Cordwainer Smith Books

Didn't care for it. The writing just didn't draw me in. The story ideas were sorta good but the authors corny / dumb down naming of objects and peoples cheapens and dates it badly (1955-66). Examples: Fighting Trees (trees used to absorb and neutralize radioactive contamination from past wars), True men, Wise Old Bear (failed bear to human mutation), Unauthorized Men (failed dog to human), Brainbox, Helen America, Mr. Grey-no-more, Sailors (meaning astronauts), "Up-and-Out" (space), "Clown Town the underpeople place" ........

Like others say, and I agree, this is for serious fans of C. Smith and/or historians of science fiction.

I encountered Cordwainer Smith many many years ago, in a Fantasy-Science Fiction magazine in my home country; by the way, with an introduction by a scholar of CS! Do you know of anyone in the US?. It was "Under Old Earth", which has haunted my soul ever since like no other piece of literature, haute or 'low-brow'. In contrast to my second-favorite SF writer, Phillip K. Dick, CS conveys a sense of poetry and subtlety absent in the rough-edge writing of PKD, while bringing about the unique strength of SF, that of exploring the inner and outer limits of the human experience.

After all these years, I still wonder why CS remains such a hidden treasure. It is perhaps the built-in disdain of literary critics and scholars for SF, understandable but not less a prejudice.

As I write my comments, Kafka keeps popping up in my mind: just change Samsa's bed and the castle for harvested organs and the Instrumentality. Or was the Old Man also a Fantasy writer?

essential to any fan/student of the genre.

the beginning of the transition from the space opera to the "soul" of free-form fiction...


d

Cordwainer Smith was unique. Although the contents of this volume represent more than half of his entire science-fictional output, what he lacked in quantity he made up for in superb and very different quality. His prose is colored by some very non-standard phrasing and imagery, at least some of which came from his close connections with Chinese culture (his god-father was Sun Yat-sen, and he was a close confidant of Chiang Kai-shek). There is a feeling, an ambience to his stories that I have never seen even approximated by any other author. But the themes he tackled in his stories are ones that everyone can relate to, covering prejudice, greed, lust for power, crime and appropriate punishment, and the seeming boundless desire to go where no man has gone before.

Perhaps the main highlight of this collection is "The Dead Lady of Clown Town", which is a very forceful retelling of the Joan of Arc story. I ended up in tears at the end of this one when I first read it, and subsequent re-reads haven't lessened its impact. I've had this one in my top ten `best of sf' short fiction list since my first encounter with it.

"A Planet Named Shayol" will make you do some heavy thinking about just what can or should be done to punish a society's law (or custom) breakers, or if punishment is ever even really justifiable at all, and will give you a nightmare vision of just what hell on Earth (or any other planet) just might be like.

"The Ballad of Lost C'Mell" may be the centerpiece of his entire envisioned future history, as the Instrumentality of Mankind, which for centuries has managed the human population to avoid disease, war, or hard labor (for which tasks the Underpeople were created), is driven to the conclusion that a viable civilization must have some dark elements, as championed by Lord Jestocost and girly-girl Cat-person C'Mell.

Almost all of the stories here are part of Smith's envisioned universe governed by the Instrumentality, a vision that stretches from near-Earth future to a very distant far-future galaxy where humanity has spread almost everywhere. Smith clearly has some overriding messages: his fear of all-powerful ruling bodies, his attachment to all forms of life and the respect that each individual should have, and a basic belief in the power and utility of religion. All the details of this universe are not filled in, and it is sometimes the tantalizing glimpses of what he does not describe that will capture your imagination, and your wish that there were more stories about this unique world. His Underpeople are marvelous creations, showing not only those traits normally associated with the best of humanity, but also characteristics of their underlying animal heritage, whether it be cat, dog, or turtle.

Not every story here is a gem, most especially those not set in his Instrumentality universe or those dealing with the very near future. But they are all very readable, and the overall level of quality here is absurdly high. Read this first. Then take on his only sf novel, Norstrilia. You won't regret it.

--- Reviewed by Patrick Shepherd (hyperpat)

A fine idea to put all Smith's short stories together, although the lesser known work is certainly that for a reason. It is still good to see all the Instrumentality of Mankind stories in one place, as some of them are brilliant, and there isn't a bad piece in the lot.

Even with the weaker unrelated stuff at the end, this still manages to average almost 3.75. Very nice.

