LibriVox – Page 35

Commentary: Philip K. Dick’s PUBLIC DOMAIN short stories, novelettes, and novellas

Thursday, August 25, 2011Wednesday, August 19, 2015 Jesse Willis

SFFaudio Commentary

PHILIP K. DICK (1928 -1982) explored personal, religious, sociological, political and philosophical themes in his Science Fiction and Fantasy short stories.

This post is a complete listing of every known Philip K. Dick short story published between 1952 and 1963. Many of them are in the public domain. The known PD titles are all listed. The unknown ones and the ones we aren’t sure about are listed too. My hope is that this list will help bring more of the public domain PHILIP K. DICK stories out into the open (and thus be turned into audiobooks).

Beside each story title I have made a series of notes and links:

First up is the original publication (mostly magazines, but there are a few anthologies). Next is the public domain status (if known). Then there is a link to the Wikipedia entry for the story (indicated by the “W”) when available. If the story is PD then I’ve provided a link to either the Project Gutenberg etext or the SickMyDuck equivalent (if PG doesn’t have it). Those links are represented as either “PG” or “SD”. If SFFaudio has posted about the story or podcast a discussion about it I’ve added a link and represented it as “SFF”. Finally, if there is a LibriVox audiobook version available I have added the links to the MP3 (or MP3s).

Update:
-I have added Internet Science Fiction Database links using the abbreviation ISFDB.
-I have added Copyright Office scans (when available) using the abbreviation COS.
-I have added Copyright Office data (when available) using the abbreviation COD.
-I have added scans of the original table of contents for each story using the abbreviation OTOC.

Update II:
Icons
<-Checked - PUBLIC DOMAIN

<-NEED MORE DATA

<-COMPILATION COPYRIGHT RENEWED

Update III:
Icon
<-checked - DETAILS MATCH

If you have any information about any of these stories that you think might help please comment or send me an email with the subject line “Philip K. Dick’s PUBLIC DOMAIN short stories, novelettes and novellas”.

Short stories, novelettes and novellas by Philip K. Dick (1952-1963):

Beyond Lies The Wub – Planet Stories, July 1952 – PUBLIC DOMAIN |W|SFF|PG|MP3|ISFDB|OTOC|

The Gun – Planet Stories, September 1952 – PUBLIC DOMAIN |W|SFF|PG|W|SFF|MP3|ISFDB|OTOC|PDF|

The Skull – If, September 1952 – PUBLIC DOMAIN |W|PG|SFF|MP3|ISFDB|OTOC|PDF|

The Little Movement – Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction, November 1952 |W|ISFDB|COS1|COS2|OTOC|

The Defenders – Galaxy Science Fiction, January 1953 – PUBLIC DOMAIN |W|SFF|ISFDB|PG|MP3|COS|OTOC|PDF|

Mr. Spaceship – Imagination, January 1953 – PUBLIC DOMAIN |W|PG|MP3|ISFDB|COS|OTOC|PDF|

Piper In The Woods – Imagination, February 1953 –PUBLIC DOMAIN |W|PG|SFF|MP3|ISFDB|COS|OTOC|PDF|

Roog – Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction, February 1953 – LIKELY PUBLIC DOMAIN – |W|SFF|ISFDB|COS|OTOC|

Second Variety – Space Science Fiction, May 1953 – PUBLIC DOMAIN |W|PG|SFF|MP3 Pt.1|MP3 Pt.2|ISFDB|COS|OTOC|PDF|

The Infinites – Planet Stories, May 1953 |W|ISFDB|COS|

The World She Wanted – Science Fiction Quarterly, May 1953 |ISFDB|COS|

The Eyes Have It – Science Fiction Stories, #1 (1953) – PUBLIC DOMAIN |PG|SFF|MP3|ISFDB|COS|OTOC|PDF|

Martians Come In Clouds – Fantastic Universe, June-July 1953 |ISFDB|COS|OTOC|

The Cosmic Poachers – Imagination, July 1953 |ISFDB|COS|OTOC|

The Variable Man – Space Science Fiction, July/Sept. 1953 – PUBLIC DOMAIN |W|PG|SFF|MP3 Pt.1|MP3 Pt.2|MP3 Pt.3|ISFDB|COS|OTOC|PDF|

The Impossible Planet – Imagination, October 1953 |ISFDB|COS|OTOC|

Some Kinds Of Life [as by Richard Phillipps] – Fantastic Universe, October-November 1953 |ISFDB|COS|OTOC|

The Hanging Stranger – Science Fiction Adventures, December 1953 – PUBLIC DOMAIN |SFF|ISFDB|COS|OTOC|PDF|

Project: Earth – Imagination, December 1953 |ISFDB|COS|OTOC|

Tony And The Beetles – Orbit, No. 2 (1953) – PUBLIC DOMAIN |SFF|ISFDB|COS|OTOC|PDF|

Jon’s World – Time To Come edited by August Dereleth (1954) |ISFDB|COS|OTOC|*other stories in this anthology were renewed [A00000135732]

Beyond The Door – Fantastic Universe, January 1954 – PUBLIC DOMAIN |PG|SFF|MP3|ISFDB|OTOC|PDF|

The Crystal Crypt – Planet Stories, January 1954 – PUBLIC DOMAIN |W|PG|SFF|MP3|ISFDB|OTOC|PDF|

