As Flores Que Pensam

by Clifford D. Simak, Eurico da Fonseca (Translator)

Cover artist: Lima de Freitas

A mysterious invisible barrier suddenly encloses a small, out-of-the-way American town. It's been put there by a galactic intelligence intent on imposing harmony and cooperation on the different peoples of the universe. But to the inhabitants, the barrier evokes stark terror.

Genres: Science Fiction, Fiction, Speculative Fiction, Ebooks, Classics, Aliens, Science Fiction Fantasy

250 pages, Mass Market Paperback

First published January 1, 1965

About the author

"He was honored by fans with three Hugo awards and by colleagues with one Nebula award and was named the third Grand Master by the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America (SFWA) in 1977." (Wikipedia)

See http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Clifford...

Reviews

[Велислав Върбанов · Rating 5 out of 5]

Незабравима фантастична история, както и една от най-любимите ми книги изобщо! „Всичко живо е трева“ съдържа страшно много мъдрост и общочовешки послания... които са характерни и като цяло за творчеството на големия Клифърд Саймък. Над малкото и затънтено американско градче Милвил се е спуснал тайнствен купол, а пък на хората в него предстои неочакван контакт с извънземна форма на живот...



„Стоях, загледан в белия ореол около главата ѝ, който подскачаше в тъмнината, и заслушан в почукването на бастунчето по дългата криволичеща пътека към чудния свят на нейната фантазия.
И не беше ли така по-добре да приемеш грубата действителност и да направиш от нея за себе си нещо странно и красиво? “




Впечатленията ми от други творби на
Клифърд Саймък:


„Градът“:
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...


„Планетата на Шекспир“:
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...


„Паралелни светове“:
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...


„Гробищен свят“:
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...


„Братството на талисмана“:
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...


„Върколак“:
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...


„Резерватът на таласъмите“:
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...


„Магистрала на вечността“:
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...


„Заложници в Рая“:
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...


„Човекоядци“:
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...


„Избор на богове“:
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...


„Отново и отново“:
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...


„Междинна станция“:
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...


„Времето е най-простото нещо“:
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...


„Посетителите“:
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...


„Куклата на съдбата“:
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...


„Котешко лице“:
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...


„Търсачи на светове“:
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

[Bradley · Rating 4 out of 5]

It's 1965, so there's a general sense of small town glorification and everymen are everywhere. This novel happens to be one of Simak's most firmly grounded in modern ('60's modern) society, and that's the expectations I had when I began reading.

And then we've got our WTH moment. How many impenetrable domes encapsulate small towns in SF, anyway? Stephen King did it twice, first in Tommyknockers and then in The Dome, but is there a direct line connection to this tale or how far back does the concept go? I was worried that I've already read this book before, albeit from later incarnations by later authors, but... I shouldn't have worried. Simak won't lead me astray and won't disappoint.

Suffice to say, it's full of lots of surprises and a wild alien invasion and discovery, time travel, alternate earths, action, betrayal, and a satisfactory end. The title may be referring to a bible passage, but I wouldn't take too much *stalk* in that. There are plenty of grassy knolls to stroll down, idea-wise, and enough new horticultural discoveries to confound any social scientist. Sense a theme? Yar, the aliens quite grow on you.

I give this novel full props for taking the SF in odd and cool ways, for staying grounded in '60's character tropes, and being immensely readable like all the rest of his novels. Its not the individual ideas, though, that make this great. It's the way he mixes the pot and grows the flowers. :)

[mark monday · Rating 2 out of 5]

It starts with a crash: the protagonist's car into the invisible dome that has mysteriously surrounded his village, the car bouncing back, a truck doing the same then plowing into his vehicle. Exciting! And then the story becomes something sad and beautiful: Simak writes with an elegiac melancholy about a small town getting smaller and sadder, and a small life getting smaller and sadder. His literary sensibilities when writing on the evanescence of such towns, such lives, make many passages a joy to read, as nature and time and life are reflected upon. The story then becomes wider, more bizarre, involving an alien incursion into our world, a human incursion into another dimension's Earth, plants with a hive mind and an altruistic nature, bizarre singing humanoids watching the death of a world as a form of entertainment.

And then it becomes a crashing bore, alas. I get what Simak intended: to show his frustrations with small-minded, suspicious, petty humans, their inability to think beyond themselves and to react to the new and the different with anything approaching grace, let alone open-mindedness. But I don't enjoy reading that perspective. Having it come from the protagonist made this story a very frustrating, irritating experience. I just wanted to shake him, yell at him, smack him upside his stubborn head. And the story expands to bring in the perspectives of his fellow villagers, and the U.S. government. My God it was too much. Like being forced to listen to conspiracy theories about masks and diseases and the government, told to me by a group of people too mulish to entertain any ideas or opinions that differ from their own. I get what Simak was illustrating, but he did it too well: the book eventually drove me up the wall, despite all of the strangeness and all of the mournfulness that came before.

[Sandy · Rating 4 out of 5]

In the 1966 3-D movie "The Bubble," later rereleased as "Fantastic Invasion of Planet Earth," an impenetrable and transparent dome of unknown origin encases a small American town, trapping its residents inside. Forty-three years later, in Stephen King's doorstop best seller of 2009, "Under the Dome," another American town, Chester's Mill, is similarly and mysteriously ensnared. Beating both these projects to the punch, however, and a possible inspiration for both of them, was Clifford D. Simak's 10th novel, "All Flesh Is Grass." The book was initially released as a Doubleday hardcover in 1965, immediately following the author's Hugo-winning "Way Station" one year earlier.

