Tag Archives: vintage SF

It’s not so lonely out in space: three to celebrate Apollo 11

Posted on July 20, 2021 by smellincoffee

Fifty-two years ago, men from Earth touched down on the moon and inaugurated a new era in human exploration. I usually re-watch From the Earth to the Moon (a Tom Hanks docu-drama that is in my “Everything is burning but … Continue reading →

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Rossum’s Universal Robots

Posted on October 17, 2017 by smellincoffee

R.U.R© 1920 Karel Capek120 pages ALQUIST: . Has Nana got a prayer book?HELENA Yes, a big thick one.ALQUIST And has it got prayers for various occasions? Against thunderstorms? Against illness?HELENA Against temptations, against floods!––ALQUIST But not against progress?HELENA I don’t … Continue reading →

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The Martian Chronicles

Posted on June 13, 2017 by smellincoffee

The Martian Chronicles © 1950 Ray Bradbury 222 pages As the 1940s began giving way to the 1950s, Ray Bradbury began penning a series of stories about the future human exploration of Mars — stories that he thought of as … Continue reading →

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Reads to …er, Reels: War of the Worlds

Posted on April 10, 2016 by smellincoffee

“…coming this way, about twenty yards from my ri—” Tonight I turned off the lights and put on a recording of Orson Welles’ 1938 radio dramatization of H.G. Wells’ (confusing, that) The War of the Worlds.  According to a popular … Continue reading →

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The Invisible Man

Posted on April 5, 2016 by smellincoffee

The Invisible Man© 1897 H,G, Wells149 pages The Invisible Man opens with the arrival of a Mysterious Stranger to a country inn. He is covered from head to toe, and remains so even after he takes a room. The townsfolk don’t … Continue reading →

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2001: A Space Odyssey

Posted on February 12, 2016 by smellincoffee

2001: A Space Odyssey© 1986 Arthur C. Clark, Stanley Kubrick316 pgs At the dawn of the twenty-first century, mankind makes an extraordinary discovery: unmistakable evidence of life outside the environs of Earth. An object on the moon makes plain the … Continue reading →

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Starship Troopers

Posted on January 16, 2014 by smellincoffee

Starship Troopers© 1959 Robert Heinlein263 pages The worlds of the Terran Federation are under constant assault by the malicious Bugs, whose hideousness drives dogs insane and who don’t even have the decency to build their civilization out of buildings that … Continue reading →

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The Early Asimov

Posted on May 7, 2012 by smellincoffee

The Early Asimov, or, Eleven Years of Trying© 1972 Isaac Asimov400-500 pages Long-time readers know of my enormous affection for the good doctor Asimov; imagine my delight in finding this anthology of over two dozen of his earlier and previously … Continue reading →

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A Journey to the Center of the Earth

Posted on February 5, 2012 by smellincoffee

A Journey to the Center of the Earth© 1864 Jules Verne291 pages “Is the Master out of his mind?” she asked me.I nodded.“And he’s taking you with him?”I nodded again.“Where?” she asked.I pointed towards the center of the Earth.“Into the … Continue reading →

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The Currents of Space

Posted on June 18, 2011 by smellincoffee

The Currents of Space© 1952 Isaac AsimovFrom Triangle (pp. 1-172). © 1952. “Frightened people can be very dangerous, my Lady. They can’t be counted on to act sensibly.”“Then why do you keep them frightened?” An entire planet is doomed, and only … Continue reading →

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