Prize Ship – Thrilling Wonder Stories, Winter 1954 |W|ISFDB|OTOC|

*A Present For Pat – Startling Stories, January 1954 |ISFDB|OTOC|*other stories in Startling Stories, January 1954 were renewed separately [B00000449219] but not A Present For Pat

The Golden Man – If, April 1954 – PUBLIC DOMAIN |W|SD|ISFDB|COS|OTOC|PDF|

Small Town – Amazing Stories, May 1954 – PUBLIC DOMAIN |SFF|ISFDB|COS|OTOC|PDF|

Survey Team – Fantastic Universe, May 1954 – PUBLIC DOMAIN |ISFDB|COS|PDF|

Sales Pitch – Future Science Fiction, June 1954 |W|ISFDB|COS|TOC|SFF|PDF|

The Turning Wheel – Science Fiction Stories, #2 1954 – PUBLIC DOMAIN |W|SD|ISFDB|COS|OTOC|SFF|PDF|

Time Pawn – Thrilling Wonder Stories, Summer 1954 – LIKELY PUBLIC DOMAIN – NEVER REPRINTED |ISFDB|COS|OTOC|

Breakfast At Twilight – Amazing Stories, July 1954 – PUBLIC DOMAIN |W|SD|ISFDB|COS|OTOC|

The Crawlers – Imagination, July 1954 |W|ISFDB|COS|OTOC|SFF|PDF|

Of Withered Apples – Cosmos Science Fiction and Fantasy Magazine, July 1954 |ISFDB|COS|OTOC|SFF|PDF|

Exhibit Piece – If, August 1954 PUBLIC DOMAIN |W|ISFDB|COS|OTOC|SFF|PDF|

Shell Game – Galaxy Science Fiction, September 1954 – PUBLIC DOMAIN |W|SD|ISFDB|COS|OTOC|SFF|PDF|

Adjustment Team – Orbit, No. 4, September-October 1954 – PUBLIC DOMAIN |W|SD|SFF1|SFF2|ISFDB|COS|OTOC|WIKISOURCE|PDF|

A World Of Talent – Galaxy Science Fiction, October 1954 |W|ISFDB|COS|OTOC|SFF|PDF|

Meddler – Future Science Fiction, October 1954 – PUBLIC DOMAIN |W|SD|ISFDB|COS|OTOC|SFF|PDF|

Souvenir – Fantastic Universe, October 1954 |ISFDB|COS|OTOC|SFF|PDF|

The Last Of The Masters – Orbit, No. 5, November-December 1954 – PUBLIC DOMAIN |W|SD|ISFDB|COS|OTOC|PDF|

Progeny – If, November 1954 – PUBLIC DOMAIN |ISFDB|COS|OTOC|SFF|PDF|

Upon The Dull Earth – Beyond Fantasy Fiction (#9) 1954 – PUBLIC DOMAIN |W|SFF|ISFDB|COS|OTOC|SFF|PDF|

Strange Eden – Imagination, December 1954 |W|ISFDB|COS|OTOC|SFF|PDF|

Foster, You’re Dead – Star Science Fiction Stories No. 3 (1955) – PUBLIC DOMAIN |W|ISFDB|COS|OTOC|SFF|PDF|

Human Is – Startling Stories, Winter 1955 – PUBLIC DOMAIN |W|ISFDB|COS|OTOC|SFF|PDF|

Captive Market – If, April 1955 |ISFDB|COS|OTOC|

The Hood Maker – Imagination, June 1955 |ISFDB|COS|OTOC|

Service Call – Science Fiction Stories, July 1955 |W|ISFDB|COS|

A Surface Raid – Fantastic Universe, July 1955 |ISFDB|COS|OTOC|

To Serve The Master – Imagination, February 1956 |ISFDB|COS|OTOC|

Vulcan’s Hammer – Future Science Fiction, #29 (April 1956) – |ISFDB|COS|OTOC|

Misadjustment – Science Fiction Quarterly, February 1957 |ISFDB|COS|OTOC|

Null-O – If, December 1958 |W|ISFDB|OTOC|

Explorers We – Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction, January 1959 |W|ISFDB|OTOC|

Recall Mechanism – If, July 1959 |W|ISFDB|OTOC|

War Game – Galaxy Magazine, December 1959 |ISFDB|OTOC|

Stand-By – Amazing Stories, October 1963 |ISFDB|COD|OTOC|

The Days of Perky Pat – Amazing Stories, December 1963 |W|ISFDB|COD|

Waterspider – If, January 1964 |ISFDB|COD|OTOC|

Oh To Be A Blobel – Galaxy, February 1964 |ISFDB|COD|OTOC|

Orpheus With Feet Of Clay – unknown issue of Escapade 1963? 1964? under the pseudonym Jack Dowland |ISFDB|

UPDATE:

Here are some scans of various tables of contents and acknowledgement pages that will verify the true first publication dates of some of the works above:

Table of contents for Imagination, July 1954 (includes The Crawlers by Philip K. Dick):

Table of contents for Science Fiction Stories No. 2 1954 (includes Turning Wheel by Philip K. Dick):

Table of contents and copyright page for Orbit Science Fiction No.4 (Sept-Oct 1954) (containing Adjustment Team):
Orbit Science Fiction No.4 Sept-Oct 1954 Table Of Contents

Table of contents for Cosmos Science Fiction And Fantasy, September 1953 (includes The Great C by Philip K. Dick):

Table of contents for Cosmos Science Fiction And Fantasy – July 1954 (includes Of Withered Apples by Philip K. Dick):