"All Flesh Is Grass" was nominated for the very first Nebula Award in what was undoubtedly the toughest competition for that coveted prize ever. No fewer than 11 novels were nominated for that first Nebula, including Philip K. Dick's "The Three Stigmata of Palmer Eldritch" (this reader's favorite Dick novel) AND "Dr. Bloodmoney," as well as Keith Laumer's "A Plague of Demons" and William S. Burroughs' "Nova Express"; Frank Herbert's "Dune" deservedly copped the prize. Released when Simak was already 61 years old and in his 27th year on the "Minneapolis Star," "All Flesh Is Grass" touches on one of the author's favorite themes--the manner in which its common-man characters rise to the challenge of encountering alien life--in a unique way, while retaining the rural setting that Simak seemed to favor most.

In the book, the reader encounters a young man, Brad Carter, who, we gather, is in his mid-20s. Brad is a resident of the small town of Millville (in Wisconsin, we must infer; Simak had been born in Millville, Wisconsin), and when we first meet him, his small real estate/insurance business is about to go kaput. But Brad is soon shaken out of his doldrums by a series of startling events. A strange cordless and dialless telephone appears on his office desk (no, not a smartphone), connecting Brad with a personage with three distinct voices, who asks the young man to be his/her/its representative. The town's preeminent businessman gives him $1,500 for some unnamed task. The town drunk starts babbling about the government and The Bomb. Brad's high school sweetheart, Nancy, returns to Millville after several years away. The "village idiot," Tupper Tyler, emerges out of nowhere after a 10-year absence. And, most distressingly, a mysterious dome is erected overnight, completely sealing Millville off from the rest of the world! "All Flesh Is Grass" follows the citizenry of Millville over the course of three days, during which time Brad discovers a time portal in his backyard that leads to an alternate Earth. In this alternate Earth he finds a world of sentient, purple flower creatures, the entities responsible for the whole mishegas. The Flowers only want to share their billions of years' worth of accumulated knowledge with mankind, but can we humans put aside our fears and suspicions before the trigger-happy U.S. government simply drops an H bomb on Millville?

Simak's great novel of 1953, "Ring Around the Sun," had also touched on the subject of alternate Earths, and in more depth than this 1965 offering. Still, the 50-page section (I refer here to the 1966 Berkley Medallion paperback, which I was fortunate enough to find somewhere) in which Brad explores this strange world is a fascinating and atmospheric one. Basically, though, "All Flesh Is Grass" strikes the reader as a sci-fi rendition of Thornton Wilder's 1938 play "Our Town," with Millville itself being the central character. The town sports a population of eccentric oddballs, and we ultimately do get to know several dozen of Millville's 200-odd residents fairly well. It is a nostalgic tribute by the author to his birthplace, although not quite as loving as one might expect. Brad often ponders on the need for himself to move away, while Nancy, as well as Brad's friend Alf, are only visiting after happily having gotten out.

As one might imagine, some of the wacky residents are very decent folk, many are petty and small-minded, while still others are reactionary and vicious. (In one of the book's most satisfying scenes, Brad beats the tar out of the town constable, who used to be the school bully and is still quite the despicable sort.) The book contains some of Simak's loveliest writing, and his descriptions of the town--and the alternate Earth--are very well drawn. In one early section, Brad thinks back on his high school sweetheart Nancy, and tells us "…we talked in whispers and we willed that time should move at a slower pace so we might hold the magic longer. But for all our willing, it had never come to pass, for time, even then, was something that could not be slowed or stopped.…" But Brad soon learns that the manipulation of time is possible, indeed, as had Shepherd Blaine in Simak's 1961 offering "Time Is the Simplest Thing."

And not only is "All Flesh Is Grass" written in a lovely, compulsively readable style, it also gives us some of Simak's philosophy on writing. Nancy, a budding author herself, says at one point "…it's a thing that you don’t talk about--not until you're well along with it. There are so many things that can go wrong with writing.…" To which sentiment Brad tells us "…You had to have a hunger, a different kind of hunger, to finish up a book…." (Fortunately for his millions of fans, Simak had the hunger, and pretty much nothing went wrong with this book!)

In his 10th novel, Simak seems to take a dim view as to mankind's chances of making a successful first contact with an alien race. As a matter of fact, strike that "seems to"; he is absolutely scathing in his denunciation:

"They would fail. We would always fail. We weren't built to do anything but fail. We had the wrong kind of motives and we couldn't change them. We had a built-in short-sightedness and an inherent selfishness and a self-concern that made it impossible to step out of the little human rut we traveled...."

Surprisingly, then, Simak does manage to resolve things on a positive note, with a last-minute, slightly rushed, deus ex machina ending that may as well have inspired Lennon & McCartney's song "All You Need Is Love."

"All Flesh Is Grass" also contains some throwaway bits that might strike the reader as somewhat weird. For example, Millville's sole Catholic priest is one Father Flanagan...the same name that Simak had given the Catholic priest character in "Time Is the Simplest Thing." Whether this is supposed to be the same Father Flanagan or not is a question for the reader to decide. Meanwhile, the name of the town barber is Floyd, and in 1965, the character of Floyd the barber, as played by Howard McNear, started to appear on "The Andy Griffith Show"! Coincidence? Who knows. And you've doubtless heard that old expression "Money doesn’t grow on trees"? Well, here, Simak demonstrates how true that maxim is: It grows, rather, on bushes, and Brad finds a whole bunch of them, sprouting $50 bills, right in his backyard!

