The Best of Eric Frank Russell

by Eric Frank Russell, Alan Dean Foster (Introduction)

Contents:
Mana (1937)
Jay Score (1941)
Homo Saps (1941)
Metamorphosite (1946)
Hobbyist (1947)
Late Night Final (1948)
Dear Devil (1950)
Fast Falls the Eventide (1952)
I Am Nothing (1952)
Weak Spot (1954)
Allamagoosa (1955)
Into Your Tent I'll Creep (1957)
Study in Still Life (1959)

Genres: Science Fiction, Short Stories, Fiction, Humor, Speculative Fiction, Anthologies, Collections

336 pages, Paperback

First published October 1, 1978

About the author

Eric Frank Russell was a British author best known for his science fiction novels and short stories. Much of his work was first published in the United States, in John W. Campbell's Astounding Science Fiction and other pulp magazines. Russell also wrote horror fiction for Weird Tales, and non-fiction articles on Fortean topics. A few of his stories were published under pseudonyms, of which Duncan H. Munro was used most often.

Reviews

[Craig · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'm a little conflicted on this one, because it while it does collect most of Eric Frank Russell's best short fiction, it does not have three of my favorites: The Waitabits, Diabologic, and what seems to me to be his very best, ...And Then There Were None. My favorites that are in the book are Into Your Tent I'll Creep, Dear Devil, Jay Score, and my favorite funny story of all time, Allamagoosa. Russell was an early master of science fiction, and his works are among the best of the second half of the century. He wrote insightfully of ecology and racism before they were trendy, and always believed and demonstrated that the pen was far mightier than the sword. His science of speculation was psychology rather than technology. Alan Dean Foster provides an intelligent and erudite introduction to the collection in which he calls Russell his all-time favorite science fiction writer, and mentions that John W. Campbell, editor of Astounding SF magazine said the same. (All of the stories save one in this volume appeared in ASF between 1937 and 1959, the exception being Dear Devil from Raymond A. Palmer's Other Worlds.) Foster says that Russell "shows us how sensible folk ought to comport themselves," which strikes me as true, worthwhile, and deceptively simple and profound.

[Michael Burnam-Fink · Rating 3 out of 5]

Eric Frank Russell was a B-lister of the Campbellian Golden Age. A decent enough prose stylist, Russell sent his square jawed astronauts against big cosmological themes like intelligence, conquest, and survival, with mixed results. His stories have a tendency to culminate in punchline based around some element deliberately hidden from the writer, and worse the punches feel likely off compared to a true master like Isaac Asimov. A few of the stories drag on for far longer than they have to.

That said, this collection includes the military bureaucratic farce Allamagoosa, which is worth reading (google will get you there) if you haven't yet. Make sure you know where your Offdog is, sailor.

[Rod Pyle · Rating 5 out of 5]

A fantastic collection of tales from a fantastic author. Do yourself a favor- read this.

[Michael · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a collection of short stories by one of the greats of classic science fiction, Eric Frank Russell. While maybe not as well known as Asimov, Clarke, or Heinlein he is considered by his contemporaries to be one of the best. In the introduction to this book Alan Dean Foster alludes to a conversation he had with John W. Campbell where he mentioned that Russell was his favorite science fiction writer. Campbell replied that he was his favorite author also. Eric Frank Russell wrote stories about racism, big government and the ecology not just years but decades before it became fashionable. Although couched in the form of science fiction his message about these subjects was clear. I will not try to review all of these stories, but I will say they are definitely worth the time it takes to read them. If you like the stories or even if you don't you should give his novels a try. My favorite is "WASP". I hope you enjoy his work as much as I do.

[Ni · Rating 1 out of 5]

Did not include what, imho, was his best story: 'And Then There Were None' by Eric Frank Russell abelard.org
F -IW Freedom -I will , or Freedom -I won´t...

ShiraDestinie
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MEOWdate: 6.8.12,014 H.E.

[James Henderson · Rating 4 out of 5]

These stories demonstrate the breadth of Russell's work and his ability to portray interesting ideas in a future that is impressively imagined While not advancing technology his stories delve into psychology and present a case against the ruling bureaucracies that resemble our current government in many ways.

[Erik Wennermark · Rating 2 out of 5]

Interesting look at space bureaucracy but not much pay off.

[Keith · Rating 4 out of 5]

available online at: http://projectavalon.net/Allamagoosa.pdf

[Lady Brainsample · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good example of why auditors should have a good relationship with their auditees!

[Janice · Rating 3 out of 5]

When I picked this book up from the library, I was somewhat surprised they were loaning it out. It's in pretty fragile condition. I almost felt like I should wear white gloves while reading it. So, care was taken. The stories were fun. The same blend of wit, humor, and social comment that I've come to expect from Russell's writing. As with any set of short stories, I enjoyed some more than others. I still think the first short story of his a read is my favorite (The Waitabits). This is really a 3 1/2 stars, but not quite 4.

