City
| Title | City
ACE #D-283 |
|---|---|
| Author | by Clifford D. Simak |
| Publication | Ace |
| Size | 252p |
| Language |  ENG |
| ISBN | |
| Topics |
American fiction--Science fiction American fiction--Philosophical Reality (Philosophy) Fix-up novel |
| Notes | a collection of short stories with a common theme of mankind's eventual exodus from Earth. As the tales unfold, they recount a world where humans, having developed superior transportation, have abandoned the cities and moved into the countryside. Hydroponic farming and decentralized power allow small communities to become self-sufficient. In the beginning the driving force for dispersion is the fear of nuclear holocaust, but eventually humans discover they simply prefer the pastoral lifestyle. The tales primarily focus around the Webster family, and their robot servant, Jenkins. The name Webster gradually becomes "webster", a noun meaning a human. Themes familiar to Simak readers recur in these stories, notably the pastoral settings and the faithful dogs. Each successive tale tells of further breakdown of urban society. As mankind abandons the cities, each family becomes increasingly isolated. Bruce Webster surgically provides dogs with a means of speech and better vision. The breakdown of civilization allows wandering mutant geniuses to grow up unrestrained by conventional mores. A mutant called Joe invents a way for ants to stay active year round in Wisconsin, so that they need not start over every spring. Eventually the ants form an industrial society in their hill. The amoral Joe, tiring of the game, kicks over the anthill. The ants ignore this setback and build bigger and more industrialized colonies. A later tale tells of a research station on the surface of Jupiter. [wikipedia] |
823 s
SIMA 3
39421
Available
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