Writing of Simak's book in his "Ultimate Guide to Science Fiction," Scottish critic David Pringle calls it a "charming sf pastoral in Simak's best vein. Not exactly mind-stretching, but most enjoyable reading for those who like their sf to be gentle and predictable." Well, I would agree with Mr. Pringle on everything except that last "predictable" part; personally, I could never tell where this book was headed next, and had no idea how the author could possibly tie things up neatly (which, impressively, he manages to do). Like many other Simak books, "All Flesh Is Grass" is a novel that could easily have served as the basis for a string of sequels; a temptation that Simak never gave in to. It is a novel that comes more than highly recommended by yours truly. And, oh...watch out for that nasty seed storm!

(By the way, this review originally appeared on the FanLit site at http://www.fantasyliterature.com/ ... a most ideal destination for all fans of Clifford D. Simak....)

[Metodi Markov · Rating 5 out of 5]

Магията и човеколюбието на Саймък са много силни в тази книга!

[Phil · Rating 4 out of 5]

Simak tackles some thorny issues in All Flesh is Grass, but does not let that get in the way of a good story! The tale takes place in Millville, Ohio, a small town slowly fading into obscurity and poverty. Our protagonist, Brad Carter, grew up in Millville, but after a year of college came home to help his parents and after they passed away, just kinda stayed. His father ran a greenhouse and made a living of it, but Brad never had a green thumb, and his real estate and insurance business failed; he starts the novel shutting down his office (unpaid rent) and wondering what to do next.

This starts off a bit herky-jerky, but soon comes together. Brad takes his car, packed with fishing gear, to pick up an old pal who came to town when he runs into the 'dome' or 'bubble' encapsulating the town. It is invisible, but life forms cannot pass through it. WTF? Where did it come from? What is the purpose? Well, Brad soon finds out. When he comes back to town after crashing his car, he finds an odd phone in his office-- no dial and no line, but when he picks it up he hears a voice. Apparently, someone wants him to serve as an ambassador, and before he can say no, or really that his is not qualified at all, the voice tells him to contact a man he knows. The man, probably the richest in town (which is not saying much!) tells him he has been contacted by voices giving him plans and such...

In short, an alien race on a parallel Earth made contact with humanity, but covertly. The aliens, flowers, had been 'uplifted' to intelligence by some long gone alien race to be used as essentially computers; a complex data storage system. Millions, if not billions of years have passed since then, however. The flowers discovered how to move among the parallel Earths and now our Earth is next. The flowers have been 'learning' from humanity for years, possessing some telepathic powers, but not all humans can be 'reached' this way. The bubble or dome over Millville consists of distorted time (Simak does not go into tons of detail here!). Brad talks to the flowers over the special funky phones and via some portal in his garden, travels to another Earth, populated almost exclusively by flowers.

The flowers make Brad (and our Earth) an offer-- they will share their knowledge and become partners for the future. Sounds great, but Brad feels a bit suspicious. This part of the story feels so real-- his emotional struggles. Can he trust the flowers? They could probably come uninvited if you will, so why ask for help and acceptance? When word gets out, and it does, what will the pentagon do? Drop a nuke on old Millville? The tension builds as the story progresses. 4 flowery stars!

[Donna · Rating 3 out of 5]

Clifford D. Simak was an American science fiction author, writing from the 1930's-1980's. He won numerous honors including three Hugo Awards and one Nebula Award, plus he was named a Grand Master by the Science Fiction Writers of America, as well as receiving recognition in the genre of horror. He was also a person who was very concerned about the fate of mankind in light of the rise of nuclear weapons during his time, and the turmoil of nations at war, as well as the violence within people's own communities. He was also concerned about how technology and other forms of progress might just not be a step forward. He examined these concerns and his fears by writing stories set mostly on Earth that involved people encountering aliens, which brought mankind to a crisis point, especially considering how people acted toward other humans right here on Earth. But he didn't write his stories for shock value as much as write them to shock people out of their complacency where their future and that of the world was concerned. So Simak, with his honors and thought provoking stories, comes with much to recommend him, even though he doesn't seem as well known as others writing in his genre during his time. I hadn't heard of him myself except by chance when going through a GR "best of science fiction" list. Using that list, I've read what are considered two of his best books, City, which I really enjoyed, and Way Station, which I liked quite a bit, too. After that, I had no real recommendations to go by and randomly chose this book next. The premise sounded like something out of a Twilight Zone episode, a show I enjoyed, but with Simak writing the book, I knew there'd be depth to the characters and a story that would get me thinking. And I was right, though I admit I didn't enjoy this story nearly as much as the other two, but I still found it interesting and worth reading.

This story takes place in the 1960's in a small town In Wisconsin named Millville which happens to be a real town where Simak was born and raised. It is filled with a regulation cast of small town characters, some weary, some wise, some foolish, and some just plain eccentric. Even the town of Millville is portrayed as a character as reflected on by another one.

"The town lay dusty and arrogant and smug beyond all telling and it sneered at me and I knew that I had been mistaken in not leaving it when I’d had the chance. I had tried to live with it for very love of it, but I’d been blind to try. I had known what all my friends had known, the ones who’d gone away, but I had closed my mind to that sure and certain knowledge: there was nothing left in Millville to make one stay around. It was an old town and it was dying, as old things always die. It was being strangled by the swift and easy roads that took customers to better shopping areas; it was dying with the decline of marginal agriculture, dying along with the little vacant hillside farms that no longer would support a family. It was a place of genteel poverty and it had its share of musty quaintness, but it was dying just the same, albeit in the polite scent of lavender and impeccable good manners."

