Robert Sheckley (1928–2005)

A collection of the short fiction of Robert Sheckley, all of which appeared in the science fiction magazines of the 1950s. None are particularly memorable; all have some kind of twist, sometimes quite predictable, and a tone of wry humour.

The eponymous story is probably the weakest. It uses the idea, novel at the time, of a race where the prize is an acre of land in an overpopulated Earth. The goal is to reach the land registry office in New York which is supposedly a densely packed criminal underworld - as per the 1970s 'Escape to New York' starring Kurt Russell - but in the event is more like a pantomine landscape complete with heart-of-gold bandit chief's daughters. The final twist is probably the best part of the story.

One of the better stories, 'Restricted Area', tips over into fantasy but is quite amusing. There are three connected tales concerning the misadventures of two old friends who have set up a planetary decontamination business: two stories are about what happens when one of them buys an odd alien gadget, and the last is how they set out to decontaminate a planet which has a reputation for ghosts. Overall, a 2-star rating as nothing held my interest very well.… (mer)

4.5

Not typically the sort of writing I go out for but I can't think of another occasion where I have found an extensive collection such as this to be so consistently entertaining. Bar one or two stories, nearly every entry hit the spot in combining compelling ideas, tight writing, and witty social satire. Sheckley writes well and this is a highly readable and entertaining collection with commentary that still feels relevant; generally, I think I softened to his style more and more as I went along. I will likely check out one of his novels to see how he fares with the longer format.… (mer)