Acknowledgements page from I Hope I Shall Arrive Soon:
Acknowledgements page from I Hope I Shall Arrive Soon

Acknowledgements page from Invasion Of The Robots:
Acknowledgements page from Invasion Of The Robots

Acknowledgements page from The Best Of Philip K. Dick:
Acknowledgements page from The Best Of Philip K. Dick

Acknowledgements page from The Golden Man:
Acknowledgements page from The Golden Man

Acknowledgements page from The Preserving Machine:
Acknowledgements page from The Preserving Machine

Acknowledgements page from The Variable Man And Other Stories:
Acknowledgements page from The Variable Man And Other Stories

Acknowledgments page from Other Worlds, Other Times:
Acknowledgments page from Other Worlds, Other Times

Table of contents from Amazing Stories May 1954 (includes Small Town by Philip K. Dick):

Table of contents from Fantastic Universe May 1954 (includes Survey Team by Philip K. Dick):

Table of contents from Fantastic Universe June – July 1953:
Table of Contents - Fantastic Universe, June - July 1953 - Martians Come In Clouds by Philip K. Dick

Table of contents from Future Science Fiction October 1954:

Table of contents from Amazing Stories, August September 1953 (includes The Commuter by Philip K. Dick):

Table of contents from Galaxy Science Fiction January 1953:

Table of contents from Galaxy Science Fiction October 1954:

Table of contents from Galaxy Science Fiction September 1954:

United States Copyright Catalog Entry for Registration Number RE0000190631:

Table of contents for IF, September 1952 (includes The Skull):
Table of contents from If September 1952 (includes The Skull)

Table of contents for IF, March 1955 (includes War Veteran):
Table of contents from IF - March 1955

Table of contents for Imagination July 1953 (includes The Cosmic Poachers):

Table of contents for Science Fiction Adventures Magazine December 1953 (includes The Hanging Stranger):

Table of contents for Science Fiction Adventures Magazine December 1953

Table of contents for Fantastic Universe’s June-July 1953 issue (includes Martians Come In Clouds by Philip K. Dick):

Table of contents for Fantastic Universe's June-July 1953 issue (includes Martians Come In Clouds by Philip K. Dick)

Table of contents for Future Science Fiction’s October 1954 issue (includes Meddler by Philip K. Dick):

Future Science Fiction October 1954 - table of Contents - includes Meddler by Philip K. Dick

Table of contents for the August 1963 Worlds of Tomorrow (includes All We Marsmen by Philip K. Dick – Part 1 of 3):

Worlds Of Tomorrow - August 1963 - Table Of Contents (All We Marsmen by Philip K. Dick - Part 1)

Table of contents for the October 1963 Worlds of Tomorrow (includes All We Marsmen by Philip K. Dick – Part 2 of 3):

Table of contents for the October 1963 Worlds of Tomorrow (includes All We Marsmen by Philip K. Dick - Part 2 of 3):

Table of contents for the December 1963 Worlds of Tomorrow (includes All We Marsmen by Philip K. Dick – Part 3 of 3):

Table of contents for the December 1963 Worlds of Tomorrow (includes All We Marsmen by Philip K. Dick - Part 3 of 3):

Table of contents for the December 1958 issue of Worlds Of If (includes Null-O by Philip K. Dick):

Table of contents for Worlds Of If April 1954 (includes The Golden Man by Philip K. Dick):

Table of contents for Worlds Of If – November 1954 (includes Progeny by Philip K. Dick):

Table of contents for If: Worlds Of Science Fiction – September 1953 (includes The Trouble With Bubbles by Philip K. Dick):

Table of contents for IF: Worlds Of Science Fiction – May 1954 (includes Prominent Author by Philip K. Dick):

Table of contents for Starling Stories Winter 1955 (includes Human Is by Philip K. Dick):

If Worlds Of Science Fiction, April 1955 – Table Of Contents (includes Captive Market by Philip K. Dick):

Fantastic Story Magazine, July 1953 – Table Of Contents (includes The Indefatigable Frog by Philip K. Dick):

Fantastic Universe October-November 1953 – Table Of Contents (includes Planet For Transients by Philip K. Dick and Some Kinds Of Life by Richard Phillipps [aka Philip K. Dick]):
Fantastic Universe October 1953 - Table Of Contents (includes Planet For Transients by Philip K. Dick)

Galaxy Science Fiction, December 1959 – Table Of Contents (Includes War Game by Philip K. Dick):

IF Worlds Of SF August 1954 Table Of Contents (includes Exhibit Piece by Philip K. Dick):

Galaxy Science Fiction November 1955 Table Of Contents (includes Autofac by Philip K. Dick):
Galaxy November 1955 - Table Of Contents - includes Autofac by Philip K. Dick

Galaxy Science Fiction December 1963 (includes If There Were No Benny Cemoli by Philip K. Dick):

Beyond Fantasy Fiction – Table Of Contents – September 1953 (includes The King Of The Elves by Philip K. Dick):
Beyond Fantasy Fiction - Table Of Contents - September 1953 (includes King Of The Elves)

Beyond Fiction Volume 2, Number 3, Issue #9 (1954) – Table Of Contents (includes Upon The Dull Earth by Philip K. Dick):
Beyond Fiction Volume 2 Number 3 Issue 9 - Table Of Contents (includes Upon The Dull Earth)

