Customer Reviews

A Martian Odyssey and Other Science Fiction Tales

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This volume presents all of Weinbaum's short fiction previously collected in "A Martian Odyssey" (Fantasy Press 1948) and "The Red Peri" (Fantasy Press 1952). It also contains a never-before-collected story entitled "Graph", and a previously unpublished poem, "The Last Martian." This volume is a must for all Weinbaum fans, and anyone interested in early science fiction. Weinbaum was the first science fiction writer to describe alien worlds and life forms in a realistic way. No bug-eyed monsters on the hunt for earthwomen here - his characters, from Tweerrl the Martian, to Oscar the brilliant yet oddly fatalistic plant, have remained some of the most memorable and enduring portraits in the genre. The stories brim with humor, logic, and suspense. His first published story, "A Martian Odyssey," is, simply, one of the best short stories ever written. Weinbaum's tragic death in 1935, a mere year-plus after the publication of his first story, robbed us of a writer of rare talent who certainly would have gone on to greater heights. This volume presents Weinbaum at his best.

I first read Stanley Weinbaum over 35 years ago. His fiction has stayed in my mind, clear as a bell, ever since. (And this is saying something, since I read several books a week.) What an imagination! Some bright editor ought to reprint them . . . .

A Martian Odyssey is a fairly visual story. They should make it a book with illustrations like they did with Repent, Harlequin... Weinbaum was one of the first authors of genre sf to have any talent or even a grasp of reality.