Clique em uma foto para ir ao Google Livros
Carregando... Off-planetde Clifford D. Simak
Nenhum(a) Carregando...
Registre-se no LibraryThing tpara descobrir se gostará deste livro. Ainda não há conversas na Discussão sobre este livro. Indeholder "Introduction", "Construction Shack", "Ogre", "Junkyard", "The Observer", "The World That Couldn't Be", "Shadow World", "Mirage". "Introduction" handler om ??? "Construction Shack" handler om ??? "Ogre" handler om ??? "Junkyard" handler om ??? "The Observer" handler om ??? "The World That Couldn't Be" handler om ??? "Shadow World" handler om ??? "Mirage" handler om tre mænd på Mars, som bliver lovet en stor belønning af seks marsboere, hvis de kan finde en Venerable, som er nødvendig for at marsboerne kan fortsætte slægten. Menneskene har næsten udryddet Venerables, så det er ikke nemt for Richard Webb, Wampus Smith og Lars Nelson. De to onde drager videre, men den gode belønnes. Ren indianere og cowboys fortælling. ??? sem resenhas | adicionar uma resenha
Não foram encontradas descrições de bibliotecas. |
Current DiscussionsNenhum(a)
Google Books — Carregando... GênerosClassificação decimal de Dewey (CDD)823Literature English & Old English literatures English fictionClassificação da Biblioteca do Congresso dos E.U.A. (LCC)AvaliaçãoMédia:
É você?Torne-se um autor do LibraryThing. |
For those curious, the cover picture depicts one of the titular 'Shadows' from the story 'Shadow World'.
Construction Shack - 3.5
A slightly dry tale of local space exploration that houses some interesting, if dated, speculation on the makeup of the solar system. The discoveries made by an expedition team sent to Pluto are novel and lead to a fun and open-ended conclusion.
Ogre - 2.75
A unique premise regarding a planet dominated by sentient plant life. Mankind has a colony set up with a mutual understanding with certain species, pairing with symbiotic moss, making trades for resources and recording music produced by a breed of trees for the entertainment of folk back on planet Earth; the latter is in high demand and has a hypnotic effect if left unchecked. 'Ogre' is novelette length, mixing sci-fi babble with action. The former was more enjoyable for me, since I was happy to just absorb the world-building, but the more active character-driven sequences felt two-dimensional and clunky. There's an attempt to channel personality into some of the names, but it doesn't quite click. Nellie the stickler bot is the best drawn of the bunch but a bit annoying. Things become quite silly towards the end and a bit preachy, making it hard for me to invest in the story's direction.
Junkyard - 2.9
The title refers to the landing and discovery of ship debris spread across a seemingly uninhabited planet. The mystery deepens as the crew notice their memories begin to fade. Great premise; flawed and clunky in execution. Very readable, but the characters blur into one and Simak is over-keen to ensure his readers are following along. There is also a lot of unfounded speculation that leads to the characters' understanding and resolution of the situation.
The Observer - 4.5
An abstract, cosmic entity with no memory slowly recalls the meaning of its existence. The meeting of another entity places it on an irreversible track to fully discovering its origins, the consequences of which may or may not be desired. This kind of explorative, cerebral Sci-fi is right up my street and I think Simak was well suited to it. His characters are often thin and he rarely plots tightly, but when he's just having fun exploring wacky premises it can lead to some beautiful writing and an immersive atmosphere. I loved the closing line for this story and I think the sentiment conveyed in the last paragraph elevates it.
The World that Couldn't Be - 3.9
On an alien planet, within a mysterious, sexless community, Earthman Duncan becomes determined to track down a creature responsible for hindering the local crop. But this creature is not any creature, but that of a 'Cytha', of whom the natives are deathly afraid. A fun mystery of pursuit with some haunting moments, though the writing becomes less sharp towards the end and the conclusion lacks the edge the rest of the story has.
Shadow World - 3
Colonisers are working to prep a planet for habitation. The natives appear harmless but mysteriously shadow each crew member and communication seems impossible. There are some interesting ideas here but I found it hard to suspend my disbelief enough to go along with the crew going along with these stalking entities. Finding out why aliens are attached to them like magnets seems to be their lowest priority until something actually starts to go visibly wrong. Considering their whole mission is to prepare the way for other colonists, it just seems bizarre that they would carry on so carefree when they know nothing about this invasive species. The 'shadows' are also conveniently absent whenever the characters need to talk in private.
The second half brings in a bit of tech called a peeper: a sort of Simakian spin on a PKD-esque concept, which leads to some typically pretty writing (but ends up being underused). The plotting here generally seems really sloppy, but the story is overall readable and has a fun conclusion.
Mirage - 3.9
A man stranded in the deserts of Mars strives to aid a species on the verge of extinction. This one's a little slow, but well-written and with an interesting conclusion. Unexpectedly dark for Simak, depending on your interpretation. ( )