IF Worlds Of Science Fiction July 1959 – Table Of Contents (includes Recall Mechanism by Philip K. Dick):

Fantastic, February 1964 table of contents (includes Novelty Act by Philip K. Dick):

Fantasy Fiction, August 1953 – Table of contents (includes Out In The Garden by Philip K. Dick):
Fantasy Fiction, August 1953 - Table of contents (includes Out In The Garden by Philip K. Dick)

Startling Stories, Spring 1955 – Table of contents (includes Nanny by Philip K. Dick):

Planet Stories, January 1954 – Table of contents (includes The Crystal Crypt by Philip K. Dick):
Planet Stories, January 1954 - Table of contents (includes The Crystal Crypt by Philip K. Dick)

Planet Stories, September 1952 – Table of contents (includes The Gun by Philip K. Dick):

Star Science Fiction Stories No. 3 (includes Foster You’re Dead by Philip K. Dick):

Fantasy & Science Fiction, February 1953 -Table of contents (includes Roog by Philip K. Dick):

Imagination, December 1953 – Table of contents (includes Project: EARTH by Philip K. Dick):
Imagination, December 1953 - Table of contents (includes Project: EARTH by Philip K. Dick)

Amazing Stories, July 1954 – Table of contents (includes Breakfast At Twilight by Philip K. Dick):
Amazing July 1954 - Table of contents (includes Breakfast At Twilight by Philip K. Dick)

Galaxy, February 1964 – Table of contents (includes Oh To Be A Blobel by Philip K. Dick):
Galaxy, February 1964 - Table of contents (Oh To Be A Blobel by Philip K. Dick)

Orbit, No.2 – Table of contents (includes Tony And The Beetles by Philip K. Dick):
Orbit, No.2, Table of contents (includes Tony And The Beetles by Philip K. Dick)

Galaxy Science Fiction, October 1954 – Table of contents (includes A World Of Talent by Philip K. Dick):

Galaxy Science Fiction, June 1953 – Table of contents (includes Colony by Philip K. Dick):

RE0000562527 – renewals of All We Marsmen, Stand By, What’ll We Do With Ragland Park?, The Days Of Perky Pat, If There Were No Benny Cemoli, Oh To Be A Blobel, Waterspider, and Novelty Act:
RE0000562527 - renewals of All We Marsmen, Stand By, What'll We Do With Ragland Park?, The Days Of Perky Pat, If There Were No Benny Cemoli, Oh To Be A Blobel, Waterspider, and Novelty Act

Planet Stories, July 1952 – Table Of Contents (includes Beyond Lies The Wub by Philip K. Dick):
Planet Stories, July 1952 - Table Of Contents (includes Beyond Lies The Wub by Philip K. Dick)

Imagination, February 1953 – Table Of Contents (includes Piper In The Woods by Philip K. Dick):
Imagination, February 1953 - table of contents (includes Piper In The Woods by Philip K. Dick)

Fantasy & Science Fiction, January 1959 – Table Of Contents (includes Explorers We by Philip K. Dick):

Fantasy & Science Fiction, December 1954 – table of contents (includes The Father-Thing by Philip K. Dick):

Fantasy & Science Fiction, November 1952 – table of contents (includes The Little Movement by Philip K. Dick):

Thrilling Wonder Stories, Summer 1954 – table of contents (includes Time Pawn by Philip K. Dick):

Imaginative Tales, November 1955 – table of contents (includes Psi-Man Heal My Child! by Philip K. Dick):

Fantasy & Science Fiction, June 1953 – table of contents (includes The Preserving Machine by Philip K. Dick):

If, August 1955 – table of contents (includes The Mold Of Yancy by Philip K. Dick):
If, August 1955 - Table Of Contents - (includes The Mold Of Yancy by Philip K. Dick)

If, September 1959 – table of contents (includes Fair Game by Philip K. Dick):
If, September 1959 - table of contents (includes Fair Game by Philip K. Dick)

If, January 1954 – table of contents (includes Waterspider by Philip K. Dick):
If, January 1954 - table of contents (includes Waterspider by Philip K. Dick)

Amazing Stories, November 1963 – table of contents (includes What’ll We Do With Ragland Park? by Philip K. Dick)

Amazing Stories, October 1963 – table of contents (includes Stand-By by Philip K. Dick):

Science Fiction Stories, #1 (1953) – table of contents (includes The Eyes Have It by Philip K. Dick):

Science Fiction Quarterly, February 1957 – table of contents (includes Misadjustment by Philip K. Dick):

Fantasy & Science Fiction, July 1953 – table of contents (includes Expendable by Philip K. Dick):

Startling Stories, January 1954 – table of contents (includes A Present For Pat by Philip K. Dick):

Space Science Fiction, May 1953 – table of contents (includes Second Variety by Philip K. Dick):

Fantastic Universe, January 1954 – table of contents (includes Beyond The Door by Philip K. Dick):

ORBIT Science Fiction No. 5 – Table of contents (includes The Last Of The Masters by Philip K. Dick):
ORBIT Science Fiction No. 5 - Table of contents (includes The Last Of The Masters by Philip K. Dick)

Imagination, January 1953 – table of contents (includes Mr. Spaceship by Philip K. Dick):
Imagination, January 1953 - table of contents (includes Mr. Spaceship by Philip K. Dick)

Space Science Fiction, September 1953 – table of contents (includes The Variable Man by Philip K. Dick):

