Simon Grue found a two-inch mermaid in his bathtub. It had arms, hips, a finny tail, and (here the real trouble began) a face that reminded him irresistibly of Grushenka Stulnikov-Gurevich.... and so begins this strange tale of tiny mermaids and other things that could only come from the odd mind of Fritz Leiber. Enjoy!
A machine of blinking lights and smelling of ozone is entered into a Grand Master chess tournament. One of the first computers. Would it be shamed by human genius or would it out think these human prodigies through sheer calculating power? Well, the machine was not perfect. It could be tricked. It could make mistakes. And—it could learn!
Simon Grue found a two-inch mermaid in his bathtub. It had arms, hips, a finny tail, and (here the real trouble began) a face that reminded him irresistibly of the girl next door. Simon at first thought his roommate had been smoking some strange stuff in that bubble pipe of his and the fumes was causing the odd delusion. But when he saw another and the tiny thing flopped out onto the floor gasping for breath, it was then that Simon Grue seriously began to wonder what the Russians were doing on the roof next door. From this start, the story just gets weirder and more fun. A great listen but be warned, your mind will still be a bit dizzy when it is finished.
In the far distant future, archeologists and scholars strive to piece together the early history of intelligent life on our planet. As they delve further and further into the past, with the aid of recently discovered time capsules, their discoveries are more or less what they expected. Sort of. Intelligent life is not always what you assume it will be and Fritz Leiber again weaves a surprising tale with all his usual subtlety and wit. Indeed, it may be later than you think!
Fritz Leiber speculates on whether the growing divide between pedestrians and car drivers will continue and bloom into full scale war in the future. Will society fracture due to intense economic pressure and become this type of homicidal war where powerful cars equipped with razor sharp hooks on their hoods, try to gather points and scraps of clothing for their trophy walls by blasting the people in the 'city' as they try to cross the street? And will that helpless looking little old lady actually be packing a .50 caliber 'Stinger' handgun in her purse that can blast through your bullet proof glass with ease? Only one way to find out buddy, gun it and aim!
War never changes. Men fight men with rocks and spears then with arrows and cannon. Future men will fight with advanced weapons like space ships, vibration rays, cobalt bombs and robots but they will still fight. In the end, after the space battles have ended, it will still require the grunts, whether in the shape of men or Martians or bugs or jellyfish, to hold the planets. Beings in the mud of a thousand worlds, beings used like fodder to actually hold what is being contested. The beings in foxholes. And these beings will become just as bitter and angry and hateful in the future as they have become in all of the past. They will be dangerous.
Nine science fiction short stories from some of the best sci-fi authors of the 1940s, 50s and 60s.
- Zurk by Richard O. Lewis
- Morgue Ship by Ray Bradbury
- Lazarus Come Forth by Ray Bradbury
- Tony and the Beetles by Philip K. Dick
- Invader From Infinity by George Whittington
- Tanks by Murray Leinster
- Invasion by Murray Leinster
- The Barbarians by Algis Budrys
- The Foxholes of Mars by Fritz Leiber
Fourteen Killer science fiction short stories from some of the best sci-fi authors of the 1940s, 50s and 60s.
- Slay-Ride by Winston Marks
- Wreck Off Triton by Alfred Coppel
- Retribution by George T. Spillman
- The Skull by Philip K. Dick
- Prison of a Billion Years by C. H. Thames
- The Misplaced Battleship by Harry Harrison
- Monsters That Once Were Men by Robert Silverberg
- Seventh Victim by Robert Sheckley
- Birkett's Twelfth Corpse by August Derleth
- Hero From Yesterday by Robert Silverberg
- The Foxholes of Mars by Fritz Leiber
- Watchbird by Robert Sheckley
- Cry Silence by Fredric Brown
- The Power by Fredric Brown
The Black Ewe by Fritz Leiber - She brought death to all those who walked beside her...