One day, without warning, the residents find themselves trapped inside their town by an invisible dome-shaped barrier that allowed only objects and not people to enter or exit it. Brad Carter, a failed businessman, is the first to discover the barrier and is one of several people in town to learn who or shall I say "what" put it there and why. What he learns has him, in turns, curious, cautious, worried, and panicked. And when the entire town learns what Brad and few others know, and then the entire country and world learn about it, the stakes get even higher with Millville's residents as unwilling players in what amounts to a game of survival. How the game will end is dependent on a show of humanity, even if it must be shown by aliens.

As I mentioned, Simak wrote his stories with a message in mind besides wanting to entertain. His stories are cautionary tales of what mankind can look forward to if it isn't careful with its weapons of destruction used not only towards others, but towards the earth, with the deadly results falling back on mankind. And he wasn't speaking only of nuclear weapons, but ones like hatred and intolerance.

This story, written in 1965, is dated in that drinks at a bar cost less than a buck and there are near extinct items such as rotary phones, but the messages coming through it from the past were meant to be heard well into the future, such as this one:

"Some day," said Davenport, angrier than ever, "the human race will have to find a solution to its problems that does not involve the use of force."

[Nate · Rating 4 out of 5]

My fourth Simak book and it’s got that small town, country charm that made city and way station so distinctly his combined with some wild concepts.

I haven’t read under the dome but I have a feeling that Stephen King read this before he wrote it. It’s no spoiler to tell you that part of the basic premise of the book is a small midwestern town trapped under an invisible dome of unknown origins.

That would really be enough for a novel, especially a short one. The people in the town cut off and becoming more and more agitated and paranoid as their captivity stretches on.
Simak takes it a step farther and then just keeps walking.

I’ve hear his stuff is hit or miss but so far I’ve only read one that wasn’t great (goblin reservation)

[Clouds]

[the interesting words are in the comments]

This is a book.
Filled with words.
One of those words is spleen (which is an innately funny word).
Another of those words is pandemonium (which is one of my favourite words - I'm going to name a puppy Pandemonium one day, and call him Pan for short).

Mr Simak knows many good words and arranges them into a story, with a beginning, a middle and end.

It is a good book.

I highly recommend you spend your dollarpounds on this product at Amazon.com (or .co.uk, or whatever your local equivalent) and support our benevolent overlords.

[Петър Панчев · Rating 4 out of 5]

Отново всичко живо е трева
Цялото ревю тук: http://knijenpetar.blogspot.com/2015/...

Колко е хубаво да се завърнеш в един прекрасен свят, особено ако е с мирис на хартия и още нещо - свят, сътворен от Саймък и пълен с чудесата на класическата фантастика. „Всичко живо е трева“ навърши 50 години, откакто украси за пръв път лавиците в книжарниците, откакто читателите за пръв път почувстваха магията на историята в нея. Аз също си спомних за трепетното разлистване на страниците, когато страстта ми към книгите ме караше да тичам до читалищната библиотека и да потърквам нетърпеливо кориците още преди на съм се прибрал. Често изкачвах хълмчето до парка около стадиона и се изгубвах във високите треви, сядах на любимия си камък и започвах да чета. Наоколо имаше лилави цветчета - теменужки. Там за пръв път прочетох книгата на Саймък.

„Всичко живо е трева“ не е обикновена книга - зад нея прозират човешките и не толкова човешки проблеми на хората, населяващи планета, все още изолирана от необятната Вселена. Саймък ни разказва за тази необ��тност без да сътворява сложни технически средства; той просто ни поднася човешките си притеснения за едно скрито и потайно бъдеще, което ние, хората, можем да спасим от гибел като използваме своя разум. Колко хубаво може да бъде всичко, само трябва да го пожелаем.

Саймък ни кани в Милвил - малко градче, което изневиделица бива връхлетяно от необичайни посетители. Изведнъж около града се появява странна преграда, която изолира жителите като в затвор и става причина Брадшо Картър да потърси причината за появата ѝ. Всички около него са на тръни и сътворяват всякакви конспиративни теории, за да приемат по-лесно случващото се. (Продължава в блога)

[Stephen · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.0 stars. I am a fan of Cliff Simak's work and really enjoyed Way Station, City and The Goblin Reservation. I liked this book too, but not quite as much as the three previously listed.

In typical Simak fashion, we have aliens arriving at a small rural town (in this case an invisible barrier completely cuts off the town of Milville from the rest of the planet) and introduce humanity to the wider universe. Well written with decent characters and Simak's trademark "small town" feel, it was a good, fast read. I just didn't like it quite as much as I have some of his other books.

Nominee: Nebula Award for Best Science Fiction novel.

[Oleksandr Zholud · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is an SF novel about an unusual first contact. It was first published in 1965 and nominated for the inaugural Nebula Awards in 1966 among 12 novel nominees (Dune won). Simak’s short story was also nominated the same year, “Over the River and Through the Woods”. I read it as a part of the monthly reading for September 2024 at Hugo & Nebula Awards: Best Novels group.

The story starts with a bang: the protagonist, a man in his 30s, Brad Carter from a small mid-American town Millville, drives on a road out of the town till an invisible barrier stops his car. It turns out that the town is encircled by some forcefield that allows only inanimate things to pass (or more precisely ‘below some sentience level, for any stone is covered with bacteria and other biota). Then the story goes back one day and we learn more about what had happened before [1] Brad lost his job; [2] met a ‘village idiot’, who disappeared about ten years ago; [3] found a telephone without a dial or wire (oh a predicted smartphone, hehe), which rung and three different voices talked with Bred, asking to work for them. With the help of his girlfriend and several other people, Brad finds out the truth…

This is light, cozy, old-fashioned story. There is a naïve solution for the problem of the 60s – the nuclear arms race. There are interesting aliens and their unusual ways. I cannot say that the book is groundbreaking, but it is definitely a pleasant escapist read.