Rediscovery of Man : No No Not Rogov! - Cordwainer Smith
Rediscovery of Man : War No. 81-Q revised - Cordwainer Smith
Rediscovery of Man : Mark Elf [Mark XI Vom Acht sisters] - Cordwainer Smith
Rediscovery of Man : The Queen of the Afternoon [Vom Acht sisters] - Cordwainer Smith
Rediscovery of Man : Scanners Live in Vain - Cordwainer Smith
Rediscovery of Man : The Lady Who Sailed The Soul - Cordwainer Smith
Rediscovery of Man : When the People Fell - Cordwainer Smith
Rediscovery of Man : Think Blue Count Two - Cordwainer Smith
Rediscovery of Man : The Colonel Came Back from Nothing-at-All - Cordwainer Smith
Rediscovery of Man : The Game of Rat and Dragon - Cordwainer Smith
Rediscovery of Man : The Burning of the Brain - Cordwainer Smith
Rediscovery of Man : From Gustible's Planet - Cordwainer Smith
Rediscovery of Man : Himself in Anachron - Cordwainer Smith
Rediscovery of Man : The Crime and the Glory of Commander Suzdal - Cordwainer Smith
Rediscovery of Man : Golden the Ship Was Oh! Oh! Oh! - Cordwainer Smith
Rediscovery of Man : The Dead Lady of Clown Town - Cordwainer Smith
Rediscovery of Man : Under Old Earth - Cordwainer Smith
Rediscovery of Man : Drunkboat - Cordwainer Smith
Rediscovery of Man : Mother Hitton's Littul Kittons - Cordwainer Smith
Rediscovery of Man : Alpha Ralpha Boulevard - Cordwainer Smith
Rediscovery of Man : The Ballad of Lost C'Mell - Cordwainer Smith
Rediscovery of Man : A Planet Named Shayol - Cordwainer Smith
Rediscovery of Man : On the Gem Planet [Casher O'Neill] - Cordwainer Smith
Rediscovery of Man : On the Storm Planet [Casher O'Neill] - Cordwainer Smith
Rediscovery of Man : On the Sand Planet [Casher O'Neill] - Cordwainer Smith
Rediscovery of Man : Three to a Given Star [Casher O'Neill] - Cordwainer Smith
Rediscovery of Man : Down to a Sunless Sea - Cordwainer Smith
Rediscovery of Man : War No. 81-Q - Cordwainer Smith
Rediscovery of Man : Western Science Is So Wonderful - Cordwainer Smith
Rediscovery of Man : Nancy [The Nancy Routine] - Cordwainer Smith
Rediscovery of Man : The Fife of Bodidharma - Cordwainer Smith
Rediscovery of Man : Angerhelm - Cordwainer Smith
Rediscovery of Man : The Good Friends - Cordwainer Smith

Soviet science couple's brain needle journey.

4 out of 5


Licence to kill, robots, anyway.

4 out of 5


Manhunter not too helpful for old timer.

3.5 out of 5


Suspended animation Underpeople awakening gives girl an Instrumentality role.

3.5 out of 5


Monopoly is bad, and worth doing something about.

5 out of 5


Solo starnaut sheila's suitor.

4 out of 5


Chinese Venusian megadrop.

3 out of 5


I am sailing, I am spoiling, across the stars, should be freezed.

3.5 out of 5


Lost soul pinlighting.

4 out of 5


Another actual use for a live cat. Fight you little bastich.

4 out of 5


Mind destruction manoeuvre rescue transfer.

3.5 out of 5


I wish they'd duck off.

3.5 out of 5


Time enough for love Knot.

4 out of 5


Lost planet female cancer trannie aggression solution is timeslip cat kill cull.

4 out of 5


Time for war, duckie.

4 out of 5


Witch woman and dead robot animal trial.

4.5 out of 5


Too happy is bad.

3.5 out of 5


Rage through space, really fast to dreams out of space.

4.5 out of 5


Old North Australia's mutant mad mink secret defense doesn't pussyfoot around with thieves and murderers. Or, Stop, You'll Eat Yourself.

5 out of 5


Hard to believe in France.

3 out of 5


Underpeople Lord assisted execution escapage.

4.5 out of 5


Pain punishment makes skin way more deep.

3.5 out of 5


Test dictated for horse help.

3 out of 5


Turtle girl's longevity vigil requires warrior assistant.

4 out of 5


Comeback confrontation dictated.

3.5 out of 5


Cackle-gabble telepathy search eating solution.

3.5 out of 5


Sacrifice power.

4 out of 5


Licence to kill, robots, anyway.

4 out of 5


Fascinated Martian chat.

3 out of 5


Virus life.

4 out of 5


Dainty noise weapon.

2.5 out of 5


Funny voice medium.

3 out of 5


No party mission.

3 out of 5



4.5 out of 5

Cordwainer Smith is the Leonardo De Vinccii of the sience fiction writers.
It's a pure pleasure to read his books.
It is a pitty that he wrote so few.