[Graham · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love Sci-fi and I love short stories. Normally when I read a collection like this I find one of two that don't match up to the rest. Not so with this collection. Although written between 1930s and the 1950s all of them are great. The last two very funny. This guy is very underrated in my view. Loved every minute of it. If you enjoy classic sci-fi what are doing reading this, there's plenty out there.

[Kevin · Rating 3 out of 5]

short story, Hugo winner 1955, a cute old-fashioned joke set-up about naval bureaucracy, but in space.

[Tell Tale Books · Rating 5 out of 5]

-Gregory Kerkman

[CRAB · Rating 3 out of 5]

Into your tent I’ll creep.

[Ryan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Mana - 3/5 - A story of the last living man who cannot die until he reaches a certain level of satisfaction. It’s a weird concept and you don’t quite know what’s going on until the end. Luckily the story is quite short and the ending fairly interesting so it works

Jay Score - 3.5/5 - A spaceship making a trip to Venus gets off course and the only way to save themselves is to slingshot around the sun. Pretty good space adventure and Russell injects humor is a good way

Homo Saps - 2.5/5 - Odd one about some space merchants traveling to a marketplace on Mars via camel. The story does feel like a bit of a dud but there was one clever bit that I kind of enjoyed

Metamorphosite - 4/5 - Novella of a human-yet-alien man who is taken prisoner by an empire of planets. They intend to force him to become an ambassador for his planet whom they will force to join the empire. Really enjoyed it but unfortunately it starts doing telepathy stuff which is one of my least favorite tropes of the golden age of science fiction

Hobbyist - 4/5 - A very enjoyable story about a man who is trying to find a way to escape a planet he is marooned on. Unfortunately, the little blurb for this story on the back of the collection spoiled the reveal

Late Night Final - 4/5 - A strict regiment for an interplanetary empire arrives on a planet ready to conquer. During the preliminary weeks where they are studying the inhabitants to assess them as a threat, the locals' socialistic money-less society becomes too enticing for the soldiers to pass up. It’s very enjoyable despite being absurdly idealistic

Dear Devil - 5/5 - Incredible story of Martians visiting a nearly wiped out Earth. One Martian stays behind and attempts to help the remaining humans rebuild. Seeing both a post-apocalyptic and first contact story from the perspective of an alien is a very welcome perspective shift, and the fact that it is a story full of hope makes it a breath of fresh air for both sub-genres. Huge recommend

Allamagoosa - 3/5 - A ship preparing for an inspection panics when they are missing a piece of equipment that no one can identify by its listed name. Semi-funny satire but mostly forgettable

Into Your Tent I'll Creep - 3.5/5 - After first contact aliens realize that, despite appearances, humans aren't actually the dominant species

Study in Still Life - 4/5 - Similar to Allamagoosa in that it is a satire about chain of command, avoiding blame, and passing the buck only it's much more effective

[Mike · Rating 4 out of 5]

Firstly this book is dated. A number of the stories feature a Martian, so if you can't accept that I wouldn't read it. Having said that, I liked this book. Its a well put together. It reminded me of a Clifford D. Simak book, but where as Simak work is in a rural setting, this is in an outer space setting. I really liked the style of the stories, they had a good feel to them. Its difficult to pick out any particular story, they were all good, some very good.

Yes, it was dated, yes some of the technology was dated, yes there were Martians, but it was fun and enjoyable.

[Curtiss · Rating 5 out of 5]

This contains to be the most insidiously funny short story in all of science fiction, "Alamagoosa", which leads the reader on step-by-step until the final revelation of exactly what an "Offog" is - and why having one 'come apart under gravitational stress' would lead to the grounding of the entire space fleet. Anybody familiar with military protocol and stuffy superior authority will find themselves first nodding their heads and then laughing themselves silly!

[Nicole · Rating 3 out of 5]

This contains one of the best short stories I've ever read "The Allamagoosa". I'll always call the story 'Offog' as this is the way I remember it.http://www-users.cs.york.ac.uk/susan/...

[Andy]

INTRODUCTION BY ALAN DEAN FOSTER.

[Eric · Rating 3 out of 5]

Oh, so THAT is what an "Offog" is...snicker!

[Stefanie · Rating 5 out of 5]

http://projectavalon.net/Allamagoosa.pdf

[Wendell Borges · Rating 3 out of 5]

Simply and funny story.

[Marissa · Rating 3 out of 5]

I really love it when they write an entire story just for the punchline.

[Derek Evans]

I