From These Ashes: The Complete Short SF of Fredric Brown

When I was a lot younger (like, 40 years ago) Fredric Brown was one of my favorite authors. I read all five of his SF novels, quite a few of his mysteries, and most of his SF shorts. The latter are what make up this book. And while I have enjoyed reading (actually, for the most part, re-reading) these little gems, I have to say that they're more enjoyable taken two or three at a time than read in one continuous batch. Certain themes (time travel, mind control, narrowly-averted alien conquests, awesome powers gone awry) crop up again and again. An extraordinary number of his protagonists are alcoholics, or at least drunk. And his depiction of man/woman relationships is often leering. Still, most of these stories are fun, thought-provoking, or in some instances (e.g. Hat Trick) downright scary. I hesitate to give this book five stars; it's really more of a high four-star entry. But I'll give it the full five just because Brown's writing gave me so much pleasure, long ago!

Like his contemporaries, Isaac Asimov and Ray Bradbury, Fredric Brown gained fame both as a science fiction writer (the novels What Mad Universe, The Lights in the Sky are Stars) AND as a murder mystery writer (the novels The Fabulous Clipjoint, The Screaming Mimi).This book collects all his SF short stories, (as well as some non-SF material like "Nightmare in Blue" and Yellow") into one hefty volume. More than 100 of his works are in here, some hilarious, some horrifying; some optimistic, some dark. Many stories are already familiar to Fredric Brown fans ("Pi in the Sky," "Puppet Show") while others have been out of print so long that they'll seem new even to fans. (I was happily surprised to see that Mitkey, the rodent hero of "Star Mouse," got a second outing in "Mitkey Rides Again.")The book is especially remarkable for presenting his work in CHRONOLOGICAL order, so fans can trace his development over the quarter century Fredric Brown was active. Fans can also follow real-world developments through his tales, from the World War II-era patriotism of "The New One" to the warnings of nuclear disaster in "The Weapon" and "Letter to a Phoenix."Those unfamiliar with his work are welcome to jump around. I recommend the nine titles mentioned above, plus "Nothing Sirius," "Honeymoon in Hell," "Something Green" and "Knock." Also, make sure you read the three "Eustace Weaver" stories back to back, to fully appreciate the lunacy.Also of special note are "Daymare," which is simultaneously a science fiction story AND a murder mystery, as is "Crisis, 1999." Meanwhile, "Arena" inspired the classic Star Trek episode of the same name.Brown also pioneered the "short short," and some of the stories are less than a page in length. "The Answer," Voodoo," Pattern," "Solipsist" and "Blood" are classic examples.As often happens with old science fiction, some of the technology is dated. (Vacuum tubes? Linotype machines?) However, although vacuum tubes may have gone out of style, great writing does not. This book would make a great gift for any science fiction fan, especially an old-school fan.

I first discovered Fredric Brown's short stories in a French translation in my high school library, at the same time I discovered Borges whom he resembles in some ways.For a long time, Brown's short stories were only available in print in their French translation, and NESFA did us all a great service in collecting and reprinting these gems.Fredric Brown's short stories always pack a surprising twist (sometimes viciously so). I you liked the original "Twilight Zone" series, you won't be disappointed by this book.

This volume collects all Fredric Brown's short science fiction, and an entertaining collection it is. Surprise endings abound as Brown spins short sagas of science and the supernatural. A few of my favorites:"Armageddon" begins with the end of the world."Arena" served as the inspiration for the Star Trek episode of the same name, but the savior of humanity confronts a much more formidable task than Captain Kirk did."Etaion Shrdlu," a sentient linotype printing press, eagerly absorbs knowledge from its jobs until...."Knock" sports the shortest title in all science fiction literature and the creepiest beginning: "The last man on Earth sat in a room. He heard a knock on the door."The stories run the gamut from knee-slappingly funny to disturbingly somber. If you like short science fiction, you'll love Fredric Brown.

In this book you can find the precursors of Blade Runner's Replicants, the Body-Snatcher Gizmo, The Planet Who Crashes Unto Himself, The Ultimate Cosmic Advertising, the Last Dinosaur Ever (until Spielberg,that is) and others marvels that this sometimes wildly funny, sometimes deeply sad, eerily melancholic Author has given to his deligthed readers. Fredric Brown was an early explorer of the uncanny, a precursor of Philip K.Dick, in some ways. But his best stories are the satyrical and comic ones, when his love for the absurd places him near Kurt Vonnegut and Douglas Adams, but told whit a humour that's uniquely Fredric Brown's.