50 Short Science Fiction Tales

Fifty Exciting Experiences
You visit a world where Robots strain to remember the existence of the Men who created them; hear the tantalizingly brief report of a man who returns from a trip to the future; see the snake-armed Thing that emerges from the minds of the people who conjure it. You meet a souvenir hunter in the Thirtieth Century and a schoolgirl who tries to cope with the teaching methods of the Twenty-second Century. You share the terror of an astronaut in a “haunted” space suit and the dilemma of a wife whose husband knows a common chemical formula for destroying the earth. In short, you feel the impact, the originality, and the uncanny atmosphere created by these science fiction experts not once—but 50 times.

Fifty Short Science Fiction Tales have been selected for their concise writing, and for punch lines that leave the reader “surprised, shocked, and delighted at the final sentence.” According to the editors, another important aspect of this literary form is “evocation of a background differing from our own.” Consequently, though some of the stories are just a page long, the reading experience is always excitingly unique.

Ballade of an artificial satellite / Paul Anderson —
Fun they had / Isaac Astimov —
Men are differenct / Alan Bloch —
Ambassadors / Anthoy Boucher —
Weapon / Fredric Brown —
Random sample / T.P. Caravan —
Oscar / Cleve Cartmill —
Mist / Peter Cartur —
Teething ring / James Causey —
Haunted space suit / Arthur C. Clarke —
Stair Trick / Mildred Clingerman —
Unwelcome tenant / Roger Dee —
Mathematicians / Arthur Feldman —
Third level / Jack Finney —
Beautiful, beautiful, beautiful! / Stuart Friedman —
Figure / Edward Grendon —
Rag thing / David Grinnell —
Good provider / Marion Gross —
Columbus was a dope / Robert A. Heinlein —
Texas Week / Albert Hernhuter —
Hilda / H.B. Hickey —
Choice / W. Hilton-Young —
Not with a bang / Damon Knight —
Altar at midnight / C.M. Kornbluth —
Bad day for sales / Fritz Leiber —
Who’s cribbing? Jack Lewis —
Spectator sport / John D. MacDonald —
Cricket ball / Avro Manhattan —
Double-take / Winston K. Marks —
Prolog / John P. McKnight —
Available data on the worp reaction / Lion Miller —
Narapoia / Alan Nelson —
Tiger by the tail / Alan E. Nourse —
Counter charm / Peter Phillips —
Fly / Arthur Porges —
Business, as usual / Mack Reynolds —
Two weeks in August / Frank M. Robinson —
See? / Edward G. Robles, Jr. —
Appointment at noon / Eric Frank Russell —
We don’t want any trouble / James H. Schmitz —
Built down logically / Howard Schoenfeld —
Egg a month from all over / Idris Seabright —
Perfect woman / Robert Sheckley —
Hunters / Walt Sheldon —
Martian and the magician / Evelyn E. Smith —
Barney / Will Stanton —
Talent / Theodore Sturgeon —
Project hush / Willian Tenn —
Great judge / A.E. Van Vogt —
Emergency landing / Ralph Williams —
Obviously suicide / S. Fowler Wright —
Postlude —
Six Haiku / Karen Anderson