[Craig · Rating 4 out of 5]

All Flesh is Grass was published in September of 1965, forty-four years before King's Under the Dome appeared. Simak's novel is about one-fourth as long, but shares many of the same themes, conceits, and situations. It was nominated for a Nebula Award in the first year of their existence, but (quite reasonably) lost to Herbert's Dune. It's set in the small Midwestern town of Millville, and Simak quite masterfully alternates his idealized vision of the pastoral small-town lifestyle with the parallel-world (reached via a time-phase boundary by our hero, Brad Carter), of the sentient purple alien flowers that represent a universal AI data storage system. It's a thought-provoking work, well-written and imaginative. It's a little dated in spots, I guess, but reading Simak is still worthwhile. (The title is an old metaphor, probably biblical in origin, meaning that human life is short and subject to frailty.)

[Irena · Rating 5 out of 5]

Как съм пропуснала преди години тази книга не знам, но сега я прочетох с огромно удоволствие, защото ми припомни темите на шейсетте години от миналия век. Преживели най-страшната война, завършила със страховития ужас на ядрената смърт, хората живееха с надежда за по-добро бъдеще, вяра в науката и в човечността. Първото пътешествие на землянинн в космоса постави пред умовете им въпросът за етичните проблеми при евентуалната среща с извънземен разум. Толкова наивна доброта лъха от романа, че ме обзе тъга по загубената младост. Не моята. На човечеството.

[Jennifer · Rating 5 out of 5]

My mother had this exact copy of this book on her bookshelf when I was small. The cover with the flowers made a big impression and when I ordered my copy and had to make sure I got a copy with this cover. I also wonder if the purple flowers on the cover is what makes me plant purple violas every year...I mean they just make me so happy and I love them.
If my violas could do what these flowers could do.....

[Ebenmaessiger · Rating 4 out of 5]

in which the only thing worse than nuclear annihilation is the fear that we won't have the capability to bring it about … for anyone wondering why disch’s GENOCIDES was such a shock to the system, read the final chapter of this otherwise structurally similar book, released in the same year

[Knigoqdec · Rating 4 out of 5]

Саймък отново успя да ме впечатли. Всичко изглежда простичко, може би дори не толкова оригинално, може би даже банално, но въпреки това "Всичко живо е трева" е изключително вдъхновяваща. Това е може би втората ми среща с автора, но, да, оставам си необяснимо и дълбоко впечатлена.
Имаше и друг въпрос, който основно ме занимаваше през цялото време, а именно - изключителното сходство между "Всичко живо е трева" и "Под купола" на Стивън Кинг. Въпреки че черпя информация за второто произведение за момента само от сериала, не спря да ме гложди любопитството за това колко сериозна може да стане приликата. Милвил и Честърс Мил, един купол, който случайно се появява от нищото и го откриваме и в двата случая насред пътя... някои сходства между герои, или поне образи, които могат да се намерят и в двете произведения, и така нататък.
Куполът на Кинг несъмнено е по-устойчив и мистериозен.
Куполът на Саймък разкрива предназначението си бързо, но пък и книгата е значително по-малка.
Няма как да сравня историите към края им, защото все ми се струва, че сериалът по "Под купола" не разполага с край по книгата (вижда ми се адски глупав и изсмукан от пръстите този трети сезон). Но пък за края на "Всичко живо е трева" мога да кажа, че е насочен към надеждата за вечността. Нещо, което ми се струва, че и преди съм откривала при Саймък и което харесвам.

Вероятно и аз съм грешен и глупав човек, но също повярвах на Цветята. Може би защото обещанията им и предложенията са толкова утопични, че мъничко опияняват. Главният герой се опита да ме спаси, описвайки "гостите" като опасни, обаче аз така и не ги видях в тази светлина...

[Христо Блажев · Rating 4 out of 5]

“Всичко живо е трева” и с аромат на цветя: http://www.knigolandia.info/2011/09/b...

Пореден роман на Клифърд Саймък (след “Гробищен свят” и “Градът”), който чета със закъснение и съжаление за пропуска през тийнейджърските ми години. И отново се изумявам от умението му от една дребна идея да създаде нещо голямо и мащабно.

   Във “Всичко живо е трева” малко градче се оказва впримчено в прозрачна, но много реална непробиваема преграда (много ми любопитно какво е направил Стивън Кинг с подобен сюжет в “Купола” – и като споменахме Кинг… :). Спусната сякаш от небесата, тя отграничава действителността от фантазията, която се появява под формата на много странни цветя, които се оказват всичко друго, но не и невинни вкоренени в земята растения.

[Kirsten · Rating 4 out of 5]

What an engaging and absorbing book! Written in 1965 - many years before Stephen King's Under the Dome - it posits a very unusual first contact scenario, not from outer space, but from another dimension. Not another animal species but from a plant. Fascinating!

Clifford Simak's language and story building I was first exposed to in Way Station (1963) but it was so much more advanced by the time he wrote this one. Just incredible.