. Cordwainer Smith's WE THE UNDERPEOPLE is set in the future and tells of planoforming ships in which the Underpeople, humanlike beings created from animals to do human work, have no rights --and have become more than workers. When Rod joins forces with the cat woman C'Mell, rebellion is sparked.

I have been rereading Cordwainer Smith since I first discovered his writing in the 60's. For those who do not know Cordwainer Smith was the pen name of Paul Linebarger who passed away at the age of only 53.

This version brings together both the novel 'Norstrilia', aka 'The Planet Buyer', and short stories featuring the quest for freedom of the Underpeople. We get to look into the struggle for freedom through the stories of D'joan and C'mell. We meet the people of Norstrilia and the boy who bought Earth, Rod McBan the 151st.

Most of the science fiction and fantasy that I read make for good stories with plenty of action and well developed characters. But the fiction of Smith makes you enjoy his writing and think. This is especially true now that we are at the beginnings of gene engineering and cloning. These two things are the basis of his writing, even though these subjects were nothing more than Science Fiction 40 years ago.

I can only hope that a companion volume with the stories about the establishment of the Lords of the Instrumentality will be forthcoming. This is highly recommended for those who have never read any works by Cordwainer Smith and for those who wish to reread his works.

Smith wrote relatively few short stories and only one SF novel, mostly in the 1960's. Even so, he is one of the great SF writers with a style that is unique. His entire work is available in two hardback books, but this edition gives you his novel, Norstrilia, and the associated short stories (a large fraction of his total output). This is the most cost effective way get an introduction to his work, but you may end up wanting his complete short stories too and there is obviously overlap. I think this is better than the stand-alone Norstrilia because it includes the relevant short stories in one edition.

I have many, many SF books. Cordwainer Smith rates with the best of the Golden age; this collection should be on the shelf of any SF fan

As a second generation science fiction fan, I have happily read SF spread over decades. Time and time again I return to my slim volume of Cordwainer Smith stories. They are unlike any other authors, with fascinating characters and haunting story lines. You'll find yourself thinking about these tales long after you've read them.

This compilation of tales is a great introduction to the people (both real, and animal derived), politicial systems and worlds of Cordwainer Smith. Lyrical prose and haunting poetry are the hallmarks of this great writer, and the cast of characters while often changing from one short story to another have a historical, if not familial continuity - witness the Vomacts who held their name for over 10,000 years. The only downside to this book is that it is a "Best of" and therefore incomplete - hence the rating of 9/10. But it has a great timeline listing with (I think) all the stories listed so that you can complete the series. Note: Reviewed version was printed 1975, paperback from Ballantine Books, JJ Pierce editor. If you like Science Fiction, Cordwainer is a MUST!

I first read this book when I was about 11 years old (I'm 46 now). It has always stayed in my mind. In particular, the character C'Mell.

Although "Space Lords" contains only five of Cordwainer Smith's many fantastic science-fiction short stories, each story is a masterwork of language and imagination. A story by Cordwainer Smith reads like nothing else ever written; there is no way you could mistake him for another writer. His weird and wonderful future universe is entirely his own, and these key short stories illuminate various important points and events in its unfolding history. "Mother Hitton's Littul Kittons" shows the reader, by truly horrific example, why it is a very bad idea to try and rob the richest planet in the galaxy. The story of Joan of Arc is retold in "The Dead Lady of Clown Town" from a point of view taking place several centuries after the actual incident, so that the reader may compare famous paintings and poetic reconstructions with the real events. In "Drunkboat" a young man travels through the terrible poetry of Space-3 to reach the planet where his love lies dying; "A Planet Named Shayol" is about hell and people and the drug known as super-condamine. "The Ballad of Lost C'mell" is my single favorite piece of science fiction, so anything I say about it is going to be biased: read it for yourself. All five stories can be found in collections of Smith's work, such as "The Rediscovery of Man" or "The Instrumentality of Mankind," but "Space Lords" has an added bonus: a preface and afterword by Cordwainer Smith himself. As he died in 1966-far too early, by this reader's reckoning!-it's a strange sensation feeling that the author is speaking directly to his audience. But it's great. Read "Space Lords" if you can find it, both for its stories and for its glimpse into Cordwainer Smith the writer (it's a pseudonym, of course, but that's not the point) and his own comments on his writing. If not . . . find anything by Cordwainer Smith and read it! Trust me, you won't be disappointed.

Set centuries in the future, Cordwainer Smith's WHEN THE PEOPLE FELL tells of a new dark age on Earth, following global war, and then a civilization of colonists who arise to journey to the stars. These colonists use ships with big sails, cruising on waves of starlight and journeying faster than light - and fight against mind-eating creatures who lurk in space. A sweeping epic saga of this fantastic universe makes for a riveting drama perfect for science fiction fans of futuristic societies.