Very well, I’ll tell you why I broke off me engagement to Lavinia Simes–though I'm not the sort of person who likes to go around broadcasting the facts of his private life. There's altogether too much broadcasting going on these days, by wave, newsprint and heaven knows what subtler avenue of approach to the human mind.
I could sum it all up in the one word horror. But that doesn't mean much by itself. Besides it would let you explain it away as a neurotic delusion, aftermath of the near nervous breakdown I had in 1946, when I quit my desk job with OSS. Though why anyone shouldn't have a nervous breakdown these days, with the whole world rushing hypnotized into the mouth of doom, is more than I can see.
At any rate 'ridiculous neurotic delusion' is the explanation favored by most of the friends of the Simes–one syllable, you know, rhymes with limes. They delight in telling eaeh other how without any word of warning I walked away from Lavinia in the midst of a sightseeing tour of Chicago and refused ever to see her again. Which is completely accurate lncidently.
They all think I behaved outrageously. All of them, that is, except Mrs. Grotius.
Time Travel and Nothing But Time Travel - Sixteen Lost Sci-Fi Short Stories from the 1940s, 50s and 60s
- Stop, You're Killing Me! by Darius John Granger
- Forsyte's Retreat by Winston Marks
- Prominent Author by Philip K. Dick
- The Skull by Philip K. Dick
- Prison of a Billion Years by C. H. Thames
- Meddler by Philip K. Dick
- Let The Ants Try by Frederik Pohl
- The Beachcomber by Damon Knight
- Nice Girl with 5 Husbands by Fritz Leiber
- A Traveler in Time by August Derleth
- Hall Of Mirrors by Fredric Brown
- Exhibit Piece by Philip K. Dick
- The Queen of Space by Joseph Slotkin
- The Man Who Liked Lions by John Bernard Daley
- Z by Charles L. Fontenay
- The Turning Wheel by Philip K. Dick
Lost Sci-Fi Books 81 thru 90 - Ten Lost Sci-Fi Short Stories from the 1940s, 50s and 60s
- Human Is by Philip K. Dick - She noticed the change in her husband -- but she had married for better or worse!
- Adjustment Team by Philip K. Dick - Something went wrong... and Ed Fletcher got mixed up in the biggest thing in his life
- The Luckiest Man Alive! by William Morrison - The man who won the contest to be named 'Mister Earth' would be in a unique position!
- Six Frightened Men by Robert Silverberg - It was an unexplored planet and anything could happen—yet none of us expected to face a creature impossible to fight, let alone kill....
- Dust Unto Dust by Lyman D. Hinckley - It was alien but was it dead, this sinister city of metal that glittered before the cautious advance of three space-scouters.
- Meddler by Philip K. Dick - The hardest part of the 'preordained' thesis to grasp is that the thesis itself is part of what must and shall be. Will time travel cause the end of the human race?
- Let The Ants Try by Frederik Pohl - Dr. Salva Gordy looked at the radioactive smear that had been Detroit. Then he looked down at the anthill. Why not?
- Asteroid of the Damned by Frederik Pohl - Somewhere on that asteroid of sin lurked the crime king of the Universe.
- Nice Girl With 5 Husbands by Fritz Leiber - Adventure is relative to one's previous experience.
- A Traveler In Time by August Derleth - You can't always escape evils by running away from them...
Lost Sci-Fi Books 86 thru 90 - Five Lost Sci-Fi Short Stories from the 1940s, 50s and 60s
- Meddler by Philip K. Dick - The hardest part of the 'preordained' thesis to grasp is that the thesis itself is part of what must and shall be. Will time travel cause the end of the human race?
- Let The Ants Try by Frederik Pohl - Dr. Salva Gordy looked at the radioactive smear that had been Detroit. Then he looked down at the anthill. Why not?
- Asteroid of the Damned by Frederik Pohl - Somewhere on that asteroid of sin lurked the crime king of the Universe.
- Nice Girl With 5 Husbands by Fritz Leiber - Adventure is relative to one's previous experience.
- A Traveler In Time by August Derleth - You can't always escape evils by running away from them...
