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Thy Rocks and Rills
Unlike some other reproductions of classic texts (1) We have not used OCR(Optical Character Recognition), as this leads to bad quality books with introduced typos. (2) In books where there are images such as portraits, maps, sketches etc We have endeavoured to keep the quality of these images, so they represent accurately the original artefact. Although occasionally there may be certain imperfections with these old texts, we feel they deserve to be made available for future generations to enjoy.
34 pages, Paperback
First published February 25, 2015
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Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews
March 3, 2021
Quixotic rebellion against the status quo
Review of free Kindle edition
There are several authors named Robert Gilbert. The author of this story/novella is:
Author: Robert E. GilbertAuthor Record # 2001Legal Name: Gilbert, Robert ErnestBirthdate: 6 May 1924Deathdate: 4 April 1993Language: EnglishUsed These Alternate Names: Robert Ernest Gilbert, R. E. Gilbert, REG
Title: Thy Rocks and RillsTitle Record # 818013
Author: Robert E. Gilbert
Date: 1953-09-00
Type: SHORTFICTION
Length: novelette
Language: English
Note: From "The Shifting Realities of Philip K. Dick" in the article "Will the Atomic Bomb Ever Be Perfected?" Dick writes of a story by Gilbert that appeared in "If" - "It was poetry, love, perfection". This appears to be the only story by Gilbert to have appeared in "If". - From ISFDB.org.
He is apparently the same person as sci-fi artist REG.
Gilbert wrote of a bizarre future in this story. In a time called the Manly Age, an out-of-step East Tennessee farmer, his out-of-step wife, some strange talking cattle and an intelligent talking bull take on...well really they take on their entire unpleasant, modern world.
Review of free Kindle edition
There are several authors named Robert Gilbert. The author of this story/novella is:
Author: Robert E. GilbertAuthor Record # 2001Legal Name: Gilbert, Robert ErnestBirthdate: 6 May 1924Deathdate: 4 April 1993Language: EnglishUsed These Alternate Names: Robert Ernest Gilbert, R. E. Gilbert, REG
Title: Thy Rocks and RillsTitle Record # 818013
Author: Robert E. Gilbert
Date: 1953-09-00
Type: SHORTFICTION
Length: novelette
Language: English
Note: From "The Shifting Realities of Philip K. Dick" in the article "Will the Atomic Bomb Ever Be Perfected?" Dick writes of a story by Gilbert that appeared in "If" - "It was poetry, love, perfection". This appears to be the only story by Gilbert to have appeared in "If". - From ISFDB.org.
He is apparently the same person as sci-fi artist REG.
Gilbert wrote of a bizarre future in this story. In a time called the Manly Age, an out-of-step East Tennessee farmer, his out-of-step wife, some strange talking cattle and an intelligent talking bull take on...well really they take on their entire unpleasant, modern world.
April 21, 2020
This review is not of any of the exact versions of the story listed on Goodreads, but rather on the story as it appeared originally in the September, 1953 issue of the magazine If: Worlds of Science Fiction. My comments are excerpted, with some minor changes, from my review of that issue.
The science fiction and fantasy website ISFDb says that Philip Dick wrote of a story by Robert E. Gilbert that had appeared in If: Worlds of Science Fiction, "It was poetry, love, perfection." Evidently the only story by Gilbert that was ever in If was "Thy Rocks and Rills" in this issue. This is a wonderful and startlingly original tale; if it is not actually "perfection," it does come close.
Mr. Stonecypher has a farm in Tennessee at some unspecified future time. He raises cattle - a special breed that, long before, back in 1945, had been exposed to radiation from atomic bomb tests at Alamogordo in New Mexico. These cattle are smart - and, unknown to anyone but Stonecypher and his wife, they can talk.
A man comes to buy a dog from Stonecypher. When Stonecypher finds out that the man intends to use the dog for dogfighting, he refuses to sell. The would-be buyer then meets Stonecypher's wife, and makes her an offer as well. Stonecypher hits the man, who protests, "I intended to pay for her!" Women in what is called the Manly Age are clearly not highly valued. The man challenges Stonecypher to a duel, a government-sanctioned affair which by law Stonecypher must agree to.