[Благовеста · Rating 4 out of 5]

"Никое друго живо същество не е развило понятието красота. Само човек от земята би изкопал някъде от горите две-три самотни цветенца, би ги донесъл вкъщи и би се грижил за тях заради красотата им… А до този момент и на самите Цветя и през ум не им е минавало, че са красиви. Никой дотогава не ги е обичал и не се е грижил за тях. Също като жена, която не знае, че е красива, докато някой не й каже, и като самотно сираче, което се скита по чужди къщи и изведнъж намира родния си дом."
"И повече няма да се боим от Цветята, защото ще им бъдем необходими, защото те ни търсеха, без да знаят какво търсят и без дори да подозират, че на света съществува това, което ние можем да им дадем."

[Metaphorosis · Rating 4 out of 5]

I recently re-read this, and discovered what I'd forgotten - what a consummate literary writer Simak could be. This story, while it's about an invisible barrier and the aliens that create it, is a classic exploration of small-town America. Extremely readable, with likeable characters that consider problems the way you and I might. The language and story aren't zippy action sequences, but flowing prose about real people. Definitely worth reading if you like intelligent writing.

This story reminds me of Jack Finney, a rough contemporary of Simak's.

[Apatt · Rating 5 out of 5]

First sf book I ever read, stumbled upon it in the local library, got me totally hooked on the genre. Great sf starting point for any young reader (not actually YA). A little bit like Stephen King's Under The Dome but without the violence. Simak's compassion shines through in all his stories.

[Dave · Rating 4 out of 5]

Isaiah 40:6 “All flesh is grass, and all the goodliness thereof is as the flower of the field: the grass withereth, the flower fadeth: because the spirit of the LORD bloweth upon it: surely the people is grass”.

Simak starts this classic science fiction novel slowly as Bradshaw Carter of Millville, a small rural town somewhere, finds he can’t go anywhere because there’s a mysterious though invisible bubble surrounding the town and cutting it off from, well, the rest of the world. You can’t drive through it and traffic is backing up. And, when Brad goes to phone someone, he finds the barrier even divides houses in half, separating hysterical parents from their still sleeping kids. Brad is practically the only one of his high school gang who never left and the result has been a series of failing businesses and the phone being shut off and the rent unpaid. Brad is, in fact, the most unlikely of heroes and pretty much the last person you’d trust with making interstellar contact.

But odd things and coincidences abound in Simak’s worlds. And, via an unconnected phone with no dial (there were no cell phones in 1965), Brad is asked to trust a series of changing voices and to become an ambassador. After all, he is told he came highly recommended.

This novel starts out rather quirky, given the small-town atmosphere and the immediate problem of the bubble isolating the town. But as the story goes on, Brad finds that not all is as it seems. For instance, well-respected community members have been essentially on the payroll of otherworldly voices, making these mysterious phones and distributing them across the country. The voices are fixated on Brad, but there seems little reason to fixate on him. He’s essentially a small-town loser and now half the town blames him for the bubble. With this bubble, the small town which is so hard to escape becomes impossibly so.

And even when Brad follows a bum into another world, things barely become clear to him. He feels quite powerless against the forces arrayed against the town and against perhaps the world.

All Flesh is Grass may be a first contact story, but it is one that shows how odd such contact can be between two sets of beings with different understandings of the world and distrust of each other. It also shows that such contact may not necessarily be made with those in authority, but with anyone from anywhere.

[Jeff Koeppen · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoy Simak's pastoral science fiction and this novel was no exception. His novels often have a small-town or rural setting, often modeled after the area he grew up in just off the Wisconsin River in southwestern Wisconsin.

This novel was set in "Millville, USA" (Simak was born and raised in Millville, WI) where a mysterious bubble forms over the city and humans can't get in or out but inanimate objects can get through the forcefield for some reason. The story centers around the escapades of main character, Brad Carter, as he and other Millvillians attempt to solve their mystery. Brad lives alone in the family home in Millville. His late father cultivated some mysterious purple flowers in his garden. The flowers have a connection to what is going on in Millville - not a spoiler as they are often pictured on the book's cover.

Amongst the oddities Brad has to deal with in the novel are: aliens, a parallel earth, an acquaintance who disappeared years ago showing up out of nowhere, and a mysterious unplugged (!) telephone which showed up at his house one day and which connects to a representative to the mysterious aliens. Where the phone came from is also a mystery.

This is all framed in a (relatable to those who grew up in a small town) setting full of pettiness, rumor mills, small town politics, and family grudges; all stressed by the fact that everyone is trapped in a bubble. The outside world has also noticed the bubble and Cold War (this was written in 1965) paranoia bubbles up as the governmental powers that be try to decide how to neutralize or destroy this perceived aggression on American soil.

I just love Simak's smooth and easy writing. He was a great story teller. As always, he perfectly captures the essence and nuances of small town / rural living. In this novel he gradually reveals the secrets to what's going on as things reach the boiling point amongst the Millville citizens. The non-threatening but mysterious aliens are the most interesting creations I've read in a long time. Just fascinating. The ending was not what I was expecting at all. I didn't like All Flesh is Grass as much as his Way Station but it's right up there. 4.5 stars.

* I read this for the Apocalypse Whenever Book Club - this is the May 2022 read

[Mitticus · Rating 3 out of 5]

«Era la misma vieja historia. Humana o extraterrestre, no había diferencia. Uno deseaba algo con la fuerza suficiente y salía a buscarla de la forma en que podía.»

Bradshaw Carter se prepara a salir de Milville , su pueblo natal, para visitar un amigo, cuando choca con una barrera invisible.

Efectivamente, una cupula invisible ya en 1965, unos cuantos años antes de King y su "Under the Dome" de 2009.

