What do you think?
Rate this book
Man of Steel, Woman of Kleenex
Can Superman make a baby with Lois Lane, or is he doomed to be the last of his kind? This article discusses the scientific and medical issues involved in copulating with a Kryptonian.
27 minutes
27 minutes
1 pages, Audiobook
First published January 1, 1969
1 person is currently reading
116 people want to read
About the author
Larry Niven
692 books3,334 followersLaurence van Cott Niven's best known work is Ringworld (Ringworld, #1) (1970), which received the Hugo, Locus, Ditmar, and Nebula awards. His work is primarily hard science fiction, using big science concepts and theoretical physics. The creation of thoroughly worked-out alien species, which are very different from humans both physically and mentally, is recognized as one of Niven's main strengths.
Niven also often includes elements of detective fiction and adventure stories. His fantasy includes The Magic Goes Away series, which utilizes an exhaustible resource, called Mana, to make the magic a non-renewable resource.
Niven created an alien species, the Kzin, which were featured in a series of twelve collection books, the Man-Kzin Wars. He co-authored a number of novels with Jerry Pournelle. In fact, much of his writing since the 1970s has been in collaboration, particularly with Pournelle, Steven Barnes, Brenda Cooper, or Edward M. Lerner.
He briefly attended the California Institute of Technology and graduated with a Bachelor of Arts in mathematics (with a minor in psychology) from Washburn University, Topeka, Kansas, in 1962. He did a year of graduate work in mathematics at the University of California at Los Angeles. He has since lived in Los Angeles suburbs, including Chatsworth and Tarzana, as a full-time writer. He married Marilyn Joyce "Fuzzy Pink" Wisowaty, herself a well-known science fiction and Regency literature fan, on September 6, 1969.
Niven won the Hugo Award for Best Short Story for Neutron Star in 1967. In 1972, for Inconstant Moon, and in 1975 for The Hole Man. In 1976, he won the Hugo Award for Best Novelette for The Borderland of Sol.
Niven has written scripts for various science fiction television shows, including the original Land of the Lost series and Star Trek: The Animated Series, for which he adapted his early Kzin story The Soft Weapon. He adapted his story Inconstant Moon for an episode of the television series The Outer Limits in 1996.
He has also written for the DC Comics character Green Lantern including in his stories hard science fiction concepts such as universal entropy and the redshift effect, which are unusual in comic books.
http://us.macmillan.com/author/larryn...
Niven also often includes elements of detective fiction and adventure stories. His fantasy includes The Magic Goes Away series, which utilizes an exhaustible resource, called Mana, to make the magic a non-renewable resource.
Niven created an alien species, the Kzin, which were featured in a series of twelve collection books, the Man-Kzin Wars. He co-authored a number of novels with Jerry Pournelle. In fact, much of his writing since the 1970s has been in collaboration, particularly with Pournelle, Steven Barnes, Brenda Cooper, or Edward M. Lerner.
He briefly attended the California Institute of Technology and graduated with a Bachelor of Arts in mathematics (with a minor in psychology) from Washburn University, Topeka, Kansas, in 1962. He did a year of graduate work in mathematics at the University of California at Los Angeles. He has since lived in Los Angeles suburbs, including Chatsworth and Tarzana, as a full-time writer. He married Marilyn Joyce "Fuzzy Pink" Wisowaty, herself a well-known science fiction and Regency literature fan, on September 6, 1969.
Niven won the Hugo Award for Best Short Story for Neutron Star in 1967. In 1972, for Inconstant Moon, and in 1975 for The Hole Man. In 1976, he won the Hugo Award for Best Novelette for The Borderland of Sol.
Niven has written scripts for various science fiction television shows, including the original Land of the Lost series and Star Trek: The Animated Series, for which he adapted his early Kzin story The Soft Weapon. He adapted his story Inconstant Moon for an episode of the television series The Outer Limits in 1996.
He has also written for the DC Comics character Green Lantern including in his stories hard science fiction concepts such as universal entropy and the redshift effect, which are unusual in comic books.
http://us.macmillan.com/author/larryn...
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews
May 6, 2018
I read this as part of the anthology Alien Sex: 19 Tales by the Masters of Science Fiction and Dark Fantasy
A really clever story about how sex between Superman and a human is impossible. The afterward where he describes how the story originated and that he became an expert on Superman sex was wonderful. 5 stars
A really clever story about how sex between Superman and a human is impossible. The afterward where he describes how the story originated and that he became an expert on Superman sex was wonderful. 5 stars
November 2, 2019
From Niven's glory days. Or, as one reprint had it:
Intimate details of Superman's sex life revealed!"
First published 1n 1969. Authorized reprint (text) : http://www.rawbw.com/~svw/superman.ht...
"Imagine ten million earthworm size spermatozoa swarming over a Metropolis beach, diving to fertilize the beach balls . . . "
Ol' Larry could certainly spin a tale, in those days. . . ⚡️ 🚀 🎆
Intimate details of Superman's sex life revealed!"
First published 1n 1969. Authorized reprint (text) : http://www.rawbw.com/~svw/superman.ht...
"Imagine ten million earthworm size spermatozoa swarming over a Metropolis beach, diving to fertilize the beach balls . . . "
Ol' Larry could certainly spin a tale, in those days. . . ⚡️ 🚀 🎆
January 17, 2019
This wasn't what I expected - but it was pretty funny. Very clinical and very quick.
May 24, 2021
Hahaha.
March 10, 2022
A very short, and quite funny, look at the physiological difficulties that would be faced if Superman and Lois tried to have sex, and have children. Topics not covered in the comics 😁
March 17, 2021
I guess I’m too much of a nerd since I assumed this was going to be a “serious” take on the science of Superman’s & either LL being able to compatibly breed (given Niven’s s Irene chops), but it was very tongue in cheek and silly. The few actual realistic points were often paired with some eyebrow raising assumptions. A+ to Niven again for his very active imagination, but I wasn’t impressed with the analysis. As short as this is, I actually had to make myself finish and even then only did so bc I had made it ¾ of the way and only had a few minutes left.
The comics and all jokes about Superman have incorporated these ideas into the metahuman zeitgeist so you’ve probably already seen it illustrated and/or read it in superhero satire somewhere. Save yourself the time.
The comics and all jokes about Superman have incorporated these ideas into the metahuman zeitgeist so you’ve probably already seen it illustrated and/or read it in superhero satire somewhere. Save yourself the time.
July 5, 2019
*Horrified laughter
Note to Superman: Try not to kill any human woman in your potential quest to procreate.
Note to Superman: Try not to kill any human woman in your potential quest to procreate.
October 24, 2019
A surprisingly serious essay about the problems of Superman having sex...
But I found it funny so maybe it’s funny because it knows to look like it’s taking itself seriously?
But I found it funny so maybe it’s funny because it knows to look like it’s taking itself seriously?
June 11, 2020
Very funny essay on silver-age Superman and how badly him having sex would go.
February 11, 2023
lois should just peg him
March 14, 2016
Larry Niven's tongue in cheek look at Superman's sexuality, and the deadly consequences thereof. Funny and horrifying in about equal measure.
May 24, 2022
LOL. I am convinced that this inspired Stephanie Meyer's take on Bella's vampire pregnancy.
Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews