboard.

Some Interesting Tidbits

• Word count: 5,181 (11 pages)
• You can learn more about science fiction author Larry Niven by checking out his fascinating biography.
• Special thanks to Variety SF for pointing out this great story.
• Do you like reading about the Kzinti? If so, there are plenty more stories and novels about them – and Wikipedia has a lot of information too.

Where To Find The Warriors

• This short story was first published in the February 1966 edition of If magazine.
• You can read "The Warriors" online for free at the Baen eBooks web site.
• It is also included in the famous anthology The Man-Kzin Wars.

Craving More SF Stories Like This One?

If you liked "The Warriors" then you might enjoy “Neutron Star” also by Larry Niven – about a man sent to investigate the mysterious deaths of two space explorers who were studying the galaxy’s only known neutron star.

We’re Not in 1948 Anymore Toto!

This is a fun story to read, but there are some out-dated and chauvinistic ideas about how to treat women, so watch out for that. Just keep telling yourself that this is a pulp fiction story from 1948 – maybe that will help you overlook its defects.

Non-Spoiler Summary

Karn has been kicked out of his tribe – he was the up-and-coming male and all that. Anyway, while wandering around on his own he comes across a strange site: an alien space ship with 3 aliens! The intriguing part is that one of those aliens is a pretty female who captivates Karn. When she is threatened by a wild animal Karn steps in to save the day. Needless to say she is impressed, and the aliens end up taking Karn back to their home planet – where all their cities are under attack by a strange race of green, slimy lizard people. Karn is appalled at the lack of the aliens’ courage and defensive skills, so he plans to teach them a few things.

Some Interesting Tidbits

• Word count: 5,435 (10 pages)
• Did you know that the Cro-Magnon people mentioned in this story lived on Earth about 30,000 years ago? Yep. Learn more about Cro-Magnon men at Wikipedia.
• Special thanks to Variety SF for recommending this story!

Where To Find The Frightened Planet

• This short story was first published in the October 1948 edition of Amazing Stories.
• You can download or read "The Frightened Planet" for free online at Project Gutenberg.

Craving More SF Stories Like This One?

If you liked "The Frightened Planet" then you may also enjoy “The Hunted Heroes” by Robert Silverberg – about a team of uranium miners who are captured by a madman on Mars.

“Monument”, a 1961 novelette by Lloyd Biggle, Jr., is about destructive tourism on an idyllic world.

Non-spoiler summary

O’Brien, a mechanic, crashes his ship on a beautiful, idyllic planet. He begins to live with the planet’s natives and soon looses interest in being rescued. As he gets old, O’Brien realizes an undeniable fact.

“It was a beautiful world. Its beaches were smooth and sandy, its waters were warm, its climate admirable. To the people of the myriads of harsh worlds whose natural riches attracted large populations, dry worlds, barren worlds, airless worlds, it would be a paradise. Those who could leave their bleak atmosphere domes, or underground caverns, or sand-blown villages for a few days in this sweet-smelling, oxygen rich atmosphere could face their lives with renewed courage.”

The world he has come to love is indeed a paradise and sooner or later, more men would come from the sky to take the land and do whatever they want with it. O’Brien, a simple uneducated man, but a man of action, finds himself reflecting on how he must protect the world he has come to love and cherish. Another fact he is aware of: he is slowly dying. After doing some serious thinking, he has the brightest young natives sent to him and begins to teach them about what they need to do when the time will come.

Time goes by until a developer finally arrives and begins building hotels, pools and golf courses. The native people put “The Plan” into effect…

The climax of the story is an unforeseen masterstroke delivered by the natives.

My thoughts on this story

• This story has a careful melange of humor, politics, economics, humanity, sense of responsibility/duty and law.
• I like the fact that the author chose to explore how a simple, uneducated man could, in his own and limited way and with a certain level of wisdom and patience, have such a profound impact on a planet’s native population.
• I really enjoyed reading and reviewing this story.

Interesting tidbits

• Word count:  16,702
• Lloyd Biggle, Jr. (April 17, 1923 – September 12, 2002) was a musician, author and internationally known oral historian.
• He served in World War II as Communications Sergeant (during which he was wounded twice).
• In the 1970′s, he founded the Science Fiction Oral History Association (SFOHA), which built archives containing hundreds of cassette tapes of science fiction notables making speeches and discussing aspects of their craft.
• “Monument” was nominated for a Hugo Award in 1962 in the Short Fiction category.
• In 1974, the novel Monument (based on the short story) was published.

Where to find the story

• This short story was first published in Analog magazine in June 1961.
• You can read it online at Webscription.

Like The Gold Rush

Have you ever dreamed about being a prospector? I have. Sure, it may be a little bit more difficult (or maybe just more electronic) now that it was back in the gold rush days, but the idea of discovering something worth a fortune sure is attractive! This excellent story has that “prospector” feel to it which, along with many other plot twists, makes this a must read if you enjoy adventure stories.

Non-Spoiler Summary

Audee Walthers lives in the harsh environment of Venus. He owns a little business and gets by pretty well most of the time. However, he now needs a liver transplant which is quite expensive, so when a super rich tourist from Earth comes looking for someone to guide him and his young girlfriend to underground alien artefacts Audee steps up to the plate. Things are looking good for Audee, that is until he learns some dark secrets about his client at the same time his liver is about to give out. Sounds fun huh? But don’t worry – there are even more surprises in store for our lucky protagonist and they are not all bad… I think.

Some Interesting Tidbits

• Word count: 32,884 (55 pages)
• Did you know that this was Frederik Pohl’s first Heechee story? Yep. This was the start of a fantastic series of stories and novels that eventually included the multiple award winning book Gateway.

Where To Find The Merchants of Venus

• This story was first published in the July 1972 edition of Worlds of If.
• You can read "The Merchants of Venus" for free online at Baen eBooks.
• It is also included in the excellent anthology Platinum Pohl: The Collected Best Stories.

Craving More SF Stories Like This One?

If you liked "The Merchants of Venus" then you may also enjoy “The Hated” – about an astronaut who has returned from Mars and the psychological problems he is trying to work out – also by Frederik Pohl.

I Love Ants

I don’t know how much I would want to be transformed into a horrible vermin, but if I did have my choice I would choose to be an ant. Yep, I think ants are extremely cool! Ok, just thought you’d want to know that. Anyway, here is a great story about a man who doesn’t have any choice. It is kind of a sad and depressing story, but very beautifully written.

Non-Spoiler Summary

Gregor Samsa receives the shock of his life when he wakes up one morning – yep, he has been transformed! He doesn’t dare leave his room, and his family begins to worry about him. This is a distressing situation because Gregor is the only bread-winner in the family, and as his condition persists they all become more and more desperate. Finally they have no choice but to confine Gregor to the house and get menial jobs themselves. This is stressful but works out until his mother rents a room to 3 stuffy gentlemen. And once they discover what is really living in the house, things which are already bad take a turn for the worse!

Some Interesting Tidbits

• Word count: 22,086 (26 pages)
• Did you know that Franz Kafka was born to middle class German-speaking Jewish parents in Prague? Yep. You can learn more about this famous author on Wikipedia.

Where To Find Metamorphosis

• This famous story was first published in 1915 as Die Verwandlung.
• You can read a fantastic English translation of "Metamorphosis" online for free at Project Gutenberg.
• It has also been collected in many anthologies, like the excellent Franz Kafka: The Complete Stories.

Craving More SF Stories Like This One?

If you liked "Metamorphosis" then you may also enjoy “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button” by F. Scott Fitzgerald – about a strange child who is born as an old man and then ages backwards throughout his life.