The Outer Reaches

by August Derleth (Editor)

Subtitled: Favorite Science Fiction Tales Chosen by Their Authors, this anthology contains: Co-operate of Else by A. E. van Vogt; Good Night Mr James by Clifford D. Simak; The Critters by Frank Belknap Long; Death Sentence by Isaac Asimov; This is the Land by Nelson Bond; Ylla by Ray Bradbury; The Green Cat by Cleve Cartmill; Pardon My Mistake by Fletcher Pratt; The Plutonian Drug by Clark Ashton Smith; and Farewell to Eden by Theodore Sturgeon.

Genres: Science Fiction, Anthologies, Fiction

174 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1951

About the author

August William Derleth was an American writer and anthologist. Though best remembered as the first book publisher of the writings of H. P. Lovecraft, and for his own contributions to the Cthulhu Mythos and the Cosmic Horror genre, as well as his founding of the publisher Arkham House (which did much to bring supernatural fiction into print in hardcover in the US that had only been readily available in the UK), Derleth was a leading American regional writer of his day, as well as prolific in several other genres, including historical fiction, poetry, detective fiction, science fiction, and biography

A 1938 Guggenheim Fellow, Derleth considered his most serious work to be the ambitious Sac Prairie Saga, a series of fiction, historical fiction, poetry, and non-fiction naturalist works designed to memorialize life in the Wisconsin he knew. Derleth can also be considered a pioneering naturalist and conservationist in his writing

[https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Augus...]

Reviews

[Graham · Rating 3 out of 5]

This review is for the paperback version of the anthology, which features only 10 of the original 17 stories that the hardback included. My passion is for pulp-era horror rather than sci-fi, so my enjoyment of these was somewhat muted, but there are still some good tales collected here. The first, Van Vogt's CO-OPERATE – OR ELSE!, is much like the film ENEMY MINE, except more expansive and intricately described, with a good psychological battle between species. Clifford Simak's GOOD NIGHT, MR. JAMES begins as a scavenger hunt but ends as something much different; I think it had a lot of potential but loses a little in the execution. I usually like Frank Belknap Long but I found THE CRITTERS a disappointment, another apocalypse story based around a dullish conversation with an old-timer.

Asimov's DEATH SENTENCE is equally laboured, with sentient robots occupying their own planet; imaginative for sure, but oddly muted with it. THIS IS THE LAND is by Nelson Bond and yet another version of the apocalypse, notable for a decent twist ending. I'd previously read and enjoyed Bradbury's YLLA so I skipped that one, leading me on to Carl Cartmill's THE GREEN CAT, an obvious but nonetheless enjoyable story about a mysterious feline.

PARDON MY MISTAKE sounds like a Laurel & Hardy comedy but is in fact a tale of a saboteur astronaut, once again building to a decent enough twist at the end. I was delighted by the presence of an old favourite, Clark Ashton Smith, whose THE PLUTONIUM DRUG is based around a fantastically-described drug trip and hits hard with a whammy of an ending. The story that closes the anthology is Theodore Sturgeon's FAREWELL TO EDEN, once again with shades of THE TIME MACHINE as survivors contemplate the end of humanity.

[Craig · Rating 3 out of 5]

August Derleth is known as the founder of the Arkham House publishing company, as a writer of Lovecraftian horror and Holmesian mystery, and also was a well-known figure in the science fiction field. I don't believe there was as sharp of a distinction in those days. My copy of the 1958 Berkley paperback edition (.35 cents!) of THE OUTER REACHES notes that ten of the original seventeen stories are included. The back cover claims that each story was selected by its author as his own favorite, which I found hard to believe, but we'll never know. There's a Ray Bradbury from THE MARTIAN CHRONICLES, an A.E. Van Vogt Rull story, a very good Frank Belknap Long, an Isaac Asimov that seems to have themes from both the robot and psycho-history series, and stories from Nelson Bond, Cleve Cartmill, Fletcher Pratt, Theodore Sturgeon, and Clark Ashton Smith. The best of the lot by far is "Good Night, Mr. James," by Clifford D. Simak, a true classic, one of the best stories Galaxy magazine ever published.

[Michael]

Poul Anderson - Interloper:
Ein handlungsarmes Gedankenspiel um interstellaren Kolonialismus; Vertreter verschiedener Planeten leben seit Jahrhunderten auf der Erde, manche um sie auszubeuten, andere aus wissenschaftlichem Interesse. Einstweilige Rettung naht aus unerwarteter Richtung...
Kolinialismus, Mythen und Paranoia - 3 Sterne

Isaac Asimov - Death Sentence:
Asimov ist der "Erfinder" der Positronic - nicht überraschend, aber ich hatte icht gewußt, was Perry Rhodan ihm verdankt.

[Ben · Rating 3 out of 5]

This one is hard. I have a sick moth eaten copy from the 50s. So it smelled awesome and I got the full 50s man experience…

The stories were good, but dated. I wasn’t really a huge fan of the selection; but the Plutonium Drug was fucking incredible.

[Johnny · Rating 4 out of 5]

Simply amazing! It deserves a five star rating just for the storytelling. You know what.. i will change my three to a four star rating. These short stories are just that good.
Awesome stories about strange creatures hiding amongst humans. A wild west tale set in outer space. Robot planets. A Tale about a strange cat which is not the color a cat is supposed to be. A brilliant story of the beginnings of a future of life in the skies. And a genius who bursts into the past in search of something and greatly affecting one man's life, such a shocking twist.
Love it

[Lawrence · Rating 4 out of 5]

Well, I seem to have the 1963 Corgi UK edition which leaves out some of those bigger names (but includes Poul Anderson, Isaac Asimov, Nelson Bond, Ray Bradbury, Cleve Cartmill, Leon Sprague de Camp, David H. Keller, and Henry Kuttner), but anyway... readable, as things from this era tend to be. Wasn't knocked out by the ordinarily excellent Sprague de Camp story, but the first four or five make up for it.

http://gnomeship.blogspot.com/2012/08...