Deze auteur verkent diepgaande vragen over het menselijk bestaan en onze plaats in de kosmos via meeslepende verhalen. Zijn werken duiken vaak in tijdloze thema's zoals eenzaamheid, hoop en de complexiteit van relaties, gesitueerd tegen futuristische of fantastische achtergronden. Met een gave voor lyrische proza en ontroerende personages biedt zijn schrijven een uniek perspectief op wat het betekent om mens te zijn. Zijn oeuvre zet aan tot nadenken en resoneert met lezers die op zoek zijn naar betekenisvolle verhalen.
Simak's City is a series of connected stories, a series of legends, myths, and campfire stories told by Dogs about the end of human civilization, centering on the Webster family, who, among their other accomplishments, designed the ships that took Men to the stars and gave Dogs the gift of speech and robots to be their hands.
On a far future Earth, mankind's achievements are immense: artificially intelligent robots, genetically uplifted animals, interplanetary travel, genetic modification of the human form itself. But nothing comes without a cost. Humanity is tired, its vigour all but gone. Society is breaking down into smaller communities, dispersing into the countryside and abandoning the great cities of the world. As the human race dwindles and declines, which of its great creations will inherit the Earth? And which will claim the stars?
"First-class entertainment" (The Sunday Times) from a classic SF author. En route to an interplanetary research mission, a scientist is abducted by a strange, shadowy race of aliens and taken to a previously uncharted planet, a storehouse of information that would be invaluable--even to an Earth so advanced that time travel allows goblins, dinosaurs, even Shakespeare to coexist.
Continuing in the collection series of short stories by Clifford D. Simak, who was the 3rd SF Grand Master, as voted by the Science Fiction Writers of America in 1977, and he's won 3 Hugos, a Nebula and a Locus Award for his work, and the Horror Writers Association made him one of three inaugural winners of the Bram Stoker Award for Lifetime Achievement. For those wanting more Simak short stories, try the collection, "The Big Front Yard and Other Stories". Simak is well known for his novel, "City". Of interest is that Simak was a considerable influence on Asimov, who said Simak was his favourite SF author. Asimov noted that he loved Simak’s clear style and it helped shape Asimov’s writing. Contents: Introduction (Off-Planet) (1988) • essay by Francis Lyall Construction Shack (1973) / short story by Clifford D. Simak Ogre (1944) / novelette by Clifford D. Simak Junkyard (1953) / novelette by Clifford D. Simak The Observer (1972) / short story by Clifford D. Simak The World That Couldn't Be (1958) / novelette by Clifford D. Simak Shadow World (1957) / novelette by Clifford D. Simak Mirage (1950) / short story by Clifford D. Simak (variant of Seven Came Back) .
Contents: The Birch Clump Cylinder (1974) The Whistling Well (1980) The Marathon Photograph (1974) The Grotto of the Dancing Deer (1980)
Two explorers, a robot, a warrior, and even an inky "pond" are stuck on a dead-end planet because the star-tunnel is locked. Yet something is about to happen.
"The time trails led him to mastodons, money and the most amazing mystery of all: time." Published as Catface in the UK. A cat-faced alien stranded in drift-free Wisconsin befriends locals and time-engineers portals into prehistoric epochs, where they establish a new nation: Mastodonia
Clifford Donald Simak, an influential American science fiction writer, is celebrated for his significant contributions to the genre, winning three Hugo Awards and a Nebula Award. Recognized as a Grand Master by the Science Fiction Writers of America, he also received the Bram Stoker Award for Lifetime Achievement from the Horror Writers Association. His works often explore themes of humanity, nature, and the future, establishing him as a key figure in both science fiction and horror literature.
People work. Folk play. That is the way it has been in this country as long as Sam can remember. He is happy, and he understands that this is the way it should be. People are bigger than folk. They are stronger. They do not need food or water. They do not need the warmth of a fire. All they need is a job to do and a blacksmith to fix them when they break. The people work so the folk can drink their moonshine, fish a little, throw a horseshoe. But when Sam starts to wonder about why the world is this way, his life will never be the same. Along with the other stories in this collection, ?I Am Crying All Inside? is a compact marvel: a picture of an impossible reality that is not so different from our own