Imagination, June 1953 – table of contents (includes Paycheck by Philip K. Dick):
Imagination, June 1953 - table of contents (includes Paycheck by Philip K. Dick)

Imagination, December 1954 – table of contents (includes Strange Eden by Philip K. Dick):
Imagination, December 1954 - table of contents (includes Strange Eden by Philip K. Dick)

Imagination, February 1956 – table of contents (includes To Serve The Master by Philip K. Dick):
Imagination, February 1956 - table of contents (includes To Serve The Master by Philip K. Dick)

Imagination, July 1955 – table of contents (includes The Chromium Fence by Philip K. Dick):
Imagination, July 1955 - table of contents (includes The Chromium Fence by Philip K. Dick)

Imagination, June 1955 – table of contents (includes The Hood Maker by Philip K. Dick):
Imagination, June 1955 - table of contents (includes The Hood Maker by Philip K. Dick)

Science Fiction Stories, January 1957 – table of contents (includes The Unreconstructed M by Philip K. Dick):

Imagination, October 1953 – table of contents (includes The Impossible Planet by Philip K. Dick):
Imagination, October 1953 - table of contents (includes The Impossible Planet by Philip K. Dick)

Fantasy Fiction, June 1953 – table of contents (includes The Cookie Lady by Philip K. Dick):
Fantasy Fiction, June 1953 - table of contents (includes The Cookie Lady by Philip K. Dick)

Astounding, June 1953 – table of contents (includes Impostor by Philip K. Dick):
Astounding, June 1953 - table of contents (includes Impostor by Philip K. Dick)

Fantastic Universe, October 1954 – table of contents (includes Souvenir by Philip K. Dick):

Fantastic Universe, July 1955 – table of contents (includes A Surface Raid by Philip K. Dick):

Fantastic Universe, January 1956 – table of contents (includes The Minority Report by Philip K. Dick):

Amazing, December 1953 – January 1954 – table of contents (includes The Builder by Philip K. Dick):
Amazing, December 1953 - January 1954 - table of contents (includes The Builder by Philip K. Dick)

Time To Come edited by August Dereleth (1954) (includes Jon’s World by Philip K. Dick):
Time To Come (1954) - includes Jon's World by Philip K. Dick

Future Science Fiction No. 29 (1956) – table of contents (includes Vulcan’s Hammer by Philip K. Dick):

Satellite Science Fiction, October 1956 – table of contents (includes Pay For The Printer by Philip K. Dick):

Satellite Science Fiction, December 1956 – table of contents (includes A Glass Of Darkness by Philip K. Dick):

Future Science Fiction, June 1954 – table of contents (includes Sales Pitch by Philip K. Dick):

Planet Stories, May 1954 – table of contents (includes James P. Crow by Philip K. Dick):
Planet Stories, May 1954 - table of contents (includes James P. Crow by Philip K. Dick)

Thrilling Wonder Stories, Winter 1954 – table of contents (includes Prize Ship by Philip K. Dick):

Posted by Jesse Willis

LibriVox: The Eyes Have It by Philip K. Dick

Wednesday, August 24, 2011Friday, April 6, 2012 Jesse Willis

SFFaudio Online Audio

LibriVox One of the shortest, if not the shortest, of all of Philip K. Dick’s many short stories. First published in 1953, in Science Fiction Stories #1, The Eyes Have It, is just a simple story about a literal man and the ridiculous alien invasion he imagines. It’s a silly little piece of fluff. A mere lighthearted thought experiment. Just a fun little story of no real account or import. In fact it’s barely …. wait one second … could it … ? …. what if … ? … HEY! That’s that just what they want you to think!!!

The Eyes Have It
By Philip K. Dick; Read by Gregg Margarite
1 |MP3| – Approx. 8 Minutes [UNABRIDGED]
Publisher: LibriVox.org
Published: March 20, 2010
|ETEXT|
A little whimsy, now and then, makes for good balance. Theoretically, you could find this type of humor anywhere. But only a topflight science-fictionist, we thought, could have written this story, in just this way….

Posted by Jesse Willis

The SFFaudio Podcast #122 – AUDIOBOOK/READALONG: Beyond The Door by Philip K. Dick

Podcast

The SFFaudio Podcast #122 – a complete and unabridged reading of Beyond The Door by Philip K. Dick, followed by a discussion of it with Scott, Jesse, Tamahome and Gregg Margarite (who narrated the story).