This is the second book in the Baen release of the collected works of Cordwainer Smith, pen name of Paul Linebarger. This volume contains the stories that deal with the Instrumentality of Mankind. A fascinating prolog by Frederik Pohl provides some background into the life of the author and the basis for the stories.

Some of my favorite --but less well known-- works are included, including "No, No, Not Rogov!" and the revised version of "War No. 81-Q."

In addition to the Instrumentality stories, the last six chapters include miscellaneous stories that don't fit into the universe created for the main. Included in this area is the original version of "War No. 81-Q" and the truly amusing "Western Science Is So Wonderful."

I can heartily recommend this collection as a necessary addition to the previous release We the Underpeople.

Pablo Capanna was born in Italy 1939. He presently resides in Argentina, a country he has adopted as his own.
He is a philosophy professor, journalist, essayist, literary critic but above all a sci-fi lover.
He wrote several interesting articles published in sci-fi magazines "El Pendulo" and "Minotauro".
He has written and published thoughtful books about several famous sci-fi authors as "Idios Kosmos. Claves para PKD" (1995), "J.G. Ballard. El Tiempo Desolado" (1993) and the present book amongst other.


In "El Se?or de la Tarde" Capanna gives the reader a complete vision of Cordwainer Smith life and works.
What has paramount interest, in my opinion, is the study, concordance and ordering of all the stories and novels that constitute the "Rediscovery of Man".
Thru this we may have a glimpse of Cordwainer's "future chronology" and follow the evolution of Humankind across the Universe from the earlier Vomacts, thru the Scanners up to Instrumentality Lords and Ladies.

Last but not least Capanna analyzes many of the strange names used by Cordwainer and explain its signification, giving important clues as to the whole backstage of that author's internal universe.

This is a very interesting book for sci-fi aficionados.
Reviewed by Max Yofre.

These 196-page Galaxy Magazines of the early 1960s were just a terrific bargain! You always knew that an absolute minimum of half the stories would be terrific.

Galaxy Magazine
Volume 20 No. 1, October 1961
Cover by Virgil Finlay

CONTENTS:

Novelettes
A Planet Named Shayol (Cordwainer Smith)
Arcturus Times Three (Jack Sharkey)
The Abominable Earthman (Frederik Pohl)
Short Stories
The Spy in the Elevator (Donald E. Westlake)
The Beat Cluster (Fritz Leiber)
Mating Call (Frank Herbert)
Amateur in Chancery (George O. Smith)
Crime Machine (Robert Bloch)
Articles
The Man Made Land (Willy Ley)
How Much is Enough? (H. L. Gold)

As I have written in a previous review, Cordwainer Smith will remain in the memory of all who read his books for the rest of their lives. His characters and situations, as well as language and style of writing, lend themselves to such strong imaginings, a state of dreaming in some cases, that the possibilities, however far fetched, may be, just maybe could happen. Just maybe could...
Thank You
David Bequette

Cordwainer Smith is the pen name of Mr. Paul M. A. Linebarger, who lived a comparatively short (1913 - 1966) and difficult life.
He was educated in China, Germany and USA. He loose one eye in an accident being a child. Had a PH degree in Political Sciences, was a university professor and worked undercover for CIA. At the same time he wrote fascinating sci-fi stories.

My first contact with the author's stories was "Alpha Ralpha Boulevard". It was obvious for me that this was a fragment of a greater story, full of mysterious and provoking ideas as the Rediscovery of Man, the Eketeli and so on. I was captivated by the imagery and searched for more works from Cordwainer Smith. Little by little they were appearing in different sci-fi magazines and short stories collections.

With this book you have the opportunity to read almost all the "fragments" constituting Cordwainer's universe, with consistent references to the underpeople, the Instrumentality, the Scanners and the rest of the interlaced icons of this particular Myth.

Remarkable stories are: "Mark Elf", "The Game of Rat & Dragon", "Mother Hitton's Littul Kittons" and "Under Old Earth".
A special mention must be done for "Ballad of Lost C'Mell" and "The Dead Lady of Clown Town" both dealing with the relationship of humans and underpeople. Mr. Smith had a very particular relation with cats and dogs. He loved them and his underpeople characters show this love.
As final note I may point out that "The Dead Lady..." is a forceful recreation of Joan D'Arc martyrdom.

This book contains a wonderful collection from an unjustly underrated author.
Reviewed by Max Yofre.

I first read this book when I was ten years old. That was thirty years ago. Even though my perspective has changed, these stories are still spell-binding. My favourite is the famous jaunt into space where a common pet cat creates a whole race of cats by accident. To the casual observer, seconds have passed. To the cat civilisation, billions of years. In fact, the cats end up more advanced than us...

This is a classic.