Pronto se ve que Brad vendrá a ser protagonista, y portavoz renuente, de las Flores moradas, y que esta enzarzado a una historia con su padre con sus 'dedos verdes', y a una suerte de invasión que aspira a entrar por la puerta grande con plena aceptación de los humanos.

A un retrato de pueblo rural, que sufre problemas económicos graves, con sus personajes típicos. el bobo, el maton, el borracho, el alcalde , el banquero, y el tipo rico sobre la colina, y de todos esas decisiones posibles y momentos que no pudieron ser; se suma una idea bastante interesante acerca de dimensiones paralelas divididas por el tiempo. De flores inteligentes, que actuan como colectivo recopilador de datos, una suerte de computadores vivientes como explican en humano sin muchos referentes para darse a entender. Además esta eso de la de la Invasion que va de planeta en planeta , buscando, buscando, que, ni ellas lo saben que han reproducido algunos animes.

«Pero ¿y si estuvieran vivas?
—Bueno, en ese caso, me imagino que su último propósito sería el almacenamiento de un dato universal y su correlación.
—Entonces —me revelaron—, somos computadoras vivas.
—Luego, para ustedes no hay final. Seguirán viajando por siempre jamás.
—Lo ignoramos —repitieron por tercera vez.
—Los datos —me aleccionaron— son el medio para un único fin, alcanzar la verdad. Quizás no necesitemos un dato universal para alcanzar la verdad.
—¿Cómo sabrán que la han alcanzando?
—Lo sabremos —afirmaron.»

Alguien describe a Brad como un personaje 'likable', a mi no me lo parece, por el contrario, esta lleno de prejuicios y hace varios comentarios bastante desagradables acerca de personas del pueblo. Y, como vocero, deja bastante que desear.

Luego los otros aliens que aparecen que son bastante desconcertantes, lo de seres adictos al terror que gustan de ver cosas apocalipticas, cuando llegan a la Tierra y les dicen que todavia no esta abierto.... oh, eso no augura muy buen futuro.

Y eso del "asistente médico" me parece demasiado cercano a un reemplazo absoluto, a lo BodySnatchers, con las plantitas, además desde que Brad consume comida transformada de flores, que me huele mal eso de estar consumiendolas, creo que pueden dominarlos internamente tal vez, al convertirse en parte de ellas? Uf, la paranoia tambien funciona aqui

La paranoia que sucede es esperada, ¿justificable?, cuando las intenciones de las Flores no estan claras, ni siquiera hasta el final del libro que llega a una posible y muy dudosa solución con lo que queda todo muy de final abierto.


*Notas: Este libro de Simak fue publicado en 1965 y fue nominado al Nebula el año siguiente siendo "Duna" de Herbert el ganador. Milville , Wisconsin, es de hecho el pueblo de Simak .

[Alexander Theofanidis · Rating 4 out of 5]

H κωμόπολη Millville αποκλείεται από τον έξω κόσμο εξ αιτίας ενός αόρατου φράγματος. Και μάλιστα αυτό συμβαίνει δεκαετίες πριν κλέψει την ιδέα ο Stephen φρίκη με το κιλό, φρίκη τοις μετρητοίς, φρίκη επί πιστώσει-King και γράψει τον, μάλλον μέτριο, «Θόλο». Ναι μέρος της επιτυχίας του Στίβεν είναι να δανείζεται ιδέες από καλύτερους συγγραφείς, όπως δανείστηκε το χορτοκοπτικό εκείνος ο γείτονας που έχετε να δείτε από το 1992. Στρατός, πολιτοφυλακή, πεζοναύτες και πελταστές σπάνε τα μούτρα τους και είναι αδύνατον να ρίξουν το φράγμα, ή να περάσουν μέσα από αυτό.

Ο ήρωάς μας, ο Μπραντ Κάρτερ (αν έχετε διαβάσει ξανά Simak θα έχετε ήδη υποψιαστεί ότι ένας απλός άντρας, όπως… εσείς ή ο δικός σας) ανακαλύπτει πίσω από το αόρατο αυτό τείχος μια εξωγήινη συλλογική ευφυΐα. Φυσικά, επειδή Simak, η εξωγήινη αυτή νοημοσύνη δεν έχει έρθει για να βιάσει τις παρθένες μας ή να μας ξετινάξει στα πυρηνικά και λέιζερ «πίου-πίου», αλλά περισσότερο για να μας τεστάρει (βλ. επίσης στο ίδιο θέμα το εξαιρετικό διήγημα «Puppet Show» του Frederic Brown, 1962), να μας γραδάρει, να μας στιμάρει ως όντα και ως σύνολο για να μπούμε στα μεγάλα σαλόνια του σύμπαντος (φαντάσου να γινόταν κάτι τέτοιο στο Βερολίνο του 1936 ή στην Washington DC του 2025…).