Talked about on today’s show:
Beyond The Door is a story about a very angry bird, is it a puff-piece or a potboiler?, Rod Serling, Twilight Zone, “My name is Talky Tina and I’m going to kill you.”, Living Doll, Telly Savalas, Clown Without Pity (from Treehouse of Horror III), Night Gallery, Chucky, were clowns always scary?, automaton, fantasy, is it a haunted cuckoo clock?, what does that mean?, why is that in there?, who is Pete?, Pete has to be her dead brother, did Pete die in the same way?, the Black Forest, what’s wrong with this woman?, “it was written in the fifties!”, she’s happy and she’s sad, Umberto Eco and the role of the reader, Grimm’s Fairy Tales, Eric S. Rabkin, Warehouse 13, is the first line a moral lesson (or merely a magazine call out)?, Project Gutenberg’s etext edition of Beyond The Door, Fantastic Universe Science Fiction, this story is not about a cuckoo clock, it’s about the cuckoo bird and the cuckoo egg, and the egg’s name is Pete, Perky Pat, Gregg has read Philip K. Dick’s Exegesis, James Joyce, what am I thinking?, what am I feeling?, “keep thinking about that”, “it’s wholesale baby”, this is sex, Bob is her lover (in the 1950s sense), anthropomorphizing cuckoo clock’s bird is not that uncommon, “you’ll love it Bobby”, this is a really strange clock, it would keep you up all night, the cuckoo clock fad (they were ubiquitous), “like a new member of the family”, what is the symbol of?, the cuckoo is a brood parasite, the characteristics of cuckoo eggs and chicks, “some important special accounts” sounds like a story, “how nice you look today”, “Mrs. Peters across the street you know…”, “oh oh oh”, Pete was only her half brother, “it’s 3 o’clock in the morning and you need 5,000 words by ten a.m.”, Clans Of The Alphane Moon, Dick’s many marriages, Tessa Dick, structuralism vs. post structuralism, writer’s intent vs. the text standing alone, does the author’s intent matter?, a bastard child, “she’s seen this thing in action before”, the great depression -> WWII -> many impulsive marriages, Bob isn’t gay, “no guy is interested in buttons!”, “does he realize he is next in line?”, “monogamy is designed to makes sure the male gets a genetic heir”, the cuckoo is her champion, “I like a good deal”, “he’s rude, he doesn’t deserve to die”, there’s no magic, no science fiction, folklore, mythology, proto-story, Scott read Beyond The Door aloud to his daughter, James Thurber’s The Princess And The Tin Box, Anthony Boucher, three or four princes, reverse-dowry, “red charger” vs. plow horse, mica and hornblende, she’s not an idiot, anyone who thought she was going to…, this is an overturning of that, it’s a fractured fairy tale, a noir fairy tale, Frank R. Stockton, The Griffin and the Minor Canon, Snow White as a horror story, Rocky And Bullwinkle, June Foray, William Conrad, Jake And The Fatman, “finish before it burns”, the Marx Bros., the self-deprecating stuff we like today, Forever Peace, we got it sorted, anecdotal proof.

Posted by Jesse Willis

The Music Of Erich Zann by H.P. Lovecraft

Friday, August 19, 2011 Jesse Willis

SFFaudio Online Audio

The Music Of Erich Zann is one of H.P. Lovecraft’s most popular short stories (it runs just 3,450 words).

The Music Of Erich Zann - illustration by Andrew Brosnatch

Here are the opening lines:

“I have examined maps of the city with the greatest care, yet have never again found the Rue d’Auseil. These maps have not been modern maps alone, for I know that names change. I have, on the contrary, delved deeply into all the antiquities of the place, and have personally explored every region, of whatever name, which could possibly answer to the street I knew as the Rue d’Auseil. But despite all I have done, it remains an humiliating fact that I cannot find the house, the street, or even the locality, where, during the last months of my impoverished life as a student of metaphysics at the university, I heard the music of Erich Zann.

That my memory is broken, I do not wonder; for my health, physical and mental, was gravely disturbed throughout the period of my residence in the Rue d’Auseil, and I recall that I took none of my few acquaintances there. But that I cannot find the place again is both singular and perplexing; for it was within a half-hour’s walk of the university and was distinguished by peculiarities which could hardly be forgotten by any one who had been there. I have never met a person who has seen the Rue d’Auseil.

The Rue d’Auseil lay across a dark river bordered by precipitous brick blear-windowed warehouses and spanned by a ponderous bridge of dark stone. It was always shadowy along that river, as if the smoke of neighboring factories shut out the sun perpetually. The river was also odorous with evil stenches which I have never smelled elsewhere, and which may some day help me to find it, since I should recognize them at once. Beyond the bridge were narrow cobbled streets with rails; and then came the ascent, at first gradual, but incredibly steep as the Rue d’Auseil was reached.”

And the Rue d’Auseil, by the way, translates to “street of the threshold” – most appropriate.

Public domain:

The Music Of Erich Zann
By H.P. Lovecraft; Read by Cameron Halket
1 |MP3| – Approx. 19 Minutes [UNABRIDGED]
Publisher: LibriVox.org
Published: October 19, 2008
|ETEXT|
A student of philosophy is forced, by lack of funds, to to take lodgings in a run down rooming house in a strange part of Paris. First published in National Amateur (March 1922), then later in the May 1925 issue of Weird Tales.

Creative Commons:

Episode #100 – The Music Of Erich Zann
By H.P. Lovecraft; Read by B.J. Harrison
1 |MP3| – Approx. 30 Minutes [UNABRIDGED]
Podcaster: Pseudopod
Podcast: July 25th, 2008

Commercial audiobook:

The Dark Worlds Of H.P. Lovecraft, Volume 4: The Rats In The Walls, The Shunned House, The Music Of Eric Zann
By H.P. Lovecraft; Read by Wayne June
3 CDs – 2 Hours 41 Minutes [UNABRIDGED]
Publisher: Audio Realms
Published: 2006
ISBN: 1897304242
|READ OUR REVIEW|

Discussion:

Episode #23 – The Music Of Erich Zann
Participants Chris Lackey, Chad Fifer and Andrew Leman
1 |MP3| – Approx. 29 Minutes [DISCUSSION]
Podcaster: H.P. Lovecraft Literary Podcast
Podcast: September 12, 2010

Other:

The Music Of Erich Zann

There is a very good comics adaptation, by writer Roy Thomas and artist Johnny Craig, done for issue #5 (June 1970) of Marvel Comics’ Chamber Of Darkness (the title was changed to The Music From Beyond).