On that same day, Stonecypher arranges to have a bull from his herd be used in a bullfight. This is the bull's idea; he wants to "kill the killers." Man and bull now must both prepare for battle.
Both of them act in unexpected ways. In Stonecypher's case, he actually cheats, and so survives the duel. The bull slays not only the designated bullfighters but many of the onlookers as well. But neither man nor bull escapes fate.
As I said, this is an excellent story. It has only been anthologized once, which I find surprising. The sections of the story are labeled with musical terms: "Prelude," "Intermezzo," "Sonata," "Danse Macabre," "Grand Finale," and "Recessional." The title of the story, never explained within the story itself, is also a reference to a song. It is a quote from the second stanza of "America," the song which is frequently referred to as "My Country, 'Tis of Thee":
My native country, thee,
Land of the noble free, thy name I love;
I love thy rocks and rills,
Thy woods and templed hills;
My heart with rapture thrills, like that above.
The science fiction and fantasy website ISFDb says that Philip Dick wrote of a story by Robert E. Gilbert that had appeared in If: Worlds of Science Fiction, "It was poetry, love, perfection." Evidently the only story by Gilbert that was ever in If was "Thy Rocks and Rills" in this issue. This is a wonderful and startlingly original tale; if it is not actually "perfection," it does come close.
Mr. Stonecypher has a farm in Tennessee at some unspecified future time. He raises cattle - a special breed that, long before, back in 1945, had been exposed to radiation from atomic bomb tests at Alamogordo in New Mexico. These cattle are smart - and, unknown to anyone but Stonecypher and his wife, they can talk.
A man comes to buy a dog from Stonecypher. When Stonecypher finds out that the man intends to use the dog for dogfighting, he refuses to sell. The would-be buyer then meets Stonecypher's wife, and makes her an offer as well. Stonecypher hits the man, who protests, "I intended to pay for her!" Women in what is called the Manly Age are clearly not highly valued. The man challenges Stonecypher to a duel, a government-sanctioned affair which by law Stonecypher must agree to.
On that same day, Stonecypher arranges to have a bull from his herd be used in a bullfight. This is the bull's idea; he wants to "kill the killers." Man and bull now must both prepare for battle.
Both of them act in unexpected ways. In Stonecypher's case, he actually cheats, and so survives the duel. The bull slays not only the designated bullfighters but many of the onlookers as well. But neither man nor bull escapes fate.
As I said, this is an excellent story. It has only been anthologized once, which I find surprising. The sections of the story are labeled with musical terms: "Prelude," "Intermezzo," "Sonata," "Danse Macabre," "Grand Finale," and "Recessional." The title of the story, never explained within the story itself, is also a reference to a song. It is a quote from the second stanza of "America," the song which is frequently referred to as "My Country, 'Tis of Thee":
My native country, thee,
Land of the noble free, thy name I love;
I love thy rocks and rills,
Thy woods and templed hills;
My heart with rapture thrills, like that above.
Read
November 29, 2025Far from mx ring
flay over many fild
shot kill and be done
just fly even y crashed
thee water my earth
hold my breath
want me pirsoner of then
kill and flay just shot even y mist
echo of them will be dileat
i go far
damn the cloud cover the sky
blue falso was free
portri what want sold
and shot
and i drink over the ring
just done
i fly with dove
far to crushed world
far from mine
maybe i will survive
just flay
flay over many fild
shot kill and be done
just fly even y crashed
thee water my earth
hold my breath
want me pirsoner of then
kill and flay just shot even y mist
echo of them will be dileat
i go far
damn the cloud cover the sky
blue falso was free
portri what want sold
and shot
and i drink over the ring
just done
i fly with dove
far to crushed world
far from mine
maybe i will survive
just flay
February 7, 2018
Philip K. Dick called this story poetry, love, and perfection. I hard a time at the beginning, but by the end, I agree with Dick. Fantastic story.
March 10, 2024
This is about human stupidity and bullfighting, sort of. I'm not interested in either of those. How did this short story make its way to some "best of" compilation? Extremely boring and annoying, but it was short enough so I managed to finish it.
1.75/2
1.75/2
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews