A Martian Odyssey and Other Science Fiction Stories of Stanley Weinbaum: Valley of Dreams, Flight on Titan, Parasite Planet, The Lotus Eaters, The Planet of Doubt, The Mad Moon…

by Stanley G. Weinbaum

Fantasy Press composite reprint: A Martian Odyssey & Others ('49) & The Red Peri ('52):
A Martian Odyssey/Tweel ('34) Weinbaum novelette
An Autobiographical Sketch ('35) Weinbaum essay
Dawn of Fame: The Career of Stanley G. Weinbaum/Studies in Science Fiction ('59) Sam Moskowitz essay
Flight on Titan ('35) Weinbaum novelette
Graph ('36) Weinbaum story
Parasite Planet/Ham Hammond ('35) Weinbaum novelette
Proteus Island ('36) Weinbaum novelette
Pygmalion's Spectacles ('35) Weinbaum story
Redemption Cairn ('36) Weinbaum novelette
Revolution of 1950 ('38) Ralph Milne Farley & Weinbaum novella
Shifting Seas ('37) Weinbaum novelette
Smothered Seas ('36) Ralph Milne Farley & Weinbaum novelette
The Adaptive Ultimate ('35) Weinbaum novelette
The Brink of Infinity ('36) Weinbaum story
The Circle of Zero ('36) Weinbaum story
The Ideal/Manderpootz ('35) Weinbaum story
The Last Martian Weinbaum poem
The Lotus Eaters/Ham Hammond ('35) Weinbaum novelette
The Mad Moon ('35) Weinbaum novelette
The Planet of Doubt/Ham Hammond ('35) Weinbaum novelette
The Point of View/Manderpootz ('36) Weinbaum story
The Red Peri ('35) Weinbaum novella
The Worlds of If/Manderpootz ('35) Weinbaum story
Valley of Dreams/Tweel ('34) Weinbaum story

Genres: Science Fiction, Short Stories, Fiction, Classics, Science Fiction Fantasy

228 pages, Paperback

First published June 28, 1974

About the author

Full name: Stanley Grauman Weinbaum.

"In his short career, Stanley G. Weinbaum revolutionized science fiction. We are still exploring the themes he gave us." —Poul Anderson

"Stanley G. Weinbaum's name deserves to rank with those of Wells and Heinlein—and no more than a handful of others—as among the great shapers of modern science fiction." —Frederik Pohl

Reviews

[Stephen · Rating 5 out of 5]

I'm a huge SF geekasaurus fairly prolific reader of science fiction and yet I was very surprised to learn that this classic tale was the #2 vote getter (behind only Isaac Asimov’s Nightfall) when the Science Fiction Writers of America compiled their list of the Best SF short stories written before 1965. Of course, once I read this strange and wonderful story, my bulging eyes receded and I quickly lost the slack in my jaw because Stanley G Weinbaum penned a masterpiece when he wrote this tale in 1934. A true timeless classic.

As the title implies, this story is a journey of wanderings and discoveries across a beautifully conceived Martian landscape including marvelous interactions with the unique (and for the time ground-breaking) alien inhabitants of this most impressive world. It is a quest story, an odyssey.

Written in 1934 and set early in the 21st century, the plot concerns a four man crew making the first landing on Mars. Dick Jarvis, the ship's chemist, becomes trapped 800 miles away from the landing site when his transport breaks down while exploring the southern hemisphere of the Red Planet. Jarvis is forced to begin walking back the 800 miles to reach his colleagues……..and thus begins one of the most unique, imaginative and memorable journeys in all of science fiction.

Jarvis’s journey across the Martian landscape is, in a word, WONDROUS. The prose has such a lyrical, poetic quality to it that a true sense of “elsewhere” is created in the mind of the reader. I am a big fan of that.

While on his odyssey, Jarvis encounters several "indigenous" and intelligent life forms. One of these aliens, Tweel, accompanies Jarvis on his trip back as the two new friends try their best to learn about the other despite the difficulty of having no common language or shared history. I don't want to give anything else away specifics of the journey so let me just say that A LOT happens before the end and all of it is worth experiencing. As a bonus, the last sentence of the story is an absolute TEN and changes the whole complexion of the tale, which I thought was very funny.

From a historical perspective, this story was extremely influential as it is marks the first time that an alien is used as something more than a simple "one dimensional" plot device. Weinbaum's aliens are shown to have their own reasons for existing (not easily understood by the humans as they do not share a common history or frame of reference). These inhabitants of Mars are neither human-like nor inferior to humans, they are simply different.

In fact, Tweel is widely considered the first character to satisfy the famous challenge of John W. Campbell: "Write me a creature who thinks as well as a man, or better than a man, but not like a man." Weinbaum did that, and all of the talented SF writers who have created such memorable and well drawn alien cultures owe a debt to Mr. Weinbaum for showing the way. 5.0 to 5.5 stars. HIGHEST POSSIBLE RECOMMENDATION.

[ᛚᚨᚱᚲᚨ × ᚠᛖᚾᚱᛁᚱ (Semi hiatus) · Rating 4 out of 5]

Tralasciando la parte centrale in cui Stanley G. Weinbaum cade un po' nel ripetitivo, i suoi racconti sono freschi, dinamici, nuovi. Forse la ripetitività è dovuta al fatto che le sue pubblicazioni avvenivano tramite riviste sci-fi dell'epoca, quindi doveva ricorrere alla stessa "formula vincente" per accattivarsi il consenso del pubblico. Nonostante alcune strutture in quelle storie vengano ripetute, non mancano elementi di originalità. Un vero peccato che questo autore non sia vissuto più a lungo.

Un'odissea marziana ~ ★★★★½
La valle dei sogni ~ ★★★★★
I mondi del Se... ~ ★★★
L'ideale ~ ★★★½
La luna pazza ~ ★★★
Il pianeta dei parassiti ~ ★★★½
Il pianeta del dubbio ~ ★★★★
La Peri Rossa ~ ★★★½
Il mutare delle correnti ~ ★★★★
Adattabilità ~ ★★★★½

[Olethros · Rating 3 out of 5]

-Una buena ocasión para demostrar que las perspectivas cambian con el tiempo.-

Género. Relatos.

Lo que nos cuenta. Seis relatos del prematuramente malogrado y no demasiado conocido autor, mayoritariamente de Ciencia-Ficción y que tocan, entre otros temas, el extraño y peligroso ecosistema venusiano, las matemáticas para escapar de un loco homicida, una isla con criaturas extrañas, la exploración de Marte y una mujer con capacidades metahumanas. Relatos escritos entre 1934 y 1936, varios publicados de manera póstuma, y editados en diferentes antologías y recopilaciones a lo largo de los años.

¿Quiere saber más de este libro, sin spoilers? Visite:

http://librosdeolethros.blogspot.com/...

[Kenneth · Rating 4 out of 5]

The title story is an early science fiction classic, first published in 1934. All the stories were written in the early/mid 1930's, so they may seem dated to today's readers, but Weinbaum was one of the first sf writers to present aliens as something other than monsters. I read this book back in the 1960's and don't remember the plotlines of most of these stories.

[Dan'l Danehy-Oakes · Rating 4 out of 5]

Either you know the story of Stanley G. Weinbaum, or you don't care. If you fall into either of those categories, skip the next two paragraphs.

In those dark days when science fiction was mostly rubbish about robots and slavering aliens menacing beautiful women in brass bikinis, and their (white, heterosexual, cis) male saviors - in those days, I say, an unknown writer named Stanley G. Weinbaum published a story called "A Martian Odyssey." It was far advanced over much of what was being published at the time, featuring alien creatures who were truly _alien_, with life cycles and desires truly different from our own.

Weinbaum, for the next couple of years, produced a great variety of sf stories, sometimes as wildly creative as "Odyssey," sometimes ... not ... He died very young, of cancer, shortly before the (first) "Golden Age" of science fiction would make the kind of thing he had done more common, even _de rigeur_.

This volume - part of a series curated by Sam Moskowitz in the 1970s - collects all the short fiction Weinbaum is known to have written in his short life. Some of it feels very, well, _dated_ - not surprisingly, after 80+ years - but many of his ideas still glitter with the real gold of the stfnal imagination.

Yes, women are - by and large - relegated to traditional roles. But there are a number of stories where women have power and at least one ("The Revolution of 1960") where gender is bent, as much as could be safely done in popular fiction of the 1930s.

Weinbaum came up with original ideas that other writers would mine for decades, and indeed some that they still do. Yes, there are a few stories with space pirates and suchlike, but for every traditional heroes and villains" story there are two that aren't, from "Odyssey" itself to the silly little "Graph" (a story that in many ways could have come from the pen of the mature Heinlein). Weinbaum was an early "hard science" writer, in that he made serious efforts to get his science right, or to at least handwave appropriately when current scientific belief would impede his story.

But in honesty, most of these stories are more of historical interest than anything else. They won't impress people who've cut their teeth on Iain Banks or Ursula Le Guin, Samuel Delany or Gene Wolfe. They are _simple_ in ways that a modern writer of sf really can't get away with. They have no real depth of meaning. They do not challenge anybody's cherished beliefs. They aren't often very funny, and when they are, it's a kind of hokey, old fashioned humor.

But for those (like me) who cherish a historical sense of where sf has come from, who believe that this sense provides an additional layer of depth when considering where it is going now, this is quite an enjoyable read.

[Leila Anani · Rating 5 out of 5]

I'd previously read (and adored) A Martian Odyssey (and other great science fiction stories) - 1966, and when i recommended this to a friend, he purchased this copy 'The Martian Odyssey and other SF" - 2008 - Which other than the titular story, features completely different Weinbaum tales - Which is kind of neat because I get to read a whole load of new material. And I have to say it's of the same calibre, I'm reminded a lot of Ray Bradbury here.

Valley of Dreams is the sequel to A Martian Odyssey. We return to Mars and birdman Tweel. I love that this brings in an Egyptian myth connection, and we get the idea that Martians visited us a long time ago, before their civilization starting dying. A staple of sci-fi now but back in the 30's this is ground-shattering stuff! The ending is kind of dark as well, as we leave the Martians with the power of the atomic bomb and lets face it, not all of them are benevolent.... Imaginative and one of the finest depictions of alien worlds and cultures in classic sci-fi.

The other 4 stories here are completely different from the space opera of the first two. Instead we have a mad scientist (I picture someone like Flash Gordon's Zarkoff) and his straight-man foil. In each case the scientist creates an invention, the young man tests it and has some sort of tragic romance.

"The Worlds of If" is a bit sliding doors - looking at the road not taken. Our protagonist misses his plane, which he learn subsequently crashes. Through the professor's machine he gets to see what would have happened if he had boarded the flight, and falls in love with the woman seated next to him...

"The Ideal" is a bit like the Mirror of Erised - Our protagonist falls in love with his idea woman, but of course she doesn't exist in reality....

"The Point of View" enables the protagonist to experience love through the eyes of another - So he falls for the same woman.

And finally "Pygmalion's Spectacles", which while having a different professor and student to the previous 3 linked tales, offers the same sort of set up. The professor invents a way to enter the living dream and our protagonist falls for Galatia in the fantasy realm....

The only criticisms I can really level at this anthology are the fact that the last 4 stories are terribly similar to each other and that these are so very different thematically from the first two. So in overall tone, this anthology is a little unbalanced.

However, other than that.... All the stories are brilliant in their own right - excellently crafted with a fascinating premise that mixes fringe science, philosophy and the human psyche - which is what science fiction is all about.

[Jim Reddy · Rating 4 out of 5]

When I first started reading science fiction in high school I started out with short stories. A Martian Odyssey was one of the first stories that I read. An astronaut on Mars has to make his way back to his teammates on foot after his rocket crashes. On the way he encounters some very unique and very alien life forms.

The stories in this collection were written in the 1930s so they do show their age in places. Most of them still hold up though and are full of innovation, imagination, and great storytelling.

A Martian Odyssey (5/5)
The Adaptive Ultimate (4/5)
The Lotus Eaters (3.5/4)
Proteus Island (4/5)
The Brink of Infinity (2/5)

This is a review of the Lancer edition which contains five stories.

[Roberta · Rating 4 out of 5]

The stories are pretty great - classic space travel, strong characters, if a little outdated (the male views of women shown are far behind the actual portrayals of women, which is curious), using the knowledge of the time to portray the planets and moons in the Solar System. By the end it gets a little repetitive (having to cross many miles after technology fails, falling in love with the only human female on the planet, etc.), but still pretty strong stories.

But who on earth thought it's a good idea to print an e-book straight on paper without reformatting? Reading the 9-size print was a nightmare, and the layout makes little sense. The OCR causes typos frequently, especially in some stories, detracting from the quality.

[Jason · Rating 2 out of 5]

A little too much pulp in the fiction for my tastes. Interesting as a piece of Science Fiction history, but nothing to make me care about the characters that much. Through I will admit I found the Manderpootz stories kind of funny with their "old timey" humor.

[HannahBeth · Rating 3 out of 5]

I only read the title story, but I can’t find the individual story by itself on Goodreads. I thought it was surprisingly good considering my limited knowledge of sci-fi. I only wish it was longer so that I could have spent a little more time in his world building. It would have made a great novel.

[Rock Howard · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of my favorite books of all time. At least read the title story which was a true breakthrough in science fiction in its day.

[Michele N · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting short story… with a good twist.
characters are limited but that’s the nature of a short story?

Read via Audible

[James · Rating 3 out of 5]

A mixed bag, but an important one given its historical context. Weinbaum was something of a prodigy, rewriting the course of science fiction in his tragically brief career (he died while in his early thirties, in 1935). Weinbaum's work took us from the era of Victorian/Edwardian adventure (Verne, Wells) into the golden age of post-WWII science fiction. And in this collection of five short stories and novellas, we see that change as it occurs.

Despite being a major breakthrough, viewed with eighty years of hindsight, the stories seem fairly run-of-the-mill - but at the time they would have been a revelation (in much the same way, by analogy, as Bill Haley's songs seem hokey now, but were a breakthrough - for white music fans at least - during the mid 1950s).

Taken in context, then, the works are important, but reading them today, they seem like typical golden era fare. It is the details, though, that make several of the stories stand out. The title story and "The Lotus Eaters", in particular, present believable and imaginative alien races, at a time when science fiction aliens tended to be either all too human or completely incomprehensible. "The Adaptive Ultimate" shows several of the tropes of both early Hollywood talkies and the nascent superhero comic, weaving them into an enjoyable tale. The remaining two stories show that the new style had not entirely replaced the old; the short "The Brink of Infinity"feels like a nod to the gothic fiction of Poe, but the real problem child of the volume is "Proteus Island".

(some spoilers ahead)

Within "Proteus Island" we see the crossover from the old style to the new. It is an adventure yarn in the style of H.G. Wells, and indeed bears some similarities to the latter's "The Island of Dr. Moreau", yet whereas that tale used vivisection to create its monstrous beasts, Weinbaum's tale uses the concept of genetic manipulation via radiation - the first tale to consider direct genetic engineering. It's plot is well constructed, though there are too many fumbles for it to be regarded as a believable tale. Setting the tale on an island off the southern extremities of New Zealand and then giving it a tropical short twilight is a schoolboy howler, and the characterisation of Maori, even for the 1930s, is ludicrous. Yet the tropical climate is a necessity to the story, whereas the presence of Maori is not. Far more sensible would have been to set the story in (I'm loath to use this term, but in the context of the time it seems appropriate) more primitive regions in the tropics, such as, say, New Guinea. The tale's denouement also feels too much of a deus ex machina to be acceptable.

Overall, then, I've given the volume three stars - some stories are definitely closer to four, but their now dated nature and the problems of "Proteus Island" lower the overall tally to three.

[Eric · Rating 4 out of 5]

Stanley G. Weinbaum's mind is an incredible force in the pioneering of a genre that was largely undeveloped at the time of his writing. His first story, A Martian Odyssey, ran in the mid nineteen thirties. This doesn't stop his characters from visiting Mars in atomic powered space craft. He briefly alludes to a series of previous space expeditions, which gives his universe a complete feel, despite the sparse details that frame it. The bulk of the story is told my one of the martianauts who is separated from the group and then recounts the tale of his strange journey. The characters are well established by the comments that they offer, and the niches in the narrative that they fill. What is surprising is that the main character is not really our everyman narrator, but rather the strange creature that he encounters along the way. The subtlety employed in this decision is really what makes the narration so brilliant. Throughout it is captivating, mind-bogglingly different (especially for its time), and entirely self sufficient, all in a mere thirty pages. I can't wait to read more.

I have read more. The second story in this book, titled "The Adaptive Ultimate", was not as good as the first. It was certainly entertaining, but didn't have the same allure as Odyssey. I think this is in large part because the story takes place on Earth, and not on Mars. Damn.

Success. "The Lotus Eaters" takes place on Venus! This story was in the same league as Odyssey, although without quite as much character. Nevertheless it is well told; pulling you in and keeping you interested while the characters explore the dark side of Venus. There are also hints alluding to exploration of other planets of the solar system that flesh out the surrounding world in a way that is captivating. As the story progresses Weinbaum drops hints in just the right degree to pull you all the way through the story. An excellent read.

[Chris · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is an omnibus edition of two previous anthologies of Mr. Weinbaum's sci-fi short stories, "A Martian Odyssey and Others," and "The Red Peri." The first volume contains the most consistently higher quality stories in that they are inventive in terms of world-building and imagining totally alien forms of life. The second volume contains his lesser known and lesser quality works. Special clunkers are the two pieces co-written by Ralph Milne Farley, one of which has a surprisingly intriguing transsexual as a protagonist whose narrative promise is ruined by horribly chauvinist writing.

"The Red Peri," the namesake short story that leads off the second collection is my favorite because it shakes off the sexism that runs rampant throughout the rest of the stories. It features a female space pirate whose personal quest of revenge outweighs the overwhelming desire to get married (often at the drop of a hat) that all his other female characters seem to have. Not surprisingly, racism is prevalent, especially regards to the villainy of so-called "Asiatic" peoples, in opposition to the implied superiority of white people.

Readers with a cursory interest in Stanley Weinbaum should focus on his planetary tales, which tend to be quests to reach safe territory on a hostile planet after losing shelter or being stranded through one dramatic catastrophe or another.

[Simon · Rating 2 out of 5]

It's been a while since I read any Golden Age science fiction, and now I know why. The cover blurb and fawning introduction try desperately hard to convince you that these stories are ground-breaking classics, but all I found was a handful of horribly dated tales. Even taking into account the fact that they were written in the 1930s there's no excuse for characterisation which doesn't extend beyond identifying people as "the physicist", "the chemist" and "the astronomer", for conversations which consist mainly of scientists lecturing each other on their respective specialities so that the reader can understand some obscure plot point, and some decidedly old-fashioned attitudes to women.
There are a couple of intriguing ideas, and Weinbaum does have a talent for imagining genuinely alien aliens, but none of the stories really go anywhere interesting.

[Joey Brockert · Rating 3 out of 5]

I was cued in to read this book from the dedication for it in “Deus Irae” by Mr, Zalanzy and Mr. Dick.
Four astronauts have landed and are exploring Mats. One goes this way, and the other goes that way. The one had a problem and had to walk back to the ship across various landscapes. The first thing the does is save an odd creatujre from being eaten by another creature. They became trabeling companions. On the way back they encountered other oddities, most of which were explained by the creature he saved. It became like traveling in the Land of Oz: various odd creatures to study and learn about. He gets in a tussle in the end and is saved by the other fellow coming for him in the other rocket.
The story is quite dated and we know more of the actual nature of Mars, but it always fun to read thise old sgtories with their quiant ideas of what there is .

[CV Rick · Rating 4 out of 5]

Can you believe this guy only had an 18 month career? He wrote for years, but his first professional publication happened a year and a half before he died of lung cancer. I wonder what he was up to and I wonder what he could've become.

Anyway, A Martian Odyssey - the title story apparently changed the science fiction genre. It was the first alien to truly be alien. The Tweel didn't act like a human, think like a human, speak like a human, or look like a human. It was better than human and worse. It was unique in a comprehensible way.

Today the stories seem quirky and quaint, but I'm taking it on reputation that he was the first and that the honor of imitation has made the stories seem shells of what I've already read from others.

However - 80 years later, they are all interesting and even captivating tales.

[Joseph · Rating 2 out of 5]

A collection science fiction stories by author Stanley Weinbaum, 16 stories in all. Weinbaum died in 1934 so his stories reflect science fiction of that time. These are tales of exploration and living on planets within our solar system and obviously do not reflect our current state of knowledge of these planets. This does not prevent telling a good tale. This collection also includes several Haskel van Manderpootz (an arrogant genius) stories that are surprisingly good in the concepts they raise of what is reality? Note that this review actually reflects an omnibus collection of Weinbaum's works available at http://www.mobileread.com/forums/showthread.php?t=52178

[Steven Peterson · Rating 4 out of 5]

A collection of stories by pioneering sci-fi author Stanley Weinbaum. Sam Moskowitz, in an introduction to this volume, says that (Page 3): "Many devotees of science fiction sincerely believe that the true beginnings of modern science fiction, with its emphasis on polished writing, otherworldly psychology, and stronger characterization began with Stanley G. Weinbaum."

This is a fine volume, containing some of his best short works. My personal favorite? "A Martian Odyssey," published in 1934. Other stories: "The Adaptive Ultimate," "The Lotus Eaters," "Proteus Island," and "The Brink of Infinity."

A wonderful introduction to the worlds of Stanley Weinbaum.

[Andreas · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is one of the better pulp classics, it contains 6 famous stories. Most of them are still entertaining, but definitely nothing that keeps you awake all night. The whole genre has moved forward so you should only pick up the book if you are interested in the history of SF.

The best story is Pygmalion's Spectacle, it has a nice punchline. The worst stories are Tidal Moon and A circle of zero.

[Olivera · Rating 3 out of 5]

So far, I have only read 'A Martian Odyssey' and the follow up, 'Valley of Dreams'. I love Tweel, and the descriptions and the exploration of Mars, but absolutely hate the Captain, Harrison and the reactions to being retold tales of other worlds! He is the captains of the first spaceship to Mars! Why would everything seem 'nuts!' to him? It so annoying, but I guess I was never an early 20th century astronomer.

[Tiago Hackbarth · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a fantastic journey of imagination. For the time it was writen, the depiction of Mars is perfect, and it was the one of the first SF Novels that depicted Aliens that where more than humans with funny heads.

Tweel may be the first alien in SF that had not only a alien body, but a alien mind.

[Robert · Rating 5 out of 5]

A classic which helped spawn my interest in science fiction and the way I thought about things. It is sad that Weinbaum's career as a writer was so short. Even so he helped set the bar for all the science fiction that came after him. All the stories in this book are the type you cannot put down until done. Highly recommended read even today for anyone interested in this genre.

[Erik Graff · Rating 2 out of 5]

Much as Weinbaum is of historical importance to the science fiction genre, I didn't much care for his stories. They seemed quite dated at the time I read them. Frankly, the only thing that impressed me was his description of the life-forms of Mars.

[Chris Gager · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read a book years ago with classic sci-fi stories and this is the only title I remember. In fact it's the only story I remember. So this might be the right book. But... seems to me the other stories were by different writers so maybe not. Date read is a guess.

[Lawrence · Rating 5 out of 5]

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