Here’s a disturbingly wordless stop motion animation adaptation:

Posted by Jesse Willis

LibriVox: The Point Of Honor by Joseph Conrad

Friday, August 5, 2011Friday, August 5, 2011 Jesse Willis

SFFaudio Online Audio

LibriVox First published in Pall Mall Magazine, along with an H.G. Wells novel and a Jack London short story, The Point Of Honor is a Joseph Conrad novella that had its genesis in the real duels that two French Hussar officers fought in the Napoleonic era. Their names were Dupont and Fournier, which Conrad disguised slightly, changing Dupont into D’Hubert and Fournier into Feraud.

The Point Of Honor (aka The Duel)
By Joseph Conrad; Read by Mark F. Smith
4 Zipped MP3 Files or Podcast – Approx. 3 Hours 29 Minutes [UNABRIDGED]
Publisher: LibriVox.org
Published: May 18, 2008
Two French Hussar officers, D’Hubert and Feraud, quarrel over an initially minor incident that eventually turns into a bitter, long-drawn out struggle over the following fifteen years, interwoven with the larger conflict that provides its backdrop. At the beginning, Feraud is the one who jealously guards his honor and repeatedly demands satisfaction anew when a duelling encounter ends inconclusively; he aggressively pursues every opportunity to locate and duel his foe. As the story progresses, D’Hubert also finds himself caught up in the contest, unable to back down or walk away. Pall Mall Magazine’s January, February, March, April and May 1908 issues.

Part 1 |MP3| Part 2 |MP3| Part 3 |MP3| Part 4 |MP3|

Podcast feed: http://librivox.org/bookfeeds/the-point-of-honor-by-joseph-conrad.xml

iTunes 1-click |SUBSCRIBE|

Here’s are the William Russell Flint illustrations from the original magazine serialization:

The Duel by Joseph Conrad - Illustrated by William Russell Flint

Here’s the trailer for The Duellists (1977) :

[Thanks also to ConradFirst.net and Live At The Heartbreak Lounge]

Posted by Jesse Willis

Commentary: The Raven by Edgar Allan Poe

Wednesday, July 20, 2011 Jesse Willis

The Raven

The Raven by Edgar Allan Poe – |MP3| (read by Anne Cheng)

ONCE upon a midnight dreary, while I pondered, weak and weary,
Over many a quaint and curious volume of forgotten lore—
While I nodded, nearly napping, suddenly there came a tapping,
As of some one gently rapping, rapping at my chamber door.
“ ’Tis some visitor,” I muttered, “tapping at my chamber door—
Only this and nothing more.”

Ah, distinctly I remember it was in the bleak December,
And each separate dying ember wrought its ghost upon the floor.
Eagerly I wished the morrow;—vainly I had sought to borrow
From my books surcease of sorrow—sorrow for the lost Lenore—
For the rare and radiant maiden whom the angels name Lenore—
Nameless here for evermore.

And the silken sad uncertain rustling of each purple curtain
Thrilled me—filled me with fantastic terrors never felt before;
So that now, to still the beating of my heart, I stood repeating
“ ’Tis some visitor entreating entrance at my chamber door—
Some late visitor entreating entrance at my chamber door;
This it is and nothing more.”

Presently my soul grew stronger; hesitating then no longer,
“Sir,” said I, “or Madam, truly your forgiveness I implore;
But the fact is I was napping, and so gently you came rapping,
And so faintly you came tapping, tapping at my chamber door,
That I scarce was sure I heard you”—here I opened wide the door;—
Darkness there and nothing more.

Deep into that darkness peering, long I stood there wondering, fearing,
Doubting, dreaming dreams no mortals ever dared to dream before;
But the silence was unbroken, and the stillness gave no token,
And the only word there spoken was the whispered word, “Lenore!”
This I whispered, and an echo murmured back the word, “Lenore!”—
Merely this and nothing more.

Back into the chamber turning, all my soul within me burning,
Soon again I heard a tapping something louder than before.
“Surely,” said I, “surely that is something at my window lattice;
Let me see, then, what thereat is, and this mystery explore—
Let my heart be still a moment, and this mystery explore;—
’Tis the wind and nothing more.”

Open here I flung the shutter, when, with many a flirt and flutter,
In there stepped a stately Raven of the saintly days of yore.
Not the least obeisance made he; not a minute stopped or stayed he,
But, with mien of lord or lady, perched above my chamber door—
Perched upon a bust of Pallas just above my chamber door—
Perched, and sat, and nothing more.

Then this ebony bird beguiling my sad fancy into smiling,
By the grave and stern decorum of the countenance it wore,
“Though thy crest be shorn and shaven, thou,” I said, “art sure no craven,
Ghastly grim and ancient Raven wandering from the Nightly shore—
Tell me what thy lordly name is on the Night’s Plutonian shore!”
Quoth the Raven, “Nevermore.”

Much I marvelled this ungainly fowl to hear discourse so plainly,
Though its answer little meaning—little relevancy bore;
For we cannot help agreeing that no living human being
Ever yet was blessed with seeing bird above his chamber door—
Bird or beast upon the sculptured bust above his chamber door,
With such name as “Nevermore.”

