Customer Reviews

His Share of Glory: The Complete Short Science Fiction of C.M. Kornbluth

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OK, I've read most of these stories already. And I already knew that Kornbluth was a great writer. But reading this volume all the way through -- and in pretty short order because I couldn't stop -- just reminded me how great a writer he was.

If you have only dim memories of these stories, I guarantee that upon rereading them you'll be amazed at how much *better* they are than you remember. (Not all science fiction of that era holds up so well). If you've never read these stories, prepare to be amazed. This is a book that every lover of science fiction -- or just good writing -- should own, and read.

Cyril Kornbluth died almost a half century ago, leaving behind many great stories written in SF's golden age. The short stories have been conveniently collected into one hardcover.

Kornbluth's stories are not sweetness and light, he writes of the darkness in the human spirit, even in the point of view characters in the books. "The Little Black Bag" is an example of how the urge to do good can fall to evil. "That Share of Glory," perhaps his greatest work, is the tale of a young man of the future who learns that even our urge to violence, that we attempt to keep hidden, is very much a necessary part of the human spirit.

Every story is a gem. While some are written in a style which now seems somwhat dated, it is easy to get past that and recognize the genius who wrote them.

Cyril Kornbluth's name should rank with Robert Heinlein, Isaac Asimov, Robert Silverberg, and many others who are the great wise old ones of Science Fiction. Instead, due to his untimely death in the 1950's... he is forgotten.

Today, we see that he could perdict the future in many ways. His story "The Marching Morons" shows this all too clearly.

If it were not for Fred Pohl, Kornbluth would likely be totally forgotten by now.

Get this book and read it. Then, get the Space Merchanants by Pohl and Kornbluth and read that. Classics of SF that all but forgotten, and they shouldn't be.

If you're looking for a compilation of insightful short sci fi stories, then this book is for you. Kornbluth was way ahead of his time and these stories are not of the cheesy variety as most "golden age" sci fi seems to be. Check it out, it'll be worth your time.

Despite his death at a tragically young age, Cyril M. Kornbluth was one of the greats from the "golden age" of science fiction. One of the members of the "Futurians" fan club of the 1930s (a group that counted Frederick Pohl, Isaac Asimov, and Damon Knight among its members), he went on to co-author the classic novel The Space Merchants and write a number of short stories that are classics of the genre. These stories have been brought together in this collection, from his earliest work to such classics as "The Mindworm" and "The Marching Morons" (a sure influence on Mike Judge's more gentle take on a similar premise in Idiocracy). This is a must-have collection for fans of golden age science fiction, one that captures the wonder of the works of the era.

CM Kornbluth (with or without Pohl) was one of the finest and most prolific of the fifties sf writers. His biting wit (especially later on) and sardonic turn on events reminded me of Twain or Swift, although his subject matter wasn't the same (of course). See "the Little Black Bag", probably his most famous. Or search out the story that ends "here they come with an insulting thick rope.." No, you gotta read it to find out which one. Or "I know a word that will explode this planet like a stick of dynamite in a rotten apple". Great command of language and dovetailing character to subject matter-way ahead of his time.

Sheckley & Pohl are better known, but he was one of the big science fiction satirists. A little dark for me (there's a myth that 50's s.f. was all bright & happy), but pretty good. If you're depressed about him disappearing from print SAY SOMETHING! I'm not a big Kornbluth fan & I'm the only reviewer. A must have collection for his ,apparently dwindling, fanbase. Strange since he collaborated on a ,somewhat, well reviewed novel like Space Merchants. Since people seem to like there s.f & even fantasy gritty & urban they might like this. (Although he did write other kinds of stuff.) One thing that might turn people off ,including me, is that a sort-of eugenic streak is in some of his stories. The idea that the world will worsen because "the poor ignorants will breed like bunnies, while the elite use birth control" is implied in "the Little Black Bag" & explicit in "the Marching Morons". Oh, well controversy helps some authors & I've actually heard people agree with that view. Try it out, but be prepared.

Kornbluth came out of that New York science fiction circle that produced Isaac Asimov and Fred Pohl, among many others. He died in his mid thirties or he would likely have been as familiar as these others to today's readers. Some of the finest moments in mid-Twentieth Century short science fiction are found here, including the award-winning "The Marching Morons." And some very interesting if quirky stuff. Kornbluth was prone to experiment, not content to mine the "mainstream." If you haven't read any Kornbluth, you may want to start elsewhere. His Share of Glory is a treat for the addicted, a newcomer to this author may want to try a lesser dose.

This may be the best collection of stories ever published, science fiction or not. Even anthologies that pluck the classic short stories of an entire decade would have trouble matching the works collected here.

Cyril is cynical, at least he appears so, but he was also brilliant and entertaining. There is not a weak story in the collection and many are superb. The work is so good it is difficult to be dispassionately critical rather than gush with praise.

We see many of the tropes of science fiction, common then and now used by Kornbluth, however they will appear new and brilliant even to the most well-read and jaded reader.

The book may not make you feel good about humanity, but it will make you feel good about buying and reading it. It is one of the most entertaining, well written collections of short fiction I have come across and I am a big fan of short fiction.

NESFA has done a huge service by collecting and publishing this volume, as well as other collections.

Also pick up "Not this August" by Kornbluth, as well as "The Space Merchants" by Pohl and Kornbluth.

Di filipo summarized & paraphrased "What an invaluable trove this is, full of forty & fifty year old stories that read as fresh as any today. And the range! Kornbluth could do retief better than Laumer ('The Reversible Revolution' &'the city in the sofa'). He could be reminiscent of Bruce Sterling, Lem, Dick, De Camp, etc. As well as doing Swiftian satire like the marching morons. Kornbluth saw so clearly it hurt. To ease the hurt he chose laughter. As in his ironically prophetic tale 'gomez' where a brilliant math whiz dies at 39, we would like to say 'He died not too unhappy, after a good though short life with much satisfaction'." As for me I haven't read much Kornbluth, but he is one of the best ,if least known, of science fiction's satirist. I liked "Little black Bag" even though it was sort of darker than I usually like. If you have interest in Kornbluth this is recommended. One last thing kudos to NESFA for volumes like this that bring back the good old stuff.