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Scientifictionist, v. 1, issue 6, August-October 1946

Page 14

van Vogt's new series. I like them, although the characterization seems to be accomplished in the manner so dear to Time reporters. Would this story have been better as a serial!
   The CAT AND THE KING by R.F. Jones; short; good. Very good writing for a short, but the story was a little bit too long. It brings out the interesting point that capitalism is the fastest method of developing a new frontier.
   RADAR: THE WAVES THAT FEEL, by L.J. Stanton; article; good. This is a short, well-illustrated history of the development of radar.
   BRASS TACKS has four letters this time, all interesting, but three of them are far too long.
   Astounding S-F, September 1946: This issue is far better than the last. Two novelettes, two shorts, and the conclusion of a serial is this month's fiction lineup. The Timmins cover, illustrating THE TOYMAKER, is a very nice piece of symbolism. All interior pics are by Swenson.
   THE TOYMAKER by R.F. Jones; novelette; good. This story is another proposal on how to prevent war. Children are conditioned against war by special "toys", known as "Imaginos". Then, when war is imminent, all the children who possess the Imaginos are completely unstrung mentally, and act as vehicles of propaganda by the Toymakers. This is a very nice piece of writing. The Swenson on p. 17 reminds me of Orban.
   VINTAGE SEÅSON by Padgetti; novelette; good. This will be remembered for a long time as either a classic or a near-classic, depending on the fan. The idea, which I am sure will be swiped for several other stories, was quite logical: this is the best season ever to exist in time, so it is visited by the society people of the future. The writing is a different style from Padgett's older stories, but it is excellent.
   BLIND TIME by George O. Smith; short; good. To me, the idea of mislinks is far more intriguing than the prevention of accidents after they happen. Mislinks could be used for many things, such as heavy construction work, and in the other direction, for repairing small, intricate pieces like watches.
   EVIDENCE by Asimov; short; good. The three laws of robotics march on to improve the world. This time it is a robot-politician which, because of the laws, cannot do anything which would harm humans in any way. However, he looks like a human, so how can it be proven that he isn't one! The idea of a governing machine is not new, of course; there is The Machine of Stuart and the Games Machine of Van Vogt; both governing directly. The robot, however, should hew closer o the Karildex.
   SLAVES OF THE LAMP by A.L. Zagat; serial; good. The author really cut loose in this last instalment, and I look forward to seeing it among the best five of the year. The "moral" is something that everybody should keep in mind. The only fault I find in the style is that the whole last instalment (but especially the last part) sounded as if parts of it had been cut out.
   Three articles complete the issue: CONGRESS IS TOO BUSY (political), MEIHEM IN CE KLASRUM (phonetics), and SECOND APPROXIMATION, a very good discussion of rocket trajectories by R.S. Richardson.
       ___________________
For those who want to read stf books, but don't know what to get or where, here's a listing of some of the recent stf books still in print. SHAPE OF THINGS TO COME by HG Wells (reprint--1933) Macmillan, $1.49; STAR OF THE UNBORN by F. Werfel, Viking 43.00; GENTLEMEN: YOU ARE MAD by P.B. Noyes (reprint of "The Pallid Giant") 41.00; WEIRD TALES OF TERROR AND DETECTION by HF Heard (reprint of "The Great Fog") 41.00; PORTABLE NOVELS OF SCIENCE edited by Wollheim, Viking, 42.00; ADVENTURES IN TIME AND SPACE; Random House (excellent anthology) $3.00; THE BEST OF S-F, ed. by Conklin, $3.00; 25 MODERN TALES OF MYSTERY & IMAGINATION ed. by Stong, (a mediocre anthology, mostly fantasy, but contains 2 s-f classics, Bates' ALAS ALL THINKING, and Weinbaum's THE ADAPTIVE ULTIMATE), $1.00. These available from local bookstore. Cheney's Book Service, 119 E. San Fernando, San Jose 21 Calif. has other stf books.
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van Vogt's new series. I like them, although the characterization seems to be accomplished in the manner so dear to Time reporters. Would this story have been better as a serial! The CAT AND THE KING by R.F. Jones; short; good. Very good writing for a short, but the story was a little bit too long. It brings out the interesting point that capitalism is the fastest method of developing a new frontier. RADAR: THE WAVES THAT FEEL, by L.J. Stanton; article; good. This is a short, well-illustrated history of the development of radar. BRASS TACKS has four letters this time, all interesting, but three of them are far too long. Astounding S-F, September 1946: This issue is far better than the last. Two novelettes, two shorts, and the conclusion of a serial is this month's fiction lineup. The Timmins cover, illustrating THE TOYMAKER, is a very nice piece of symbolism. All interior pics are by Swenson. THE TOYMAKER by R.F. Jones; novelette; good. This story is another proposal on how to prevent war. Children are conditioned against war by special "toys", known as "Imaginos". Then, when war is imminent, all the children who possess the Imaginos are completely unstrung mentally, and act as vehicles of propaganda by the Toymakers. This is a very nice piece of writing. The Swenson on p. 17 reminds me of Orban. VINTAGE SEÅSON by Padgetti; novelette; good. This will be remembered for a long time as either a classic or a near-classic, depending on the fan. The idea, which I am sure will be swiped for several other stories, was quite logical: this is the best season ever to exist in time, so it is visited by the society people of the future. The writing is a different style from Padgett's older stories, but it is excellent. BLIND TIME by George O. Smith; short; good. To me, the idea of mislinks is far more intriguing than the prevention of accidents after they happen. Mislinks could be used for many things, such as heavy construction work, and in the other direction, for repairing small, intricate pieces like watches. EVIDENCE by Asimov; short; good. The three laws of robotics march on to improve the world. This time it is a robot-politician which, because of the laws, cannot do anything which would harm humans in any way. However, he looks like a human, so how can it be proven that he isn't one! The idea of a governing machine is not new, of course; there is The Machine of Stuart and the Games Machine of Van Vogt; both governing directly. The robot, however, should hew closer o the Karildex. SLAVES OF THE LAMP by A.L. Zagat; serial; good. The author really cut loose in this last instalment, and I look forward to seeing it among the best five of the year. The "moral" is something that everybody should keep in mind. The only fault I find in the style is that the whole last instalment (but especially the last part) sounded as if parts of it had been cut out. Three articles complete the issue: CONGRESS IS TOO BUSY (political), MEIHEM IN CE KLASRUM (phonetics), and SECOND APPROXIMATION, a very good discussion of rocket trajectories by R.S. Richardson. ___________________ For those who want to read stf books, but don't know what to get or where, here's a listing of some of the recent stf books still in print. SHAPE OF THINGS TO COME by HG Wells (reprint--1933) Macmillan, $1.49; STAR OF THE UNBORN by F. Werfel, Viking 43.00; GENTLEMEN: YOU ARE MAD by P.B. Noyes (reprint of "The Pallid Giant") 41.00; WEIRD TALES OF TERROR AND DETECTION by HF Heard (reprint of "The Great Fog") 41.00; PORTABLE NOVELS OF SCIENCE edited by Wollheim, Viking, 42.00; ADVENTURES IN TIME AND SPACE; Random House (excellent anthology) $3.00; THE BEST OF S-F, ed. by Conklin, $3.00; 25 MODERN TALES OF MYSTERY & IMAGINATION ed. by Stong, (a mediocre anthology, mostly fantasy, but contains 2 s-f classics, Bates' ALAS ALL THINKING, and Weinbaum's THE ADAPTIVE ULTIMATE), $1.00. These available from local bookstore. Cheney's Book Service, 119 E. San Fernando, San Jose 21 Calif. has other stf books. page 14