But the Raven, sitting lonely on that placid bust, spoke only
That one word, as if his soul in that one word he did outpour.
Nothing further then he uttered; not a feather then he fluttered—
Till I scarcely more than muttered: “Other friends have flown before—
On the morrow he will leave me, as my Hopes have flown before.”
Then the bird said, “Nevermore.”

Startled at the stillness broken by reply so aptly spoken,
“Doubtless,” said I, “what it utters is its only stock and store,
Caught from some unhappy master whom unmerciful Disaster
Followed fast and followed faster till his songs one burden bore—
Till the dirges of his Hope that melancholy burden bore
Of ‘Never—nevermore.’ ”

But the Raven still beguiling all my sad soul into smiling,
Straight I wheeled a cushioned seat in front of bird and bust and door;
Then, upon the velvet sinking, I betook myself to linking
Fancy unto fancy, thinking what this ominous bird of yore—
What this grim, ungainly, ghastly, gaunt, and ominous bird of yore
Meant in croaking “Nevermore.”

This I sat engaged in guessing, but no syllable expressing
To the fowl whose fiery eyes now burned into my bosom’s core;
This and more I sat divining, with my head at ease reclining
On the cushion’s velvet lining that the lamp-light gloated o’er,
But whose velvet violet lining with the lamp-light gloating o’er
She shall press, ah, nevermore!

Then, methought, the air grew denser, perfumed from an unseen censer
Swung by Seraphim whose foot-falls tinkled on the tufted floor.
“Wretch,” I cried, “thy God hath lent thee—by these angels he hath sent thee
Respite—respite and nepenthe from thy memories of Lenore!
Quaff, oh quaff this kind nepenthe and forget this lost Lenore!”
Quoth the Raven, “Nevermore.”

“Prophet!” said I, “thing of evil!—prophet still, if bird or devil!—
Whether Tempter sent, or whether tempest tossed thee here ashore,
Desolate, yet all undaunted, on this desert land enchanted—
On this home by Horror haunted—tell me truly, I implore—
Is there—is there balm in Gilead?—tell me—tell me, I implore!”
Quoth the Raven, “Nevermore.”

“Prophet!” said I, “thing of evil!—prophet still, if bird or devil!
By that Heaven that bends above us—by that God we both adore—
Tell this soul with sorrow laden if, within the distant Aidenn,
It shall clasp a sainted maiden whom the angels name Lenore—
Clasp a rare and radiant maiden whom the angels name Lenore.”
Quoth the Raven, “Nevermore.”

“Be that word our sign of parting, bird or fiend!” I shrieked, upstarting—
“Get thee back into the tempest and the Night’s Plutonian shore!
Leave no black plume as a token of that lie thy soul hath spoken!
Leave my loneliness unbroken!—quit the bust above my door!
Take thy beak from out my heart, and take thy form from off my door!”
Quoth the Raven, “Nevermore.”

And the Raven, never flitting, still is sitting, still is sitting
On the pallid bust of Pallas just above my chamber door;
And his eyes have all the seeming of a demon’s that is dreaming,
And the lamp-light o’er him streaming throws his shadow on the floor;
And my soul from out that shadow that lies floating on the floor
Shall be lifted—nevermore

Upon The Bust Of Pallas - Edouard Manet

Edmund C. Steadman, in the introduction to Gustave Doré’s 1884 illustrated edition of The Raven, argues that while The Raven may not be Edgar Allan Poe’s best work that it is certainty “his representative poem” in part because it deals with his major theme: “the irretrievable loss of an idolized and beautiful woman.” And to my ears it certainly is a “treasure of mankind.” But, because of its length and accessibility, I think it is capable of being appreciated by even the roughest of barbarian hearts.

And why is that?

I’d suggest that the supernatural element, or the ambiguity of such, helps a lot. Ghosts, gods and demons are easy entry points.

Think of it as a more palatable forerunner to paranormal romance. Perhaps this kind of literature is best called “Dark Romanticism.”

From Wikipedia:

Dark Romanticism (often conflated with Gothicism or called American Romanticism) is a literary subgenre. It has been suggested that Dark Romantics present individuals as prone to sin and self-destruction, not as inherently possessing divinity and wisdom. G.R. Thompson describes this disagreement, stating “the Dark Romantics adapted images of anthropomorphized evil in the form of Satan, devils, ghosts, werewolves, vampires, and ghouls.” For these Dark Romantics, the natural world is dark, decaying, and mysterious; when it does reveal truth to man, its revelations are evil and hellish.

Now dark romanticism may just sound like a more literary description of paranormal romance, minus the mention of a myriad of tattoos, but its authors tackled tough subjects like the pointlessness of a loveless existence in a world without an afterlife. In a way that’s an inversion of paranormal romance.

So on that happy note, and bearing in mind the generally accepted saw that “Life is stranger than fiction”, my question for your barbarian heart is slightly different:

Is real life more horrific than fiction?

Poe’s answer in The Raven, I think, is that it is and by a wide margin.

I’m fairly confident that a wholly naturalistic interpretation of why The Raven quoth “nevermore” can be found in the lines (62-65):

“Doubtless,” said I, “what it utters is its only stock and store,
Caught from some unhappy master, whom unmerciful Disaster
Followed fast and followed faster till his songs one burden bore—
Till the dirges of his Hope the melancholy burden bore

And if it is true that the titular raven is not supernaturally prophetic, and its speech no more than mere mimicry, is the message it brings to the unnamed narrator at all lessened by a naturalistic interpretation?

I thought not.

Plutonian Shore - GUSTAVE DORÉ