Για βιβλίο που εκδόθηκε το 1965, όταν τα παιδιά των λουλουδιών μόλι�� ανακαλύπτανε από ποια πλευρά του φυτού είναι το κοτσάνι (και από ποια ο "παπάς"), το έντονα οικολογικό περιεχόμενο σοκάρει ευχάριστα, ίσως επειδή έρχεται από έναν καταξιωμένο συγγραφέα Ε.Φ. και όχι από κάποια τελειωμένη περσόνα που κοιμάται αγκαλιά με ασβούς και λούζεται με κοπριά μαρμότας, ενώ, μάλιστα, βάζει τον ΑΜΕΡΙΚΑΝΟ ΝΑ ΔΕΧΕΤΑΙ ΣΥΜΒΟΥΛΕΣ ΑΠΟ ΚΑΤΙ ΠΟΥ ΠΑΡΑΓΕΙ ΧΛΩΡΟΦΥΛΛΗ για το πώς θα συνεργαστεί καλύτερα με τη φύση (για να μην πάει και ο πλανήτης κατά διαόλου, φίλε Simak, πόσο μπροστά ήσανε, πόσο μπροστά…). Βέβαια, το αίσθημα της απομόνωσης και του πειραματισμού κυριαρχεί σε όλο το έργο, αλλά πάντα υπάρχει μια ελπιδοφόρα αχτίδα φωτός για το μέλλον, την άρση των προκαταλήψεων, την οικολογική συνείδηση, το «κάνε με ένα με όλα» που λες είτε σε γκουρού του διαλογισμού είτε σε σαντουιτσά στη Θεσσαλονίκη.

Αν λοιπόν αντέχετε για ΜΙΑ φορά οι εξωγήινοι να έρχονται όχι για να μας δείρουν αλλά για να μας διαφωτίσουν, δώστε του μια ευκαιρία. Φυσικά, ανάμεσα στις γραμμές, ο καθένας θα δει κι άλλα πραγματάκια πέρα από μια απλή, χαριτωμένη ευχάριστη ιστορία οικολογικού προσανατολισμού… Για παράδειγμα, είναι σε θέση ο άνθρωπος να συμβιώσει με άλλες μορφές ζωής χωρίς να τις καταστρέφει, κατασπαράζει, εκμεταλλεύεται, οδηγεί στην εξαφάνιση; Και κάτω από ποιες προϋποθέσεις; Είμαστε τα χτικιά του σύμπαντος ή όχι; Είναι η απομόνωση αφηγηματική αλληγορική τεχνική για να αποδοθεί η ενστισκτώδης αντίδραση του αποκλεισμού του νέου και άγνωστου, που ωστόσο μπορεί να μην είναι καν επιβλαβές αλλά ωφέλιμο; Όταν μαδάς μια μαργαρίτα, θα ήθελες να σου κάνει το ίδιο; Παρεκτρέπομαι…

[Fantasy boy · Rating 3 out of 5]

I think I like City more than this one.

All Flesh is Grass is a first contact Sci Fi book with common alien invasion settings, the people in town were trapped by the alien barrier. Many Sci Fi movies have the similar settings, books also.

The story start with the protagonist was looking for the explanation of what happened to Millville, and the intention of the alien which is disguise as the purple flowers. The childhood of the protagonist and the past time of Millville are not the main plots but it successfully depicts what lives in a remotely rural town would be like. I think the author specifically described the lives were in Millville to accentuate the experience of the protagonists and his townsfolk. Let the readers have some emotional connection with the people in the story’s Millville.

The concept about time is interesting, alien’s mission and the evolution by the other races shows that the relationship that which human have with dogs. Not a surprise that this would be the final solution to the story.

Basically it is interesting story but sometimes the story tells in explanations rather than in nature story telling; side characters somehow a bit less deep in the story. The structure of the story is not bad but too many Sci Fi films, books telling a similar story.

The concept of multiverse of earths and other worlds also appears in City. Perhaps the author turely believes that there in universes other worlds exist.

6.5 out of 10.

[Georgi · Rating 5 out of 5]

„Всичко живо е трева“ е страхотна история, написана с невероятна фантазия и безкрайно интелигентни послания. Саймък поставя жителите на Милвил пред изпитание, когато мистериозен купол обгръща малкото им затънтено градче. Но това далеч не е единствената мистерия. Появяват се необяснимо изчезнали преди години хора, а телефони без шайба и без кабел започват да звънят тук-там из града. Оказва се, че човечеството е на крачка да осъществи контакт с представители на чужда цивилизация. Но готови ли са жителите на Милвил за това? Готови ли са хората и техните правителства да направят необходимите компромиси? И не се ли крие някаква голяма опасност зад твърде обещаващото предложение на ненадейните гости?

Как ще реагирате, ако разберете, че много по-древната чуждоземна цивилизация, която стои на прага на нашата планета, всъщност представлява сложна система от цветя? Цветя с разум. Саймък рисува удивително красиви и пъстри картини на паралелни земи, от които ни дели само един праг във времето (стига да знаеш къде се намира той). И въпросите, които задава, размислите, които провокира, са истински химн на смелата фантазия, но и на разума.

Цялото ревю: https://bibliotekata.wordpress.com/20...

[Vincent · Rating 3 out of 5]

A decent effort but with a flawed ending.

Brad is a likeable enough character who behaves in a believable way, not too smart or dumb or heroic, a reasonable everyman.
The other characters are the usual Simak mixture of small town life, some nice some not.

The pace is good, lots of things happen in a short space of time so there is plenty going on, not action in the adventure sense but never dull.

The plot is also good with a few twists and turns, it uses a recurring theme of Simak's with time treated in a very different way to the usual sense.

The book is let down by the ending, it relies on too high a level of naivety for it to be believable.

Still, good light entertainment; not one of his best but still good.

[Rado · Rating 5 out of 5]

Доста готина книга, разглеждаща първия контакт.

+ Интересна история
+ Изцяло от гледна точка на човека с нулева информация за това кое е истина. Това от своя страна води до различни теории и главоблъсканици
+ Типично за Саймък историята е леко абсурдна

-(?) Действието е по-спокойто и липсват динамични ситуации
- На моменти филостването ми идваше малко в повече